Eat, Eat, Eat!

A long-time friend was telling me about his long hours at work, and how he would often conveniently 'forget' to have his lunch and dinner. He then told me of how often his better half would nag him for such 'forgetfulness'.

I am reminded of how often I would go into a similar nag-mode lately.

Maybe I should quit doing that and be more pro-active. I should probably pry open that certain someone's mouth as illustrated below (or maybe bigger)...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/momnurse/1065264060/

And then proceed to shove food down that certain someone's throat. Save energy, no need to nag! Muahahaha!!!! :P

-LV-

Missing Manchester

Jenny called me a couple of days ago. The call which was initially for 'official purposes' inevitably end up being gossip-filled (as usual).

We talked about work, and how mundane life has turned out for us. This is in a way true, working life has restricted our liberty to go where ever we desire, when ever we want to! It's clipped our wings and freedom to travel! The thought of skipping a day or two of classes for a long weekend break in Ibiza is now a day-dream!

We talked about how much we missed Manchester and how Europe seems 'untouchable' for us right here, right now; although the GBP has dropped to an all-time low.

We reminisced about her Subway job, my bancuh-kopi job; and how we stuck to those jobs despite the fact that we hated such brainless activities which only required manual labour. I recall having to read till 3am for my thesis, waking up at 6am, and walking to work by 7am, with the MP3 blaring loud music through my ears, armed with a thermos mug of coffee in my hand, making my way through the cold, dark wintry morning to my bancuh kopi place. "Why?"; many of you may ask. The answer is simply;
Job = Money = Travel/Holidays/Shopping!!!!
That was probably the mantra we lived by, and what we swore by for 12 months!

Which reminds me of our stint as tv-commercial extras with Park Ji-Sung. And not forgetting, our experience auditioning for another commercial with him in it, where we had to dance to the tune of Saturday Night Fever (if my memory does not fail me). Lols!!!!

On another note, NS posted a couple of albums in Facebook recently. Chinese New Year in Chinatown and a couple of 'tourist spots' in Manchester. I recalled life as a 'yellow-skinned' in a land of whites. I remembered how confusing it could be trying to explain to people that I'm Malaysian foremost and of Chinese origin. And all the more, how difficult it could be explaining the concept of chinese-go-by-both-their-middle-and-first-names scenario to the Mat Sallehs around. Sometimes I give up but there are times where I would stubbornly insist on them addressing me by both names. :P

As I was looking through her pictures, I could feel myself going, "Hey! That's Nicholas' St. in Chinatown!" "Hey! That's Wong Wong!" "Hey! That's Canal St.!" But perhaps, more strikingly, I went, "Ah, NS.... It's been ages since I saw her!!!!!" and "NS & D, so sweet!!!" :) (Hey, seriously!!!)

Oh well, as for now, (as discussed with Jenny); we've got to contend with AirAsia breaks around the Asian region. So girls, keep an eye on your Facebook invites! ;)

We shall revive the Manchester travel bug; Asian version!

-LV-

Done!

The journey is finally (officially) over!!!!!

-LV-

Karma, Karma, Karma

What comes around goes around. And I, despite not being the true-blue Buddhist I should be, I do believe in karma.

"Do not do unto others, what would pain thyself."

Unfortunately, many individuals do not seem to subscribe to this mantra, especially where relationships are concerned. Perhaps, these people belong to the alternative school of thought whereby all's fair in love and war.

And yes, these people would go all out and try every single trick in their bag to snatch, rob and nick someone else's better half. I detest, abhor, loathe, hate!!!!

Real life scenario in point.

A and B are dating. A moves to company X and meets C there. C, sensing the 'good prospect' in A decides to pounce. Armed with buckets full of home-made double-boiled soup, and yes, home cooked dinner invitations, C managed to snare A from under B's nose.

Bingo!!!! C landed herself the much wanted bounty!!!!! Tralalalala.... all at B's expense.

I know I may be wrong to have labelled C a b**** instantly, as A is to blame as well for not being able to resist temptation or perhaps for not being satisfied with what he has at the moment. As they always say, there won't be smoke without fire. And of course, it takes two to tango.

But well, she (C) knows very well that A is taken. Yet, she chose to play the role of the vicious boyfriend snatcher. Enough said, and my respect towards her is lost.

At times I wonder, has she ever wondered how it would have felt had she been the one in B's shoes?

Or perhaps, is A really that 'naive and innocent' when he said yes and thank you to the buckets of soup and home cooked dinner invitations?

Oh well, it doesn't matter anymore now. As the rest they say, is history. A and C are happily married.

So, 1-0 to the boyfriend snatcher!!!!

-LV-

Conquering the Peak of IndoChina

I've done Mt. K.

And I found out about Mt. Fansipan from The Star today. Planning to conquer it if and when possible. Any takers?

Further details at: http://www.trekfansipan.com/

-LV-

Bento Bento Bento

My fish and eel lunchbox, at Kissaten (I think that's the name), Ipoh. Yummy, fun but fattening few days of CNY hanging out sessions and roadtrips with the gang. Haih, I dread the thought of next Tuesday!

My Alma Matter

Secondary school; the place you had your first crush, puppy love, sense of comrade-ship, sense of pride towards your achievements, and most importantly the place that shaped you to be who you are today. I passed by my alma matter yesterday and stopped right in front of it while waiting for the traffic lights to turn green. Hence, this picture...

Bringing Nature to Work

Mum planted this 'lil plant for me. I brought it to work yesterday to brighten up my otherwise lifeless looking work station...

Of Eggs and Pigs in Blankets

We had an 'experiment' filled lunch today.

Bro made his egg-which-sticks-on-the-toast toast today. He tried placing the slice of bread on a frying pan and then he cracked the egg on the bread hoping that it would cook. But alas, it didn't. Hence, he turned to the oven for rescue. And thank god it did.

With some garlic butter spread on the bread and some black pepper sprinkled over the egg. It looked good, if not calorie laden!

In the meantime, I decided to make pigs in a blanket. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pigs_in_a_blanket) It was something I first had during the first of my many Christmases back in Manchester. Sinful, but delicious!

Well, it's essentially cocktail sausages with slices of streaky bacon wrapped over it. However, we decided to substitute the cocktail sausages with German Bratwurst for a crunchier and meaty bite. :P

It turned out fine but would have been better had we used cocktail sausages. Firstly, we didn't have enough bacon to go round the Bratwursts. And secondly, lazy me didn't bother using a toothpick/cocktail stick to hold the bacon in place. Hence, the 'blanket' slipped off the 'pig' at the end of the cooking process.

Nonetheless, here's the end product.

Note to self:

Will use toothpicks and get more bacon if we use German Bratwurst again. Otherwise, will buy cocktail sausages for it.

-LV-

Acessories; bracelets, pendants, anklets, etc are one of my biggest vices. I succumbed to the temptation once again, and hence this new bracelet of mine. Probably the chunkiest and heaviest one that I've owned so far...

It's got blue crystals, that's probably one of the reasons why I love it so much!!! :)

-LV-

Live Feed: BAC Graduation Ceremony

Here I am, my butt plonked comfortably on a seat at the Sime Darby Convention Centre; attending the BAC Graduation Ceremony. More pictures to follow...

I N.E.E.D T.O R.A.N.T

1. I'm lying in bed, sick again for the 2nd time in 3 weeks. Bloody hell!

2. I find blogging increasingly frustrating nowadays as my bloggable material is restricted somehow. Firstly, I can't blog about work. Secondly, I can't blog to diss and bitch. Thirdly, I can't blog to complain. *sulks*

3. I question time and again some 'wise choices' of mine. And am preplexed as to the reasons I chose to do likewise.

4. I think I'm burning quite a few matches every now and then. And I am really at the risk of burning myself sooner rather than later.

5. Can someone spare me some time and listen to me??????????????? P.L.E.A.S.E......

6. Oh, okay... I need to learn how, when and actually T.R.Y to keep my mouth shut.

-LV-

Raleigh @ Youth '09

Here's what I've been up to this weekend - I dropped by the Raleigh roadshow at Youth '09.


The Raleigh crew did the usual expedition slideshow presentation along with a short talk by LY about the 4 Raleigh challenges.

We had a huge 8-man tent on display, alongside with a colourful, Hawaian beach themed 2-man (I presume) tent which some cosplay dudes took the opportunity to pose with. And of course, Liza and I grabbed the opportunity to take a picture with them!

Spoke to a February '09 venturer who sounded quite enthusiastic about her up-coming adventure which I'm sure she will enjoy tremendously.

Raleigh-ians, being the 'jakun' Raleigh-ians whereever we go, we were jumping, scrambling, screaming and running around the whole exhibition hall. And of course, the presence of bean bags do not contribute much to prevent the cause.

Res ipsa loquitor (Latin for the thing (in this case, picture) speaks for itself).

-LV

Mamut!!!

Our complete collection of Mamut stools fr Ikea; in pink, blue and green...

Of Bonfires and Matches

The thought of it is tempting,

But light too many matches, you'll end up burning yourself...

-LV-

Reflections: 2008

Howdy folks!

It's the time of the year again; where I humbly reflect upon the ups and downs of 2008 and offer thanks and gratitude for the good times bestowed upon me.

Now, let's begin.

1. Passing CLP
- CLP was one helluva emotional roller coaster for me.

One can only imagine the amount of relief I felt when I found out that I passed the mother of all exams. Thank God!

2. Raleigh International: Borneo 08G

- Embarked on a 5 week expedition, had a wonderful time. Built a kindergarten in 19 days; an achievement that I'm tremendously proud of. *Lols* Can't imagine myself lugging those huge belian poles ever again!

And yes, I bear some 'war scars' to tell the tale. Maybe to my kids and grandkids perhaps... ;)

3. Climbed Mt. K!
- YES!!!!!! However, the achievement was marred by bad weather. A bit potong steam that we had to miss the sunrise due to bad weather.

4. White Water Rafting!

- Did Sg. Kiulu (Sabah), and then conquered Sg. Kampar (Perak) 2 weeks later with Ju Vern. Had a very enjoyable time.
Planning to conquer Sg. Padas next, any takers?



5. Settled down to a proper full-time job.

- Financial freedom, need I say more?

This has had its ups and downs. Well, 3 months into it, I'll wait and see. Tempted to embark on a more enticing placement, but Mum has her reservations though its only for another 9 months (minimum). Shall see how the transfer orders go.

But frankly speaking, I do have my fears of hitman and hired assassins.

6. Mika
- This is perhaps one of the best things that has happened to me this year. We got a dog, which I dutifully christened Mika.
The parents reckon that I'm crazy over him. Despite my infamous fear of dogs, I've shown none of such fear towards him. He He.... I really really sayang this 'lil critter.

7. Travelling

- Frolicking round Sabah post-expedition was probably one of the greatest things I've done. The road trip, together with 3 great companions was enjoyable. And yes, not forgetting the 2 biji of 5kg watermelons we had in the span of 3 days!

We shall return for diving one day mates! ;) Sabah's definitely one of the beautiful-est places around!

And yes, travelled further down South of East M'sia to meet up with the boy. Didn't do much, yet enjoyable and relaxing to the max! Damai beach, Damai beach, Damai beach!!!!!!

And I guess, that pretty much sums up my wonderful year of 2008!

Adios!

-LV-

Life's Lessons: Kiss Your Boy/Girlfriend

One reason I love eating those insanely expensive Baci chocolates is because of the little notes found inside them. Here's what I found the other day. "Never close your lips to someone whom you've opened your heart"

My New Toy

Surviving with only 30GB of memory on my lappie for the past 5 years has always been challenging!

I had always wanted to get a HDD for obvious purposes but have never gotten myself to doing it.

Was walking in Tesco today, and saw this Western Digital baby on sale for RM189 (160GB).

I stood there, thought for a second. "Well, this may be expensive. But what the heck!!!"

I grabbed it and headed towards the nearest check-out counter.

And home we went....

-LV-

Resolution 2007 Revisited

The boy asked me recently, "So have you kept to your resolutions for 2007?"

Now, lets revisit those resolutions...

http://livyen.blogspot.com/2007/12/my-promises-for-2008.html

1. To relax and be less uptight
Still trying to, and working on it. It's hard trying to change my inborn nature.

2. To eat less junk
This required quite a bit of effort. But overall, did so-so on this resolution. Too busy to stuff myself with junk anyway... Lols!
Managed to lose some weight in 2007 at least... FINALLY!!!!!!!

3. To study more (for the sake of CLP)
Done and over with it!!!!! Thank God!!!!!! Need I say more? *phew*

As for this... Madam Zorra's prediction.
http://livyen.blogspot.com/2007/12/new-year-heralds-new-beginnings.html

"... This is a wonderful year for the Virgo especially in love, marriage and personal relationships. Let go and you will see new beginnings flow through you like the life-reviving rays of the Sun. The year brings renewed courage to face adversities especially in money matters and health..."

Hmmm...

I'm still not married and as poor as a church mouse...

But she's probably true as letting go and easing up a bit certainly brought the best returns...

-LV-

My Many Firsts...

My first professional pay cheque...

My first time in robes...

My first proper 'office'...

My first appeal submission...

My first time in court...

My first Investigation Paper...

My first briefing...

My first time seeing eye-to-eye with hardcore criminals...

My first briefing with policemen...

AND

More to look forward to...

My first mention...

My first witness...

My first trial...

More to come...

-LV-