Sunday, July 30, 2006

hot HOT putrajaya!

Event: MMDS Putrajaya
Distance : 5km run/25km bike/3km run (sprint); 10km run/50km bike/5km run (individual full)

Eventhough we left at 6.15 am this morning, we reached almost an hour later. Putrajaya is one hell of a confusing place. Confusing, barren and dead. We got lost and was going round in circles. I took the opportunity to catch 40 winks more. For some reason, the night before i could barely sleep.

So we reached at about 7.15 am, and i was just in time to check in my bike and get my body numbered. which was weird. it's the first time they're numbering bodies for a duathlon. *shrugs*. My whole family went. Feels great when there's so much support and encouragement. :) Keith took my dad's place in the team relay, running the 5 km leg. I almost "killed" him because i mixed up the events and thought that the 5km leg came first, then the 10km. So i almost sent him off to do 10km. Lucky for us we found out before that and he switched places with runner Sulayman in time. But Keith could probably complete a 10km run. It just might come as a surprise to him, and a never ending struggle if he assumes it was 5km. hehe...but i do feel bad, because apparently Sulayman didnt have much time to warm up, so he didn't run his "best". i dont know la...

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I had a pretty good race myself. I consumed 3 different Powerbar products today i.e. Powerbar Cookies and Cream in the morning, Powerbar Endurance drink during the bike leg as well as Powergel Lemon Lime, also during the bike.

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I started off with a good 29 minute 5 km run. Then to a smooth transition (i'm really getting the hang of transitions). Remember i said i had a new bike monitor? Yea i kinda forgot to change the unit to kph (km per hour). so it was in mph (miles per hour). And so i was once again totally clueless about the distance and speed i was travelling at. My only guidance was my own stopwatch. I targeted 75 minutes for 25 km and i came in within 73. It was a really tough route, in my opinion. The whole freakin' highway consisted of loops n loops n loops which goes up and down and up and down. I actually feel it went up more than it went down. Then on to the final running leg. I feel like the jelly leg effect is less. Dont know if i've grown stronger or the flat lands of Putrajaya made it easier to run compared to the sandy grounds of PD. I came in in 18 minutes and 21 seconds. Overall, i clocked 2 hours 1 second. Darn...just over 2 hours.

But it was a great race. i really am liking my new form. or rather, the old me. :) feels good.

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Keith had a good race too. He told me "Jie, next time ask Uncle Peter put me in. Fun la..." hahaha...

oh...a little camwhoring session. post race moment of syok sendiri.

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p/s: i found out 1 mile is 1.6 km. and i covered about 14 miles. so it was actuall only 22.4 km

Saturday, July 29, 2006

yellow and purple is the way to go!

it seemed like only yesterday that i returned from PD with a smile on my face, thinking about the recently acclaimed glory of my so-called comeback. yes, time really does travel fast. in this case, 6 days sped by like lightning. so much so, procrastination has led me to absolutely no training for tomorrow's race - MMDS Putrajaya.

Once again, the cowardly me has signed up for the sprint event comprising of a 5k run, 25k bike and a 3k run. did i consider the full, you ask? yes i did actually. i figured i could breeze through the 5 k run. then struggle through the entire 50k bike leg. and end up crawling the last 10 k run. So unless i see myself in a prettier image than that, i'll leave the full to the professionals. Because once ive done the full, i can't do the sprint. so it's a rather life changing big decision to make. :)

collection of race kits was at The Curve today which i found really odd. It was usually in Armada Hotel PJ. anywhos, i went down with Isaiah and the place was packed as usual. They were strategically placed in front of the Brooks shop. (which conveniently was next to Al-Ikhsan and Tear Proof). I got a funky Brooks t shirt which i absolutely love because it is the same material as my Trailblazer one. started talking to Lizzie and this-malay-guy-from-the-lake. he went "you're doing the full right? oklah girl!" *raises hands to high 5* and i went "erm...no sprint only". Immediately his face changed and he went "Sebenarnya you boleh tau...[very solemnly]...dulu u pun lari saja kan? tengok skarang sudah cycling! tak boleh kata cannot!". haha it's very comforting to know that my fellow subang lake runners have such big dreams for me. everyone's got such faith in me. :)

speaking of Genting Trailblazer, i was staring dreamily at the handout the other day and something caught my eye. This is what's behind it.

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now if u squint and look a little harder, you'll see this by the right of the leaflet!

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ME!


Ok. Saying i didnt attempt to train at all is not true. I did go for a ride on Thursday. I targeted 20 kms. But i could barely reach 5km when my back tyre burst. Since i went to change the tube, i decided to get new handle tapes as well. Spruce that old Giant up a bit. Seeing that the tape i got was bright yellow, i just had to clean the bike up to compliment the tape. and so my darling is once again looking dashing.

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oh and i got him a new monitor too.

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charming, isn't he? now for me. with such a handsome fella i should at least turn some heads too. and i know just what to do. it's been a while since i donned this...

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yup! purple girl is back! and loving it! hahaha...

i'm so gonna die tomorrow.

Thursday, July 27, 2006

Loosen up my buttons babe!

So i got this call from Hitz.fm saying that i've won 2 tickets to the PCD Live at Sunway Lagoon. I tried acting all fanatic screaming "OMGod!! Really???" thinking i would be on air la, but then i wasn't. Anyway, my first reaction was to jump for joy. But then i started to wonder who i was gonna bring with me. The more i thought about it, the more stressed up i got. In the end, i chose Ju. And i had this outrageous idea of making it into a totally Girl Power Night. Seeing that we havent really spent much time with each other in quite a while, i decided to have some fun.

Just for kicks, i was all dressed up in the sassiest outfit in my wardrobe. I took out my make up set and made myself up, the more glitter the better. I drove over to Ju's house and started doing the same for her! haha it was kinda fun. :)

For some reason, i thought that it'd be really jammed up on the roads so we decided to walk. And so we did. All the way from Ju's house to Elephant's Walk. Which took us about half an hour. I was laughing all the way coz i think that's the most walking Ju has ever done in her life! what more with a mini denim skirt and glittery make up on. It was just so so funny. hahaha...

Julie posing with the posters


The concert was packed with people. And Hitz.fm was stingy enough to give me the lowest priced tickets. But that wasn't made clear to us, coz on the tickets were stated FREE and SPECIAL and so i was under the impression that we were, well, special! but we were pointed in aimless directions by different officials so many times until one official was kind enough (or rather mean enough) to point it out to us that the tickets we have was free standing anywhere outside the vicinity of the RM100 and RM200 tickets area. Ju thought they were just trying to jaga hati so they didnt dare mention where we were suposed to go.

PCD


So we found a cool spot, right at the border of the RM100 tickets area and us. however we were rudely shoo-ed away by guards. Then we started climbing up the Hotlink VIP area. We were standing atop the rocks formation that surrounded it, but we were not in it at all. We weren't obstructing anyone's view. Yet we were once again shoo-ed away. Some girls i knew were asked to leave and they refused to budge. So the officials threatened to call security. These green-uniformed RELA ppl started to come and they spoke very harshly to us. One of them yelled right into Ju's ear. I seriously don't know what their problem was because we really weren't blocking anyone. and the VIPs didn't mind. *shrugs*

Regarding the Dolls, they rocked the party! Well not all of them had great voices, only Nicole i would say. But when a girl's hot, she's hot. hehe...so yea i enjoyed myself. The dancing was good. I had a lot of fun, despite being shoved around by those RELA guards. But we still climbed up anyway. I particularly loved this number where they had each of them individually strutting their stuff. The lyrics went something like "Hey Melody! [yeaaa!] You think you're sexy! [yeaaa!]" and then Melody would come out and do some booty shakin. it's so cute! haha...

ju n i without flash
making silly faces
is fun to do
high above the crowd!


overall, i enjoyed. :) Free fun is always good. :)

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

what happened at yoga

i realised i've not spoken a word on my new interest - yoga. 2 months back, my mum had some trouble sleeping and was looking around for a healthier solution than taking drugs. so we tried out yoga. Mrs Khaw, formerly my gimrama coach, is now a yogi [this is what they call yoga instructors] and so i guessed it would be cool to go for classes under her. i'd been training under her for 8 years, so it seemed natural to be under her again. 2 reasons why i joined yoga: 1. to accompany my mum [some mother-daughter quality time] 2. i'm stiff as papan. i miss my flexibility. :) we've been yoga-ing for 2 months now. and it's been good! :)

today, however, paints a different picture. today was the first day of my so-called no-carbs-diet. actually it started with dinner yesterday. i tried having dinner with absolutely no rice. i had meat, veggie, soup, pretty much everything served last night. i just skipped rice, which seems like a reasonable option. for supper i had oats. this morning i had 1 piece of bread for breakfast, coupled with 2 small bananas. then i had lunch, once again without rice. but i ate a lot of veggie, i swear. sometime at about 5 pm i had oats again. then it was off for yoga at 6.45 pm.

during yoga, i was feeling a bit drained of energy. i tried to push that aside, but i was having trouble holding any pose tonight. i was getting a bit worried, but i figured i'd just pull through this class and have a more decent dinner when i got home. when we got to standing poses, i was getting light headed. i could really feel the energy draining away and by this time i got pretty scared actually. i remained quiet, and still tried to focus. but i was zoning out on intervals.

then for a moment, i saw black. just for a moment. a mere second. no one knew actually. coz i wasn't "gone" for long. but i felt it. i actually blacked out for a second. this really freaked me out.

i went easy on myself for the rest of the class. after class, i confessed to my mum, who started lecturing me. so for dinner, i had rice again. feeling much better now.

thus, my no-carbs-diet has come to an end. so it lasted less than 24 hours. i am rather disappointed with myself for lasting such a short while. but the mere thought of me being a potential patient of eating disorder really scares me.

i'm still trying to shed a few pounds. but absolutely no rice was a silly idea made with an obviously delusional mind frame. i think i'll stick to eating only when i'm hungry. don't worry guys. i'm okay.

yes yes, i should've known better. i know now.

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

weight woes

i'm having a BF! no, not a boyfriend...a Bitch Fit! take a look at these photos:


SJ Senior Prom 2003 * Metroball 2006


William's 2005 * Itallianies, The Curve 2006


Melbourne 2005 * Sydney 2006


PD Tri 2005 * PD Tri 2006


notice anything??? the puffy cheeks, the expanded waist, the overall bloating of me?! goodness gracious! what the hell did i do to myself?

ou know, weight has never been an issue for me. Never. i always figured i have a high metabolic rate, plus i work up a sweat regularly, so i never really put on much. Sure i eat like i was starved for a week. but we Hokkiens believe that the ability to eat is hock which means prosperity! but now that i look at myself, the prosperous look is really showing and it's not something i was aiming for!

this significant weight gain is actuall a side effect of my medication. According to Elaine Moore hyperthyroidism patients usually lose weight. Only a small fraction of them gain weight. The effects after treatment however is a reverse...[read more]

but for me, i didn't lose weight before treatment. and i'm definitely not losing weight now that ive started treatment. so it seems i've skipped an entire part of the disease life cycle! the weight loss part!? why?

yup...no more carbs for me. no more chocolates (sniff...goodbye my dear Lindt chocs), no more ice cream, no more sweets, and yes...way more running! way more situps! way more cycling! i'm dieting and this time i'm gonna see results! you cannot make me eat!

Sunday, July 23, 2006

PD International Triathlon - comeback tri!

as of today, 23rd July 2006, i hereby declare the PD International Triathlon 2006, the official race of my comeback! you can probably guess that i did pretty well and am currently still basking in my own pride and glory. no i didn't win, but victory, to me, is not only an envelope full of cash and a hamper.

Saturday, 22nd July - Sprint [400m swim/12k bike/3k run]

I started my race day with less than 4 hours of sleep during the night. i was feeling kinda uppity the night before. I was feeling very excited and worried at the same time. every single race i participated in this year was a total disaster. i had doubts i would complete the sprint event. with no more than a total mileage of 1000m of breaststroke, 10 km of cycling and a lot of running, i was not confident that ust completing the sprint would be an easy task. so sleep was impossible, and what did i do? at 1.30 am i caught an episode of That's So Raven on Disney and then i watched Superman Returns on DVD. [more write up on this later]. I finally went to bed at about 3 + am. The next morning i was up at 7.30 am (i overslept, it was supposed to be 7 am). Duty calls, and so i sped down the federal highway to Sri Petaling with just a banana in my tummy.

After class, i rushed over to college where there was a student forum going on. It was pretty cool, the idea they came up with. I wanted to vote for them to have the Metropolitan Student Council, but alas, i had to leave before the balloting. Anyway, came home, had lunch, threw everything into the boot and off we went, Isaiah in the car with us. Somewhere along the way, at the Seremban R&R, Yi Xi joined us and we were good to go.

It was about 3.15 when we reached PD Marina so we had exactly 45 minutes to get ready, register and RACE! I, obviously not a swimmer, forgot my goggles. I borrowed Yi Xi's. Already feeling all jittery and nervous, we went to register and on to the race site. Got my body marked, my cap on and was ready to go. One more thing i forgot. My squirt bottle. I left it in the hotel room. I'm obviously not a cyclist either. So i had the normal mineral water bottle, half filled, coz it was the one from the car. Owells, anything goes at this point!

Jumped into the water for warm up. Met the likes of Sam,....and many others. You know, i really have to start remembering names and faces. There was this guy who was like "HEY Karen! how are you? how are you?" and i looked at him, puzzled, "hie!....erm...erm..." and then, he'd mention some name which really doesn't ring a bell at all [i pray he doesnt read my blog] and i'll just go "oh yea! hie hie!" when i really didn't catch the name he told me. Then he'd introduce me to his friend who also went "Yea karen, i know her, i've met her before" and i'm all smiles-smiles-shake-hands while i search deep deep to the pitts of my thinking cap. ???????!!

Anyway, even before the race started i was able to injure myself. I scraped my knuckles on the barnacles at the side of the deck. so i was actually going around shaking hands with with a bleeding hand. [insert-name-of-formentioned-person] pointed it out to me. and an echo if winced expressions followed. heh.

Keith joined in the swim for laughs. Literally. Coz he's so darn good at it. Funny thing was tho, Mr Chan Chee Seng started blaring into the loudspeaker "Who's the 2 fellas with no swimming cap over there? please come out!" hahah...i dont know who the other fella was. but i told keith, dont care la, just join. hahah...

Flag off. I was brutally ambushed in the water with several kicks to my face and stomach and even a claw on my calves. wth! Bully the breaststroke girl why don't you! The swim was good. Rejuvenating even. I had a steady pace. Trying my best to avoid any form of human being that i can see. My goggles were all fogged up. I came up in about 15 minutes, which really was very impressive to me. I hear my mum, my dad and Keith cheering for me at the top of their voices.

I ran as fast as i could to my bike. Ive had very bad transition periods in the past. so as i ran, i did a bit of visualising how i was gonna carry out the transition. I had my vest on, first thing. Then socks, shoes, helmet, sunnies. I even imagined how i was gonna lift my bike off the rack (i hate those hanging bike racks). And to my surprise, everything went smoothly. Isaiah was just a tad in front of me. But we all know he's conserving energy for tomorrow's race. The bike leg was, once again, surprisingly easygoing. I even took on the hills with little effort. I didn't stop and do my hand-pushing-legs stunt which Uncle Alex is so fond of reminding me. my bike monitor wasn't working (yes yes, pretty messed up noob triathlete here) but who cares? I was freaking on a roll! Came in just over 27 minutes. Once again, i amazed myself. Siah cheers can be heard and seen, alongside some cheers from Pacesetters.

On to the run. Sure i had the inevitable jelly legs, post cycling syndrome. But as cheesy as this my sound, adrenaline was seriously pumping through my veins. For real! I felt really good! Mr KC was poised with his huge camera somewhere in front of me. I hope he had a good shot. *grin*
The run was a little harder to catch on. But it was all good. I overtook one or two kids. Kept myself at a constant pace. Increased my speed a little after the u-turn. And made it back home in over 15 minutes. ha! my target of completing in 1 hour 15 minutes was overthrown by an astounding 57 minutes and 27 seconds!

I was put in such a good mood that i was singing in the shower. A delicious carbo-loading dinner of spaghetti and meatballs and cream soup followed. MmmmMMMM!

By 10pm, the 4 hour sleep took a toll on me. So, for the first time, i was asleep by 10.30pm. :)

Sunday, 23rd July - Olympic distance [1500m swim/40k bike/10k run]

My dad and i were doing the running leg. Keith and YiXi were doing the swimming leg. Isaiah, the champion, was doing the full. We woke up byat 6.15 am. Breakfast was cheesecake, bread and water. We went to the race site at about 7.10 am. Already the place was buzzing with energy. The swimmers got their bodies numbered while i started snapping pictures. I forgot to take my camera out the day before so photos only start from today.

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clockwise:Yixi, fuhan & keith with their bodies numbered; Keith sprinting in; jacob chillin; the yellow caps of the relay swimmers


There was a bit of a drama with this Singaporean dude who missed a buoy in the water and got disqualified. he was actually the second person out of the water. But Mr Chan seemed adamant about DQ-ing him. He was so silly if u ask me. He could've just swam out to the buoy, go around it and come back. The buoy was only about 100m from the finish and with his good time, he could've gone around and back in a minute tops! But no! darn fella just quit altogether. I say BOO sama budak Singapura! Served him right for not listening to the briefing properly. SEA games gold medalist, apparently. I say, so what?! Nobody likes a sore loser.

Keith, who was on my team, came up in about 22 minutes! I was so excited! The pressure was building up inside of me too! Yi Xi came up a bit after and then my dad's swimmer. Woohoo! We even had time to go for a short breakfast, assuming the cyclists would take about an hour. When we returned, my team's cclist came in not long after. He did about 67 minutes. As i sped off, i heard someone saying that i was in 2nd position! wahlau! pressure!!

Running 10 km was a feat. It didn't used to be, but with such a bad year, i was afraid. what more, the egocentric in me had to tell my cyclist i'll do it in an hour. as i ran, i thought to myself, an hour Karen? are you nuts? Then again, it was the same ego that made me push myself the entire way, willing myself not to stop. I had 2 sips at 1 water station. That was all. I ran past Jeffrey who told me that he'll be taking his time. ??after the U-turn i saw my cyclist on the other side! ahaha he was doing even better time than me. I saw Isaiah who was also coming fast. I saw Mr Cheng, John boy, and many others. I saw my dad too, up ahead. In about a km away from the finish, my cyclist was ahead of me. He told me to keep a steady pace. My watch showed 53 minutes then. I was so afraid i might just run out of steam in a few seconds and dash my own hopes as well as that of my cyclist and Keith. 1 hour, me ass, Karen. But then i saw this guy struggling up ahead. I tried to catch up, then i told the guy to keep going. I urged him to not walk. They say do unto others what you want others to do unto you. Well, in this case, my cheering this guy on was therapeutic in a way. It made me WANT to not stop as well. It made me want to be a role model to him. And eventho he managed to go on ahead..way ahead of me, i felt good, renergised even.

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clockwise: me coming in from the run; keith and i posing; daddy coming in from the run; isaiah-post race


I came in in 56 minutes and 23 seconds. As i carried my finisher medal around, i prayed nobody comes up to me and tells me that the darn route was less than 10 km. I swear i would give him/her a black eye. Keith seemed ok. I hope i didn't disappoint him.

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Tean 825! Mr Chu Poh Onn - Keith - Karen


So yes i had a ball of a time! Nope i didn't finish second place. Turned out that person miscounted. I wasn't even top 5. But owell. I have made a comeback. I am currently the closest possible to my former fitness level, if not at par. I'm SO happy! Pardon the long winded entry. I'm babling out of ecstasy.

Watch out! I'm back in the game!

Saturday, July 22, 2006

PD tri tomorrow!

Tomorrow's PD International Triathlon. travelling with me to PD is Isaiah and Yixi. So for the next 2 days, my parents will have 2 "foster" sons to take care of. The funny thing here is that my parents have been told by a fortune teller before they started a family that they can have as many sons as they like, but they will only have 1 daughter. And true to that, i am a proud daughter a family of 5. My parents, my 2 brothers and moi. And even now, they've got 2 other "foster" sons in their hands. It's a pity I've got more guy friends than girls. They would've loved a "foster" daughter once in a while.

Expectations? N/A. I havent been cycling. I only did 2 swimming sessions since the last tri. My running's improved but i don't want to raise my own hopes. So i'm thinking a 15 minute swim for 400m, a 1 hour bike for 18 km, and a 25 minute run for 3 km? i'm giving myself a lot of allowance. :) for the next day, i'm aiming at a 1 hr 10 k run. *fingers crossed*

It's that time again, where i bid farewell to my dear aussie educated friends. One by one they're flying off back to where they came from. i'll join them one day. :)

"Good Day"
Jewel

I say to myself
Self, why are you awake again? It's one a.m.
Standing with the fridge wide open, staring
Such a sight, florescent light
The stars are bright
Might make a wish, if I believed in that shit
As it is, I might watch TV
Cause it's nice to see people more messed up than me
I say to myself, as I smile at the wall, should let myself fall

It's gonna be alright, no matter what they say
It's gonna be a good day, just wait and see
It's gonna be alright, cause I'm alright with me
It's gonna be, it's gonna be, it's gotta be

I shiver, shut the door
Can't think standing here no more
I'm alone, my mine's racing, heart breaking
Can you be everything I need you to be?
Can you protect me like a daughter?
Can you love me like a father?
Can you drink me like water?
Say I'm like the desert, just way hotter.

The point of it all
Is that if I should fall
Still your name I'll call

It's gonna be all right, no matter what they say
It's gonna be a good day, just wait and see
It's gonna be okay, cause I'm okay with me
It's gonna be, it's gonna be

As long as we laugh out loud
Laugh like we're mad
Cause this crazy, mixed up beauty is all that we have
Because what's love but an itch we can't scratch, a joke we can't catch
God, but still we laugh

Get back in bed, turn off the TV
You say "I'll be alright baby, just wait and see."

It's gonna be alright, it's gonna be okay
It's gonna be alright, just wait and see

It's gonna be alright, no matter what they say
Gonna be a good day, just wait, just see
Gonna okay, cause I'm okay with me
It's gonna be, it's gonna be, it's gonna be...okaaaay

uh-oh, i'm awake again, it's one am
staring, such a sight, at least the stars are bright.

Thursday, July 20, 2006

old school charming

it was Bec's last day in Malaysia before she flies off back to the cold harsh Melbourne air tomorrow morning (yes, im a meanie, but i'm the jealous one here). So I got her and Anne together in Swenson's SS2 just to meet up before she leaves.

It was a fun outing. We had fun laughing over silly matters and stuff. Then we came across this DVD store which sold like a lot of old movies, and guess what? I finally found my Saturday Night Fever! I know...ive been searching everywhere for it!



The moment i came home, i changed into my work out attire, put the disc into the player, pushed the stationary bike in front of the tv, got on and hit play! ha! so happy, can finally watch my 1970s lengchai.

the movie, much to my surprise was actually very very vulgar. haha so it's true, the people of the 70s ain't exactly the purest lot. but it was good entertainment, no less. now if John Travolta still looked like he did 25 years ago, i'd pay to watch him gyrate like that again. seriously, i would.

the coolest thing about the show, i felt, was when he gave up his number 1 trophy to a Puerto Rican couple at a dance competition. He felt that they were, in his words, f***in' better than he and his partner, and thus deserve the first place. that very scene simply made me reach out to kiss him. i literally did! i had my hands outstretched while my legs were still pedaling furiously away, maintaining a 23 km/h speed. hehe...

and when he was in his white tux, with his boot cut pants? yea, as gay as he may look, i thought he was the sexiest thing i ever saw. now why don't guys dance like that anymore, huh?

anyway, i didn't quite like the ending though. seemed rather hanging. but anyhow, it was a great show. any dance movie is a great show la actually...:)

i'm so easily charmed. strike a Saturday Night Fever pose in front of me and i'll probably be swept away. or maybe the pose with the white tux and boot cut pants. :)

edit: yup Mr Fang pointed out that i made Mr Travolta 20 years older than he actually is. Saturday Night Fever was filmed in 1977. :)

Wednesday, July 19, 2006

my neighbour the prick

i've always thought highly of myself as a friendly neighbour. i've seen so many tv shows whereby the entire neighbourhood would welcome a newcomer with baskets of freshly baked bread, bouquets of daisies from their gardens and home-baked pasta. and i've always wanted to do that. maybe not with the delicacies and decor but with warm greetings. i've always wanted to be the-nice-neighbour.

but when my next door was bought up by this guy and renovations were carried out i knew they weren't a friendly lot. first of all, they covered their entire backyard with bricks and a high gate so that the only thing i can see if a person was there was his/her top of the head. it already screamed "no i dont want to buddy up with u".

then they moved in. a rather elderly couple. they seemed harmless at first. just a tad too shy. oh how wrong was i...

the husband has roving eyes. he has given me the once over like a billion times. and it has not stopped. he even smiles a bit when he does. my maid says he looks at her while she hangs clothes and cooks in the kitchen! he parks his motorbike on the far side of his porche, the side that's right next to my car. he apparently sits on his bike and peers into my kitchen!

the wife screams at her maid. they have changed their maid a gazillion times! each one working for less than 2 months. they're psychotic! their little girl can be heard scolding and ordering the maid around. it's so rude! and once i tried smiling at the wife, she gave me a deathly stare.

their maids (all of the prviously employed ones) are scared to death. once my maid spoke to one of them, the next day their maid got fired. it's nonsensical ain't it?

and the had this HUGE bush growing in front of their house. the bush grew so wild that it constricts my vision when i drive out. both my mum and Jude's mum (who lives on the other side of them) have told him about the bush and asked him to trim it, but no can do!

it wasn't until recently, my mum had to butter him up and sweet talked him into trimming the darn bush! the horny prick probably wanted to charm my mum...

a few days back, my ahmah caught them dumping rubbish at the back of someone else's house, a few doors away! the nerve of them! the person living there had to call up MPSJ and was later accused of dumping the rubbish there herself! apparently, my ahmah rescued her and testified that the idiots next door to us did it.

i regret to say i don't recall who lived next door before these morons came about. but whoever it was i miss them dearly. i miss my other side neighbour as well. the house on the other side has been left vacant for years! weird things have crawled into my house...

i'm starting to think apartments and condos are pretty good deals now.

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

do i need a reason

do i need a reason
to want to see you again
to be at that time and place
that happened before the pain

do i need a reason
to long to hear your voice
to have that freeing conversation
not having to make a choice

do i need a reason now
to ask you out again
coz im searching deep within me
and i find that nothing remains

apart from a broken heart
that's torn by loneliness
apart from tired eyes
that's strained through staring into space

apart from a mending life
whose stitches have just been pulled apart
tell me now is that reason enough
to want just 2 ounces of your heart

Monday, July 17, 2006

kids these days...

this actually happened in June. i was about to blog about it, but for some reason or other i didn't. though, it's just too cute to not blog about it. so here it goes. these are excerpts of a conversation i had with a cousin's friend in Melbourne. note: my cousin's 8 years old.

girl: hey
girl: do u noe lawrences phone no

me: ahaha no i dont sorry
me: i dont live in australia
girl: kk
me: im in malaysia now
girl: coz im his
girl: girl friend
girl: !!!!

me: icic...shouldnt u have his number then?
girl: I LOST IT

***

girl: who do u like?
me: what do u mean who do i like?
girl: who do u like
girl: i told u who i like
girl: u tell me who u like
girl: tell me

me: i like the spanish goal keeper
me: :)
girl: lol
me: do u watch football?
me: hehe
girl: no

***

girl: can u ask
girl: lawrence wen
girl: he comes on msn
girl: if we can be bf
girl: and gf?

me: hehe u have to ask him that yourself darling
girl: lol

***

girl: how old r u?
me: im 20
girl: oh my god!
me: ahaha yes im an old dinasaur
girl: are u pretty?
girl: r u a boy or girl?

me: ahaha im a girl...my name's Karen
girl: kk

***

girl: i also like a boy
girl: named austin
girl: his a hottie!

me: i thought u like lawrence
girl: i do
girl: i like law and austin

me: u cant like two boys
girl: yes i can!
me: yea
me: hehe
me: but u said lawrence was your boyfriend
girl: austin is more of my bf coz we kissed
girl: i only just met law


***

[girl] just sent you a Nudge!
me: yes?
girl: talk to me!!!!!!!!!!
me: ahaha i am!
girl: talk to me more then
me: well, what do u want to talk abt?
girl: bf nd gf
me: hehe ic...
me: u start
girl: kk
girl: well law likes chelsea and me

me: oh there's a chelsea too
girl: i hate her thou
girl: how can i win him over?

me: but uve already got austin
girl: i noe
me: why do u hate her? coz she's with lawrence?
girl: yep!!!!
me: hehe that's jealousy not hatred
girl: wat does hatred mean?????????????????????
me: hatred is the feeling of hate
girl: but lawrence and chelsea r together
girl: and im with law and austin!

me: hehe this is not good
me: have u heard of two timing?
girl: no
girl: wat is it?

me: it is when u are dating 2 boys at once
me: its not good...
girl: lol

i thought i was sad because i'm 20 and i'm single. now an 8 year old has made me sink into depression.

Saturday, July 15, 2006

results

on my last day in Sydney, my results were released. When i checked i was pretty happy. It's not excellent but it was great. i had 2 distinctions and 2 credits. i did not set any targets actually. i usually dont have expectations of my results, because the moment i hand in my paper i usually have not a single worry about that exam anymore. i would actually quite happy if they never bother to give me results. really i would.

so anyway, my results were satisfactory. i'm not gonna go "it could've been better" or "i can actually work harder". No doubt i can. I believe that i actually can be a good student. The thing here is not the ability, but rather the desire. If i were given a chance to sit for the papers again i would still come out with the same results. I'm not very studious nor diligent. I never liked reading let alone reading something i dont like. I am lucky for the common sense in me that enabled me to answer most of the questions rationally.

so, i gave myself a pat on my back that day. my parents gave me a mini treat when i came home. all's well that ends well. :)

fives

a very much delayed tag post...compliments of Yen.

What were you doin in secondary school?

1. finding writing in pen really hard to do, and then really enjoying it after that...
2. following peer pressure
3. hiding from Mum the discipline teacher
4. having significant others
5. striving for everything at the top of the NON-academic ladder

Five of your favourite singers/ bands

1. Lisa Loeb
2. Bon Jovi
3. Britney Spears
4. Matchbox 20
5. many many others

Five things u would do if u were a millionaire

1. go hike and conquer every mountain...ahahha...:)
2. travel around the world
3. pick a poor country, and buy them all the medical equipment they need, send them specialised doctors and pay the doctors (i know...so noble right...hehe)
4. pay for my family's needs (i'm assuming i'll only get the chance to be a millionaire when i'm old)
5. buy a mountain bike, rock climbing gears, and all the Nike Sports Bras i can have...ahahahha

Five things i like doin

1. eating...
2. running WELL
3. being outdoors
4. OB-ing
5. chilling with friends and family

Five things i would nvr buy, wear or get

1. ciggies...yeap...:)
2. i actually cant think of anymore...this is bad...

Five favourites

1. breezy beaches
2. romantic comedies
3. quiet jungles
4. birthday presents
5. satisfaction

Five people to do this?

whoever who deem themselves bored enough to do this...:)

Friday, July 14, 2006

Sydney in a nutshell

since i'm too lazy to post a detailed report on my 12 days in Sydney (and u guys probably wont be bothered to read my what-i-ate-for-breakfast posts) i decided to do a short summary.
i've got other things to blog about and tags to do as well.

pictures can be viewed here. beware, there are over 300 pictures. :)

Places i visited:
1.7.06
1. The Rocks
2. Harbour Bridge
3. Sydney Opera House (i touched the outside tiles)

2.7.06
4. Taronga Zoo
5. The Rock's Market

3.7.06
6. Sydney University (darn i love this uni)
7. Manly Beach
8. Star City (the coolest casino i've ever seen...for real)

4.7.06
9. Blue Mountains (it rained like the entire day!)
10. Epping (a little suburb on the other side of the city)

5.7.06
11. Sydney Olympic Park
12. The Fish Market
13. Sydney Aquarium

6.7.06 - 7.7.06
14. Canberra ~
(a) The Parliament - old and new
(b) Questacon (this science and technology place...pretty cool)

8.7.06
15. Pylon Tower (one of the pillars at the end of Harbour bridge)
16. Paddy's Market
17. The Rock's again...

9.8.06
18. Bondi Beach!
19. Cherrybrook (where i stayed with Mel)

10.8.06 - 11.8.06
20. Blue Mountains again (this time in bright fine weather!)
21. Echo Point, The Three Sisters and all the trails that lead to and from it...

12.8.06
22. Sydney city for some last minute shopping
23. Sydney International Airport on the way home...

Food i ate:
1.7.06
1. Pavlova
2. Pancakes on The Rocks

2.7.06
3. Hurricanes ribs...mmmmm...

3.7.06
4. Thaitanic
5. Max Brenner's on Manly
6. Macchiato - italian

4.7.06
7. self made tuna and ham sandwhiches

5.7.06
8. Seafood platter for 2 at the Fish Market...seriously yummy...
9. Ice Cream at some place with the name Flower in it
10. super super spicy Korean Japanese food...

6.7.06 - 7.7.06
11. McD's chocolate sundae!
12. self made avocado roll
13. Harry's famous pies and hotdog!

8.7.06
14. Bubble tea
15. Pasteur - Viestnamese
16. Lowenbrau - German... (mango beer...mmmm)
17. Pancakes on The Rocks again...

9.7.06
18. Fried Mars Bars on Bondi (no kidding! they deep fried mars bars!!!)
19. satay, BBQ squids and pasta at Mel's place

10.7.06
20. PapaDino's in Katoomba

11.7.06
21. My own cheese tarts
22. Red Rock Deli chips

12.7.06
23. Indo Mee
24. Krispy Kremes for lunch...

My favourite places:
1. Blue Mountains...hands down...
2. The Rocks
3. Bondi

My favourite food:
1. Pancakes!
2. Ribs
3. Ice cream!

My favourite moments:
1. Bush walking in Blue Mountains...both times!
2. Walking along Bondi and Manly
3. showering in the hot shower...hehe...

yup...as u can see, my days in Sydney were not enough. I had so many things to do with so little time. Time flew by with a flutter of my eye lids. for real. I had so much fun. With my brother. I felt so close to him. Felt like we were best friends. When he left on Sunday i actually cried! I couldn't believe it...

so, that was it...my Sydney trip in a nutshell. :)

so where to next winter? hehe...

Thursday, July 13, 2006

Sydney

i really dont know how i'm gonna comlpete my 12 days in Sydney. It's just too activity-packed! i'll try my best, but be warned, i may stop midway and decide to screw the reporting altogether and just do a post mortem slash comparison with Melbourne.

i'm beat right now. and all cracked up. literally. my lips are chapped, my skin scratched. i just applied a ton of moisturiser all over.

Flew on yet another very turbulent flight with Lauda Air. I'll think twice about LaudaAir the next time. I'm pretty exhausted and emotionally worn out as well. so there wont be reporting for tonight.

i'll just leave you with a few pictures till next time. :)

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