Finally graduated!

After waiting for almost a year, my cousin bro has finally received his degree certificate. He's officially declared a graduate yesterday. Congrats to him! It's a pity that he didn't managed to take a good studio shot of him wearing the gown, mortar & holding his scroll. Honestly, I really wanted him to for it but the price was extremely expensive. Why on earth is the photograph charged at minimum RM450? I know that it comes in a package in which several sizes of the photographs will be printed. Still...RM450?? Nah. Way too pricey. Money minded ppl they are, I tell ya.

It was the first time I attended a graduation ceremony & everything was so prim & proper. Can't possibly believe that time flies by so quickly. About 10 years ago, I thought attending university & graduating one day seems so far away. Look at us now. We've gone through all of that & now we're stepping out to face the harsh realities of the real world. There're times when I can't seem to recollect all the memories of things that I've done for the past 10 years. All that had happened seem so vague now -_-. Well, I guess there's no reason to dwell in the past as we have more important things to do look forward to. In about 2 months, it'll be my turn to walk down the hallway; ascending the stage to receive my scroll & smile to the camera with the Chancellor. Not long after that, I should be working my ass off just to earn an extra dollar.

This is life. *sighs*

Anyways, congratulations to our dear Chun Hoe! He deserves a good treat for being the first to earn a degree in the house.

Click the thumbnail to view more pics of his graduation.

I've got an iPhone 3G!

TA-DAA!

I'VE GOT AN iPhone 3G!!

NOT! Lol. Did you guys actually believe that I got one?? Well, it actually belongs to my uncle in JB. Yeah I did mention about it in my previous post so here it is - some snapshots of the real thing as shown above. Didn't bother taking more snapshots of it cuz it's the same like the iPod Touch, just as I've said it many times. The only difference is the firmware which allows users to make calls & send text messages. If I'm not mistaken, the applications are similar to the iPod Touch.

Here's the peculiar thing. The 16GB version is supposed to have 3G embedded in it but I don't see any secondary camera. I thought 3G phones should have 2 cameras so that the one facing the user can be used to make video calls. There is none in this case. Indeed this gadget is cool but in terms of usability, I would rate it mediocre. Typing messages was such a hassle using the Qwerty keyboard. It's too cram & small thus causing typo errors to happen too often that it's supposed to be. I find it rather annoying too cuz the fingers tend to touch the wrong letter. What's more, typing becomes less precise using only the finger cuz the touchscreen doesn't detect stylus nor pointy objects.

Overall, it's a pretty cool gadget to play for fun but I believe the it's not worth spending over RM2000 in Malaysia. My aunt bought it for my uncle cuz she managed to get one of her Singaporean clients to sign a 2-year contract with SingTel who's entitled to buy the iPhone at dirt cheap price. It's not even close to RM1000. Can you imagine that? Lucky Singaporeans! Though the phone is exclusively available at SingTel outlets, it's not unlock. Ain't that great? Even those imported from US are network-locked to AT&T which requires a HyperSim or software unlock so that we poor Malaysians can insert our SIM cards in it. And that already costs a whopping RM2200 plus.

My uncle had no idea why his wife bought such a high-tech phone to use. She know nuts about handling this thing while my uncle is still in the process of learning on how to fully utilise it. In which I think it's very unlikely he'll succeed cuz he doesn't even know how to download apps to add on to the phone. Furthermore, he has no access to Internet at home whereas he's definitely too busy with his job instead surfing the net in the office. Oh well, it's not too bad a phone to flash around & show off. I bet iPhone won't be reaching our shores very soon. Not surprising. :/

Merdeka Trip Part 2

Here's a recap of what I did during the remaining days of the weekend holidays. Lots of time wasted, really. Oh well, time doesn't wait & we all know too well.

Day 2

Me, my sis & I woke up pretty late that morning due to long drama session the night before. It was already late when we left the house. Had lunch first with my uncle before we entered Singapore. Our initial plan was to shop around Parkway Parade where my aunt works but soon enough, my cousin & I decided to take our grandparents to visit our uncle who's currently living in Choa Chu Kang. It only takes approx 1/2 hour to reach Choa Chu Kang from Woodlands but we went straight to Parkway Parade. Imagine spending another 40 mins to drive out from that mall back to Choa Chu Kang. Not knowing Singapore roads well; driving oh-so-cautiously so as to avoid getting caught by speeding cameras & getting slapped with a summon that costs a bomb - all these definitely did not help us reach the destination any faster. To top it off, Grandma's naggings about us getting lost half way that lasted almost an hour made matters a lot more worse. Yeah, I know how much it sucks but she's my granny anyways. What can I do?? *shrugs* Meanwhile, my sis was stuck at the salon doing her hair & that saved her from all the commotion during the journey. Lucky her!

Finally, we found our uncle's house & we met up with my cousin sis too. Had yum cha session somewhere near & dropped by at Lot One Shopper's Mall. It's a pretty decent mall selling nice clothings, shoes, bags...you name it at decent prices aimed - mainly aimed at middle income earners. The interior is surprisingly good too despite the plain exterior I saw upon entering its car park. Saw aplentiful of pumps that I was so tempted to buy but knowing my Grandpa was there wheelchair bound & may be bored if we spent too much time looking at clothes, I'd rather not hog everyone's time. Then, Grandma decidedly chose those designs that I don't quite like & kept on complaining why most of them have sharp, pointed nose made me fed up. Of course, I was silently calculating the price after conversion at the back of my head just to make sure that I don't overspend. Seriously it's tough shopping in Singapore if you keep on taking the currency conversion into consideration. You practically can't get anything cuz everything seems so pricey. Look, I can't help thinking like that especially when the price of those less branded pumps cost merely $35.90 end up becoming RM70++ a pair. Not so worthy, isn't it? Now I kinda regretted not getting one after returning home cuz the designs there were much, much better. Boo-hoo!

Of course, we can't just go home without snapping some pics? Am I right? ^^ After all, it's not like we always hang out with my cousin sis & uncle in Singapore.

Just as we were about to leave the mall, a note was placed on our car's windshield.

Heck! Didn't expect the management was freakin' anal about vehicles parking at the wrong space. Fyi, we parked at a space specially for handicaps reason being my grandpa couldn't walk far & needs to use a wheelchair. Parking at the handicap spot was the best option cuz it's the closest to the entrance. I don't blame if the management didn't know if there was old fellow who couldn't walk but believe it or not, a vehicle with a Singapore plate number also parked at a handicap spot next to ours & didn't receive any note. Not fair~ Unless the vehicle just parked not long ago & yet to receive the warning letter, I have every right to say that the management is discriminating us. This sounds very sensitive so let's hope that whatever I said it's not true.

After dropping off our uncle at his apartment, we drove my cousin sis back to her university. And off we cruised our way to Woodlands checkpoint, then home.

Day 3

We were supposed to be heading back to KL today. Me, cousin bro & my sis being sleepyheads again ended up waking up from slumber pretty late. Say, around 11am. No one was at home except the 3 of us. Cousin bro drove us out to eat yong tau fu & later met the rest of my family at Sutera Mall. Didn't fancy the place that much cuz it reminded me too much of Sungei Wang, except that it's newer. It's like lala land where the lala ppl gather. There's a shop that sells goth-styled clothing, seriously. Honestly, it looks damn cool but it's just plain inappropriate to wear it in public especially in Malaysia. I wouldn't mind putting one on if I'm at Harajuku or Akihabara. Some teenager wannabes were seen walking around in lolita dresses & gothic outfits which attracted so many stares from passerby. My uncle was dumbfounded when he saw them & asked what on earth these young kids are up to. I answered, "They're cosplaying~ XD". He was like...bwuh? o_O

Next stop was AEON Tebrau City. OMFG. Huge place. Enormous. Bigger than ever. Comparable to 1 Utama. Awesomeness. Walking on such a long stretch of the 1st floor was a daunting task. There were so many shops to walk around & see. It was the last day of Mega Sale therefore I told myself that I need to at least get something before I return home. In the end, I bought two blouses from G2000. Hell yeah I know their stuff have hefty price tag. They're having sale though & some of the blouses have 50% off. Without the discount, I wouldn't have consider buying any cuz their blouses are bloody expensive. Like RM179 each depending on the fabric type. Now I only paid RM179.90 for two items instead. Not too bad, huh?

It was too late to drive back to KL which was why we made a last min decision to stay over for another night. Cousin bro took an emergency leave since Grandma doesn't really like travelling in the late evening. As you know, we would be reaching home during nighttime. We did her favour by opting to go home tomorrow.

Day 4

We're going home for real this time XD. Again, we woke up late but we quickly packed our belongings & stuffed them in the car. Went for lunch at a coffee shop operated by a lady who hails from Ipoh. Wooo~ Nice food, I tell ya. Gah, one of these days I should go to Ipoh for a gastronomic feat. We bidded my uncle farewell & travelled home. We're going to see him again anyways as cousin bro's convocation is coming up this Saturday. My uncle wanted me to stay back for a few more days but I couldn't agree to do so. I needed to be home in case the employer that Mum recommended would call me up for an interview. It wouldn't be too nice if I requested the interview to be held the following week. I'd totally stay longer & have more time walking around Singapore; maybe shopping for lots of interesting items. Pity, isn't it? Nevertheless, it's good to be home. I miss my bed. XD

The End.

Merdeka Trip Part 1

Sorry for the lack of updates. I just came back from a short holiday trip in JB. It was the Merdeka weekend & my grandparents had decided to drop a visit at my uncle's house. It's a norm for us Malaysians to go for trips on National Day as we usually have nothing else better to do besides hitting the malls. We just don't join in the fest & watch the parade like other countries do. But that doesn't make us less patriotic or love our country lesser than others. Let's just say we love our motherland a lot, not the one who governs it. And we have our own ways to show our love but on a less extravagant style.

Day 1

Travelling to JB alone already took us almost half a day. By then, we were already too exhausted to enter Singapore. Had lunch at one of the restaurants nearby my uncle's office. He ordered this rather unique kailan dish which is cooked using 2 different methods - fried & deep fried. This means one side of the dish has dried, crispy kailan leaves with its texture similar to nori sheets while the other half of the vege is like your typical fried kailan dish. Very interesting dish, indeed. Oh btw, he's using an iPhone 3G 16GB. OMFG. Effing cool design (just like the iPod Touch) but so-so on the functionalities. More on that later.

We settled down at my uncle's cribs while he returned to the office. Driving to Singapore was out of the question as we were too exhausted. Besides, it was late in the afternoon which means it would be pretty late by the time we reached there. And we need to return to JB again to stay for the night which left us very little time to do real shopping. Moonlight Resonance DVD was the only thing available to entertain us. What more can I expect when there's no Astro nor Internet to satisfy my daily needs. Nevertheless, I didn't mind cuz the house is really comfortable. It's so quiet & peaceful that I can sleep soundly & wake up feeling fresh later.

Our tummies started making noises when evening came. Off we went to a mamak to fill up our hungry stomachs. It's been ages since I last dined on mamak food. Oh, I so miss eating them. Mamak food in JB is a little different from what we have here in KL. For instance, there's no Indomie in JB which I think is quite a turnoff cuz I'm a huge fan of Indomie. How can they not have such tasty instant noodle?? I'm not entirely sure whether this applies to all JB mamaks but my uncle doesn't seem to know anything about Indomie either. So I'm assuming that Indomie is just not popular there. I ordered fried Maggi as a substitute to my fav Indomie. It turned out pretty delicious though it was a little too spicy for my liking. And then I had roti planta, a must-have dish each time I patronise mamak stalls (during the day, of course). The difference here is that there's no sugar but only margarine in it. This makes it rather bland & a tad too oily but the thin texture of the roti made up for it. Roti tissue was really good. I'm totally loving the thin, crispy pastry coupled with sweetened condensed milk. It was a little too sweet but still heavenly~ XD

Nothing fancy to talk about for dinner. The only thing was that we ate at 10pm cuz we had to wait for my aunt, uncle & cousin bro to return home. What's more, my aunt took the wrong bus home from Singapore & wasted lots of time stucked at the Causeway. We had crabs for dinner however I don't quite fancy crabs so I shall refrain from giving any comments. I just don't know how to appreciate it, if you ask me. After all, I didn't even touch the crabs. *shrugs*

It was foggy that night & cold air filled the surrounding. Cousin bro, my sis & I stood outside to enjoy the cool air since we were too stuffed from the late dinner & didn't want to go to bed early. It was the perfect time for shooting pics but it's a pity that my camera couldn't really capture the scenery well. This was the best I could do.

The quiet night sky

My pathetic attempt to capture my own jump in the pic is shown below. Here's a blurry vision of me jumping while my sis tried really hard to take a pic of me.

To be continued...

A robot with huge responsibilities

After months of missing out on good movies, I finally went for a movie outing with a friend of mine. The thing is...I have 2 advertiser's passes to use up before they expire. It would be a waste not to use it cuz there's no restriction on the types of movies to watch i.e. free listing movies. Hence, I didn't wanna miss out on the opportunity to watch a new movie. And so, we've decided to watch...

Yup! The ever adorable trash cleaning robot, Wall-E. I saw the teaser trailer to this movie months ago & thought that maybe I should give it a try. The robot looked cute, no doubt. As much as I adore every Pixar animated film & never failed to watch all of them in the cinema, I'm starting to get a little tired & wondered what else can Pixar do this time. No doubt it's the usual 3D animation featuring humans, talking animals, objects (you name it) with a moral behind the story. I wasn't particularly interested in The Incredibles in which I don't know why. It was good but not quite what I was looking for. Cars was very interesting to watch but Ratatouille was spot on! I saw the downloaded DVD ripped version & it was so good that I'd wish that I had enough HDD space to keep. Unfortunately, no T.T.

Anyways, back to Wall-E. I definitely thought the movie was excellent & very entertaining. It was a little slow at the beginning but no qualms about that. Disney & Pixar were trying to build the story with minimal narration by solely depending on robotic actions & facial emotions expressions. What's even more hilarious is that they managed to inject some lovey-dovey stuff between Wall-E & Eve, the probe robot. Aww...so cute! The most important thing is the message that the movie is trying to deliver to the audience. It highlighted the issues of pollution & the consequence of not having proper waste management. In this movie, humans no longer lived on planet Earth but in space reason being the planet can no longer sustain life. Pollution level is at its peak & skycrapers were replaced by mountains of trash. Using robots to clean up the waste while they left for space showed how irresponsible humans can be.

Honestly, I was hit hard by the message as I'm convinced that we, selfish humans might do the same thing. It's time to make a change. Let's not wait till matters become worse that is beyond our control. At that time, any remedial efforts will be deemed useless. Our Government's proposal to reduce import duties on hybrid cars is actually a good start. But how significant can it be? How about the public? Are they aware of the need to go green? Are they willing to adopt the "Go Green" attitude & put it into practice? As a matter of fact, my family couldn't even recycle about 50% of the trash we have. What about other households? It's a shame that we can't even follow Japan. I guess it'll be a long, long time before the majority of us would realise the seriousness of the problem. *sighs* It all falls back to the mentality of the public. You know how difficult it is to change people's minds. Nevertheless, a good movie it was. Entertaining yet educational. Now let's see if Nuffnang's gonna gimme tickets to Mamma Mia! The Movie. XD

Pic courtesy of Movie Poster Addict

Mamma Mia! The Movie

ABBA was the word that came into my mind when I heard about the musical movie Mamma Mia! The Movie premiering in the US. Surely this adaptation from the Broadway show is filled with unforgettable, addictive ABBA tunes such as Mamma Mia! (of course ^^), Dancing Queen, Knowing Me, Knowing You, SOS & the list goes on. I'm quite a fan of late 70s to 80s music so bands like The Bee Gees, ABBA, Earth, Wind & Fire just to name a few are not new to me. And to actually have a movie featuring all ABBA tunes is awesome cuz the late 70s to 80s is the golden era for all good music, imho. It sure makes me wanna jump off my chair & start grooving XD.

When Nuffnang announced that free tickets will be given to Glitterati members, I jumped at this opportunity & pondered hard about what to blog about. This is my first time trying to get free tickets through blogging so I need to make an impression for me to be selected. But what am I gonna talk about? First off, this movie will feature an all-star casts with the likes of Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth & many more. I personally haven't seen these celebs starring in a musical so I bet this movie will definitely be a feat for everyone. Dance, singing, dramatic acting, love lost & found - what an exciting ride it would be!

I last saw Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada & thought that she did an amazing job in portraying the icy, fearsome Miranda Priestly. Being an Oscar winner, I'm convinced that she'll be able to tackle different roles effectively by injecting her very own style into her characters, especially in this musical movie. I think what's surprising is to see Pierce Brosnan taking up a role in singing & dancing when all this while I have gotten accustomed to his suave demeanor in his Bond films. It would be interesting to see this man shake off his Bond image & strutting his stuff in this movie of romance & music. Not to forget Colin Firth whom I fell head over heels in love with after watching Love Actually. I didn't watch him in action in Bridget Jone's Diary but he's certainly a great actor to begin with. Definitely one of my fav British actor whom I look forward to see vying for the attention of "his" daughter.

The location. Oh my! What a heavenly place~ Choosing to film in a Greek island really sets the mood for this movie. I seriously can't think of a better place for the shooting. The clear blue skies, crystal clear water, white sandy beaches, captivating landscapes...what perfection! It reminded me of the island scene where Lena Kaligaris visited during the summer in The Sisterhood of The Traveling Pants. Can you picture it?

Nuffnang, you know how I much want to watch this movie soooo badly. It would a memorable one reason being it'll be my first free movie from Nuffnang. Just like the movie tagline, Take A Trip Down The Aisle You'll Never Forget. I'll definitely take a trip down the cinema entrance that I'll never forget if I get to be part of this event. Pls, pls...gimme the tickets to the premiere of Mamma Mia! The Movie. I'll ♥ you forever!! ^^

Pic courtesy of Movie Poster Addict

Farewell Beijing, Hello London

Yesterday marks the end of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. How time flies, eh? The 16 days seemed to pass by in a breeze. After watching the Closing Ceremony last night, I told myself that I'm gonna miss Olympics very much. This is the best Games I've ever witnessed so far with many records broke & new ones made. Coming from a Chinese background, I'm proud that the host country had succeeded in promoting the rich culture for the world to understand more about us. Let's see how the London Olympic Games in 2012 can fare up to the new benchmark set by China. Meanwhile, farewell Beijing 2008! All the memories you have given us will leave behind a legacy in years to come.

Pic courtesy of Wikipedia.org

Fedora & trench coat

I took this pic for fun while playing around with my cousin bro's fedora & trench coat. The size obviously doesn't suit me. Boy, I look like a midget XD. Tee-hee!

Goodies & so much more

A couple of weeks ago, I received several packages one day after another from US & Japan. I don't know what got into me as I ended up having a shopping spree on eBay & Yahoo! Japan Auctions. I reckon it's all thanks to the pre-exam stress XD. Geez...it's not a good thing to hear, is it? Imagine the amount of money I can actually spend if I encounter stress again in the future. o_O

Packages from US

Bet y'all haven't heard about sewing patterns before. It's actually ready-made patterns that can be cut out & sewn together to form a dress design. There're several variations in design to choose from for those who prefer more choices. If only I found these patterns earlier, I could've made them & wear it to prom. The patterns are not too expensive (in US dollars, of course) but they can only be found in the US. So far, I haven't come across any of these stuff in my country which is why I decided to buy them. I haven't got much use of the patterns yet but hopefully in the future. What a total waste of money, eh? XD

Honestly, the designs look a lot like bridesmaid dresses XD.

Next, the one shown below is actually a travel set that comes with a silver pouch, an aromatic candle, an eyemask (the one you strapped over your eyes to sleep) & a huge postcard. If you click on the thumbnail, notice that the zip handle on the pouch is a shape of an airplane. The items look familiar to you, right? Well, I did blog about it here. I have no idea why I bought them. Maybe cuz I'm always attracted to all things shiny XD. But the pouch definitely has some purpose especially when I'm planning to travel out of town this weekend ^^.

FOMA N706i Francfranc travel set

And then, we have two phone straps in which I also got from Yahoo! Japan. The one on the left is actually a mushroom character called ドコモダケ, the current mascot for NTT DoCoMo which comes free if you purchase a DoCoMo handset. Cute fella, isn't he? ^^ And the gold phone strap next to it is a limited edition FOMA N906iu STNY by Samantha Thevasa that is included in every purchase of that particular model. Those Japanese sold the strap separately to make a quick buck. Which is good news for me cuz I absolutely love the strap design. What's missing now is to match it with my dream white SH906i keitai. *sighs*

ドコモダケ & STNY by Samantha Thavasa

Last but not least, the much anticipated Dong Bang's 3rd Live Tour DVD has finally arrived. Awesome concert, I would say. Makes me wanna be there so badly. The concert started on my birthday that's why this tour seems special to me. Gotta tell ya that the boys' concert gets better each year. I wonder when will I have the chance to witness them live in action in Japan. *sighs again* Lucky you, Pei Xiang!

The shiny~

College life is coming to an end

I've officially completed my tertiary education. What a relief~ Althought I'm feeling ecstatic, somehow I felt a little awkward about the absence of assignment datelines & exams. Everything happened so fast & here I am now supposedly ready to move on to the next chapter of my life. To be stepping out to join the fierce working community. All these years, I've always anticipated to complete my final year of degree with a blast. Little did I expect that things turned out simpler than I thought. Seems like just another ordinary day.

I've pondered a lot on the night after my last paper ended. Like...what's my next move? What should I do from now on? I couldn't sleep a wink as I could hardly believe that I have total freedom to do whatever I want now. Decided to stay up late again & watch my Dong Bang concert DVD that I've been deprived for months. It was just to keep my mind occupied rather than sitting down doing nothing. Though I kept on telling myself I'm very eager to leave college asap cuz I didn't wanna lay eyes on some ppl ever again & also leave this sad chapter of my life. I'll be happy again. But...deep down inside, I dreaded the feeling of the need to put this behind me. I seriously do. And the more I think about this, the more I felt guilty. I'm starting to become a hypocrite myself.

To be honest, I miss the good ol' days when the relationship with my college buddies were less strained; less complicated. I wished for so many things, especially the fact that I didn't have to fall in love. With that, I could've at least avoided suffering alone for months. I wished everyone weren't so selfish in the pursuit of their own goals. If only each & everyone of us were that innocent. Ppl grow up & change, so do friends come & go. There'll always be meetings & partings that intertwine one another. This is life, after all. *sighs* I don't know exactly what I'm trying to point out here. All I know is...I'm so confused. =(

EXAMS

EXAMS. EXAMS. EXAMS.

*dies*

Officially on hiatus for the whole week.

T___T

An extravagant opening

No words can describe how spectacular the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games opening ceremony was last night. How I wish I was there to witness history in the making. The lightings, performances, fireworks & pyrotechnics were absolutely stunning. The beauty of the Beijing National Stadium aka Bird's Nest was simply breathtaking, imho the most uniquely designed stadium in Olympic history.

Photograph by Bullit Marquez/AP

The performances were filled with splashes of colour, depicting China's richness in history & culture. One of the best moments of the opening ceremony was the 1 minute countdown to 8.08pm, the official time for the opening. This is probably the first time the countdown was manually performed by thousands of men while incorporating the modern, state-of-the-art effects reminiscent of a digital countdown clock.

Photograph by Adam Pretty/Getty Images

As you can see here, the drummers are hitting their drums that illuminate light for the man-made countdown. What brilliant idea & awesomeness!

Photograph by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

There were lots more beautiful moments during the ceremony that it would take hours for me to put them here. I think what most ppl are looking forward to most which is the climax of the event - the lighting of the Olympic flame cauldron. Rumour has it that a panda will be igniting the cauldron. Not true! It would've been interesting, really. But it doesn't sound very realistic either reason being the panda is a rather timid creature. Giving that poor little creature the huge responsibility to officiate the event means the organisers are asking for trouble. Here's the fact: Li Ning, Olympic gold medalist for artistic gymnastics was selected as the last torchbearer, suspended mid-air & running around the upper lip of the Bird's Nest while images of past torchbearers from around the world were projected on the walls.

Photograph by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Now that China has set a benchmark for such an extravagant event, I can't wait to see how she lives up to it for the closing ceremony. And it looks like the Chinese athletes are in the head start of the medal tally, battling the Americans. This is definitely the most exciting Games I've ever seen.

The M is back

The MTV Asia Awards 2008 is finally back! Not bigger or better but the fact that it is to be held in Malaysia for the first time. At Arena of Stars, Genting of all places -_-. I began thinking how much the MTV organisers can do from this small venue. It only houses merely 6000 ppl. Been there. Seen it. It's THAT small. The trophy design for award winners was shocking. Simply cuz it's a gold-plated "M" shape bar with the award categories engraved on it. I wasn't very much impressed. Reminded me of a Toblerone bar.

I saw the delayed live telecast on Saturday night. And guess what? The event turned out to be surprisingly good. Though lacking sufficient award presenters, I must say that I'm indeed satisfied with the artiste lineup this time. All the performances were awesome except the ones by Project E.A.R & the collab between Electrico & Stefanie Sun. I'd have to stress that my favs for that night were One Republic & Leona Lewis. Hands down to Leona Lewis cuz she pwned them all. Bleeding Love is not her best song. In fact, Better in Time is 100 times better. Nevertheless, thumbs up to One Republic's main man for such a warm interaction with the crowd. ^^

Did I mention that Jared Leto looks incredibly hot? *drools* I believe not many ppl are buying his rather flat-ish hairstyle but I'm so intoxicated by his puppy-like eyes. They add on to his cool, emo & slightly gothic image. Why didn't I know that he acted in Troy? Oh right. I didn't watch the movie. For the list of winners, log on to mtvasiaawards.com as well as the latest news of the event.

Now if it wasn't due to assignments & upcoming exams, I'd definitely get my ass there. It's the experience that makes the trip worthwhile. The room rates for that weekend were deliberately jacked up, obviously. But if I were to go, I'll just to stay in the more expensive Genting Resort rather than the smaller but not-so-cheap First World Hotel. Ah well, I guess there's always next time. I still have SM Town in Bangkok 2008 to look forward to, right? XD Btw, congrats to the MTV organisers for the event's success. The team made us feel proud as Malaysians. =D

Pic courtesy of mtvasiaawards.com

Snog

I stayed back at campus till 5.30pm the other day to have a discussion with my fellow members for one of our assignments which will be due soon. The discussion ended early but I had to hang around an hour more as I had no one to fetch me home. And so I walked out of the Student Affairs Office (my usual hangout place) to look at the exam timetable. There were booths still left arranged as it was at the concourse even after the Engineering fair had ended. As I was walking across the concourse, little did I expect to see...

...a couple kissing behind one of the booths. They were so engrossed that they didn't realise that someone passed by. Feeling a little embarrassed & not wanting to disrupt their precious moments, I quickly walked away but unfortunately stepped on a loose manhole cover that led out a sound. I pretended that I didn't see them as I didn't wanna make them feel embarrassed & awkward either. In the next few mins, I could hear the girl gasping "OMG!" loudly maybe cuz she found out that someone noticed them sneaking such act on campus. Oh well... *shrugs*

Basically, the whole idea is that I'm still not used to the public display of intimacy especially in college. Ain't there places more romantic for a smooch? Park, no? Still, this is Malaysia. It's not a norm in our country to perform a kissing act in public. Respect that & deal with it. If you can't, go somewhere private. Believe me, I'd had had enough of witnessing couples caught in the act -_-. They even dared to think that their secret spot is safe from prying eyes at neighbouring colleges. Guh.

It's not that I despise these ppl; it's about when & where they do it irritates me. I won't deny that I kissed someone before. In fact, several times at somewhere quiet without anyone spying on us. Besides, we didn't wanna get ourselves into trouble cuz lip-locking in public is illegal. Honestly, I wouldn't hesitate locking lips with my other half if I'm living anywhere but Malaysia that legalises public kissing. Back to the couple. Can't blame that they were a little...desperate. To me, there's no harm kissing someone just to show how much you love him/her. Like I said, the concourse wasn't the right place. What if they got caught by the management? They're doomed, that's for sure. *sighs* Seeing them makes me feel like loving someone new again. But, I don't think I'm ready yet...

Contour glass

I'm a fan of the Olympics, in case you didn't know. As far as I can remember, I've been following the sports since Atlanta 1996. Back then, there wasn't many live coverage of all the sports & Astro was still at its infant stage which makes it too expensive for the general public to afford. Everything is so different now. Just switch on to Astro & you have...what, 11 channels featuring live matches? I'm proud to say that I've been watching the sports event a lot for the previous 2 Olympics, all thanks to Astro. Can't imagine how my life would be without this good 'ol satellite TV.

Even marketing has taken a different step nowadays. I'm sure y'all are aware that McDonald's has collaborated with Coca-Cola to release a limited edition contour-shaped glass in conjunction with the upcoming Beijing 2008 Olympics. For every Gold Medal meal, you'll get a free glass with 5 different sport emblems to choose from. I was greedy enough to actually think of getting 2 designs - swimming & archery. Sadly, I have to settle for one only cuz the meal set is pricey. =( Luckily I told Mum to use my McD vouchers so she only need to add another RM4 or RM5. Yet, she still complained about the price -_-.

Since the meal is that expensive, there're a myriad of food included. Here's what McD offers:-

1. Spicy Chicken McDeluxe
2. Onion rings (7 pcs) or french fries (L)
3. Carbonated drink (M)
4. Sundae (Chocolate/Strawberry)

If price is not the main concern, then go for it. The contour glass is a novelty item that you can't miss. Just like the Hello Kitty plushies. XD

Ta-daa!

From top: Coca-Cola logo & archery emblem

*stares at the curveness of the contour glass* =D

Hot, steamy soup

My friends & I were having lunch nearby Taylor's Business School yesterday & decided to check out the Vono soup bar out of curiosity. It was a mini truck stationed at certain locations promoting Vono instant soup. Each box is priced at RM3 & there're 8 variants to choose from to cater to all those picky taste buds out there. Samples of the 8 different flavours were distributed to entice students buy at least one box. Buy 2 boxes, get 1 wooden soup spoon free. Buy 4 boxes, get 1 soup bowl/cup free. Buy 6 boxes, those 2 gifts are all yours. That was what the promoters told us.

Initially, I wasn't planning to buy anything as I was only tagging along. When I saw the complimentary gifts, I became tempted to purchase 6 boxes. But getting all 6 at once seems too expensive for me. So I settled for 2 boxes instead as I was keen to get the wooden spoon. It looks so cute! My guy friend wanted the mushroom flavour so badly that we decided each of us paid half for 2 boxes. I get to keep the spoon cuz he was more enthusiastic about the mushroom soup -_-.

I realised that the spoon seemed incomplete without the bowl & felt determined to get another 4 boxes. Yes, just for the sake of the bowl XD. This is not the first day you know me. I'll go all out to get it if I really want something. Off I went during lunch hour today, keeping my hopes high that the truck is still there. It's there! At the very same spot. Then I immediately selected 4 flavours, paid the cash & asked for the bowl. I was really disappointed when it was out of stock. But the girl assured that stocks will be replenished within 2 hrs & she gave me 2 spoons first.

At 4pm, I went there again & the gals were smilling gleefully at me. They must be thinking I'm the only one who's crazy enough to return just for the bowl. Who wouldn't? I already have a spoon, I don't need another 2. So yeah, they even took a shot of me with my best smile while holding the bowl & spoon. Just for contest purpose. Sighs. I'd probably looked...weird.

Mum was telling me that I'll most likely get sick of instant soup in no time. -_-

Soups, spoon & bowl.

Pink does not stink!

As much as I hate some ppl who're overly obsessed with pink stuff i.e. cellphones, bag, shoes, skirts etc., I can't help being one of the Barbies at times. Especially owning a pink J-phone specifically designed for girls. You hear me right ^^. I was captivated when I came across NTT DoCoMo's new model under the 706i series. It's the N706i Francfranc limited edition by NEC. Sooo pink, yet simple & stylish. The best part of it is the slimness, an essence in every female-inspired phone. Not to forget that the original box includes a travel set in conjunction with the travel theme, N meets Francfranc. Now if the price ain't too expensive & can be unlocked with HyperSim, I wouldn't mind asking my friend in Japan to purchase one unit for me XD. Gah, why can't we own gorgeous J-phones like this? T.T

To find out more about this phone, click the pic below. (special site in Japanese only)

Pics courtesy of Just Another Mobile Phone Blog & NEC Corporation.

Fan made of silk

Recently, I bought a sensu (silk fan) directly from Japan together with a chirimen sensu holder. What for? For no particular reason, to be honest. I always have this crazy behaviour of buying something that is usually of no use. If I see something that really caught my eye, I have a strong desire to own it. Most of the time, the price tag is not an important factor. It's the matter of whether the item is beautiful, pretty, shiny, rare...you name it. Lets just say this behaviour started ever since I had more allowance, owning my very own credit card & having my friend in Japan who's ever willing to do big favours for me. Of course, my childhood love for anything Japanese played the biggest role to encourage such behaviour. Not that it's a good thing XD.

Nevertheless, I still do have my senses. I wouldn't spend much on items that are incredibly expensive...something that I seriously can't afford. There were times that I felt like telling my friend to get a J-phone handset & delivered it to my house, knowing that the phone doesn't function in my country at all. So the only thing I could do was salivate over countless pics of those elongated, geometrically-designed phones over the Internet. Later when I found out that there're ppl who managed to unlock these exotic phones, I was thrilled. But I still couldn't afford one yet cuz they're sold at exorbitant prices. The phones are in high demand & once proven usable overseas, ppl will flock to J-phone importers to grab one. Obviously the importers would take advantage of the high demand to earn big bucks.

Anyways, enough of those incessant ramblings. This item I bought is made of silk, Japanese paper & bamboo which makes it really delicate & fragile. The silk material is semi-transparent & gives out a sheer tint. It looks very thin, easy to tear & fall off anytime if you add any extra ounce of energy holding or opening the fan. On the contrary, the holder is made of chirimen fabric in which the colour is matched according to the colour & design of the fan I've selected. No doubt I chose red & pink for the holder but the exact colour motifs were not decided by me. And I'm pretty impressed that the website matched the colour combinations so perfectly that it feels so exquisite to slot in my fan (not just for the sake of protecting it) & carry it around. All I can say is...it's simply beautiful. Love it to bits~ *grins*

Sensu holder. The part shown by red arrow is grey in colour. Stupid camera made it blue... -_-"

Sensu design inspired by lotus flowers.

INTIBALL 2008

Okay, the ball was finally over last Saturday night. My very last ball before I leave university. Honestly, the event was way below my expectation but at the very least; it was a memorable night for me cuz I felt that I looked more beautiful than ever. This is the first time I put so much effort to achieve the best look for prom. And I did it! ^^ With a considerable amount incurred, of course. It was worth every cent spent, anyways.

The food was not bad. In fact, the mutton curry tasted pretty good. However, the feel of the event was lacklustre; leaving much to be desired. It was supposed to be magical. That's what it ought to be. I supposed the only thing that is fuelling the fun & excitement are friends or dates for the night. Cameras were flashing endlessly & I can assure you that I was "blinded" aplentiful times. Especially no thanks to my camera that flashes twice each time a shot is taken. The pics came out fabulous so I shouldn't be complaining XD.

Performance was mediocre but there was one performance that I was looking forward to see. Though it wasn't superbly outstanding till it made me tear, I was watching in awe at the cute guy working on his rendition of Chopin's I-forgot-the-song-title piece. He is an excellent pianist, I must say. *salutes* There were too many bands doing performances & my lack of interest in rock bands is not doing any justice. Therefore, I shall refrain from providing comments about them.

I think what's noteworthy is that my cousin bagged the award for Best Dress. Obviously none of the guys could outmatch his outfit for that night. Just like me, he planned his outfit months before the event & even sourced certain pieces from overseas. Crazy, isn't it? XD If I had more funds, I wouldn't hesitate to order my dress online. There're so many dresses in US sites that I've been eyeing for months but couldn't bring myself to order as they're insanely expensive. The most I can do is achieve an elegant look just like the one below. For more pics, click here.

While my bunch of friends went for an after-event party at Scarlet, I went home instead & camwhored a lil bit with my cousin bro. Surely you guys will be asking why I didn't join them. I wasn't in the mood to go & home is only 2km away. And I didn't wanna dirty my beautiful long dress walking around the mall & street. I'm...not a clubbing person, you see. *shrugs* Here are the snapshots of the programme book. The concept & design is pretty interesting but if only the pages weren't stapled together (shown in 2nd pic). The staples somehow made the book look sloppy. Oh well, this post basically sums up the whole event. I shall go to bed now.

Just a quickie

I'll be going to the ball tomorrow later tonight. I'm pretty excited about it reason being this would be my last one before I graduate. And to top it off, I actually planned for this event a few months ago i.e. getting a dress way back in April & imagining the look that I intend to achieve. It was tough getting all the accessories & finally everything is complete now. Here's a sneak preview of how I would look like for the ball sans the makeup & proper hairdo. Oh boy, it's so late now. Gotta run. Ciao!

Britain's Got Talent!

I decided to look up on this new reality TV series, Britain's Got Talent after hearing my friend mentioned about the 6 year old girl who sang Somewhere Over The Rainbow. If this sounds unfamiliar, it's actually a talent search TV show reminiscent of American Idol with 3 judges commenting & scrutinising the participants. Seems like there's no age limit in this competition so practically anyone from all walks of life who thinks that he/she's got what it takes to win can sign up. You can sign up as a group or solo, which is different from the typical idol search shows that we see today.

This talent show doesn't refer to singing alone; it comprises other talents such as dancing, miming, throwing daggers...you name it. As long as it's a special skill that other ppl don't. Do I even need to elaborate further? To sum it all, the show started in 2006 & attracted lots of Brits to attend the auditions. The participants would have to demonstrate their talent in front of the judges & audiences in a hall. Three judges (2 men, 1 woman) in which one of them is Simon Cowell, you can expect lots of nasty remarks from his mouth. Audition process is pretty much similar to American Idol therefore I shall not go over the details.

In the first season, both finalists Connie Talbot & Paul Potts battled it out with the latter emerging as the winner. Connie was the first youngest participant to audition for the show & this has encouraged many kids try out in the following year. Paul, a mobile phone seller; wowed the crowd with his opera singing prowess. Citizens voted for Paul maybe cuz they felt that Connie was still young & had plenty of opportunities to prosper. Her voice was still at the growth stage so there's still lots of time before she matures & develop better vocals. Nevertheless, she still sang really well ^^.

As for the second season in 2007, the two finalists were dancers. Interesting ppl, I would say. I won't reveal much for now as I strongly encourage you to watch them in action in YouTube. The winner was Paul Sampson, 14 year old cute teenage street dancer. His rival was the group, Signature which consists of 2 members. This group really amazed me & after watching the video link below, I couldn't stop replaying it. It's just so hilarious yet entertaining. I even downloaded the video clip to add on to my collection. Do watch it & lemme know what you guys think.

Britain's Got Talent - Signature

Japanese Handicraft for Dummies

It was already 9.30am when we boarded the train at Asia Jaya. I kept on telling myself, "We're gonna be late, we're gonna be late!". It takes about 40 mins to arrive at Ampark Park where we'll head to Menara Citibank for our workshop. The fact that we'll be late can't be avoided as I woke up 50 mins later of my scheduled wake-up time. Sis was already awake but busy enjoying cornflakes in front of the TV while Mum was err...doing her chores, I think. By the time I was ready, I was waiting for the both of them instead -_-. Mum went for shower while sis only started washing her cereal bowl & packing her bag. Geez.

There's no way you can miss the tall building once you take the exit from Ampark Park leading to Nikko Hotel. The Japan Foundation Kuala Lumpur (JFKL) is situated on the 30th floor. Yup, it's THAT high up. Your ears will start cracking & hurt a little when you take the lift 30 floors up & down. I'm not surprised as it wasn't my first time here. Been here twice many years back & the 3rd time was last Fri to collect the tickets to the workshop.

Once we arrived, each participant is given a piece of cloth which looks like this.

We were supposed to do a back-stitch along the vertical & diagonal lines to secure the two different coloured fabrics. As you can see here, I'm struggling trying my very best to sew the two pieces together XD.

After the stitching was done, the piece of fabric is to be folded into half & pinned together like the pic below. We were told to sew along the lines on the upper & lower part of the fabric.

Next, the fabric is flipped over to reveal the top side. This is how the finished product should look like.

TA-DAA! Behold, the masterpiece of dodgy workmanship XD

As we left the buiding, we chanced upon this really nice sports car. We had to take a pic of it cuz it's super cool.

Porsche Cayman (not sure if it's the latest model *shrugs*)

Overall, I really enjoyed the workshop. It really kept my mind busy & made me forget lots of things that I dun wish to recall. You guys are right, getting myself busy is the only way to recover quick. ^^

Learning handicraft the Japanese way

I'll be attending this handicraft workshop this Saturday at KL. Mum & sis would be tagging along too, especially Mum being overly-eager to learn how to sew a chirimen pocket tissue case. On the contrary, I had mixed feelings cuz though I'm deeply interested to know the process but my sewing skills is an embarrassment -_-. And to show my un-proud technique to the Japanese lady who's guiding us through the whole process is not making things better. *sighs* Oh well, let's see how things turn out. Will keep you guys posted.

Date: July 5, 2008 (Saturday)
Time: 10am - 12pm
Venue: JFKL, Menara Citibank
Admission fee: RM15 per pax
Things to bring: Sewing kit

Tale as old as time

edit:

I stole snapshot of the stage before the start of Act 2. Fyi, cameras aren't allowed during the show. So yeah, sorry no pics of the cast.

After the show. As you can see, the middle section below is the live orchestra. Pre-programmed software was used to generate the orchestra sound, I think.

This is the programme book that I mentioned earlier. Indeed, it costs RM30. *sighs*

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

The musical was really good, just as I expected. It wasn't superbly awesome which made me go "WOW!" but overall it was worth watching. Heard that there were mixed reviews; some saying that it was disappointing whereas many spoke highly of the show. Well...the costumes were beautiful, the casts' voices were as sweet as angels & dances were a little goofy but nevertheless it was pure jolly good fun. At least the casts kept me entertained throughout the 2 1/2 hours.

The show pretty much lived up to what I've expected so far. But I was quite disappointed that the production team decided to inject some humour to it by changing the characteristics of the Beast. I've known since childhood that the Beast is a fierce & ferocious one, unlike the one on stage trying hard to be funny to please the crowd. He acted childishly, not to my liking unfortunately. Perhaps the team attempted to entertain the young audience who were also present with their parents. Dialogues were cheesy but funny I never ever thought of that when I watched the cartoon. *shrugs*

Speaking of kids...geez. I think it's a waste of time for parents to bring their children along. They're total distraction! The cartoon was originally targeted at kids who love fairy tales, fantasies, dragons yadi yada. But musical is NOT for the young. I mean, how can you expect them to appreciate live action stage shows? They just don't know how. Wait till their older. Imagine how irritating it is to have a 5 year old girl pulling the back of your seat every few mins & then asking her Daddy, "Is that the Beast?". And parents letting their kids stray away from their seats, running around like a maniac. Gawd.

Alrite, enough about rants. There were merchandises sold at the venue but I chose not buy any of it cuz they're ridiculously expensive. Only got myself the programme book & that already costs me RM30 T.T Thank God I brought enough cash or else I wouldn't have anything to bring back home. I just wanna keep some evidence to show that I was there XD. Pics will be coming up soon. Need some time to upload them cuz my sis has been hogging the camera lately -_-.