-insert entry-

its coming into week 5 of school, and i'm starting to feel the heat
school itself isnt as tough as previous semesters, but working towards a cap5.0 this semester so as to graduate with second upper honors is definitely not easy at all.
the thought of summer school... ugh, lets not go there. but thats a must, for sure.
it definitely is a strange feeling considering most of my econ major peers are stepping out into the workforce at the end of this term; but ohwell it is an investment that hopefully i'll appreciate in the near future.

-

past weekend of CNY visitation, golf class, and dinner @ jurong hill was definitely worth remembering.
on sunday we went to zhenjie's for visitation, and...(as all recent house parties would go) play Wii.


here's everybody with some crashers


and here's my cell group

on saturday, mac and i gave our go at golf. wasnt my first, but i still sucked at it as if it were my first.

75, 100, 50 respectively. SIGH

then mac and i joined my parents and abel's & ernest's parents for a midnight karaoke session at orchid country club. OLDIES UNITE.


and on friday, dinner @ jurong bird park. i've never been into the park, but the restaurant on jurong hill was awesome


TEPPANYAKI. yums


the end.

win some, lose some

as a year 3 junior, i fully expected this semester to be disgustingly brimmed with work, suffocated by mountains of unfinished yet due assignments, and incessant readings to pore over.
instead, i find myself with ample time to go over to mac's for a visit today, and then to great world city for a movie ('the reader') with supper in the evening
granted i have mondays free (as do mac), but i have already finished reading up on the relevant textbook chapters for all my classes, as with the due tutorial assignments.

i am very slightly worried about it, because it may mean next sem's gonna be a culture shock
but at the same time, it gives me alot more time to pursue my interests and commit more with NUS Resonance, and also allowed me the opportunity to take part in a few organizing committees for a couple of student events this semester, which may prove to be slightly challenging, but a new experience nonetheless.

anyway, some pictures from the cny week (:


the CITADEL group @ Reso cny party - i rly love that game



then to zouk to support melvin @ SMU Bondue Pageant/Bash

and then some pictures from CNY day #1 - churchy boys and churchy girls



and family


and homies

this month looks real good (:

i had my first philosophy tutorial class today at 9AM, and i was 20min early for class
i drove along the stretch of clementi road to school at 830AM, vigorously weaving in between cars thinking i was running late, fervently praying that traffic would not negate my wish to make a good first impression in class
but it was only at one of the stoplights nearest to NUS that i realized i had reached school in less than 10min, a feat that would have been nearly impossible just last year
for anyone unfortunate enough to require the perusal of clementi road in the peak hour mornings to work/school, they would know that traffic there is BRUTAL - it simply does not move; always had for the past 10,000 years.

WHAT happened to all those cars with incessant honking and drivers cursing below their breaths?!

dont get me wrong, i am delightfully relieved that the traffic has somehow evaporated.
but at the same time, the severity of this economic downturn finally struck me hard.
i read it in the newspapers (be it in Singapore or the USA) a lot - about retrenchment, the slowing of GDP growths, the worrisome fall of major financial banks, etc, but i havent really felt the impact of such, being sheltered within my safety bubble of ongoing tertiary education and a family that shields me from the rippling effects of recession
there have been talks of job credit schemes being able to alleviate the crisis, but perhaps Singapore has not been spared from the global job loss trend as our leaders claim.

i cant do anything about the situation; i dont think any single individual can.
but it definitely makes me feel more appreciative and thankful of what i have
i probably cant understand fully the worries and problems of a retrenched, but i will definitely pray - for faith, love and motivation.

on looking back

mac said something that rang my nostalgic bell this afternoon
and as it follows, i went to my blog, and re-read entries dating back to 2005, and remembered why it is that i still have this blog in the first place
this portal encompasses the bits and pieces in my life - things i'd like to remember, for good or bad, so i can look back and witness my own growth and changes within myself
its like a scatterplot of points in my life; one that i can finally plot a line through to see the ups and downs, and unveil the journey that i have taken
i write today, so that one day i can return to this exact page, and be in the moment that i am now, remember the thoughts that i held, and relive this time.
i write today, so that i may give thanks and be appreciative of what i have or had
i write today, because i want memories to last forever

-

on writing, i've completed a 13-page research paper on the evolution of prehistoric art ytd
its a paper written for my UCLA anthro class, for the credits that i've yet to attain
although it wasnt easy writing this paper (esp since i left my textbook back in UCLA), it was prolly one of the most enjoyable, and best paper i've written
the topic was engaging and interesting; i actually felt like i was learning while writing that paper

on school, i actually have a 3.5 day week this semester
its pretty amazing, the turn of events
i screwed up my CORS bidding because of garmisch's lack of internet in germany, but i ended up with one of the best term schedules i've ever gotten in my entire NUS education
God does have a way of working things out in the least expected manner or time

i am twenty-two

it's my birthday again today - it seems like ytd that i had my 21st birthday celebration
there's so much to be thankful this year; for the things that have passed, and the things to come.
2008 was a blast; so many new experiences, new friendships, and new journeys
even the end was a culmination of the new and interesting - i set off fireworks for the first time in my life in germany! that was exciting
and 2009 was kickstarted with ski thrills and family bonding, elements i hope will last through this year and more (:

this birthday has been really simply - plans were made, but plans were foiled
by sickness, by some miscalculations.. but in the end, the time spent was well worth it, and also alot more meaningful (:
i came back to singapore, and to my life, feeling rather apprehensive of how things were going to be like
it felt like i forgot how it was to have a life here, after i've delicately built up the life overseas
but i realized, esp today, that i've worried for nothing, because amidst all the changes and times, everything back home has been the same old, same old
and i'm so thankful for that.

i return back to school @ NUS tmr, its the end of the honeymoon 8 months
it's sad to say goodbye to something so precious and wonderful, but i know my journey there has ended, and now i tread onto a new one that will be filled with its own adventures and lessons to be learnt

onward, onward

acclimatization

i've been back in singapore for 2 days; barely unpacked, but im packing again for our family trip to europe tmr. i'm still rly jetlagged, living on US time - it might make the transition to europe time a little easier.

it's great to be home; being surrounded by familiar faces, sights & sounds once again. there were major adjustments made, and to be made - most obvious of them all is the driving. i almost drove into the wrong lane, and have to concentrate alot harder now to drive on the right side of the road. no more tipping in restaurants is a huge relief, but the humid (suffocating) weather isnt.

in the 2 days i've been home, i managed to meet up with brandon for tea@dempsey and gelare@greenwood today - same person different country. twas nice catching up with a brother whom i've become really close to, and spent the last 4 months almost togehter with every single day. sigh, i do miss ucla so. i also managed to squeeze in a trip to marina barrage with abel, lide, melody & mac for an evening picnic. really pretty place (:

christmas 2008 was pretty low-key and simple. the standard christmas lunch @ aunt susan's with the entire extended family, and then christmas dinner at pz's place with their extended family.

ok jetlagging, sleepy, gdnight

holding on and never letting go

im sitting at the penthouse (yay 9th floor) study lounge studying for my last final tmr. i honestly cant wait to be done with my exams wholeheartedly, but at the same time its a bittersweet feeling; a whole rush of mixed emotions that i feel, knowing at the end of finals tmr it'll be officially the end of my exchange here; yet another closed chapter of my life that i hold longingly dear to me and dont want to let go.

i think it's actually harder getting TO the part where we leave; because right now, at this moment, surrounded by all these beautiful people whom i've come to call my family; these beautiful buildings that house so many memories of laughter, enjoyment, companionship and utmost comfort; knowing i have to leave all these behind me as i check out for good; it's just really hard. so hard.

maybe tmr, when i actually do leave, it'll just become yet another wonderful dream that i can always look back and smile on; another few pages of my life that i can turn to whenever im feeling sad, and be cheered by the memories of what was good. maybe then, it wouldnt be so hard.

green-eyed girl

i always have stuff on at the most untimely of times.
while i was slouched over, running accounting numbers thru my sleepy head this evening, my roommate cara was out at Brad Pitt's movie premiere @ westwood (just fricking 5 min walk from ucla) - the curious case of benjamin button
and she's got pictuers to prove it






i havent been particularly bothered about all the movie premieres in westwood
cuz there hasnt been any celebrity i really wanted to see specifically
(other than the couple that went adoption crazy)

jennifer aniston & owen wilson are coming this thurs to westwood for their premiere of "marley and me" - i have to go for thattt (:

back at riverside dr

it's been a rly exciting journey in US thus far, and it rly stinks that i only have 2 more weeks of school @ ucla left before this all becomes part of my memories.
there's so much i'm going to miss over here, yet at the same time i'm also missing home and the people i've left behind - it's kinda conflicting, those two. if only i could bring home to here, or bring here to home.

anyhow, i'm back at aunt jeanne's again, this time for thanksgiving - my first ever.
deb's parents picked all of us up from school today to go to her hometown, arcadia; where deb and i chilled and drove around for our haircuts, boba loca, and grocery shopping @ ranch 99 (asian market!)

this was from last weekend, when sharon came to visit deb! (:
we drove around santa monica & rodeo drive, and chilled @ chris' room to watch "the fountain" (which is a rly gd show omg hugh jackman awesome)


@ santa monica

i did las vegas the weekend before that too with candice, natalie and maryanne, an impromptu trip that began with a midnight text msg about getting a free suite @ vegas, which unraveled into immediate car rental, packing, and then leaving the next day (wed), conveniently ditching whatever classes we had for the rest of the week


but i can safely say, it was all worth it. it was a trip of many firsts, both goods and bads, but an experience nonetheless



in other news, i finally met up with isabel & iris too!

we hit up a bar that isabel wanted to check out @ santa monica, and although i havent seen them in YEARS it certainly didnt feel like the time gap had done any damage.

ok my shows are starting, so random pictures to end off this post


banana phone

guess whose hairy feeet

updates

i just cleared my accounting midterm today, and it was relatively easy as compared to the horror i was expecting, considering i have been to probably 50% of the classes, and actually paid attention in less than 50% of the time i was in class.
however, this had entailed 4-am nights at rieber study lounge, late night supper & coffee at bruin cafe, the discovery of crazy antics of sleep-deprived people and how easily people get distracted, esp by the evil monopolization of time by facebook.
found - GUILTY.

but ytd was nice. it was our usual study group again, minus miles, who was gyming with the gym-buff boys. the people whom i've grown to become veryvery(very) fond of; they are my family here. other than doing retarded things like handstands, pilates @ 3am, howling at the top of our lungs to disney/retro songs when the lounge finally vacates, and dancing to boogie music, we are pretty normal people; just your average joes (: our december roadtrip together is going to be fanta-frickin-tastic; i kno it.

other than the people, there are alotta other things that i love about this place.
many of which, is HALLOWEEN!


altho i had a human-evolution midterm on halloween morning, which extinguished any pre-halloween parties for me, i did sit next to darth vader during my midterm.
i, on the other hand, was a.... WITCH

this is the best full body shot of my costume i could find; sadly it didn't occur to me to take a full body costume shot till the day after the day after halloween.

halloween is, however, a really fun experience for me - everyone was dressed up in their own thing, getting into character, and just partying like there was no tmr.





after some liquid courage


deborah and i @ audrey's party, after we party-hopped by the frat rows; which were relatively disappointing because they didnt let any of the guys with us get into the parties, and there were just too many drunken people barfing by the sidewalk (and sometimes within the houses) for any of us to be appealed.

i recently went for InterVarsity's FallConference @ Catalina island as well; somewhere close to long beach apparently
it was just an hour+ of ferry ride from the hustle and bustle of city life, but yet it made all the difference - the island was quiet, quaint, and very picturesque


we had worship & talks each day, and small group time where we shared and prayed for one another by the sea, and studied the bible amidst God's wonderful creations
there were free time, where we could do almost anything we wanted (snorkeling, kayaking, hiking) for free; the entire island was booked for our conference (:
most of us picked up kayaking, and besides the beautiful waters and crazy splash-fights we had, we were delighted by families of seals that swam close to shore and surfaced every now and then with their tiny little whiskered noses next to our kayaks; OH-SO-CUTE!



we also had a bonfire going on each night by the sea, as people gathered to chill with hot cocoa or tea provided by the crew on island. "bed" was bunk beds within wooden cabins, and although we had to navigate our way everywhere with flashlights (there wasnt any electricity other than a few places like the bathrooms), the lack of phones, internet and any sort of modern communication really bonded the group together, as we resorted to late-night hiking up the trail (to this cliff that overlooked the sea), midnight mafia games, and just company-fun. really refreshing.

lastly, to end off this insanely unintentionally long post, tonight's the official faceoff between obama and mccain finally. everyone's really hyped up bout voting; the weeks leading up to today have been filled with americans trying to register their fellow citizens to vote, and to get them to take a stand in tonight's elections. exciting!