Appreciated~*

"You keep thinking about the person; you can't wait to see the person.

but when you get to see the person, you forget what it's like to miss the person.

and you think about why the person wasn't there,

when the person is right here."

I merely transcribed what you had said. 

it resonates deeply within me. 

Appreciation - it's a key ingredient in all relationships.

I felt it, and I hope you will feel it too. 

I'm feeling so tired. 

And I don't know why. 

Had the most terrible nightmare last night.
I woke up in the middle of the night feeling utterly disorientated, frightened and extremely upset.
Of course, I felt relieved that it was just a dream... yet the lingering aftertaste of what had unfolded in my dreams was simply overpowering...
so much so that I had to use every ounce of energy within me to stop myself from crying.

Am I slowly crumbling?

Gotta hang on...

Random~*

a nice, warm cup of green tea

I desperately need to keep my sanity in check.

Anyway, the more I introspect, the more I feel that I'm a neither-here-nor-there kind of girl. 

In fact, I'm beginning to find myself standing outside the realm of 'FEMININITY'. 

Other than the fact that my hair is long, I really don't find myself very... girlish.
Neither am I tomboyish.

It's more like...

I don't understand parties, make-up, clubbing, dancing, skincare, haircare, eyecare, whatever-care, fashion, manicure, pedicure, perfumes, shades of pink, chick lit, chick flicks, girlish mannerisms, flowers, ogling at cute guys, CHIHUAHUAS, having fun dressing up, everything-must-be-pretty-and-new, luxury brands, coloured contacts, perfect hair, perfectly photogenic...

Ok, over-generalization.
But still.

And I wish I could draw a  comparison with 'Amy' from 'The Big Bang Theory' but I don't have the brains.

Well, well...
what can I say?

A being from some random star (not Venus), that's for sure.

There are times I do wish I were a little more... feminine but well, I guess, in the end, comfort prevails.

treacherous...~*

YT: The walk from the bus stop to utown is such a treacherous journey!
A: Wah, TREACHEROUS... really ah??
Jas: No lor... not that bad leh. I think it's partly because of the treacherous weather.
*YT&A nod in agreement*

so, what's the point of writing this dialogue down?

to illustrate how honours year feels to me, as of day 1 of semester 7.

It's going to be a TREACHEROUS journey.

then...? 
Brace yourself, suck it in, stay calm, and move the hell on. 

Well, things can get a lot worse so I'm already counting my blessings.
Right. 9am class tomorrow so time to sleep!

Life can be photo-worthy~*

[written on 10th Aug approx 1am]

I need to get this entry done before school commences next week *WEEPS*

Photo-heavy entry!

Ok, before I start letting the photos take over, I just want to express my humble opinion about the whole 'rumour' hullabaloo and all the vile responses that were expressed. 

Actually, I can sum it up with just a sentence:

Look around you, and then think before you speak. 

So, to celebrate National Day (well, technically, it's over, but who cares), some photos of the NDP preview show that Mr Z and I went! :) 

Yes, I was pretty darn lucky to get tickets for the preview. 

The last time I watched NDP live was in.... year 2001.

Can you feel the excitement?

Time for national anthem

Awesome performances

Olivia! :)

FINALE!

Spectacular fireworks display!

I kept saying that the people in charge were so generous with the fireworks, it was as if they were free of charge. =_=

Check out the crazy guy's arm XD

And so, we're a year older!

But still, when you think about it, we're such a super young country!

Happy (belated) birthday Singapore! :) 

Right, onto my long overdue HK trip! 

Not in chronological order; 

just random photos of random things at random places in a random order hahaha. 

yes, the very much raved upon mango drink!
Nothing VERY special imo

Menu for Mak's Noodles

Super yummy wonton noodles! :D
the noodles are so chewy, they really seem to bounce off your teeth haha

Egglets! Yums! 

Everyone said 'you gotta try this!'

Woots! rows and rows of yummy milk pudding! 

This tasted heavenly! :D Like the filling of egg tarts!

very POWER scrambled eggs plus buttered toast.
Why do they serve such delicious breakfast??? I wish Singapore can have these!

Another super raved upon dim sum restaurant outlet - Tim Ho Wan 

check out the crispy BBQ pork buns! Salivating at the thought of it... 

Avenue of Stars! 

Lots of handprints of famous HK celebrities 

The Peak - probably the longest queue I've queued in my life, no kidding.

Cart Noodles/Che Zai Mian with lots of assorted stuff
the noodles were good :)

Virgin try at roast goose.
Expensive (Sgd$8 for that leg) and tastes just like duck 

Another yummy breakfast at Tsui Wah :)

The ubiquitous macaroni with ham (check out the abalone slices :))

the majestic Buddha at Ngong Ping

Temple Street Night Market

Symphony of Lights show at Victoria Harbour :)

Beancurd with ginger syrup + curry fishballs
(the beancurd MELTS in your mouth)

Yummy char siew + roasted pork rice at Cafe de Coral

Z loved the roasted duck! :)

Desserts!

Check out the generous amount of fruits!

You see, how do you go there and NOT gain weight?!
It's like a food paradise!!
But then again, it's possible, given the insane amount of distance we walked.
I returned to the hotel with aching feet and covered in perspiration every night without fail.

All in all, I really enjoyed myself in Hong Kong! :)
And I would definitely love to go back again (not in July! Maybe sometime in May/Sept when the weather's cooler and it doesn't coincide with their school vacation)

It always feels great to go on a trip, no matter how short it is.
You can really submerse yourself in their culture and learn so many things that you hadn't known before - things that are unique to the country.

But of course, the best thing is being able to thoroughly relax and not give a damn about what's going on back home (it takes practice... because my mind will automatically drift back to the pending stuff at home).
Just focus on having fun, thinking about all the places that you will go the next day, all the yummy food that you get to eat... :)

I haven't been to many places in my life - hardly ever traveled.
Maybe that's why each and every trip is very meaningful to me.
And they are all eye-openers for me too :)

Last but not least, the company MATTERS!
Thanks Z, for everything :)  

on a side note,
school is starting next week. NOOOOOOOOOOOO...
can you feel my immense dread???
True that it has been a loooooong break for me, but to me, breaks are never 'long enough' heh.

and the thesis is, as always, sucking the life out of me. T.T

“There is only one page left to write on.
I will fill it with words of only one syllable.

I love.
I have loved.
I will love.”

- 'The Time Traveler's Wife' by Audrey Niffenegger

Thesis woes...~*

I know I'm supposed to do up a nice and not-so-wordy entry on my HK trip but unfortunately, I've been spending the past few days (and many more to go) testing the limits of my poor brain :(

Read articles after articles and found nothing very useful... so I finally gave up and travelled to the school library.
Spent hours bent over stacks of books and borrowed a few home.
Only after I reached home did I realize that to my utmost horror (I should've realized earlier but I'm apparently not very alert), the VERY CRUCIAL PAGES OF THAT BOOK WHICH COULD POTENTIALLY SAVE MY BRAIN FROM FURTHER TORTURE WERE TORN OUT!
@#*$&#@*$^!*(@&w@d^8!!
I guess I did pull out a couple of strands of hair.

Anyway, after that, it was pulling out more hair from reading the books, searching for more journal articles from the online library database, scrutinizing and analyzing the hypothesized model, picking out problems here and there, feeling frustrated, deflated, looking harder, searching deeper, emailing Prof many times (I'm one darn annoying student)... dumping out thoughts on Word... and finally deciding that I'm DONE and then shutting the laptop for the day.

and that repeated for the past few days.

And it will continue for many more... T.T

Well, you see, I've run into a roadblock and I'm contemplating how to get to the other side.
Major, MAJOR changes were made to my initial model and now, it doesn't seem very logical to me.

Now, I think I'm starting to understand what Prof T meant when he said, "You think about your thesis when you are eating, when you are bathing... you even dream about your thesis when you sleep. It will always be on your mind." (well, something along that line)

Anyway, this is merely the beginning.... (but undeniably the most crucial part of the whole process)
PRESS ON. HANG ON!!



Oh, and my timetable is finalized!
3 modules, 3-day week!
And I've got 6pm-9pm class on Friday night.... no more TGIF for me!!!

some random pics:

happy graduation lovelies! :)

The Beatles! 

Pretty night scenery of HK 

 resonates.

(amber, does it? anyway, christina is damn hot!)

Young girl, don't cry

I'll be right here when your world starts to fall

Young girl, it's alright

Your tears will dry, you'll soon be free to fly

When you're safe inside your room, you tend to dream

Of a place where nothing's harder than it seems

No one ever wants or bothers to explain

Of the heartache life can bring and what it means

When there's no one else, look inside yourself

Like your oldest friend, just trust the voice within

Then you'll find the strength that will guide your way

You'll learn to begin to trust the voice within

Young girl, don't hide

You'll never change if you just run away

Young girl, just hold tight

Soon you're gonna see your brighter day

Now in a world where innocence is quickly claimed

It's so hard to stand your ground when you're so afraid

No one reaches out a hand for you to hold

When you look outside, look inside to your soul

When there's no one else, look inside yourself

Like your oldest friend, just trust the voice within

Then you'll find the strength that will guide your way

If you will learn to begin to trust the voice within

Life is a journey

It can take you anywhere you choose to go

As long as you're learning

You'll find all you'll ever need to know

(Be strong)

You'll break it

(Hold on)

You'll make it

(Be strong)

Just don't forsake it because

(Hold on)

(No one can tell you what you can't do)

No one can stop you, you know that I'm talking to you

When there's no one else, look inside yourself

Like your oldest friend, just trust the voice within

Then you'll find the strength that will guide your way

You'll learn to begin to trust the voice within

Young girl, don't cry, I'll be right here

When your world starts to fall

- Christina Aguilera 'The Voice Within'