black swan o' black swan

The black swan represents this state that has almost 70% of its population voting for a ‘no’ on daylight saving—Western Australia.

I had a chance to visit this place for the third time in my life, and I’m glad I came back. Mainly it’s because I could hardly remember anything about this place (Cuz I was 2 and 8 the last times I came here), and also cuz the food here is so much more similar to home. Cantik~

This breath taking view could be seen from King’s Park, and the one at night is really nice too. Coming from Adelaide, I was like the ulu kampong girl: ‘waaaaaahhh… tall buildings…’.

I had a feel of their china town, with the one and only Chinese arch. Oh ya, I tried 2 bubble teas from 2 different shops, wasn’t bad, but I somehow still like the one in Adelaide.

Had a chance to walk around the ‘art gallery’ at night. The pictures were so cool…

Got to visit my Dai Bak (Big uncle) and wife. He took me to the place where I cried really badly when the swan almost ate my dad’s hand. ok... maybe it was just a peck... but still!!! It was M rated Horror for a 2-year-old! I can still remember trying to climb on any adult near me who’d have the heart to carry me up, away from the ferocious black feathery things which was almost my size then.

I also enjoyed my chao kuey teow, which tasted just like the one in taman midah, just without the si ham.

Speaking of food… Tim’s household had a huge BBQ party- the aussie style (apparently). So much food leftover! That’s me giving a go at flipping them snags.

And the housemates who insist that their pictures do not appear online (well u can’t really see them from here can u?) =p

We also had a few rounds of monopoly (Credit Card style). I’m gonna make a comeback next time round! Just u wait, Clayton!

We also had a Christmas party with a Chinese serenading Santa Clause…Who also played mah jong.

I also was asked on a date! oooOOoooOO~

Though the chairs at the Bell House was really low, I looooved the food there. I always thought fancy food always come in small portions on a huge plate to signify that it won’t taste as good as it looks. But I was wrong… Thanks Tim dear for the lovely evening~

I also got to go to Fremantle and I saw the brewers of Little Creatures, had their famous Fish n’ Chips, and I found this!

I also got to meet up with David Ow and have my fair share of real roti canai.

Also got to meet tekki (and girlfriend), who had to eat that whole bowl (literally a medium sized mixer bowl) of seafood.

Hmmm, we went to the beach too, but I just noticed that I didn’t take any pictures then. All in their camera…

While lilian and abishek were here in perth too, willy took all of us out to tour around the place. We had corica apple strudles! Yummy!!! (yes! No raisins!) Hahaha, I cant stop laughing when I see this picture. Hahah… willy got tricked into making a funny pose =p

Anyhoot, Tim and I had a chance to ferry all the way to Rottness Island! Wahhh, it was soooooo pretty! The beach was like… REAL! Hahaha, it had crystal clear water with tiny waves coming in constantly. And the sand was so fine it was like powder!

We also hired bicycles and did a small round on one side of the island. It was so hilly I was praying so hard I won’t get blown off by the wind when I flew downhill along the coast.

I went to so many beaches, watched Australia (and another show that was going on inside the cinema), shopped in Perth’s Harbour Town, had lemon lime bitters at 3pm with EeVon, took the ferry to South Perth, visited 2 churches, had good meals at Tim’s family friend’s place, went jogging in the morning and partly regretted doing so, met and even had lunch with an Australian policeman, walked around Carousel, drove Tim’s car for a bit, took the free bus around the city, rented DVDs, messed up Tim’s room, get stuck in a real jam, lived with 2 free-fluttering birds in the same house for 10 days.

Yup, I had fun ;)

then we flew to Melbourne on Christmas night for another exciting holiday~

oh look! an egg is cooking on the pavement!

I guess I don’t need to say much for updates. The only main thing that’s been going on here in little Adelaide is the crazy ass HEAT (with a capital EAT).

It successfully whacked most of us crazy. We can sleep naked at night and still sweat. Lowest of 36 Celsius and a whopping 44 Celsius high for one whole week. Wahlau…. BEH TA HAN!!!

Maybe they should consider changing the country’s name from Australia to EXtralia. Cuz it has such extremes! My goodness… it can be super cold (and still no snow), and super hot (and still no sandstorm).

I’ve always thought the summer season does not last long and it’ll pass really soon. But Amanda reminded me yesterday that it’s cuz I always go back to Malaysia during summer and I kinda avoid the hot drag of the month. And I was like… oh crap. U mean I’ve to go thru the full swing of it this time?!?!?! Noooooooooo….

Oh well, but at least I got to skip some parts of winter, heheh… I managed to escape 3 weeks of cold with the Basils to the northern hemisphere. Nyahahah…

So now, I’m sleeping with Ruby in the dinning hall with the aircon (almost like our life support machine). Huey chi… u lucky girl… u just dodged the heat week!!!

All I can wish u now is ‘stay cool’ and ‘chill mate… chill’.

Happy Chinese ‘Niu’ Year!

My 1st time ever being away from home during chinese new year... the thought of it just makes me feel so .. boooooooo.... =(
Well, it didn’t turn out as bad as I thought it’d be. If it wasn’t for the coincidence that CNY fell on Australia Day, it wouldn’t be this exciting. It’s usually a working day in Australia during CNY, but this year, all the aussies are celebrating this auspicious day with us! Hey~

I had a family reunion dinner with Dai Yee (big aunt), uncle Jason, uncle Michael, aunty Ivy, Christopher, Joshua, Jeremy, their cousin Aaron and a family friend who I’ve met through somewhere else b4, called Joanna. I dun really feel it was a reunion cuz it wasn’t much of a reuniting thing anyways. But it was fun. Good food and we had a few rounds of mah jong and played with some sparklers out in the back yard.

No one counted down with me this time. I made James, Daniel and Esther play chor dai dee with me to get the mood going, while the others emotionlessly wished each other ‘gong hei gong hei’ when it was 12:01. I could recall how crazy it would be in mama’s house. Everyone would stop what they’re doing, countdown together in the living room, then wish everyone happy CNY, and we’d pour tea for mama, while she gives out ang pows. We’d line up for ang pows from our uncles and aunties, and then after the whole happy commotion, we’d go back to what we were doing b4 (playing with cards, mah jong, watching tv, just talking about weird stuff around the dinning table).

I miss home... I miss the atmosphere... I miss my crazy family who’d come up with really weird things to do when we gather.

Anyhow... on CNY day in Aus, I woke up with a major headache. But it all went fine after I went to ikea to buy chairs with Su, Ster and Deb. Then we went to mama and papa Basil’s house to ‘bai lin’. They had so many chinese titbits and Yeoh’s packet drinks!!!! Totally made my day. and it was really cool receiving ang pow from Andrew hahah...

Then we went back to ashok macho and had a massive cook-out. Deb and I rolled the tong yuin. Yih ling and michelle wrapped the wantons. Esther cooked non stop. James and su ling did the deco. That night, we had 11 happy chinese and 1 learned rojak. This dinner made me feel so much better. We had all the chinese cuisines which elevated the oriental celebration. Not forgetting the ‘dong dong dong chiang’ songs that went on and on the whole nite till we could see it flowing out of our ears the next day.

Wish I was home, but am grateful that I’ve friends here who brought home to me.

growing pains

Some people would do anything to look younger, turn back the clock, and even create a clock that goes backwards (hehe, just watched Benjamin Buttons, which was actually a really good one I must say... it’s randomly awesome!)... but for me, I appreciate the natural ability of growing older .

It’s like a gift from our Creator. It’s as simple as time. Addition in time = addition in age = addition in maturity.

Now, the thing is... something happened not too long ago to me. it had something to do with how I look as a 21-year-old girl who is stuck in the middle between graduation and having a steady job that will be able to provide for her chances of surviving in the world of money and materialism. This not-a-girl; not-yet-a-woman situation makes me feel so uneasy, I can’t wait to break out of it.

And as I was happily enjoying my almost-fulfilling retreat, a major catastrophe took place that sunny afternoon. I didn’t know what lay before as I stepped into that Korean saloon in Melbourne’s china town with Tim and Angeline.

I indicated with my fingers the length I want for my fringe. She said to close my eyes in Korean accent so she can trim my hair that flowed down my forehead, over my eyes. And when I opened my eyes, my heart fell to my feet. It’s so short it’s not classified as fringe!
Angeline, if u’re reading this, it got worse after that day. I thought it was fine after the cut, so I was ok then. Accepted the new look instantly. But when I got back, reality sank in. It was so bad I wish the tiles in the toilet floor would crack open and I’ll get sucked into a whirlpool of self-pity and disappointment.

Now I’m stuck in this stressful feeling. How do I go out and meet people, find a job, get applications for PR done etc? How how how? My self confident just ripped out from me instantly.

Tim says its cute. And we had a really good laugh and good scream in the car and in Sugar Bowl. But really... how long will it grow to a desirable length so I can feel pretty again?

Now that I look 10 years younger, I feel ‘uuuggghhhh’ about growing up. Bills to pay, rent coming every fortnight, car breaking down, job hunting disappointments, freaking expensive PR fees... and what did I say again? I appreciate the natural ability of growing old. Yes... that’s it. I love life. Come on adult issues!!! Bring it on!

The West Side Story

Hi there, silent public. Glad to know that this site is still visited even since the last update that was done donkey ages ago. So many things happened to little jez who thinks big, now, her little brain has scarce space for storage.

Tracking back, the last I spoke of was about my old house which I sometimes do miss. Yet, this new place has a lot more to offer. Even though I’m now technically not an East Sider, deep down in my heart, I’m always one (for as long as the gang remains in that territory).

I now live in a suburb called Mile End, but really, it’s quite the mile’s start. I’m 15 mins walk away from the city, and 15mins drive away from the beach. And if I need to know that I’m living in a city (Adelaide is not that dead ok?), I just need to open my sound proof windows and scream at the trucks that go along the Henley Beach Road which has 5 lanes. If I need to have some peace and quiet, the sun room is a lovely place to sun-dry my thoughts and watch them evaporate with the patterns on the curtains.

The toilet is just one door away from my room (compared to my old house, I’ve to walk out to the laundry, into the kitchen, then to the lounge, out into the entrance, then to the toilet) It’s amazing I don’t pee in my pants b4 I reach the sacred bowl.

Even though the moving process happened when I had 4 assignments due in that same week, I’m amazed how it all happened so smoothly, including my assignments. This new place has hibiscus growing right beside the garage! Woohooo, I’m < > this close to Malaysia =p

stylo bino

Now what do you get when u come across a Jezamine and a pair of binoculars?

Nothing!

Hahaha, I’ve no idea how I could relate myself with this visual gadget (unless I wanna keep clear from attacking birds that come my way).

But lemme tell u something interesting: I got myself a SAXON 8x21PP Porro Prism Binoculars, just because I can =p hahah!

It’s so cool. I can see people doing funny things in their backyard from huey chi’s room. I could also see how the workers stumble around for their keys by their tainted cars across the road from my bedroom window. Hahaha, so that’s how a stalker feels like.

I ordered this baby online http://www.ozscopes.com.au , and it came in the mail the next day.

Now here’s the even more interesting bit: it got stolen from my mailbox!

Well, because I just moved into this place, I don’t know how safe it is to allow the delivery man to leave my parcel in my mailbox. And the broken front gate (which is already fixed) didn’t help with security. Anyhow, thank God for insurance, I got another one the next day

! How cool is that.

There are plenty of other cool gadgets from OZScopes, and also at OZHut.com.

Lots of cool gadgets if u run out of ideas for Christmas gifts for guys (so hard to find gifts for guys…).

Anyways, may all of u have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

in memory of ye ol' home

The smell of emptiness compacted the whole house, making me move slothfully in its thickness. Huey chi and I decided to give our old house a clean before passing our keys back to our ex-landlord. They were really nice ppl, that’s y we didn’t wanna leave them with a house with dirt and masses of dead skin cells at the corners.

The house served us good, I must say.

Awesome oven, huge windows, and enormous backyard for you to push your guests to if they start making it hard to breathe in-doors.

My room that's all the way at the back
(going to the toilet seems a long way from my room)

the heater that always gave us problems,

deep friendships formed, secrets shared, bored moments, innovative things were invented, seriously relaxing days, girly nites, weird people invading my house, good food distributed, amber and alfalfa (with her countless kittens) killed many many birds in the backyard,

... good times...

Thus says the post-graduate

Woohooo!!!!!! I made it to the end! I survived! I more than survived! I had so much fun throughout this three years of communication studies and I’m now a post-graduate (not official yet, but I’ll still scream for it anyway)!!! ... which means now I’m a jobless individual still living off her parent’s sweat and blood?
Darn it...

Alright, on a bitter sweet tone, I reckon it has been an interesting journey through the degree. More good than bad, that’s why I don’t really have the “liberated” feeling now cuz I was liberated from the start anyhow.

Hmmmm, this makes me feel like a geek or it’s as if uni is paying me to say this. But honestly I’ve no regrets doing what I did in uni and a small part of me wish I cud do it again (but heck no, I’m getting older by the second). Now the scary part comes. The REAL DEAL. The actual chunk of meat. The unfeigned mania also known to me as career-reality.

It’s one of those transitional periods where I’d panic for awhile, then slowly and eventually fall to contentment knowing that I’ve a God bigger than every single worry I have and He’s planned the best stuff for me, just like how He’s been doing all along.

*Drum rolls*

I'm 450 words away from graduation!!!!!! (that's if I don't fail any submitted assignments)

Sarah said i should play the Chariots of Fire soundtrack when I submit this final one.

That's exactly what I will do...

*Drum continues to roll*

G.B. Lamperti (italian singing teacher):

“Your art is the fulfillment of your elemental desire to sing. Your growth is stimulated by what you hear and understand.
If you faithfully do your daily practice, without anxiety about the result, you will find yourself competent in the end. You must stop at no stage of progress, anchor to no habit, be satisfied with no result, exult in no success.
All the details of singing are finally marshaled under one commander, emotion, the original source of song.”

catharsick

Catharsis = the purging of the emotions or relieving of emotional tensions, esp. through certain kinds of art, as tragedy or music.

As how my lecturer put it, it’s like a calamity that causes one to be free from an emotional bondage.

Aiyah... say la ‘cry’.

Anyhoot, about a month ago, I fell sick. Terribly sick. The last time I fell so sick was when I was admitted to the hospital with high fever, gastric pains and a curled up body, almost like a whinging prawn. I was 8 then. I guess it’s a tradition for my body to have a major fall in every decade of my life.

This, I would say, was quite a cathartic experience for me. Being sick is one issue. Being sick away from mommy is as bad as rain when your car tyre has gone flat.

So how was this a cathartic encounter? I blubbered, whimpered, snivelled, and wept. Yes... I cried till I could feel the body aches and headaches swivel away in shame. I guess that’s the active feat of ‘purging of the emotions’.

I’m glad the turmoil is over. Never again will I sleep and be ‘one’ with the couch for 2 days straight! Well, at least not in this house for sure.

‘cuz I’m moving out this Saturday. Going to the west. Away from my fellow comrades who supported me physically, mentally and emotionally when I was sick without mommy around. Deep down inside of me, I’ll always be an east sider (I’ll say this again when I post something about moving).

This whole moving thing may be another cathartic season for me. Yet, the end result will be good. Always has been and always will be.

[ 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 ]

Awesome possum

Once upon a time, there lived a girl who had a cosy room with fluffy toys lined up along her favourite ‘get away’ spot in this daunting world. The corner of her bed was the place where she would find solitude and hide away from the evil forces of Stress, Peer Pressure, Home Sickness and Expected Performance. She would curl up into a ball, hugging her favourite fluff toy and just spend time with herself and her Maker. That corner was her physical sanctuary.

But one day, the harmonious aura of that corner was distressed. That day, the girl came in her room and found twigs, leaves and debris in her little haven corner. She steered her vision upwards, and to her dismay, a hole about the size of a tennis ball was found. In panic, she ran to show her housemates the new sighting, who called the landlords to fix the problem.

That night, and the nights of three weeks after that incident, this poor girl had the couch in the living room as her temporary bed. Her corner was invaded. She had no sanctuary to go to. This public area can never replace the same feeling she could receive from her corner.
The landlord (though delayed but eventually) came to fix the hole. Possum repellent was sprayed in the hole b4 covering it up. The girl rearranged her room setting to avoid having her corner from being invaded again.

Yet... the awesome possum is still there. Making noises day and night, with the ultimate motive of annoying the girl till she starts pulling her hair off.

Not yet, awesome possum... I’m not falling into ur vicious plans. I will get u! One day, just wait. I will get u!!! Like how Mr. Black (from the Black Book) would say: “I’ll suck your eyeballs out and use it as ear muffles to drown the screams you make as I grind u into fine paste for my sandwich spread”

... and the girl awaits for her ‘happily ever after’ scene.

flabbergasted

He said “Be careful what you wish for”.

I didn’t know the seriousness of that until I saw him standing outside my back door with a cheeky smile.

Flabbergasted.

I let out a scream of surprise as I could almost cry seeing him there. The east-siders were standing around, video recording the whole drama, and giggling while I threw my arms around him to make sure he’s real.

This, indeed, was one of the best weekends ever!

Hands down to huey chi who pakat with tim to arrange for this and cancelling all my plans for the weekend. Thanks, mandy, duane and ming for airport transportation. Thanks to the rest who knew and played it so cleverly without me knowing anything. Most importantly, thank u TIM!!!!!! For planning all of this, flying all the way here, just to see meeeeeeee.... He doesn’t just say things; he DOES things.

I’m still in bliss...

One basil writes...

Certain memories are too hard to put into words,
To do that, I gotta b a linguist, a pro, or a nerd.
But if I’d put some effort and time,
I’ll just gather the experience with words that rhyme.

After months of planning and saving,
Expecting the unexpected and praying,
The 4 and a half Basils flew from Aussie land,
With unlocked luggage checked in and pizza in hand.

Tiny greeted us with a gigantic smile in Singapore,
That night for dinner it was makan galore.
We met humble legends from UniSA’s OCF,
After being super blessed, next day we left.

Cheap and comfy accommodation plus superb food,
Everything in sawasdee ka land is good.
Training us with their experiences and wisdom,
The Alaskan and American have a huge heart for His Kingdom.

With heavy hearts we said farewell to original Pad Thai,
One more time we boarded the plane and flew high.
As we landed in the Eternal Spring City,
The 4 of us were exploding with curiosity.

Only one night we bunked in dodgy hotel,
Oh it was dodgy, anyone could tell.
We were cared for by wonder woman behind scooter,
And by Suzanna who made bus travelling much smoother.

In the phlegmable bus we travelled for 7 hours,
Into a little town that we cant call ours.
Shrinking in traffic at the corner of this suburb,
The tooting of the horn could still be heard at every curb.

Housed, fed, and nurtured by a wonderful family,
We stayed in the clean and cosy guesthouse happily.
Their kids have pets, including a dog that ate my shirt,
James kept reminding us everything is relative, including dirt.

We got to know the staff there really well,
They even took us to the place where they initially dwell.
We walked through paddy fields and ventured into caves,
And the pond where they played was near cornfields and graves.

First week of camp was exhausting as we burnt midnight oil,
Yet the smiles of the kids were worth the toil.
We were not only tested with their bratty behaviour,
We were also frustrated cuz it was hard to share about our Saviour.

However His mercies are new every morning,
We gave thanks daily through singing, praying and yawning.
Camp 1 was all about vocabulary, story telling and craft,
When ‘boat’ became ‘boombs’, we cant help but laugh.

Faithful as usual, God later gave us Camp 2,
We couldn’t believe that our prayers came true.
We spent time with older kids from 2pm till 9,
We communicated through play, outings, songs and dine.

With them we hiked up 999 steps for the 2nd time,
Oh my goodness, it was nothing but a miraculous climb.
He held the rain and brought back electricity,
It was obvious His hands were upon us, it wasn’t a mystery.

On the last night we chatted with kids about life and its reason,
That there is a God who loves us the same in every season.
They cried before they went back to their villages,
To me, those were touching moments and valuable images.

Now that I’m back in safe environment and clean streets,
And finally getting to eat non-spicy food and chunky meat,
I miss those days when I could wake up near my fellow basil,
Getting ready for change of plans and last minute hassle.

Through this hands-on experience that I’ve always heard about,
“The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few!!!” I’d wanna shout.
The brave souls out there changed my perspective on working for Him,
Just hand over your life to Him and everything else will follow, including your dream.

I wish I could stay longer to watch the kids grow to know Him,
And witness how they realize that they are loved to the brim.
I pray that this memory will not just look good in rhyme,
But that I will grow to love the lost more and more with time.

-Basil Jez

It's not about saving the world, but to watch Him save His children.

found old musings

I found a word document in my external and I think I wrote this last year when I was still living with my aunt and uncle, and was still mandy's roommate, heehee...

Sometimes you wouldn’t know how great reality is until to truly live it.

You wouldn’t know how fortunate you are until you come home later than the promised time and still know that you’re loved.

Sometimes you wouldn’t know how entertained you are, until you get to watch Blades of Glory with full grown adults who laugh at u laughing.

You know you’ve studied too hard when your table lamp fused up. (=p okok… maybe its cuz I depend on it more than my room lights, but hey, I still put a lot of effort in my studies, cuz I love it so much)

You wouldn’t know how blessed you are till you have friends who would help at your 1st SOS call without asking you why and still offer a smile of assurance.

You wouldn’t know how patient you are until you live with a witty 3-year-old kid who names everything in your bedroom when you’re rushing to finish your assignment.

It’s good to know that we’re emotional beings. There may be times u drown in the down side of the downs, but it’s priceless to get to feel the emotion called pure happiness.

It’s the uncertainties that make life interesting. So I guess I should stop worrying and let the Big Guy do His awesome thing.

I've always been a blessed daughter of the King.

with gratitude

Having so many things that clutter my mind, I constantly find myself in moments where I cant feel anything or just not know what emotions I have. As I was walking to work, I unleashed the thoughts that were already clanging in my mind.

Why am I not getting anything for my research placement? what if I dont get anything? I wont be able to finish my degree, and I wont be able to graduate... What if I am not able to find a job here? Then PR would be impossible. Decisions made by faith... are they going to come to pass?

It was quite cold then, so I prayed for sunshine. Fair enough, God sent the sun. But then, droplets of rain started to fall. It rained with the sun still shining. I blasted my mp3 player as the wind gushed strongly against my face. Why Lord, Why?! No placement, late for work, and rain with strong wind.

Emotions started to stir when this song came up next in my playlist.

Gratitude - by Nicole Nordeman

Send some rain, would You send some rain?
'Cause the earth is dry and needs to drink again
And the sun is high and we are sinking in the shade
Would You send a cloud, thunder long and loud?
Let the sky grow black and send some mercy down
Surely You can see that we are thirsty and afraid
But maybe not, not today
Maybe You'll provide in other ways
And if that's the case . . .

We'll give thanks to You
With gratitude
For lessons learned in how to thirst for You
How to bless the very sun that warms our face
If You never send us rain

Daily bread, give us daily bread
Bless our bodies, keep our children fed
Fill our cups, then fill them up again tonight
Wrap us up and warm us through
Tucked away beneath our sturdy roofs
Let us slumber safe from danger's view this time
Or maybe not, not today
Maybe You'll provide in other ways
And if that's the case . . .

We'll give thanks to You
With gratitude
A lesson learned to hunger after You
That a starry sky offers a better view if no roof is overhead And if we never taste that bread

Oh, the differences that often are between
What we want and what we really need

So grant us peace, Jesus, grant us peace
Move our hearts to hear a single beat
Between alibis and enemies tonight
Or maybe not, not today
Peace might be another world away
And if that's the case . . .

We'll give thanks to You
With gratitude
For lessons learned in how to trust in You
That we are blessed beyond what we could ever dream
In abundance or in need
And if You never grant us peace

But Jesus, would You please . . .

The wind was still strong, the rain was still pouring, my tears were dried even before it could surface because of the wind. i was still cold, and yes, I was still late for work. But hey, the sunshine, was still there. It was the hope that I was running towards. He granted me peace.

Placements? Maybe not, not today.

So if that's the case... I'll still give thanks to my Saviour, who has EVERYTHING planned nicely for me

...with gratitude.

Did you know...

Huey Chi, Ming and I came up with something quite random one nite (a few months ago). We did some research, some culculations and some laughing about it. We came up with the conclusion that there's something in in common between people from China, and the land of Singapore. I hope you wont stone me for saying this, but I have to because its just mind blowing.
Disclaimer: I love the Chinese and I love Singapore.

Did you know...

that if everyone in China were to pee at one go, the amount of pee is able to flood Singapore for up to 4mm high.

That's cool stuff right?

That statement was made based on the calculations considering that the population of China is 1.3 billion, every one is China pees in average of 200ml each time, and the size of Singapore is 407km square.

*Que: woahhhhhhhh~~~*

working His jiggy in the storm

It hailed this morning.

Reminded me of the time when Tim was here and he wanted to experience rain. Fair enuf he experienced it while we were in the Botanical Gardens with James and Norman. Running with little stones falling from the sky and laughing at the same time wasn’t easy. But it was fun.

Anyways, I woke up this morning feeling really out of place. I just felt bemused and flummoxed (hahaha, I just saw this word in thesaurus and thought it was cool... not sure if it is used for the rite context).

Things ahead of me are exciting but it’s also scary at the same time. I can’t see what I need to believe and I can hear the voice I need to follow. Takut! Placement, PR, graduation, IELTS, work, ministry, Tim coming to Australia for good (yay!), working full time soon etc.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7

Ok God. Amidst the storm, I will not be anxious and give u thanks while u work Your jiggy in my life.

choc sprinkles

Alright, here goes what I’d call “the chocolate sprinkles on a super rich chocolate cake”—the brief overview of what happened between my last update and now.

I witness a dear friend being Sabo-ed by ppl not of our clan. Well, kinda... and then the boys from our clan showed the other clan not to mess with our girls by executing a revenge sabo-tion back at the mastermind behind my dear friend’s sabo. It all turned out to be really entertaining and assuring: knowing that my clan has protective guys. –Esther and Sam’s sabo

Note: I’m not from any gangster mobs. All these sabo-ism is done in love. And if u want to know wat sabo means, ask a young Malaysian.

During that time, I had a crazy apple strudel frenzy cuz my housemates left the country, leaving me alone with the cats and our part-time housemates (their bfs). So I baked. Yes.. baked.

Though I’m not a fan of animals, but my housemate’s cat’s kitten passed away one day. I named her OJ (short for Orange Juice cuz of her tangy character that matches her colour). We couldn’t find the cause of her death. But this one was the kitten I liked the most out of all the furry things that run around the house.

OCF UniSA jz started girls ministry this year and we had our 1st slumber party where we fit almost 20 girls in a cozy apartment, had awesome supper, breakfast and lunch. Got to know more about others and to be amongst lovely ppl. I noticed that I was becoming a little ‘gentler’ for awhile =p

In between, there was a lot of preparation for the greatest trip of my year! I travelled to from Adelaide to Singapore to Thailand to China to Singapore again and back to Adelaide within 21days. The plus point was that I did that with 3 of my closest friends who’d do anything to make sure that I’m ok physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally. I’d do the same for them. More on the trip later.


I came back totally stoked! And it didn’t just end there. Even before I had the chance to release my breath of excitement, the person I wanted to see the most flew in to Adelaide all the way from Malaysia!!! 2 weeks is not enough for me to get enough of Tim before he baliked kampung... however, beggars must not be picky. I’ve treasured every moment I had with him, I’m sure he did too. Thank u so much for doing so many things here with me and for me =) u could so effortlessly make me feel like the most loved girl in the world! By the way, u did leave quite an impact since u came, heehee... some of my friends here miss u already. Imagine how much more I’m missing u!


Well, new sem of uni started. It’s week 7 now and I’ve been having so much fun writing like crazy! I do pray that my placement plans will work out fine. Sometimes in class I feel like I’m diving into a bowl of Caesar salad with some chunky meat in it. It’s because there are so many kinds of academics: vegies (the normal), croutons (the i-dont-really-give-a-damn ones), meat (the super hardworking). I’m neither. The scary part is that I do not walk into the bowl. I dived into it while we’re all being tossed together with odd sauces (assignments) and seasoning. Ok, maybe that wasn’t such a suitable metaphor... but yeah, my point is that I’m being tossed around with assorted talents and aptitudes.

Then I celebrated with some friends who graduated from psycho studies. Made me quite excited for mine..


Juwita Suwito came to Adelaide as part of her tours and OCF got her to perform during out Enite, which turned out great. I love her voice... I wanna sing like that too!!!!

Since I cant sing that well (yet... (I’ll keep trying)), I was approached to play bass for the Tristantos! I’m asked to be a temporary member of the band for Convy Fundraising Nite performance, but I was told that I could extend my contract after that if they like me. Hehehe.... its been great practicing for the 1st time with them, 5 hours straight of jamming till my fingers had blisters. Yeah!!! So felt like a rock chick. Hahaha... they’re all so talented! Yet, I don’t think I’m being misplaced... I’m there to show how good they are when people compare my playing with theirs. Heheh... I serve the band well.


Residents of Ashok Macho hosted a Merdeka celebration which made me feel so home sick after that. Oh well, at least I knew I had 30 or more friends who are with me at fighting this. They also had 4 other agendas that nite: 1. The wedding ceremony of Lingster and Gohstan (their pet ducks). 2. The funeral for Laka (their pet fish). 3. The welcoming of 2 new fishes (Laki and Luku) and 1 human being (Mindy). 4. The farewell of Kenny Boy (who won the best Mangkuk award). We had asam laksa and nasi lemak, with bubur chacha for dessert. We watched Petronas ads from youtube on the huge flat screen and it made me laugh and tear...

We sent Kenny Boy off and exchanged him with Jinnie Babe. Welcome back, Thambi!!!

I also attended countless birthday parties and get-togethers which I cant fit in as chocolate sprinkles for now. U’re probably tired of reading by now.

So I’ll stop.