This week has been pretty eventful. It is going to be filled with CAS activities. I feel happy because it gives me a sense of purpose, besides pursuing the academia. Here's what has happened, and will happen:

• Joined the running club.


• MUN is in 5 weeks. Meeting was held yesterday. I found out the country I'm representing, and although I'm not too happy about the allocation, I can live with it. =)


• The first episode of Heroes, Season 2 premiered yesterday on Star World. It was really great! Time passed by really fast. I can't wait for next week's episode! =D
  
• Today, I took care of toddlers in my school.


• A walk around the local park for an upcoming trip overseas.


• Working with autistic children.


• Joining the Film Making club next week.

Highlights of the week? Taking care of children.

Seriously, never in my life have I considered taking care of children! =O Yeah, I do dream of being a father and having a nice family, but I've never considered the aspect of taking good care of children. I don't know why, but I tend to shy away from them. I'm so scared that they don't like me and find me an evil monster.

But then, there were a couple of times when I am stuck in a room with a child or two, and after overcoming my hesitation, I find that I really do enjoy playing with them. Their sheer innocence and their innate ability to find anything fun is amazing. It was just exactly what happened just now. A friend invited me to join the Toddler Group, which basically is about playing with toddlers and taking care of them. Previously, I was appalled by the idea because I am afraid of doing a bad job. Today, I took the plunge. Besides, I needed some hours for CAS. It couldn't hurt, right? If I didn't like it, I can at least say I have tried it.

Guess what? I had no regrets at all!

I spent time playing with this cute little guy. He is so charismatic and full of life. Today, he and I are playing airports, cars, cities, animals... All kinds of funky things. Suddenly, I was rediscovering childhood, and I let my imagination overtake me. End result? The kid enjoyed himself, and my friends were really surprised at my sudden childish behaviour. Whoops, my deep dark secret is out! Lol! =P Honestly, it was really fun to play with him, talk to him and entertain him. I think his parents are worried that I enjoyed myself more than he enjoyed himself. Lol! It was so hilarious, and I was kind of embarrassed after that. So I toned down a bit and let him be the, well, "master".

All in all, it was really fun. I can't believe I actually had fun playing with him. A child! And I discovered one thing. I can be my true self, let myself go and indulge in childish pastimes. Forget about the pressures of IB and just connect with young people. No more facades.

In short, no regrets. And I am looking forward to playing with autistic children too. I think it will be a fresh, new experience because I'm lacking in the child care department. ;) So I think it is going to be really fun! Plus, there will be someone there who will guide us in dealing with autistic kids. So it should be really cool and exciting. I really can't wait.

I have a feeling that these experiences with children will lead me to something bigger. Could it be my passion? A newfound hobby? Who knows? I think I shall let time tell. In the meantime, I will hopefully enjoy myself among children. Thanks to the IB programme for opening up new perspectives in life!

[+] There's more!

Let me tell you of my bitter experience while traveling in a foreign land.

It happened in Murray Street, during the first week of my holiday. I had just hopped off the free city bus heading to Borders, my favourite place in Perth. So we walked past Woolworths and I decided to stop for a drink before we continue to Borders. As I was struggling to free my bottle from my bag, a guy approached me. This guy was big (not in an intimidating way) and had shaggy blond hair. He was freckled and wearing shirt and shorts. He's in his teen, probably not older, or even younger, than me. I thought he looked shoddy.

So this guy stopped me and asked for my help. I was confused by his sudden appearance. First of all, city people do not call out to random strangers. He proceeded to explain that he needed someone to help him carry a sign around which advertised Subway burgers. I eyed him suspiciously, and told him I was busy and heading off to a bookstore (yes, stupid response! =O). I don't know how, or why, but he managed to persuade me to help him out for a little while. He told me to walk around Murray and Hay Streets and hold the sign. That was all I had to do. I asked why, and he told me he needed a little break.

Guess what? I said:

Err... okay, sure! Just for a short while, right?

Oh my goodness, can you believe how dumb I was? I was what my former English teacher says, "A blinking donkey". My little brother instantly avoided me and pretended he didn't know me. I REALLY did walk around holding up the sign! People were eyeing me. They STARED at me!!! =( At first, I felt fuzzy doing something nice for someone, until I began to flush with embarrassment. Then it hit me.

I WAS USED! USED!!!

I cannot believe my stupidity. I may be that smart alec in class, but my street smartness equates 0! I didn't walk too far a distance, thankfully, saving me many minutes of shame. My little brother pestered me to go back and give it back to the guy. I even scolded him lightly, before I heeded to his sensible advice and headed back to our promised meeting place near Woolworths.

So I walked back there and tried looking for the guy.

AND THERE HE STOOD IN FULL GLORY, CLEARLY FLIRTING WITH A SALESGIRL! =O (She was promoting some product at a small stall.)

I was boiling mad. I approached him quickly, and he pretended to not even notice me! He went to a group of giggling girls and pretended to join in a conversation.My temperature soared an all-time high. I ranted to the salesgirl. While she was sorry to see me being taken advantage off, she told me bluntly she couldn't help me.

I questioned the legality of making tourists help someone with work. The guy finally acknowledged me after some time. I repeated it again to him.

"It is illegal to make tourists do the work for you. I'm a tourist, you're not supposed to do that."

"I'm just asking you to help out. Can't you help me out for a few more minutes? You will even be paid for it!"

An interlude here: Forgive me for saying this, but...

FUCK YOU! TO HELL WITH YOU, YOU ARSEHOLE!

*ANGRY*

I then realised I was being taken advantage of by some unknown dude! And he had probably told the girls how he has managed to influence a nerdy chink to do something stupid. I was embarrassed, I felt foolish, stupid and dumb! I am worse than a retard, I tell you! =(

To avoid more trouble, I passed back the sign to him rudely and strode away. He called after me and tried stuffing the sign into my bag. "What are you doing?" I hissed. I strode faster. He was getting closer. HE WAS ACTUALLY CHASING ME!

HE WAS BEGGING ME TO HELP HIM! *shriek* That IS not helping at all! If you want help, you don't go desperate over it, especially not something like this. It is his job to walk around the city and advertise for Subway. I have absolutely nothing to do with it. Too bad I didn't realise that many minutes ago! Argh! =(

The situation took a turn for the worse. Feeling embarrassed was bad enough. It wasn't until later that night I realised what had just happened.

I. Was. Harassed.

This guy was insane! He actually chased me across the block. I fled for my life. Adrenaline kicked in. Fight or flee. I chose the latter. I can't fight. I'm too pathetic to fight. I ran with all my might. I ran one block and ended up at Hay Street. I didn't stop until I was near Borders, and certain that he was gone. There was no way that chav could have run so far. I thanked God for blessing me with naturally long legs.

I was flustered and lost my younger brother. I panicked. What if he harassed my brother? Thankfully, he came a minute later, complaining that he couldn't keep up with me. I was too shocked to laugh at the pun. He explained that he saw me took off and the guy stopped running at the junction. The guy later went back without touching my brother. I was so glad that my brother was unharmed. That was my primary concern.

Rage took over me. I was determined to lodge a complain at Subway. People like that should not exist on this planet. The very least I can do is to get him fired, so that other people will not be victimised. I forgot where Subway was, since it has been a year since I set foot on the city. I took my courage and asked a random passer-by for help. I did say previously that city people do not call out to random strangers. So the couple ignored me before I asserted that I want to know where Subway was. I went to the nearest one which was at the Carillon City food court at the same street. I thanked them and headed down to Subway.

I searched wildly for Subway, like a hungry lion looking for a prey. I spotted it and went to lodge a complain. Sadly, my complain wasn't taken seriously by the branch manager. He could not understand what I say, and handed me a serviette with the Subway hotline written on it. He told I could voice my complain there. I was told by one of the staff that they do not hire anyone to advertise burgers for them.

I was shocked beyond belief. He had been faking it all along! It was all a set-up. I never felt so humiliated in my life. The expression on my face was despair and panic, and I think I scared everyone there. I think I looked like a psycho. =|

I thanked them and walked away sadly. I kept the serviette with me, determined to phone Subway later. At that time, I simply had to shop for books. They provide solace, especially after the stupid traumatic event.

No, I didn't call Subway in the end. There was simply too little information I can provide. I can describe his appearance and the place it happened but that was about it. I doubt there was anything the Subway people can do anyway, since I didn't have his name. I tore the serviette into pieces and threw it away. Damn it, the fucking dickhead got away! He is going to harass more people now. Or maybe tell the entire world how he has managed to get a stranger do his bidding and exert his supremacy.

No justice was served. It was so unfair! =(

My younger brother had me relate the experience to my older brother and his girlfriend. They had wanted to laugh at my story, but they didn't. And I was really surprised. They gave me different advices on how to handle such situations. My elder brother told me to either ignore him or tell him to fuck off if he keeps persisting. It is the city after all, and it can be a treacherous place. His girlfriend taught me to break the advertisement in front of him, and walk away. It sounded pretty cool, and I was envisioning the likely outcome of the situation. Alas, I couldn't do anything since it had already happened.

This experience has really shattered my liking for the city. I love cities, I love to be a city dweller one day. I feel really sad to know the city isn't as safe as I think. I mean, they do portray those in movies, but I never thought it can actually happen to me.

It did, and I will never forget it. It scarred me for life, I guess (or maybe that is another exaggeration). And the very thought that evil is more evil than that is not comforting at all. It changed my future visits to Hay Street and Murray Street malls. I now avoid passing Woolworths, and I am now more careful of myself. My brother warned me that place is a hang-out spot for delinquent teenagers.

I guess the old adage of "never talk to strangers" still applies no matter how old you are.

I was so afraid of going back the next day, but I'm not going to let paranoia get the best of me. After all, I need to make repeated visits to Borders since it is such a wonderful haven for book-lovers. I'm glad Borders is some distance away from Woolworths.

When I once visited Garden City shopping mall and Carillon City, I spotted him AGAIN! I immediately went into OMG mode and immediately retraced my steps. I can't believe I can bump into him twice! Especially in places like Perth where the population is about a million. What are the odds of that happening? And the worst thing was that he wore the same outfit! =| That was freaky. I don't know whether my eyes are playing tricks on me or not. I'm just glad I wasn't seen by him, or whoever he was.

Or maybe I have developed a fear for large freckled Caucasian with blonde shaggy hair who wears black outfit. Is there even such a fear?! =O

My mind is so twisted...

I regretted not even trying to call Subway and lodge a complain. I mean, I think it's worth a try. *sigh* I have failed to stop a monster...

And I do wonder, why of all people was I picked? Is it racism? My vulnerable appearance? My brother suggested that I looked too nice and an easy target. =(

I did get something out of this experience though. I think I now understand harassment and humiliation, and I now know how to handle similar situations...

=(

[+] There's more!

1. Chemistry practicals were alright, except for the fact that I deduced the cation in the qualitative analysis section wrongly. And I'm feeling sad about it because I missed out the gas test on ammonia when the result of the test was printed in the paper in front of my very eyes. And I feel upset by it. =(


2. I will make sure I'll study the variations topic thoroughly in Maths 2. I've lost a good sum of marks from questions involving variables. And I'm sad because I am capable of answering correct if only I studied more thoroughly and actually move my lazy bum away from the computer! =(


3. Oh, the Malay papers were absolutely disastrous. My active vocabulary was pretty limited but I was glad to read a Malay novel the day before. I managed to make use of some nifty words I came across. =) I'm afraid my essay went out of topic. =( Paper 2 was alright. However, I disliked the papers this year. It isn't because it was hard, but it was pretty dry and boring. I could not appreciate the literary works of the papers.

So I'm in the middle of a break, and the next paper wouldn't be until the upcoming Monday. 2 subjects completely down, 6 more to go...

Surprisingly, interesting things can actually happen in the midst of exams! =D Yesterday, after reading Tina Su's blog post on meditation, I have decided to give it a try. So I chose a spot on the carpet, sat cross-legged, closed my eyes and breathed deeply. I tried to mimic my mom (she meditates during her morning prayers). It went alright until out of the blue, I bursted out laughing. And I laughed really hard! -.-" I have no idea what happened to me and it spoiled everything! =D Nevertheless, I tried again and made sure I fully concentrated on my breathing. Most of the time, I was conscious of my breathing but there were sporadic moments when thoughts hovered for a while.

It was five minutes later when I reopened my eyes, and I felt strangely calm. I wasn't even sure where I was or who I was. It was that refreshing! =O I sat that dumbfounded for a while enjoying the blank sensation (hahaha!) before I got up and went back to work full of vitality.

Well, the positive attitude didn't last long but it was better than nothing. =) I sort of forgot to meditate today, but I'll try to do it tomorrow. I think this will be my new therapy to silence my thoughts. We shall see how it goes. =)

When I got to school later, my friend approached and told me he liked his birthday present. I was so happy because he was the third person to say that, and the two others liked their presents too. I went to cloud nine when he commented that I have the "knack" of knowing the inner desires of people. I was grinning widely and I wished he could say that again and again. He did a few times. Hahaha! I was really happy to hear that. =) By the way, he is the second person to praise my "ability". I'm overjoyed to hear people saying how much they liked their gifts. =)

Later that night, I decided to read a post-apocalypse novel called The Road. It was pretty dull at first to read the similar descriptions. When it came to the middle, I was really shocked at what people will desperately do to survive. I was freaked out when the author introduced cannibalism to the story. There were only a handful of survivors, and a few decided to eat other survivors to survive. I shivered in horror and frowned in disgust. It was immoral and unethical but it's all done in the name of survival. I don't know... =S

The ending wasn't that good. I should have expected that anyway. What could get better after the end of the world? =O I do not enjoy reading stories with a depressing ending. Despite that, it was a pretty good book. Shocking and dreadful, but good nonetheless. I'm still kind of freaked out by the horrid scenes the author had painted.

I slept at 2 a.m. last night as I actually read the entire book in one sitting. It isn't worth reading books till late, especially books that are uneducational! =O I would forgive myself if I was reading Geography instead. I shrugged and went to bed exhausted, but somehow, a bit satisfied.

I had a nightmare this morning. It was a nightmare because a dark side of me was exposed. It had something to do with my neighbours. If you remembered, I stopped playing basketball with them a few months ago. In that dream, my neighbour's upset mother approached me and handed me a piece of paper.

"What is this?" I asked.

"I would like to press charges against you for stopping to entertain my boys. I thought you look like a good guy, so polite and friendly. As it turns out, you're not, you're putting up a show. Deep inside, you're insensitive, cold and heartless," she responded angrily in Chinese.

"WHAT?!"

I was in utter shock because she sued me and decided to take matters to court. Secondly, relationships make and break. I was so taken aback at the severity of emotional pains I had made. It was pretty clear I had somehow strained the ties but I had no idea it was that serious.

And when she said I was a great pretender, it was as if I were slapped in the face.

Insensitive, cold and heartless.

I have a confession to make. *sigh* Despite me being friendly and all, I can be really unsocial, reserved and dark when I'm not in a good mood. Or sometimes even when I'm in a better mood. I don't know why I do that... I tend to do that especially when I go out. There is this unexplained fear of meeting some people I know. It's as if I want to try and hide from them. Why? I have no idea. Maybe I'm being selfish for thinking that, "This is my turf." or "This is the only time I'm out. Go away; I want to be left alone.", especially when I'm alone.

I love to go outdoors myself. It's a time when I can connect with myself and enjoy and appreciate everything. I do not want to accidentally bump into people when I'm doing something no one expects me to, like picking up a romance novel in a bookstore, or browsing through the motivational/self-help section. I do not want acquaintances and friends to know my tastes or what goes on in my life. I just want to do whatever I feel like doing. That's all.

Or sometimes, I just dislike bumping into people I know for no particular reason. I try to hide myself and walk away. And when I dislike someone, I generally try to stay as far away from him as possible so that he will not see my expression. I'm a pretty expressive person, so you can immediately know what goes on inside my head whenever you see me.

I really think there is more to this hidden dark side of mine, but I am unable to completely reason with it. In a way, it's irrational. Am I hiding my vulnerabilities from people? I do tell a few close friends a great deal about myself because I feel safe telling it to them.

I am so confused.

In that dream, I crouched back and looked at her in horror. Her words were like a dagger piercing through my heart. It somehow made a strong impression on me. I withdrew and looked at her in fear. I whimpered. "No, no, no..." And I woke up, my heart beating.

Did my neighbour sue me because I stopped hanging out with him?

I tried to think back. I wasn't able to remember when I last saw him. I breathed a sigh of relief. It was a bad nightmare, albeit a short one. It was time to visit MV Doulos, the floating bookstore (with great bargains!). It is their last day berthing today, and they'll be leaving. I got myself ready and then went to the ship alone.

There were a lot of people on the ship. I was quite taken aback because I do not remember seeing this much people in local bookstores. And the selection of books on board were diverse. I was pleasantly surprised. It was like a mini-Borders bookstore, except it was near home. I grinned broadly and made my way inside. It was stuffy and humid as it was quite hot and the place wasn't air-conditioned. But it was okay because I was blinded by my love for the books on sale.

And were they really affordable! I managed to buy 12 books (books I won't really pick up normally) and they cost me only less than US$100.00. It was a steal! =D I couldn't believe my eyes. I even had to double check the prices to ensure that they don't exceed my small budget. I was happy, because normally, that many books will cost me US$150.00 or more if they were bought locally or in Australia or Singapore. They were really heavy. Oomph!

I missed the opportunity to talk with the crew and staff on board. They seem really friendly and nice. I was kind of timid, shy and scared at the same time. When I got in the car, I kicked myself for missing an incredible opportunity. Oh well! Anyway, I did meet a few interesting people on board. I met the girl who bullied me in kindergarten (I doubt she even remembers me), an ex-classmate and most importantly, a famous local photoblogger!

I was so amazed to see him in person taking macro-shots of merchandises on sale. And he did it in front of me. I was in awe of his photographing skills. I pretended to read the atlas while I stole glances at him. His shots were quick and spontaneous, and he had a pretty good-looking camera! =D I was very tempted to greet him and say, "Hey! I love your blog and your pictures! They are so cool. What an honour to meet you!"

I didn't because I was so scared I'll scare him silly. So I stood a few metres away and watched him, a professional, snapping pictures. I wandered over to another aisle to look at more books. I also do not want to arouse suspicion! =O I was walking when I saw him again taking another picture. I looked at a large-print (like, really large!) children's book while I tried seeing him in action. I laughed at the big text and the cute illustrations. After that, he was gone and I didn't see him anymore, so after some time, I paid for my purchases and went home. I was happy to know that my money was well-spent.

Some of the books I bought were a Sudoku puzzle book, (I wanted to see what the hype was all about), a study guide, a survival book (yes, I was that paranoid after reading the novel! =P Nah, I think it's a handy book) and the complete works of Shakespeare which was only US$11.00! I think being English enthusiast, I should get to know Shakespeare, but when I read a bit, I found the Shakespearean language very confusing! Regardless, what a steal it was! =D

Just now, an uninvited guest (with his wife) came over to my house. They were my ex-crush parents. I groaned. Oh no, what are they doing here so suddenly? I feel uncomfortable around house guests, but to have an uninvited guest show up... It was enough to make me anxious. I was kind of upset that they showed up all of a sudden. I don't know why, but I was so scared they are arranging my marriage with my ex-crush. (Ill! That was so over. =O ) Thank goodness they didn't stay long. I was wondering what their ulterior motive was. According to my dad, they just wanted to catch up. They never even called to let us know they are coming. Oh well!!! I guess this won't be their last visit since they have done that a couple of times already.

It's back to Geography again. Thanks for reading. =) See you guys soon!

[+] There's more!

After I have sat for my Chemistry practical exams, I decided to make a visit to a bank and make my very first deposit using the Cash Deposit Machine in the bank. Normally, there wouldn't be so much commotion just to deposit a small sum of money but I'm excited and anxious. Cash Deposit Machine is foreign to me and I had not the slightest idea on how I can operate it.

I remember when I was first introduced to the machine, I saw preprinted instructions on the machine so I thought, "How bad could it be?". Today, after amassing a decent sum of money, I requested for my driver to make a detour to the bank on my way home. Inside the car, I was being paranoid. I tried to memorise my PIN for quite a long time, repeatedly opening my wallet and taking a peek at my PIN number the bank included in a letter which was sent to me quite some time ago. I clung on false hope that I can remember the silly numbers when I am about to deposit the money.

I then got out from the car and came face to face with the electronic teller. Ignoring the staff stationed there who can help me (I absolutely refuse to ask for help; I can do it myself! *chuckle*), I went up to the machine. Thank goodness there was no line or no one queuing behind me, or else I will be even more nervous! Squinting my eyes, I tried to locate both the instructions and the slot where I am supposed to insert my ATM card. I found the bright yellowish-green light and happily, I tried to insert my card.

At first, I thought the slot was jammed but after trying to push in the card a few times, the machine suddenly revved up and my ATM card was being sucked in. I became panicky and I recalled a lecture from my Computer Studies class that such machines can confiscate my ATM card! =O When I realised nothing happened for some time, I was praying hard that I won't land myself in trouble with the bank officers for whatever crime I have committed. LOL!

The screen finally changed while prompted me to insert my money into another slot. I tried to seek for it and finally found it with the yellowish-green light flashing. I took out my $10 note and inserted it in in a not so straight manner. The machine purred and thinking that my money is inserted, I tried to insert another plastic note into the machine. When the machine didn't accept it, I became panicky again (yes, I'm that paranoid! =P). I thought to myself the possible reasons why my money can't be inserted. Probably only a note is allowed to be inserted per transaction, but that's pretty ridiculous.

When I was about to realise human tellers are better than machine ones, the machine accepted my deposit and on the screen, one of the phrase showed: "$10*1". I was overjoyed that my machine accepted my money! I then tried to decide which button to press when the arrow saying "Add more money?" was pointing in between two silver buttons. I pushed one of them and the yellowish-green light flashed again.

The rest of the transaction was smooth again. Deposit the note through a slot, wait, click on button, repeat. It's so simple! I wondered why I was having so much difficulty in the first place! =) Once I ran out of money, I hesitantly reread the instructions, double checked the amount of money I deposited and I clicked on OK since I was done. A couple of silent roars and movement of machinery parts, my ATM card slowly emerge from the slot. It was so cool watching it coming out in slow motion! The receipt was then printed out, and I snatched it and quickly ran back to the car which was to drive me home safely. =)

If a question about the pseudo-code of the Cash Deposit Machine ever comes out, I think I know what to write. ;) I experienced the experience already. Hopefully, my next transaction would be easier and boring. =P

Who says all teenagers are comfortable with technology? I certainly belong to the slightly technophobic group who hesitates a lot when exposed to a brand new technology before exploiting its wonder! =P

[+] There's more!

I finally plucked my courage and took the deep dive without caring for the world around me. The deadline to hand in the 'O' Level registration forms are looming closer and I simply had to do something. So I did. I went to see her, the Deputy Principal. After much discussion (or rather, a very pleasant informal conversation =) ), the outcome was this:

that frolicsome kid: "May I drop the subject?"
Deputy Principal: "Yes, you may."

Thank goodness she was able to see how much fifth formers have to juggle! Bless her! =D Even though admitting my mistake was the hardest step for me, she nodded her head in agreement and surprisingly, she was glad to hear that. She said that the school wanted me to achieve excellent results in my eight subjects, not to get mediocre results in nine. I think eight is more than enough; there's a lot more to life I want to see at this time. =)

Immediately stepping out of her office which I initially thought was claustrophobic and unwelcoming, I flew into a state of euphoria! My happiness and relief cannot be described in words, after all, it was as if a super big burden has been removed off me! Now I can finally concentrate and focus on my life and studies. I cannot believe this one big problem was a hindrance and a distraction in my life.

They say the first step is always the hardest. I agree. After overcoming it (i.e. fear), things can only get easier. =)

Now to settle up some other things, like handing up my O Levels registration form, completing my ASEAN scholarship form (yes, I was given the consent by my parents to try! =D), sending back the money order to the eBay buyer of which the sale of my item was unsuccessful since last month(charges incurred in banking in the cheque costs more than the book itself!), returning a book I borrowed last year (!) from my friend etc. Things are definitely looking up now! =)

[+] There's more!

Before I begin, I want to thank katelyn for using this word in her comment below. *big grin*

I don't know whether it can be accurately described by that word though.

Anyway, I was sort of happy that our third day was our last day for the whole Buddhist ceremony. We had lunch together with a few thousand "specially invited" people and the Grandmaster Lu Sheng-Yen, of course. Throughout the lunch, performances were held which I did not really spectate as I was too busy pigging down on my food. I know, I'm sorry, I should have watched it. =P

The food - I must say Taiwanese food has a very unique taste. I wasn't used to eating such food, so even though some of them were hailed by our newly-made Taiwanese friends as delicious, I thought it was quite the contrary. It wasn't downright disgusting, but they have definitely played with my taste buds! But it's okay, it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience anyway! =D

Nearing the end of the lunch, Grandmaster treated everyone a show of his martial art skills (dang, I forgot the name again!) which received everyone's loud and tremendous applause. He was really good you know, it was in sync with the Chinese "kung-fu style" music played and his every movement was in a word, awesome!

And that sums up my family's pilgrimage to Taiwan to attend a very revered Buddhist ceremony which worships the Buddha called Kalachakra. According to some of my mom's friends who came along with us, they were told that the ceremony was broadcast live in a Chinese channel. I looked it up online and it was indeed true. Click for the news. It's too bad it is past the 20th of January. You couldn't watch the telecast anymore. =(

You'll never believe what happened after that. Later in the evening, my family was up at Taipei 101! Can you believe it? We had left footprints at the tallest building in the world!


© Wikipedia.org

Actually, my mother had gotten someone to drive us to Taipei from Taichung when we found out that many of her friends are heading there to spend a day there as well. And the airport was a stone's throw away too, so there is no need for us to wake up at wee hours of the morning and try to rush the 2 hours plus trip to the airport. It promised so many benefits, why not take advantage of it? ;)

I was the one who suggested a visit to Taipei 101, since it's one of the most prominent landmarks of Taiwan (and the only one I know, hehe!). So we took a 37 seconds ride up the elevator (yes, the world's fastest elevator is located there as well) and we admired the magnificent views the metropolis has to offer for us! It was really amazing to see how forward Taipei already is; it's like Tokyo (somehow, the views remind me of Tokyo, even though I have never been to Japan).

I remember seeing many buildings and skyscrapers clustering nearby, with beautiful apartments rising up from the ground. I also won't forget the old shophouses located near there, and the night lights! Oh, they were immensely beautiful!

When the car drove along the streets of Taipei, I was trying to absorb in what I was seeing. I cannot believe what I saw. Elevated freeways running atop streets below, buildings facing the freeways, the people, the vibrant city life, the curvature of the roads, criss-crossing here and there, the cars and did I forget to mention motorcycles, the road bullies? =P

Whenever the traffic lights turn red (and they'll stay red for quite a long time!), motorcycles can be seen overtaking cars and they all move forward to stop just in front of the intersection box. So whenever the light turns green, you can see the big group of motorcyclists roaring their way before the cars actually do! And I was really fascinated by the fact that females, yes, ladies, do ride motorcycles there. It was really a new sight for me (I always have this notion that motorcyclists are mostly men). But visiting Taiwan has proven me wrong. I remember seeing a mother sending her child back home using a motorcycle. It was so cool!

The cities of Taiwan are definitely modern and way developed than I expected! =O

I also would like to give a mention to the freeways at the island. Whoa! Freeways upon freeways. Amazing! I really have never seen such good infrastructure before. You could actually get lost in the freeways! It really is exciting to see roads built like that. Here's a tip though in case you're planning to rent a car in Taiwan when you go there next time. Please have some spare change in your car when you are driving on freeways, because there are many toll booths that need your money before passing through. This also applies when you are entering into Taipei as well.

And what do I learn from this trip? I should have continued learning Chinese. Why?

Because I was bombarded by Traditional Chinese writings all over Taiwan (and Simplified Chinese in Mainland China). Adverts, brochures, flyers, shop signs, and even road signs are all writing in pure Chinese with very little, or no English translations (freeway road signs are kinder though, they have at least provided straightforward, short and crisp English words). It's that bad, and I struggled badly trying to read the Chinese wordings.

If you're lucky, some places and hotels do provide English translations but even then, don't expect much. The English is horrible! There are spelling errors, grammatical mistakes and wrong phrasing of sentences! It can really drive an English purist mad, but then it's really better than nothing.

It's still alright though as I don't need to read much. There's already spoken Chinese which had kept me on my feet at all times. Oh my gosh, I was really embarrassed when I do not know how to express a word in Chinese and I have to actually add English words to my already broken Chinese. It would be considered normal in Singapore (phew!) though. So far, that has yet to happen to me. Thank goodness I could think up of simpler Chinese words as substitution.

My Chinese accent sounds very out of place in Taiwan. A few people who I conversed with have asked me where I come from. And I said out my country's name, and to my dismay, they gave me blank looks. I have expected it anyway, and I say it's close to my neighbouring countries. And they were, "Oh! Oh! Okay...", although I doubt they still know it. *sigh*

I really dig their Chinese accent though, especially Taiwanese Hokkien. It sounds more melodic and softer compared to the Hokkien spoken here, which to a foreigner's ears sounds very rude and loud. =P Thank goodness my parents can speak a it a little, as my mom likes to watch a Taiwanese drama where the actors speak completely in Taiwanese. Phew~

I think I picked up a little of their accent though, because I remember I sounded so different when speaking to Singaporean hawkers. Too bad it was temporary. I have lost it already! =(

It was really a relief to overhear a Caucasian speaking English in the airport prior to me leaving for Singapore. I cannot tell you how wonderful it sounded to my ears!

Bottom-line is if you intend to travel to China or Taiwan, learn a little bit of Mandarin Chinese before you go. Bring along your phrasebook as well, it helps a lot (Lonely Planet or Berlitz are good). To be safe, stick to more tourist-friendly places. ;) The Chinese people appreciate it much more if you do try to converse in Chinese, and they will treat you much more friendlier.

My mom asked a taxi driver how on earth do they communicate with foreign tourists who do not know how to speak Chinese. He said that they will show him a business card to wherever they wanted to go, and he will send them there. He and his customers will communicate with sign languages. I wanted to laugh at the humour, but I restrained myself. Language barriers are not funny, and my so-so Chinese (I studied it from Years 1 -6, and forgot a lot of them =( )could only get me so far. =P

And believe it or not, this is my first time wearing winter clothes, albeit only 3 layers (underwear, clothes and winter jacket plus scarf). Cool! =D

There you have it, a first-person account on his trip to exotic Taiwan (even though it was only a 4 day pilgrimage). I hope you enjoyed reading it!

P.S. After that, we went to Singapore for a few more days. There is nothing much to describe as my trip was filled with shopping, shopping and more shopping. For books, of course! English books! I freaked out when I saw a section dedicated to Chinese books, I quickly retraced my steps back to Literature/Fiction section. I have experienced enough Chinese for now. =P

[+] There's more!

Hey everyone! I'm back home after an exhausting trip to Taiwan and Singapore. *jumps in glee at the mention of the word Singapore* Honestly, the Buddhist ceremony was pretty much so-so. We touched down at the Taoyuan International Airport and we rode a van to Taichung for 2 whole hours! That's quite a long way, considering we're travelling on a freeway.

My first glimpse of the first town city we passed by was, WOW! It's pretty vast. IT wasn't until we arrived at Taichung then we noticed how tall those many buildings really were! And it wasn't Taipei or anything. As we neared the city, I cannot help but marvel how buildings take up every nook and cranny of the land.

I confess, I thought Taichung was a backward, rural, ordinary Chinese village. I really have no idea it was a really big, vibrant and modern city! It was also at that time I realised Taiwan is a big island. I always thought it was as small as, say, Singapore. >.<

On Saturday, there was an autograph session where people bought Grandmaster Lu Sheng-Yen's 192nd book (the latest one - and boy, he already had written so many books) and he voluntarily signed the nearly 2500 copies which people brought to him. There could be even more, I'm not sure myself. Before that, there was a short public interview on him and he preached a little (which I forgot myself and couldn't understand some as I couldn't comprehend a lot of his Chinese!).

The only thing I have to bear was having to wait for an astoundingly long time before my family and I can finally get the chance to get his signature on our books! (Like, about a thousand plus-plus people in front of us) It was pure torture (sorry) having to wait for so long! Thank goodness I brought along a book with me, else I think I will drive myself mad. So much for my patience resolution! *grins*

I wish I could read his book as I have heard people saying that he imparted a lot of wisdom in those books. Unfortunately, his books are full of Chinese characters which I struggle to read/is unreadable, and that very setback repulses me from reading. Shame, I'm a Chinese and I can't read most of the words. (I am lucky though. I pity my Chinese friends who can neither speak nor write Chinese. The language itself plays our integral self-identity.)

It was too bad the novel I was reading had sort of "suffocated" my interest and before I knew it, my brother and I went exploring around the Lei Tsang Temple. Oh my gosh, that place is SO huge! There are so many beautiful and intricately made Buddha statues displayed in front of us, and I hadn't the foggiest idea that there were so many! Pity I only know a few myself. =(

When we went upstairs, we were greeted by 7 two-storey high statues; four of them were different variations of Quan Yin and one of Amitabha Buddha. I don't know the English names for the other two, unfortunately, but I definitely recognise them. I felt like a dwarf when I stood in front of them! But they were beautiful, very beautiful indeed!

So I immediately prostrated and did err...how do you call them...hand gestures (?). Okay, I honestly do not know how to say it in English! I wish I knew how to call them, but sadly I don't. Guess I'm not a really devoted Buddhist after all...

There are also big murals of Buddhas behind the temple at the second storey which are yet to be coloured, I assumed.

After my little exploration around the temple and after long, gruelling hours of waiting, it was finally our turn and yeah, I was happy! =D I can finally get my book signed, go home, rest up and wake up to a big prayer tomorrow. I was happy to see the Grandmaster up close once again. Boy, he didn't age at all since the last time I met him face to face (and that was like how many years ago already!). So he signed and blessed me by touching my head with his hand (thanks!) and yeah, we headed back to our seat and waited for the whole thing to finish.


My signed copy. Horray!


The book cover. It's called the 2006 Special Edition of Kalachakra. Nice, isn't it? ;)

When he was about to make a majestic exit, there was a frenzy of activity as people rushed to stand by the pathway waving him goodbye (it was like they were his biggest fans devotees or something). I don't know why I was thinking the wrong way, but I was thinking that they wanted to seize the opportunity to receive his blessings or something which is kind of greedy. After all, he is a living Buddha, so I guess I can understand that!

The next day was the big prayer which was known as the Kalachakra ceremony. Some fascinating acrobatic and dramatic shows took place near midday, people getting excited and reverred by the Grandmaster's arrival, and boy, was the temple packed! I heard that about 30 000 to 40 000 devout followers were present at the temple at that time (so you can now imagine how big the temple really is, and how crammed I felt!).

The ceremony took off with a bang as confetti and balloons shot up into the air, and everyone gave a tremendous applause. The ceremony began with the formal introduction of 2 kinds of monks and nuns (上师, 法师)of the True Buddha School. Following that is the swearing in of new monks and nuns as they formally entered priesthood. There is a word for that in English, but I forgot. How it was done was pretty interesting. First, the monks and nuns shave their head, leaving a patch of hair on top of their head. (Yes, annelisa, the female nuns do shave their heads =) ) The Grandmaster then read out the "terms and conditions" in entering priesthood, confirming with them their actions before proceeding. Then, as they got up the podium where the Grandmaster sat, he took a shaver and shaved the last of their hairs. They thanked him by putting their hands together and bowed, and after that got down and prostrated. They then did the hand gestures thingy (once again, I don't know how to say it in English).

Okay, so after that, the prayer began. I don't think I need to elaborate on this, but I'll upload a PDF of the very short and simplified prayer book for your viewing pleasure. Please take note everything's printed in Traditional Chinese. Forgive me for not providing with a translation as I can only struggle to read a few words.

The Kalachakra Prayer Book, distributed by the True Buddha School at Lei Tsang Temple in Taiwan. Note: This file is in PDF form. You need Adobe Reader to read this file. You may want to right-click and save for viewing convenience.

Don't worry, my mom taught my brother and I how to pray the most important ones while we were young in the car, every day on our way to school. So they are all pretty much in my head. They are further reinforced as my mom goes through her daily prayer routine each and every single morning without fail. And that, I have to salute her! Honest! It's something to marvel at.

Unfortunately now, I don't pray consistently. =( I'm such a naughty kid. =P I even have to lie to my mom a couple of times when she asked me whether I pray every day or not, even though she knew I was lying.

Hahahahahaha! But seriously, I should pray more. It's just only 5 minutes, like what she guaranteed me.

After that, the Grandmaster preached to us about what the chanting of Kalachakra meant. He explained to us each of the ten words, i.e. Om. Ha. Ka Ma La. Wa La Ya. So Ha., that make up the short chant, which we have to, well, repeatedly chant over and over again! =) I forgot what they each mean though (I blame myself for not paying much attention and not understanding Chinese perfectly), but I remember them being pretty useful!

Then came the part which I loathe the most, the blessing. Why should I loathe it? Aren't all blessings meant to be good? And it's free, and the Grandmaster was kind and patient (!) enough to bless all 30 000 of us! Well, it's not actually the blessing, it was more like the people! Large numbers of them. We're talking about tens of thousands of them! I am not really a misanthrope, but with people surrounding you north, south, east and west, and you are cramped from all corners by bodies, and you are feeling tightly packed, what more with the rudeness of people shoving and pushing and squeezing their way through you, giving no damn to children and the elderly, and the fact that you need to wait for a long time before your turn comes - it doesn't make a pleasant experience.

In short, everyone wanted to be quickly blessed and go home.

Thank goodness the Grandmaster taught up of something clever. He transferred his blessing powers to hanging scrolls of Kalachakra's portrait (at least that's what I think it is) and all people have to do is the walk under them and touch them, and there you have it, a blessed new you! =D

Boy, it was really exhausting when I finally got back to the hotel after dining out at a restuarant for dinner. Thankfully, my mother knew one of the nuns personally, and she sort of got a permit for our cars to go up to the mountain. Yeah, the temple is resting on a mountain, not on the peak though. =P I really pity the poor guys who have to walk all the way from metres from the foot of the mountain up the slope to finally reach the temple. I felt that it was really unfair to them that we got a quick ride up without exerting much energy.

I will continue chronicling the days I had in Taiwan tomorrow, or on Monday. Tomorrow's going to be a very busy day for me. I have to wake up early morning to attend a BIG family reunion tomorrow, paternal side. According to my dad, about 200 plus relatives will turn up tomorrow. I have no idea I have SO MANY relatives. And I don't know them! Hmmm, this might be the perfect opportunity to do so. Then again, I might be shy, and not talk. =(

And then, a V.V.I.P. (my mom's boss) is coming over to my house tomorrow to have lunch with us and my mother to discuss certain things. Then, in the afternoon, I will have swimming classes once again, and I definitely am not looking forward to it. I have missed my lessons ever since nearing the end of November all the way till now, and I did not swim much at all. This is bad, I will so struggle tomorrow. Oh well, wish me luck!

I see you guys later! =)

[+] There's more!

Hello guys! Just to let you know, I won't be blogging next week as I have to go to Taichung, Taiwan to attend a Buddhist ceremony. I don't know whether you guys know this or not, but I'm a Buddhist belonging to a Buddhist association called True Buddha School (真佛宗).

So I'll be off there and meet the Grandmaster and receive his blessing. I'll talk about it more when I get back. Sorry if this is a really boring blog post. Anyway, I spent the rest of my evening and night chatting with my school mates (it has been quite some time since I last chat with them on MSN Messenger) and so catching up with a few things.

Hmmm... One of my friends has a hard time accepting the fact that the girl he fancies, unfortunately, doesn't express the same feelings towards him. And my friend and I have a hard time convincing him about it. Oh well, let's just hope this fact wakes him up from his daydream.

That gives me an idea for the next blog post. My crush(es)! Hahaha... stay tuned! =) See you next Friday!

[+] There's more!

I really cannot believe it. 2007 really is so full of surprises, like what madd had commented here:

Thanks madd. =)

I finally understood (or got the basic fundamental gists) of noun declensions in German! I am so happy of my accomplishment. What once used to be a very big "Huh?" for me has became something that I'll go "Oh, I see!".


[you can skip this if you want]

There are four cases in German, i.e. nominative, accusative, genitive and dative, and it all depends on the sentence itself. So I can say:

The dog bites the man.
Der Hund beißt den Mann.

Here, the man is the direct object/receiver which receives the action of the verb, so he is classified under accusative. The dog, on the other hand, is the subject/nominative.

He is the dog's master.
Er ist der Herr des Hundes.

In this case, dog's master is the subject. But because the dog is the possession of the master, it is thus a genitive case.

The taxi driver drives the lady to the hospital.
Der Taxifahrer fährt dem Krankenhause die Fräu.

You know the taxi driver is the subject. The hospital is the place where they are going to, or the indirect object, so it is a dative case. The lady will be the direct object as she is driven to the hospital, thus it is an accusative case.

What changes in the case is the article and sometimes, the noun itself. I don't know why it happens to the latter as I wasn't provided a good explanation. It just happens! Too bad there are a lot more for this: tenses, plural forms etc. Oh my, the sheer number of words I have to learn!

Disclaimer: My explanation is not 100% accurate or correct. It's pretty basic. =)

[/skip]


My German vocabulary is horrendously small. I have to constantly check up on my vocabulary lists for some of the words that I had used up there. I kept thinking, "Now, how do you say this English word in German again?" Happens all the time even when I am studying Malay and the last time, Chinese.

I guess English is becoming my first language!

But German class yesterday was fun! I learned a lot from that lesson. I look forward to tomorrow's class but first, I need to review what I have learned to avoid giving blank stares to my teacher! =)

Later in the afternoon, as I was cycling around my house compound, out of the blue, my neighbours called after my brother. My brother ignored them (!) and when he called again the second time, I braked by the fence and asked what's up.

Guess what? They wanted us to play basketball with them!

I, of course, was shocked and pleasantly surprised at the same time at their request. You see, I'm not a very good neighbour myself. I rarely talk to the kids next door, or to the other neighbours around my house. In fact, it was mostly "Mind Your Own Business" scenario, to put it rather crudely, although my mother does talk to our neighbours next door sometimes.

So at first, I hesitated because I wanted to get back to my computer. But I thought "Hey! Why lead such a sedentary and lonely life when you can get a chance to play with your neighbours a game of basketball? Besides, you made a resolution to keep yourself fit."

And I told my conscience to keep his mouth shut. I naturally went, of course.

AND IT WAS FUN! I'm not a good basketball player myself, heck I don't really like basketball. But hey, there's no competition going on. It's just about having fun! For the first time in a very very long time, I spent an hour outside doing sports. I think my mom was very happy to learn that! *cheeky grin*

We played a few games and my partner (the elder of my two neighbour siblings)and I kept winning, hahahaha! I think it's due to my height and my neighbour's height (I'm 1.75 m tall when I checked a long time ago, while they are still about average pre-teens' height). And no, I don't get so tall because I play basketball every time. That's what everyone said when they haven't seen me in a very long time/never. And it's a really annoying notion.

But boy, it was fun! I even sweated out a lot too! In fact, our neighbour even invited us to have another game with their friends later today at half past four! Wow, I didn't know our neighbourly relationships can rekindle and restore in such a short time. I think this is a really neat opportunity to know them better. I can't wait! =D

By the way, regarding the blog post below, I guess I will stick to my initial decision. Boy, I really need to begin studying as soon as possible for all my subjects. This is one exam I definitely do not want to screw up! Anyway, thanks a lot guys for commenting and inputting your opinions. I really appreciate them! Thanks guys! *hugs all*

[+] There's more!

Today is such a joyful day, the bright sunshine brightening up my Friday today. Today's 1st of December, and NaNoWriMo is officially over. I'm really happy that I was able to end up with 50,056 words a few minutes shy of midnight today. I would like to share my NaNoWriMo experience with everyone, and tell you guys my testimony of it.

So, how did I do it?

Honestly, I have no idea myself. I just write spontaneously with a vague plan in my head, and that's it. I also let the story lead me.

I began writing my first 10,000 words during the first week of November, and I wrote my story casually with many pauses and some deep thinking. At the end of the week, I had to go off to Sabah for an excursion trip with fifteen other students which was organised by my teacher. When I came back, I realised I was a few thousand words away from the recommended goal, and I was feeling discouraged. As the days wore on, I watched in horror as the recommended word count goal increased and I was still stuck, roughly about 10,000 words behind. If only I knew I can make myself write 8000 words...

At the end of the two week hiatus, I could not stand not doing anything to my story and NaNoWriMo and I told myself, "Hey, I have written a good beginning to a story, why stop there and moan and groan about how I cannot reach 50,000 words?" So I decided to do something with it and began to pick up my story and continue it. I saw that it still wasn't too late to do catch-up. The total number of words still did not hit the expected word count though.

On the 25th, the NaNoWriMo website has opened to all the word-count verification for the 50k-ers to submit their story and officially claim themselves to be winners. That's when I panicked. I had completed 30% of my goal, and already people have reached the goal! I picked up my writing speed, but at that pace I was going, it still wasn't fast enough to reach the goal.

On the 27th, I took the deep plunge. I literally forced out the 8000 words from my very soul. And I did it! I actually did it! It was incredible, I tell you. It was a feat I never knew I can do it! But I did! Amazing.

And I tried again on the last 3 days. My brain juice was already fizzling out, and that didn't help when parts of my novel are also stagnating (they're mostly the transition parts in between the major scenes of Kinderella).

And I wrote, and I wrote, and I wrote. I participated in 30-minute word wars as well with fellow NaNo writers, as a form of motivation. And guess what? I found out I could type out 600-800 words per session, give or take. I wowed at my own hidden ability and potential.

And finally, at the last day, I wrote full-force and whammed, I slammed my own record. 9371 words in a day! That is really a lot for me. I was so overjoyed when I was able to hit 50,000 words by 11.50++ p.m.

In one word: Incredible.

I have to thank my school for closing down early for renovations, and thus have my holidays early. So I have spent part of my holidays writing out a novel. Yay, talk about being productive! Else, I won't even write at all!


What resources have I used when writing out Kinderella?

I really recommend you guys to buy this illustrated thesaurus from Usborne. It's called The Usborne Illustrated Thesaurus and what makes this thesaurus so different from others is that they contain lots of pictures that you know what it is but don't know how it's called. And they also group related words that belong to a certain category, e.g. dance words - boogie, bop, dart, glide etc.

See the sample page here and you'll be the judge.

I wish I read through and briefly study this book before my NaNoWriMo quest. Then I would have more or less some ideas to breath fresh words to dead, boring sentences. Anyway, this book is just amazing, it helped me a lot for NaNoWriMo. I suggest you buy it too, it's worth your every penny and it helps a lot in your writing.

I find myself constantly referring to Wikipedia when it comes to describing a certain event, a scene and even refresh my memory on the story of Cinderella.


What has motivated me to write 50,000 words?

A desktop looking like this:-



Word wars over at the NaNoWriMo forums and of course, you wonderful blog readers who pushed me and motivated me to write with your words of encouragements. Thank you so much guys! I couldn't do it without you!

Oh yes, and my little brother also played a part. He sneakily took a glance at what I was writing when I was downstairs for dinner. I then asked him for his honest opinion on my novel, and he told me it was "So good, man!" after hearing him saying "That is so lame!( =P )" etc. etc. etc.


Most importantly, did I learn anything out of NaNoWriMo?

Definitely! For one thing, I have gained the sheer experience of rushing against time and came up with an incredible number of words. It was unbelievable! And of course, I discovered that I CAN write. And also, I learned that procrastination was the main obstacle that has nearly caused my downfall, but I have risen against it and have beaten against all odds. I was hoping that NaNoWriMo could help me crush my bad habit of procrastinating. It did, but only a bit. But still, that's great.

Procrastination has its positive effects too, for me. When I decided to write, I realised that time was running short, and the deadline is pressing on me. Because I was placed under the pressure of finishing 50k words, I was able to write a lot more beyond my expectations and definitely well beyond my normal limit. I don't really like doing that though, the quality has suffered in favour of quantity. I find that the later chapters I have done is a little bit messy and "illogical". I need to edit them a bit before uploading them.

Oh yes, from writing so much and with the help of the thesaurus, I learned to make use of new vocabularies along the way and expanded my active vocabulary list. Writing out so many words also make me see that my current vocabulary still has room for expansion, and I will try over these holidays to broaden it.

I also learned a thing or two about describing fashion. Hahahaha! That's really cool.

I've made a mistake in the beginning of the novel though and that is skimping on the description of the main characters' appearances. How they look like, what are they wearing etc. The rest is pretty okay, I guess, at least I did convey their personality out. Self-reminder: describe first!

I have to go out to parties. No wonder I struggled pretty badly with the ballroom scenario. Hahaha!

Ever since experiencing NaNoWriMo, suddenly the 300-600 words compositions that I have to write in school seemed pretty little. And this is good news to me, it boosted my self-esteem a lot! And I wouldn't need to groan so much about the Royal Commonwealth Essay Competition which my English teacher would me to write an essay.

Through NaNoWriMo, my writing style has undergone minor/drastic changes. I don't know whether it's for good or for worse, but I know that I'm writing things a little bit differently now.


This is pretty much what I can think of at the moment to write. My brain is ultra-tired now after writing huge chunks of text the past five days. Sheer terror. But I'm glad I have done it. I feel like an accomplished man! Yahoo!

I shall put my novel aside for a few days and I'll pick it up whenever I am ready. Chapter 7 is found below this post, so check it out!

P.S. Congratulations to Happy and Blue 2 who consistently posted throughout the whole month of November in conjunction with NaBloPoMo. Great work! Take a look at all his November blog posts, starting from November 1st!

[+] There's more!

Oh my gosh! I had the most interesting day yesterday! It's really a day which is worth reminiscing to.

Yesterday morning was my very first German class! Boy, I was really nervous when I first met my German 'teacher' when she came over to my house. She wasn't really a teacher but a translator; nevertheless she can teach anyway. Bashfully, I said "Hi!" and showed her to the room. She didn't quite like the small table so she suggested instead the dining table. I don't know why I feel so embarrassed. Hehehe!

So she proceeded to begin the German lessons that I have enthusiastically looked forward to since the beginning of my holidays, and she began by teaching me the German equivalent of 'This is a hat', i.e. Es ist ein Hut. She then proceeded to teach me a few other objects. I didn't quite understand her at first because her English has an eminent German accent (no offense) which took some time for me to get used to, and she "rolled" her German pretty fast, and naturally I was confused and lost.

I noticed that she kept changing the subject from names of objects in German to conjugations in German. I'm glad that I studied my English grammar diligently. I was able to follow without much difficulty of the different forms of have and to be and whatnots in German. I cannot believe there are so many different variations which my German teacher said was stupid. Hahaha! I don't find it so though. To me, they are really unique and simply adorable!

From there, we went on to basic greetings and conversations in German, and I admit this was fun! We did conversations in a German hotel and basic questions that could be asked by ordinary Germans. I couldn't remember much from yesterday (I did write them down), but this is the only Q & A that is permanently stuck in my head.

Wie heißen Sie?
Ich heiße 'that frolicsome kid'.

I hope I got that right!

The Q & A above means "What is your name?" and "My name is that frolicsome kid." in German. Yeah! I especially love this letter ß, it looks cool on its own!

We then went on to do recaps and me pronouncing the German sentences that we learnt. We did that a few times and I find the whole thing hilarious. It's not THAT difficult to sound out the words, but I sounded the words out in an English-Hokkien way. She said it was really good for a beginner, and I was completely taken back by surprise. I have never spoken German in my entire life (okay, I did recently, but those were failed attempts in stammering out some German words). So I was both pleased and excited and I muttered a "Thanks" under my breath. I still cannot pronounce those dreaded umlauts, the same way I have difficulty with pronouncing those English diphthongs. My favourite German word that I like to say it out is eine Landkarte

Overall, I had a really good time learning German, the first lesson wasn't as hard as I imagined it would be. It still wasn't easy though, and I have difficulty in remembering a lot of German words. I look forward to my next lesson tomorrow where she promised she would teach me a couple of words to construct my very first sentences. I like it! Hopefully, I can hold fluent conversations in German in years to come and I hope I don't turn anyone away when this blog will slowly be Deustche-nised. Haha, just kidding!

Okay, so the questions that are playing in your minds now would be: Why German? Why not French, or Spanish (I'm also learning this language ad libitum by myself, with not much progress), or Japanese, or Afrikaans?

When I first heard a German audio online a few months ago (which I somehow stumbled upon), I cannot help but be enthralled by the way the female emcee was speaking. So "harsh and guttural", yet beautiful in its own way. That was my first crush on German. As I became more and more jobless on the Internet, I stumbled on many other German sentences and I like the way how the nouns are capitalized and the way the verb is oddly placed at the end of the sentence. I could even understand some of the words! I later found out in Wikipedia that English shares the same roots as German as they both belong to the Germanic language family. Music theory also contains some German classical musics which I have to analyse and answer, so German might be helpful there. And I just like the language!

All these little reasons ignite me to learn German, but I don't know why I have gotten so insane just thinking about them! It's odd really and I cannot explain it myself. One thing leads to another, and here am I satisfied that I finally am beginning to devour German.

So the next time if you are interested to take up another language, I suggest you do German. Why? Because I'm biased, of course!

Oh, and yesterday, I went out with two of my girlfriends (no, not my lovey-dovey ones) and we window shopped around a place where it isn't infested with teens. I'm so sick of going to the teenagers' hotspot in the country where I feel out of place and feel tired seeing the people I know there. It was fun although we didn't really do much. Mostly it's just bonding time. I feel so out of place standing in expensive boutiques and female shoe shops =\. But never mind.

I can't wait till tomorrow! Tomorrow's the day when I will get my dreaded report book and also my next German class. Yahoo! And sigh, I really don't feel like picking up my NaNoWriMo novel again. I'm really lagging too far behind to catch up, although I feel my story is really starting to shape up. I might try again later. Or not.

I catch you guys later! =)

[+] There's more!

Today, I woke up early (at about half past seven), dressed in my school uniform and rush off for an exciting morning. No, I did not go to school! But instead, I went to the town's mall! And why am I there so early in the morning with all the shops closed and wearing a school uniform when clearly it's our holiday?!

It was for a holiday school excursion (boring!) for educational purposes (?), which was planned and proposed so that our 'idle brains' won't rot and decompose during the extra-long holidays.

Oh yea, I guess I ought to tell you guys how long this holiday is. It's going to last for 3 whole months because our school has sought permission from the MoE to carry out renovation etc. So our term holidays in December has been stretched! Yippee! Yippee! Yippee! Horray! Rejoices!

Too bad when school reopens, we will have classes during Fridays. Nothing is wrong with that, right? Well, yes! In my country, working days are from Monday to Thursday and Saturday. Fridays and Sundays are our days off. Unlike most countries in many parts of this world, Friday is reserved for Muslims to pray (it's like their Sabbath day). So we don't work/go to school on Fridays, but instead Saturdays. And since we are going to have school on Fridays, that means 6 whole days of pure torture schooling in a stretch! School will probably let out early though for Muslims to carry out their prayers.

Anyway, so I went to this big and empty mall in town which has cinema. The plan was for us students to watch 2 movies of "educational value" at a very small price, $1! That's equivalent to about US$0.50! Talk about really cheap! I mean, what the heck, why should I miss out this opportunity of enjoying a movie marathon at such ridiculously low price! I seriously need to thank my teacher who knew the proprietor of the cinema and managed to get concession prices for us kids!

Movie watching was never that cheap! I'll say it's once in a lifetime!

It was decided that everyone should watch You, Me and Dupree" before watching another movie of their own choice later. I never regretted watching that comedy movie, it's really hilarious! I seriously cannot imagine inviting my best friend who is a vagabond to come crash in my house with my wife and I. And this movie created exactly that scenario! How a best friend actually can mess up your whole house when there is leniency. Also, it teaches me how marriage can just fail if you aren't careful enough. And there are some really funny dirty scenes in this movie (nothing too dirty to bar your kids from watching this movie). A must watch if you are planning to go to cinema!

After an hour and a half of incessant laughing (not really!), students divided themselves into 2 groups; those wanting to watch Open Seasons and those who prefer The Devil Wears Prada instead. I decided to watch that 'chick flick' since I have heard rave reviews from friends who have watched that movie. Okay, I admit, I sort of like watching chick flicks after cartoons. Hahahaha! I take the opportunity to watch such shows as I don't really watch them. And the devil's fork in the red stilleto grabbed my attention.

This show is good, and I want to give notable mentions to the seriously extravagant fashion designs, the wonderful clothes, the fantabulous accessories and the wicked ladies; boy, are they wicked! I like the beginning part though, where they show 3 unrelated ladies' daily tasks early in the morning, i.e. wake up, changing clothes, breakfast, commute to work. I'm not sure how the other 2 ladies besides Andy (the main character) fit into the story though. I don't remember seeing them. But nevertheless, it still was a good beginning.

This movie's about how some university graduate wannabe journalist grabs a job working as the assistant of Miranda, the owner of Runaway, a fashion magazine. Her job was one of those which many girls would die for to work. The first impression I got when watching the movie was "Why was there so much bitchiness?" No offense, but that was how it was portrayed. But soon, I realised that it was just what the movie depends on. Man, that Miranda actress is really good for being really evil that can drive anyone, even Andy, mentally insane.

That was Andy's major setback, and being an aspiring journalist, she feels that this job would help in her journalism career. So she face many trials and tribulations in her job and her friends until finally...

I think I shall stop there. I don't want to give the spoilers out. But yea, it's quite a good show to watch if you haven't read the novel yet. My friend said that the movie wasn't what she expected (that means, she found the movie only so-so). I did some research on Wikipedia and found out that there are some differences between the novel and the movie. That's interesting! Maybe I should add the novel to my shopping list the next time I go visit the bookstore.

And that was how I spent my morning, watching movies! It was loads of fun, especially if you watch it with a large group of people whom you know.

And now, for the NaNoWriMo dissection! I've just realised that I'm 2000+ words behind the daily word goal. This sucks, lol! I am going to spend my time tonight on editing my Chapter 2 (the chapter's pretty messed up and vague, and if my beginning was messy, the story flow will be spoilt) and finish up Chapter 3 as well. I just realised I actually forgot to describe the looks and physique of my characters. How could I forget! Hahaha...

It's just great that I'll be off on Wednesday for four days to another school excursion to somewhere out of country. The trip promises loads of fun though; let's hope that it is! So Chapter 2 will probably be up tomorrow instead of Saturday depending on circumstances. ;)

Man, I just realised I need to pack my luggage. And then there is this computer quiz rehearsal again tomorrow morning. What an utter dud! Let's hope I can make it through tomorrow.

Oh yes, I hope I'm not too late for saying this. I've stumbled upon Mimi's blog a couple of days ago. And it seems like tomorrow's Dona Nobis Pacem Day (the Grant Us Peace day), and she hopes that other bloggers will dedicate tomorrow's post on world peace. Which I think it's really cool and awesome. It's like promoting world peace online peacefully, through blogs. I hope you guys can participate in it too.

That's all for today, I will talk to you guys later tomorrow! See ya!

[+] There's more!