It's that time of the year when everyone is rearranging themselves and preparing for whatever semester 2 may throw at them. Some of us think it will be no different from last semester, but there are a small bunch of us who have gone out of our way to make life more exciting than we've ever imagined before. And as the time draws near, we're feeling the trepedation, thinking maybe we shouldn't have. And to some, whose changes must mean plowing and effortful movement even when one is deadbeat, term break seems to be a time to store up energy to fight giants. I feel like a green pea. I really don't know why. Maybe cos greengiant green peas. Really! it's a brand. I guess that for the rest of us who are making huge waves in our own lives, we can only trust in God and say, Dear Lord, you take the wheel...

Find me my rest in you, God. Before it all starts again and I want to run like crazy to the end... I really want to find rest in you..

For some reason, twin has really funny tissue boxes. I always laugh at her tissues when I go to her room. This one in particular was for my bing gan friend in Singapore. Cheers, yy, and remember to bring an umbrella with you in monsoon season!

The lighting is always best in the... ? Anyway we finally got a proper picture together instead of having our faces blinded by a flash or maligned by borat. -_-"""

This super yummy cookie thing has Chinese New Year's decadence, owing mostly to the enourmous amount of butter, but I assure you that they are extra yummy that way. Twin, this beautiful picture can be a reminder to give me the receipe so I can make more beautiful cookies? (song zhe you fen = you get some too)

It's very terrible how I mix up my dates. But I remember we had steamboat at Lizzy's on my papa's birthday. Lizzy, Es-tha-ah and me. (And a whole bunch of other people) And we watched a korean movie.. and now I think the guy is shuai too. -_-""""

And this is Mark!

I cannot remember which date this picture was taken. Everything is really jumbled up in my camera and brain. Hohoho. But I remember who this is! This is my favourite Jennifer. Yapanese Jen left on Saturday for Singapore.

Like weepy tourists, we insisted on taking a picture! It even says 'Departures'... But it's not like she won't be back for sem 2... and I've got her car! Muahahaaha. MUAHAHAHAHAA. Ok fine. you can borrow it too.

Dubdub Like this picture. It was taken in a small cramped up room in Utopia when everyone was high from food and singing. Twin and I reached home at 3 am! Heehhee. We both couldn't wake up the next day.

And this is the whole big group! In a small tiny room. Kekekeke. It was really fun. And bonus bonus: you can have your bubble tea while singing!

Twin and I saw a rainbow on the way out of the airport. I think this one is a bit faint, but the base was really visible! I saw one on Sunday too, near Leach Hwy and Riseley. Sigh.. So so pretty...

Yesterday was surprise sprung. I feel like so much happened at once that when God decided to take hold of me I was most unprepared. But I feel like He has taken hold of me in a way He will not let go of, I am so afraid of failing Him, but then I remember I cannot do it without Him anyway. I have no idea what happened yesterday, and if I told you exactly what happened the way it happened, you wouldn't understand it either because I don't understand it. All I know is that He is calling, has been calling and I have finally yielded a response. I was unable to respond because my self and my flesh wanted to continue living comfortably. But who, when realising truth, can refuse to react? There is tremendous joy in responding. There is tremendous joy in knowing that He has acted in me when I could not. I don't know where I am going from here, but there's been a change in the wind.

Christmas Time

I feel like it's Christmas time. All alone in my home with the music playing and the wind blowing outside, with the sunlight just right for a rusty afternoon... I feel like I'm the only person in this world alive here, in this way. I feel like the beauty of the things I loved as a child aren't lost, as if some elevator has dipped itself deep down into my heart like a dumb waiter and has re-emerged, dripping sweetness, fragrance, bearing the things I loved so much. But most of all, that feeling. That feeling of Christmas. And although I've labeled it Christmas because that is when I feel it most, it's actually something else altogether. It's the feeling of eternity, that there is life now and life later and more than life after.

I learnt something important yesterday. To be a friend doesn't just consist of being around for people when they need you and saying things they need to hear and listening to them when they want to talk- there is so much more than that because one needs to remember that being a friend consists of endorsing their needs over yours: remembering that they should come out of a meeting fulfilled and that your own fulfillment is unnecessary. And that is the Most Important thing of all. And when you reach home, you'll realise that you didn't need any kind of fulfillment: the joy of loving is good enough. And a heart-felt 'Thank You' is simply a thrilling bonus like the chocolate toffee cherried icing on a cake.

Now Blogger Saves Your Drafts Automatically!

Hurray and three cheers for progess! hahaha. I'm sitting in the computer lab in school because the four girls in my clinic group met up today for a debrief with our clinic coordinator. But she was sick. And she also did not receive our email to slot us in. So, in the end, I guess it was a good thing. Get well Soon, M! Meanwhile, everyone has decided to make good use of the 'waking up early' (11 am now -_-) to go shopping.

I have no idea what I want to do now that I have enourmous amounts of free time on my hands. I must come up with a plan! An evil plan that has backups: Plan A Plan B Plan Y. NASA will tell you- you must always have back up. Remember those three computers that were controlling the international space station that went kaput? Now, they might run the risk of the 'worst case scenerio'- losing the space station altogether. So! Plan Y is very important too! But I don't know what kind of plan to have. Hmm. Maybe I should think about the things I want to finish doing by the end of this holiday.. But that makes it feel so un-holiday. Ok, I've decided. Plan A = not to have a plan. Plan B = Think of a short term plan. Plan Y= Finish everything I am supposed to do by the end of the holiday. And I must remember not to eat so much decadent stuff. People have been pigging out too much, and I've joined 'people'.

*reminds self* don't listen to tummy, listen to brain. don't listen to tummy, listen to brain.. Don't listen to brummy, listen to train.. Choochoo.. Don't listen to brain.. listen to tummy.. ARGH.

As you can tell, I am bored.

I am bored enough to want to hear Pheobe's song "smelly cat".

We all fight our own battles. Battles against ourselves, our insides, our outsides, our erosion as according to time, our wear and tear against the wind, rain and stress. Battles against the thoughts in our brains, the ones we think we should have, the things we think we should be, and we fight so hard to portray the person we want to be. We fight the lack of time, the call of the decadent, the sloth of youth and the wanderlust that seeks fulfillment in millions of dollars worth of air tickets, travel destinations and luxurious accomodation. Exam period in itself is a battle of the mind (have I studied enough, will I remember any of this? Is this useful information at all, and am I lazy or merely reasonable?), and only overcomers win the race. We fight
location (I don't live close enough to XX or far away enough from XX.),
transport (Jams, buses, fares),
technology (Internet D/Cs, the MSN 'block' function, computers not cooperating for essay research),
destination (Where do I want to be? Is that feasible?),
duration (Why does sitting in the doctor's office or waiting for an organisation to reply take so long?),
terminology (WNL, NOK, PCU.. just some of the things I need to remember for hospital placements),
semantics (Are you lazy or just taking time to enjoy life?),
euphemism (a far less subtle and unjustifiable form of semantics),
memory (The memories change you know. what you hated you yearn for when put away from it. Remember the Israelites craving for their slavery?),
terror (all the something-phobias, all the what'ifs),
heat & cold (in more than a literal sense),
dust & dirt (when it gets on your dashboard, face, floor, clothes and car),
routine (doing the same predictable thing everyday even though you know that extreme change would probably be unwelcome as well. We are hard to satisfy, you know).
Murmurs (complaining to such an extent that one might be led to think you were influenced by rumrum).

Struggle, argue, twist and writhe. That's just the way we do things. And actually. It's a very dumb way of doing things. Why bend over backwards (thanks for that new meaning, Grace) to do something about the things that aren't in your control. What I need to do is to stop being such a grump. And let God drive.

"I got lost in thought because it was unfamiliar territory"

I first saw this on Grace's blog. Unfortunately, it's the painful truth for what I hope is a minority population. It may be more widespread than expected. gah.

NANDATOUUUUUUUU~

I was ill for 7 days. When I finally ventured out on day 8, everything went well. On day 9, the germs decided to take over. So I'm hacking and coughing and aching AGAIN.

I wonder what gutterbrain is doing in Italy. Grace has something to say to you about that! Hehehe. She's also quite the GB.

My voice is slowly coming back but I feel like I've lost all control of it and it is simply annoying. Because I had been training it but one week of illness seems to have upset that.

I went to Swong/Twin's house to make Kueh Salat! Whaaaa.. it was super cool lah. I Felt like a matriach auntie.. except I didn't have any batik. But it came out really well and my mum really enjoyed it. She GAWKED when she realised there was ONE LITRE of coconut cream in there! And I made Kuchen yesterday. Which turned out awesome as well. hehehe. The people Mum invited over will be eating it later..

It's papa's birthday tomorrow. and he is leaving for Hong Kong on Monday. =( Papaaaaa. ya. Sian. I dont see why his company can't buy two tickets instead of one. Hmph.

fufufufu~~

While my dear old twin Swong was trying to contact me about receipe stuff, I was soundly asleep in my bed. So sorry! This was also due to the fact that I had lent my laptop to Mark, and he was probably studying hard on it when Swong sent me those offlines, and I had chosen not to stay up late. The dear old boy's internet was down and he had missed half a day of studying at home for Crim Law (which my mum heard as cream law, "what cream?" said she.) So papa brought him over to study and we tried to make him as comfortable as we could. I know that impending doom of exams feeling- I've had it for the past few years. But this semester is different! What changed? My outlook? My attitude? My smartness? None! NO EXAMS. Ok, that was very suan. Instead, I shall say: Jia you Mark!

I checked my email. No reply from Mrs. H or from Mitsui (too busy producing chemicals?). Gnarh. When will the suspense be over! Is it Japan, or Scotland, or neither!?!?!? (In which case, it may be Melbourne. hehee.)

I woke up at 6.15 to prepare my Dad's breakfast and send him off to work. I never realised how much devotion my mother put into this aspect of her life, and it's a 'little thing', that over time, turned into a 'big thing'. I can't imagine waking up 24 years everyday, MAINICHI, at 6 to make breakfast! Nandatou, I forgot about weekends. heh heh. But when I did it today, it was like i discovered a whole new aspect to my family life. My mum is truly SUPAOOMAN.

Okay, I shall check on the receipe things. Swong can get off early! WHOOHOO. hehee. Catch y'all later!

It's sad that the closeness of the classroom has worn off and we've all drifted in different directions. Looking back, I cherish those days more than ever, although the memories continue to fade more quickly than I would wish.

I have a cold. It's not working out so well. I don't want this cold anymore.

AUCTION

Do you need to get out of going to an event? An ex-lover's wedding, a boring seminar, or a dreaded meeting with an inquisitive old acquaintance? Or do u just want a legitimate MC?

Buy my authentic influenza virus!

It comes with:
Coughing
Nasal Congestion
Fever
Drippy Nose
Sore Throat
Aches and Pains
And as a bonus, Phlegm!

Pay by cheque or paypal. Auction starts at $5. Bid only if you live in my viscinity. I won't pay postage for a lousy virus.

Owarimashita

Yesterday was the last day of clinic and God preserved my health till I reached home. Then the real flu started and I've been drinking 'flu tea' and eating the little red SudafedPE (nasal decongestant). I also cannot taste anything much unless a mountain of salt has been put into it. What a shame that I missed my gym yesterday! But also don't want to infect twin right? Twin still has lots of DNA to look at, so I shouldn't make her sneeze.

I still have to hand in my portfolio, which I just completed 5 minutes ago. I have to drive into school!?! uguuuu~ And I have to vet my assignment once more before handing it in. Then it shall be 3 weeks of freedom! Oh. Which means I have to email my new supervisor.

My nose is like a stuck dripping tap. I need a plumber. And I didn't really want to be cooped up in the house the first day after clinic! But I guess I'm just thankful I wasn't sick during clinic. Oyes. Me and Jess are meant to diet. But so lazy lah.. Oh, and my voice is very sexy now. Maybe I should make some random phone calls.

I did a very embarrassing thing yesterday. I cried a bit when my clinic group ended. AAARGHHH. Hazukashiiiiiiiii~~

To those who need it (for cooking or studying):

Credits to stickgirl, from http://stickgal.blogspot.com

Rachel is coming to Perth! YAYY!

Indo Mee is bad for you.

I went for a run and then the three of us cooked dinner, ate it and washed up. Family feels nice.

You want some love, honey? Go get some from your mom. -CK. ROFL can?

BB at half price with vouchers. How yum.

Freo is great for guanging. If I had more money..Hmmm..