The last of 2006 Part II

Continuation from the previous post:

23rd - 25th December 2006

So I spent my first week of holidays cramming on campus. It's so totally sad, I know. And so to "un-sadify" my life, my parents took the family for a trip to genting for the Christmas break. This should induce an impression of cool air, lotsa fun at the peak, luxury stay at the hotel, and so on. It was a break away from my serious cramming scheme alright.

Who would've thought one could get sunburnt in Genting?! Of all people, I had to be the victim. Some must be thinking: Congratulations for not being an ardent fan of face cream!
Looks pretty sad, don't I? It hurts bad, peeling and everything, it made me look like I had a blusher overdose! The thing is, I have never really used any throught my life. Back to the sunburn. Many would think how is it remotely possible to obtain sunburns in Genting. For crying out loud, Genting is cooling and everything. But people forget that you're further away above sea level, making you closer to the sun. This means the sun rays are filtered less, as you have less atmosphere above you for protection. Hence, more UV to bring you skin closer to wrinkle-dom! Hehehe, I miss Physics!

This is way early in the morning before I got the sunburns. Somehow, although I'm there to have fun, the mood to play isn't setting in at all. I ended up camwhoring with my parents, waiting around for my siblings to skip from one ride to another.

Look! Santa got a sunburn too! Aww, we so appreciate him travelling from the North Pole and getting sunburnt on the way. Hehe, WeiShien and SuetWah's all smiles.

Apparently, WeiShien can't get enough of The Black Santa, we joined SuetMun and me for another shot. Awana should've sponsored Mr. Santa some Banana Boat's in honour for his special appearance in a golf cart. Hmm... The reindeers must've crashed on the golfcourse.

Daddy's obliging a shot with me, it's rare. I love this shot, I thought the lighting made us both look better =D

We tried our hands at Archery. Though we can't quite hit the bullseye, we look good holding the bow. Quite "yeng" right? Lol...

See? I told you, camwhore in the flesh.

Awww... Don't they just look perfect together?

And my Aunty Angie decided not to be left out too! My dad's so lucky to have 2 women in his arms, teeheehee...

Look carefully and tell me is there any problem with this sign I found outside the ride called, The Toboggan. Wonder if I should send this in to The Star, who knows I might just get some cold hard cash!

We have Desperate Housewives, and I'm here to present you The Abandoned Men, whose children and wife are having fun somewhere in the theme park while they are left to have they coffee, newspapers, and only each other to sympathise.

As I'm typing this, I'm suddenly reminded of the sympathetic nervous system =(

Christmas Day this year is unusually special, a significant day for Fluffy and I.
Lol, this is just a teaser, full cover on that in the next entry.
Muahahaha...

14th December 2006

PharmNott's Christmas Dinner @ Mum's Place, Damansara Perdana

Nadia, LuLu, Grace, Me, SayYuen, and JuLi.

With SiowChin, WeiEn and SayYuen.

Everyone wants a piece of the only surviving population of the extinct-ing male species in Nottingham's Pharmacy School.
Goh, Augustine, Mr.Tiong, Jawad and Duncan.

Shots with the lovelies, Say Yuen (above) and Juli (below).


For those out there who has more photos, please send them all to me via our GroupWise account? I know I took more photos than this, hehe, I didn't get a smile cramp for nothing ^^.

The last of 2006

Yes, yes, I know I haven't blogged in, like, AGES already. Don't blame me, blame my exams. More on that later. For now, I want to finish recording my last moments in the last month of 2006. Hence, thought it's now 9 pm on the 12th of January 2007, I shall post this as if it's written on the 31st of December 2006. I'm too lazy too crap, so you guys are lucky *sniggers*

13th December 2006

This is Manjula, whose "CHOSEN ONE" happened to be, none other than moi. This really sweet senior of mine gave me a chirstmas gift in the event of our PharmNott's Xmas Gift Exchange. I drew Jojo's name from the lucky draw, but was unable to get a shot with her when I gave her the gift, because she seemed so busy. However, that very pretty lass was very sweet on our Christmas dinner and came to say thanks. My seniors are sooo nice! Photos on the Xmas Dinner later.

The gifts I received throughout the semester, on my very messy table in my flat. The photoframe thingy is a gift from Say Yuen, brought all the way from Dubai. The the Lil' Santa word and the Santa Globe comes from Manjula, and the glass dolphin (my favourite animal!) is a birthday gift from Ken. These are the only beauties on that very ugly table of mine. You should've seen it before i cleaned it after my exams recently. I can hardly find anything in that dumpster. That Pringles was my loyal destresser. Thank God for JUNKFOOD! Oh, and that can of oat, has been my breakfast for the entire semester EVERYDAY, without fail. I miss the times when I have Char Kway Teow for breakfast.

9th December 2006

MeiLynn, and Yuen Chang, my LaiMeng classmates back when I was in Standard 6. After so many years, I'm still the shortest, sigh... Bye Yuen Chang, I hope you are having fun in the States now. For the other 6U mates who happened to pass by, we'll be returning to LaiMeng on the 19th of January, for details, please contact Eugene.

7th December 2006
Selayang Hospital Visit!!!

With Say Yuen, all dressed up as instructed, Formally and Conservatively. I went shopping for this outfit on purpose. Like our professional look? Hehe... But then, no matter how well we're dressed...

No one can even tell if we're wearing just bikinies under that labcoat. Heck, I can't even see if i wore anything on my legs under that coat! Oh, and that's VoonMay, the lovely pre-registration Pharmacist who showed us around. She managed to finish the Pharmacy course okay? That's like sooo GREAT, she'll be my new idol. This first semester is already a killer for me.

This is dear Mr.Wong, my personal tutor. Who would've guessed he's turn up with a funky tie. I could've sworn it looked like a Mickey tie from say 500 metres away. He used to head the Pharmacy department in this hospital I heard, and now he teaches us microbiology. He may look rather ancient, but those stuff in his skull is nowhere near expiration. Seriously, he's still lightyears away from losing his mind due to old age. Experience does matter sometimes.

6th December 2007

Lookie who I found catching some forty winks in the administration building. He didn't even realise that I was giggling like a schoolgirl for several minutes. Next time Seetho, don't work too late on assignments!

5th December 2007

Ken took us to a restaurant in Semenyih we fondly call "House". Look, we have a traffic light among us! That's Lynnette in green, Lilian in yellow, and Ken in red.

Yes, this is the shot where Ken complained about having to bend all the way down . What's wrong with that? The weather down here seems fine to me.
*tongue out to you*

My 18th Birthday

A lovely surprise it was on Sunday morning, December the 3rd...

to wake up to a gorgeous bouquet, beside some early birthday gifts. I was like, WOW, this is the second time I receive flowers from some one else. Turns out that it was from my then Guitar Sifu, Fluffy-san. So sweet of him... MUAX. My favourite flowers, LILIES, all naturally scented.



Hehe... And some early wishes from my ex-BOSS... A pair of pink sandals, just what I need! My birthday is not even here yet, but I'm already feeling like I'm in seventh heaven. Can this day get any better?


See? This is how a happy 18 year old to be looks like, hehehe.

The rest of the day was spent with my family at our all time lepak spot, 1 Utama. I had to shop for some formal wear for the hospital visit on 7th December, which I will elaborate about later. Shopping was uber fruitful as I managed to pick up several items that has MY SIZE and are ON SALE! Yala, cheapskate la. But to put it nicely, wasting is bad, hehehe. My instincts told me that I must must MUST grab it. Should I defy my instinct's orders, I will feel like a part of my soul is torn away from me. Those bargains are like, SYOK beyond description.

Since I will be celebrating my birthday on campus, (it HAD to fall on a Monday), my daddy decided to treat me lunch on Sunday. We went to the much hyped about cafe, Ms.Read's Delicious.



See? Even the menu has pretty graphics! It's designs are oh-so-lovely that I couldnt't resist nicking one of their paper table mats home to add to my wall collection alongside my Kimi Raikkonen poster! Teeheehee...

Lucky drinks that were chosen for the afternoon.
Frosty Lemon Tea, Limenade, Watermelon and Lychee, and my brilliant choice that day, Death By Milk Chocolate. Fantabulous on the taste buds.

My Four Cheese Pasta. Do not underestimate it, solely by being judgemental on its size. Oh no, this little bowl of joy made me full to the brim even before I’m done with it. It’s full of CHEESE, I don’t think many excipients were added. Just CREAMY CHEESE, not watery gravy, like how some places would serve them to rip you off.

My sister’s HUGE Beef Lasagne. The other dishes weren’t served in portions as small as my pasta. Now that’s what I would call value for money. It’s CHEESEFUL, and yummy. I personally think this Lasagne would give Secret Recipe’s lasagne a run for their money. Teeheehee…

Up next, an excellent choice by my dad, some, erm, Turkish dish. I know, I know, I should’ve blogged earlier. I forgot its name, but nevermind, I have a photo of it. Behold…



A hungry dad.

And also a hungry brother who complained of starvation while we were shopping, contentedly devouring his Spaghetti Carbonara.



I must admit that I’m impressed with their eye for detail. Worth checking out on your next visit to One Utama, no kidding.

While loitering abit more in our favourite mall, we bumped into some relatives, who led us to Dragon-I for dinner. Next on the review list…

DRAGON-I, New Wing, One Utama.

Regretfully, I have to say that this review is going to be fairly short, mainly because I have no praise for this restaurant. The only thing I can say is that, their famous XiaoLongBao is worth a bite of two. But then, I may be wrong too, for I am not familiar with XiaoLongBaos. That aside, I sorta disliked the narrow environment, and the dim lighting. What are they trying to do? Blind their customers as they squint their way throught the menu? Or it could just be their way of making the multi-number pricings beside their dishes less visible. They charge a bomb for a simple dish. Heck, it so freaking plain, I can get a better bowl from Asia Café for just half the price. I’m so not going back to make the blood suckers watch as they rip people off their hard earned moolah.

When night came, it was time for me to go back to campus. Not long after I had reached and bathed. Bernard and I went for a stroll around our dark campus, stargazing below the infamous Nottingham clock tower, until the clock striked 12. I felt so very guilty, really. Mechanical Engineering students have a test the next day, and yet he was willing to spend time to be with me when the clock strikes. To make it worse, I had to ignore him, in a way, while I answer my calls. (Thank you all the lovely souls who called, I love you guys.) But he waited, patiently until I’m done. Aww… sounds so sweet right? But it was just part of a bigger plan. This was all a decoy.

Inside, schemers squeezed themselves inside my room, ready to pounce at me upon my return. As I walked back to my room, we did have some fun along the way *winkz* That was perhaps the beginning of something new. But that’s another story for another day. I was greeted with…

“Lilian went to bed early,” said Lynnette, joined by Say Yuen.

Out of habit, I went to check if Lilian’s sleeping okay, to make sure that none of my stuffs are in the way. Not wanting to wake her up, I pushed the door open slowly. To minimise the creaking of the hinges, you know, I never knew how to deal with it.

I’m not quite sure what happened next, but I just fell straight into recital mode, OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG… That was the only thing I can seem to utter, while I blush like I’ve never blushed before. Diana, Chien Hui, Christine, Cher Wei, Ying Ying , all of them my classmates were there. I LOVE YOU GIRLS. Then there were Alex, Seetho with the cake, and Jie Qiang, joined later by Ming Han and Gabriel. They serenaded me with Happy Birthday the Song, while Ken and Bernard accompanied them on theire guitars. There, The Plan unveiled. I am so glad to have such lovely people around me, they didn’t have to do that. A ‘choir’, a ‘live band’ and my favourite Cappucino Chese Cake. From what I’ve gathered so far, SOMEONE went through a lot of trouble to get the cake. Thank you dear. I really appreciated it.

That’s pretty much how my day started. I really enjoyed every single moment of it. More wishes flow through my phone right till the next day, after the clock strike 12! Wow, I don’t mind the late wishes really, as long as they come, and I know that there are many out there who care. I’m touched, I really am. I had a wonderful 18th birthday.

Taking a leave & Thank You-s

This is my On-Leave Post. Lol...

Work is piling badly, and I can't seem to find time to blog regularly anymore. It sucks. There goes my venting zone.

Hence, I'm declaring leave, at least until my holidays start, which is when Week 12 ends. That would be about... 16th December onwards! After which, I will post about all that has happened over the past few weeks. Yupyup! I've got pictures, MANY pictures, and even more to say. I actually have a post on the past week, but I just can't seem to end it. It grows longer while my desire to end it gets stronger. Will I ever shut up??? Tsk tsk tsk...

Oh yeah, before I end this, there is something macro, mondo important!

A GOOGLE THANKS...

to all the very kind and noble souls out there who made 4th December 2006 such a joy! Bless you guys! My life is full of amazing people! ^^ I can't express my gratitude enough, just wanted to let you all know it means more than you can ever imagine to me. Really! Cross my heart...

So now that I'm legally 18...

I wanna do all that was previously illegal! Muahaahaahaa...! I may be older, but that doesn't make me any more less evil! I can't think of many now, but I'm pretty sure I'll be inspired well soon, very soon. TIll next time people, Astalavista Baby!

Week 9

Time flies...
But annoyingly, at times, Father Time crawls too.

At speeds not even comparable to that of a newborn trying to crawl for it's too bloody slow, one can't help but to just feel totally helpless, and thoroughly annoyed.

Time has no mercy on me when I'm having that rare taste of sweet dream, when I'm having a pillow fight with my roomies just this evening, and also when I'm enjoying a warm, soothing bath in the shower. It rushes by like a drop of water moving through the rapids.
And yet, I'm powerless to do anything against the will of Father Time.

Sometimes I wonder if Time has misunderstood my plead for it to keep away from the accelerator. It overdoes the deceleration during a certain lecturer's hour of limelight. To say the least, it totally gets on my nerves.

I don't care if you look good to some, and that you've got a cute butt. Bloody learn how to speak a full sentence without several 3 second intervals in between. By repeating "So basically" and "So"more than a hundred times an hour doesn't make you a very tolerable presentor either. They claim that you've improved, and I'll give you due credit by acknowledging it. Sadly, it's not good enough for a lecturer at this level, especially when my colleagues, or your students can work through a presentation in a much more acceptable manner. Where have you hid your confidence? I can sense your doubts right back here on the third row. I don't see any reason why I should take your words for granted now, for you should know better than anyone else that professionals in our field cannot such the luxury of being in doubt, the consequence may just be too bitter to be beared.

With utmost understanding of your position as a newbie at lecturing, and your young age, I do not believe in compromising the grades of a batch of promising students who could otherwise be great just because we care for an incompetent individual. I'm neither challenging your position, nor attempting to get you fired, although I'm perfectly clueless as to why you were granted the privilege of being the bearer of wisdom from which we should tap from in the first place. They must've saw something in you that I have not, yet.

At least, I hope that is true. Buck up, for as much as I hate to admit this, our future lies in your hands. Unleash the potential that you may have, somewhere hidden inside you. Time waits for no one. Learn to earn my respect, for you do not deserve it, not yet. I believe I'm not too stubborn to the extent that my mind cannot be changed at all. Do it, or lose it. That's all I ask of you. And stop with that idiotic smile of yours, ewww... Your smile doesn't answer our questions, at the same time, it's nowhere near charming. Losing that stinky cologne that everyone hates will be great too! That'll save me from having to "accidentally" spill any better smelling chemicals we use during our Dispensing Lab session. Oh, and I don't care if it toxic or corrosive, Muahahaha...

Funnily enough, paranoia , irritation or anger doesn't describe what I'm feeling right now, as many would've wrongly assumed in the first place. As I'm writing this, I'm feeling a little smug for having done a decent dose of revision over the past few days. Fatigue is still haunting me, though naps have finally found their way back into my routine. Maybe it was the pillow fight that we had just now, a little bonding moment we shared, lol, good times definitely. Just a couple of minutes ago, I was lying down at the circular area in the middle of the campus watching the starry night sky. Perhaps the only good thing that Semenyih has to offer is a clear night sky, where you can see stars in numbers that you can no longer count with your fingers and toes, especially when you're in good company *winkz*. That time of the month is also here to make a life a more complicated, besides a little minor bodily malfunctions that's nothing much to worry about. A little headache, chapped lips, dry skin here and there, but that's about it. I guess this is the time when everyone start getting a little worked up with their coursework, while everything else starts taking its toll on the human body.

We are not super humans after all. I'll take this as an experiment to see how far I can push my tiny little body.

P/s: PharmNotts will be organising a Blood Donation Drive next Monday. The main criteria for donors are above 18, above 45kgs, not having period, HIV and Hepatitis free. I can't donate, because I'm disqualified by some of the required criterias. But I do hope those who can will be wiling to contribute. Remember, what goes around, comes around. You may just need that bit of good karma one day. Please support our cause! All donations go to The National Blood Bank.

Nasty November, memories of October.

It's soooo hectic! My hours of classes per week have just soared to a peak of 23 hours per day. Not taken into account yet is the hours I spent sprinting from class/labs/ library , to library/lab/class. Not forgetting the number of lunches that I missed for those extra hours of lab/ library work, then the number of Maggi Cup that served me ever so loyally, and consistently throughout the semester. Sure, we don't have homeworks that are due the next morning like when we're back in primary school. But our self-assigned homeworks feels much more tedious and stressful, than those assigned by teachers.

Deadlines, deadlines, and more deadlines... argh! Better have Rumah Bahagia's number handy, just in case. I think I'm experiencing moments of Stress-Overdrive-Insanity already. Chocolates ans Pringles help ease me up, so I make sure I have ample of supply, and keeps up with a diet consisting of much sugar and calories. Somehow, I keep feeling that my pants are getting more loose by the day... from pullin gup my pants 2 or 3 times a day to several times every few minutes. This cannot continue! What if my pants really fall off one day??? I don't want people staring at my colourful collection of underwears, even if I think they're gorgeous. Shy ma!

There's pretty much nothing to blog about. So I'll just put up a paragraph as a brief summary of my week.

Sleep has been scarse, as I struggle to cope with lab preparations and revision. Whole day labs, it's like a brain cell killing spree. 10am till 5pm okay? I mean, it's like my 3rd home! I'm so sick and tired of it. Preparations alone take several days, costing many meals in between. Pharmacy students, I noticed are being trained physically too. The amount of arm muscle work and leg work (the sprintings, I mean, you only see pharmacy students do that) is enough to keep us as well trained as school athletes, at least. Sleeping at 3/4am is now part of my lifestyle. My only retreat is now attending guitar lessons with Fluffy, and chilling with my roomies after class. What's fun throughout the whole week was mamak-ing, and watching the starry night sky with Fluffy and Ken. I felt so stressfree that time. I just realised that I've let my work take over my life, depriving me of all the little pleasures in life, preventing me from enjoying and savouring them. Thursday nights are times when I can afford to take some time off to relax. I missed the Cultural Night event, which I really wanted to attend, initially intended to get some really exotic Henna Tattos on my waist, but duty calls. Sigh, don't really know how long can I keep it up like this. I certainly hope it'll all pay off someday, somehow.

The following week has much to offer, this I'm glad to say. Enough to keep my sanity in check, I think. Monday is Pillow-Case-Bag day! Look out for Pharmacy Students dragging their stuffs in their pillowcases! Grab a camera and take a shot with us ya? Then there's my first official lesson with Rubens, my assigned guitar tutor by the Music Society. I'm really looking forward to it, am very very keen to pick up this new skill. Also, Mr. BDB is having his 2nd SuperStar audition on Saturday! Wish him tons of luck...

As for today, I've decided to go return to campus much later than usual. Having a family gathering later in the day, wee! More non-Semenyih food!

A few days ago, I noticed my blog's rather photo deprived, so here're some photos from October.


Daddy's Birthday, Oct 25th.


The boyish 49 year-old...


Now he's cheeky...


"Almondy", from Sweden. Super yummy I tell you!


We love daddy!!!


Mid-Autumn's Festival!


Having fun with the neighbours kids.


Mummy & Daddy dating, in lantern light under a full-moon... so romantic! teeheehee~~


My bro, Shien being the greedy lil monster... lols...


He took all the lanterns and left none for me *upset*


I got one! But abit suspicious... Maybe got bomb...


A BIG BABY playing with lanterns >>> HAPPY~~!

You'd notice that this entry is rather hastily put together. Sorry, like I said, life's really hactic and I'm currently going through Brain-Juice-Drought. Bear with me.

The Human Guinea Pig

Knowing that this MPharm, journey will not be without experimenting on subjects... I never did think that one day, I will be The Subject.

Allow me to reintroduce myself, I am Suet Ling, the Guinea Pig. Earlier today, I signed a consent form for voluntary experimentation. And not long after that, I was administered a Prescription-Only-Medicine(POM), in one eye, and saline in the other.

They tried to convince me that no side effects or complaints have been lodge from tis usage thus far, and that they have excellent medical coverage. However, I wasn't assured. First of all, it's a POM, that means in appropriate and/or incorrect usage could lead to severance of my eye. Secondly, Dr. Shalini (medical doctor, not a PhD canholding lecturer, in this case) is here to attend our class today, for a REASON.

I took that little package, and signed at the receipt of the POM. See how serious it is? This is not just some drug. *GULP* How? Take only lor... Worse come to worst, blind only ma... *sweating profusely*

As I awaited my turn, all I could do is only observe the others who have already started. It didn't help at all, seeing my fellow colleagues fleeing immediately after administration. Wee Yuen even dropped by at my group to say hi, all of her subjects have fled to wash their eyes, even before she can take any results at all. My doubts which I've tried to suppress resurfaced in an instant, only this time, more powerful. What have I gotten myself into? Initially, I volunteered not because I did it "in the name of Science", but it was actually due to my playfulness. Why haven't I grown out of this? Then it came my turn...
.
.
.
.
.
I'm not gonna describe the tedious and lengthy processes. It is yucky. Those who saw the changes in our eyes were gawking. We, as subjects are stunned too. Did I mention that the drug effect will not wear off till 4 hours later, and that subjects are advised to wear sunglasses, and not handle machinery or vehicle, prior to the wearing off of the drug? Not meaning to underestimate you, but you wouldn't understand. I don't either. I spent a whole night preparing for this Laboratory Studies in Physiology and Pharmacology (lenghty names, but damn pro sounding, hor?), which contributed to nearly nothing throughout the session. Frustrating, ain't it? I think I may just go bald even before I reach the end of my course, yikes! That is, if I don't die of self-drug-testing first. Dr.Ting did mention that there will be no animal sacrifice on our 4 year journey. Yay! Animal rights have finally been served in universities, let us all hope that this is the only the start and many more institutions will follow suit. I only hope to live long enough to see the changes. That is, I survive 4 years of drug testing!

Can someone please convince me, that, my life has not been shortened in any way, and that I will not suffer any adverse side effect later in the future because of this? Can't help but to think that way. Help...

Shall embrace myself for future experimentations.

Rombongan Cuci Baju

With the DeepaRaya hols safely tucked into the past, I guess its safe to assume that its about time I stop taking leaves off blogging too. For the entire semester 1 that consists of 12 weeks, I've only got one week off. That's it. No more. Nah-uh. =(

I got Week 5 off, only because we've got the kind-ess lecturers in the whole wide world!!! If not for Dr. Doughty, we would have to attend classes on Monday before a short break, then crawl through the classroom entrance just for 2 hours on Friday. See? told you he's a great person!

In total, we would have 9 days off. Isn't that great? I've got plans drawn up one week before the holidays even started. With holidays being so scarse, it's no surprise that I would wanna savour every single second of these sweet sweet days. So sweet that diabetics will just have to give way, Muahahaha~

This holiday, have only led me to believe, even more strongly, that...

MY GREATEST ENEMY IS NONE OTHER THAN MYSELF.

I said I wanted pleasure. But my conscience is shouting a BIG FAT NO! And in the end, guess who won? It's pathetic.

On Thursday, with 4 more days of my holidays to go, I was back on campus, in the sweating like a fountain in scorching Semenyih. Up till this very minute, I still cannot imagine what the hell was running through my mind when I made that decision. Abandoned, back in Valencia, was my desktop, my cosy little room and toilet, where I can walk around in my birthday suit in full glory without worries, my very loyal and COLD Air Conditioner, and glorious food! Stupid idea, I know. This is even more moronic than voting for William Hung in American Idol.

So there I was, counting the seconds off my VIRGIN weekend stay on campus. Of course, with a virgin stay, there followed many more virgin activities, that I had not previously attempted before. For instance, on Sunday, I participated in the “Rombongan Cuci Baju”.

30 minutes of staring at the sole unit of washing machine in the entire hall was rather amusing. The pioneers, namely Lynnette, Snowy, and Lillian, showed me the ways of a true member of the Rombongan.

In honour of the efforts put out by our pioneers, I’ve come up with a slogan. Hear this…

The Rombongan Cuci Baju, in The Great Machine we trust.

Taa-daa~ Say hi to the pioneers of the Rombongan Cuci Baju.



First, a true member must bring her own pail, even if the member intends to wash only her handkerchief. The reason for this will be elaborated on later on. Then the member must have succeeded the preliminary mission of gathering part of the required 6 x 50 cent coins, to be qualified for participation in that particular week’s Rombongan. Precise understanding of the instructions written on the washing machine is crucial.

What follows is the Practical Test. The member must prove their constant competence to be worthy of their membership in the Rombongan. A chosen member would be appointed to serve The Great Machine. The worship procedure starts with every member contributing their laundry offerings into the large cavity built deep in the middle of its majestic white structure. This process must be followed by purifying our offerings, by drizzling on the secret potions of Dynamo, and Fabric Softener in generous amounts. Following that, the chosen member will present The Great Machine the symbolic items of worship, 6 SHINY 50 Cent coins. The moment the last coin was being presented to it, it sprang into life! At this precise moment, the chosen member must key in our prayers through it delicate buttons, asking for blessings onto our laundry. After which, the fate of our laundry shall entirely be in the decision of The Great Machine.

The Great Machine takes about 30 minutes to decide. Hence, we are assured that whatever decision that it comes to, would have been after much consideration. However, all members are not allowed to show any signs of disrespect for it, especially when it’s deep in thought, or risk being blasted instead of being blessed. I personally can sense the restlessness in The Great Machine, vibrating vigorously, tossing and turning our laundry about, carefully evaluating our sincerity and worthiness of its blessings. The best way to wait for it, without disturbing its concentration of Holy Energy, is to tip over our pails, and meditate on it. Yes, the moment I did as I was told, I felt completely different. The feeling of being on a pail is indescribable…


After 30 minutes of anxiousness has passed, The Great Machine has finally come to a verdict for its loyal devotees. It has granted us its blessings, and bestowed onto us, clean, and fresh smelling laundry in return! The final Ritual of Gratefulness was performed by accepting its blessings. A true member must not reject it as it might otherwise have incurred the wrath of The Great Machine.

From that moment on, my faith in The Great Machine has been sealed, now and forever!

Smelling like the cafeteria...

When everyone starts smelling like the cafeteria...

You know that its after lunch hour.

You know that the cafeteria have just been deodorised by stink-absorbing students.

You know that the clock tower will chime more than 2 times from then on.

You know that some students are glad to have finished their classes for the day.

You know that others are more than ready to nap in the classroom for the following classes.

You know everyone is, yet again, complaining about bad food.

You know everyone has just gone a little bit poorer.

You know everyone's dying to bathe.

You know everyone's trousers/ skirt has just got tighter.

But...!
All the above doesn't matter.

The cafeteria still STINKS!

Why, oh why must they cook inside? They should really upgrade the ventilation system. Students are suffocating in there. Many brain cells died with every inhalation of cafeteria air. Blame the cafeteria for bad grades!

Being the sole provider for food on campus, hence limiting our food choices to a maximum, the least they could do is provide DECENT EDIBLE food. After all, they'll be earning off the pockets of most of the campus population, and unfortunately for some, 3 times a day, for a whole year! So they shink, we all know that. What we also know is that their food is, sad to say, nowhere near edible. The same old servings everyday, every meal. The same bad taste, and worse, the same naughty staff.

I must say I'm more than extremely glad to have a talented accountant-in-the-making cum chef to be living with us in Number 58. To our delight, Lynnette whips up mouthwatering dishes occasionally to share with us. What I'd usually do is to "tar pao" plain rice from the cafeteria back up to the kitchen, where I know delicious food will be waiting for me to savour. But there will always be several mischievious Indian fellas who would always try to test my patience.

Case 1: Conversation with Indian Dude #1
"Nasi putih biase, bungkus."
*He scoops just a spoonful into the styrofoam container, much to my annoyance*
"Tak cukup lah, bagi banyak sikit..."
*He adds half a bowl of rice*
"tambah lagi satu mangkuk, boleh tak?"
*He stares wide eyed at me, then says...*
"Ah moi, jangan makan banyak sangat, nanti gemuk"
*I smile and try very very hard not to show him 3 of my fingers*

Case 2: Conversation with Indian Dude #2
"Nasi putih, saje. Berapa?"
"Lima Ringgit, kak."
"Haha, jangan main lah, cakap betul-betul, berapa?"
*He shows me a yellowish toohty grin*
"Satu ringgit lah."
*Again, I try to hold those 3 fingers to myself, sighing about my hard luck with meeting staff like that.*

Why me??? I don't see them bugging the others... *sob sob*

I don't like the cafeteria. I've got that set in my mind. The constant hassle of having to trade crisp real money for monopoly-like paper money is annoying enough to irritate me after a long day of classes. I may or may not be biased. Go figure.

the tale of me and jewelleries...

HAPPY 13th BIRTHDAY to MUN MUN!!!

Just in case some of you don't know, Suet Mun is my other younger sister.



Haha, this is a VERY ancient photo, back in June 2005, one of my favourites though. She's the rascal on the far right.

Let me introduce the Trio: We have SnowBell (me), SnowFlake (Suet Wah), and SnowKiss (Suet Mun)

Teeheehee... The Snow Sistahz! For Mandarin Noobs out there, the word Snow is derived from our mandarin names, and translations will give you these very adorable names!

This inspired us to get a Snowy gift for our little sister.



A SnowFlake necklace! There goes several of my lunches. It was worth it. She's a big girl now, at 13 years old. Getting gifts are not exactly my forte, but jewelleries are a safe choice, for girls especially. Except for...

...ME.

Eversince I was little, I remember Mom would force me to wear some hideous looking gold coloured (not sure if they really are gold, never asked) necklaces, especially during functions. And oh, how much did I dreaded those chains! I would tug and tug and eventually get it off whenever she has her attention somewhere else. Don't tell me it's pretty, I don't like stuff hanging on my neck. On my ears too! As you may have guessed by now, she did try to force me to pierce my ears. Thank God I was (and still am) as stubborn as a mule, and never gave in to her demand. I don't see any point in puncturing any part of my body just so I can poke something through for the sake of looking pretty. What's even more ridiculous, is spending money to puncture ear lobes, suffer the pain, then spend even more moolah on buying stuff to cover the hole you've just created. With opportunistic bloodsucking entrepreneurs haunting our streets, they prey on women's thirst for cutesy, shiny, and "pretty" stuff to decorate themselves, charging a bomb for every little thing.

Necklaces, earrings, bracelets, rings.... latest ones include belly rings, nose rings... God knows what's next. Seriously, is it really that pretty? I don't see why wearing these are gonna make you seem more attractive. Trust me on this, most guys won't even notice if you wear earrings. They also dont' really care if you accessories match your outfit. Yes, my dears, they can be THAT insensitive, reality IS harsh. In addition to the fact that we're in Malaysia, be well adorned in such accessories, and you'll risk bring the prime target of snatch-thieves.

This, in my opinion is what I call unnecessary indulgence. All in the name of beauty? Bullshit. Beware, I'm not your ordinary girly girl. I kick, and yeah, I bite too. Challenge me?

Mixed Feelings

Brilliant, just brilliant! I forgot to bring back my phone cable from campus again. I am such a smartass. No pictures for this entry then.

"Life is a rollercoaster..." Ronan Keating sings.

Sometimes I wonder if life would be much different if humans aren't "blessed" with emotions. They are complicated, and tough on the human brain. Feelings change, from time to time, place to place, sometimes it does the body good, sometimes it does harm. If sadness ceases to exist, humans will never know what happiness truly means, and vice versa.

Sure, happiness and other feelings that fall into that category does the body good. Although in peculiar little ways, only Mother Nature can come up with. Not forgetting the addictive psychological effect it has on humans. It only creates more lust for happiness, enticing cravings for the same feelings, or even something more powerful than the previous, just to feed human's selfish needs. Everyone's after happiness as they think it is bliss.

But I beg to differ.

Happiness is pure evil. Its existence mean nothing more than a temptation for vulnerable humans. To achieve hapiness, humans discovered disappointment, sadness. Psychological endurance are pushed to edging limits, in more unfortunate cases, it pulled some human's venture for happiness to an ultimate halt. In the pursuit of "happiness", many have endured endless sufferings of various degrees. Those who have experienced it claim to have accepted it willingly in the name of sacrification. I wonder did anyone ever question whether it is worthwhile to continue working hard toward the goal of achieving "happiness". Especially when so many people whom I dearly love are not having the time of their lives, solely because they feel "happiness" have eluded them.

But, what do I know? I'm just a confused 17 year old suffering from mixed feelings right now. I shall pour my heart out on this entry.

I'm happy because:
- I'm back home, eating good food, and living comfortably.
- The duckies are big and strong.
- My new roomies and I are getting along very well indeed, and we're making strong bonds. (Suddenly I felt like I was talking about chemistry.)
- I can shoot basketballs quite decently now.
- Mun's finally turning 13 today.
- I get to eat cakes today!
- I like the BoA CD Ken lent me.
- I got several new decent chat buddies.

I'm upset because:
- Mom's sick.
- I'm sick too. This period thing is dreadfully painful, wish I don't have a Nervous System.
- Work in university is piling up badly, and I don't understand a thing.
- I've got a moron for a lecturer. Yes, he is THAT bad.
- Yuen might be leaving us.
- I miss the old chicken.
- A couple who were my nannies when I was young passed away. (Missed you guys dearly.)
- My favourite bedside lamp is damaged beyond repair.
- My handphone has a slight scratch on it because I so cleverly put it in the same compartment where I would find my keys.
- There aren't any F1 races this week.
- I have yet to watch The Devil Wears Prada.

There. It's all out. Laugh at my stupidity.

Lab safety induction

Supposed to post on Wednesday, but I can't seem to post on campus, which is bloody annoying. Treat it as Wednesday.

As conventional as this phrase has thus far turned out to be,

I had a WEIRD day in university yesterday.

Not the least bit catchy, I know. Nerding after class hours has currently drained out most of my brain juices anyway. Please be warned that loads of sleep inducing entries are coming in your way.

It's been some time, since the day I first stepped into Room 58. Settling so far, has be quite a breeze, thankfully, with great new roomies being so hospitable and all. I started off waking up slightly after sun rise, when it gets just a little too hot to snore. Growing accustomed to the unavailability of air conditioners, with a little help from boring yet exhausting (forcing eyelids open takes a great deal of energy and self perseverance) classes, I am back to my regular self, when sleeping way past bed time is my forte. And so is, slapping the alarm into snooze mode to ring after 10 minutes.

Today's our first Lab Safety Induction, our virgin visit to the labs. I see equipments, loads of them, looking arrogantly high-tech, spanking new ones, super shiny!!! Ooo... the overwhelmed feeling kept me from even laying a nail on them. As per prediction, all of us sat through a series of lullabies speeches by several lecturers. However, that wasn't the highlight of the day.

We got FREE lab coats + goggles!!! Lo and behold...



Showing yours truly with my flat mate cum course mate, Snowy =)...

Future pharmacists, so what if we're not exactly the pros yet. At the very least, we LOOK PRO. Wakakaka...

Unlike several Future Mechanical Engineers...



A very big baby, sucking thumbs and drinking from milk bottles. Ang gu gu...



And two very gay ones, Hafriz & Seetho, see them wearing the couples outfit? I will not be surprised to meet a certain Seetho Jr. bin Hafriz soon. Just to point out, Jie Qiang is innocent, he just happened to be in the picture.



I thought our campus of 101-acres is a very large area. Note: Thought (past tense). Now, I think this place is microscopic. I can't stay on a campus a day, without bumping into these fellas several times a day. Gah~ I was just talking about the boys, when they suddenly turned up at the restaurant where I was having lunch. This particular incident repeated itself for my entire lunching session with my course mates. A certain lecturer, a specific dude who has gained much attention recently for all the wrong reasons, a particular friend... Motivated, I chanted Kimi Raikkonen's name. I guess it doesn’t take a genius to know that disappointment followed right after. Who am I kidding? Just because it coincidently happened that whoever I mentioned happened to appear right before my eyes the next second, doesn't mean it will happen again. Well, it didn't, not when I WANT IT to.

Classes ceased after lunch, and I was thinking of forcing out some sweat. That would release some of the tension from the old crackling joints. Somehow, the sports complex was jam packed, there was no space, we had not enough racquets and balls. I ended up having one of the weirdest conversations thus far on campus. Wanna know how bad it was? There were moments of silence, which was broken later one by "Hmm... today's weather is very nice." What is this? That's gotta be the first, that's gotta be the worse. We were clouded with intense awkwardness in the air. Which left me rather confused at the end of the day.

If there's one thing about staying on campus that changed me, it would be that during my free time in the room, I would drown myself in stacks of notes between thick books. This is where I find solace. An opportunity to go into deep thought for a moment or two, then brushing it off with intense revision. You can say it keeps me from losing my sanity. As noisy as I may be, I do need some moments of silence to... I don't know... delve in silence. Nerding continued till 1 am. I would never have been able to achieve it at home. This will be a little thing I shall be proud of. Following the disappointment of my A Levels results, I morphed all negativity into motivation & determination. Thank God for optimism.

With spending a little time afterwards, fooling around in cyberspace, I went to bed contented, ready to take one another day.