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pretty new hair! don't know how long its gonna last, but pretty new hair is still pretty. xD

antiquity in the midst

University is so omfg hell. Monash somehow piles the assignments/quizzes/essays on you like there's no tomorrow, and then expect you to survive everything. Aish. BUT I SHALL PERSEVERE. Together with MUSA and MPAC. Because I have to. Because I chose everything I'm doing now myself, I'll be a hypocrite to my own self if I don't. I've been barely getting enough sleep lately from staying up late to do work, but I spent today out instead of finishing my FTV essay. Bad idea, but I needed a break.

I went to Amcorp Mall! Haven't been there for half an age, and the last time I went I was a kid. I forgot how the flea market there is oh so amazing. How so? They sell the most amount of antiques I've ever seen. Its not a typical flea market there with handmade stuff. Its really, old-school flea market with stuff people take from their homes to sell.

Gramaphones! And old black discs! dude, how often do you find stuff like this these days. But here in Amcorp Mall, even the CD shop has this in a rack. I even found the original soundtrack for Grease! Not that I bought it, I'll never be able to play it. But it was amusing to see.

The only other place I've ever seen this chair was at my grandma's house in penang. And I don't even see them anymore these days, i have no idea where they went. But their antiques? wow, then my grandma's house must have a lot of these then. xP

I have no idea what this is. A cinema reel? If it is, then man thats oldddd. We don't even use VCR's anymore, much less reels.

Old cutlery! Knives and spoons and forks were the most interesting items there. I never knew the old cutlery used were rather different.

I'm guessing coke bottles from all over the place? Or different types? I have no idea.

Old army hardhats! They were steel and were slightly greening around the edges. Definitely old. xD

Dude, I haven't ever seen cameras like those except for the one my grandpa has which he used to own when he was a teen apparently. And those irons are god-awesome heavy. They were super heavy as it is, I could barely pick them up! Imagine hot coals were placed inside to heat them up before ironing the clothes back in the days. My grandma used to use this apparently. Dayum. And I'm not so sure if those are deco, or real viking axes or something, but they were heavy.

Instruments! I'll probably be learning about these in the next sem, for my Asian music elective, but woo! I think the flat, guitar-looking one is made out of turtle shell if I ain't mistaken.

Locks! Like, huge ass heavy ones too. They were the size of my palm, and I have no idea what key do you use to unlock them.

Oh! And there was this shop in a corner of the flea market, nearer to the escalators which sold all sort of things.

I asked my mom if she would wear that. She gave me 'the look'. Whats wrong with it?! All flappy and furry. >D

They sold old Form 4 textbooks! 8D

Even boxful of knives wtf. I went O-O when I saw them. Who the heck sold a boxful of knives just like that?

Ended up buying some treble clef stuff for my cousin just before we went out to this bookshop in Amcorp which has like... incredibly cheap books. You know how Dan Brown books are like, 70 over outside? Its sold for 9.90 there! The book is called Xcess or something, and I'm definitely returning there to get more books to read. I bought the whole set of Warriors books for 49.90! All six of them!

Anyway, its back to hitting the books and microsoft word to finish my essay. I can't wait for holidays next week. Mid-sem break my saviouh~

busy busy busy

its the end of the month. which equates to deadlines, practices, and meetings meetings meetings.

so my schedule these days is go to school > get to classes > slot in meetings in between > grab a bite at some unearthly hour (sometimes not at all) > get home around evening and get to work on whatever i was assigned at meeting.

ahhh! not that i don't enjoy it, i do. i just stress myself out easily.

obligatory visits!

The new year for the chinese is mostly about reunion dinners and family time, so its obligatory to go pay visits to the houses of relatives and friends during the fifteen days of the new year. Most of the time, I don't really go. Except for my uncles houses in Penang.

The looong line of cars that all went at once. We were all following my uncles car in one line, cause none of us knew how to get there. So it was basically 7 cars going one after the other, and the car me and my cousins were in, we were commenting on how it was practically a wedding entourage. Which made me laugh. xD Hmm, maybe we should get specific marks for the cars of the family next time. :P

The home of my youngest uncle, the first house we went to on the... fourth day of CNY, I think? I'm losing track. But anyway! Since its the easiest to gather everyone in the house, cause its single storey and not as huge as my grandma's house, we had group pictures!

The sisters.

The brothers.

And the siblings together, all taken with their mother. My grandpa wasn't there because his not the type to travel, not even a short distance, so he preferred to stay at home.

My lovely cousins! Minus the youngest one, because he was being naughty and refused to come down from his father, who was carrying him.

While waiting for dinner. My aunt cooked up a storm for us, all in pots to feed... thirty odd people I think, yeah around that number.

My favorite! Lamb stew! Or rather, rib stew... or something of the stew variation anyway. Nomnom.

Take your own rice or eat nothing! One pot of rice, empty by the time dinner was over. Actually, I don't think there was enough, one of my uncles went without rice, if I ain't mistaken. Lesson = Use two pots of rice when the whole family is around. Cause even if half of us aren't huge eaters, the other half are, and more then make up for what the half don't eat. xP

Alchohol after dinner! The ones who drank are legal, tqvm. But we didn't really like it anyway. There were 5 different types, and we didn't really drink it. It was more like, take a glass, sip, make a face, and pass it on. They all tasted like some sort of medication, blueks.

Finger puppets! Younger cousins had them, and being the sillies that we are, we borrowed them for a picture. xD

We went to second uncles house after dinner at youngest uncles, but I didn't manage to take pictures there cause it was late and I was feeling sleepy ommmm. But we did play Declare! Game taught by cousin, and it was fun! Fifth day of CNY, we went to my aunts place at Penang, over the bridge! Look above! Packed with people. Alll family. :P See how we can't exactly fit in to one living room, all of us? Thats only like, 3/4.

Headed over to my eldest aunts place after all the stuff in my second aunts. Like, somehow this year we started to go to everyone's house and everyone will chorus this extremely embarassing yet amusing verse of 'Huat ah!'. For those that don't know, 'huat' means luck, or wealth in hokkien, and its like.... omgwtfbbq embarassing if you do it alone, but with thirty loud voices, it can be hecka amusing. :P

CNY

Its here! Or has been for the past two days anyway. I've never been one for long car rides, and I hate taking them especially if I have to sit in the back seat. I get car sick, and throughout the whole journey back home to Penang, I felt like throwing up. Bad idea to eat before long car ride.

But its worth it! Chinese New Year with family will always and has always been highlight of the year. Nothing beats sitting in a house you've practically grown up in, and listen to the sounds of family outside. And there's even the lion dance coming tomorrow I think! Chinese new year cookies ohmygod, how many of those had I taken. The fried lotus root, the pineapple tarts. Sheesh, say hello to a couple of extra pounds for the festive season.

I think this is part of the reason why I partly refuse to go overseas to study for a year or more, I'll miss this! I'm too attached for my own good, but to survive without people to turn to overseas is... sorta scary. To me anyway. But its cny! And besides, I'm not about to head overseas to study anytime soon anyway, so bah humbug.

Picture taking galore, but I'm needed for a gambling session and my younger cousins are clambering all over the place, I fear for the safety of my laptop. Be back in a week with pictures! Its starting university again once this week is over, but I ain't going to think about that just yet. To heck with studies for now, its cny!

valentines day!

Coincidences of all coincidences, Valentines day and the first day of the Lunar New Year falls on the same day today! I got a shock when I found out. So amused, at the same time pleasantly surprised. Not that it'll make a difference to me since one, I'm not attached, and two, I'll pick CNY over Valentines day anyday. If you guys read this blog, you'll know I prioritize my darlings over anything.

But Valentines day... hmm, too cliche if you give flowers. They wilt and die in a couple of days, and I've always personally found bouquet of flowers a hassle. I only received one before, from my momma. But it was heavy and just... a waste of space once it wilts. To me? Call me odd, but I prefer a single stalk of rose.

To me? Its more... singular. Pure. I somehow found a single stalk of rose much more entrancing then a whole bouquet. Why go through the cash and hassle? A single stalk is cheaper, and much easier to carry around. And its pretty too! If something is pretty enough, no accompaniments are needed to prettify it, no? So instead of a bouquet, go for a single stalk.

Or maybe... not flowers? How about a huge teddy!

Cliche, but true? I dunno. I never seem to be able to resist a huge soft toy shoved in me, the bigger the better. Of course, I'm not asking you guys to splash a fortune on your girl, just buy one she can cuddle up to and feel as if she's hugging you, and thats pretty much enough. Not as huge as a human please. But cuddling is comforting, and girl's love comfort. I may not be the girliest girl out there, but huge cuddly soft toys gets YES. 8D

Date with movies, and a romantic dinner in a restaurant? Skip the fancy pansies. We like it if you do it yourself.

So why not fix a dinner at home? Grab a DVD, prepare a simple dinner and go on the sofa and watch a movie while you're eating something you know would cost you a bomb and is probably laced with preservatives. Saves money, gets you an awesome night of memories. Or better yet, skip the movie and go play a game of twister or something. Whats the fun playing only with two people? Trust me, its fun if you get the right person.

As for me, I'll be celebrating CNY. I probably won't even realize its Valentines, because... I really cbb. With my darlings, CNY is all I need. 8D

childhood craze

Not something new to me, in fact this has been something thats been nagging at the back of my head for a while now, ever since I watch my cousins while they play, the younger ones that is. Its ... well, I can't say its not too serious, but at the same time, not earth shattering. What is it? Well, technology. Now, before any of you say anything, I'm going to call myself a hypocrite first, because I for one love technology. I mean, c'mon, just look at my blog. To blog you need a computer, and the internet. Technology is so deeply integrated in our lives. But at the same time, I can't help but wonder if it has been taking away childhood. Real childhood.

What do I mean? Well, whats your fondest memory of your childhood? I grew up as an only child, my brother darling was 12 years older then me and had no time for my games. Its probably why I grew up adoring the time I get to go home to visit my cousins. My fondest memories of childhood are mostly centered around the games we play. No, not Nintendo, not computers, not even watching TV.

Everyday when the clock strikes 5, the second we get permission from our parents, the whole horde of us will pile out of our grandma's house. The old floor before it was fixed and all smooth as it is now, was cracked and full of bumps and ledges. Its because the house use to have two homongous trees in front, whose roots grew against the floor and cracked them. But we were so used to them, its like second nature. We played chasing games, tag, ice and water, and there was this perfectly round crack we use to sit around and play the handkerchief game.

Our greatest toys were a piece of cloth and a rubberband. We used the rubber band to throw, and then jump on one feet on the boxes we draw to pick it up while keeping our balance. I think the game is called hopscotch? We used to call it an aeroplane game, and we drew the boxes using chalk. Oh god forbid we get our hands on chalk, we'll go wild with them. Its a good thing rain is a common occurence, because we'll scribble all over the floor. We would always need bathes before the end of the day, because we'll be covered in sweat.

Cycling, running up and down the empty roads (grandma stayed in a dead end, hardly any cars came up. If any, they would be relatives/friends.), we'll race each other to the playground just opposite the house, and see who could swing the highest. And if we get tired of all that, my grandma's house is overgrown with green, we'll pretend we're playing house and go hunt for fruits and berries for dinner! All pretend of course. Even while we weren't out, we'll play things like hide and seek, and design our own treasure hunt and games to play inside my grandma's huge one story banglo. Best memories, ever.

But these days? My younger cousins are all stuck on computer games. Its not bad, but it saddnes me to see how kids these days don't know fun. I admit, I love my NDS and I would love to play PSP, but... shouldn't they know the fun of running wild outside? There's just something about being breathless from playing catch and ice and water, waiting anxiously to see if the handkerchief would end up behind you, and basically playing in midst of a sunset that no computer game or console could ever replace.

I guess I'm just a very traditional girl. Regardless of whether my cousins see the beauty of playing with the simplest objects around, I still adore them, young and my age alike. I would put my life for them, but at the same time, I wish they could go out and just be kids once in a while, instead of be cooped up in rooms fiddling away with game consoles.

pretty anna!

Long period of no update = Kitty is rotting away at home. Rotting away at home usually equals repeating the same procedure each day over and over again, and unless you wanna know how many balls of rice I eat everyday or how many steps I take every hour, I really have nothing to update. =\

Oh, but look what came home to my arms today?

Look! Pretty box! Peacock! Its Anna Sui! The name Sui actually made me go 'wtf?' and then laugh at first, but it rolls off the tongue easily. Why? Because Sui in Hokkien means pretty... and well, I guess the name fits, because everything's so pretty there! Its not a top of the line perfume or make-up manufacturer, but its pretty!

This one is Flight of Fancy, a... not a perfume exactly, but you can use it as perfume I think? I just like its pretty bottle. The stepdad bought it back for me enroute back from Jakarta where he went for a job last week. Pretty pretty!

Okay, end of rant. Now its back to rotting at home waiting for Monash to send me the time of the orientation. They said it would be up by Friday, but I'm not seeing it anywhere! D<

japanese fast food, the bestie, and contacts

Monday afternoon was a scheduled outing with the bestie after the ages of not seeing her. Okay, ages here being a couple of weeks, but it was long enough. Went for lunch at the new Japanese fast food place. Hey, i'm a japanese junkie okay. xP I took the burger curry rice, which was ... surprisingly good. Japanese curry is the sweet type usually, but the curry here was very fragrant and nice. Not sweet, very typical Malaysian curry. I guess its too suit our tastes?

And the bestie had... beef black pepper rice? I think?

Our food was prepared on hot plates, but we have to cook some of it ourselves. Like for Mei's plate, the beef that came was raw, so she had to cook the beef on the hot plate. My curry was cold, but once you pour it on the hot plat, it sizzles and crackles. Very nice, though you have to be careful and not touch the plate. Overall, I'd love to go back there for lunch again. :P

Went home at three since I had an appointment for swimming! I almost didn't go, cause the stepdad was feeling sick before then. But momma came home in time, so its off to swimming I go with Aunty Lai Lai and Beng Wei. Its been an ageee since I last swim! I missed it so much. So yay, I get to be a waterbaby again.

Got my contacts today! I spend an hour learning how to put them on fml. I hate my asian eyes sometimes, so darn tiny they are. But I put them on! So now I haz contacts. For a month. Before they decide if I can continue or not. D8

Doesn't matter. At least I now can has contacts. 8D

binging

I've been on a binge lately. No not on chocolates, not on ice cream (as much as I'd love to, its fattening wuwu.), but i binge on CNY! Songs, cookie making, decoration making, you name it I do it. I've been listening to non-stop chinese new year songs and just generally getting in the mood. So much so my friends have all been asking me the same question, why in heck do I love CNY so much?


Well frankly... I really am not sure. Maybe its cause of the songs? I always find CNY songs super upbeat and generally cheerful, my favorite genre of songs. The one I posted up there is an old one, released in 2006 or 2007? When I was fifteen or something. I remember that was one of the few times I literally stayed for months at me grandma's house in Penang. Cousins and I were getting ready for CNY and they bought the pirated copy of the Four Princesses CNY album. I loveee this song. In recent years though, Astro, 8Tv and other stations have been releasing songs too!

Or maybe its just because of the atmosphere in general? You gotta admit, CNY always makes people feel super excited. Loud songs, cheerful colors, new clothes! I got a whole cupboard full of new clothes just begging for me to wear them. Sadly I have to wait till CNY before I can even open them. Alls the pity. ;_;

Angpaos? Maybe. Money is something no one turns down, no? And you'll get so many different red packets from your family, its enough for me to get a new album. >D But money isn't everything~

So maybe its just the family. Without fail each year, I'll definitely spend CNY with the family. The reunion dinner here in KL with the family here, and then back to Penang for cousins and aunts, where its a week of general lazing around, eating and sleeping and eating, playing... oh! And watching the lion dance troupe that comes around every year too!

No matter what it is, i'm just a very asian girl who enjoys an adores CNY every year when it rolls around. Its a mixture of time with family, laughter, enjoyment, freedom and inflow of cash all around... so whats there not to enjoy? I can't wait!