It’s June, Look East…

Damn, I’m such a slob, I know…

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Anyway, it’s June already, which means school’s out till August. Don’t even begin to ask what my result was – they’re pretty OK, as expected… nothing remotely spectacular aside from the fact that I’m still in the run for honours.

As usual, my itchy legs and fingers and heart and modest wallet would whiz me away to yet another destination come every term break. This time, I’ll be saying Mabuhay from the land of a thousand emerald isles, well 7107 islands to be exact. Also, not forgetting chowing down that smelly tofu in Taiwan! The reason for this entry is, as you may have noticed, to direct you or whoever who actually bothers to frequent or more like chance upon this blog (thank you nonetheless) to its travel counterpart at globaltrail.blogspot.com. Anyone who’s interested in tracing out any inkling of life on my online journals would probably be satisfied with my going-ons there throughout June and July. Unless of course you’re utilising my sparse archives here as bedtime reads, by all means. I’ll be away June 10 – July 08 so be good you lot!

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Irfan and Lina will be tying the knot over the weekend and I’m beyond ecstatic. Lovely couple, these two. Wish them a lifetime of happiness!

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On another note, Super Junior will finally be back with Super Junior Show II, with 10 performances in the pipeline starting in Seoul (3 performances) July 17-19. Thereafter, the monsoons/arctic gale will whisk them to Beijing, Shanghai, Taipei, Bangkok and 2 other undisclosed Asian cities throughout July and August. Oh how I wish one of them would be Singapore or at least KL! What the heck, I’m prepared to track them down in Bangkok if they refuse a performance here! SuJu hwaiting!

And The Birds Chirped A Victorious Fanfare

Foreigners can never understand. But for the many Singaporeans, at home and abroad, who were glued to their electronic devices for a good 6 hours throughout the AWARE EOGM at Suntec City’s Hall 402, it was a historical moment for we witnessed in our lifetime the birth of a new social order. What do I mean by this? Well, for the first time, we saw ordinary Singaporeans took democracy into their own hands and prevailed. For the first time, we witnessed tens of ordinary Singaporeans turned real-time journalists, providing instant coverage of the event as it unfolded. And, for the first time, ordinary Singaporeans partook with such fervour on a matter of great civic interest on a global platform – twitter.com.

I never followed the Aware Saga before this but after witnessing the ‘live feeds’ on twitter, I was swayed. I followed all developments til the very last minute and boy was it worth it. To me, it was a landmark event. Never would I have imagined that ordinary Singaporeans, often accused of lying dormant in the face of any issues of public interest and pretty much contented about it, would assume such great responsibility of utilising a social cyber platform to report an event where even the media was denied entry. I dare postulate that for many students of media and communications out there, and perhaps sociologists and political scientists, it was orgasmic. I never thought I could witness such level of social activism in Singapore ever but that 6 hours in the NUS Central Library multimedia room proved that such hopes are not dead here.

We have made a name for ourselves today. We had women who dared to speak up. We had homosexuals who rose to the challenge. We had civilians demonstrating commendable civic-mindedness. And alas, we had ordinary Singaporeans who were not afraid to meddle their hands in this dirty little word called democracy, in a place as sterile as Singapore. It was drama through and through but these ordinary Singaporeans exhibited great will, resourcefulness, objectiveness, and humour even in the most ‘dire’ of times. Salute!

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On a separate note, this is my latest craze. Call me a schoolgirl but at the moment, I’ve got my eyes set on Super Junior.

‘Sup Ma Nigga?

This one’s for Imran, the othe Afro-American… pffft!

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Ahhh finally… decided on the date and route! 10 June 09 – 08 July 09. Have yet to think of a new name for the trip, I have to discard Pinoy Paradiso because of the last-minute inclusion of Taiwan. Also, the title of this post is quite relevant considering there’s a Negros in the Visayas.

Sometimes You Know You’re Just Fucked…

You know the end is near when you hardly have enough time for yourself.

March 26 – LSM1303 Abstract
March 31 – HY2255 Response Paper 3
March 31 – GEK1022 Mid-Term Essay
April 1 – SC4209 Presentation
April 2 – LSM1303 Presentation
April 3 – SE1101E Field Trip Essay
April 17 – SC4209 Term Paper

APRIL 27  – MAY 8 – EXAMS

I still have the PBMUKS Drama on April 12, 8pm at NAFA. Despite all these, I plan to squeeze in some partying this weekend at Zouk or St James and a Jaybee seafood trip. Somethings just don’t change…

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Philippines looks set! Boracay and Malapasqua are must-visits. Have yet to iron out the details with Aly but I already have the pinoy jigsaw sprawled before me at this moment. We’re possibly looking at June 8 to June 30, yup nothing shorter than 3 weeks. Budget? Within SGD800 with flights. Which means I have 2 months to save up at least SGD1200. Pfft…

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Mum messaged me at midnight while I was on the way back from Al-Azhar. A neighbour got into an accident in the morning. A trailer ran into their bike at the Pioneer exit of AYE at 5.30am. He lost a kidney and possibly his left leg; he was in pretty bad shape when brother visited him at NUH. His girlfriend died on the spot when the trailer went over her helmet; I dare not imagine what that did to her fragile skull. Both we barely 20. I told brother to be very very careful whenever he rides. He understood me clearly, with fear and disbelief in his eyes. It must have been the rain.

2 souls had their lives changed in the rain that morning. Yet, it was the same rain that brought me so much pleasure…

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I am blessed with a crazy life, and even crazier friends.

Some Thoughts And Loose Change

No one is going to appreciate life more than the person who almost had his taken away before it even began.

So, whatever your decision may be, think if you could go for the easy way out now and probably live in guilt for the rest of your life or sacrifice now and live in peace ever after. I know you’d do the right thing. No one said it’ll be easy but it is always harder having to live regretting what it could have been.

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I’m done waiting, really. From now on, I think I’d be more proactive – decide what I want and go for it.

It’s a tough choice. I could sit down and idle, hope that it would be served to me on a silver platter, and it probably would. Or I could just get my hands dirty rummaging through the buffet spread and still end up having my fill. I’m ready to choose the latter. It’s more thrilling that way – life’s too short not to take risks, risks that are taken after much thought and within the confines of reason that is.

Doing A Serena

I feel somewhat lacking… lacking in things I was once very good at. No excuses whatsoever. As I furiously bat my eyelids to fight the Z monster at such unGodly hour (time check: 3.35am), I couldn’t resist to finally bring myself to dedicate an entry to rant about the demise of at least two personal qualities.

Discipline. Where have you gone? I haven’t been working out since my return from India and Nepal, and that was more than a month ago. I haven’t been studying religiously, if at all, this semester and to make things worse I have two essays due next week and a midterm test to prepare for. Gosh, I haven’t even been updating this blog, let alone my travelblog, frequently (not that I must, but it’s one of those things I consider a much-needed release).

Priority. Was there a farewell? Given all of the above, you’d pretty much figure out that I have been engaging in activities that should be accorded less precedence. I should be home studying or doin research but instead I’d rather be at Arab Street sheesha-ing away, watch Gossip Girl for hours (I LOVE QUEEN B – xoxo) or be at JayBee smoking my lungs out. Oh by the way I blame Putain for fuelling my newfound addiction on Gossip Girl. It’s compelling in a teenybopper kinda way but no less destructive.

January and February were pretty much wasted but March is looking good. Finally, Odex and Mendaki assignments are well under way and tuition is running well on schedule. On top of these, I have two upcoming dramas and lo-and-behold the exams in two months. Not only does this mean that my bank account is benefitting from a new lease of life, my busy schedule is forcing me to PLAN and PLAN well ahead of time… and this time, MEAN IT!

Seems like I need to do a Serena van der Woodsen (Upper East Side bad girl gone good) pronto!

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Spotted. M, P, S and H getting into car at PGP and heading towards the Causeway.

Nasi goreng ayam with two teh tarik. 9 sticks – 7 menthol lights and 2 red – all Dunhill.

Ahhhh… I love JayBee.

Mahathir Bin Aziz

Take a good look at that name. Scrutinize. It’s still my name, my legal identity, the collection of words I respond to. But we’re humans, we attach meanings to things around us, and meanings evolve – over time, context, circumstance. You’d be sorely mistaken if you think Mahathir hasn’t changed.

He has. I have.

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Wait. It’s the one thing that has resisted change for so long. I have waited, and I’m still waiting. What for?

The realisation of dreams – of unspoken needs, misunderstood desires, incomprehensible wants. I don’t need gifts, I don’t desire the moon, I don’t want sympathy.

I yearn for… You.

Whoever you may be.

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It’s 4 in the morning. I ought to be sleeping. I have tuition at 11 and some fabulous time at 4pm. I’ve been pursuing happiness, and I achieved that tonight, in the company of great friends. I’ve achieved that over the course of 5 weeks, thanks to more great companions. For that, I am thankful, I am blessed.

A toast to our friendship…

Oh My God! Did A Year Just Flew Past?

I’m happy. Not ecstatic-happy or over-the-moon-happy… just happy. It’s been awhile; I even forgot how it is like to feel this way. Gosh, I can be such a schoolgirl at times (Maria would totally agree) but I can gush whenever I want!

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Anyway, I missed India and Nepal so much I just made myself a mug of traditional chai, thanks to Parveen’s recipe of course. Such foreign comforts in my own home… not too bad for a first try though!

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If you’ve been religiously glued to Facebook lately, you’d probably notice that this is the week that I turned 24. A year older but not necessarily wiser. There’s a slew of people I’d like to thank for making my early entry into ancienthood (yeap, all those who are older than me at this point, you’re a relic) much more bearable than preciously thought. I’ve never had a birthday week before so any forms of comparison would be pointless and grossly inappropriate. Nonetheless, it was a week well-spent with family and friends.

At the risk of sounding like the pass 44 presidential speeches (Yes we can! Change has come!), I’d like to thank God for granting me another year on these blessed lands and my family for being there. And then there’s Maria (Pute~) whom I’ve seen every single day for the past week! Amazingly it never gets old. You should have seen her crafting up surprises on my day. Though I must say that she totally sucked at it, I’ll give her an A+ for effort!

In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, there were Zal and Lay (well, theirs was an advanced celebration – love the Polo Explorer), Ed and Immie (Hahahaha cute travel adaptor!), Pul and Nana, Yayat and Razif Honey, Syahamimi, Danie Darko and Hazariah Siti, Ilsatarians and Kayos’ lovely smores, Rinnie, Eyesex, McDeeny and The Orzus, and my Alyhoney! Not forgetting the tonnes of people who wished me well for the past week.

What did I do with all these people?

Well, it started off with 3 slices of cakes on the day itself (at Munchie Monkey’s, Baskin’ Robbins Jaybee and my void deck) and then many many many more excuses for meals and birthday treats in school and Niqqi’s. It escalated to one helluva night at Zouk (well, the muzak sucked balls but the company was uber great – haiz… haiz… haiz… *gets dreamy and doe-eyed*) before ending on a perfect note by the tranquil shores of MacRitchie the day after. A good way to shed all those extra pounds gained from incessant indulgences – though I believe I would have negated all that effort yesterday at the family picnic. And then, as if to put the final jewel on the crown, there’s tonight’s seafood treat by Naz and Sitti, together with Ed and Immie. I can’t wait!

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I don’t ask for much. Far from wanting gifts, I don’t even have a birthday wishlist. Just some time eating out would do, and in most instances, that’s all I ask for. So save your dough on presents; just free up some time and hit the road for teh…

I.N.spired 08/09

I have started updating my travelblog so do visit http://globaltrail.blogspot.com/ for the latest developments on my upcoming India-Nepal trip this year end.

Simple In B&W

Man should never attempt to put words to what or how he feels because he can’t. Instead, he could only source for the reasons why. That shifts the attempt at explaining emotions from the realm of the heart to the domain of the mind. It is with God’s grace that we’re built with the capacity to think as rational beings for it maintains the wall of defense against the potent force of irrationality.

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Aly is back! Gosh, meeting up with him for lunch at Laguna and then for a stroll down East Coast after 5 months felt so good. Missed him badly and I’m thankful that he’s back…

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What started as a nondescript teh meet up turned into an impromptu JB escapade. I’m one for impulsive traveling but little did I expect Naz, Sitti and Bah to go with the flow oh-so-easily as well! By midnight, we were already across the causeway sipping teh tarik and munching beef burgers, otak-otak and lekor at Benafe’e. And of course, no JB trip would be complete without Dunhill or Marlboro. Good fun, good laughs, good company…

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Now that the exams are over, I found myself with tonnes of time to do whatever, whenever. Sadly, I can never find enough to do and that irks me a lot. Thankfully, I have this bunch, among many others, to spend the night away sheesha-ing at Arab Street and chillin’ at West Coast Park. Not to mention the frequent lunches or teh or even NIE trips with Faizal and Layla. I need to keep myself busy; it’s part of my sanity plan. And so far, it has worked well for me…