I know you can't have everything you want...

But is having my own bed so much to ask!??? D:

I want my own bed!! *cries like a baby*

Ta'ra!

I Am Not Pathetic, Really

I just saw my duty roster for the month of December...and it will be HEEELLLLLL!!!!



Well, it won't be if you're used to working five days straight a week. I'm still on a college student schedule you see...



Basically I work five days straight then I get 2 days off. But this isn't some damn office job. I'll be mentally unstable by the time I get to the fifth day, just you wait and see!



Anyway. I wanna talk about last night. Again, I worked a double shift. It originally was a 'special request', but it really was an executive order in disguise. I could have refused, saying I had plans, but I didn't. Mainly because I'm greedy. But really, I'm not complaining, because there are other people who got more crap than me, but I have never seen other part-timers in other units (or even ours) pulling that kind of extended shift like me! Yet knowing I have the extra time to do wrapping, I rushed through like a madwoman on steroids and still I got told I didn't do good enough!

RAWR!!

My spirits that were soaring high up in the sky plummeted down to the ground then crashed and burned into a million pieces - all in a matter of a fracture of a second! After being told that, the smile froze on my face and I cried inside. Have you ever cried inside before? Let me tell you it's not easy! Certainly wasn't pleasant either! You felt useless, pathetic and hollow inside yet you still have to pretend like you've done an amazing feat and still trying to brush it off as nothing big.

It was so hard.

So hard when your worth is measured in trolleys.

So hard that I had to take my time to reflect afterwards. Instead of taking the taxi, I waited for the bus simply because I needed that waiting time to reflect on what just happened and come to terms with it. To convince myself that despite it all, yes, despite it all, it only serves to confirm what an awesome person I am.

I have stamped my foot down before, and I will do it again. I want to be here. I'm here on a mission, and nothing on this Earth can stop me from completing my unholy mission! Ever.

Jiggly puff can try and jiggle her fat all over me for all I care, but you're the one without a life outside of Kino, while I will have a much better life once I leave Kino.

And besides, it's stupid to let idiots like her to stop you from achieving your dream. Can you imagine one day when your grandchildren ask you why didn't you do what you want to do and your answer is "because an idiot colleague stood in my way and I got tired of it"?

How pathetic is that?

I hate feeling pathetic. I hate feeling it, even just for a moment. Thus I shall not resign the rest of my life to feeling pathetic. Shall I fail in that endeavor and still feel pathetic, I'll make other people feel pathetic with me.

Let's hope it never gets to that.

Ta'ra!

A Quick One

In the middle of an instant noodle lunch!

I've had two outings with people from work so far. Such outings are always fun and the people you go with are quite random because all of us have only two days off a week. While part-timers can request beforehand which days they can and can't work, full-timers are left to the mercy of their unit chief. Both were movie outings.

It's fun because you get to talk about things you can't at work. All those power plays and social clans are best avoided and just hang out with neutral people. Either way is fun for me, because I like taking advantage of any situation I'm in. OOooh that's so bad XD. But it's better than being drawn into other people's battles. I'd rather be in my own and content to stay there until my opponent is eradicated! Hahaha!

Anyway. Three movies yesterday. Ninja Assassin at Times Square and then came home and watched Kung Fu Panda and Madagascar 2. Luckily for me I have the afternoon shift today. Those two have the morning shift today hehehe.

Overall, I have a clearer picture of the situation on why this and that are the way they are. It's not called being nosey. It's called getting your bearings. I'm relieved that other people share the same opinion as me on certain people an situation, which means that I was not being paranoid all along! I was simply being too nice.

Me? Nice!?

I need to get to work. Ta'ra!

p/s Redz, I work at Kinokuniya.

xD

I'm in the middle of ironing my uniform. Again, I seriously cannot see myself doing this full-time in these hand-me-downs. But I needed the experience.

Anyway, yesterday I finally banked in my cheque. It was so ridiculously simple I wondered why the girl at the counter didn't laugh at me. It will only be cleared after next Wednesday after 4 pm. That's fine since I'm not in need of the money right now.

Though I do have some important purchases to make soon! The X'mas promotion has started! Wheee!

Time for work! Ta'ra!

Flying Off My Feet

I've been flying off my feet the past week. I do enjoy this increase in my personal efficiency, but I suppose I can't help resent the fact that while I was speeding up, some people were slowing down. One even thought himself too senior and important to be doing what I was doing! Seriously! Years of service doesn't change the fact that our positions are the same.

And I hate the way you walk. Real men do not walk like that!

Ahem. Anyway. I love my job, really. I can't help it when there are seniors who are not happy that I was getting too familiar. Well too bad! I have dreams. I'm here because I have dreams. And by the time I finish this job I'll leave with a lot more than you ever will! So I'm stamping my foot down and you can just eat fart because I'm not going anywhere! Yet.

Also, panicking students make good customers. I'm earning almost two weeks of salary in the last 24 hours.

Ta'ra!

Payday!

Yay! I finally get my FIRST EVER PAYCHECK! It's not much, by all means. But it was from my own hard work, so I'm happy!

Then I blew it off on a pair of blouses!

Nah, just kidding! These were taken in the fitting room at IOI Mall. We took a few blouses and tired them on for fun hehehehe. Bought nothing. My check is still in tact hehehe.

Oohhh I'm gonna be rich. Amin.

Ta'ra!

Funny Encounters

I'm entering my fourth week as an employee of a certain Japanese bookstore and already the funny events are piling up. So far I've had one person reccomending me a book, which was totally fun because she dragged me across the store and pulled out the book from the shelf and told me to read it. As I was scrutinizing the book, deeply amused, she disappeared into the deep end of the business section looking for a Japanese audiobook. I quickly put back the book and led her to the language section and pointed out the Japanese audiobooks. She said she was interested in learning the language and sighed at the high price tag of the audiobook. I told her a phrase book was cheaper, but she wanted to hear pronounciations.

So I suggested a teacher instead.

We started talking about language schools and I told her about the one in KL Plaza. Apparently she's heard about it, but she was leaning more towards the audiobook (if you ask me, she just wanted to buy something which was totally understandable XD). Afterwards I left her to occupy herself with the audiobooks and those four books already in her hands. She had approached the counter in the first place asking for a calculator to calculate how much her purchase would be, and of course, sighed at the high totals too. xD xD I told her they were totally worth the purchase (she did ask me about it!) or she could buy half today and half tomorrow hehehehe. Needlesstosay, I was quite unhelpful in that respect. xD Even going as far as saying she'll be having sleepless night if she doesnt buy them.

Just the other night another woman was looking at two books by the same author. One was from the 90s while the other is recent. She acted like I was doing her a favor (which was nice!) by unsealing the books for her (which was really part of my job) and was justifying each books to me in detail. She gave me a lecture on soy. Yes, soy! As in soya bean. I told her it's fine if she decides not to get either one of them. It wasn't as if I was pitching the books to her in the first place. She was so repentant when she had to return the books to the counter it was so funny!

Just today, this caucasian old man was looking through the Tin Tin comic books and was asking if I could unwrap one of them. I told him of course, but it has to be viewed at the counter. Apparently he's a regular of the Tin Tin series and understood the protocol well. He browsed through and immediately put it down. He wanted it in color. The book was still black and white. After that he started explaining why he wanted to see inside, because he heard about the publishers planning to reprint the book in color. Then he started telling me how he's a regular of the Tin Tin comics in the store and about several banned series in the country. He even talked about this Indian woman who married a caucasian who apparently wrote something of note and he invited her to have a talk at UM. He's a lecturer there. Man. I wish I had a lecturer like that!

Also, another interesting pattern: 3 caucasian women so far have asked me where to find so-and-so books whose shelves are right behind them. I had to grin while they howled at their own silliness. Ah yes, this is exactly why I love my job. xD

Ta'ra!

Sorting Strays and Other Things

Strays: Trolleys filled with books that were previously on the shelf, but were unwrapped due to customers' requests.

Don't pretend you don't know what they are >_>. They are those pile of books you ask to peek inside only to end up purchasing just one or none at all. Those books fill up at least one trolley per day. It's normal to end up with at least one and a half trolleys of them in a day. Those books can't go back on the shelf naked. They need to be shrink-wrapped again before displaying. And who's the poor bastard who has to slave away wrapping them??? ME of course!

Next time you want to ask for books to be unwrapped, think about poor lil ol me...

Hijacking: to take over an unmanned wrapping machine whose current user is away usually temporarily.

I'm not always not guilty of this, but most of the time I find myself on the receiving end. I'll be away to the toilet or the surau (which would take longer) and when I come back someone else would be have already pushed my trolley aside and park theirs in its place, slaving away on my machine. It's not like they have the decency ti go away after that. Placing my apron with my nametag on the trolley was not enough. Once I even purposely left a pile of books on the machine to keep away invaders - and they still came! Unsurprisingly it's those folks over at CBD (Chinese Books Dept) who often hijack me. Pfftt.

CBD: Hijackers.

EBD: Hard workers.

xD

EBD Unit 3: People whose lives are expected to shorten by 50%

We got a new part-timer last week which means I'm no longer the newest person around, which is awesome xD. Dramatically I see our workload decrease. Full-timers now concentrate on manning the counter while displaying are mostly left to part-timers. Yes, we are being classified like that. Full-timers handle all the administrative stuff while part-timers become their hands and legs.

Being someone else's hands and legs is tiring work...but I would rather this physical pain than mental ones heh.

When I started work I was prepared to work with people of varying ages. I was surprised though that most of the floor staffs turned out pretty young. Must be that age limit thing as a condition of employment.

I made friends xD.

Ta'ra!

It finally Happened

Believe it.

I just finished my first week and it was TAXING! The retail industry is full of repeatitive work that needs to be done all day every day. No wonder part timers are in high demand. Who ever said getting a job here is hard??

I drove all the way to Shah Alam to get someone to teach me how to do a resume. Emailed it. Got a call the next day and was called up for an interview the next week. I called on Wednesday and they said they were still considering where to place me. Called me back the next day and by Friday I was trying out uniforms for size. I was already clocking in by Monday morning. I wasn't alone though. There was another newbie at the customer service counter.

So far I learned about book returns, shelf packing, wrapping and displaying. I am placed in the English Books Department; the biggest department (just look at our water bottles shelf space). EBD is divided into four more units. I'm in unit 3; again, the biggest. Size is determined by the amount of floor space and genres that fall under our unit.

Now, I enjoy being out in the store displaying books and such, but if I am in a section that I havent been briefed about, I get nervous when customers ask me about where to find this book or that book. I am even more nervous when I wandered into areas that fall under other units. I have no clue at all! On the contrary, I've been spending two days in the logistics section, wrapping trolleys-load of books. While it's not as dynamic as being outside, and you have to stand all day, inhaling burnt plastic fumes, at least you can talk to anyone else doing logistics about random topics.

Like today.

There were two other part-timers doing logistics. And apparently we're all gamers! What coincidence! This is actually a very rare occasion. Working in a bookstore, not everyone likes reading books. But since most full-timers have resigned themselves to the fate, they are usually not as playful as part-timers who are rarely specialised in a certain field of the job. So we talked. From books to movies, to histories, to games. A lot of people get bored of these subjects quickly so when you found two other people who have the same interests as you, you can't help but run with it.

I wore a mask today so the fumes didnt get to me as badly as yesterday. So, inside doing logistics or outside on the sales floor, they are both not bad.

I don't know what it is about seniors and superiors. They obviously need you to do the grunt work, but they won't admit that your job is just as important as theirs. Imagine if there were no part timers picking up the slack. Those logistics staff are not sufficient to handle all those wrapping. I'm not asking to be appreciated. Our unit chief and assistants were already too grateful that I did this and that as if I was doing them a favor (I'm paid by the hour after all). But it does get tiring and once in a while you do need a five minutes break. It doesn't mean that you're slacking off. It just means that you're being human. ....Especially at the break-neck pace they were demanding of you.

Still. I would rather this physical exhaustion than the mental and emotional exhaustion of management.

That said, I got my standard issue penknife last Tuesday. Anybody up for an unwrapping? ^_^

Ta'ra!

I should Blog. Or Something.

It has been a pretty fruitful raya harvest. the harvest started even before raya where I got comissioned to add my beads to someone's bracelet. XD I've never done it before so I charged for half a bracelet. She found it ok too hehehehe.

I thought we had a lot of cotton prepared for our raya debut, but we udnerestimated the crowd a little. Before the seven days were even over, almost half of them were either sold or reserved. And yes, the depletion was pretty obvious towards the end. >_> We need to get some more, but there wouldn't be any more new stock until the end of the year. Until then though...hehehehehe.

Quite unexpectedly, I got more bracelet orders than earrings. Of course, due to my own lack of promotion. Anyway, I got a decent amount of orders during the raya holidays. Which in turn allowed me to buy more chains. I even got a new type of chain with big rings. Perfect for charm bracelets. But perhaps again, due to my own lack of promotion, the original chain is still more popular. However, I get 4 free bells attached to the chains when I bought them, so that means I dont have to charge more for bells anymore, which used to cost me 4 ringgit a piece. Uurgh.

I think I have enough chain to last me till I can next go back to Kuching. If not then I'm gonna have to send for some.

A shoutout to all my highschool friends: PLEASE RETRIEVE YOUR CAMBRIDGE CERTIFICATE FROM SCHOOL. Thank you.

I'll have more to say later, with pics. Ta'ra!

Final Fantasy XII: I finished it

Hello. I finished FFXII last night after 6 hours of consecutive playthrough. 4 hours in Pharos, 1 hour for cutscenes, and 1 hour for the cutscenes+final bos battles.

Here I shall discuss my verdict.

The Pharos: the final dungeon.
I hate (x5) HATE this place! Rawr! All the levels and all the puzzles! I'll let you know I'm not big on Final Fantasy puzzles. You really have to explore everything to figure out the puzzles. Me? I referred to online guides to pass this. And who cares if it 'takes the fun out' of the game! I'm already overkilling the bosses at this final dungeon.

I think like FFX-2 the storyline comprises of only 45% of the game. I clocked in over 130 hours because I completed the hunts after each storyline events. Before I went to Pharos I completed all hunts except for Behemoth King and Wild Marlboro. The reasons being 1) BK is an endurance fight even with my overlevel stats, 2) I hate marlboros. One spray of Putrid Breath gives you a cocktail of bad status effects. In addition, it is found in the Feywood, which I also hate. So, up until Pharos I have completed all hunts except these two.

After that is the Sky Fortress Bahamut. The bosses themselves are not hard, but if you screw up and loses any of the fights along the way, the last save point is the one before you even left for Bahamut! Which means a long ass cutscenes along the way! Thankfully, thanks to all the hunts I did I had a more-than-decent equipments and levels for the boss fight (and keeping in mind I was overkilling the bosses thus far). ...and what's with the final boss anyway? Seriously. I stored away one of the overlevel character and put in a normal level character, getting ready to swap them in case things turned ugly...which they didnt.

But, all went well and I finished FFXII. Not completed, of course, since there are a multitude of optional bosses I chose to overlook, like two more espers and Yiazmat *shudders*. I read online that beating the boss in 2 hours was fast! More hunts are available after Pharos, of course, and undoubtedly they all take place inside the tower which I happily ignored seeing as I HATE that place.

The ending...well, how platonic can you be? Still, FFXII was not a sappy love story like FFX and FFVIII so not an ounce of romance can be found, which is a good thing after the emotional rollercoaster known as FFX. But it's nice to see FFXII spurned into a sequel FFXII: Revenant Wings on the DS and a Balthier cameo in FFT: War of the Lions. Good enough for me xD. Though I only have PSP for FFT and I spoiled myself the story for DS.

FFXII had been fun, and gave a lot of insight into the old Ivalice oftmentioned in FF Tactics. All the difference races and class of characters and the glorious past overtaken by the grim future is such a common feature in Final Fantasy worlds that it makes you wonder if the creators have a complex by it?

Anyway, fun game. Maybe I'll return to it to fight the two espers or something. But for now. Hehehhehe. Ta'ra!

Merdeka Day

Happy 52nd Merdeka Day to all Malaysians!

31st August! Also the last day of Malaysia Mega Sale! I'm going shopping! woo-hoo!

Anyway, where was I? Oh yes! What a week! I had my last Japanese test, I finally stepped foot in Terengganu and ate roast lamb at two hotel buffets.

Let's start on Monday. Monday night was the last Japanese class I had. Was a disaster xD but what is life without disasters? xD On Tuesday daddyo and my bro came from Kuching and I tagged along to Terengganu. I thought I could study during the trip, but man was I wrong. But, pretty beaches though. Crystal clear water and pure white sandy beaches are not a myth there. And the public beaches are surprisingly very clean. It probably had a lot to do with the 'no swimming' signs. Seriously. The waves are not dangerous, the sands are not sharp, so it must be a social thing.

Anyway, the beach at our hotel was open for swimming but I didn't go. Fasting month. Who would wanna do anything else than sleep anyway? Terengganu. Right. The moment we arrived in Kemaman, my dad rendezvous at his current project site. He kept dropping words like "project manager" on me. Showed me the site. The details of the construction and why things are...as they are. I think it's a great project...but I can't imagine myself driving up there every two weeks troubleshoot the project. And besides. I don't think I like Terengganu food very much.

Terregganu food is typical northern fishermen food. Abuse of fish is rampant. The food is either sweet or spicy. The keropok lekor is awesome though. The best thing that came out of the state: food-wise :P. Sorry, I'm Sarawakian. I think it's fairly established that East Malaysians don't have the same pallete. Even if it was the EAST coast. Nice beaches, still.

We break fasts at my dad's friend's house for both days. His house is quite nice. He bought a big piece of land with its own natural lake with natural water corrugation and bred fishes in there. His rooms are all over the place. Thus the whole property is basically one big house. I appreciate the hospitality, though I really didn't like having to eat outdoor. The bugs...they stick to the food, drowned in your drinks and sucked the blood out of you! Not an ideal condition to be when you're hungry.

...I don't like kampong life. It's not for me. Stop pushing it to my face.

Anyway! I had roast lamb for two consecutive days after we got back. I sat for a disasterous Japanese test and went straight to it. Rooooaaaaast laaaaaaambbbb. *drooldrooldrool*

Ta'ra!

FFXII Ramblings

It's really been a while since I use the word 'rambling' in a post topic. But oh well. I'm gonna talk about FFXII that I've been indulging in lately. So if you have no interest in the game whatsoever, you can just skip this post and go to Tazkirah Time xD. Okay just kidding. But it's the fasting month and I should encourage people to do stuff like that heheh. Either way, there will be NO SPOILER in this post if you are playing the game because I am too far removed from the storyline to appreciate it at the moment.

I just wanna talk about my experience so far, which has been fun, fun, fun! If you recall, I have been playing with two stupid 5-ringgit discs which I alternate because they were stuck at different places. It's unfair that nobody I know had the same problem. The guy at the shop even said that it may be because of my PS2. Poking faults at my Kujong was unforgivable, so I decided not to patron his shop anymore and scoured for an original disk. Watashiwa-san finally solved that problem for me when she gave me FFXII as a...gift, I think. Thank you again ^_^.

Right. When I stopped last I was on my way to Archades, the capital of the Archadian empire, the empire colonizing the hero's country. I only got to the first part of the underground palace (Sochen Cave Palace) where you fight the Mandragoras and won - and STUCK! rawr! The last save point was TWO SCREENS away! Two screens are a lot of space seeing as those two screens are vast plains with lots of encounters and I had a few level ups on the way - all gone! I actually fought the mandragoras twice and got stuck at the same place. I used the other disk and that one was EVEN WORSE.

So...I stopped. I could not deal with the frustration so I just stopped playing to cool my head lest I commit suicide. When I got the original disk, it didn't recognize my previous saves so I had to restart from scratch, which was not exactly a bad thing, since I had the chance to obtain the Zodiac Spear - the strongest weapon in the game. Not even half as painful to obtain compared to the Tournesol. The spear required that you refrain from opening several treasure chests in four unique areas. AND have you run through a necrohol of vicious monsters if you want to acquire it early. I actually acquired it slightly later than the first available opportunity thus had better armor and stats, and even then, I barely survived *shivers*. I am NOT going back anytime soon. Not before I level up to 99 which is possible it seems O.o.

ANYWAY! What's up with those elementals anyway? Really? they are just flashing blobs of magic that attack you on a whim and you can't even counterattack with weapons! You'd like to cast magic back to it but it casts reflect on itself, and if you reflect back what it casted upon you, they absorb the damage! rawr! I know that it's possible to win against one but it will be very tough, and is just not worth it seeing as it is considered a normal encounter. One thing I like to do is...have the party leader wait at the border line between screens, send someone with Thief's Cuffs out to steal from the elemental, and wait. It's funny to see the assigned thief run towards the elemental, steal, and when the elemental starts chasing you - run for you life! Hahahahahaha! I like borderlines. It's convenient how enemies just stay in their own areas and won't chase you into the next.

And those mandragoras! Five vegetables - running around in such a vast space! I bet the people at Square Enix are having a laugh at gamers as we go around chasing them one by one! I haven't gotten the Zodiac spear when I beat them, but they had pretty high evade and weapon attacks will miss at a 40-50% rate which is annoying, except for guns, which ignore evade, but is pretty slow. The last one I killed out of the five was Onion King. When he was critical he ran off to the other side of the room, either to cure itself or just to be a pain, so I hit him with Fira - and BAM! Death! Satisfaction. This was done with original disk, so I was near tears when I was finally given access to the rest of Sochen Cave Palace. sniff. I was just eager to get to Archades and get upgrades on equipments and magicks so I can start doing some level V marks hunting.

Unlike previous FF games I played (VII, VIII, IX) you cannot abuse GFs (guardian forces in FFVIII) or creature summons in VII and IX. I admit, I abuse GFs for every boss battles in FFVIII simply because...why not? But not in FFXII I think they realized that these creature summons are making the game way too easy, thus with its new fighting method, FFXII required more strategizing. What's great is that, whatever status spells you have in your inventory, it can work on both you and the enemy. Bad status effects like blind, silence, poison, sap, immobilize, disable etc can be used against enemies and even bosses! There's this great accessory that reverses the affects of healing items, so if you use Remedy againsts an enemy it is similar to giving them a cocktail of bad ailments! It made battles so much easier when enemies are blinded and silenced. I'm usually the type to just "charge right up with the strongest weapon and heal as I go" but this strategy is getting old. These statuses do not go away unless healed - and enemies RARELY heal - unlike positive buffs like protect and shell. At the same time you can know what status effects an enemy is immune against. Give them the whole load - and see what sticks XD. And as intimidating the bosses are, they are normally vulnerable to at least one ailment, be it just blind or silence. Only one boss so far is immune to everything in remedy...but he's the master of bad ailments and an opitonal boss at that.

One of my favorite status ailments to use against an enemy is 'disease'. With the reverse acessory you throw a vaccine at an enemy. Items are great compared to magic when it comes to inflicting ailments because the success rate is 90-100%. With disease, HP will always appear as full even as you inflict damage on them. While it doesn't look like the enemy is losing HP, they actually is - disease conceals their own HP status. Why this is awesome is because, when enemies are at a critical, or when their HP drops to about 30% or so, they start having all these annoying attack/defence. Either they have high defence, become immune to magic/weapon, or attack you really, REALLY hard. It's automatically triggered by low HP. Disease cancels this COMPLETELY so the enemy will get on as if it has full HP and sticks to their normal attacks - which is usually far more tolerable - and BAM! Sudden death! <

I use remedy before every boss fight now.

I think it should go without saying that I referred to online FAQs during this playthrough. Not the walkthrough. I like to be surprised. But the specific ones like Marks Hunting and Weapons guide. Like all FF games, FFXII have much to entertain apart from its own storyline; secret dungeons, secret areas in the dungeons, rare game monsters, optional espers etc etc. Why, just the quest to gather the materials for Tournesol (strongest one-handed sword, 10 points less than Zodiac spear)alone should keep you occupied for a good part of the game, really, and take you to all these different places. Though I think I won't even bother with Tournesol in this playthrough. I already have Zodiac Spear and Fomalhaut (strongest gun) both acquired through chests - next I may concern myself with the Masamune or some ninja swords for their swiftness and elements. After all, you really only need to outfit 3 characters and having different weapons help. Those annoying flying creatures can only be brought down by ranged weapons unfortunately.

I want to attempt the jelly auto-levelling next and bring everyone to level 99. It should be doable now. I want to see how far their HPs will go.

And oh, the ever so sexy Balthier! My favorite character. Not only is he sexy (in demeanor and appearance) he also speaks with an accent! Hahahaha.

I guess slippers are in for Sky Pirate fashions eh? xD

Ta'ra!

First Day of Puasa

I had an accident involving a very, very bad egg in the kitchen just now. I wanted to make omellete, but after that...McD delivery sounded pretty good. Happy Fasting to everyone.

Ta'ra.

Of Branded Stuff and Ugly Flats.

During the week off uitm had due to a H1N1 flu scare, Bukit Bintang had a general increase in Malay students out shopping. This scares me a bit as people start thinking I'm one of them too. This in turn made me more determined to drasticaly change my clothing style. Seriously. I did small modifications here and there, but there's still that scarf issue that needs to be tackled.

I do try to differentiate myself from these people. I wear shoes. Expensive shoes. D: Just to make a little point! I mean, you see those girls going around in their little group with at least one shoe shopping bag in hand. It's no secret that these kids spend a lot of money on shoes and hanbags, but you would think that after buying so many pair of shoes they wouldn't keep wearing those ugly flats out to shop would they!?? I find flats more comfortable than heels, but I would never be caught dead in those cheap ugly flats that's so popular with IPTA students!

I like branded stuff. I wear Skechers shoes and Esprit socks. They are more expensive, thus I can buy only a few pairs at once. But they last longer, and do not take up much space. You'd think people don't notice, but they do. They look at you a certain way, than say something like how unnecessary expensive branded stuff are when you can get a nice pair for cheap. Even though secretly they wish they could own branded stuff too :P. Oooh yes, they will say this to you today, but tomorrow you'll see them drooling at a RM300 Guess bag - thinking that it's affordable! (It's worth the price, but not unless it's a one-time thing).

In fact, I made it a point not to wear unbranded stuff. It makes me feel insecure, as if I've blown my money on something that's not worth it, no matter how cheap because I don't feel proud wearing them. Vain, I know. But that's just me :P. I don't like having too much clothes at once. I like to have a few nice clothes at once, and phase them out, and then get new ones. That's why it's important that I get the nice branded ones for these few clothes. I've learned to shop like a guy. Guys they hoard their money just to buy that one expensive item that they truly love and felt contented after just that one purchase. For example, my cousin's only purchase in Singapore was a $150 Bape cap, and my brother spent 2k on a pair of Versace shoes. It may seem like a waste to most girls, but I like spending a huge amount of money on just one thing you truly love than the same amount of money on a lot of things you like. I do both of course. If there's nothing I truly love, and I need to upgrade my wardrobe, then I buy a lot. Anyway.

I watched an episode of Anthony Bourdain's No Reservation in Saudi Arabia. His host was a female film producer. She is the only woman in Saudi Arabia granted permission to have a production company without a single man present. In Jeddah the women all wear those black robes called an Abaya. They wear whatever underneath. I suddenly thought how nice it would be to go there. I could wear a long sleeve shirt and pajama pants inside those abayas and nobody would know! I have worn abayas before during my last umrah trip. The locals don't care if you're not local. Baju kurung and other robes are fine, but those abayas are just so convenient!

I need to get myself more pajama pants! Wheee!

Ta'ra!

Tazkirah Time xD

Last week I had a 'Kisah Nabi-Nabi' phase and went to search for the chronicles of the 25 main prophets. Yes, very pious of me. But I was bored, and I wanted the true version for once. I was tired of reading Christian depictions of our prophets, (especially the last one). I really do try to see them from their point of view, but oftentimes I was left wanting at how obscure and incomplete their descriptions were. So, tired of being the understanding open-minded Muslim I am, I went and search for the Qur'anic version, which is what I should have done in the first place, really.

The first prophet that piqued my interest was a certain King Solomon, which turned out to be a descendent of King David of Israel. I made the mistake of reading the Christian version which spelled out King David (of David and Goliath's fame) as very devoted to his God, had three sons, one of whom was Solomon, but was denied the privilege of building a temple for his God, a privilege reserved for his heir Solomon. His two sons fued for the throne, knowing Solomon would be heir. A lot of stuff happened, King David died in sadness, Solomon succeeded him and his two other sons were either sentenced to death or died in the fighting.

Of course, King Solomon is none other than the Prophet Sulaiman who went on to rule the greatest kingdom on Earth, commanded d'jinns, understood birds and had his armies rode wind instead of horses. And yes, he also 'conquered' the Queen of Saba' (Sheba) with his palace of mirror. Either way, his gift was that he was a very wise man and ruled a kingdom that was unprecedented, and no other would exist after his. The Christian version is the same so far, except for the part of his latter years. They said he died a corrupted man who had over 700 wives and 300 concubines from his diplomatic marriages. Because he loved his wives, he gave in and let them build their temples of worship for their deities and even partake in their worship, thus turning his back on his own God. Therefore he died a pagan.

I was unhappy with this, so I searched for the Qur'anic version. Prophet Sulaiman AS had been blessed with a 'miraculous life, thus a miraculous death'. On the day of his death, he was praying in a small mosque on top of a hill, overseeing a construction work done by the djinns and humans. He leaned forward on his cane and died in the middle of prayer, but the djinns and humans didn't know he died, and thought he was still watching, so they continued working. It was only 40 days later when termites had eaten through his cane that he fell forward and they found out that he had died for some time. If you ask me, it is a fitting death for someone so revered.

And while I was at it, I checked up on his dad King David too. And 'lo and behold - it's the Prophet Daud AS! I was shocked for not realizing the Arabic equivalent. Needless to say I was appaled at myself! Furthermore, the story of 'David and Goliath' was in fact, true. Different name, but true nonetheless. David was 9 years old at the time, and 'Goliath' was a big war general. He was not born royalty. At that time he was serving the army of the King of Israel. After his deed in battle against 'Goliath' the King married him to his daughter, thus making him future king. Interesting eh? They should have included such interesting stories during our various Friday tazkirahs at school. But nooo scolding people who don't wear scarves outside of school seemed more important! :P

Another interesting history bit that intrigued me was that of Mary Magdalene. After The Da Vinci Code, I did a lot of research on her, but in vain. It was only last week that I bothered to re-check Prophet Isa AS's full background, or as full as it can go. The Qur'an only says as much about the lives of the prophets because it stresses its role a religious text, not a historical one - fair enough. Anyway. Other than his mother, there are no prominent females mentioned around him. But it was itneresting how they mentioned that Mary Magdalene could have been a former prostitute. There is an incident with him and a prostitute.

The priests of Moses' teachings in Prophet Isa's time tried to make him admit that he was turning his back from Moses' teachings. The sentence for prostitution was stoning, and they had a prostitute to sentence. They asked him if he would sentence her himself if he was truly a believer in Moses' teachings. They were expecting him to refuse, thus admitting his heresy, but Isa already knew their intentions. So, instead he said, "If this woman is sinful, than only those among us who have not sinned shall sentence her". The priests were unhappy (admitting they had not sinned would be heresy), and Isa walked away. The prostitute, grateful to him, threw herself at his feet, and washed his feet with her tears. At this, Isa turned to his followers and said, in a way "and you said you loved me." Previously they were saying how much they loved and adored him, you see. But then this woman came and washed his feet with her tears.

Could that woman be the so-called Mary Magdalene? The Qur'an or hadith didn't mention her name, and if she became a disciple later on. I think it's safe to assume she became a believer and nothing more. The Christian version on the other hand, said nothing of her washing his feet. Whatever it is, Prophet Isa was unmarried and chaste up till his ascension. The disciple who volunteered to take his place for the execution was promised to be his companion in the afterlife, and nothing more was said either in the Qur'an or hadith, about what happened after the Roman soldiers took him away to be crucified. It is a tad unnecessary to go into details, but still, I like details. The point is that you get the message across. Frustrating, but that's life.

Another interesting bit I found out was the Prophet Muhammad SAW's treatment of the Nasrani and Yahudi (Jews and Christians) when they came to Makkah during his time. He gladly shared half the mosque with them to let them perform their prayer their own way and even warned his followers (if you're a Muslim, that's you by the way) "if you intentionally harm the (Jews and Christians), then, during Judgement Day, I will not count you as among my followers". So everyone, play nice!

I know Muslims in general hold grudges against Jews and thus, Israel in general. But unless you're out there in the battlefield, there is nothing you can do but pray for your Muslim bretheren. Going all suicide bombing at public places will earn you a direct flight to Hell. And thus, condoning such behaviors, if the targets are civilians not involved in the war, makes you an accomplice. I am not an expert in such things, but remember your Prophet's words!

And in case you've forgotten, out of the 25 main prophets, only about 4 of them are Arabs. The others were all Jews. ...Well, looking at the Jews today, it made sense why so many Prophets had been sent their way.

Digging is fun. I go dig more! Ta'ra!

So Anyway

I went back to shady workshop last week (and as expected, I still dont like the shopkeepers who are only friendly on the phone. Weird though that may be) and got myself a whole bunch of clay. Four white ones, just to be safe, plus ten others, including a couple of black. I even bought a weird color called nightglow, which was supposed to be glow in the dark, but doesnt seem to be glowing. But it is still a very nice slightly creamy white color anyway.

Last night I managed to finish the charm bracelet my aunt ordered from me xD. So happy! The pink thing is actually a broken plate bead with chopsticks, a dollop of wasabi and a splotch of soy sauce. It broke as I was forcing a craft wire through it...>_>. But I made just a chopsticks bead at the end, though I think maybe just one more bead would make the whole thing more complete. We'll see. xD

Ta'ra!

p/s hi5 just sent me a birthday reminder of my classmate who passed away two years ago. Creepy.

Amusing Day

Today started out pretty nicely, with me waking up early to pray, and then proceeded to the gym. I saw an ang moh, though it wasn't goat. Sighs. But I had a good workout, which was long overdue.

Then I had breakfast, washed up, did laundry, dressed up and ready for a long day. That is until I sat in the car and turned on the ignition.

Kurohime wouldn't start on me. Sighs. So what to do but call daddyo. I informed him of my plight and he said he'll drop by next Wednesday. I hope he's quick because I am in desperate need of white clay. So, all dressed up with my initial destinations impossible, I went online and bought those silver headpins and jump rings, then proceeded to Times Square to get them, and to have lunch.

The Arab food stall at the food court really do have good food, but more likely so when the boss is around. The staff treated me like I was one of them because I'm a young Malay girl and we treat each other like we're old friends, not as paying customers. I had grilled prawn fried rice. I should have been warned by the cheap price:RM5. All I got was a plate full of fried rice (which was actually quite nice) and four pieces of probably grilled, not so regular-sized prawns. I was too hungry to bother giving them dirty looks for it.

Next I spent an aimless half an hour sitting down and roaming the mall, trying to think of what to take away for dinner, since I was sleepy and is planning to head home to resume my sleep. I walked slowly in front of the shops, so I could scrutinize the clothes on sale without having to go in and check them out. Suddenly, I heard a guy going "shopping alone?", and something along the same cheesy line quite persistently. My head was glued to my side and when I turned back slightly I saw that a short old man was grinning at me! Okay he's not old, maybe 30 something. But that is still OLD!

I gave him an annoyed look with a raised eyebrow and resumed walking. But he must have thought that I have acknowledged his existence or something, because as I approached the escalator, I heard him again and when I was about to get on, I found out that he has been following me! WTF! This time I gave him a look that says "Are you mentally retarded or something?!" and went down the escalator. I made sure my gaze stayed so he got the message. But him, being man, and perverted, probably thought he "scored" or something. Seriously. Get a brain!

Gosh! There were so many young Malay chicks around today! UITM is on a week holiday, so there are a lot of them girls hanging around the malls, alone and in groups! RAWR! I need to change my appearance to look more expensive so these losers know I am not in their league. Shit. I hope he went and fuck himself.

As annoyed as I was after that, it actually lifted me up a little. I was feeling extremely depressed just moments before, because of a lot of things. His action boosted my ego, and really, what else do you need other than that?

I went back after getting takeaway from subway, prayed and shot two smses to my friends in two different universities asking about their convocation festivals. Just as I was falling asleep, one of them called me and brought me good news. It was such good news I almost couldn't go back to sleep afterwards! I immediately sent an sms to the person in charge. I would call, but I dont think it's good manners to just call up strangers when it's nothing urgent. I received a call back when I woke up xD. I'm as good as in!

Now I need to sleep. After I hang my socks, that is. Tomorrow, err today, I need to clean the house! Ta'ra!

Next Project!

I'm out of silver chains to work with. Next I'm going to do some lower priced sushi beads bracelet. Now there is no choice but to get me those damn clay! RAWR!

Ta'ra!

p/s I should exercise.

Bracelet Day!

First I would like to show off my beadbox! xD



Of course, I have more beads than these, except I haven't used them. And thanks to Totchi's OCDness the greens and transparent whites are all sorted. I'm quite proud of my crystals though. I still have some peridots for a few bracelets, but now I wonder why I have so much violets?

Anyway, I completed three bracelets today. I think. I know I have five ready to sale sushi bead bracelets though. *hinthinthinthint*!!! There are three variants:

In the picture are two of them: pink/green and blue/purple. Another one is all green. Unsurprisingly, the green is quite popular. Though I would have to agree that pink and green go surprisingly well together. O.o hmmm.

The one I made for myself is blue/purple since these two colors are so underused, I thought I would use them myself. XD

Now I just need to find a way to insert our brand name Snackellery on them. Suggestions are welcomed! XDTa'ra!

Snackellery

WE ARE OFFICIALLY IN BUSINESS! (kind of) The first ever commercial Snackellery handmade sushi bracelet to roll off my sushi making dish! OHMYGODI'MSOHAPPY!

Everything except for the sushi themselves are 925 silver! Chain lenght is 8 inches, but is adjustable according to request. OHMYGODI'MSOHAPPY! Limited quantity! ORDER ONE FOR YOURSELF NOW!!!! Only Ringgit Malaysia Forty-five! XD

...Well yes, we are supposed to have out own website, but I pre-empted it with my own impatience. Snackellery is our brand name. In the future please look forward to more snack-inspired Snackellery products!

What? I can't promote my own product on my blog? xD

Ta'ra!

Ah~ I like the feel of clay~ xD

I thought I should share what exactly I have been doing with all these beads, clay and sushi talk. xD You can tell which ones are taken with my phone and which from my camera. So!

This is the sushis as they got out of the oven. Tamago makis and salmon roes. A bit retarded, those roes. But they came out nicely. XD



After some time with the hairdryer, and to cool, they are off into my beadbox, which is now filled with maki-type sushis.



You add these sushis with some peridot swarovskis...



And you get these lovelies. xD



I had an excess of these green and red makis, so I decided to make bracelets out of them. They are still RM15, buy one free one! Because I'm not too happy how the beads turned out, but still, those swarovskis are genuine.



The maki bracelets come in green, blue, and amethyst. So far Sarah asked for purple and I had a few pink by request. The green ones are the most popular though. I need to get more peridots!



I also make silver bracelets. The chains are genuine 925 Malaysian silver. In addition, all the clasp, headpins and rings used on these bracelets are also 925 silver. Which means, it is perfectly safe for those of you allergic to base metal. I know. Because 80% of my family members (including extended ones) are allergic to base metal.

I haven't made one that's actually ready for sale yet, but I've had a couple of orders already, since I wear the prototypes to show for it. I'm still in the middle of increasing the variety of sushie beads I have. It's easier once you have the beads ready.

There are two types of chains.



The thinner one goes for RM45, while the bigger one RM60. The end product looks something like this:



Except with 7 different types of sushi instead of just one. Unfortunately I have only 1 of the big one left, since the shop I go to get my silver chains ran out of the big one! So I have only the small one to contend with. I already made one, with pink swarovskis and gave it to sensei for her birthday.



I plan to make more and with a bigger variety of sushis. The designs are simple, really. Since the sushis and the chain speak for themselves. They will be ready for sale soon, once I make enough beads XD. I'm almost out of white.

But, if you want one for yourself, don't feel shy to tell me! The prices are as stated. Ta'ra!

Confession of a Recluse

Needless to say I have been helplessly busy and penniless this past week - and happy to be so! Totchi stayed with me for a week and we went on a shopping spree. I really shouldnt, but I did anyway. My wardrobe was in dire need of an update. My Kuching wardrobe even more so. I had a decluttering not too long ago which left them quite empty. If I dont bring some clothes back home with me, I noticed I have only two or three good shirts to go out in. Seriously. I was surprised when I had more than two outings a week that I had nothing to wear!

My life is blissful ignorant. My college doesn't take the initiative to inform us about any progress or anything that we should prepare. And I am not a proactive person in such things. But tomorrow I shall drive up there and demand they tell me things.

The last two days I decided to stay home and be a total recluse. It's the best thing to do when you're in the middle of your period. And even better thing to do would be to play games while you're stayingat home with your period. But I didn't. I literally just stayed at home doing nothing progressive. But I had to go check out some English Cotton the aunty brought back from Dubai yesterday. She especially called me to say when she'll be at the shop and when the new stuff will be there, so I had to go.

I went there a little late in the day because I insisted on eating the beef I have at home (mmm beeef). When I arrived, I checked out some new stuff, sidelined a couple, and then when the aunty came, I shamelessly plunged right in! XD I was her only Sarawakian dealer, so she really endulged me hehehehehehe.

There was quite drama too, since suddenly, a stream of customers entered the shop and I insisted on staying until I tell the shopkeeper which pieces I was taking, how many, and which pieces I was exchanging them for. Such clarity is a must in my dealings you see. But due to the stream of customers, I was detained, and was immediately assumed a sale assistant as well. I made two sales XD. I met the good customers, and some annoying ones. I met a very proud Johorian mother who insisted that all the edges of her baju kurung be meticulously hand sewn, because she said it's a Johorian thing that they like to show off. But seriously, who bothers to check the inner stitching of your clothes anyway?

As annoying as I found her and her daughter, they were customers and aunty was also from Johore so they got along. I mean, I understood that sort of pride, but I was not about to gush it on a stranger (I'm Sarawakian, and you know how it is). Especially since she thought I was a sale assistant too, until aunty told her I was one of her biggest dealers (Not exactly a lie, since I made one of the biggest sale she ever made at once and I am the only one from Sarawak xD). She saw me diferently then, but still. But of course, she had good taste, and when she asked that her baju kurung be all hand sewn at the edges, she was prepared to pay extra for it. Good for her.

The most annoying customer of the day was too annoying to recall. She was infatuated with this baju kurung top that had no sarong which costed only RM25, asked it to be lowered, was given for 20, and then asked for it to be lowered again because she would have to go through all the trouble of finding a sarong for it, all the while complaining how it is fake Thai silk and would stink when she sweats (which I really do hope will stink really badly). I was being nice and told her such bright colors would not just suit anyone (which was a compliment) and she cornered me by saying why didn't I get it then. Of course I was not about to tell her that it was too cheap and not up to my taste. She ended up getting it for 20 anyway and once she was out of earshot, the shopkeeper told me that the clothes on that rack were not the shop's, but belonged to someone whom the aunty knew and needed money. This person put up her old clothes to be sold at the shop, which meant the 20 ringgit baju kurung was old, second hand, and used to stink on someone else before. Thus, serves her right!

I ended up helping the shopkeeper close shop and as I was driving down the federal highway going back to KL, I was suddenly struck with the realization that at least half of my extended family is in KL yet I hardly see them. It was still only 8:30, so I quickly went through my list of immediately visitable relatives and ended up with my friend in Shah Alam. After all, the federal highway goes all the way to Shah Alam. What better time to explore, right?

I called her up, and, after getting lost a little, thanks to unnamed roundabout turnings, I finally found section 17. I shamelessly had her treat me dinner and we talked about crap. Then we went back to her place where I borrowed her toilet and we continued talking crap. It was close to 2 am when I finally got home last night hehehehe. It's funny how I always find myself exploring roads at night, rather than day. But I like it, because there are no traffic at night. And with limited visions, as most things are obscured by darkness, you only see the things and signs that you need to. At day, you get too distracted by too many road signs and advertisement boards. And like I said, no traffic! So if you get lost, you don't have to worry about getting stuck in traffic at the next wrong turning.

I just made a whole roll of tamago maki bead. Now I have my own maki sushi bead box! hehehehe. I really should start selling them. I have two orders so far. So happy xD!

Ta'ra!

Me Update!

Hello! I have been busy making bracelets and clay beads. And I have also got around to using the oven to bake the beads. Direct heat is a no no, so I preheat the oven first, and cure the beads using the leftover heat, which works even better! And somehow my silver necklace has turned into a charm bracelet. How did that happen!?

I have completed two silver bracelets. The first one is the first prototype where I add on all the sushis I have or will have. The second one is a whole maki-type bracelet which, while unique, lacks color, and the enxt one shall contain all the sushis that I have made so far. the salmons just got out of the oven. Next I wanna do squid and ebi. Heheheheehehe!

I'm so excited! Tomorrow, Bing!

Ta'ra!

A Little Note...

I'm going back today, and staying for longer than four days! Yay!

I bought a cutting mat ohmygodI'msohappy! I also bought a few more things that I needed, like clasps, beads and extension chains XD.I'm gonna be rich I'm telling you!

Last, last night I had the biggest purchase I ever had in a long time! I bought TWO Tough bags! Wheeee! Tough is like my kind of Prada you see, with lots of attitude. I still like the previous collection better, but I suppose these ones are not bad either. I would show you, but I don't want people to steal my bags! Gasp!

I really should be going to sleep, but I'm stuck watching the Michael Jackson Memorial on E!. Also I have so many things planned out for my holiday. xD My puzzle remained unopened, make clay beads, Sleep, play games. Now if only I can get a new bed.

Ta'ra!

p/s Man, Totchi, it's hard talking to people not of the same wavelenght isnt it? I would rather be misunderstood than pretend to talk in a way that I am not used to. And I do not make it a habit to apologize when I am misunderstood.

New Project! Again

Behold my proud purchases!

I had quite an adventure looking for these stuff. I drove all the way to Balakong to a shady warehouse shop and bought myself some sinsiter-looking tools and it was well-worth the trip! Not only are the stuff cheaper, the selection was much, much better! Most art and craft shops would have only one brand of clay, but here I found two brands, and two varieties of each brand.

I was impatient and just need to start. I made two beads that night, but two days later I have two sushi bracelets done! WHEE! I love it when a project allows me to learn something new each time. It makes me eager to start doing the next one again and again!

Ah, but alas, life throws obstacles at your feet all the time. It may come in the form of a stolen phone or melted beads in the oven, but behind every obstacles is an opportunity and behind opportunity is...incredible things.

Note that incredible things don't always constitute a positive thing. But I am ever the opportunist. I mean optimist. Optimist, for certain, xD.

Now I think I need a cutting board, clay cutter (ooh yeah baby, I love blades xD) and more white clay! This time I'll get Fimo Soft instead of Fimo Classic. I swear, my fingers are growing muscle just from conditioning those damn clay!

Ta'ra!

p/s Watashiwa-san, yes, I do glow don't I? XD

A breather At Last

Tonight I got through my Intermediate 3 class with Grade A! I'm so relieved! And I took pride in it too because although a lot of people got higher marks than me, I achieved mine mostly through my own hard work! We all 'discussed' during the exams, yes, and I did participated a bit, but I tried to rely on myself mostly and I was happy with the results!

I can't remember the last time I got 90 marks! And after everything ended, our class photo!
I always made it a point to wear white scarf or something light colored because I know it makes me stick out hehehehehehehe.

After that, we went to Starbucks to celebrate!





Wheee!

After that, even though Kurohime was parked inside KL Plaza, I didn't want to bring it home because Sam-san (the big guy in the back) agreed to drive me home!! Turned out four of us carpooled with him tonight, with sensei, Evion, and Jun-san in tow . His is a small peugeot but surprisingly all of us fit, though a little cramped. But it was fun! xD I havent been in a small car and had so much fun before hahahaha! Arigato Sam-san xD!

...Well of course, since my house was in the area, I was sent off first. I so wanted to see sensei's house before she moves again soon. Oh well. xD

I have to finish a report by tonight since I'm forced to hand it in one day earlier if I want to use the car. Stupid Indons.But what a lovely night this was! Jibun no Nihon-jin ga hoshi des!

Ta'ra!

The Weekend That Be

I think barfing is just like anal sex. It is unpleasant at first, but it gets better once you're used to it. Though I've never done the latter, the former is not a stranger to me.

Last Friday I flew home to Kuching to clean my room over the weekend. I even enlisted the help of my friend before I even confirmed my flight home. Yes, I was that determined to clean my room. I even got her a ten ringgit t-shirt while I was at it. Mind you, it was a nice ten ringgit t-shirt. Yes, I was that determined to clean my room.

I arrived just before noon and I slept the rest of the day till 7 pm when I was awoken by the prospect of a seafood dinner. My uncle also arrived in Kuching and promptly landed at our house. That night he had diarrhea and vomiting. He couldn't sleep till late. I thought "too bad" that is, until I actually got diarrhea myself the next day!

I didn't get it straight away. I was determined to clean my room you see, so I picked up my friend and we started clearing things. I started going to the toilet little by little and only had the biggest crap after lunch. I thought I would feel relieved afterwards but it only got worse! I was clearing the CD rack, sitting down, yet my whole body aches while my stomach broils with watery substance. Finally my friend suggested that I lie down on the bed. I did, and fell asleep.

During my nap, my friend took time off as well, browsing through my late works of arts and other short stories I, or one of my friends, had written (my bookshelf is a goldmine for such stories). I slept for approximately two hours. And when I woke up, expecting relief, I was greeted with a pounding headache. Dismayed I could only stare at the wall stupidly.

Now I have fever on top of diarrhea! GAAAAH!

There was no way I could even get out of the bed and help my friend help me clean my room! I told her I couldn't do anything, but we couldn't leave my room as it was either. So I laid there like a vegetable while she busted her ass cleaning my room. She is a very good girl, so I only did what I could - I praised her as she went along. Okay I did overexaggerate a little, but it doesn't mean I don't mean them. Though she did reply sarcastically that she believed me. Hmmmm.

When I was mumbling she told me to shut up. When I shut up she worried that I got too sick. So what am I supposed to do anyway!? When she was almost done with my room, and she's awesome since her nose is not impervious to dust like mine, I finally found the energy to remove myself from the bed and find some medicine.

I have never seen someone so dusty! - And my room so clean! xD

That night I was supposed to go out drinking with Totchi but I had to cancel since I was too sick to leave the house. Totchi is awesome too. It was really out of a whim that I asked her to take away Bing's smoothie for me and come pick up her hairband when she comes over. I wasn't expecting her to agree, really, but I really wanted the smoothie despite my condition and she seemed bored enough to do anything out of the ordinary. Totchi came later that night, bearing smoothie and prezzie.

Thanks again for the smoothie xD. Did I tell you you were awesome?

Despite it being an eventful day, I had trouble sleeping that night. One was because my body was torn between two condition, and two because I forgot to close my window and the alarm has already been set. My diarrhea likes the heat, but my fever craves the cold. At first I slept without the aircond on since my window is open. But I kept waking up in the middle of the night, hot and restless and with a pounding head. So I just decided "to hell with that!" and turned on the aircond anyway. Yes, the window was open. I know.

I woke up several times that morning, but only managed the motivation to move a little after noon. After which I gobbled down some satays just to fill my stomach before I take medicine again. My stomach does not feel diarrhea anymore, but it still aches, either from lack of food or something else, I don't know. But I was strong enough afterwards to tutor my cousin English. Usually it's my sister but she asked me to guest tutor the day before, but I was being a vegetable (she does tutoring Saturday and Sunday). So I tutored her about topic sentences. Her essays have a lot of ideas, but lacked grammar. She can work on her grammar with my sister, so I decided to focus on her strenghts; organising her ideas. The second part of tutoring was spent talking in English. It was something that she had never done before. I don't believe her teacher had bothered much about it at school, so I hope by talking about things she likes, in English, it would build up her confidence. I was glad to see towards the end of the lesson that she was talking more enthusiastically and was trying hard to find the right words to express her opinions xD.

I'm a great tutor.

I should do this more often. Hehe.

Ta'ra!

p/s Watashiwa-san, I am verily looking forward to cheese.

Philosophy!

To commomerate my 100th post in blogger, I have came up with a new philosophy in life:

"Great people do not need to be understood. They just need to be admired!"

And so I do not need your understanding! Just admiration. Now admire me!

Ta'ra!

Thanks but no thanks!

To all the other groups doing this same report: Thank you for letting me read your copy paste report. They are more helpful than if you had done it from scratch. And I hope you fail miserably in your assignment.

That's all.

People Cannot Write

I just went through several of the industry reports the other groups did and came to one conclusion: These people cannot write. I mean, some of them even replaced the introduction by the executive summary!! And some people just don't know how to ask for favors at all. If you want other people to give you their report, YOU must offer up yours FIRST!!

That kind of stupidity is what made me avert from replying to their suggestions of this and that. Because they were just lip service because they themselves have no idea what to write in the next industry summary. I hope I taught them something when I myself fired an email asking them to answer only ONE question, to which I answered myself (even included a word count) so they know how to go about answering it, however long or short. I hope to receive at least some satisfactory reply. If not I'm going ahead with my own report.

I'm going home next weekend to clean my room. I can't stay long because I have class Monday night and my Japanese class only gets more and more complicated. I cannot miss anymore classes!

Ta'ra!

p/s Totchi: I needed to include your name somewhere in the post so I could use the 'totchi' tag just for the heck of it. You should be honored.

Watashiwa-san: Fabric business is going slowly, but it's only expected, since I'm not there to peddle it! But just another bump on the road as I ride my bandwagon. And yes, aren't I awesome? Hehehehe

I'm Awesome

I am awesome! I just did the part of four people on our report! Unfair, of course, but I'd rather that than have them handle it. They've been trying to sabotage this report since the beginning and even wanted to submit it the same morning it's due for submission! Idiots! They have no idea how determined I am! This is great, since whatever little work they've spent either worrying or actually working on it would be in vain. And I like nothing better than other people's work go useless because of their own stupidity. I have been cleaning after people's mess so many times it feels awesome when people mess themselves up!

Since I am on this path to greatness, I will not complain. Great people see things differently. Everything is a challenge and behind every challenge is an opportunity and behind every opportunity lies greatness. Yes, I just made it up, but it's still true nonetheless. My dad was surprised that I know that Tiger Woods had changed his swing three times. Of course I knew that. Tiger Woods is one of those great people who achieved world class status. His is a life worth paying attention to. Other people I pay attention to is Bill Gates, Michael Dell and Sam Walton. I don't care what people say about Trump. Michael Dell's net worth would enable him to buy 6 or 7 Trumps! Which easily makes Trump just one of many. And what's the point in being one of many?

Greatness. World Class. I think it's a goal worth pursuing don't you think?

Ta'ra!

PS. Hello Totchi.

I'm Freaking Unhappy

My exams had just ended and I still have to hand in a report and presentation. I just heard back from Caroline that the tambis are asking about the report. Funny they would ask since they explicitly told me that they are dropping out. Hm. Just goes to show, you can't believe what tambis tell you.

Why won't they come to me directly huh?

Whatever the outcome is, I'm keeping a tight grip on this project. *glares*

It's really a pity, but I did a post on my aim to achieve greatness and it got error'd. And I was sharing the secret to greatness too. Basically, there's no substitute to hard work and to become world class ala Tiger Woods, there's a Ten Year Rule that applies. For further information, google 'How to be Great'.

Since I don't have classes to attend other than my Nihongo and the occasional classes that Ii wish to attend, I have only my thesis and project paper to concentrate on. Now that I think about it, that seemed like more work than my previous semester. Bbut no matter. I hate the constraints of regular classes.

But it's the holiday at the moment and I really should enjoy more. Maybe it's time for that island holiday.

Ta'ra!

Self-Entertaining

I have always been a self-entertaining person. Like, I know how to entertain myself alone, with nothing but my imagination therefore I am not easily bored. But occasionally I get jealous of other people who have fun with other people. Damnit I wanna be entertained too!

Anyway. Today, suprisingly, I woke up before noon. Which was a great accomplishment since I made it a point not to wake up unless I have to. I went to bed early last night, and woke up at first, at 4 am, when I usually go to bed. So weird.

Today I am going to bum around and enjoy my day off before I start stressing about the stupid report I have to do in order to graduate. *snarls at tambis*

The monthly car boot sale at Zoo Negara in June is canceled. They told me to check back next month. I'll do that. But I am pretty certain on those convocation dates. When are you people going to get back at me?!?!?!

Ta'ra!

A Real Good Reason

I do notice the lack of updates and although Totchi said it's becoming a norm for me these days, this time I do have a really good reason.

The truth is, last Tuesday, my finals started and it had just ended today. My final final exam xD!! Nah, I still have two resits to be carried forward to next semester. Still.

So last Tuesday, right after my first paper, I went to Pavilion and watched Angels and Demons on Gold Class to cheer myself up. I walked out of the movie with a massive headache. Big screen + glasses + close distance = very, very bad. The movie was awesome, though. You would have thought I would spend the next day studying for the next paper, which was on Thursday. But no, I loitered in front of the computer the whole day and only went to my notes well after midnight. So after that was done, the next paper was going to be a killer. Fortunately it was to be on a Monday the next week, so I have three days. Good thing I already asked (begged) Caroline to tutor me on the subject. She ended up staying over for two nights and we studied and talked, and ate cakes. The TV was never on, so the biggest distraction was each other. Maybe because there was nobody to talk to her about it, we talked alot about her time in MRSM Kuching. After all, in addition to being neighbors, our schools had a lot in common.

We also gossiped a lot, which was fun hehehehehe. Seriously, I thought I was the only one who thought of such things, but who would have thought! Hahaha! Caroline originally wanted to stay for only one night because she wanted to go to church on Sunday morning. When it was dinner time Saturday I told her her church is so very close to my apartment I'll just drive her there tomorrow morning, she decided it was better to just stay another night. But of course, since we went to bed late that night (morning) she canceled her church visit. I felt kinda bad, but it was because church visit would be very early (7 am) and we went to bed at 3. So...yeah.

Amazingly, we covered more or less half of the topics together. Which was sufficient, really, because when I sat for the paper yesterday, the questions were so short, people were leaving the exam hall fifteen minutes into the second hour!

However, the last paper today really devastated me. I seriously felt like castrating that bangla lecturer for giving such misleading tips. And I fell for it! But anyway, I was so sleepy during the test I don't know why. I slept for 5 hours, which was more than what most people get the eve of an exam, yet I was still tired. Somehow I managed the drive home, using the middle lane this time. But when I reached KL it was still so early, and Night at the Museum 2 had started showing last week. So what to do?

I had to go to Pavilion! All plans for a nap abandoned, I instead, bought a ticket to the movie, regular class this time, which sat me in the middle of mooshy couples left right and center. The couple to the left is actually just a couple of guys. Still, they came in twos.

That was a seriously good movie. I mean, the night guard turned businessman. A person after my own heart xD. I can't complain. Not all sequels are made equal, and this one was an awesome sequel. Though I was kinda hoping to see more of Akmunrah. He's hot. xD

No dinner tonight though. I'm tucking in as soon as I finish this tea, (and preferably flush it out of my system).

Ta'ra!

p/s I'm not in a Super Junior phase. I caught the song Sorry Sorry on MTV and find it awfully catchy. Moreover, I saw how fun it looked like when they were dancing in the PV. I'm envious because it looked so fun. And no, you may not look forward to me looking up their profiles and getting to know each of them by nickname. I just seriously want to have fun.

Candy-Colored Secret

Is where I have moved all my English cotton-related activities. Please come visit. Hehehehehehehe.

Candy-Colored Secret indeed!

Ta'ra!

Aaah~ Real Life

I'm still selling those cotton by the way, but since this is not a business blog, I won't be mentioning as aggressively as I should. I really am not a hard seller. :D Seriously.

Normally you learn all sorts of business theories in school, but this is those theories put to the test. And man, don't they make it sound so much easier on paper. Do this right and this will surely happen. They just forgot to include everything else in between 'do' and 'happen'. A few things I've learned during my short time as a seller:

1. Cash paid now is better than cash paid later. No arguing this.
2. You do not question your customers' taste. You are not selling them things.You are selling an image of what the customer sees of themselves.
3. A sale made is a sale made. It doesn't matter who the sale is made to. And,
4. Patience is a virtue. Buckets, and buckets loads of it. And also,
5. Thou shalt not be greedy.

It's just too bad that I am impatient, and may be a little greedy as well. But this is just the beginning, and as the cash slowly trickle in, my spirits are lifted. I hope it's the end of the month soon. Hehehehehehehe.

Ta'ra!

p/s I'm not even attending public unis yet I have their convocation dates for 2009 and the numbers to their student affairs departments. I wonder why? xD

The Merchandise

English Cotton, RM150/-- 4 meters each. Each piece is a Master Piece, meaning there is only one. So hurry up! If you want more than one for a certain piece, you can ask for a special request. :D Just contact me. I'll be in Kuching soon. Happy shopping!

4 Meters, RM200/-- each. English cotton too, just a fancier make. xD

Ta'ra!

Nek Hah

Time flies by so fast. Soon it'll be her one-year anniversary, and once again, I am going to miss it due to exams. But that's okay, regardless of where I am, my prayers will always reach her.

They say the only way of knowing if the deceased really entered your dream is by how they do not talk to you. I only dreamt of her once in such a manner, which was two nights after the day she was buried. I don't care what people thinks. I really believed it was her, because she let me kissed her hand and hugged her, which was exactly what I wanted to do as my final respect for her. I immediately woke up crying.

Even now, I still cried each time I think of her. She was so fiercely independent and strong that I never thought of how much time she still had with us until six months before her passing. Luckily I was quick enough to think of getting a video recording of her, somehow knowing deep inside me that it might be the last recording of her alive.

My grandma had been through a lot in her life. Born in the 1920s, she was a first generation Chinese born on Sarawakian soil, after her father migrated here from southern China. Her father was a travelling businessman and was tight friends with my grandma's foster father. She was given to a prominent Malay family presumably to 'tighten their family bonds' and became the first of many children to be adopted into the family later.

Her teenage years were during the Japanese occupation, during which time, given the Japanese soldiers' tendency to claim unwed maidens, my grandma had once been rolled into a mattress to avoid capture. To avoid further complications, she was married at sixteen. She bore nine children, two died at infancy. My dad is the fifth of the remaining seven.

My grandma's real mother apparently passed away when she was very young, and her father got married and had two more children. My grandma's stepsister passed away just one week before she did, and her brother currently resides in Canada. We have no contact with them, except with one of her nephews who attended her funeral. It was a big surprise, but there was no denying the family resemblance.

My grandfather traveled a lot for work during his life, so my grandma was very well-traveled, and loving it. Just let her loose at Jalan TAR and you wouldn't even catch a shadow of her until 7 at night. By which time she would complain of leg aches, only to disappear again, once it was bright enough out. She knows the roads of Singapore and KL better then than I do now.

I really do not like to feel sad each time I think of her, because really, there is nothing sad about the memory of her life. Instead, I try to think of what she would do. I once followed the U69 bus all the way till the end because I was curious. I found out that my grandma did the same thing with the trains in KL. So as you can see, some behaviors are hereditary. Furthermore, when she was driving around in KL, she always kept the gas tank full so she could go around and get lost without worrying. I do that too, but I don't get lost on purpose.

There is really so much I want to do with her, to tell her, and decisions which I really want her opinion on. I was looking forward to introducing my prospective husband to her, and if she disapproves, I was willing to dump him on the spot. I want to ask her what's the best thing to do after I graduate. Should I stay and work in KL or in Kuching? I can imagine what her answer would be, but I really do want to work in Kuching even though the wages are lower. My reason is simple; Sarawakians should stay in Sarawak. After all, your voting rights are there. Why live in a city where you can't vote? Also, I want to be all proud and paranoid like only Sarawakians can be! I don't want to miss anymore family events. I don't want to be branded as 'orang KL' by the family friends. And I think that it's cliche to stay and work in KL after you finish your studies. Seriously.

My grandma once said that if she had the chance, she would go back and get a degree if she could. Each time I see her she would always tell me the same thing: Study hard. Once you have a degree, the sky's the limit. She doesn't want us to become idle housewives, no matter how rich our husbands will be. You have a degree, you can work. You are able to support yourself. Don't be dependent on your husband or anyone else. She had demonstrated independence her whole life. She wanted to instill it in her children and grandchildren. And of course, message well received.

When I was younger, I had a darker complexion. But as I grow older my skin lightened and had on a few occasions, been mistaken for a Chinese (I don't know how that could happen). I credit my Chinese-like features to her. When I realized that I was proud for about a second. Because you know, in Kuching at least half of my friends had Chinese grandmothers (the Chinese liked giving away daughters during that generation apparently), so there was nothing special about me. I mean, look at my aunts and uncles. Out of my dad's six siblings, only two do not have a Chinese-adopted-into-Malay family mother-in-law. Meaning more than half of my cousins are half-Chinese, even though it meant both their parents are halves.

I seriously thought this was a common thing in Malaysia.

That is, until I talked to my lecturer about it.

He thought I was half-Chinese, but I had to explain to him I am only 1/4. My maternal grandfather was an Arab, but a dark-skinned one. Then I went on to say it's nothing special since everyone has a Chinese grandmother. He said why is that? I told him about the old Chinese custom of giving away daughters in favor of sons, and he was shocked. He said it was 'terrible'. How could it be terrible? Well of course, it's not a good thing to just give away your daughter like that, but you know. It's not exactly terrible. If they hadn't, I wouldn't be born. I finally came to the conclusion that such a thing as having Chinese grandmothers was only a common thing in Sarawak. After that, I decided to shut my mouth about the subject. I don't want them to think the Chinese in Sarawak still give daughters away in favor of sons.

But just so we are clear on the subject, there is a high demand for Chinese babies for adoption. Just so you know, all you naughty teenagers out there.

When my grandma found out she was adopted, (it wasn't ourightly apparent, since there were a few other Chinese girls adopted into the family) she was very cool about it. She didn't even bother with her real family because her current family was bigger, and more fun. I really think she was way too cool about it. I am curious to know about our Chinese relatives. I don't want to accidentally marry my own cousin.

My grandma was an independent and forward-thinking person. You rarely find an old person who's mindset was so up with the times as her. When I grow old, I want to be exactly like her.

Ta'ra.