Tis the Season to be Shopping...

Shopping

Shopping

Shopping

SHOPPING!!

Yeah, I absolutely canNOT get enough of it.

Shopping is a hobby, and most definitely a passion. It sounds so cliche, I know. And considering that I am a female too! But 'me & shopping' can be compared to 'any guy & sports'.

They simply go together.

And of course, I totally and completely put the blame on my Malaysian culture.

Oh heck yes.

Malaysia is ALL about food, shopping and more food. Only in Malaysia can I go out for breakfast, go shopping, eat lunch whilst there, and then come back home before our disastrous Malaysian jam starts so that I can get ready to go out for dinner.

Man, what a life.

I swear, you would think that there's absolutely no world recession going on at all.

Then again, most people don't seem to care at this point in time.
Neither do I seemingly. I have done nothing else BUT shop... I have spent so much it's not even funny.

My entire family is calling me 'my mother's daughter' [and in common sense terms- yes I should hope so too], but I agree with them. Because mum started it by taking me shopping with her everytime! XD

I swear it's like a talent, or a gift. I'm so meticulous about it, it's funny.
Maybe I should just make a job out of it.

*sigh* I love shopping.

Mishy <3

Boxing Day

Today is the 4th anniversary of the 2004 Tsunami which claimed many lives all across the Indian Ocean.
So I can only sit back, and remember those who died...and pray that those new tsunami warnings which were installed immediately after still work, in case of another great tsunami.

____________________________________________________________

Christmas Day was great. =) I didn't take any shots of my presents, but then again, who would want to see them?

I completely forgot that almost all stores open on Christmas and Boxing Day, because in South Africa and Australia, everything is closed, lol. So when my aunt took us out for lunch after church, I was completely flabbergasted to find that things were actually open.

Yeah, I feel like such a jakun at the moment.

As of now, I am still shopping for last minute presents for people at in Perth. Thankfully, things are cheap in Central Market, but I can't keep going back now, can I? Grr. I need to spend a whole day in there. At least most of the people on my list have been ticked off.
It's been said that Malaysians have created a 'Mega Sale Culture' and I say good for us! What excitement would there be, if we had no mega sales? I feel sorry for other countries who don't have the sales like we do. :P
Also headed to that fish pedicure place. These fish [and I have no idea what they're called] feast on dead skin cells, so putting your feet into a tank of these is literally the natural way to a great pedicure! It's dead ticklish at first I admit, but it gets better after a while. I know I only dared to submerge my entire foot in the water after about 7 minutes. Before that, I only sacrificed my heel or my toes.

My feet have never been so smooth.

Not to mention it's RM5 for 10 minutes in Central Market, so for anyone heading that side: go while the offer's still there!

Central Market's also got a stall selling shirts with incredibly witty wording on them.
RHB Bank- Robin Hood Bank. We steal from the rich AND the poor. -we don't discriminate-
HSBC- Highly Suspicious Banking Company. The world's loco bank.
BMW- Burn My Wallet

Also, my all time favourite: KEEP MALAYSIA CLEAN. Throw your rubbish in Singapore.
As well as: When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping.

OF course, it was RM35 friggin bucks, so I didn't buy it. One day, I'll just go and print out my own shirt, LOL.

Mishy <3

A Politically Correct Christmas

Twas the month before Christmas*
*When all through our land,*
*Not a Christian was praying*
*Nor taking a stand.*
*The politically correct police had taken away,*
*The reason for Christmas - no one could say.*

*The children were told by their schools not to sing,*
*About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.*
*It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say*
*December 25th is just a " Holiday ".*

*Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit*
*Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!*
*CDs from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-pod*
*Something was changing, something quite odd! *
*Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa*
*In hopes to sell books by Franken &Fonda.*

*As Targets were hanging their trees upside down*
*At Lowe's the word Christmas - was no where to be found.*
*At K-Mart and Staples and Penny's and Sears*
*You won't hear the word Christmas; it won't touch your ears.*
*Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-si -ty*
*Are words that were used to intimidate me.*

*Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton, Wolf Blitzen*
*On Boxer, on Rather, on Clinton, and Obama!*
*At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter*
*To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.*
*And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith*
*Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace*
*The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded*
*The reason for the season, stopped before it started.*

*So as you celebrate "Winter Break" under your "Dream Tree"*
*Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me.*
*Choose your words carefully, choose what you say*
*Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS, not Happy Holiday!*


It pisses me off that this could happen. I mean, some form of equality is good, but not to the extent that I am forced to hide my religion. Christmas is the day that Christ was born. It is meant to be celebrated and tolerated by all, just as other occasions such as Ramadan or Kwanzaa are. And so what if it doesn't apply to everybody? When people choose their way of life, it means that they're making an informed decision, and knew what would and wouldn't be included in their life.
Remember the true meaning of Christmas- Merry Christmas to all and to all...a goodnight!

Mishy <3>

TER Results

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!

Okay, before I even continue, I must let it be known to the world that I was MISLEAD.

I was told the results were coming out on the 23rd of December, and here I was happily thinking that I'd be free from the world of results till tomorrow.

Not quite so.

It turns out the results came out TODAY.

So yes, I have been completely and totally mislead.

So I called my mum in an absolute panic. And while yes my mum was really good about delving into my pig sty of a room to look for my ID number, her belief that I would not tell her my results was not so cool.

After arguing with her for at least 5 minutes and forcing her to finally tell me my Student ID with the promise that I'd keep her on the phone and reveal my results then and there, I finally managed to log in.

Okay, so at first glance, I was pretty impressed with myself. It was a good score by Australian standards. Then I remembered what the school had predicted for me and I grew even more impressed. Then I remembered what I was actually aiming for and grew steadily depressed again.

Of course, they then gave me a break down of my scores and I grew slightly more depressed at my scores.

Well, I guess I can't have everything.

But yes, before I stretch the suspense any longer, I got a grand score of: 90.25.

So yes, compared to a whole load of other people, it's pretty great. At first glance it definitely is! But compared to other people, and considering what my pride is like, it's not the best in the world.

Individual marks were...kind of dismal. Lit greeted me with 71.4%, whilst everything else ended up with 60 something and 50 something percents.

I so knew I wasn't going to do great in Human Biology and Political and Legal Studies.
History was disappointing on a dismal level. I was hoping for a score a lot higher than what I achieved. And History is pretty much my favourite subject! But Lit and History were my top two, so no complaints there. Chemistry was...on the ball. But I achieved a higher score than my Chemistry mock! Maths was again, dismally disappointing. [Sorry Mr. Mirichlis]
Those were the four subjects that were used in my TER calculation. Just like I predicted they would be.

So after a year of freaking out, almost endless turmoil, and wondering when the hell this torture would end- it's almost over.

I still have to get over the obstacle that is...

UNIVERSITY OFFERS!!!

Mishy <3

Christmas Cheer

I love music. I love choirs. By now, regular readers will know of my obsession with anything that sounds like organised sound. :P
Again, I feel a thrill everytime I hear choir music. A good choir song makes you want to get up and dance and sing along with the choir, or just leaves you entranced and captivated by every note and sound.
So here's a song by the Men's A Cappella of the Straight No Chaser Choir in Indiana University.

Whew. Long name. But the music is just...woah.

I wish I could sing like that again.

Mishy <3

What Is A TCK? [Part II]

TCKs come with an array of emotions.

I mean, most TCKs have been portrayed as little emo kids with not much more to do than travel all over the world, get pampered and mope over their living situation.

I wouldn't say it's that simple.

Everyone needs to feel as if they belong. As if they are loved and needed. If we look at Maslow's hierarchy of needs:

TCKs tend to be missing out on some of life's greatest needs it seems. We appear to be self actualized, and in a way, we reach this goal much faster than others.[lack of prejudice, acceptance of facts, what could be more true? :P] But without a stable base.

Physiologically, unless we're hobo TCKs [highly unlikely] we have food, water, sex [for the elders], sleep etc etc. I'm positive that unless you're being murdered/trying to commit suicide, no one can be deprived of breathing and excreting.
However, TCKs can sometime be lacking in areas such as belonging, and to perhaps a smaller extent, safety.
That's the base I'm talking about.

Most people I know wouldn't survive without a permanent house. Most people I know would next to die if they didn't have anyone they could trust. In a world where popularity and conformity is everything, many mono-cultural people would just waste away not knowing what to do.

Enter the TCK. We've never had anyone to really trust. Never had a permanent home. [The saying goes that the suitcase is where the home is] In order to survive without some of these necessities, we simply don't conform.
I'd say it's a good way to cope, isn't it?

Then again, when I think about it...maybe we don't really need to conform to well. I mean, after all, TCKs have reached the highest level more easily that way...haven't they?

Mishy <3

Unsuspected

First of all: Elaine can drive.
And I managed to survive an entire 6 hours with her and did not once crash. If she ever deigns to read my blog- just want you to know Elaine, your driving skills are good. =) Considering you are living in a country where driving rules are not to be followed anyway. And considering we are not in a ditch somewhere, I think we did pretty well. Getting lost and all. XD

For another, nobody seems to recognise me. I headed into school [GIS], and almost nobody recognised me. I must've stayed out of everyone's lives pretty well. Or just passed by unnoticed. [refer to other posts to have an idea of what I'm being so emo about] Okay, so people say I've changed. I did briefly pop in once upon a time without my glasses and with my fringe, so I don't quite understand why nobody remembers what I look like. People stared at me before realising it was me. Even my own name-twin didn't recognise me immediately, which is kind of scary, seeing as I recognised her the minute I saw her.
I need a pet who can travel with me. At least the pet will have experienced what I have.

Traffic jams don't seem to be all that bad. Which, okay, freaks me out a bit. I expected to come back to chock-a-block jams and horrific driving habits. The driving habits are still there, don't get me wrong. But the jam hasn't been completely horrific. I've been getting places. Slowly but surely.

Weatherwise- I have also been surviving. Possibly because 40 degree temperatures are on the brain at the moment. But I like this humidity. It's better than dying slowly of skin cancer.

Also- Chris [no need to know the surname, cuz he might get embarrassed- plenty of Chris's out there right?] can sing! Highly pitched, yes, but he can sing. =) So I am proud of him. [yes Chris, you- if you ever see this]

So far, that's all I've found out. I'm kind of not really looking forward to finding out too much more...suddenly things seem a bit weird again. I think TCKs will understand what I'm kind of feeling here. The sudden revelation of all this newfound knowledge, of what was once familiar and suddenly is not.

Guess we all need to grow up at some stage.

Mishy <3

Come Fly With Me

I have Michael Buble's song 'Come Fly With Me' stuck in my head. I love his voice, so velvety...<3

But, yes, anyway.

I HAVE LANDED ALIVE!!

Eventful it was too.

First I had to wake up at 4am. 4 friggin am in the morning.

And then I actually got up at like 4.30am cuz I couldn't wake up, and dad had to barge in and force me to get up or I'd probably end up missing my flight. [I swear I really did try to make an effort!]

Then, of course, with Air Asia, the flight got delayed. As usual. -_-" First the website said 7.05am. My ticket said 7.15am. The little TV screen with the flight times said 7.20am. Finally I ended boarding the plane at 8am.
Yeah, that's Air Asia alright.

When I ordered my meal online, I thought I was getting a nasi lemak [the realisation of which hit me at about 6am when I realised exactly what COULD happen if I ate really spicy stuff on the plane] but in the end, I received a paper bowl of...mutton rendang.

I DON'T EVEN EAT LAMB!

But I was really hungry, so it was a good thing that plane food is usually completely tasteless.

I got at the airport alright. Waited almost an hour for my luggage, wondering whether it somehow managed to get lost. Luckily it did emerge, and when it did, I grabbed it instead of letting it go round and round the baggage belt. Like the other stupid late passengers did.

But so ends my maiden air voyage alone. I loved it, and can't wait to do it again. But the next time...I'll take MAS no matter what the cost. The KLIA is just worth it really.

Mishy <3

Soon...

SOON

It shall be here.

I can't believe it. It felt like years at the beginning of the year.

But it's coming, slowly but surely.

A few more hours, I'll be back where I belong.
Back in the place where I'm comfortable.
In the place I can call home.

The air. =)

Oh! Well, I was talking about Malaysia too, of course. *cough*
We'll see how it works out this time. The home I loved has been drawing further and further away from me.
But it will remain a home. To me. In my heart.

Malaysian at <3

Mishy <3

PS. TOMORROW!

Waffling On...

I need to buy Christmas presents.

LOTS of Christmas presents. I don't know why I didn't start this earlier. I am panicking right about now. I plan to embark on this crazy mission tomorrow, and finish approximately...tomorrow.

I don't have a choice!

I have to finish packing by Friday.
Which means that the shopping has to be done by Thursday.

It doesn't exactly help that I've booked a ticket for a morning flight [well, okay it does: I prefer morning travel], which leaves me less time for shopping.

You know...it would be really nice if chinese families didn't have all these traditions and shows. Then I wouldn't be expected to buy presents back. Not that I am being expected to technically, since to the grandparents, I am still a 'child'. But my parents aren't children. And my aunts and uncles can't exactly be called seniors. And since I fly alone, I am expected to bring the presents with me.

This is truely the Nightmare Before Christmas.

_______________________________________________________________

On a different topic...
Work today was a crazy experience. It was only for five hours, but WOW what a day.
I met this senior lady who was buying a card and asking if she got any kind of discount with this membership card she had. I said not with that particular card, but if she had a senior's card, she could get a discount.
I looked at her name: Beng Sim.
My mother's name is Beng Sim.
So we started having a fat conversation, all about her birthdate, her Golden Anniversary, her kids, grand kids, nephews and neices, how she came from Petaling Jaya to Perth, how much she likes eating Penang Laksa etc etc. It's always nice to meet a Malaysian overseas, but wow, I don't think she ever lost her penchant for telling grandmother stories when she moved to Perth.

How typically Malaysian...

Then some chinese guy comes up, and I think his name is Mr. Hwee. The minute he saw me, he tried to make me speak in mandarin. Then switched to cantonese when he realised mandarin wasn't working. Then back to mandarin again when he realised I knew even less cantonese than I did mandarin.
I was frantically going 'wo bu shuo, wo bu shuo!!!'
But he insisted of trying to test my language skills.
Well excuse me, but after going to two different schools trying to improve my mandarin, I think it is pretty clear that it is simply not going to work out.

Although when I think about it, I probably should have insisted I was Thai or something. But he might have been able to tell. Most chinese can. Or just not tried to tell him 'wo bu shuo han yu' at all.

Anyway, that's my day...
Moral of the story: learn mandarin and cantonese. FAST.

Mishy <3

PS. Three more days...

Please don't stop the music...

It is actually quite an embarrassment.

I really really really miss singing.

But that's not the embarrassment.

What's embarrassing is the fact that I joined choir for almost four years, and after a year, I can no longer reach the usual soprano pitch that I was once comfortable with.
THAT is what is embarrassing.

I want to join choir again!

I want to perform with a group of people. I want to dance the night away. I want to sing to the timing of an african jembe. I want to beat a tune with my hands. I want to listen to the voices of a dozen, maybe more people singing in harmony.

I want, I want, I want...

It sucks that I can't sing the same way I used to. I usually sing along with the radio, but when I listened to myself recently, and I mean actually listened to myself, I didn't sound the same way I used to sound. Certainly not better. And when I tried to sing some of my old choir songs, it didn't sound right. I was missing the 'key note', as Chris my old choir conductor would say. And I couldn't read music the way I used to either. I mean, I didn't expect myself to retain that skill during the TEEs, but I didn't think it would be that hard to get back on track again.

Bonk'aba'phandle. Zum Gali Gali. The Merry Widow. Tonight.
So many songs. So many good times.

I'm on the look out for a choir right now. And I'm hoping that to make things easier, the university I get into will have a competent choir. I really need to get back into this vibe again. The type I can only get before, during and after a performance. I guess you could call it a kind of high.
It would definitely explain why I was never interested in drinking or doing drugs.

You know, it's odd that considering how shy I used to be, I'm going crazy that I'm not able to perform in a choir.

Choir gave me some of the best moments of my life...
I just hope that my music doesn't go away.

Mishy <3

PS. Five more days.