A sad couple of weeks - Part 1

This couple of weeks has been an eventful, but sad kinda week. Due to the fact that various members of the lab will be heading back to their home country, I haven't been doing much work except hanging out with them and our group of frens. We went for another hotpot session at Emily's place (23rd Nov), and it's much more lively and enjoyable than the previous session - simply because there were more people and thus more fun! We played games like 'Mafia' throughout the night and till 7+ in the morning the next day - a testament of how much fun we had! And of cos, also a testament of how sleepy we eventually were! LOL.

A couple of days later on the 25th Nov, we hang out in the city again. Went to the resturant 'Ichiban Boshi' in the Victoria Gallerie that is beside the QVB. Hmm.. had their rice dishes (karrage cheese curry or something like that) - wasn't as impressive and delicious as I thought it to be. The Ichiban Boshi in Singapore is definitely much better - in terms of food, variety, services, value for money etc. But then again, I heard from the Emily that the Ichiban Boshi in Sydney is famous for its ramen dishes... so prolly I ordered the wrong food. But still, I will rather invest my money on Wagamama instead.

Anyway, after the late lunch we went over to QVB to collect our free Krispy Kreme doughnuts using our printed copies of the Krispy Kreme online voucher (that entitle us to 6 doughnuts per printed copy)! But, the shop ran out of the doughnuts and thus provided us with real Krispy Kreme coupons instead - a 'free six original glazed doughnuts', as well as a 'free six original glazed doughnuts with any purchase' per printed copy of the online voucher! Wow.. imagine getting a dozen doughnuts for next to nothing! But sadly, only 3 of us (including me) have the printed copies to exchange for the coupons. And apparently, Malcolm wanted the coupons so much ('cos he intends to buy a whole load of it back to Singapore) that he ran to a nearby internet cafe and print off like 13 copies of the online voucher? LOL... so in the end, each of us (a total of ~7-8 person) has a coupon each! LOL... talk about Kiasu Singaporeans! After feeling satisfied that we got our doughnut coupons we proceeded to the Opera House area, where the gals (Cat, Emily, Zhi Jun, ChuYing, Thiyvaa) and Malcolm went to see the Australian Idol pre-finale concert. Well, since there are not enough tix for both Weisheng and me, we decided to stick around at a nearby Starbucks till the fireworks at around 9pm? The fireworks were great... only complain - duration of the fireworks was too short!! LOL. Thereafter, went to have our dinner/supper in Chinatown...

Oh! do check out the piz at http://www.flickr.com/photos/tummybear! =)

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'I Believe You' by Low Kay Hwa

It's been really a long time since I read good and touching stories... and just today, I saw one that can literally make a person cry. Not me though, I'm a guy... lol.. so I'm more resistant to such stuffs, but still I find the it indeed is so well written that it has the ability to move hearts, and induce tears in our fairer species. Written by a well-known Singaporean, Low Kay Hwa, this coming-of-age story titled 'I Believe You' tells of two JC students - Joanna Fong and Jacky Wu where fate has decided to intertwine their lives to bring about hope and love, especially for the self-declared whatever-I-curse-will-come-true Joanna. It's a journey of self discovery, learning to trust, appreciating those around you, and many more for our 'heroine', which is the beauty of the book - it draws you into Joanna's life and as she go through her self discovery process, we the readers would seems to have discover our own self in the process as well. It seems, to me at least, that I am still not doing justice to Low Kay Hwa's 'I Believe You', and so I would strongly urge my readers to look at the trailer. Prolly someday, TCS will create a drama based on this?

"Joanna Fong is the envy of many girls: She studies at a top Junior College, has a girl-next-door look and has good results. However, deep on her heart, she holds a secret: She believes that she has a curse. She believes that every bad thing she said will come true.

Jacky Wu is an ideal price charming: He is good in his studies and has girls waiting to hold his hand. He smiles every few minutes and often cracks jokes. However, he, too, holds a deep secret.

When their paths crossed, an unexpected romantic love story takes place..."

In addition, the first 17 chapters of the story can be read on the official site at http://www.goodybooks.com/ibelieveyou.htm. But as one might have guessed, the last 3 chapters weren't placed online and one will have to buy the book at $9.80 to finish the whole story. Hmm.. I'm tempted to buy... but I have read most of the chapters.. but it's only $10.. and I like the story as well.. hmmm..

In addition to his 'I Believe You', another of his work titled 'Journey' seems to be pretty good too. I have yet to read the chapters that the author had posted online, but judging from the trailer, I think it's going to be a not-to-miss story. And it kinda remind me of my relationship with my mum too... ...

"When I was ten, my mother called me “ah girl” and I had always responded to her. When I was fifteen, my mother called me “ah girl” in front of my classmates and I scolded her. When I was twenty, my mother still called me “ah girl” aloud and I ignored her completely. I know that, from her point of view, no matter how old I am, I will always be the “ah girl” who calls her “mama”.

From my point of view, my mother is just an old woman in the house who lives with me. Her responsibilities are to make breakfast for me in the morning, give me money to spend in the day, do the laundry in the evening and switching off the lights at night. For all those things that she did, she will have the authority to scold me or ground me.

Until one day, she calls me and says, “Ah girl, I’ve got cancer. I may die within the next six months.”

That is when I realize that my mother is more than that."

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More Goong and KTV

Even though I've finished with 宫 for about a week or so, I'm still very much mesmerised by the show, and by the music as well. =) Oh well, I guess that's why the show is so popular and successful. Sadly, I read that there isn't going to be a continuation. Goong S isn't a continuation at all. And even if there really is a continuation come next year, I doubt that the cast will be the same. =( That is because Yoon Eun Hye, the lead female actress had some issues with the management company, and had left the company. Argh... why?? why?? It wouldn't be the same without the original cast! =(

Anyway, I had been slacking for the past few days.. lol.. maybe it's because that the progressive PhD seminar presentation is over, and thus I'm still on my relaxing mood - taking things slow and easy. Argh.. probably it's about time to switch gear. Aja fighting! And it's only 1 month, 3 weeks, and 3 more days till my dear come over to mark the start of the GREAT HOLIDAY! So, I must work hard now! aja aja fighting fighting!

Just last Tuesday, I did something for the first time in my life. I went to for Karaoke! Yeah... I'm a mountain tortoise alright.. lol.. 27 years of age, and never been to a KTV before till now. Oh well, I can't sing, and I can't bear to listen to my voice - so what for go to one? And my friends are mostly not the KTV type either. Couple with all the negative image about KTV being dodgy, being places where trouble brews, all the more I'm not going. But, since last Tuesday (13 Nov) was Cat's birthday, and both Emily and her were like asking to go, and so I relented. And so we went to this 'Big Echo' KTV somewhere near Telstra building besides Hyde Park, after our late lunch at Kura III somewhere near Chinatown. Kura is a Japanese restaurant... hmm.. the price is relatively ok, and the portion is big! After a bowl of Unagi and egg don, my tummy is truly satisfied!

And so the 8 of us (including me) went to the KTV with our tummy full. And the rest, especially Cat the birthday girl, was like happily singing away..lol... me? well... like I say, I couldn't stand hearing my own voice and so I didn't... just sat there listening to their singing, and humming along here and there etc... and probably singing to myself once a while..lol.. pathetic right? haha.. oh well, I know my limits, and I don't wanna embarrass my myself. And so, there I was slipping away the vodka... wrong choice! After 4 hours of vodka, I had to make my way to the toilet to puke! Hahaha.. terrible terrible. Luckily I still know what's going on to some degree, and feeling that the singing etc is really making me sick with the alcohol and such, I stayed in the toilet for almost 2 hours. LOL... puking occasionally! No choice, I don't wanna go back to the room half drunk, and disgrace myself. So, rest in the toilet cubicle for a couple of hours (luckily the cubicle was clean!), then went back to the room feeling much better. Hahaha... that certainly reminds me not to drink so much! Still, come to think of it, wat a disgrace! oh well, all in the name of fun. =)

Went on to sing a couple of songs together with the rest of the folks such as 朋友 etc. They kept on asking me to sing, and it wouldn't really be very nice to reject again and again. And furthermore, the rest are all singing together.. so effectively, they would drown my voice.. great. =)Don't ask me why I hate to hear my voice so much... I just don't know.. I'm not used to it I guess. Every time I hear it, I feel like laughing at myself, and the more I laugh, the more I think my voice is strange and weird, and the more I laugh after that... and so the cycle continues. =)

Finally, everything ends at 1am, and to make this a memorable event for Cat, we (or rather me) came up with an idea to 'sabo' her. We made her tell us 21 cat cartoon characters since it's her 21st bday, and because we know for sure she wouldn't be able to complete it! Wahahaha...(evil laughter). So her forfeit is to act like a lesbian and approach a girl for her phone number! LOL... Evil right?! haha... and she is also quite sporting to accept her forfeit as well. And so, we singled out a Asian girl walking alone on the street (ard 1am already) and asked her to complete her task. Haha.. according to what Cat told us, the girl was quite shock when Cat complimented her, and asking for her number! LOL... who wouldn't, especially if it's from the same gender!? And the 'victim' kept on saying no to Cat's request...lol.. poor girl.. I think the girl will have some kinda trauma rather than Cat.. hahaha.. oh well.. poor girl....

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Imagine driving around, touring Europe with my darling, and stopping wherever and whenever we want along the way – to admire sceneries etc… Driving by car around EU nations would of course require a valid license, which I don’t. =( And sometimes it can really get very confusing as well – due to the left and right-handed rule in different countries.

Anyway, some of the cities that I would love to visit and stay for a few days would include London, Paris, Berlin, and Rome etc. In terms of accommodation, I guess I would be looking up hotels in London, hotels in Paris, hotels in Berlin from cheaperthanhotels.co.uk, as they provide relatively cheap hotel rates for cities in the EU and UK.

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宫 and Maya dinner

Finally finished watch Goong, Princess hours. It's a very nice show, romantic comedy kinda show, and of cos with some bad people plotting against the good guys etc... But then, I think one obvious take home message from watching the show is, there is no absolute good or bad. It is all a matter of perspective. For instance, Hyorin may be perceived as being bad, and coming in between Shin and Chae Kyung, but then, it was Chae Kyung who came in between Shin and Hyorin to be crowned as the crown princess, although somewhat a result of fate... wow.. bottom line, it's all about perspective. But other than being so philosophical, 宫is really a nice show to watch... lotsa funny moments, tears, and moments where you curse and swear like nobody business, and moments where you feel for the characters. On top of the creative storyline of marrying a monarchy constitution to a democratic society like Korea, it explores how a 'Cinderella' might react in such situation as well... definitely not like the bedtime story it ends off with just a phrase 'and they live happily ever after'. It is the events after such Cinderella-based wedding that make it more realistic, and exciting. =)

Anyway, just a bit of a brief update about me for the past couple of days, 8th Nov 07 was Deepavali. And so together with Cat, Emily, Chu Ying, and Thivyaa, we went to this Indian Restaurant in Surry Hills, named Maya. Well, to be exact it's Maya Da Dhaba, as they are apparent two Maya in the same area. In fact, the two Mayas are somewhat opposite each other on the same street. Maya Da Dhaba, as the name stated in the receipt, is a somewhat middle-high class style of Indian restaurant. While the other, Maya Tandoori, serves somewhat more of a street side affair kind of food, and is not a true restaurant per se. Anyway, got quite a shock after ordering the dishes.. Each dishes cost about $13 on average, but the portion is super duper small... just nice for the five of us to have a piece of the meat/veg each! Argh... for me, it was only after eating the onion kulcha (which is absolutely delicious), that I began to fill full! argh.. At the end of the dinner, we were given a cup of port wine, on the house... and port wine is superbly nice! Naturally sweet kind of red wine. Simply love it. Click here to see the pictures!

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10 simple questions

Well... been a hella long time since I last do any tags at all. Was tagged by http://jangbokjae.blogspot.comon this..

1. a movie that made you laugh
eh... Can't remember liao.. oh I know.. Mr. Bean!

2. a book that made you cry
None - I don't cry over books

3. a best friend
hmmm... not really best fren.. but a true fren.

4. a favorite childhood memory
Hmm... Selling jigsaw puzzles with a group of other kids when I was like 5-6?

5. your favorite animal
Dinosaur?

6. your favorite food
Lotsa and lotsa.. especially now I'm in Oz, and can't eat any Sg food!

7. an item of clothing you can't do without
eh... we definitely need to wear clothes one mah isn't it?

8. something you collect
Australian fifty cents coins

9. your favorite store to shop in
eh... none.. i don't really shop

10. your favorite flower
eh... whatever is nice to my eyes..

Nah.. don't think I'll tag anyone.. =) if you feel like it.. just do it!

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The battle is over!

Yup! Finally, after weeks of preparation, it all boils down to 30minutes of presentation, and 2 questions form the floor. And that's it! It's over! Yesh.. yeah!! I'm so super duper freaking happy!! It will be another year away before I need to do this sucky progressive PhD seminar presentation again.. oh well, I will worry when then time comes. But right now, I'll need to settle the Annual Review form, and pass it to my boss and the review panels soon... but hey, the worst is over! Yeah.. I'm literally on estacsy down here! But, here I am, being caged in this room rather than going out to have some fun... oh well... but heck... my real fun will begin in 2 months time! Meanwhile, I have to 'add oil'. Aja Aja fighting!!

And lately, I have been nuts about Facebook as well. Yup, as usual, I'm always a step slower than the rest of the population, and have FINALLY joined Facebook. So, do add me into your friends as well if you have facebook! Besides the Facebook craze, am busy watching Goong, Princess hours too! Yeah! Am hot on Korean dramas nowadays. Heard that there is this new series in Singapore, the Goong S - but heard from Emily that it wasn't as nice. Oh well, the first of the series is always the best. On top of this, I've actually been thinking of learning korean as well in the upcoming semester. BUT, it will not sponsored under my scholarship.. argh.. so if I wanna learn it, I will need to sign up for that module and pay like AUD$2000+ for a semester's worth of learning?! Worst still, I would still need to sit for tests etc... Pay money to let myself suffer.. argh.. and I don't think there is a cert or something at the end of the day? Problem just a grade in my transcript? Oh well... I wonder if I can just sit in... but such language class is also so small in numbers... If it's a big class, I can always sit in un-noticed, but in a small class.... oh well... suggestions??

Progressive PhD Seminar Presentation tomorrow!!

Argh.. help!! My Progressive PhD seminar Presentation is tomorrow (7th Nov) morning! argh... am starting to feel super nervous now... and somehow my slides are always somehow lacking in one way or the other.. and my presentation is always not fluent... even though I had practiced and practiced... I had like 34 slides, and I'm required to present a 30minutes presentation.. and my practiced session takes me 35 minutes... and I was already rushing like mad and it still took me 35minutes to finish everything. In this 35minutes of rushing madness, I simply have no time to pause much... and even if I can't really remember what to say etc, I have to keep talking and talking through it.. argh....

And the worst thing is... I have alot of stuffs .. and all of which are quite important I would say to present! So, to cut down on the slides wouldn't be good... argh.. argh....

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It’s already November, and Halloween has just past, and soon to be follow by Thanksgiving and Christmas! It’s truly a season to be jolly, and enjoyment! And it’s also a season of presents! Now what present would be a good one? Hmm… the fact that I can get great Travelocity deals from Coupon Chief, a well deserved holiday with my dear with Travelocity will be a good idea, especially after slogging for a year in a far away land alone! And now since everyone of use has a present, how can we left out the cute little doggy in the house? Haha.. to get this dog a present is simple enough – just get her some food from PetSmart since she loves to eat! Furthermore, PetSmart coupons are available from CouponChief.com as well. Thanks to online coupons this sure is going to be a joyful season for all!

Feeling Emo...

As the title goes, m feeling kinda emo right now, or rather the past couple of hours. I think part of the reason was that I had a pretty enjoyable time yesterday over at a friend's place to have steamboat celebration to round off her honors year. It's like those feeling that I always get after a chalet. In the chalet, friends get to chit chat, enjoy each other's company. And when everything ends, which they eventually will, suddenly everything seems so blue, so grey, so alone...

And another reason why I'm feeling that is probably the fact that I'm going to see lotsa people/frens/clicks around me leaving one by one. That's the downside of a 3-4 years PhD I guess. The honors student, or rather should be classified as ex-honors student now, starts her honors pretty much the same period as I started my PhD. And now, she has completed her honors and leaving the lab real soon. And there I am, and will be, seeing batches and batches of students coming and leaving... argh... Facts of life...

Coupled with the fact that I'm now listening to FM93.3 in the middle of the night, listening to all those emo songs, making me even more emo...

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Rise Ozzie dollar, rise!

To buy or not to buy... hmm.. should I wait longer?? The rising boom in Australian dollar has been a headache for some, but for me, it's kinda good news! I've been wanting to buy the flight tickets from SIA for my Sg to Syd round trip for late Feb next year, and will be paying the tix in AUD$ when I'm ready to purchase it. And with the strengthening of the Ozzie dollar against Singapore dollar, this only means one thing - I'll be paying less in terms of Ozzie dollar for a round-trip tix, that is of course, provided that the ozzie dollar keeps on going up! That is what begs the question - to buy or not to buy. Should I buy the air tix now for AUD$1156.85, or wait, hoping that it will drop below the AUD$1100 level? Rise ozzie dollar, rise!

Hmm... I had been doing a little bit of trival on my own about the exchange rates of ozzie dollar to Singapore dollar, 'cos I will TT money back to Singapore once a while. The exchange rate used to be AUD$1 to SGD$1.2424 back in 29th May 07, as based on DBS rate. And as of now, the rate has rose to AUD$ to SGD$1.3331!A whooping 10 cents increase in 5 months' period! Therefore, for every AUD$1000 being exchanged, I would earn SGD$100 more as compared to exchanging the same amount in May! Wow! Come on Ozzie dollar! Rise! Go ozzie dollar!

Speaking about SIA, SIA has rather cunningly silent about their increase in the air tix cost of the Singapore to Sydney route, ever since they got their world first A380 to fly the Singapore to Sydney route! It used to cost me approximately SGD$1320 for a round trip to Sydney from Singapore about 9 months back, but now it's going to an additional SGD$227! Well, I guess it would be somewhat justifiable if one is taking the world first A380. However, it seems that all the flight rate from Singapore to Sydney has increased, regardless of wheather you are taking Airbus A380 or the Boeing 747! Argh... Why do I have to pay additional when I'm not even taking a A380!?? This is absurb! Oh well, nothing much I can do... just gotta make my money worthwhile and book the A380 flight!

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6 more days to power pointing day!

6 more days to the big day... my progressive PhD seminar on the 7th Nov! Argh.... ever since the practice run on the 25th Oct, I haven't really been touching my slides and practicing... starting to feel like heat and nervousness once again... which might be good. 'Motivate' me start amending my slides and practicing again! Wanted to do it over the weekend, but it looks as though I might need to come in over the weekend to do some lab work. Argh.. I guess I will just take Monday and Tuesday off to stay at home to work through the slides, and Wednesday is either make or break day for me... nervous nervous nervous...

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