My brother secretly bought me a 29" toshiba flatscreen tv the other day which really made my day because the tv in my room has conked out for ages. I am really touched because he told my mom that since he found a job, he really wanted to replace the tv in my room. What can i say? I have really cool and wonderful brothers.
Anyway, thanks bro, for the tv... Hope you like the briefcase i got you. Make sure you use it ok? :)
... that all my work was done (and i meant the whole works! assessment reports! goals! progress reports!), more things fell onto my lap that it seemed like a dream when i said "i am free!". In fact, i was also too busy to dream. Well, it was not quite that bad since even 'busy' comes in various ermm... modes. There is the 'torture' mode where you are just so frustrated and bogged down. There is also the 'drone' mode where you just mechanically going through what you need (not want) to do without much feelings. But there is also the 'pleasure' mode where you enjoy pretty much what you are doing despite having a lot of demands placed on you.
Fortunately, this is one of the "pleasurable busy" mode where i was quite busy designing and putting together a booklet for the sibling camp we are having next weekend. Sure, it was rather tedious and time-consuming, and at times, frustrating (especially when just as you got all the format and layout set, new changes came and must be included into it - really messes up the page numbers) but i had tons of fun sourcing for pictures and coming up with the layout. It was also nice that colleagues has also helped with giving me the various things to be included (e.g. stories, jokes etc). I am terribly happy with the final product, just as long as no one tells me now that there will be some drastic changes to it.
Meetings came and go and its hard to believe its already the last week of the semester (where did all the time go?!). I have also been going to the gym regularly (and turning into a jelly fish each time i step out of it) and watched a couple of nice movies (troy and shrek 2). In between i also managed to catch up with some friends from JC and seen a few bollywood stars while dining at mezza9. Pretty up and bouncing week really, though at days (esp gym days), the body is physically unable to match up to the mental bounciness.
Ahhh... *stretches*
More things to do till the camp next week before i fly to melbourne on the 6th and that's the end of this school term. It will be nice to have a break soon.
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WATER OF AIR. You're aloof, depressed and seasoned. You'd make a good psychologist, executioner, black widow, arsenic poisoner, heretic queen or commentator. You're too witty for your own good. Have to get up early in the morny morn to fool you, as you spot lies a mile away. And WOE TO THOSE who dare attempt such a stupid move. You're Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween, when she cuts Michael's head off. You're Anne Robinson, the host of The Weakest Link! |
I think i may be too dogmatic in my views regarding movies (or various mass-media).
Will just cut and paste and edit some of the thoughts i have on the rest of the films i managed to catch before i fell sick. Yes yes, i know i am cheating but heck, its been too long to remember everything. Just try to bear in mind that i was feverish while i was typing to my friend. Especially when sharing about the film "Osama". *groan*
Jesus, you know
Bore the hell out of me. It took supreme effort not to walk out (several other people did actually). I was actually running up to Jade 1 as i was quite late. If i knew the movie would be so boring, i would have taken my time. Actually it wasnt that it was really bad or the premise of the 'story' was terrible, but the camera work was boring (still, unmoving, tripod shots all the way) and though the people had quirky tales to tell (as they confess/pray to Jesus i.e. the camera) it was just too much when it was just so monotonous visually!
The Tulse Luper suitcases
I quite like tulse luper actually. I have enjoyed the pillow book and peter greenaway has always been an interesting film maker, though i thought that the moab story is slightly over done despite the wonderful editing, stylishness, theatrics and altogether unique viewing experience. I don't think anyone can walk away from a greenaway film without having one thing or the other to say about it, be it hating it or loving it. I happened to love it because i enjoy watching things that require some "thinking" and i love how he make us think round and round over the characters and storyline (if any), as well as push the envelope of film making. It sure beats any sort of linear point to point predictable movies.
Young Adam
The second movie on saturday which i watched and thought was quite good. The storyline was simple but not exactly what i would call predictable. Very subtle acting and realistic ending (for me at least).
Osama
It might sound terribly cynical and hard-hearted but i didn't really enjoy the movie that much. I guess pretty much for the same reason i did not like Tibet: cry of snow lion nor Iranian films in general. That is not to say that i do not sympathize or feel sad for the woman under taliban regime or tibetians oppressed by the chinese govt or poor little iranian children because i do! Just that, i cringe involuntarily whenever i see romanticised "real-events" disguised as a movie-docu-drama etc etc.By that i meant making something obvious tragic, sad, real into something 'beautiful' that deliberate aims at making everyone goes "awwww". Maybe i have a very clear line between reality and fiction, by golly if it is going to be a harsh reality, people would be sympathetic without the rather obvious cliches and metaphors. I think reality speaks for itself. To attempt to beautify and romanticising it is to belittle the truth, IMO (not thinking straight enough, ask me another day what i meant by romanticising cos Wilkie and I disagreed on using this term initially). Same goes for iranian films with cutesy children.
Incidentally, did you find all those close-ups of the girl staring into the camera bearing such striking resemblence to the famous "the afghan girl" photo on times?
And my folks are gone again, this time bringing my brother along for a short holiday. This happen a few times a year, and there are times either because i was busy at work or they may be off to Msia, the only time i would see them would be when i pick them up at the airport or dropping them off. Oh, and the traditional family dinner whenever both of them are back.
It is slightly better if only my mom comes home because she would be slightly less mobile (only slightly since she is quite proficient with taking buses and cabs) without my dad as her driver. She also has no need to disappear for a couple of days to Msia since she only accompanies my dad if he is there for business (of course she does spend some time visiting her erm, favourite cosmetic doctor for various treatments).
So if only mom is home, i would get a nice dinner everyday (not to mention automatic stocking up of the fridge with various meats/veggie, excluding the 'loot' she brings with her back from china) and herbal soups and tons of other "remedies" for various aches & pains. She is not unlike a visiting chinese 'sinseh' prescibing different concortions for me and him, though she has also branched out to endosing various western vitamins. Very nice and very pampered.
Ah well.
Back to being independent and boiled broccoli/carrots again.
The last gym session with the trainer left me aching at all the targetted areas which we worked on, namely, my arms, my back, my inner thighs and my butt. The trainer said, it would only get better... I sure hope so. Ah well... the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. No doubt a painful step in the beginning, but at least i feel like i am getting somewhere.
Think will do some stretches to ease the aching.
There was a mouse (or perhaps more rightly, a rat) running around my house on saturday night. It broke a vase that my housemates in london gave me for my birthday, which i had kept in the kitchen while it was scurrying around. It also ate 4 of my mom's japanese sweet potatos left in the kitchen counter and defecated all over the place (must be the sweet potatos). Now i am a little concerned about its whereabouts (we couldn't find it anywhere after rammaging through the kitchen) because there were some tell-tale little stinky rat-poo in the first floor guestroom next to the kitchen.
Ok. Make that very worried and concerned.
That little bugger must be pretty smart because it totally ignored the rat poison we left around the kitchen. I think i am going to buy some mouse trap and dried cuttlefish (which would attract the rat, theoretically, because of the strong smell)in my bid to capture mickey-on-the-loose.
Just because i have some time and wanted to answer some questions (thanks to lainey ;)):
If I were a month I would be: March
If I were a day of the week I would be: Saturday
If I were a time of day I would be: 11.55pm
If I were a planet I would be: Neptune
If I were a sea animal I would be: Dolphin
If I were a direction I would be: Arrow going in a spiral outwards
If I were a piece of furniture I would be: Bed
If I were a sin I would be: Sloth
If I were a historical figure I would be: hardly famous and buried in history books
If I were a liquid I would be: Soybean milk
If I were a stone, I would be: at the bottom of the fish tank
If I were a bird, I would be: bluejay
If I were a tool, I would be: sledgehammer
If I were a flower/plant, I would be: those one blob-like round cactus
If I were a kind of weather, I would be: cloudy with blustering winds
If I were a musical instrument, I would be: cello
If I were an animal, I would be: cat
If I were a color, I would be: sky blue
If I were an emotion, I would be: pensive
If I were a vegetable, I would be: brocoli
If I were a sound, I would be: a low humming
If I were an element, I would be: helium
If I were a car, I would be: open top convertible
If I were a song, I would be: The muppet show theme song
If I were a book, I would be written by: Umberto Eco
If I were a food, I would be: sushi
If I were a place, I would be: home
If I were a material, I would be: cotton
If I were a taste, I would be: sweet&sour
If I were a scent, I would be: babies after they showered
If I were a word, I would be: daydreaming
If I were an object, I would be: bolster
If I were a body part I would be: skin
If I were a facial expression I would be: perplexed
If I were a subject in school I would be: literature
If I were a cartoon character I would be: bucky the cat
If I were a shape I would be: round
If I were a number I would be: 22
Mom and dad AND good old brother NGD are back in Singapore during the last weekend. It was nice to celebrate mother's day together and sample all my mom's lovely dishes. It has been a long while since we got her flowers and cake for the occasion too after the folks relocated to China. Pity my youngest bro (GD) have to mind the store and can't be back.
Anyway, barely after they came back, off they go again, though it is to KL this time round. Took the car with them too so here i am suffering from rather terrible car sickness being various public transport passenger. Well, its not about taking public transport, just that after being the driver for so long, i tend to get car/bus/mrt sick when i am not in the driver's seat.
Yes.
Terribly pampered, i know.
In case anyone wonder about the strange abbreviations for me and my brothers...
MNGD - that means mega-no-good-doer, which means yours truly
NGD - no-good-doer, which is my second brother, the originator of these abbreviations
GD - no prizes for guessing what that means going by the trend, which is my youngest brother.
I like how my new blog look more and more.
Its very... spotty!
I think i am easily amused.
Work today was a whirlwind of activities. Some storms are seriously brewing on the horizon and it is quite possible that people would be leaving the organization. I only hoped that it would not be the innocent victims. How terrible it must be that for your first job, you would be subjected to a morally unscrupulous mentor who also have serious conduct issues? Sigh. I think i am way pass my 'work innocence' where i used to think everyone working in my school is nice and morally upright.
On another note, there were also some screw-up with the reports and children's application to another external agency. It is frustrating when the team is not exactly working well together and though i have accomplished what i have to do, everything else may be delayed when other team members screw up on their part. It wouldn't be much of a problem if it was just a matter of meeting deadlines but in this case, the future of the child hang in the balance because of one party's neglect to tabulate the scores appropriately and convey it properly to other team members.
Here we were, running around like mad trying to justify for the child's application to another school because it 'appeared' that he just missed out on the entry criteria when in actually fact, he did meet the criteria when that department in question actually look through the scores carefully again. On top of that, the deadline is this coming friday, so imagine the furor it created at work and here i am trying to meet the parents to conduct the essential interview and tying up the report by tomorrow evening.
Still, it was fortunate that it was discovered early and as long as the child's future would not be hampered, i am quite glad. It is not a big deal to tie up the report with the parents' interview but can you imagine if this was discovered after the deadline? Geez. We have a responsibility towards the child and the parents too you know. Sigh.
Yes. All in all, a tiring day.
Tomorrow would be hectic again i assume.
Decided to change it back to the old comment thingy because
a) more accessible for others (no need to flip pages since it opens in separate window)
b) people don't have to grapple with being "anonymous"
c) i get to keep all my old comments!!!
d) 1 stone thrown is definitely more grammatical than the 1 stones thrown...
Ah... i am a fiddler, i am.
Hmmm i am fiddling too much again.
Will run with the "in-house" comment thingy for a while though that meant i cannot see the old comments on Yaccs. If not working out well i guess i will change it back.
Hmmm.
Was going to talk about gym in more details but then work and illness got in the way.
Anyway, the last couple of sessions was really good and i have actually engaged a personal trainer. Yes, the price is not exactly cheap but its something i have considered carefully and feel that would help me in my goals for signing up with a gym in the first place. I mean, i never really really liked exercise (NEVER ever ever) but i can recognize the need for it for health reasons and i do intent to get more fit and ready for next year's ermm "event" (hence more compulsion). So to tackle this problem of "what should you do when you need to get more healthy, build up your stamina and lose weight when you HATE to exercise", i have decided to make exercise more like work.
Yes work.
I think i give up trying to find "FUN" in exercising because it is never fun for me. I have tried so many ways to exercise by going for things that could be fun but it never really last because i don't have the tenacity and "fun" does wear off after a bit. It's really miserable and i am not known as "the one that is allergic to PE" for nothing back in school. So, now, i am going to stop kidding myself by thinking that exercise will be fun and approach it like any piece of work which i have to do. And surprisingly, it worked out better this way. It is a habit to be inculcated and i intend to make it a routine.
When i first join up with a gym, i thought i would be able to manage on my own and it was interesting and "fun" for the start but soon i realized that i have no idea what i should be doing and how i should go about reaching my goals. Hence the personal trainer... someone who will teach me to exercise in the right way (which i have totally no knowledge of after being a bum for all my 28 years) and not hurt myself, and to form a suitable exercise regime for me. I need that external factor, at least for the initial period because, left on my own devices and not knowing what i should be doing, i would give up and lose interest easily. Since exercise is going to be more "work" now (i am not disputing the possibility that it may become fun at a later stage), i intend for it to be at least productive. And thus far, it has been and that's really motivating and encouraging.
Anyway, i am just trying the personal trainer out for 10 sessions to get a feel of things first but so far, i have enjoyed the sessions and actually felt like i am doing something productive with my gym time. So much so that even when i am in the gym on my own, an hour passed rather quickly just going through my sets of exercises which was taught. Hopefully once a routine is in place, i would be able to continue on my own without a trainer but we'll see.
Been knocked out for a long while because i was sick in between heaps and heaps of reports but i am please to announce that
a) I have recovered! No more wobbly hands and cough!
b) I have finished bulk of my essential reports!
YAY ME!
See, i have been utilizing my blog-less days pretty well. Now i can spend nights catching up on my reading and my sleep. Was doing that while i was sick, but somehow it just doesn't count when you are knocked out by medication and have double vision when you are reading.
In any case, i am glad i am well enough to go out with friends (yes yes, tons of catching up to do), watch movies (so many movies!) and go to the gym!
Actually still have tons of other things to do, like get ready my US visa (for the training in jul-aug) and buy my airtic for Melb in June and prepare some stuff for meeting the Aussie immigration officer on WHY i need to extend my PR.
I wish i have more time but don't we all?
Anyway, i am just happy to be up and going and actually having the energy to do things again.
Oh my... what happened to blogger???
It is always a little disconcerting when things changes. I think i prefer predictability and routine. But still, doesn't mean i won't give new things a whizz...
Hmmm.. the new template does look sort of bubblegummy doesn't it?
A few things that i wanted to write about but getting a little dizzy:
1) How much i enjoyed the personal training session at the gym
2) The movies i really enjoyed during the Film Fest (and those i didn't)
3) Why do i always fall seriously ill/injuried around Mar-Apr? (Bronchitis '02, car accident '03, throat infection '04)
4) Work and everything else related
5) Friends and everything else related
6) New insights (which are rapidly forgotten these days)
Okie.
Hands wobbly.
Got to stop.
Illness had taken a turn for the worse. Had fever on and off during the weekend so you can say i was wavering between being totally concuss or totally zonked out. The fever medication and antibiotics made me sleep most of the time. I was also quite breathless, though i didn't give it much thought as i had a block nose as well. But when the breathlessness came each time i took the antibiotics, i became a lot more concerned because i have stopped other medication. It was especially bad this morning when i attempted to go back to work and by 10am, i was panting like a horse and wheezing like a cow (do cow wheeze?). Basically i was turning flushed and hyperventilating because i was breathing so hard trying to catch my breath. Called the doctor who told me to go to the clinic immediately. Anyway, changed my antibiotics to another one as he suspect i may be having some adverse reactions to it (never tried that antibiotics before also) and gave me ventolin to help me breathe better. Only drawback was that it left me with slight tremours in my hands. 2 more days of MC on top of everything.
Anyway, now i have no more voice, slight tremours and occasional breathlessness.
Things could be a lot worse?
Thanks to friends who came by to see me and bring me fruits and herbal tea.
Like i said, i am so fortunate to have friends like you guys. :)
