The Letter

Forwarded from a lovely friend :)


"..to all those waiting....and to all those whose search is finally over....and to those who has friends who are still searching.... A Letter to the One that God has Prepared for Me.

I am wondering at this very minute if you are thinking of me... if like me, you are wondering when we will finally find each other. Many times I thought I have finally found you, only to be disillusioned... the fact is, my search has not yet ended.

How we will meet then, would it be like in a black and white movie? Or could you have been someone I have already known all my life? Perhaps I would be drawn to you by your smile, or the way you make me laugh with your silly little ways. I don't really know for sure, but I pray that God will help me recognize you when the right time comes.

Sometimes I ask myself if I have ever really known Love. I guess we will never really know, until we find that right person.... and since I have not found you yet, then maybe I haven't really experienced true love yet.

I think of the many trying times that I have gone through since I began my search, but I guess that all these lessons will be worth the pain and sacrifice. After all, the tears I shed have been washing away my flaws so that I would become a better, and perfect person for you. And when that time comes, everything will fall in place, just as we had imagined it would be.

In the mean time, take care of yourself for me. Hold on to our dream and never let go. Believe that we will find each other no matter what happens. God has planned the course, and it is up to us to follow His directions.

Don't be afraid of getting lost. God saw to it that all the roads, no matter which one you choose to follow, will lead to me."

Happy Tunes

Happy tunes. I like.
How wonderfully magical it is.

The way it gently caresses your cheek,
The way it tucks a stray hair behind your ear,
The way it makes the sun shine brighter,
The way it spins your heart to a joyful dance,
The way it gives you wings to reach the heavens,
The way it stands behind you before you falter.

I have almost forgotten how to sing such tunes.
But then I was blessed with the best melody ever.
One which I will be humming for a long time to come.

Trucks Gone Wild

Couldn't help it with the title, lol.

This is the prob with forwarded emails tho:
You just can't give credit to its rightful owner for creating such interesting ideas.

Maybe someone could point out who did them?

P.s. Top points for SpiderPepsi and Hot&Spicy! :D

One more

One more... Ba da da please
:D



Stay Beautiful
(Last Goodnight)

Power in Estrogen?

Is estrogen testosterone for women?
Thu May 1, 2008 10:52am EDT
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By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor



Photo: REUTERS/Susana Vera



WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Estrogen fuels feelings of power and competition in women in much the same way testosterone does in men, researchers said on Wednesday in a study that shows the need to win is every bit as feminine as it is masculine.

Estrogen levels shot up in power-motivated women when they won and plummeted when they lost, while the opposite was true in women who appeared not to be interested in power, the researchers found.

"The biology of dominance in women has been vastly under- researched. On top of that, it sets up very nice parallels with men and testosterone," said Steven Stanton of the University of Michigan, who conducted the study.

Earlier this month, British researchers reported that male financial traders made more money when their testosterone levels were high.

Stanton, working under the guidance of German researcher Oliver Schultheiss of Friedrich-Alexander University in Erlangen, wanted to see if estrogen or testosterone was affected when women competed.

"We put women in this study in a face-to-face contest where they competed on a computer task for 10 rounds," Stanton said in a telephone interview.

"Following each round, they were told whether they won or lost and they could watch each other's reaction to winning or losing."

Saliva samples were taken to measure their hormone levels.

"Even before the contest started, we have this measure of power motivation or dominance motivation that we use," he added.

Volunteers are shown a neutral picture and asked to write a short story about it. "We look for themes that are related to power. The more power themes that someone writes about, the more power-motivated that we consider them," said Stanton.

Estrogen was linked to personality type as well, Stanton said -- and the women, mostly in their 20s, were evenly divided.

"The higher the women were in estrogen, they higher they were in this measure of power motivation," he said.

"To sum up, we have found that estradiol (estrogen), but not testosterone, and a nonconscious need for dominance are positively related in women. This positive relationship is strongest in single women (and) women not taking oral contraceptives," they wrote in the journal Hormones and Behavior.

Women who seemed to have less of a need to dominate were affected differently, Stanton said.

"It was almost a flip-flop of the result. Those who were not power-motivated, if they won, their estrogen went down. If they lost, their estrogen went up a little bit," he said.

"Estrogen is very behaviorally potent and is actually a close hormonal relative to testosterone. In female mammals, estrogen has been tied to dominance, but there has been scant research examining the behavioral roles of estrogen in women," added Stanton.

He hopes also to test women past menopause, whose bodies produce less estrogen, and also to test men and women as they compete against one another.

(Editing by Sandra Maler)

Hiding Elephants

"If you can't convince them... confuse them "
:P

Light Reprise

"Fwd: Light at the end of the tunnel



No matter what situations life throws at you...

No matter how long and treacherous your journey may seem...



Remember, there is a light at the end of the tunnel!

You're laughing aren't you?
that's good .......my job here is done!

Have a great day."



Lol great timing, just when I needed it most to drag me out of the slumps.

Definitely maybe then.

Chasing Pavements

Clinic Fantasy

Taipei bar lets diners tipple from IV tubes
Mon Apr 23, 2007 11:51am EDT

(Sher: Maybe CQ's Clinic would have fared better had they applied such a themed restaurant concept eh)



Photo: REUTERS/Richard Chung

"powered by Sphere
Featured Broker sponsored link
TAIPEI (Reuters Life!) - A Taipei restaurant-bar is letting visitors order "medicine" from a menu and dripping it into their glasses from a transparent ceiling-suspended vat, becoming the latest oddball themed restaurant in Taiwan's capital.

As many as 10 visitors can sit around each bed at the D.S. Music Restaurant, a hospital-themed eatery, and watch showgirls dance on weekend nights or chat up "nurses" whose rabbit-ears complement their starched white uniforms.

The 130-seat restaurant, which features crutches hung from the walls and a wheelchair parked in the lobby, is the only one with a hospital theme in Taiwan.

Other touches include a sign marked "emergency room" leading to the toilets.

"Food is hard to compete on with other restaurants, so the part we emphasise is service," says assistant manager Ou Chia-hao, brother of the 29-year-old owner.

"In Taipei, pressure on people is high, and they want a place near home where they can feel relaxed."

Ou's brother opened D.S. last year with T$5 million ($150,760) to express his enthusiasm for the care he got at a hospital when he was treated for a liver disorder.

Two more D.S. branches are in the works, with plans to open by the end of next year, Ou said.

The spot is the latest in a string of strange-themed eateries in Taipei, as local entrepreneurs cater to people with a taste for the quirky and offbeat.

The Jail puts some of its restaurant tables behind bars, while another serves full-course meals in toilet bowls. "

Hand in Hand

When nothing should ever deter us from our dreams and goals...


"He without leg...
She without hand..."


Centrestage - Hand in Hand

Slow me down

Backpack

Move forward. Don't stop.
The backpack. Weighted.
Yet lightens by the day.
The future beckons.
Doesn't it spell opportunity... a silver lining?

Dimples.
Hello, back from a holiday already?

Pouring December rain?
It will still be a happy Xmas.
And an excellent new year.

Xmas Begins

When a perfect, White Christmas is only wishful thinking in sunny Singapore...

(wait, make tt rainy :P)

Three men died on Christmas Eve and were met by Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates.

'In honor of this holy season' Saint Peter said,

'You must each possess something that symbolizes Christmas to get into heaven.'

The first man fumbled through his pockets and pulled out a lighter. He flicked it on.

'It represents a candle', he said.

'You may pass through the Pearly Gates,' Saint Peter said.

The second man reached into his pocket and pulled out a set of keys.

He shook them and said, 'They're bells.'

Saint Peter said, 'You may pass through the Pearly Gates.'

The third man started searching desperately through his pockets

and finally pulled out a pair of women's panties.

St. Peter looked at the man with raised eyebrows and asked,
'And just what do those symbolize?'

The man replied, 'These are Carol's.'

And so The Christmas Season begins......

Shimmer

Never lose sight of the goal.
Never.


Even if it was just for a reason.
Thank you then, reason.

Equation

Five smiles to offset a frown.
One frown to erase all smiles.

How much laughter do we need then
To put them back?

Surface Deep

Not a butterfly that flits from flower to flower.
Not a pebble that skims & jumps across the surface.

Just a freaking rock.
That sinks straight to the bottom.
Just a freaking swan.
That foolishly lives in blissful naivity.

What casualness?
What callousness?

If only we are all done pretending.
If only we can finally leave our masks behind.

Black Sabbath!!

They're coming to town!!!

At the period when I had to be overseas.
#$%@$%%#$)^&(#)$(@_#$%)@_~!!!!

WHY, OH WHY??

Dammit. Gdi.
In retaliation, I shall catch an even bigger concert.

IN LONDON. HAH!
*grumble* *curse* *spit*

Gig Whore

(Sorry to disappoint u guys, but this obviously isn't me :P)

After having The Freeloaders' gigs last week, I realised how much I missed being onstage.
Singing. Grooving. Screaming.
Seducing the audience. Or attempting to.

Remembering the adrenaline rush in the veins in anticipation of the crowd's cheer and the blinding spotlights.
The slight crease on the forehead in revision of the last min change of lyrics or progression.
The moment of triumph upon execution of the last song.

Could never have enough of 'em gigs.
Never will.
Not even with grey hair, wrinkly skin & falling teeth.

Those who are yet to graduate may not appreciate as much how precious each moment is spent fooling around in the bandroom and prancing onstage.
It is only natural human behaviour to take these priviledges for granted until, of course, these aren't granted anymore.

It is only after a series of events got us realizing how much we wanted our band to work out.
Especially with the huge potential we have to rock the world out there.
Hey, how many bands have female power harmony sia!

Well, we have loads to learn from the big boys like Surath the one man wonder, and his band Reverie.
Ah pek Victor the fast fingers blues maestro.
The Dubious Bros, JamX winners.

We're the new kids on stage of course.
But hey, we might be rocking your neighborhood soon enough ;)

And especially with an exciting lineup of the new Freeloaders.
Who they are, you may ask?
Patience now.
We shall debut soon.
To freeload on anyone and everyone. Muahaha.

Hello world, here we come.
With a bit of luck. A bit of sweat.
A bit of tears. A bit of hope.
A bit of everything.


P.s. Cut my hair short in a spur of a moment again.
Looked like I'm bloody acting cute again.
Dammit.


P.p.s. Inspired by The UnXpected to take up acoustic. Well, enough to bluff with lah at least, hehe. Should I? Should I?

Running Out

Is time essentially ticking out on us;
If we hesitate in leaving our comfort zone;
If we couldn't strive hard enough for what we have always aimed for;
Even after countless disappointments encountered?

Do we willingly slave away through our daily routine;
Dieing a little every second, every minute, every day;
Too busy to question the ultimate role of our existence?
But even if we do start asking those relevant questions,
Would we ever find that answer in time?

Ring That Doorbell

Welcome back!

With a million things that happened within that span of blog inactivity...
It is best summarising them in a short post.



Work

Model finally validated :D :D :D
All the blood, sweat, tears and angst had finally came to bear fruit.
Oh-so-sweet fruit. Oh yeah.

And yes, we are going to Europe.

A week in London.
(Shall I revisit the London Eye?)



A week in Vienna, Austria.
(Hellooo Schonbrunn Palace).



(And I got the Sound of Music ringing in my ears. Yes that was where it was filmed at).



And two weeks getting lost in Europe. Czech Republic & Italy particularly.
(First to the dancing house, Prague).


(And then to Venice, the ultimate city of romantic, gondolas & masquerades).


It's finally worth it. Oh yeah.




The Freeloaders


Come this month, we shall start playing at some events.
Project Identity on 15 July.
The Army gig on 19 July.
Hope to get some opening/resident gigs soon.
Do let me know if you guys have any places in mind where we can patronize (or rather, terrorize hurhur).



Finally heard the Unexpected play at Wala's.
Woah the singer's one powerful, sexy singer in her own moody way.
And the guitarist, he's like Uncle Vic 10 years down the road.
He's tt amazing.

Very much inspired to hit the pubs.
Soon, soon. *crosses fingers*





Salsa

Began twirling at The Union Square proper on Fridays.
Time to get the groove back.
Sway, waist. Stay, shoulders.



Some of the SherryTreeFriends kaki are back for the hols.
Welcome back Wing, Bri, Cheryl, Youyi.
Ah the company of the wacky peeps again.




Sad to see dear Ying leave for Aussie for her studies.
All the best babe, cu soon in Dec! Hugz.


(Reunion of the Quatro Loco. Almost. Porsh, come back alr!)


Indonesia

Absolutely amazing.
Will upload the pics next month.
Sorry Adi, about the cam.
So much for travelling on a budget lol. We're now broke again.
Now if only I could get OT pay. Sigh.


(A lil preview. Prambanan temple: spot the fusion of the ancient and the new).


(The Garuda statue: hailed to be taller than the Statue of Liberty upon completion).




Geraldine's Wedding
Attended my first classmate's wedding on 07-07-07.
A hot wedding date indeed.
Had to reject 2 other receptions to travel back to M'sia to see the beautiful bride and groom tie the knot at the Palace of the Golden Horses.

Hmm, ideas on a perfect wedding.
Maybe I shall turn it into a rock concert.
With spotlights & smokescreens.
Right. Lol.



Tennis
Picked it up again as well.
Been playing on weekends, except lately.
Have been a bit busy running about.
Oh well, hope to whack some balls soon.
That always seem to have some... therapeutic effect... on me.
Must be the feeling of raw power tingling in one's hands.
Now if only I could move my feet as quickly too.



As for the rants on the world, those shall wait.
Once those darker inspirations hit.
Hurhur.

Butterdragons

And we still live on trees


Don't believe me?
Consult the M'sian "treehouse" so proudly planted in the famous Eden Project's (Cornwall) tropics section.

But of course, our treehouses are perfectly equipped with 100mbps broadband, cabled lcd TVs, iPods, 3G phones and the latest Wii. The only thing we need are fresh attap leaves for the roof, and new dig holes for the toilets.


And oh, here's the route to my 2nd treehouse in sunny S'pore:
Just approx. 6km. Or 3-4 hours long.





Start with the driveway through the leafy arch...



Through the suspension bridge...





Pass my 3-storey personal guardhouse...






(Which also serves as a kitchen / dining hall for our nasi lemak & kuih breakfasts)



Drop your car off at the garage (right), which leads straight to my bedroom... and its bedroom lamp (left)...



Take a dip into the swimming pool, which also conveniently serves the bathroom role when necessary...





Some of the pets rared in my treehouse:
Red butterdragons...
(They sounded better than water dragonflies anyways :P)



Monitor lizards...




Orange-tailed fishes...




And hungry tortoises...



Other treehouse facilities include a 9-hole kampung golf course...



An attap bar by the pool... serving the best tody from India & China...



A rain gauge on the right...
(And I lost my first sole to the wilderness :S)



Lovely, aye?
And oh, that's my dog's kennel.



Long but interesting, leisurely walk.
Just a slight hint of sunburn, though many claimed there was no difference in my skintone anyways. Sigh.

Had a scrumptious lunch at Coronation Plaza.
Well, it was for a $6 student set meal. Ohohoho.
Brings back those fond memories of NJ & Council days :D

Good day in all.
Next stop: Bt Batok nature reserve? :D



Ivory Talk

Awesome interior & shisha bar. Lovely northen food.
Even better, it was paid for :D

A treat from Claire in view of her novel oral dosing abstract being awarded the British Parliament's distinguised scientific award, impressive.

How's tt's for previously questioning the viability of my FYP topic?
Hah!

The man on the table...
And the spicy Indian ice-cream that couldn't melt.
Interesting, yes. But maybe Ben & Jerry's the next time.




Worst egg tarts ever

Disgustingly tiny. Terribly undercooked.
And definitely overpriced.

Ppl, boycott Gastronomy @Marina Square.
The food totally stretched my easy going limit for food.
Urgh. Think kitchen disasters like myself could probably fare much better.

Sidenote: Table 31 @ Han's NLB while waiting for Titoudao with Amy.




Tail-waggers & Hamster dashes

Pets, pets!
Lotsa fur and everything nice @Kallang


The canines were the main stars, ranging from tiny chihuahuas to massive labradors and siberian huskies.

Some with their adorable owners.
Some with their own S.W.A.T. shades.

Some had the owners' reluctant bfs tied to a leash.
Some were lazing flat on the grass.
Some were just to shy to show anything more than their asses.

Stayed to watch the tail-wagging competition.
Ironically, the winner was Ronaldo, with the shortest yet most violently fastest wag.
Apparently size didn't matter.

Missed out the 1m hamster dash, which could've been exciting.
Darling would have won that race if he was still alive. Oh well.
Caught a pic of a kid tying a balloon to her hammie cage instead. Adorable.



Randomcity

Back home in M'sia over the weekend:
Madness @Baskin Robbins: have you seen tt many ppl lining up for a 31% discount for every 31st of the month?



The new Subang Parade: All spruced up well now.



Latest discovery of the Chinese Peranakan restaurant:
Cheap good food, authentic Baba interior.
What more could we ask for?

Voila!
Reuben's lovely lil python...
She snuggled up my arm coz she was cold... so manja!
Shall make a point to visit her more often, hoho..


Shili & Adi won the Talenquest original song compo...
Congrats!!! Absolutely delighted for you, and happy belated bday babe!
Pretty Shili all cutesy with the winning jazzy piece "Could This Be Love"



As for the Viva team, congrats for enduring the gruelling TDF process.
Lotsa impt lessons learnt about team spirit and all.
But it's all worth it, ain't it?



The Brazil restaurant's colorful van: cute.