top 0.1% and this is what i get

"Saying nothing... sometimes says the most."

-Emily Dickinson-

FARK FARK FARK.

Fark exams, fark tutorials, fark the common bathroom without a water heater.

Farking bad mood now.

Urrgh.

On an unrelated note...

HAHAHAHA RIDICULOUS what???? Lame.



***

You know how hard it is to survive when you're in one of the top 100 universities in the world (which is actually the top 0.1% of universities world wide)? Yeah, we're all struggling. So I'm writing a guide on it to help freshmen orient themselves into this new hectic and stressful life. Hopefully It'll get published some time around next year or so.

I was just going to add "though some of you may NEVER have the chance to experience being in the top 100 universities because back when you had the chance, you weren't mature enough to think that studies are actually GOOD FOR YOUR OWN FUTURE" but decided against it because I didn't want to discriminate. Apparently I've again changed my mind. I happen to be one of those people who don't really take pity on others if they acted like they wanted to destroy their own future by not putting importance in education in the first place.

Don't get pissed off because you'd be wasting your own energy hating me when I don't even know it.

Back to the point - I'm aiming to publish my very own book soon! Stay tuned!!

P.S.: Just in case you were wondering - yes, I do have the credibility to write that book because I myself am in the world's top 100 universities. Ahah. I'm such a show off. I think I should have my rights for that, especially when I'm stressing my ass off over here.

Holy... Whatever.

That's what I'm in right now.

I procrastinated today.

Completed half of Jap homework and ONE tutorial question from Mechanics of Materials. Watched 12 episodes of Elfen Lied (it's a really nice anime; you HAVE to watch it); just finished the series.

Whoopdeedo.

P.S.: Now you know my super-duper-ultimate bad habit: not being able to limit myself to watching ONE episode of anime per day. Sue me.

of fur and wool.

"Ignorance is bliss."

-Unknown-

Kevin: Sheep have fur.

Me: No, sheep does not have fur! Sheep have fleece.

That's right, sheep's fur provides us with fleece.

No, sheep's fleece provides us with wool.

NO!! Sheep's fur provides us with fleece!! Wool is from cotton.

No, cotton is from worms!!! DUH!!

Cotton don't come from worms; SILK comes from worms. Cotton comes from plants.

... Oh. Right. Well then, where does wool come from?

No idea.

Told you it came from sheep.

Whatever.

Writer alert.

"OMG WTH!!!! WHICH IDIOT TOOK THIS PIC!!!"

-Rae on Facebook-

Remember Ryan?

Yup, that story with the tag line:

Is it the fate of the female species to have to live in a loveless marriage for the rest of their lives, where their only responsibility is to uphold the honor of their husbands and provide them with heirs?

I had forgotten how the story went, and I decided to read it again.

Oh, how is it that my language seemed to flourish much more back then? I didn't realize I had such writing potential.

*scoffs*

*Spoiler: For those of you who still don't understand the ending - yes, she did it on purpose. Note 'crocodile tears' at the last sentence.*

Remember What Is Cinema?

I know you guys might have read it from my Associated Content web page, but I have decided that AC doesn't earn me much (heck, I only earned 25 cents so far, after 3 whole years of publishing my stuff there!), so I decided to post it on Raedarling Chimera too. I know it isn't fiction, but what the heck. It's my blog, so I get to give myself exceptions. So there.

Remember I also said I'd written a paper on Metamorphosis and how I didn't want to post it online just in case I got caught for plagiarizing myself?

Well, I got my paper back today, and I got a B+ for it. I guess that's okay, though I was aiming for at least an A-.

Here it is.


***

Some smart-alec decided to post this picture up on Facebook:


See how I look like I'm desperately flapping my arms in the back?

I remember very well I was supposed to be playing badminton. Don't ask me what happened back there.

At least this is one of those rare pictures of me where friends actually 'like' it.

***

P.S.: I'm gonna delete my AC account soon; it doesn't earn me as much as Nuffnang does anyway.

P.P.S.: I'm not showing off; I'm merely sharing my works with you guys so my writing efforts don't go to waste. Also hoping that some random book publisher might stumble upon my blog and actually appreciate my works and ask me to write for him or something.

*pfft. Fat chance.*

PLEASE VOTE FOR ME!! LEFT 2 MORE DAYS!!! CLICK HERE TO VOTE! http://apps.facebook.com/promotionshq/contests/6864/voteable_entries/1188808

Bumptop

There are managers so preoccupied with their e-mail messages that they never look up from their screens to see what's happening in the nondigital world.

-Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi -

First off, watch this 2-minute video. Go on, watch it. It won't take long.

Spent 2 whole hours last night personalizing my desktop. It now looks like this:

Fig 1: My new desktop.

Click on its front wall, and the view changes to this:

Fig 2: Side view.

Cool, huh?

Just in case you're wondering, yes those images you see hanging on the wall are actually programs and files; I varied their sizes according to order of importance; the bigger the image is, the more important the file/program is.

See that FUCK icon on the left? It's actually my 'uni' folder where all my academic stuff are. The 'home movies' poster lying on the floor is actually my "Movies" folder where all my movies are. That big patch of comic? That's my tasks.

See tiny Stitch hanging on the right? That's my screenmate, Stitch. It's a program where Stitch crawls all around your computer screen, making weird noises and stuff. He even picks his nose occasionally and throws his nose poo onto your desktop. The lamb beside Stitch is another screenmate, Lamb. He is similar to Stitch, but less annoying.

See that stressed out cartoon guy on the floor? He's my Stress Reducer. It's a program which allows you to destroy your desktop without literally smashing it (hence costing an arm and a leg for repairs afterwards, when you later find yourself no longer in a state of insanity).

This is what you call vandalizing your room without getting grounded:

Fig 1: Illustration of how Stress Reducer works effectively for your computer and your health. Note cracks and termites on floor. How zen.

Of course, personally, I'd rather put this brilliant program to better use:

Fig 2: Illustration of how I might misuse Stress Reducer against my enemies.

Yeah, be so jealous of my newly pimped desktop. You know you are.

Wanted to illustrate further by taking a video of my desktop with all those cool Bumptop features and stuff, but there was a technical problem that made me go "WAHHHHHT THAAA FFFF...."

So there you go.

I'm a tech noobie.

***

On an unrelated note, HAPPY BIRTHDAY WAN THENG!!

Here are your presents:

Sorry that I uploaded the pictures of me with your presents instead of those pictures of you with your presents. LOL.



P.S.: That birthday card was handmade by ME. Yours truly. Thank you, thank you no need to compliment me but since you're already doing it I'll accept it anyway.

Amelie

"The fool looks at a finger that points at the sky."

-The Sacré-Coeur Boy, Amelie-

So I've just finished watching Amelie, a movie I quite "forced" myself to finish, because on some parts, it really didn't interest me much.



On the other hand, I'm glad I finished it. Though it's ending isn't as romantic as some people might claim, it's still worth a watch.

A kinda different genre from the movies you'd usually catch on theaters. I love how Amelie's life is portrayed so meaningfully despite the fact that she's just a waitress in a small cafe, and you'll have to admit, there's not much of a future in that.

I guess this just goes to show that the quality of your life isn't all about how much money you earn, or what you work as.

When I was younger, I wanted to be a doctor.

Then, I changed my mind and decided to be a singer.

Then a scientist.

Now, I just want to be happy.

I don't do movie reviews (though I pride myself to say that I do critic movies quite well, ever since I completed my course on 'What Is Cinema?' in my last semester); already evident from the fact that I've always mentioned about the movies I've watched, but never did bother to put much thought on... uh... reviewing it?

Or whatever you call those "descriptions-about-movies" and stuff.

If you had really wanted those, you'd be at IMBd, not here.

Of course, having already "What Is Cinema?" and currently studying "Introduction to Magical Realism (in films and books)", you'd expect me to be able to critic/review books and movies pretty well.

It's just that, I don't do these stuff. It's too academical.

I mean, yes, I do love doing these courses, on giving your own original thoughts and opinions and stuff on literature and art (what can I say? I love flaunting my language and my eccentric thoughts), but not here.

'Aight, it's late. Shit, I've got a 8.30 a.m. lecture tomorrow. Arrgh. I hate Wednesday nights.

P.S.: VOTE FOR ME BY CLICKING: http://apps.facebook.com/promotionshq/contests/6864/voteable_entries/1188808, Thanks much!!!

Magix.

“The trouble with crying over an onion is that once the chopping gets you started and the tears begin to well up, the next thing you know you just can’t stop!”

-Like Water For Chocolate, page 3-

So there's this website called Cursor Mania, which apparently allows you to change your computer cursor to any design you wish, other than your boring old arrow pointer.

Which I think is cool.

Lookit all the cutesy cursors!!!

Now, look. Isn't this cool?

My cursor is currently a cute flower with orange petals and blinking eyes.

Sorry for the lack of updates again; exams are coming in precisely 34 more days and I've not started on stocking up my brain with useless information just yet.

Last night was hectic. Bad mood. Don't ask.

Here's my art piece:

Can you guess what it is?

Guess!!

Here's 10 seconds for you.

...

.....

It's a lion. Duh.

If you're wondering how I did it, it's fairly simple. First, I drew the black outline using a black marker, then I scanned it onto my computer, cleaned it up a little, and then added color to it using Adobe Photoshop.

Haha. I am so talented, no?

Am currently reading Like Water For Chocolate; it's a book about Tita, a girl who is forbidden to love and marry, because of her unfortunate fate of being the youngest daughter, hence, having to take care of her mother until the day she dies.

As all love stories are, Tita then goes against the family tradition and falls in love with Pedro. With the two of them so in love with each other but not being able to get married, Pedro then decides to instead marry Tita's sister just to be able to get close to her.

Genre of book?

Magical realism.

Chickens forming tornadoes, body heat setting bathrooms on fire, teardrops making people puke, love making so intense it emits fireworks.

All happening in "reality". Or so it happens oh-so-apparently in the book.

You guessed it. I'm reading this book for my Introduction to Magical Realism course, alongside with other books like Metamorphosis and Of Love and Other Demons.

Remember that Metamorphosis 1000-word assignment I mentioned a few blog entries back?

I'll post it up here once I get that assignment back. I can't do it now coz if I do and the professor hasn't gone through my assignment just yet, when he does, he might think I plagiarized from some smart scholar, a.k.a. "Raedarling".

Here's for laughs:


I'm still not getting used to having a round animated object as my cursor; I keep pointing and clicking at the wrong places.

Never mind. At least it's still cute.

"69"

“In Paris they simply stared when I spoke to them in French; I never did succeed in making those idiots understand their own language.”

-Mark Twain-

Remember I said there was this '69' forfeit during our Little Grass MAF celebration?

Here it is:




Still no pics yet, coming up soon.

***

Was in a farking bad mood last night. Some people are just retarded perfectionists with too much time on their hands.

My apologies that I am unable to rant about it here, for fear that news may spread and I gain one more unnecessary enemy.

But whatever. I ranted through e-mail, though. Tell me if you want it forwarded to you. I'll be very happy to do so.

backpacking.

"Fark."

-Rae-

For the past two days, I've been lugging around my tutorial book (that's where all my tutorials are; would never do without it), file (all important stuff inside; I'd never live without my trusty file) and organizer/notebook (filled with deadlines and to-do stuff!! Just steal my notebook and I'll be utterly lost) to and fro all around campus but never touched any of them.

In my bag, I brought along:

Math tutorials.
Japanese Language homework.
Mechanics of Materials tutorials.
Electric and Electronics tutorials.

Last night, I lugged my tutorials to the reading room, flipped to my math tutorial, and connected to the WiFi via iPod. Started reading fmylife.com for the next 1 hour or so, and then watched a movie on the laptop.

By 1.30 a.m., my math was still sitting in front of me. Untouched.

In only 2 days, I have already carried said tutorial book, file, and notebook to the following places:

Lecture hall.
Tutorial rooms.
Canteen.
Kevin's room.
Reading room.
Computer room.
Back to my room.
To Hall 8 Function Hall.
Kevin's room.
Back to my room.
Again to the reading room.
Back to computer room.

It's really surprising how one backpack can travel to so many places in 48 hours, with minimal zero usage of its contents.

Only just now, I spent 4 whole hours on my math tutorial, and I managed to solve 2.5 questions out of 21.

Two days of idling, and now this. What joy.

long, long post on dessert, uni life, and whateveriusuallyblogabout.

"If you're not sure whether to memorize a formula or not, just ask me if I can memorize it. If I can, you must too. If I can't, then you also no need."

-Prof. Chan Siew Hwa, my Thermodynamics lecturer-

Disclaimer: This is gonna be a pretty long post, due to my lack of stress today (lucky me!), hence having more time to blog, and also due to many events happening of late, and I will not be responsible for homicide if you die of boredom.

TWO CA'S IN A ROW TODAY!!!

I feel so damn relieved right now; like I'm suddenly free from stress or something. (Ha, ha. That's also why I've finally found the time to blog today.) Temporary euphoria. Wait till tonight. Oh gosh, tutorials are piling up.

See, euphoria's gone. Wait till tonight my ass.

=.=

***
HAAGEN DAZS BUFFET!!! (I know you're craving for some.)

Went for Haagen Dazs eat-all-you-can promotion, for only $ 19.90 per pax!!!!

Ice-cream haven!!!

I ate 6 and a half scoops of ice-cream (Belgium Choc, Tiramisu, Raspberry Sorbet, Green Tea, Rum Raisin, Cookies and Choc; the other half scoop, long story), and then I was damn stuffed.

Kevin ate 7 scoops while Leslie ate 9.

*Applause for LESLIE THE GREAT ICE-CREAM GOBBLER!!!**

I know you must be thinking "WHAT THE HELL GO TO HAAGEN DAZS EAT ALL YOU CAN AND THEN YOU EAT ONLY 6 SCOOPS???"

Excuse me horr, though one scoop is actually quite little, (and yes, I agree that 6 scoops of ice-cream ain't that much either) but why don't you go try? Very filling one leh!

I skipped lunch on purpose for this Haagen Dazs thingy, thinking that the hungrier I was, the more ice-cream I could eat, and I thought I could eat like 10 or 20 scoops of ice-cream or so.

On the contrary.

By the time lunch time came by, I was starving like hell and I was craving for solid food so much that I didn't feel like eating ice-cream anymore. Not that I had a choice, I was already sitting there waiting for my first order of Rum Raisin, Green Tea, and Tiramisu.

It didn't help that the mini-TV in the bus I was on featured a western chef preparing roasted lamb marinated with red wine.

On the way there, I was already thinking "Why don't we scrape this ice-cream idea altogether and go for a western cuisine instead?"

Why, oh why do people have to think of silly ideas such as TV-installment in public buses?

Not that it really mattered much later on, coz despite my hunger pang, I can say I still pretty much enjoyed my ice-cream. No more "You can't order anymore coz it's expensive and we're on a budget" or "Shit, why does every extra order cost so much more" !!!!!

This is practically the first time in my life I feel guilt-free while eating ice-cream.

Otherwise, everytime my mother buys a pint of Haagen Dazs home, she always tells me not to take big helpings so that the ice-cream won't finish too fast, and I'm always craving for more after the first helping. =(

It's nice to eat without having to worry about how much you pay. Of course, that is, if you are already prepared to pay a (not-so-cheap) amount in the first place.


I love Haagen Dazs.

***

Of professors and antics.

I've noticed that professors in my university love showing off.

"Let me share my study tips with you. You know my study tips can be trusted, because I graduated with a First Class Honours."

"You say you don't have time, but why don't you save time by reading your lecture notes in the bus, in the MRT, or whenever you go to the toilet? You say that means you don't have a life, but look at my life. I have more than 5 C's (The 5 Cs of Singapore, namely: Cash, Car, Credit card, Condominium, and membership(s) of Country club). What can you say about my life now?"

"Obviously, my Statistics are better than yours."

"I was previously a CEO in a car manufacturing company, and then I resigned and became the CEO of another company, before coming here a few years ago to be the Head Professor of Mechanical Engineering."

Of course, some are just plain eccentric:

Professor to students: (After a two-hour boring lecture) So, what have you learnt today?
Students: Nothing.
Prof: Don't hurt my feelings; I have a weak heart, you know. *proceeds to explaining what we (supposedly) have learnt today.*

My Mechanics of Materials lecturer displays a screen every 30 minutes of interval during his lecture, and students can actually text message their questions to a certain phone number, and their message will appear on the screen. This is so that other people can also read the question, and at the end of 5 minutes, the lecturer removes the screen and answers the questions posted.

Of course, as you can guess, only 5% of the students asked questions, and the other 95%... well... I'll just show you what messages are sometimes displayed:

Student 1: The guy sitting beside the left door, STOP SLEEPING!

At moment of display, everyone turns left and looks at a guy, still slumped on the desk, snoozing away.

Student 2: The girl in red looks HOT!!!

I texted back, "Thanks for your compliment. -Girl in Red-"

Student 3: MU lost last night!! (sniggers from a few students)

Student 4: Sir, why do we have to have exams? Why is life so stressful?

To which the lecturer then replied, "This is life."

Student 5: TODAY'S QUIZ IS CANCELLED!!
Student 6: Really? Yay!!!

To which the lecturer replied, "The quiz goes on as usual."

This text message system became so popular among students that there was once when the lecturer had to fix some technical problems. So he said "Sorry for letting you wait, I have to fix this. In the mean time, why don't you entertain yourselves", and turned the screen on.

Reminds me of parents who say "go watch TV" to their kids to temporarily stop them from bugging.

***
I WANT!!!

My 14-inch laptop is seriously killing me. I am NOT going to carry this around on campus for another 2.5 years of my uni life.

Like seriously, if I didn't want to carry my computer around, wouldn't it be better if I got a desktop instead; and if I did want to carry my computer around, wouldn't it be smarter to get one 'carry-able' instead of a 14-inch 2 kg one?

A laptop is meant to to a portable computer, so I want it to be as portable as possible.

I spotted this at Popular yesterday:





7 inch touch screen laptop!!!

Only $699.

I'll ask if my parents are willing to get it for me. I am NOT going to lug my 14 inch laptop around campus anymore.

***

Project idea - rejected.

I came up with an idea for my EID (Engineering Innovation and Design) project of how to make baby walkers safer for babies to use. I proposed installing a sensor which would automatically stop the baby walker from moving when it senses a stair nearby, hence, preventing babies from falling and hurting themselves.

If you don't know what a baby walker is, here's an illustration:


However, my professor rejected my idea. =(

He says that if consumers actually trust my new invention and if for some reason the sensor goes faulty, there goes their baby.

Maybe that's why this invention isn't in the market yet. And there I was, thinking "why the hell has nobody ever thought of this?"

P.S.: I don't know if I can go home this December. Project coming up. =(

P.P.S.: Maybe I should split this up into many short posts so that I can just grab one from my 'database of unposted posts' when I run out of ideas? Too lazy. Since I've already typed them out nicely, I might as well upload it.

P.P.P.S.: Mid-Autumn Festival celebration photos aren't up yet, will upload them ASAP. Thank you for your patience.

Mid Autumn Festival Celebration

UPDATE: Due to some technical problems, the voting system (the LG contest thingy; read below for more details) sometimes goes faulty and your vote may not be effective. After you click on the "vote now" button, you should be able to see a "I voted" sign with a tick beside it. If the "vote now" button is still there after u clicked it, it means you so please try again. Thank you very much for all your support!!!

O setting sun! though the time has come, I still warble under you, if none else does, unmitigated adoration.

-Walt Whitman-

STRESS TILL DIE!!!

I am seriously so farking fed up with tutorials, quizzes, assignments, and thoseotherneverendingetcetcetcetc.

Not that I'm not enjoying my uni life. On the contrary. I think it's moving waaaay too fast. In the blink of an eye, I'll find myself graduating and I'll wish I could stay for a little more longer.

OH, stop being sentimental.

***

Little Grass celebrated Mid-Autumn Festival.

Here's a picture:

More coming up later.

In the mean time, why don't you enjoy some videos:



Forfeit video:


In short, there's a leaf hidden in one person's body (yes, underneath clothes - DUH), and the blindfolded person has to search for it.

ooh la la~~

Too naughty for a Mid-Autumn festival celebration?

Ask Uncle Cheng. He was the one with the idea.

There was another interesting one with Sin Wei and Wai Hon doing the '69' (ooh, wouldn't that be nice to watch!!!) - with Sin Wei at the bottom and Wai Hon on top - but unfortunately, Wai Hon insists that the video not be uploaded.

Bummer.

You should have seen their faces. LOL.

Two guys doing the 69, what's more interesting than that?

Rest of the pictures coming up later; waiting for Wai Hon to send them to me.

***

Happy 1 year!!!

We ate at Vienna international buffet, which cost $74. Lucky me, I didn't have to pay for the bill coz 'the man wears the pants'. LOL.

They had oysters, sashimi, crabs, prawns, etc.

Free flow of red wine and cocktail too!!!

Overall, it was pretty good. I'd recommend it to anyone.

Too bad we were too busy eating to take any pictures.

(Thanks for your gift. Really, I loved it.)

***

LG CONTEST!!!

So LG just came up with a contest where you have to take a photo with a transparent object, and get your friends to vote for you on Facebook. The top 6 contestants get to win a LG GD900, a.k.a. the TRANSPARENT KEYPAD PHONE!!!

Isn't it just damn chio!!!!

Anyway, LG is good enough to give away 6 FREE PHONES, so I thought I might as well grab the chance.

Here are my entry photos:










Please vote for me by clicking on this link so that I might win. Each person is allowed to vote once every 24 hours, so please vote for me as often as you can!!!!

Here's the link again:

http://apps.facebook.com/promotionshq/contests/6864/voteable_entries/1188808

PLEASE HELP ME TO WIN THIS PHONE!!!!

P.S.: Last night, I asked several friends to vote for me and they said they did, but funnily their names didn't appear on my "friends who voted for Rachel" list. =(

Please don't do that. It's very hurtful.

Fark

FARK I'M SO BUSY AND STRESSED OUT I'M GOING TO FARKING DIE WHEN WILL THE WORKLOAD STOP PILING UP AND HOW CAN I GET THINGS DONE WHEN THE WORK FLOWING IN IS THREE TIMES FASTER THAN I CAN FINISH THEM?

FOR FARK'S SAKE I'M STILL FARKING HUMAN NOT A MACHINE.

Digg

All parts should go together without forcing. You must remember that the parts you are reassembling were disassembled by you. Therefore, if you can't get them together again, there must be a reason. By all means, do not use a hammer.

-1925 IBM Maintenence Manual, 623 Diggs-

As you can observe, I have just integrated a Digg button into my blog posts.

For those of you who don't know what Digg is, here is something I ctrl+C/ctrl+V-ed from Digg:

Digg is a place for people to discover and share content from anywhere on the web. From the biggest online destinations to the most obscure blog, Digg surfaces the best stuff as voted on by our users. You won’t find editors at Digg — we’re here to provide a place where people can collectively determine the value of content and we’re changing the way people consume information online.

How do we do this? Everything on Digg — from news to videos to images — is submitted by our community (that would be you). Once something is submitted, other people see it and Digg what they like best. If your submission rocks and receives enough Diggs, it is promoted to the front page for the millions of our visitors to see.

And it doesn’t stop there. Because Digg is all about sharing and discovery, there’s a conversation that happens around the content. We’re here to promote that conversation and provide tools for our community to discuss the topics that they’re passionate about. By looking at information through the lens of the collective community on Digg, you’ll always find something interesting and unique. We’re committed to giving every piece of content on the web an equal shot at being the next big thing.

(Taken from http://digg.com/about/)

To add a Digg button to your blog, here's how.

Don't know if this Digg culture will actually keep up in the Asian/Singaporean community, but it's worth a try.

Tech dependant

If it keeps up, man will atrophy all his limbs but the push-button finger.

-Frank Lloyd Wright-

I reformatted my Windows Vista.

Whee.

No more annoying trojans, no more annoying anti-virus warnings.

No more foreign who-knows-when-I-installed-it programs and trial-period-expired programs which I probably only used once and never bothered to uninstall it.

Am keeping my computer squeaky-clean from now on!

I love my external hard disk. It has all my worldly possessions in it.

I don't know what I'd do without it.

Years of memories (yes, beautiful irreplaceable pictures), important data, huge-ass collection of 20 Gb of music, good ol' 90's computer games, game emulators, program installations, PSP ISO files, piano scores...You get the idea.

Enemies, if you want to destroy my life, you'd know what to do. Just steal my external hard disk and watch me wilt away into nothingness.

steak!

A bath and a tenderloin steak. Those are the high points of a man's life.

-Curt Siodmak-

Since it's recess week and as much as we knew we had lots of assignments piling up, the holiday mood kicked in and we decided to take a break.

Adrian cooked rib-eye steak for us (us as in, Kevin, Leslie, and I), medium rare!!

Side dishes: Cheese sausage, kiwi salad, french toast.

French toast with extra eggs!

Chef Adrian with his steak.

Leslie with french toast.

All this blogging is making me hungry. It's 3.14 p.m. and I haven't had my brunch yet.

Forrest Gump

"Why don't you love me Jenny? I'm not a smart man, but I know what love is."

-Forrest Gump, Forrest Gump-

A romantic movie about a man with an IQ of 75 (that's horribly, horribly low if you asked me, the average person has an IQ of about 100; mine is 154 - you could say I'm showing off but that's Mensa verified!) who falls in love with his childhood friend, Jenny.

If you asked me; I'd say the most interesting part is how he, despite being stupid (yes, he's kinda stupid; you can't deny that), got the chance to visit the White House and treats seeing the president as an everyday life kind of thing, plus, he was on the national ping-pong team, got an honor medal for his outstanding service in the army, and even got to go on national television and talk to John Lennon.

Then, he establishes a shrimping company called Bubba Gump, which is apparently one of the leading companies in the country, and has his photo plastered on magazines. His partner then tells him he got them invested in a 'fruit company' and that they won't have to worry about money no more (Little did he know that the 'fruit company' in question was actually Apple. You know, the one that sells Macs and iPods and stuff).

He then becomes a - quote - 'godzillionaire'. That's millionaire for you. And because his late mother told him "there's only this much money a man actually needs; the rest is for showing off", he actually donates a huge sum to hospitals and stuff, and gives 50% of his earnings to Bubba's (his best friend who died in war) family. And, because he "didn't need the money" and because he "enjoyed doing it so much", he decided to mow lawns for free.

Yep, and that's how, a man with an IQ of 75, gets awsomely lucky in life.

Makes all of us high-IQ people feel dumb, huh?

Oh, and yes, as how most romance dramas end, Forrest and Jenny finally got married.

Overall, it's a pretty neat movie, seeing how everything eventually falls into place in the end. It kinda gives you the message that you don't necessarily have to be smart to be successful in life; all you need is a good heart, obedience, perseverance, and a little bit of luck.

I'd recomend you watch it.

RECESS WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GYAAA!!!

“The public have an insatiable curiosity to know everything, except what is worth knowing”

-Oscar Wilde-

First off - Xiaxue kissing KayKay. Whatever. Just watch.

***

Gawd, I feel effing pathetic.

Like, why am I obsessed over someone else's life, someone else's past? Like it's got anything to do with me. Why am I so curious? Why is it such a big deal to me, when the more I find out, the more uncomfortable I get?

What is there to be uncomfortable about, anyway? It's their life. Oh gawd I feel so stupid and childish. I really want to talk about this right now but the only person I can talk to is already asleep.

Can't it wait till morning? No? Why not? Is it really that important?

GYAAA STOP IT. JUST EFFING STOP IT.


***

On a lighter note, I GOT TO CATCH A GLIMPSE OF F1 TODAY!!!

How fortunate of me; I was just planning on going window shopping + dinner at City Hall, when I heard *VROOM!! VROOM!!* and it got me all hyped up and excited, like a lil kid on her first trip to a theme park.

OMG this only happens like once a year and by coincidence, I was there to witness it!! What were the chances - 1/365?

GAH, EVEN BLOGGING ABOUT F1 CAN'T KEEP MY MIND OFF 'ANO HITO' (Translated, it means 'that person' in Jap).

***

On an unrelated note, I bought a pair of irresistable shorts from Fox, which cost $39 (I have been on a shorts hunting spree for the past one and a half months, if you must know my desperation for a pair of decent shorts). I was like "Hmm, okay, this isn't very cheap, but it ain't that costly either. It looks nice on me; I'll get it." It wasn't until an hour later, in the MRT, when I was then converting and it dawned to me that I just spent RM 95 on a pair of very short shorts (which means not much material needed for manufacture, which means lower cost price).

*ouch*

Please don't kill me, parents.

***

RECESS WEEK IS FINALLY HERE!!!

***

See, that person doesn't mean much anymore.

CA,CA,CA

"He ate my arm, you selfish prick!"

- Assistant-who-just-got-her-arm-eaten to mad-doctor-scientist, Insanitarium -

No, it isn't pronounced as 'cha-cha-cha'; FREAKING CONTINUAL ASSESSMENTS ARE HERE AGAIN.

So the first just passed today; there's another one coming tomorrow.

Like seriously. Two CA's in a row? I'd be better off dead.

It doesn't help when I just spent an hour and a half watching Insanitarium, a crazy movie where crazy people (literally) are being turned into blood-sucking man-eating creatures. No, they're not zombies; zombies have no intelligence, much unlike these crazy people who, other than their obsessive crave for human flesh and blood, can still think (not very rationally, of course; they were already mentally ill to begin with anyway) and talk. Much like you and me can.

So as guilty as I felt after the movie (hence, not studying for my CA tomorrow), I decided to try to cover back lost time by skipping my bath, skipping my afternoon nap, and by eating dinner real fast.

At least I did Tutorial 5 of Thermodynamics, which makes me feel less guilty by now, and hence, the mood to blog.

Of course, I was also very much aware that my blog has not been updated for a very long time; blame the busy schedule. Though by my current tone, you could say that my stress level might have been reduced significantly, possibly due to the fact that NEXT WEEK IS RECESS WEEK!!!

happy happy joy joy happy happy joy

So I've noticed that I've long gone against my blogger's principle of:

NO UPLOADING OF PICTURES; THIS BLOG IS STRICTLY FOR WORDS OF THOUGHTS ONLY; ONLY BIMBOTIC AND STUPID GIRLS AND PEOPLE HAVING A POOR COMMAND OF ENGLISH POST PICTURES IN THEIR BLOGS...

but oh well.

I think it's becoming a bad habit.

Of course, I shall still value words more than pictures; I will not stoop to as low as some people who update their blogs with meaningless blog entries (with subtle indications of zero intelligence) containing meaningless pictures only: e.g., "I went shopping at Orchard Road today!" and then proceeding is a parade of camwhoring bimbotic girls smiling stupidly back at me as I scroll down, frantically searching for any sign of concrete statements (or words), in vain.

Or, or, or, "My darling and I went for dinner today", and then there's a hoarde of lovey dovey (but frighteningly identical) pictures of said blogger and boyfriend.

Like for goodness' sake I DO NOT WANT TO SEE IDENTICAL PICTURES OF YOU WHEN THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS YOUR OUTFIT - CUT THAT, I DON'T GIVE A DAMN WHAT OUTFIT YOU WEAR UNLESS ITS SOMETHING YOU PARTICULARLY WANT TO PLACE EMPHASISE ON OR SHOW OFF - AND WHERE YOU WENT SHOPPING TODAY.

Is there anything else left in your life besides your typical mundane... uh... life???

If I were to snap pictures every single time I went out shopping or to blog about EVERY SINGLE TIME I went out...

oh gosh, i can't even imagine what would happen; i would never stoop that low.

Bimbos, this is homicide.

Nuff' said - here are a few random pics:

Over the last weekend, Kevin and I went grocery shopping and stocked up his otherwise empty fridge:


Here are the mooncakes we bought (durian and passion fruit flavored):


I mean, isn't it amazing what kind of flavors people come up with these days? 10 years ago, it was just lotus paste and red bean paste, and then they evolved to flavors like green tea - and now passion fruit???? I wouldn't be surprised if they sold wasabi mooncakes next.

2 hours later...


2 days later...


Here's him in the study room, de-stressing after studying Chapter 5 of Thermodynamics.
I'm currently addicted to EPIC PET WARS!!! It's actually an online game where you keep a pet and train it to fight against other pets. (APP AVAILABLE ON IPODS AND IPHONES!) Here's my pet; it's called a Squishum:


Last but not least, here's something to lighten up your day.

Of lectures and sleep

"The other day, when you were sitting beside me during Math lecture, your face looked very serious and you seemed to me that you were listening and concentrating intently on the lecture. That is, until you suddenly whispered in my ear: "I've been thinking. I really need to get a new pair of shorts before I run out of them."'

-Kevin to Rae-

I sleep at 3 a.m., and I feel sleepy during morning lectures the next day.

I sleep at 1 a.m. and feel refreshed when I wake up 8 hours later, but STILL SLEEPY during morning lectures the next day.

Not that I didn't try.

I tried my best to stay awake during Math lecture today, but my head felt so heavy that it kept falling onto my comfortable pile of lecture notes. Like literally. Really. No joke. In all seriousness. I mean it. And so on and so forth.

And then, I automatically awaken from my deep slumber at the sound of "Okay, that's all for today's lecture" and become energetic again.

So tell me.

Is it just me, or are the voices of the professors somehow charmed with a sleeping spell?

desperate

"Dear God, I do not pray that you make me smarter, nor do I pray that you give me less tutorials to do, nor do I pray that the tests will be easier, nor do I pray that I be able to see the exam questionsbefore hand, nor do I pray that I will be able to cheat without getting caught during the exam, nor do I pray that my friends flunk their tests to pull up my grades.

I only pray that You increase my GCPA by a mere 1.5 points. It's a very small amount, so please help me. I promise I will be a good girl."

-A desperate girl's prayer-

My lab report is finally done and handed in *phew!* and quizzes and CA's are beginning to pour in. First half of the semester is gone *WTF* and I have no idea what the hell I have been doing for the past 5 weeks since the semester started.

In the blink of an eye, 4 years will soon be gone and I'm beginning to think that 4 years of uni life is definitely not enough. How can it be, when once I step onto campus, a month magically feels like only a week long, and Mondays and Fridays are rearranged so that they sit side by side in my calendar?

So it's back to the same ol' style:

Morning - lectures.
Afternoon - dozing off.
Evening & night - Tutorials.
Wee hours in the morning - Half sleep, half thinking of formulaes, tutorials, etc (yes, literally; there was even once that I awoke in the morning, and then recalled that in my previous night of sleep, I had been subconsciously thinking of my undone tutorials, and hence did not sleep well.)

Bummer.

Can't I have ONE FREAKING DAY OF REST WITHOUT HAVING MY WORK PILE UP TO THE NEXT DAY? C'MON, I'M ONLY HUMAN; WHEN WILL I FREAKING GET MY FREAKING REST????

I AM GOING TO PROCRASTINATE AND NOBODY SHALL STOP ME BECAUSE I DESERVE THIS FOR THE MERE REASON THAT I AM NOT A ROBOT.

Uni life: misc

One morning, as Gregor Samsa was waking up from anxious dreams, he discovered that in his bed he had been changed into a monstrous verminous bug. He lay on his armour-hard back and saw, as he lifted his head up a little, his brown, arched abdomen divided up into rigid bow-like sections. From this height the blanket, just about ready to slide off completely, could hardly stay in place. His numerous legs, pitifully thin in comparison to the rest of his circumference, flickered helplessly before his eyes.

-Metamorphosis, Franz Kafka (page 1, para 1)-

So I promised some photos. Here they are.

1. Spaghetti cooking session by Little Grass

Carbonara sauce.

Me with the spaghetti sauce.

Wai Hon being sexy.

Salad!

Uncle is frowning coz his nuggets can't be cooked.

I can explain this: for some reason or other, I can't swallow grape skin, so I peeled a couple for myself.


Grape I peeled!

2. 11 months: Choc fondue!!!

Don't shy shy...

3. Bugs. XD

So here's a picture of a beetle I drew; it's supposed to be Gregor Samsa (from the book Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka) who apparently finds himself turned into a gigantic insect when he awakens one morning from his bed. That's him with his blanket slipping off his body because of his oversized fat abdomen.

Here's Kevin's version of Gregor the bug:
I've just finished a 1000 word essay (yes, its a freaking assignment *sigh*) on Gregor's transformation. *applause*

P.S.: It's so not a good idea to blog about food when one is starving.

Fark

French Connection.

-Rae-

Seriously.

I'm not gonna apologize for my infrequent blog updates anymore; my readers would just have to understand that I'm dying here, and mind you, I can't very well manage if all I care about is updating my blog.

Lab report due Tuesday, several tutorials left behind, EID meetings, farked up self-learning thingy (whatever fark that is), and there's PNP stuff to do: banner painting this Friday, slide show due soon, and there's banner, booklet, poster, and flyer designing to be done, and CONTINUAL ASSESSMENTS ARE COMING SOON, AND I HAVEN'T REVISED YET.

Plus, my farked up printer died on me and Epson is gonna come take it for repair tomorrow, and I've gotta do it in between lessons.

Google wasn't working (as well as other search engines) and my e-mail inbox was down and I felt damn lost from civilization; which of course goes to show how much I rely on Google; yes, I Google almost anything and everything; anytime I have a question, it isn't the autorities or the professors I go to, it's Google; and yes, as you'd expect, I almost died from not being able to access my e-mail inbox for TWO WHOLE FARKING DAYS which meant a whole lot to me, especially when I need e-mail to communicate with Epson regarding my USELESS FARKED UP printer, and to discuss dead lines and dates for that farked up banner designing thingy, and other academic stuff, as well as updates from Facebook, etc etc etc; and yes, I've realised that this entire paragraph is actually made up of one single sentence coz I'm too farking fed up and stressed to be thinking of grammatical errors and stuff anymore; I can write what I want, how I want and so there.

It's already 4 a.m. and I've gotta wake up at 7 a.m. tomorrow - cut that; three hours later - for my morning lecture. It's not my fault that I'm still awake at this ungodly hour; my FARKING LAB REPORT IS DUE THIS TUESDAY AND BOY, IS THIS LAB REPORT FARKING TOUGH.

Yep, and I've still gotta meet those guys who are bringing my Epson printer for service tomorrow. Hope it gets repaired soon, or else I won't be able to print my lab report and then I'd be totally screwed.

I should have dropped out of school at the age of 15 and started my own business and become a billionaire. Instead, I'm now stuck in a tiny and dingy room with a rental fee of $160 every month and having to payschool fees of $ 12k every semester; and what with the economy going down and job vacancies propelling sky high, I'm probably going to have to face a bleak future as well.

P.S.: Oh yeah I've got lotsa pictures coming up soon; once I manage to get some free time on my hands (and hopefully when I'm less stressful and angsty), I'll rearrange them (hopefully in chronological order) and upload them here.

G-Force. Literally.

"Sien."

-Rae-

Sorry for lack of updates (again); my life is currently in study mode, hence, the lack of life in my, uh, life.

You know, from the saying 'get a life'. Or something along that lines.

Oh, stop me from blabbering.

So I'm back on track (sorta) and full force on academics.

At least I'm beginning to get going at my tutorials.

Extra-curricular activities, though, are a pain in the ass.

You think staying back after school for sports and being a secretary of some computer/astronomy/travel/Red Crescent/Girl Guides society in high school was shitty enough?

Try extra-curricular activites, tertiary education style.

What with designing, banner painting, planning whatever, etc etc etc I might as well just kill myself.

Seriously, what is SAO thinking, expecting us to work for hall points, as if we're not struggling enough with studies and lab reports and tutorials and lit reviews and self-reading and all those stuff academic staffs expect you to do?

On a lighter note, I watched G-Force today. Was actually quite nice, I'd recommend it.

I think I'm going to be a movie-buff; what with catching at least 2 or 3 movies every single week.

I know I've gotta stop myself from wasting too much time on movies and stuff, but I can't deny that I'm getting lotsa pleasure from knowing that my culture knowledge expands with each movie that I watch, which means that I'm getting less and less noob in the world of pop culture!!

Or something along those lines.

Gosh, do I blabber.

Last but not least, HAPPY ELEVEN!!!

I'm not making much sense tonight.

Merdeka Nite

"Hujan emas di negeri orang, hujan batu di negeri sendiri, lebih baik di negeri sendiri."

-Malay proverb-

Merdeka night at NTU!!!

Theme: Vegas.









Sorry for some blur pics. Blame the photographer.

surprise surprise

It's just my first day at Hall 15, but I'm beginning to hate it. For starters, it seems awfully far from civilization.

Don't even get me started on the bathrooms.

Lazy to explain; here's a MSN conversation between me and Wan Theng to enlighten you on my current bathroom situation.

Me: the cubicles wall doesn't reach until the floor. so the bottom got hole.

Theng: then?

Me: so when ppl bath, the water splash at me

Theng: wakaka got so serious or not wor.. use shower wat..

Me: and when i pee oso the beside ppl bath will splash water at me. the stupid wall la not connected to floor

Theng: wait. toilet n bathroom bside de?

Me: thats the bigger prob. is only one row of toilet and bathroom

Theng: means if ppl pangsaing , u bathing, then can smell lo

Me: and oso, got 3 bathroom oni. so i must stand there wait 5 min for ppl bath finish. and oso, the drain got blocked. so the water flooded the floor. the soap water cant go down

Theng: yucks

Me: today first day oni got bad experience. the ppl beside me bath, then her water all flood my place coz her place water cant go down the drain. haiz

As much as I'm genuinely happy to finally get a room of my own, I miss my previous squatting room.

Not so much of the bathroom problem.

Though it was more inconvenient, though it was smaller, though it wasn't a place I could call my own, though I had to sleep on the floor, though I didn't have internet connection, though I often felt like an intruder, though my wardrobe was just a cardboard box, though I had no study table of my own...

I miss the nightly talks and gossips. I miss being noisy. I miss squeezing and snuggling up.

It felt like a mini sleep over, (think pre-teens in overgrown bodies) where I could just come back to the comfort of the cozy tiny room, knowing that there would be familiar faces to say hello to. I miss having the feeling of actually looking forward to going back after a night of studying, because I knew I would be welcomed back with snappy but friendly and playful retorts.

Having a room of my own, I finally have a real wardrobe and not a mere cardboard box to fit my clothes and lecture notes. I have a real study table and a private place I can call my own.

However, I can't help but feel a tad lonelier.

I'm not too good when it comes to opening up about feelings and stuff, but I genuinely miss squatting. Not any kind of squatting, but the kind where you get to bond with your friends and get a little more snuggly with them.

If you know what I mean.

(I wonder if you guys felt the same.)

Voila.

So I've finally gotten a room.

French Connection happy.

Toodles.

Just. Give. Me. A. Fucking. Room.

nuff said

WHEN WILL I GET A FUCKING ROOM?

Stop.

"Please help me. I need you."

-Rae-

UPDATE: 4 hours ago, I typed my previous blog entry saying that I'm going out for shorts shopping.

French Connection*. I couldn't find any suitable ones.

*Note: French Connection = fcuk = fuck.

(Shit Ocean Pacific for having XS sized shorts which literally drop down past my waist. They think everyone fat one is it?)

I want to stop procrastinating but I can't.

When will I start getting serious about my studies?

Please stop. Stop procrastinating. Just...

Stop.

third week. cool.

"Silence is golden."

-Unknown-

It's already the third academic week and I'm pleased (and inwardly proud) to inform you that I'm gradually beginning to get into study mode.

Heck, I actually used my highlighter on my text book last night~!!

*applause*

Woke at 9 in the friggin' morning *applause* today, and went to the library at 10 to print some stuff; I can't use my printer yet coz I still don't have a room. *cries*

Yes, yours truly is still a poor homeless squatter.

For the first time in three weeks, I was TEN WHOLE MINUTES EARLY for my lecture!!!

*applause again*

At least I thought I was.

At 10.30 a.m. sharp, I noticed that everyone around me looked vaguely unfamiliar. I checked my timetable and realized that instead of the usual lectures at LT 1A, on every Tuesday, my morning lecture is at LKC.

Of course, as every NTU student knows, walking all the way from LT1A to LKC is no easy feat.

At least not for me.

In the end, I was *surprise surprise* 15 minutes late for lecture - again, very usual of me - just that this time, it wasn't my fault. At least not technically.

I didn't over sleep! So it's not my fault for being late!

Took shuttle bus A from Old Canteen A to the ADM bus stop, which took me 15 minutes, coz the bus took me on a little tour around practically almost the whole campus - plus, the bus kept stopping at two minute intervals; guess I was just too lazy to walk the 5 minute distance which was just one bus stop away.

Currently in my room typing away coz I'm way too lazy to attend the Electrical and Electronics tutorial which is held... uh... let's see... right now.

Am going shopping instead; excuse is that I'm running low on shorts supplies.

Shorts as in, those rectangular strips of cloths girls use to wrap around their buttocks and crotches; shorts nowadays seldom serve as leg coverings anymore - we've got sexy panty hoses for that.

Saw that cute pair of shorts from Fox, gonna get it later.

Maybe gonna catch a movie; excuse is that I just got my debit card from OCBC, which means that I get $2 off my movie ticket.

Just found out that there's actually a DVD rental shop at Boon Lay, gonna check that out too. At least it'd be cheaper than going to the cinema all the time.

Thought this would just be a very short update, but turns out I got long winded again and my fingers wouldn't stop dancing across my keyboard.

Guess there's a whole lot to update on my life huh.

Notice the change in writing style. Yes, I'm getting snappy. Besides, I'm already running late on getting my Fox shorts because of this.

Okay, gonna wash my face, throw on the last pair of shorts I've got, and off I go.

Toodles.

little grass steamboat

We think fast food is equivalent to pornography, nutritionally speaking.

-Steve Elbert-

Sorry for lack of updates.

Blame busyhecticstupidfuckedup uni life.

Last Saturday, Little Grass steamboat.

Here are a few pictures; will upload more later.















On an unrelated note, here's a blog post by Jasryn on love's lingering touch.

I thought it was really, really nice and I decided to share it here.

Little Grass

More pictures of us, the female grasses!

Me, Theng, Zhi Vern.

Clockwise from top: Yurong, Zhi Vern, Me, Theng.

ME!!

Announcement to all Little Grass members: Steamboat tomorrow!!

Date:	Sunday, 16 August 2009
Time:	18:00 - 22:30
Location:	Hall 3/16 tv lounge

Ouchies

If little labour, little are our gains: Man's fortunes are according to his pains.

-Hesperides 752-

Sorry for the lack of updates; ever since the semester started, everything has been turning upside down, right way up, and then upside down again.

No room to stay, no electives to take, too many core subjects, stuff all over the place, and it doesn't help that I'm still in holiday mode.

It's not that I didn't try. The other day, I decided to get serious and start studying. So I brought my laptop, notes, and tutorials to the study room, where I managed to complete one out of 30 questions, and then watched American Pie 2 on my laptop.

American Pie 1, American Pie 2, American Pie 3, American Pie 6, checked. Now all that's left is 4 and 5. Whee.

So much for trying to study.

It doesn't stop there. I just withdrew $200 from the ATM a few days ago, and now its *poof* GONE. Goodness knows where it went to.

Skechers - $ 70.
Knickers - $ 15
Movie tickets - $ 18
Sakae Sushi buffet - $ 16
Unnecessary but really, really cute phone pouch - $ 8
Unnecessary food and snacks - $ ???
Misc - $ ??????

Okay, now I know where my money went to.

Went to Orchard Road today.

A few months ago, I told myself I'd find myself a pair of comfortable yet stylish and pretty pair of shoes, coz I realised that flip flops were comfy but un-stylish, and heels were stylish but totally a pain in the ass feet.

Hence, the $ 70 pair of Skechers.

This is what happened:

Ouchies.

After removal.

Thanks to...

Yeah, you're comfy alright.

sigh sigh

So it's a Wednesday morning, and I'm awake at an ungodly hour of 9.49 a.m. awaiting for add drop period to begin at 10 a.m. .

*curses*

My head hurts, I'm feeling like I haven't gotten enough sleep, and I've got so many things left to do.

So there's a lecture at 10.30 a.m. later, followed by another one from 11.30 a.m. to 1.30 p.m., and then I've gotta rush to uby that stupid text book coz the Mechanics of Materials tutorial questions are taken from there and I can't do my tutorials without that damn book.

Smart lecturer of mine decides that it's easier to use questions from the textbook rather than set his own, so there.

Then I've gotta meet my aunt at Boon Lay to get my debit card that I've just applied for, followed by a casual dinner with her, before rushing back to campus for dragon dance training.

Plus, EVERYONE ELSE HAS ALREADY GOTTEN A ROOM EXCEPT FOR ME.

I'm a poor little homeless girl with nowhere to stay.

I know I'm not one in the position to complain - heck, everyone else is just as busy - but why won't anyone give me a break when I need one?

It's 9.58 a.m., I'd better go get ready to start clicking.

add it. drop it. click it.

any1 wan2 drop mp2006 (math 3) pls inform me b4 u drop...

-Rae's MSN personal message-

It's that time of the semester again.

Add. Drop. Period.

a.k.a., the how-fast-can-you-click-and-refresh game.

The rules of the game is fairly simple:

1. On the 11th of August at 1550 hours, you log on, get ready, and do some warm up finger exercise.
2. at 1559 hours, you start clicking vigorously, while alternating it with the Enter key.
3. 1600 hours marks the start of time; you go all out and click like nobody's business. (Remember that if you're late even by 2 seconds after the timer has gone off, you're gonna lose.) Continue in this manner for at least ten minutes. If you gotta pee, hold it. If you've got an itch, hold it. If you've got dust in your eyes, hold it. If someone stabs you in the back, hold it. Your main priority is to continue clicking.
4. For the next 3 hours or so, keep pressing the Refresh button, or the F5 key, alternating it with the Enter key until you see a number other than zero.
5. Once you get a non-zero value, click Register Course.
6. If you're half a second slow in moving your cursor towards the Register Course button, don't bother anymore. It's probably back to zero anyway.
7. For the following seven days, remember to log on every chance you've got to check for non-zero values under the vacancy list.
8. For maximum performance, make sure your internet connection is SUPER DUPER FAST.

Simple?

Yeah right.

FOC day 3 - 7

I don't care how poor a man is; if he has family, he's rich.

-Dan Wilcox and Thad Mumford, "Identity Crisis," M*A*S*H-

Phew!!! FOC 09' is finally over and I've finally got the chance to get some beauty sleep!

It was a whole lot of fun, plus, my Orientation Group, Eumaeus, got the BEST OG AWARD!!! *skips and somersaults*

Come Day 3, most of the freshies were already kinda hyped up, though some were still a little shy. Banner drawing!!! My job? To refill the paint. Boring, I know. But still. At least I got to gossip. ^^

On Day 4, we had Speed Dating, which was actually pretty interesting. All the freshies are blindfolded, and then paired up with a person of the opposite sex. Then, they're supposed to hold each other's hands and talk for 2 minutes, before swapping partners. This goes on until they talk to at least 8 or 9 different girls/guys. Then, they get to pick their 3 top choices, and we would try our best to pair them according to their preferences.

Of course, as a senior, you'd get some (pretty fun) previleges; especially when all the freshies are blindfolded and you actually get the chance to eavesdrop and take silly pictures with them. *grins*

For speed dating pics, click here.

On Day 5, there was...

A WALK TO REMEMBER!!!!

(a.k.a. terror walk. Don't ask. I wish I could post pictures for this -trust me; they'd be interesting to view- but due to some circumstances, well...)

Day 6, freshies finally got to meet the partner of their choice!! Everyone seems pretty satisfied. Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope some romance blooms. Then they'd have to thank the seniors for matching them up!

Day 7 was the most fun day. Pool day!!! MSA's Next Top "Model"!!! A guy was picked out of each group, and were *poof* transformed into graceful ladies in 15 minutes.

Pictures of FOC not uploaded, due to the blogger's laziness. Here are links to the photos instead:

Link 1 (random pics by Boon Pin)
Link 2 (day 1 by Terry)
Link 3 (day 2 by Terry)
Link 4 (day 2 - intergames activities by Kok Xian)
Link 5 (day 3 by Terry)
Link 6 (day 6 by Kok Xian)
Link 7 (day 7 by Terry)
Link 8 (Oddysey FOC by Yu Yuan)
Link 9 (speed dating by Kok Xian)

Do take a look at how speed dating was conducted!!!

P.S.: Here's a picture of us Little Grass in our official tee:


Happy Family!!

P.P.S.:
Freshies who are interested to join Little Grass, please click here for more details. To apply for membership, simply send any of our officers/members a message and we will arrange a friendly interview for you asap. Thanks!!

FOC day 2.

*speechless*

-Tired Rae-

Today marks the end of the second day of FOC (freshmen orientation camp) and I'm DARN EFFING FRUSTRATED AND TIRED.

AND, AND, AND, to top it all up, I HAVEN'T GOT A ROOM TO STAY IN. I so do not *insert foul word* want to live out of campus, where I have to travel to class every single *insert foul word* day.

Today was pretty fun, though. Cheers, games, and all.

Eumaeus! SOLID, THATS WHAT WE ARE!!!

On a lighter note, Little Grassies finally have our own official t-shirt!!!

After almost about a year of meaning to have our own official 'club shirt', we finally stopped procrastinating and went about scouting for suitable plain t-shirts (pink shirts from Giordano) and drawing our own designs (fabric pens from Popular) on them.

Here's us designing...

Me drawing the 'cao' word.

Drawing the grass...

"I'm running out of green ink!!"

Kevin with his completed shirt.

Me with my completed shirt.

We wore them during today's FOC opening ceremony!! Woo hoo~~

More pictures of us in Little Grass official shirt coming up soon!!

Feeling darn sleepy now, plus I've gotta wake up early tomorrow to bring them freshies to MAE school talk.

Sigh~

P.S.: I can't wait for A Walk To Remember on day 4 of FOC!!! It's gonna be loads of fun!!

busy busy busy

So many things to do, so little sleep, so little brain capacity. Pieces of small notes everywhere. Confusion abounds.

-Rae's MSN Personal Message-

Sleep deprivation sucks. Especially when it happens even BEFORE the academic period begins.

Gosh, I find myself schedule even more packed than usual.

Okay, so as an example, today went a little something like this:

8 a.m. - 12.30 p.m. : Wake up at an ungodly hour to meet friends from Penang who have come to Singapore for holiday.
12.30 p.m. - 5.00 p.m. : Go to church (which journey takes up 1.5 hours).
5.30 p.m. - 12.30 a.m. : Meeting. FOC stuff. Briefings. Debriefings. Discussions. Damn.

Yes, blame Freshmen Orientation Camp.

First night: 7 hours of sleep.
Second night: 5 hours of sleep.
Third night: 3 hours of sleep.
Subsequent nights: An average of 7 - 8 hours of sleep.

What is that compared to my 10 - 12 hours of sleep every night back when I was in Penang???

Believe it or not, I'm even getting into the habit of waking up IN THE MORNING!!! It's like I open my eyes and my cell phone says it's still in the a.m. but I can't go back to sleep, despite the fact that I slept at 3 a.m. the night (or morning) before. Gya~~

How on earth does one survive under this state of sleep deprivation?

What with meetings lasting up to 12 hours long and briefings/debriefings lasting up till the wee hours in the morning, you can't expect me to actually remain sane, can you?

Lol.

Not that I'm complaining.

It's an experience.

I can't wait to meet them freshies.

Gonna take up the role of a senior soon!

single

"Being single is pretty good. It's a nice sense of irresponsibility."

- Michael Douglas

Why is everyone becoming single lately?




***

Sorry for lack of updates and long posts these days; will be awfully, horribly, extremely busy for Freshmen Orientation Camp.

Wanna die liao.

Sigh

I am back in Singapore.

Squatting.

Sob.

Busy day it was.

Bought pillow and mattress.

Caught a movie. Public Enemies. Stupid and boring movie. Don't watch, unless you're into boring men dressed in black suits shooting each other with guns till the last one is left standing.

Wanna cry.

***

Sob *sniff*

College is the best time of your life. When else are your parents going to spend several thousand dollars a year just for you to go to a strange town and get drunk every night?

~David Wood

In less than 24 hours, I'll be back in Singapore.

Of course there's a lot of knowledge in universities: the freshmen bring a little in; the seniors don't take much away, so knowledge sort of accumulates.

~Abbott Lawrence Lowell

Excited.

Tired.

I learned three important things in college - to use a library, to memorize quickly and visually, to drop asleep at any time given a horizontal surface and fifteen minutes.

~Agnes DeMille, Dance to the Piper, 1952

Scared.

A professor is one who talks in someone else's sleep.

~W.H. Auden

Tensed.

A college education shows a man how little other people know.

~Thomas Chandler Haliburton

Reluctant.

As long as there are tests, there will be prayer in schools.

~Author Unknown

Heavy hearted.

Sad.

Academe, n.: An ancient school where morality and philosophy were taught. Academy, n.: A modern school where football is taught.

~Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary

Happy.

College is a place to keep warm between high school and an early marriage.

~George Gobel

Stressed.

I wished I went to USM instead. Then I wouldn't have to move so often. But then again, of course I'd prefer living in Singapore. Duh.

~Rae

Gya~~ I don't know anymore.

I wish I could stay home and rot forever.

Beach and Sunset Bistro

“Why do we love the sea? It is because it has some potent power to make us think things we like to think.”

-Robert Henri-

3 days prior to my departure.

In a SMS conversation,
Me: I'm going to the beach with some friends.
Kevin: Oh, who?
Me: Annie, Elizabeth, Catherine, Jaslyn, Jia. *Hee...*
Kevin: Ha!! Who is Hee? Your boyfriend?

So yes, apparently, I do have a boyfriend named Hee of whom his existence I wasn't aware of until Kevin told me.

At the beach:

Cat and Jaslyn

Jia and I enjoying the breeze.

Stop pointing at me... >.<

Modeling...

Going crazy.

I'm having a bad hair day due to the wind.

Ah! Finally a decent picture of me!

3 of us enjoying the breeze.

Chatting. I tied up my hair coz I was getting frustrated.

At Sunset Bistro...

I look weird.

I'm going back to Singapore in 2 more days and my bag isn't packed yet!!!


*cries*

Man Utd vs Malaysia

Football players, like prostitutes, are in the business of ruining their bodies for the pleasure of strangers.

-Merle Kessler-

I think by now, everyone knows that Manchester United came to play against...

Malaysia.

Of course, being the invited guest, you wouldn't thrash your opponent on purpose just 'cause it's a very well known fact that you're better (in this case, WAAAAAY MUCH BETTER), right?

I was talking to Jonathan on MSN. (Me=red, Jon=blue)

u tink msia can win meh

on saturday
the match quite close
malaysia lost 3-2

yeah i know
but dont u tink they purposely give chance one

hahaha
yeah
totally
give chance

yala....
so...
i dont see the point
if i were msia, i wouldnt even wanna play
damn embarassing ok
its obvious to the whole world that manu give chance
and then when msia get 2, msia goes "yay we get 2!"

haha

and then manu goes "congrats, u got 2"

but the malaysian goals were quite good

but everyone knows thats fake

or very lucky
haha

i dont see the point la....not embarasing meh

the point is
100thousand ppl came to watch manU
= MONEY

there was one part, so damn obvious that manu purposely kick the ball to msia one

haha
accident la i think

lol you're just being nice to ur own country

haha
u're just being mean to ur country

if they were really that pro, they would have qualified for world cup

hahaha

but anyway
msia get lots of money from that?

split i guess
it helps economy in way
cuz lots of shirt/jersey sales
drink food
etc
spurs the local economy

hmm...
yea i suppose
but still
its damn embarassing
its like u know you're not good enough u still wanna go embarass urself

So well...

No comments.

If you asked me, I'll just tell you "I'm temporarily not a Malaysian. Once Malaysia qualifies for World Cup, you'll know my citizenship will be reverted."

Last week of hols

"Cinema is the most beautifu fraud in the world."

-Jean-Luc Godard-

Why is it that in most thriller movies that I watch, the villains are usually insanely powerful for the whole duration of the movie while the victim(s)/main cast suffer under the evil clutches of the villain (also for the whole duration of the movie), and then at the ending, the villains die sudden deaths - thus eliminating any chances of them suffering from any means of torture or hardship as fit punishment - while the innocent victim/main cast (whose home/car/property probably got wrecked by the said evil villain who is now peacefully dead and thus is unable to pay for his acts of vandalism) only get a few seconds of breaths of relief?

Don't the villains get their share of suffering at all? Where's the fun when they die sudden deaths, instead of having them being put to jail, or at least being tortured for a little while before they die?

Gah, movie directors these days are so unfair.

***

My arm's hurting like hell from that badminton game I had with Ethane, Kathy, and the 3 guys *takes deep breath* Kelvin, KenVin, and Kevin.

Yes, I know. It doesn't help having all three of them hanging out together in the same group.

Me: Kelvin!! Come here please!!

Voice 1: Hey, she's calling for you.

Voice 2: No, she isn't. Why would she call for me? She's calling you!

*fumes*

"KELVIN WITH THE 'L', I MEANT YOU!"

See what I mean?

Here's a picture of me sitting in the badminton referee's seat.

I try to be pretty, even at sports.


Try to ignore my fat legs and different colored socks, please.

P.S.: Last night, I achieved my highest sneeze combo!!! 6 consecutive sneezes in a row!! Beat my combo if you can!

holiday antics

To many people holidays are not voyages of discovery, but a ritual of reassurance.

-- Philip Andrew Adams

As of the final week of my 3 month break, I have:

1. Not trained myself in DotA.
2. Read the first page of my Fluid Dynamics lecture slide, which says that pressure is the equivalent of mass divided by volume. Woo hoo. I actually learned something in preparation for my second year of Mechanical Engineering course.
3. Read 5 Shin Chan comic books.
4. Watched Ouran High School Host Club, Jigoku Shoujo Mitsuganae, and a few more Studio Ghibli animes.
5. Taught myself how to solve a single face of the rubix cube.
6. Read a love novel called P.S. I Love You.
7. Taught myself how to use command prompt and MS DOS, with lots of trials and errors. Trust me, it wasn't easy.
8. Taught myself how to enhance my own facial features using Adobe Photoshop.
9. Solved a Sudoku puzzle.
10. Used a minimal amount of my brain.
11. Procrastinated.
12. Watched TVB dramas on Astro On Demand.
13. Completed Harvest Moon: Innocent Life on my PSP.
14. Gave up playing Breath Of Fire 3 on my PSP.
15. Learnt that dinosaurs ran at the speed of approximately 40 kilometers per hour. Thanks to my enlightening trip to Genting Highlands.
16. Celebrated my birthday 3 times.
17. Shopped a lot and spent a whole lot of cash. Also added some new items to my already bursting wardrobe.
18. Visited my grandmother.
19. Downloaded some really, really, really old games developed by Maxis - Remember Sim Ant (1991), Sim Town (1995), Sim Tower (1994), etc - in the early 1990's, and learnt how to use emulators to run them, because Windows Vista is eons and eons way too advanced for MS DOS based games.
20. Downloaded some Nintendo NES games - ahh, those good old late 1980's games; who can ever forget Contra (1987) and Circus Charlie(1984); they're my favourites - and an emulator for it.

You have GOT to try out those good old games developed in the 1980's and 1990's; they may be old and unatttractive, what with those shitty graphics, but they're real classics and there's something in them that these new generation computer games will never have.

For those who are old enough to have experienced it before (especially if you're already in your 20's), you know what I mean.

May the legacy of old NES and DOS games live forever.

Poof

Technology... is a queer thing. It brings you great gifts with one hand, and it stabs you in the back with the other.

~C.P. Snow, New York Times, 15 March 1971

All 18 Gb of songs and videos in my Ipod Touch *poof* DISAPPEARED!!!!!

Now, I have like 18.48 Gb of "other" file, and ZERO Gb of audio files.

WTH is 'other' files, and WHY can't I delete them or convert them back to audio files?!?!?!?

Stupid files all corrupted and I can't delete them or do anything and now my Ipod Touch is left with some miserable 10 Gb or so of free space, which won't even fit half of my music library!!!

Stupid one la!!!!!!

Rubix cube!!

"I know that I am intelligent, because I know that I know nothing."

-Socrates-

For weeks and weeks I have been idling and rotting at home when today, all of a sudden, inspiration hit me and I decided to use my brain.

Isn't that a wondrous miracle?

My 3 months summer break is going to end soon, and I will be going back to Singapore in 12 more days. So, today, 12 days prior to ending my days of negligence and idleness, for the VERY FIRST TIME in the whole of my 3 month semester break, I actually did something useful!!!

I solved a single face of a Rubix Cube all my myself with zero reference to formulas, tutorials, special techniques, etc. Sheer intelligence!

WOO HOO!!!!

I achieved something I have never achieved before and most importantly, I USED MY BRAIN!!!!

Isn't this something to celebrate about?



"Self, I am soooooo proud of you!! You're finally growing smart!!"

-Rae to self-

Baking day

"As a child, my family's menu consisted of two choices: Take it or leave it."

-Buddy Hackett-

Went to Jia's place to bake cheese tarts and chocolate tarts!!!!

I've been wanting to post this yesterday, but I kept procrastinating coz it's so damn troublesome to have to transfer all those pictures from my phone to my laptop, and then having to browse them in the vast sea of many other pictures from my 'My Pictures' folder to be uploaded here; my gosh, why can't blogger have that Java application like FB so that I can upload my photos much quicker?

I hate transferring and uploading stuff. What a hassle.

Lazy to type; here are them pictures (no, 'them pictures' isn't a grammatical error, it actually means 'the damn pictures' for short).

Just arrived at her house with nothing to do. With a full length mirror in front of me and a camera phone in my bag, what else do you expect me to do?

I know I'm vain.

Here are the tart shells:

And then, we started making the batter for the cheese filling!!!!

I was too fascinated (yes, this is the first time I have ever witnessed cheese tarts being made) by the delicious smelling batter to bother with photos.

However, if you insist, here's a picture of me having a taste at the uncooked batter (raw eggs, lemon juice, cheese, fine sugar, and butter):

Cheese tart fillings taste awesome, even uncooked!!

Then, we filled the tart shells.

Trust me, it isn't easy filling the tart shells with cheese filling. The first one I made was a complete disaster.

Luckily, I soon got better.

Here's one pretty tart I made.

Jia decorating the cheese tarts with blueberry.

Baking in the oven...

TADAAA!!! DELICIOUS CHEESE TARTS!!



Next up, CHOCOLATE TARTS!!


Mind you, it was seriously tough work filling the tart shells with chocolate, because you have to melt the chocolate first and chocolate is more watery than the usual cheese batter. It's also more messy to deal with, and chocolate hardens real fast.

Look how messy the tarts are, with chocolate overflowing all over.


The hardest part was, we had white chocolate and milk chocolate, and we had to put half of each into each tart, making it look bi-colored, which was darn hard, because the chocolate kept flowing too rapidly.

At least we still managed to make some patterns.

Mitten got burnt while tring to melt the chocolate.

TADAA!!! CHOCOLATE TARTS!

I'm so proud of the tarts I made myself!!

Later that night, we went to Sunset Bistro at Batu Feringghi with Phaik Yean and Mei Hwa.

Didn't take much photos, except for a random picture of my slippers:


All this blogging about home made tarts is making me hungry. I'm now off to have some of those tarts I made!!!

Whee~~

Genting vid!!

Being miss pretty

"I know its bad to say this, but lets face the ugly truth: If it weren't for ugly people, the good looking ones wouldn't look as good as they do right now."

-Rae-

Ugly girls look pretty after putting on make up.

Pretty girls look oh-so-very-slightly prettier after putting on make up.

Whats the freaking point of being born naturally pretty, when any ugly old Toni, Dominique, and Hilary could be magically transformed into beauty pageant contestants with just the miraculous touch of make up?

The world's so unfair.

P.S.: Say I'm thick skinned, say I'm vain, but by no means have I ever mentioned before that I am prettier than you (gosh, what is wrong with people these days; you accidentally slip and mention they're not-so-good-looking and they find out, they immediately snap back and tell you to look in the mirror, calling you an ugly bitch - I mean, just because I say someone else isn't pretty doesn't mean I'm saying I'm prettier than her, right?); unless you think so yourself, which probably goes to show that it just might be the ugly truth.

P.P.S.: Sorry. Felt like being a bit bitchy today.

P.P.P.S.: FYI, I do love make-up. A whole lot.

P.P.P.P.S.: Last but not least, here's a toast to all the pretty girls in the world. If you think you're up for it, this toast is for you. *winks*

Using cash

"What's the point of having so much money if you don't use them?"

-Rae-

I no longer wish to call my occasional splurges 'shopping sprees'; I have found a more suitable name for it: Using cash.

I don't buy stuff because of my shopaholic impulses, I buy them because money are meant to be spent, not saved as food for termites and book worms.

Or maybe that is precisely why humans are born with in-built shopaholic impulses; so that we would actually spend what we earn (or in my case, what I receive from my parents) rather than keeping them till our old age, and then when we die, giving them to our children, who in turn will keep them for their children, and the cycle goes on and on until the very huge sum of snowballing money gets into the hands of some prodigal son who spends it all in one night at Las Vegas, coming home a poor, shirtless kid.

For goodness' sake, its your money, so freaking USE IT!! Your children will earn money of their own.

Am I good at giving myself excuses to spend money, or what?

So far, here are some of the stuff I have bought:

Lovely book, some parts almost made me cry.

JAY CHOU PIANO BOOK~!!! ^^ Comes with a complementary CD. AM SOOOOO HAPPY!!!I am going to play the piano all day!!!

Some Anime. ^^

Kiddy stickers!!! I used some of them already, hence the blank spaces.

Shin Chan comic books to be added to my already huge collection!!!

My collection of Shin Chan comic books since 2004.

A mini rubix cube. Though I still haven't figured how to match the colors yet...

I also bought 2 scarves last Thursday (a pink one and a white one); I know I've got a green one already, but one cannot expect one to be constantly wearing a green scarf, especially when one has a wardrobe full of different colored clothes (imagine matching a green scarf with a red top!! *gasp*) now, can one?

So as you can see, I have got lots of anime to watch and books to read (plus, 3 more classics I bought last year but didn't bother finish reading them); I don't know if I can finish all of them in 3 weeks time, by which I will have to be back to Singapore for my second year of uni education torture.


***

Lollipop!!!







20 minutes later...


That was 2 days ago; it's now in the fridge, still 49/50 uneaten.

Of shoes

"The beauty of a shoe is directly inversely proportional to it's comfortableness."

-Rae-

High heels are beautiful and sexy but horribly uncomfortable.

Sneakers are comfortable but childish.

Slippers/flip-flops are comfortable but too casual.

As much as I am very aware that I possess more than enough footwear, I HAVE PRACTICALLY NO SHOES TO WEAR!!

I can't always go out in heels; I'll break my ankles one day!

I have to get a decent pair of good quality, comfortable, fashionable, reliable, sexy, lady-like, posh, good-looking, branded, trustworthy pair of shoes.

I wanted to buy this pair of comfortable yet lady-like and not-too-casual pair of slip-on's from Timberland, but my mother said:

"You have got more than enough shoes at home. Besides, this pair of Timberland shoes cost RM 300!! Your dad doesn't print money for a living, you know!"

But... But...

Those shoes are not something I want, they're something i need!! Badly!!!

*sigh*

Why is it that I never seem to have enough money?

P.S.: Even with my unthinkably bad results, I got accepted into Mechatronics Stream!!! Thank God!! I'm sooooooo happy!!!!

INGROWN HAIR!!!

"I'm not lazy; I just don't see the point of working when my parents are giving me enough cash already. Besides, I'm a student. Everyone knows students don't work for money. They work for grades."

-Rae-

Ingrown hair is a condition where the hair curls back or grows sideways into the skin. It may or may not be accompanied by an infection of the hair follicle (folliculitis) or "razor bumps" (pseudofolliculitis barbae), which vary in size. While ingrown hair most commonly appears in areas where the skin is shaved (beard, legs, pubic region), it can appear anywhere.

Source: Wikipedia

An ingrown hair is a hair that curls and penetrates the skin with its tip, causing inflammation. Ingrown hairs are more common among people with very curly hair and African-Americans. Most ingrown hairs occur in the beard area.

Source: www.cornellsurgery.org

I HAVE INGROWN LEG HAIR!!!! ARRGH!!!! MY LEGS NOW HAVE LITTLE BLACK STUBBLES ALL OVER IT!!!

There are patches on my legs where I can feel tiny bumps on my skin, and when observed closely, one can actually see hair growing underneath my skin in a circular direction.

I'm currently using a needle to pick them out.

So much for waxing my legs.

*cries*

I HATE LEG HAIR!!!! HATE THEM, HATE THEM, HATE THEM!!!!

P.S.: I just came back yesterday from Port Dickson!!! Wow, it really edified me and helped me grow in my Christian life. I really learnt quite a lot there. Met with many of my old friends too!! It was pretty fun.

tech noob

"I know how to use command prompt, I know what chkdsk is, and I know how to repartition my hard disk!! I'm a computer genius!!! Whee~~~"

-Ignorant Rae-

I think my computer skills are getting better and better.

At least now I know what chkdsk is and how to use Command Prompt.

I also repartitioned my hard disk all by myself!!!

Am I pro, or what???

As of yesterday, my laptop's hard disk has got two drives: The main C drive, and a new B drive, which is still practically empty (until I figure out what files to dump in it).

The main reason I created a new B drive was because I wanted to move my stuff temporarily into it, because I wanted to reformat my C drive, because there's this corrupted file in there that I can't delete, because...

ARRGH.

Long story.

It all started out when I wanted to transfer some songs from my laptop to my iPod, but I realised that I couldn't run iTunes, for some unknown reason. Stupid computer errors.

Then I ran chkdsk but the error refused to go away, so I went through my whole computer (conveniently cleaning up all my junk and deleting and uninstalling stuff - gosh, I didn't know my computer was THAT messy!! Talk about chaos in the midst of order) and I finally found this weird file named iPod under my Program Files folder in my C drive.

I thought it would be probably what's stopping my iTunes from working, so I tried to delete it, but I couldn't because the file - quote - was either corrupted or unreadable.

Whatever that means.

I even tried downloading a program called CCleaner, which apparently helps you to detect errors on your computer as well as keep it clean.

10 minutes later, I realised that I didn't need CCleaner; I had chkdsk for that.

Kevin mentioned that maybe I could use Command Prompt to delete it, so I Googled a million websites on Command Prompt and such.

I learnt all about directories, changing directories, commands, and such. It was pretty interesting; and frustrating at the same time. Whoever knew typing "cd.." would back step the directory and typing "cd filename*" would change the directory to that file?

Lol. Yeah, I know I'm babbling. Don't bother.

So I tried deleting that stupid corrupted annoying file using Command Prompt, but it STILL DIDN'T WORK. All it said was "The file or directory is corrupted and unreadable".

See?? I actually used command prompt to manually command my computer!! I'm smart!! I'm not a tech noobie anymore!!!

*sigh*

So I decided to reformat my whole C drive but before that, I thought "Hey, why don't I repartition my hard disk, and then transfer all my important stuff over before reformatting my C drive?"

I know I have an external hard disk which has more than enough space, but I was just too dumb to think of that option. Yeah, I'm stupid.

So I repartitioned my hard disk, and now I've got my new B drive, but I discovered that it hasn't got enough space to store my C drive's stuff.

*frustrated until die*

Up till now, I still haven't figured out a way to get my iTunes to work so that I can finally transfer all my new songs into my iPod.

At least I learned how to keep my computer clean and free of clutter.

Plus, I finally got around to uninstalling all the unnecessary programs I ignorantly and greedily downloaded and installed during my less sober moments of my hectic uni life.

Now I know why my computer is so laggy. It's all Rachel-the-uni-student's fault, and now Rachel-idling-at-home has to take the blame and make up for her mistakes.

The world's so unfair.

Parit Buntar Steam Bath / GENTING TRIP!!!

No man needs a vacation so much as the person who just had one.

-Elbert Hubbard-

Sorry for the late update. Was kinda busy lately -- I JUST CAME BACK FROM A TRIP TO GENTING!!!! WHEE~~~

Genting pics coming up soon but first, here's about my little church trip to a steam bath located at a tiny village in Parit Buntar.

Woke up at 6 a.m. in the morning - yes, I know it's inhumane; what to do, my parents forced me up - and then had breakfast at some random coffee shop (apparently, it's famous for its chai koay - literally translated, vegetable cakes - but personally I don't think they're that good) somewhere in the mainland.

Arrived at Parit Buntar's steam bath at about 8 in the morning. Kids were playing around, swinging on the hammocks.

Looks like they're having lots of fun. Ahh... kids...

Then, the steam bath was ready, and most of them went in to sweat. I decided not to go, because you'll have to take a bath after that, and I noticed that the bathrooms were AWFULLY, AWFULLY STINKY AND DIRTY, and I didn't fancy taking a bath in such a condition. Besides, there wasn't a water heater. I DON'T WANT TO FREEZE TO DEATH.

Here's the dirty, smelly, stinky, icky bathroom...

Who on earth takes a bath without a water heater????? This is crazy.

Here are the 3 steam baths (2 for males, 1 for females):

It cost only RM 5 per person.

Many of them went anyway, while I relaxed in one of the hamocks, and almost dozed off.

About noon time, I went for a Thai massage, which lasted for an hour.

Here's the massaging shack:

Beautiful shack, isn't it?

It was actually pretty relaxing (though a little painful) and I'd recommend it to anyone interested.

Next, lunch!!!



I especially loved the salad, but I forgot to take a picture of it, because I was too busy eating it up.

Then, the kids went for a little fishing, and I joined in too.

My cute little cousin trying to catch some fish.

The fish they caught.

Everyone relaxing and enjoying themselves:

Last but not least, me, relaxing...

NICE TRIP!!! GREAT NATURE BONDING EXPERIENCE!!



********

Next up, MY GENTING TRIP WITH LITTLE GRASSIES!!!

Enjoyed myself TO DA MAX!!!

Thanks to all Grassies for this beautiful and memorable trip!

The day before going to Genting, Uncle Cheng came to my house and we played PSP the whole day... wakakaka...

Then he took a bo liao picture of my mirror (unfortunately, I was caught in the picture in a relatively ugly pose):


Next morning, we met up with Chee Seng at the bus terminal, and hence began our long and uncomfortable journey to Genting.

Arrived at about 2 p.m., and met up with the rest: Kevin, Zhi Vern, Wan Theng, and Jia Yi (Jia Yi, if you are reading this, KANASAI LAH YOU LAST MINUTE ONLY SHOW UP!! LOL) We waited SIBEH LONG at the First World Hotel's reception area coz got too many people...

So we started to bo liao and take bo liao pics at the hotel lobby.

The 2 guys playing PSP... The PSP on the left belongs to me, btw.

Haha, play until so syok...

At 5 p.m., WE FINALLY CHECKED IN!!

Walao waited at lobby for 2 freakin' hours...

That night, we went out for a walk at First World Plaza.





The next day, we went to the OUTDOOR THEME PARK!!

Us on the spinner.

I got somewhat hungry and had sweet potatos which cost some FREAKING TWELVE EFFING RINGGIT.

Me, enjoying my potatos to the MAX, because they were too expensive to be eaten in a bad mood.

Shying away from the camera.

Group pic!

That night, Grassies threw me, Uncle Cheng, and Zhi Vern a surprise birthday!!!

I was sooooooo happy!! Thanks, everyone!! I didn't expect you guys to remember my birthday!

The 3 birthday kids. From left: Age 19, 23, and 21.

Ahh!! Cut the cake!!! Uncle Cheng, your face looks damn retarded >.<

Here's Uncle Cheng's birthday present from me and Kevin:

G-string!! Hehehehe... Cute present for a guy. Please line up, guys.

My handmade birthday card!! Everyone had a chance to write something for me. So happy!!! ^^

Thanks everybody!



Whoops... The card is rotated the wrong way.

Here's Wan Theng's birthday present for me. It came with a lollipop, but I ate it. >.<

We went out for a stroll that night...

Loved the cool air...

The 4 gals~

We were star-gazing...

Kinda romantic.

We took like over 200+ photos; will be uploaded onto Facebook soon.

I REALLY, REALLY ENJOYED MYSELF!!!! Best trip ever!!!

UPDATE: My birthday card was handmade by Jia Yi, Yurong, Wai Hon, and Pui Mun. Special thanks to these 4 creative people (they're so special that I just had to colorize their names ^^), and many thanks to everyone else who wrote on my card!! ^^

Cheers!

The silly things

"There is a garden in every childhood, an enchanted place where colors are brighter, the air softer, and the morning more fragrant than ever."

-Elizabeth Lawrence-

On the road, I felt happy when the vehicle in front of us was the last one to cross the green light, and we were stuck behind the red. I thought "Yeah!! We're first in line!!"

I thought a guy and a girl being in close proximity for long periods of time would result in the girl being pregnant. Hence, why I seldom sat beside guys when I attended tuition classes in my primary school days.

I thought sex was a very bad thing, and nobody is allowed to do it. Not even with their wives/husbands. Those who did it, regardless of who they did it with, would have committed a great sin and would go to hell when they died.

My friend told me babies popped out of their mother's urethrae/anuses. I believed her.

I always thought that rice cost a lot more than chickens, because its harder to plant paddy than to raise chickens. Every time I couldn't finish my food, I'd try to finish the rice first before eating the chicken.

I thought first gear was the weakest and fifth gear was most powerful. Think car gears.

It never occurred to me that my plastic cooking set and my pretend doctor set cost so little. I thought they'd cost my parents a fortune, and I always took good care of my toys because of that.

I didn't know my parents' cellphones cost so much. If I knew, I would be horrified by it.

My mother once told me not to allow anyone to touch my nether regions. Asked why, she said that they were 'private parts' and I should be careful not to let anyone touch them. I didn't see what was so private about it. Isn't it the same as any other body part?

I thought owning a dollar bill was a great deal, and I envied my friend who brought a two-dollar-note to school. All I had was coins.

My friend said the devil was going to take me to hell when I went to bed at night, and I believed her.

I thought people 12 years old and above were categorized as adults.

Marshmallow Ginny

"The best thing about animals is that they don't talk much."

-Thornton Wilder-

Here's a video of my hamster, Marshmallow Ginny, stuffing food into her mouth and cleverly placing them into her food container.

Once the food container gets full, she hides her food somewhere else.

If the video doesn't load, try this Youtube link instead.

I love my hamster!!!

I won!!!

My little scam in April '85 went like this: Give me $50,000; here's some names of some people we've recruited.

-Aldrich Ames-

This morning (Or rather, this afternoon, at 1.30 p.m.), when I woke up, I received this SMS from an unknown number:

+60109347523
"SHELL PROMOSI"
Tahniah Kad sim anda telah dipilih "SHELL SDN BHD" Berjaya meraih Hadiah Utama RM 19,000.00.
Sila dail di talain 017-8985994. Terima Kasih.

For those who don't understand Malay, translated:
"SHELL PROMOTION"
Congratulations, your sim card has been chosen by SHELL PTE LTD. You have won the Grand Prize of RM 19,000.00. Please call 017-8985994. Thank You.

To which I replied by sms-ing:

"Fuck off."

I wonder what will happen if I call that number. Shall update you guys if I do.

*Oh boy, oh boy, I just won RM 19,000!!!!! I'm sooooo excited!!!*

*eye roll*

Vanity

"I'm not vain. I just happen to have very high self-esteem."

-Rae-

Just 10 minutes before my parents brought me out, I was sitting in my room, with totally nothing to do.


Then, I heard my 5.0 megapixel camera phone squeal, "Use me!! Use me!!!"

So...


















Not my fault.

Blame my camera phone.

Tagged: Paparazzi

In twenty years you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked.

-Mary Schmich-

So I was tagged again by Jasryn (I didn't know you still remembered me!! =P); this time, its about some 'posting weird pictures of yourself' kinda thing.

Gah!!! Jasryn's conveniently dragged me down with her into the inconvenience of having to dig out all my old Friendster photographs of my weird self.

This post took me three freaking days to complete coz I had such a hard time digging out all my old photos.

Jeez.

Rules:

1. Please entitle your post 'Paparazzi' or something of the like.
2. Follow the 'pictures of ..... ' as closely as possible. Be creative. No photoshop-ing. If you cannot find a picture for one of the descriptions, scratch it off and replace it with something else.
3. Tag whoever you want to see look funny.

1. picture of me looking down:

During Merdeka Night.

2. picture of me with my mouth open:

Me, as a teacher during MGS Canteen Day.

3. picture of me with my mouth closed:


4. picture of me holding in fart:

I had a pretty hard time searching for a pic of myself holding in fart; this is the best Rachel-holding-fart-ish picture I could get.

5. picture of me hugging someone:

Celebrating New Year's eve, about 3 years back.

6. picture of me acting rocker-ish:



7. picture of me doing something i shouldn't:

Oh, this picture is perfect. Way back when I was only 12 years old. In secondary 1.

8. picture of me looking like a noob:

Noob dunno how to use cell phone.

9. picture of me looking like an ape:

Academic stress = insanity.

10. picture of me looking disgusted:

11. picture of me kissing an inanimate object:




I tag: Piggy Ping, Ee Lynn (coz you love taking photos), Elizabeth Lau (coz I wanna see you in weird pictures!!), Marcus Tai (Coz I wanna see you in weird pictures too!!), Andrew Kon, Pin Yin, and anyone else who wants to play this game for the sake of tagging others!!!!

Cheers!

EFFING PISSED

FIREFOX CRASHED WHILE I WAS 80% DONE UPLOADING 50 PHOTOS ONTO FACEBOOK AND NOW I'VE GOT TO REUPLOAD EVERYTHING AGAIN!!!!

GAHHH!!!!!

AM SO PISSED!!!!!

BESIDES, WHY DOESN'T FRIENDSTER SHOW MY PICTURES??? WHY IS THERE A GRAY QUESTION-MARK-GUY INSTEAD!!!???!!?!?!?!?

DOUBLE PISSED!!!

GONNA TRANSFER ALL MY PICTURES TO FACEBOOK, PLUS ADDING MANY, MANY NEW PICTURES, WHICH IS GONNA TAKE ME HOURS!!!!!

GYAAAA~~~

Mini update

"I'm bored."

-Rae-

I've just created an AuditionSEA quiz on Facebook - check it out!

my apologies

"It is a good rule in life never to apologize. The right sort of people do not want apologies, and the wrong sort take a mean advantage of them."

-P.G. Wodehouse, The Man Upstairs-

Is it my fault if your self-esteem is too high to accept people's polite criticisms?

Is it my fault if you were too haughty and vain to accept my sincere apology?

I just just giving my honest opinions in a very polite manner - if you don't accept it, fine, but did you have to allow it to offend you so much?

Like, seriously, I thought in order to improve, you'll have to accept criticisms as a form of encouragement and lesson to improve rather than just being offended by them.

As a friend of mine just told me, "Those who cannot accept criticisms will never go far in life."

Be happy, friend, I'm giving you credit for this, *grins* though I'm not sure if you want your name to be published.

Mama taught me to be polite and honest (and I was, wasn't I?); I don't see why I could have done anything wrong then.

Just because I gave you a criticism, doesn't mean I'm saying I'm better than you, so please stop accusing me of saying things I did not say, for e.g., I am better than you.

It's like criticizing a movie; saying that the director isn't good enough, the sound effects aren't great, the actress isn't talented enough, etc. Are you saying that you can be a better movie director than him then? A better actress, maybe? No. Well, that's the same here. Just because I said you're not that good, doesn't mean I'm claiming myself to be better than you.

I just hate it when people take my words and give it a whole new meaning.

I should stop ranting now. I guess I was feeling a little upset and guilty (note, offended people. I was upset and guilty, if that makes you happier) that I'd offended some people, but then I've apologized very sincerely so if it still isn't accepted, so be it.

Life goes on. With or without them.

the final ~teen

Age does not diminish the extreme disappointment of having a scoop of ice cream fall from the cone.

-Jim Fiebig-

I have just realized that *HUGE GASP* I'm already in my final year of being a teenager.

Nineteen.

The final ~teen in all of teens.

In a blink of an eye, my teenage days are almost gone!!!!! How can that be?? It seems like it was only yesterday that I was telling myself, "Self, your teenage days are long. It'll be forever before you grow out of being a teenager. Enjoy your life at ease. Being a teen is great, and you'll have many, many, many more years of it."

However, this is my final year already!!!!

*screams inwardly*

Have I wasted my teenage years just like that??? The school days!! The memories!! They're all history now!! Can it be that I'm going to be in my twenties soon???

Reality strikes me like a huge rock smack right in the middle of my head.

Ouch.

bffs

"It's the friends that you can call up at 4 a.m., that matter."

-Marlene Dietrich-

In my 19 years of living, I have met many people, made many friends.

Joined many peer groups, too.

Some were fun, some weren't half that bad. One thing's for sure, I've gained lots of unforgettable (though I think I'd rather some to be forgotten) and priceless experiences.

My first peer group was in Primary Two. I can't recall what we named ourselves, but we deemed ourselves to be the prettiest and the most popular girls. At least we made others think we were popular. Abby and I were the founders, and we tried our best to be sorority girls. Kid-style.

To round off, I even got back stabbed half-way through. If that isn't what sorority girls do, I don't know what else is.

Hence, I now proudly announce that I'm glad that even at the tender age of eight, I was already privileged enough to experience the life of a popular girl's social lifestyle, complete with all the backstabbing, bff-swapping, gossipping, slumber parties, lies, and jealousies.

After that, my social life pretty much went through a blur.

It wasn't until secondary school when I finally settled down. In my late teens, I was already getting comfortable with the Gossip Babies.

We didn't deem ourselves to be popular or anything like that, but I have to admit we had our own ways. We gossipped, talked behind people's backs, and I even picked on some. I guess you could say I was kinda like a bully. Not so much of backstabbing, but I can't say there's totally none. We weren't angels.

But still. I'm happy to say that I really enjoyed my time with them.

In college, I joined the Nerd/Geek group.

I know. Don't laugh.

At least they were good influence. For once, I actually studied.

For once, I actually learnt that there's more to a student's life than the usual shopping, gossipping, back stabbing, and such.

And I actually gave up gossipping for a WHOLE YEAR. Can you imagine that?

*gives myself a pat on my back*

Now that I'm in uni, I can't say I've grown much. One can never admit he/she's a grown up when one is actually a member of the Little Grass group.

I mean, when university students start forming their own group, calling themseves Little Grasses, you can't expect them to be that mature now, can you?

We may not be sorority girls, or big-mouthed gossippers, or big bullies, but we're not nerds either.

I guess you could say we're a fun-loving group where we hold gatherings, outings, and such.

As innocent as the name may sound though, I have never forgotten my roots. I love gossipping, and the Little Grasses are such great companions just for that.

Love you, Grassies.

I miss you too, Gossip Babies!

Friends forever!

Chain Rxn

"One more time. I'll get lucky this round. All I need is one more try..."

-Gamblers-

I'm currently being addicted to a game on Facebook.

Chain Rxn.

It's a pretty simple game, where you try to explode as many balls as possible with just one click.

It works like this:
1. Player is first presented with a grey box in which several tiny balls are randomly bouncing about. Think atoms in a box.
2. Player clicks once anywhere inside this box, and a translucent white ball grows (think white beam of growing light), and then stays that way for a couple of seconds, in which that duration of time, another tiny ball has to hit it, before it shrinks and disappears into nothingness.
3. If said white translucent ball isn't hit by any other tiny balls before it shrinks and disappears, player loses that round.
4. If, however, a random tiny ball hits the white translucent ball, then that tiny ball grows and in turn becomes a translucent ball itself, which then provides other balls the chance to hit it, after which that other ball will in turn grow into a large translucent ball itself.
5. For every tiny ball that grows, the player collects points.
6. Each level his its' minimum requirements; in the first level, the player is required to explode at least one ball out of 5, but the number of balls required increased until in the final level, where the player is required to explode at least 54 balls out of 60.

If you were too lazy to read the above six simple steps of the game, let me just sum it up that all the player has to do is to click once on the screen, and then sit back and enjoy.

Sounds simple, doesn't it?

I spent over an hour on that game last night. Got me hooked.

I think this game is just plain evil. It makes you think:

"It's so simple; I'm gonna win this in a minute,"

and then half way through, you'd be like "Damn it, hit that freaking ball before it shrinks away!! Hit it! Hit it! Come on!!"

and then you'd go "Damn!! If only the ball would stay put for another second; there were FIVE freaking tiny balls moving towards it already!"

Then you'd curse your bad luck, and try again, telling yourself that in the next round, you'll definitely make it, because "It was a matter of nanoseconds before those tiny balls touched it!!"

It's funny how games like this trick us into staring intensely at the balls, thinking that the harder we stare, the faster they'd move towards the blown up ball and hit it; as though the human brain had some sort of special connection with the computer.

Maybe it is true that the more we tense up our muscles, tilt our bodies towards the direction we wish the balls to move, and distort our faces into constipated looks would make the balls shift that little more.

It's almost as though repeating the sentence "No, no, no, don't shrink just yet, the balls are getting close, so close, don't shrink!" in one's head would magically make the translucent balls stay there for that much longer.

*Urgh!! Just a little more! Pushhhhh!!! Go!!! Urrgh!!! Don't shrink yet! Faster!!!*

Personally, yes, I think the tiny balls do move faster when I'm looking at them; by a nanometer per second, maybe.

*Gah!!! Bad luck!! I was THIS close!!*

Before you know it, three hours have passed and you still haven't managed to beat that high score.

Why do humans have to think up of such evil games?