I respect the idea of self preservation; heck I do it all the time. But at the expense of others and you dare talk back. Good thing you're around, because now I know the extent of audacity that people are capable of. People Like That Are the Only People Here, as Lorrie Moore put it (I only know this reference because it came out for the lit prat crit mock today larh, you think what).
Literary Evening preparations are going alright, but Cass is really annoyed by the whole thing, poor girl. For some reason she got stuck with multiple tasks, as usual. Oh gee, I wonder why. On the other hand, timing couldn't be more perfect, as day after is the annual sports carnival (see: picnic and/or ice cream at Stanley's) followed by Vesak day.
Playing the Lamb character from Blake's collection of Songs, that we did last year. Fortunate enough to have been able to borrow a young-ish looking white dress that Cass used to wear at 12, so have to wear one of my typical bandanas to preserve the flat cut. Make what you will of that information.
Slipped into character quite easily after getting the hang of it; is very similar to Caitlin Fay, my Ars Magica persona. We even do the same things, like give out flowers to random people. The Lamb isn't likely to have any inclination to want to screw up your mind while doing it though, which is the not so similar bit.
Did I mention the change of seating plan? My row seems to have stuff to eat all the time, mostly candy and chocolate. Never hit a sugar high though, school sucks that much out of me, it seems. Ah well, hooray for the iPod that can store stuff to watch!
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Warm, yellow sunlight. Thick and honeyed, like the maple syrup Tsu once gave you during recess that you poured into your mango tea. Mmm...
Still air that you don't notice you're breathing. The teacher's voice carries well; ironic that you don't have to listen. It's Physics or some such after all. You scribble on.
Tyrone's opinion of 'dreams', life is insubstantial. Cross ref 'ghost within a ghost' img and Dowson's 'misty dream'.
The brightness throws you into that super conscious state you get when you've a fever; or drunk (sometimes you can't tell the difference). The surroundings make you fully aware of their presence. Scribble scribble.
Warm air parcels rising makes air instability, common in weather typical of Singapore.
You're starting to get fond of the shelter-pavillion thing just outside your class. You feel safe there, on the margin. Until it rains, that is.
_____
So. Cookie selling for international friendship day may not have gone so smoothly but our objectives were met. Nearly a thousand dollars raised, woot. Talking to strangers for orders wasn't all that bad. Well, except for the ones that gave not much of a reaction and just stared.
We'd left the butter cookie storage box in the corner. It's been weeks since anyone's shifted it. Interestingly, Bob found termites under the thing yesterday, after he toppled it over (as is a boy's fashion). They're rather cute, except for that mindless -insectish- sound they make when in a mass. The termites, not boys. Actually, boys too I guess. Sorry dear.
For once, I got gold for the physical fitness test. First in forever, even since primary school. I've found that running long distance (ie the 2.4) isn't all that bad, when you don't think about it. For example, don't imagine that you're running from Brill to Silverpine, that's just depressing. You monitor your breathing and pace, but that's it. The thing is just don't -think-. But that's just my opinion.
And to all those who gave a damn after my last post: thanks. It means alot. But I'm fine now, there's nothing approaching the edge of my annoying person/whatever tolerance threshold at the moment, that I've to compensate for. And I've gotten over the whole social disadvantage thing.
Thank you, thank you so much.
Still air that you don't notice you're breathing. The teacher's voice carries well; ironic that you don't have to listen. It's Physics or some such after all. You scribble on.
Tyrone's opinion of 'dreams', life is insubstantial. Cross ref 'ghost within a ghost' img and Dowson's 'misty dream'.
The brightness throws you into that super conscious state you get when you've a fever; or drunk (sometimes you can't tell the difference). The surroundings make you fully aware of their presence. Scribble scribble.
Warm air parcels rising makes air instability, common in weather typical of Singapore.
You're starting to get fond of the shelter-pavillion thing just outside your class. You feel safe there, on the margin. Until it rains, that is.
_____
So. Cookie selling for international friendship day may not have gone so smoothly but our objectives were met. Nearly a thousand dollars raised, woot. Talking to strangers for orders wasn't all that bad. Well, except for the ones that gave not much of a reaction and just stared.
We'd left the butter cookie storage box in the corner. It's been weeks since anyone's shifted it. Interestingly, Bob found termites under the thing yesterday, after he toppled it over (as is a boy's fashion). They're rather cute, except for that mindless -insectish- sound they make when in a mass. The termites, not boys. Actually, boys too I guess. Sorry dear.
For once, I got gold for the physical fitness test. First in forever, even since primary school. I've found that running long distance (ie the 2.4) isn't all that bad, when you don't think about it. For example, don't imagine that you're running from Brill to Silverpine, that's just depressing. You monitor your breathing and pace, but that's it. The thing is just don't -think-. But that's just my opinion.
And to all those who gave a damn after my last post: thanks. It means alot. But I'm fine now, there's nothing approaching the edge of my annoying person/whatever tolerance threshold at the moment, that I've to compensate for. And I've gotten over the whole social disadvantage thing.
Thank you, thank you so much.
Friday, March 31, 2006
Actually, what's the point? I'll carry on as usual, why should I not carry weird conversations, with people you don't know, in front of you? It's not like you don't impress any of your influence on me, look at the class dynamics.
Yeah, being all irrational was fun. But I'm not going to bother putting up barriers, it's too much effort. You're not worth it anyway.
Yeah, being all irrational was fun. But I'm not going to bother putting up barriers, it's too much effort. You're not worth it anyway.
Thursday, March 30, 2006
Ok, I give up. You win. I'll get out of your life, because I'm tired of trying. I'm not stupid, I can see and hear for myself.
Bimbos and people who hate my guts. Then everyone else is in a tight clique. So what's new? I've dealt with worse, only difference being I had people like Tora and Rosie in the immediate vicinity to take the edge off. Now the geographically closest people around have their own problems to deal with, plus I only see them what, twice a week?
Yeah, I'll still let you make use of me. Whatever. But I'll keep my damn mouth shut in class, I know it's the thing that annoys you most.
[edit] Yes, I know that I'm being petty. Let's just see where it goes anyway, shall we?[/edit]
Now, I have work to do.
Bimbos and people who hate my guts. Then everyone else is in a tight clique. So what's new? I've dealt with worse, only difference being I had people like Tora and Rosie in the immediate vicinity to take the edge off. Now the geographically closest people around have their own problems to deal with, plus I only see them what, twice a week?
Yeah, I'll still let you make use of me. Whatever. But I'll keep my damn mouth shut in class, I know it's the thing that annoys you most.
[edit] Yes, I know that I'm being petty. Let's just see where it goes anyway, shall we?[/edit]
Now, I have work to do.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Ok, so I mostly screwed up my common tests. Not sure how to tell parents. I actually have to start studying -properly- now, damn. I can feel the marathon, in the pace of school and the structure of work.
Urban case studies to be completed, by May. Econs graphs for all topics usable by June. Lit notes to be re-written by end of May.
You know, someone once told me you thought of your life as a sort of anime. Maybe it is, because every other week now you're telling me, or I'm hearing something that's gone wrong. I think maybe I've gone past the point of caring, because it's tiring, and because all I can do is listen. Does that make me a bad friend?
Mother's slipped disc isn't getting any better, and it's been more than 3 months.
And having an absent boyfriend gives me license to say "insert angsty teenage quote here".
Sometimes I think he's a fantasy I came up with, in those hazy moments of half dream, or half consciousness. A distant figure that speaks as a stream of words on a screen. Talk of work, mocks, parents. Though of course, he's still the same charming figure. Just strained, which is perfectly understandable.
It is selfish, but I find myself retreating, my heart placed more on anime I used to enjoy so much, and books. It is better. I think I'm not cut out for this.
Urban case studies to be completed, by May. Econs graphs for all topics usable by June. Lit notes to be re-written by end of May.
You know, someone once told me you thought of your life as a sort of anime. Maybe it is, because every other week now you're telling me, or I'm hearing something that's gone wrong. I think maybe I've gone past the point of caring, because it's tiring, and because all I can do is listen. Does that make me a bad friend?
Mother's slipped disc isn't getting any better, and it's been more than 3 months.
And having an absent boyfriend gives me license to say "insert angsty teenage quote here".
Sometimes I think he's a fantasy I came up with, in those hazy moments of half dream, or half consciousness. A distant figure that speaks as a stream of words on a screen. Talk of work, mocks, parents. Though of course, he's still the same charming figure. Just strained, which is perfectly understandable.
It is selfish, but I find myself retreating, my heart placed more on anime I used to enjoy so much, and books. It is better. I think I'm not cut out for this.
Sunday, March 05, 2006
THIS IS TOR
Ok, ok, I am guilty of forgetting Glor's birthday... but I remembered a few days later! Anyway I hope Glor had a happy birthday. Here is the very delayed meme of 4 thingies that I can suddenly do now because I've finished my exams! Yay. Just went to Edinburgh for a couple of days, will post pictures when I have internet again. It was snowing and the whole city was so pretty, like in a fairytale! (*simper simper, pirouette, big eyes*)
Meme of 4
4 Jobs You’ve Had In Your Life
Off the top of my head,
1. Stage manager for a show in the singapore arts festival (haha sounds cool but lots of shit work actually) Also various FOH and backstage work for shows.
2. working in the zoo. one job I had was to carry an albino python around so that the photographer could offer to take pictures of people with the snake.
3. intern at legal research centre. was cool writing letters and faxes to famous publishing houses. 4. shop girl in a shop serving tai tais.
4 Movies You Could Watch Over And Over
Before Sunset
Spirited Away
Snoopy Come Home
Interview with the Vampire
4 TV Shows You Love(d) To Watch
CSI (original only)
Sex and the City
South Park
Futurama
Desperate Housewives
Temptation Island sorry! I can't help it... it's order of preference though.
4 Places You’ve Been On Vacation To
where do i start? Can I do it by country? China (shanghai, beijing, xian, guangzhou, suzhou, guilin, HK..)
New York and DC (best vacation ever)
Italy (Florence, Rome, Milan, Naples, Capri, Venice, Ancona, Sardinia)-- favourite european country
Malaysia-- Sipadan, a tiny island off the east coast that's closed now for "ecological reasons"
4 Places You Would Rather Be
right now? or to live in?
Right now: Home in SG
South coast of France
Queensland
In SIA first class flying home to SG, watching loads of movies, eating nice food and wrapped up really warm, not having to worry about stuff like rent, work etc. bliss.
Live in:
I'm actually happy where I am in London if the weather picks up
NY
Paris, if I could speak French
SG, if I can go to thailand to shop/tan/eat nice food every weekend
4 Of Your Favourite Foods
This is a real toughie
Laksa with 'ham'
Old Chang Kee curry puff
just plain old bloody mee pok
And it's a tie between -really- good coffee, and spaghetti vongole at ciao bella. (actually their tiramisu comes a close third, hm)
Ok, ok, I am guilty of forgetting Glor's birthday... but I remembered a few days later! Anyway I hope Glor had a happy birthday. Here is the very delayed meme of 4 thingies that I can suddenly do now because I've finished my exams! Yay. Just went to Edinburgh for a couple of days, will post pictures when I have internet again. It was snowing and the whole city was so pretty, like in a fairytale! (*simper simper, pirouette, big eyes*)
Meme of 4
4 Jobs You’ve Had In Your Life
Off the top of my head,
1. Stage manager for a show in the singapore arts festival (haha sounds cool but lots of shit work actually) Also various FOH and backstage work for shows.
2. working in the zoo. one job I had was to carry an albino python around so that the photographer could offer to take pictures of people with the snake.
3. intern at legal research centre. was cool writing letters and faxes to famous publishing houses. 4. shop girl in a shop serving tai tais.
4 Movies You Could Watch Over And Over
Before Sunset
Spirited Away
Snoopy Come Home
Interview with the Vampire
4 TV Shows You Love(d) To Watch
CSI (original only)
Sex and the City
South Park
Futurama
Desperate Housewives
Temptation Island sorry! I can't help it... it's order of preference though.
4 Places You’ve Been On Vacation To
where do i start? Can I do it by country? China (shanghai, beijing, xian, guangzhou, suzhou, guilin, HK..)
New York and DC (best vacation ever)
Italy (Florence, Rome, Milan, Naples, Capri, Venice, Ancona, Sardinia)-- favourite european country
Malaysia-- Sipadan, a tiny island off the east coast that's closed now for "ecological reasons"
4 Places You Would Rather Be
right now? or to live in?
Right now: Home in SG
South coast of France
Queensland
In SIA first class flying home to SG, watching loads of movies, eating nice food and wrapped up really warm, not having to worry about stuff like rent, work etc. bliss.
Live in:
I'm actually happy where I am in London if the weather picks up
NY
Paris, if I could speak French
SG, if I can go to thailand to shop/tan/eat nice food every weekend
4 Of Your Favourite Foods
This is a real toughie
Laksa with 'ham'
Old Chang Kee curry puff
just plain old bloody mee pok
And it's a tie between -really- good coffee, and spaghetti vongole at ciao bella. (actually their tiramisu comes a close third, hm)
Monday, February 27, 2006
Hahaa, with exception of my parents, my whole family forgot my birthday this month! Ach, doesn't matter, got advanced birthday presents and trip to London last year, I really don't give much of a damn. It's times like these that make me think that yes, money can buy happiness.
Sort of caught up with Tora recently, glad to see that she's doing alright. Am really missing those IJ days now, when we could afford to skive off work and I'd crash at her place in the afternoons after school to watch FMA or go all PoT crazy. Which reminds me, need to go and look for the movie.
On the other hand, school is looking up. Not in corner of class anymore as have switched seats with Cindy. I really like the 2 girls I'm sandwiched between. But I'm becoming a bit more normal, damn! Let's see if this turns out to be a good thing.
Eh, Tor. When you coming back arh, out of curiousity? I'll need to clear my notes out of the spare room larh. And find someplace new to store them, don't know how I'm going to do that...
Sort of caught up with Tora recently, glad to see that she's doing alright. Am really missing those IJ days now, when we could afford to skive off work and I'd crash at her place in the afternoons after school to watch FMA or go all PoT crazy. Which reminds me, need to go and look for the movie.
On the other hand, school is looking up. Not in corner of class anymore as have switched seats with Cindy. I really like the 2 girls I'm sandwiched between. But I'm becoming a bit more normal, damn! Let's see if this turns out to be a good thing.
Eh, Tor. When you coming back arh, out of curiousity? I'll need to clear my notes out of the spare room larh. And find someplace new to store them, don't know how I'm going to do that...
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
Natasha: 'my valentine's date is with my books'
Tsu: 'my valentine's date is with my paintbrush'
Me: 'my valentine's date lives in China'
I still stand by what I said to Tsu, at least a paintbrush is long and pointy. You can do stuff to take advantage of that.
Hrm. On the bright side, I actually have one. A date, not a long and pointy thing. Which is an interesting experience, especially with the bit where he sent me an e-card. When I opened it, I fell off my chair in true anime fashion. Such a sweet gesture! And written in proper English with no flowery language too. /smile
No, I don't wish he were here, because absence makes the heart grow fonder. And besides, it keeps me balanced.
Tsu: 'my valentine's date is with my paintbrush'
Me: 'my valentine's date lives in China'
I still stand by what I said to Tsu, at least a paintbrush is long and pointy. You can do stuff to take advantage of that.
Hrm. On the bright side, I actually have one. A date, not a long and pointy thing. Which is an interesting experience, especially with the bit where he sent me an e-card. When I opened it, I fell off my chair in true anime fashion. Such a sweet gesture! And written in proper English with no flowery language too. /smile
No, I don't wish he were here, because absence makes the heart grow fonder. And besides, it keeps me balanced.
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
It was like drinking something both hot and cold at the same time, the coffee house vanished (wah, like romance novel like that) and nothing else mattered except him leaning toward me, lips pressed against mine. Then, I think my brain started to dribble out my ears. It's a wonder I managed to recover and hold an at least half-way decent conversation after.
An hour later, we went to catch a movie. Aargh.
Actually, this situation of him being overseas is quite ideal. Gives me a week to fangirl him out of my system and the rest to hear sappy love songs while passing by stores and form an honest opinion of them. Interestingly, I still think they're complete rot. Which is a good sign that my head is still screwed on right. (Right?) So by the time he gets back, I should be more or less sufficiently adjusted.
That's my theory, anyway.
He smells like Kenzo and tastes like chocolate. He's incredibly patient with my stupidity. He's charming, cultured and sprouts the occasional French phrase. He's expressive and I always know what he's talking about. He's witty and is as pretentious as I am (you might not want to hang out with us, for your own sake). He's also nicely random, sometimes.
oya koibito
An hour later, we went to catch a movie. Aargh.
Actually, this situation of him being overseas is quite ideal. Gives me a week to fangirl him out of my system and the rest to hear sappy love songs while passing by stores and form an honest opinion of them. Interestingly, I still think they're complete rot. Which is a good sign that my head is still screwed on right. (Right?) So by the time he gets back, I should be more or less sufficiently adjusted.
That's my theory, anyway.
He smells like Kenzo and tastes like chocolate. He's incredibly patient with my stupidity. He's charming, cultured and sprouts the occasional French phrase. He's expressive and I always know what he's talking about. He's witty and is as pretentious as I am (you might not want to hang out with us, for your own sake). He's also nicely random, sometimes.
oya koibito
Friday, February 03, 2006
Had a fantastic Chinese New Year. However, angpow haul not so good as missed a few relatives. Ah well, will probably be made up for next week, more or less. People usually have angpows conveniently left over at that point. Usually, conveniently in time for my birthday. Ok, I am shameless.
For some odd reason, interesting things seem to happen to me during the Chinese New Year period. And I wish you didn't have to leave on Sunday... /kiss
Tagged by Khayce, sorry I haven't done it til now!
4 Jobs You’ve Had In Your Life
Erm, I've never worked before, so this isn't something I could answer?
4 Movies You Could Watch Over And Over
Labyrinth (the one with David Bowie in)
Spawn
Anything by Studio Ghibli
Underworld (how they take things from other movies is just funny, but looks good)
4 TV Shows You Love(d) To Watch
CSI (all of them)
Who's line is it anyway?
Star Trek (all of them)
Just for laughs (not the gags, the staged ones)
4 Places You’ve Been On Vacation To
Brisbane (Gold Coast)
Paris
London
Various bits of China (not Suzhou though...)
4 Places You Would Rather Be
Paris
Dustwallow Marsh, 'cos of my bloody backdated mage quest
London, I miss the gallaries and museums!
Beside You (prefably in Paris)
4 Of Your Favourite Foods
Allio oglio
Black pepper crab
Cold soba
Mee Kia
4 Websites You Visit
www.errantstory.com
www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/GiantITP/ootscript
www.ventoline.com/frozenbubble (it's damned addictive)
www.cowboycaleb.liquidblade.com
4 Tagged
Electra
Jenny
Scha
Jerrick
For some odd reason, interesting things seem to happen to me during the Chinese New Year period. And I wish you didn't have to leave on Sunday... /kiss
Tagged by Khayce, sorry I haven't done it til now!
4 Jobs You’ve Had In Your Life
Erm, I've never worked before, so this isn't something I could answer?
4 Movies You Could Watch Over And Over
Labyrinth (the one with David Bowie in)
Spawn
Anything by Studio Ghibli
Underworld (how they take things from other movies is just funny, but looks good)
4 TV Shows You Love(d) To Watch
CSI (all of them)
Who's line is it anyway?
Star Trek (all of them)
Just for laughs (not the gags, the staged ones)
4 Places You’ve Been On Vacation To
Brisbane (Gold Coast)
Paris
London
Various bits of China (not Suzhou though...)
4 Places You Would Rather Be
Paris
Dustwallow Marsh, 'cos of my bloody backdated mage quest
London, I miss the gallaries and museums!
Beside You (prefably in Paris)
4 Of Your Favourite Foods
Allio oglio
Black pepper crab
Cold soba
Mee Kia
4 Websites You Visit
www.errantstory.com
www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/GiantITP/ootscript
www.ventoline.com/frozenbubble (it's damned addictive)
www.cowboycaleb.liquidblade.com
4 Tagged
Electra
Jenny
Scha
Jerrick
Friday, January 20, 2006
This paragraph from nanashee's latest post made me laugh out loud. Or maybe it was the post-exam come down.
I don't know what she spawned from, but frankly, walking into a club and expecting people to buy you drinks is a mentality that really should belong to supermodel-type people. Not when you have legs as stocky as two overgrown carrots and lines like a map of the London underground around your eyes. It's like a Monet painting; it looks pretty ok from afar, but up close, it's a fucking mess.
I don't know what she spawned from, but frankly, walking into a club and expecting people to buy you drinks is a mentality that really should belong to supermodel-type people. Not when you have legs as stocky as two overgrown carrots and lines like a map of the London underground around your eyes. It's like a Monet painting; it looks pretty ok from afar, but up close, it's a fucking mess.
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
I know that posting msn conversations is seen in some blogging circles as tremendouly low-class, but I'm going to do it anyway. Here's a snippet from my chat with my friend Preeti in SG:
Preeti says: so how's Jim and Sung Hyui
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: jim is doing ok-- at school he excels and has a variety of extra curricular activites. he takes spanish, jazz dance lessons, and has a healthy social life
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: he also has a lot of fit classmates whom i am always asking to be introduced to
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: not one of them has called me yet
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: sung-hyui is doing well as far as i can tell she is well-liked by the teachers, popular amongst her peers, helpful and friendly. she goes to jazz dance with jim and similarly bemoans the lack of romantic interest at bpp
Preeti says: vic why do you sound like a teacher giving a character appraisal?
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: i am trying to be ironic but it doesnt seem to be working
Preeti says: haha no wait....I'm picturing you saying it now and it sounds very Victoria..
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: Sung-hyui has so far declined to join the book club set up by jim, myself, and a couple of other fellow nerds
Preeti says: so how's Jim and Sung Hyui
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: jim is doing ok-- at school he excels and has a variety of extra curricular activites. he takes spanish, jazz dance lessons, and has a healthy social life
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: he also has a lot of fit classmates whom i am always asking to be introduced to
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: not one of them has called me yet
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: sung-hyui is doing well as far as i can tell she is well-liked by the teachers, popular amongst her peers, helpful and friendly. she goes to jazz dance with jim and similarly bemoans the lack of romantic interest at bpp
Preeti says: vic why do you sound like a teacher giving a character appraisal?
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: i am trying to be ironic but it doesnt seem to be working
Preeti says: haha no wait....I'm picturing you saying it now and it sounds very Victoria..
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: Sung-hyui has so far declined to join the book club set up by jim, myself, and a couple of other fellow nerds
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: the first book we are discussing is bleak house
Preeti says: haha oh my god. thats sad
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: hey book clubs are very much all the rage now in fashionable circles in the US
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: we are not being nerdy but trendy
Preeti says: of course not vic
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: in a few months we will be seen as uber cool trendspotters
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: ok, forget i said 'uber cool'
Preeti says: y'know vic....I havent laughed this much in a while
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: i'm glad to be of assistance
Preeti says: forget? yeah right...I'm going to be quoting you now to everyone who will listen.I will start with the LSE singaporeans tomorrow at evidence lecture
Preeti says: Your uber cool book club will be famous soon
Preeti says: maybe you shoudl ask some of the fit guys in Jims class to join
Preeti says: waitt....didd you do that already? is that why they havent called?
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: yes, i already did
Preeti says: hahaaaaaaaaa
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: thats probably why they havent called
Preeti says: its sad isnt it that they dont seem to be the "uber cool" trendspotter types vic
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: no lah. i'm totally just kidding
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: god i am not that sad P
Preeti says: you mean there is no book club?
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: yeah there is but i havent asked any cute guys to join.
Preeti says: well then the guys in Jims class must be gay or dumb for not calling you
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says:thanx. bloody hell
Preeti says: sigh. maybe you meet someone nice in china. nice chinese boy
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: NO
vic-- i want to eat mee pok says: please dont even joke about it
So, there is a book club, and the first book really is Bleak House. I've only got to page 200. I have no idea why we chose it. It seemed a good idea at the time. I guess after a couple of bottles of wine everything goes rosy. Oh well, we needed an excuse to meet up every so often-- but Bleak House? Actually, I was so far gone that I remember promising my friend that I would run a marathon with her. If I'd thought that was feasible, the book must have seemed much less of a challenge at the time. Well, at least we will decide the next book sober. (Hopefully)
Saturday, January 14, 2006
More gems of witty repartee from my little travel notebook (it's well worth keeping one when one has entertaining friends):
Joey: What is this used for? (referring to a pumice-stone in a shop in Greece)
Me: You rub your feet with it to get rid of dead skin.
Kenny: (glaring with inexplicable hatred of Joey) No, you eat it!
Joey: Well, you could use it for your brain, it's about the same size.
Kenny: Ya, but it's definitely bigger than your brain.
The next page contains a list compiled by JD, Qianru and myself on 'How do you know when you're an adult?'
1. When you can tell when white wine is too cold to be drunk
2. When you insist on drinking it out of proper glasses instead of plastic cups
3. When you think it's NOT ok to mix red and white together to get more drunk, faster
There's this other bit that always makes me laugh, but I suspect you have to have been there.
Kenny: Give me some water
Qianru: No.
Kenny: Give me some water lah! I'm very thirsty!
Qianru: No! Buy your own.
Kenny: Why don't you give me some? I'm very thirsty leh! (makes whining sounds, feet-stamping etc.)
Qianru: No, can you at least say please?
Kenny: What's the point of saying please if you're not gonna give me anyway?
Joey: What is this used for? (referring to a pumice-stone in a shop in Greece)
Me: You rub your feet with it to get rid of dead skin.
Kenny: (glaring with inexplicable hatred of Joey) No, you eat it!
Joey: Well, you could use it for your brain, it's about the same size.
Kenny: Ya, but it's definitely bigger than your brain.
The next page contains a list compiled by JD, Qianru and myself on 'How do you know when you're an adult?'
1. When you can tell when white wine is too cold to be drunk
2. When you insist on drinking it out of proper glasses instead of plastic cups
3. When you think it's NOT ok to mix red and white together to get more drunk, faster
There's this other bit that always makes me laugh, but I suspect you have to have been there.
Kenny: Give me some water
Qianru: No.
Kenny: Give me some water lah! I'm very thirsty!
Qianru: No! Buy your own.
Kenny: Why don't you give me some? I'm very thirsty leh! (makes whining sounds, feet-stamping etc.)
Qianru: No, can you at least say please?
Kenny: What's the point of saying please if you're not gonna give me anyway?
Flicking through Ian's mostly 'tetno' music collection, I commented on his evident beng tastes.
Ian: "Actually at heart, I'm a beng. I just tak a lot of ang moh chek only."
Elaborating on the theme, he went on,
"Wa eh sim si ah beng.
Wa eh nao si tak LSE.
Mai ga lim peh wax lyrical.
Wa ma eh hiao."
My friend Ian is a potential king of one-liners. Consider:-
In a discussion on bad boys, their charm, and their heart-breaking ways:
"I'm not dangerous when I'm charming. I'm dangerous when I'm candid. And I'm candid all the time."
Oooooooh.
And when I busted my ankle,
"How do you know how to treat it?"
"Got lump just rub lah."
One surmises that this practical approach must have served him well in other *ahem* less innocent situations.
Ian: "Actually at heart, I'm a beng. I just tak a lot of ang moh chek only."
Elaborating on the theme, he went on,
"Wa eh sim si ah beng.
Wa eh nao si tak LSE.
Mai ga lim peh wax lyrical.
Wa ma eh hiao."
My friend Ian is a potential king of one-liners. Consider:-
In a discussion on bad boys, their charm, and their heart-breaking ways:
"I'm not dangerous when I'm charming. I'm dangerous when I'm candid. And I'm candid all the time."
Oooooooh.
And when I busted my ankle,
"How do you know how to treat it?"
"Got lump just rub lah."
One surmises that this practical approach must have served him well in other *ahem* less innocent situations.
Friday, January 13, 2006
The fencing room in school, is good for singing. 10 minutes after I discover this, someone from band started to play the saxophone from the block across. On the other hand, went back to IJ today and fiddled with my old saxophone. The magic is gone, and I don't know why. It hurts. Ah well, it was my choice and I must live by it. Better to have loved then not loved at all.
This week, I realised, with a start, that I've a crush on one of my schoolmates. Am not quite sure what to make of this. It does not help that I might see Lance during Chinese New Year at the Lim's and that Jerrick will be back in the country too. All of this, all of it, is a big cosmic joke with the finger pointed at me, I tell you. Bah.
On the bright side, school is going well, so that's always good. Work hasn't piled up yet, but have to do revision, is all.
Tor! The photos are really good, especially the eiffel tower one! The weather was so nice that day. Missing you muchly~
I should go. Need to move my mage out of Desolace, wandering elite mobs have proven fatal.
This week, I realised, with a start, that I've a crush on one of my schoolmates. Am not quite sure what to make of this. It does not help that I might see Lance during Chinese New Year at the Lim's and that Jerrick will be back in the country too. All of this, all of it, is a big cosmic joke with the finger pointed at me, I tell you. Bah.
On the bright side, school is going well, so that's always good. Work hasn't piled up yet, but have to do revision, is all.
Tor! The photos are really good, especially the eiffel tower one! The weather was so nice that day. Missing you muchly~
I should go. Need to move my mage out of Desolace, wandering elite mobs have proven fatal.
Friday, January 06, 2006
Photos from Paris
Still don't understand 'nyan'. I suppose it's similar to my comforting phrase, 'bolbol'. Here are some photos from G and T's trip to Paris.
The view from inside the glass pyramid at the Louvre. The overcast sky ruins the picture. Next time I'll post a better one I took of mummy in the same position with a clear blue sky. I don't have it in my laptop now.
Still don't understand 'nyan'. I suppose it's similar to my comforting phrase, 'bolbol'. Here are some photos from G and T's trip to Paris.
The view from inside the glass pyramid at the Louvre. The overcast sky ruins the picture. Next time I'll post a better one I took of mummy in the same position with a clear blue sky. I don't have it in my laptop now.
Here is Glor in front of the famous english language bookshop across the river from the Notre Dame. It's where the first scene in Before Sunset was filmed, so needless to say, it's a damn romantic location lah!
Here's me eating snails. Mmm. Tasty. The vacant expression on my face is my reaction to Glor eating a raw piece of flesh.
Here it is:
In front of the Eiffel Tower.
'Artistic' shot of the Sacre Coeur. Hey, it's hard to take a good photo juggling a quiche and a blueberry tart and trying to sit down at the same time, ok. Also, squillions of tourists had the same brilliant idea of chilling out on the steps.
View from the top:
And to show the contrast in the quality of pictures taken by my camera above (no brand camera, cost=S$100) and James's camera which I used to use all the time (Canon Ixus V3, cost=S$800), here is a photo of Florian I took at his graduation at UCL:
Florian= my ex-flatmate and Cat's boyfriend. Cat=
Yes, that really is Bentham's dead body. Except the head, which was replaced with a plastic model because KCL students kept breaking in, stealing the head and playing football with it. Apparently he is still wheeled into every UCL board meeting in accordance with his will. He is marked present but not voting. And below is a really good photo of James lim-ing kopi in Brighton. Damn I miss that camera.
Even though the background isn't much to look at, the colours are so vivid!
Here the background is nicer but obscured by us people. Still at Brighton. Beside me is Nicolas, James's friend and his crushee, Sabrina. Note my budding mummy-ish tendency to shield my face from harmful sunlight.
I don't know why I never thought of posting photos up here before. Maybe it's because of how bloody long it takes. I'm gonna put everything up on flickr so Glor (and anyone else) can look at it there. Except I don't actually know how to link it to my flickr account. hm. Glor?
I think this is how: http://www.flickr.com/photos/49514497@N00/
I might put up some nice ones from my Greece trip next. They're probably safer online than sitting around in my hard drive waiting to be stolen.
Thursday, January 05, 2006
Nyan~!
Stating the obvious, it was the first week of school. Is going well! I think my class made our last year's form teacher quit, so we've got a new one now. She's very lor sor, lecture us for econs until want to sleep. She -is- nice though. And generally sounds like she knows what she's talking about, even if she does explain in circles.
The classroom that we're in was ment to be a toilet. There's the tell tale space in the walls and narrow glass windows near the ceiling that one only finds in toilets. We're also tucked away in a corner, of course. Convenient location though. Not the centre of everything but still easy to get to everywhere. Don't have to climb 5 levels again this year~
Is a very wide classroom, enough space for the boys to fool around with football, and for Andrea the resident hockey player to do her stuff. I like it. We're next to the science classes though, so miss seeing the familiar arts fac faces.
Bern made it to arts fac here, been seeing her around. Really good to see a close friend on the school grounds again. I've made myself mediator, in case of any collision between her and Tsu. On the other hand, I don't think they're going to cause any collateral damage, so everything should be fine.
Tor! Good to hear it's been solved? How was it ah? Decided not to kick you guys out is it? Good. Ian hasn't called me, the idiot. You know his number here or not arh?!
Ach, Rosen here to use WoW on my com.
/wave
Stating the obvious, it was the first week of school. Is going well! I think my class made our last year's form teacher quit, so we've got a new one now. She's very lor sor, lecture us for econs until want to sleep. She -is- nice though. And generally sounds like she knows what she's talking about, even if she does explain in circles.
The classroom that we're in was ment to be a toilet. There's the tell tale space in the walls and narrow glass windows near the ceiling that one only finds in toilets. We're also tucked away in a corner, of course. Convenient location though. Not the centre of everything but still easy to get to everywhere. Don't have to climb 5 levels again this year~
Is a very wide classroom, enough space for the boys to fool around with football, and for Andrea the resident hockey player to do her stuff. I like it. We're next to the science classes though, so miss seeing the familiar arts fac faces.
Bern made it to arts fac here, been seeing her around. Really good to see a close friend on the school grounds again. I've made myself mediator, in case of any collision between her and Tsu. On the other hand, I don't think they're going to cause any collateral damage, so everything should be fine.
Tor! Good to hear it's been solved? How was it ah? Decided not to kick you guys out is it? Good. Ian hasn't called me, the idiot. You know his number here or not arh?!
Ach, Rosen here to use WoW on my com.
/wave
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
I am not dead.
London was fantastic, Paris was even better (see previous posts for more details). I'd love to go there with a Certain Someone, one day. Haven't seen him for some time, and I quite miss him (I wasn't kidding about your display picture leh!).
Christmas was the usual affair, good company and even better food. Missed the fact that Tor can't be here to celebrate it with us, hope Leila's family was a good substitute. Also hoping she's not buying anything in bad taste at this year's boxing sales in London.
Random bit of trivia, it's cheaper to call home from London than Dubai. At least, that's what my bills said.
This year I sang carols (properly, not half-arsed mumbling) only at the Christmas mass. Am finding that there is greater pleasure in this, not to mention, better for my health, rather than the drilling every other day I used to have. Will go back to singing, one day. Probably in university, or something. *shrugs* That's what a traumatic 7 years does to you. Must have broken a mirrior when was younger.
But it was a good Christmas that wrapped up a terrific year. The new friends made (mostly the MI people), the lessons, whether good or bad (I usually label all of them as useful, even the Project Work ones where I had to rush reports for the next morning) and of course, the tons of life Experience Points earned.
Here's to a splendid 2005 and promising 2006 ahead.
London was fantastic, Paris was even better (see previous posts for more details). I'd love to go there with a Certain Someone, one day. Haven't seen him for some time, and I quite miss him (I wasn't kidding about your display picture leh!).
Christmas was the usual affair, good company and even better food. Missed the fact that Tor can't be here to celebrate it with us, hope Leila's family was a good substitute. Also hoping she's not buying anything in bad taste at this year's boxing sales in London.
Random bit of trivia, it's cheaper to call home from London than Dubai. At least, that's what my bills said.
This year I sang carols (properly, not half-arsed mumbling) only at the Christmas mass. Am finding that there is greater pleasure in this, not to mention, better for my health, rather than the drilling every other day I used to have. Will go back to singing, one day. Probably in university, or something. *shrugs* That's what a traumatic 7 years does to you. Must have broken a mirrior when was younger.
But it was a good Christmas that wrapped up a terrific year. The new friends made (mostly the MI people), the lessons, whether good or bad (I usually label all of them as useful, even the Project Work ones where I had to rush reports for the next morning) and of course, the tons of life Experience Points earned.
Here's to a splendid 2005 and promising 2006 ahead.
Saturday, December 17, 2005
Here is a reply from our father (the human one) in response to my email to him containing this post (with a few crucial points taken out of course).
Okay.
6) Mummy also wants to know your most recent VISA purchases/expenses. Mummy can't reconcile the latest items.
Oops.
7) Mummy wants both you and sister to:
a) sleep early
b) get up early
c) eat fruit
d) drink a lot of water
e) behave
d) don't fight
e) don't do anything that you need to ask for our permission
Daddy says: "Yah, sure".
My response was:
Daddy, I can't help it that Glor sleeps till noon when I'm at school.
Anyway what stuff do we have to ask for your permission for? According to mummy, it's 'step outside the house' or 'eat an extra square of chocolate'.
Okay.
6) Mummy also wants to know your most recent VISA purchases/expenses. Mummy can't reconcile the latest items.
Oops.
7) Mummy wants both you and sister to:
a) sleep early
b) get up early
c) eat fruit
d) drink a lot of water
e) behave
d) don't fight
e) don't do anything that you need to ask for our permission
Daddy says: "Yah, sure".
My response was:
Daddy, I can't help it that Glor sleeps till noon when I'm at school.
Anyway what stuff do we have to ask for your permission for? According to mummy, it's 'step outside the house' or 'eat an extra square of chocolate'.
Thursday, December 15, 2005
Here is a combined post brought to you by the letters G and T
Admiring the Paris skyline by night on the Pont des Arts:
Glor: Is that a light-house?
Tor: No, it's the Eiffel Tower.
Cool stuff Glor and Tor did down and out in London and Paris
1. Travelled on the metro and got into the Sacre Coeur half price and the Louvre for free. (By sheer cunning and intelligence!- Tor) Actually, the Louvre bit was 'cos it's free on Fidays after 6pm for under 26. (The metro and Sacre Coeur? Well, go figure.)
2. Accidentally discovered a place called Cafe Psycho, when wandering in Paris - it had notebooks masquerading as menus - that you could write in. Glor had the best hot chocolate of her life there. We chilled and lim-ded kopi facing the Jardin du Luxemborg.
3. Stumbled upon Shakespeare & Co. without even looking for it! Tor bought another Theroux there. It's the bookshop where Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy re-met in Before Sunset, a film which has informed Tor's personal philosophy ever since Tor first saw it.
4. Got chased out of the Louvre at night cos they were closing. So much nicer when it's deserted.
5. Spent an afternoon on the Rue Mouffetard in the Latin Quarter, and used many euros. It was a street lined by shops on both sides, infuriatingly, nothing was in English.-- Glor. Hello! It's France!-- Tor. Also it had the most romantic square Glor saw in Paris. The trees! The lights! The hobos!-- Tor. There were obligatory clumps of french students lim-ing kopi and plotting revolution.
6. We also witnessed a procession at night! Must have come from Notre Dame. It was headed by several alter boys and priests, with a bunch of people carrying a statue of Our Lady. The people followng that were all holding candles, singing and there was a van with a speaker on the top, with the lead priest's voice coming from it. Very cool, there must have been a few hundred people in the thing. The procession I mean, not the van. The priests looked like they were wearing lace table cloths.
7. Had chocolate fondue that burned at the bottom. Oops. It had seemed like a good idea at the time- Glor.
8. Discovered what a tarte au sucre is. It's a pastry with holes full of sugar! Yum-- Glor. Discovered what a triangle frangipane is- Tor. No, it's not a three sided flower, it's a sort of flaky, fragrant pastry. Mmmmmm. Miss Paris. Miss fruit tart wossname stuff-- Glor.
9. Almost got killed several times on account of looking in the wrong direction-- by which we mean the correct direction, of course.
10. Glor comes to the conclusion that Parisien boys are cuter than London boys. Tor wonders why Glor's hot guys all look 16.
11. Glor mistakes Eiffel tower for a lighthouse. What to do, it had a bright light coming from it, going in circles-- Glor.
12. We ice-skated at Somerset House! It's a grand old mansion on the strand that was beautifully lit with fairy lights and proper flaming torches edging the rink. We (almost) had mulled wine and mince pie. (I was carded and didn't have id. How strange)-- Tor. There was the biggest real christmas tree Glor's ever seen. Ice skating is actually really fun.
13. Glor got pissed, threw up and passed out. On a pint of cider.
Away from Tor's watchful gaze (when I was with her, Glor was all 'I hate alchohol, I don't drink man' etc, so I gave her a vodka mudshake, a drink I thought was suitably fun without being an alcopop... baby steps, remember? And she was alright. But then when I was at school, the first thing she did was get shit-faced and fall over.)
14. Glor made her first meal - pizza, with Ian. Tor: she just put the topping on top and bunged the whole thing into the oven. Wot? Glor: Woot.
15. Glor went to Camden market and saw lots of clothes she wanted there. Glor thinks goth lolita cosplayers would be very happy there. We went to cool shisha cafe and had moroccan spice tea.
16. Frequently had nice dinners in Soho, usually followed by coffee at an italian cafe that's got a hot waiter. Tor: Bar Italia, my friendly neighbourhood coffee place. And he's gay. It is Soho.
17. Tried out French laptop of Julien's at a party in King's Cross. Still not sure how to get the full stop out.
18. Glor's spent more than a total of 12 hours in various museums. Her favourite is the National Gallery at Trafalgar Square, though she thinks the Natural History museum is good too. Ogled many unfortunate pickled things in the Darwin centre there, like worms from whales' stomachs.
19. Glor got haircut in Soho by Tor's Japanese hairdresser. Looks muchly better now.
20. Saw Mary Poppins the musical! It was very good. *sings* Just a spoonful of sugar, helps the medicine go down~ It cost £25 each. Tor: ow.
The traffic in Paris is really crap. Number 1, they drive on the wrong side of the road. Number 2, there must be something wrong with the traffic lights there-- or maybe it's the cars. Whatever it is, the movement of the cars do not correspond in any way to the light signals.
Number 3, you've got to have balls, or 'avec la peche', to cross the street. (Literally-- to have a peach, don't ask about the spherical imagery) That is, you must ga ga lai and cheong! Once you hesitate, you are lost and will never actually be able to get to the other side.
Glor enjoyed the hostel we stayed at. I'll let her write about that. The only interesting thing that happened for me was that I was able to cross off one item on my list of things I should do while travelling: bring up the sheep-and-cow-fart tax in NZ in conversation with a kiwi. First off, you learn that it's a methane emissions tax. In my opinion, it doesn't matter what you call it, it's still a tax on cattle farts. As the rounds tot up though, we slowly discover that the problem was the grass the cows were eating. It was the wrong type of grass. So they started feeding them happy grass and the cows started asking for big macs.
It's a well-kept secret.
Admiring the Paris skyline by night on the Pont des Arts:
Glor: Is that a light-house?
Tor: No, it's the Eiffel Tower.
Cool stuff Glor and Tor did down and out in London and Paris
1. Travelled on the metro and got into the Sacre Coeur half price and the Louvre for free. (By sheer cunning and intelligence!- Tor) Actually, the Louvre bit was 'cos it's free on Fidays after 6pm for under 26. (The metro and Sacre Coeur? Well, go figure.)
2. Accidentally discovered a place called Cafe Psycho, when wandering in Paris - it had notebooks masquerading as menus - that you could write in. Glor had the best hot chocolate of her life there. We chilled and lim-ded kopi facing the Jardin du Luxemborg.
3. Stumbled upon Shakespeare & Co. without even looking for it! Tor bought another Theroux there. It's the bookshop where Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy re-met in Before Sunset, a film which has informed Tor's personal philosophy ever since Tor first saw it.
4. Got chased out of the Louvre at night cos they were closing. So much nicer when it's deserted.
5. Spent an afternoon on the Rue Mouffetard in the Latin Quarter, and used many euros. It was a street lined by shops on both sides, infuriatingly, nothing was in English.-- Glor. Hello! It's France!-- Tor. Also it had the most romantic square Glor saw in Paris. The trees! The lights! The hobos!-- Tor. There were obligatory clumps of french students lim-ing kopi and plotting revolution.
6. We also witnessed a procession at night! Must have come from Notre Dame. It was headed by several alter boys and priests, with a bunch of people carrying a statue of Our Lady. The people followng that were all holding candles, singing and there was a van with a speaker on the top, with the lead priest's voice coming from it. Very cool, there must have been a few hundred people in the thing. The procession I mean, not the van. The priests looked like they were wearing lace table cloths.
7. Had chocolate fondue that burned at the bottom. Oops. It had seemed like a good idea at the time- Glor.
8. Discovered what a tarte au sucre is. It's a pastry with holes full of sugar! Yum-- Glor. Discovered what a triangle frangipane is- Tor. No, it's not a three sided flower, it's a sort of flaky, fragrant pastry. Mmmmmm. Miss Paris. Miss fruit tart wossname stuff-- Glor.
9. Almost got killed several times on account of looking in the wrong direction-- by which we mean the correct direction, of course.
10. Glor comes to the conclusion that Parisien boys are cuter than London boys. Tor wonders why Glor's hot guys all look 16.
11. Glor mistakes Eiffel tower for a lighthouse. What to do, it had a bright light coming from it, going in circles-- Glor.
12. We ice-skated at Somerset House! It's a grand old mansion on the strand that was beautifully lit with fairy lights and proper flaming torches edging the rink. We (almost) had mulled wine and mince pie. (I was carded and didn't have id. How strange)-- Tor. There was the biggest real christmas tree Glor's ever seen. Ice skating is actually really fun.
13. Glor got pissed, threw up and passed out. On a pint of cider.
Away from Tor's watchful gaze (when I was with her, Glor was all 'I hate alchohol, I don't drink man' etc, so I gave her a vodka mudshake, a drink I thought was suitably fun without being an alcopop... baby steps, remember? And she was alright. But then when I was at school, the first thing she did was get shit-faced and fall over.)
14. Glor made her first meal - pizza, with Ian. Tor: she just put the topping on top and bunged the whole thing into the oven. Wot? Glor: Woot.
15. Glor went to Camden market and saw lots of clothes she wanted there. Glor thinks goth lolita cosplayers would be very happy there. We went to cool shisha cafe and had moroccan spice tea.
16. Frequently had nice dinners in Soho, usually followed by coffee at an italian cafe that's got a hot waiter. Tor: Bar Italia, my friendly neighbourhood coffee place. And he's gay. It is Soho.
17. Tried out French laptop of Julien's at a party in King's Cross. Still not sure how to get the full stop out.
18. Glor's spent more than a total of 12 hours in various museums. Her favourite is the National Gallery at Trafalgar Square, though she thinks the Natural History museum is good too. Ogled many unfortunate pickled things in the Darwin centre there, like worms from whales' stomachs.
19. Glor got haircut in Soho by Tor's Japanese hairdresser. Looks muchly better now.
20. Saw Mary Poppins the musical! It was very good. *sings* Just a spoonful of sugar, helps the medicine go down~ It cost £25 each. Tor: ow.
The traffic in Paris is really crap. Number 1, they drive on the wrong side of the road. Number 2, there must be something wrong with the traffic lights there-- or maybe it's the cars. Whatever it is, the movement of the cars do not correspond in any way to the light signals.
Number 3, you've got to have balls, or 'avec la peche', to cross the street. (Literally-- to have a peach, don't ask about the spherical imagery) That is, you must ga ga lai and cheong! Once you hesitate, you are lost and will never actually be able to get to the other side.
Glor enjoyed the hostel we stayed at. I'll let her write about that. The only interesting thing that happened for me was that I was able to cross off one item on my list of things I should do while travelling: bring up the sheep-and-cow-fart tax in NZ in conversation with a kiwi. First off, you learn that it's a methane emissions tax. In my opinion, it doesn't matter what you call it, it's still a tax on cattle farts. As the rounds tot up though, we slowly discover that the problem was the grass the cows were eating. It was the wrong type of grass. So they started feeding them happy grass and the cows started asking for big macs.
It's a well-kept secret.