Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Re-blog
Ok... I'm feeling much better now, as compared to this afternoon. Hence, I shall attempt to recall as much of the non-existent post as possible...
Heyo!
K, that sounds too happy. In fact, I'm not that happy.
I've been struggling with a huge dilemma for a long time. Currently, it seems that I needn't have struggled at all. Andy (my future-employer) has yet to submit the application to be a sponsor for me. Because of that, I am unable to apply for a 457 (which is a temporary work visa lasting up to 4 years) before my student visa is expired, and because of that, I will not be on a bridging visa after my student visa expires. So if I stay on in Australia, I will be considered as staying illegally in the country. My dilemma has to do with the off-chance that Andy's actually gotten his application in before my student visa expires and I get to get the bridging visa. Should I stay on here & wait till my work visa gets approved/declined, or should I go back to Singapore (as is the wish of my father) to await an answer from the Australian immigration department?
Anyways, friends back in Singapore who frequent my blog would be glad (or possibly indifferent) to know that it's most probable that I will go back soon. Friends here in Brisbane, sorry to let you know I'm going back so last minute. Things were really uncertain before, that's why I didn't let much people know. But hey, it's not like I won't be coming back. =)
The other day I was chatting with Pinky, telling him about my dilemma. He asked me to go back, of course. But I told him that I've more or less lost contact with most of my church friends and was worried that y'know when you're apart from your friends for so long, you just don't fit in very well? Especially when they've got almost 2 years worth of memories to cliqué, and they've got an extra 2 years of bonding... I dunno. It's alot to catch up with. There'll be new lame jokes, new catch phrases, new people even... and the old birds who flew away will have a tough time catching up with all those. Yes, I know given time, relationships get back to normal and you snap back into the loop with everyone. But by the time my application is approved (assuming it does eventually get approved), I'd still be in that incorporation phase... and I'd have felt left out and awkward all this time. What for? Pinky's still in that phase right now, and he says there're people who're mean and have hurt his feelings. Why so mean? Shit. But then he says, at least we've got each other. =) Thanks brother. You're right. We still have each other.
Why did I choose Singapore over staying here? I dunno man. If I go back to Singapore, I'd get to enjoy super convenient public transport, super cheap good food, COMEX, some church friends whom I'll never be unable to catch up with no matter how long we've lost touch, possibly some poly friends, and family. If I stayed on, I'd get to enjoy the coming of Spring, Riverfire, OCF, the company of wonderful friends from OCF & from church, the beautiful skies and sunsets, the many places to go and explore, wide variety of good cuisines, grocery shopping with the girls, hanging out at Three Monkeys, karaoke, touch rugby, BBQs... shit, why on earth did I choose Singapore over Brisbane?!
It's not a choice now though, so I don't feel all that bad.
Oh yes, Debbie, if you trust me enough, I could get a nice frame for u. Haha! You'd still have to brace yourself though, in case the ones I chose are just way too weird for u. Hahaha!
These couple of days have seen Karen & myself getting closer, I think. And I'm happy, coz first, I got close to Mel, then it was Jun. I think I took quite some time to get through to Karen. Haha! But yeah, I'm glad we're opening up a wee bit to each other. This afternoon, we had a one-on-one communal together at home coz she decided to skip her later lecture and just come home. Haha! Jun & Mel were still in class at that time. We both had tea, mine had milk. She had her brunch sandwich, I ate 2 slices of wholemeal with aoli. And we just chatted and walked to Chai's to get some groceries for lunch and dinner. It was a nice time spent together. Haha!
Ah-h-h-h... I'm so gonna miss the people here... =( Special mention to Vic, Jun, Feli, Karen, Debbie, Emily, Tiffany, and especially Mel. And I'm gonna be put back a few weeks to deepen friendships with people like Patrick, Jonathan, ST, Louis, and Pauline...
*sigh*
~~~~~~~~~~
This evening saw a rare lunar eclipse here in Brisbane. I only started to take pictures when the eclipse is receding about half off the moon. Lunar eclipses are rare because usually when the moon, earth and sun are aligned, the moon would be high enough not to be shadowed by the earth. These 2 shots show the shadowed side as well as the lighted side.
The red tinge is due to the sun's rays going through the earth's atmosphere and refracting onto the moon. It's the same reason why the sky is blue. For the exact scientific explanation, you'd have to go read up yourself. =)
Taken with a different exposure setting, this shot shows the bright side of the moon. Of course, that would mean the eclipsed side would just appear dark, and it'd look just like a normal moon pic.
~~~~~~~~~~
I hate seeing u like this... with a pained face and watery eyes. My heart is wrenched everytime I see you like that. I don't wanna go too. Yet I want to go back. I dunno. D'you know what I mean? I want to go back, but I want to stay more than I want to go back. But right now, it doesn't seem like I have a choice.
*hugs* Don't cry...
Love me
if you
dare...
22:38
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Going Home...
Sometimes I BLOODY hate Blogger can! I typed ALL morning and the post just gets auto-saved over just when I accidentally deleted the whole entry. Bloody bloody Blogger... menstrual bloody, torture bloody, hell bloody... GRRR!!!
Anyways, I typed a helluva lot of things just now... I'm not gonna remember, nor am I gonna bother retyping everything out again. Shit, I feel like scolding the F word. Shit shit shit shit shit!!!
Anyways, the gist of things are as follows:
-I debated over going back to Singapore and I'm leaning towards it.
-I'm gonna miss the people here more than I already miss the people back in Singapore.
-So why am I still wanting to go back?
-I can feel Karen opening up a little to me, and I'm thankful for that.
-These are the people I'm gonna miss when I go back to Singapore: Karen, Jun, Vic, Feli, Emily, Debbie, Tiffany, and especially Mel.
-I wanna deepen other relationships both in OCF & in convo class.
-Had a nice talk & walk with Karen to get groceries.
So yeah. That's it. Oh, and to Debbie: I can help u get ur frames now if you trust me enough to pick one for u. Haha!
~~~~~~~~~~
I was saying that I didn't wanna go back, yet I wanna go back. Shit, it was so emotional, and now, this message is totally ruined by the anger in me. The anger that I didn't save a copy of all that I typed before I made any changes. Bloody idiot.
Sorry. Ya, I was saying I hate to see u so upset, because it wrenches my heart too. But hey, what can I do? I can't even control my anger... how to soothe u? What a shitty guy I am. (K, that wasn't in the previous attempt to post.)
And I had 2 songs, which I really can't be bothered to find the lyrics & post them out now. Shit. I hate it when I feel this way.
=(
Anyways, the 2 songs are "If You Were Mine" by Cyndi Thompson and "Two Less Lonely People in the World" by Air Supply. These are dedicated to the one I love.
Love me
if you
dare...
10:19
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Sunday, August 26, 2007
I don't know what title is appropriate.
Hmm... see? Almost another week gone by before I blogged again. Now that I have nothing much to do here, time seems to almost pass faster than when I'm studying! Speaking of which, I miss studying. I see all my friends here still studying, worrying about assignments and tests and exams, juggling all the committments in their lives, I wish I were still studying too. Facing the working world and the realities of contributing to the economy and all that heady adult stuff... ooo, scary. And troublesome too, if I'm gonna stay here in Australia to work.
Aiyah... sorry ah. I just called home... and now, I really don't have much of a mood to blog. No, it's not that anything bad happened. I just feel xian lor.
Anyways, the main thing that made me wanna blog tonight is this: Remember when I was debating which new razor I wanna buy, then I decided on the Schick Quattro Titanium because there was a full refund? Yep... Just now, when I finally got down to wanting to print the claim form, I realised that somewhere while packing all my stuff from Indroo to come to Mel's place to stay, I probably disposed of the receipt, thinking it's just another of the hundreds of receipts that I found while packing up all my belongings. So... yes... what an idiot I am.
But Mel said at least I'm smart enough to think of how I could work around it. Haha! So here's my plan: I'm gonna go to KMart, where I got the Schick, ask for a refund (yes, they do refunds without receipts), then use that refund money to buy another Schick, THEN I'll have a receipt which I will promptly post to Schick Australia for my cheque. *tsk tsk* Smart right? Or rather, shrewd right? Haha! I know some people will say I'm scheming... hmm... actually, am I? Is there any compromise on integrity? The shaver is fully intact what... *thinks* Nope, I don't think there's a compromise on integrity. *nods* Why am I justifying my actions? *pfft*
Actually, this brings to mind today's sermon. I learnt that we are not to judge (i.e. condemn) others because we'll be judged by our own yardstick. There are many differences in the Christian world, small and not so small differences that brought about the denominations, the different types of service, the different types of churches, etc etc. All in all, what Jesus really desired of us is to observe the primary and major doctrines that are clearly stated in Scripture. For things that are not clearly stated, there's the 6-8-10 Principles of 1 Corinthians:
1. Are my actions beneficial and constructive?
" 'Everything is permissible for me'—but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible for me'—but I will not be mastered by anything."
-1 Corinthians 6:12
" 'Everything is permissible'—but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible'—but not everything is constructive."
-1 Corinthians 10:23
2. Will my actions master me, or will I master my actions?
see above -1 Corinthians 6:12
3. Will my actions honor GOD?
"... you were bought at a price. Therefore honor GOD with your body."
-1 Corinthians 6:20
4. Will my actions cause a fellow believer (or non-believer) to stumble?
"So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall."
-1 Corinthians 8:11-13
"Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of GOD— even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved."
-1 Corinthians 10:32-33
5. Will my actions glorify GOD?
"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of GOD."
-1 Corinthians 10:31
Y'know, much as I'm ashamed to say this, I never really consider my actions with these in mind before... and I'm just amazed at how that can be possible! So from here on, I will try my best to think hard & clear, before I do anything foolish.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"... missed kane and his company - he being a colourful person both on the inside and on the outside really cheers ppl up... "
-Debbeh!
Haha! I didn't know u thought of me as someone colorful on the inside... How's that so? Haha! But I take that as a compliment... It is a compliment, right?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
K la, I should go sleep already. It's late. Lotsa things to do tmr... Oh man... really alot. Please pray for me to seek GOD first thing in the morning; to seek GOD's will for my life, whether I am to stay & work in Australia or to go back to Singapore and try and find a job, which, of course, if it were GOD's will, will be there; and most importantly, to obey HIS will. Of course, for those who know, the implications of both situations, if I stay in Australia, as well as if I have to go back Singapore.
That's all folks... And thank you very much for reading. =) Cheers!
Love me
if you
dare...
21:54
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Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Rainy Days and Mondays always get me down...
It's been raining constantly since Sunday. Or was it Monday? Whatever...
It's nice weather to be gloomy... because the environment is conducive, and is literally gloomy too. And Jun's been feeling kinda down lately too... Just now while on MSN with her, she was saying the weather and school work contributed to all the gloominess, and I agreed with the weather part. Makes me wanna go take a slow long walk in the rain & sob & cry also... but then I got nothing to cry about also. Hahaha! Shit.
I just had a 150min battle with the FrontierTour website fighting for 2 tickets to Justin TImberlake's Futuresex/Loveshow Tour, which will be here in Brisbane in October. No no, it's not for me. I was trying to get it for Karen & Yujun. But the stupid website cannot access coz I suspect they've got a fairly low server space, plus I bet the whole of Brisbane is trying to get the pre-sale tickets too... PLUS people who actually vie with fans for tickets so they can jack up the price and sell them on eBay... the bastards. *grrr* Anyways, I lost the battle. F5 doesn't give me quick enough refreshments to slip amongst the torrent of fans desperately trying to gain access into the website. Sorry Jun... sorry Ren...
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hmm... didn't actually intend to blog, but since I've got a couple of things I had wanted to blog about previously, I'll type them out.
Firstly, many weeks ago, I was on a bus on the way home. Nearby there were these 2 Aussie kids (kids being 18-20+yrs old) talking about Marine Biology. I'd say they must've been imbeciles from what they were saying...
"I don't understand why people study Marine Biology. Like, what do you do?"
"Identify fish? But everything is a fish!"
"Hahaha! Yeah... (mock voice) I'll take this to the lab... Hahaha!"
"Yeah yeah! Hmm... lemme see... I think it's a... fish! Hahahaha!"
Eh, come on la. There's more to just bloody fishes in the sea ok. And there're different kinds of fishes, if you don't know. So please, if you don't know anything about what you want to criticize, don't. It just shows everyone how ignorant you are, not to mention stupid. *pffft*
K... glad I got that out. Something else I've always wondered... how do the ultra-rich view money? It's like, to them, money is a non-problem coz they've got shitloads of it. Do the rich still go for bargains when there's a sale? Do the rich buy things from eBay coz they're cheaper? Do the rich choose to go to hawker centres over restaurants because they can spend less? Do the rich keep buying technological gadgets that become obsolete in a matter of months, just because they can? Do the rich always want to get the best of whatever they're getting that money can buy? Best car, best pen, best mobile, best watch, best shades, best TV, best MP3 player, best gaming console, best PC, best Mac, best microwave, best chair, best clothes, best haircut, best shaver, best property, best women, best sex, best beer, best holiday experience, best helicopter, best submarine? Do they care if these things aren't the best?
Hmm... somewhere above while I'm furiously typing all those things out, I lost my point.
*thinks*
Anyways... what if a Christian were to be filthy rich? Would he still choose GOD over all that is his in this world? Hey, he could get anything he wants, almost. Sometimes I wish this "misfortune" would befall me (who doesn't?) so that I can know if my faith in GOD stands in the face of worldly glory and riches and power. Would my principles change? Would my faith be undermined? But these things will come when they do. For now, all I can do is actively seek HIS will.
~~~~~~~~~~~
I don't know if my boss filed an application to be a sponsor and to nominate me for a work visa. I sent him 2 emails in the past 3 weeks... I know I should call him instead but I'm giving him time to do those applications. But what if he doesn't want me enough to file an application on time? My student visa expires next Thursday. If I have yet to submit an application by then, I'd have to fly back. And my dad wants me to go back coz it's expensive to live here. But flying to & fro isn't exactly cheap also right? The worse thing is I'm still ok with staying or leaving.
To me, getting "Yes" as an answer from Andy was like a "Yes" from GOD for me to stay on in Australia. At that time, I was at a fork in my life... and it seemed that GOD had allowed me to stay on in Australia. Yet now, I seem to have made a U-turn to end up back at the fork again. And once again I don't know what to do.
I guess I should start packing soon. Might have to go back on Thursday.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
I don't wanna go because of you. Not just because, but you're part of it. Yet, being together all the time doesn't seem enough. Quality really does beat quantity eh? Hands down, I'd say. Yet I can't expect much from you because we're not anything more than dating couples. Maybe it's not the right time... what with all the school work and umpiring and worship and Bible studies and midsems and assignments, all the people you're working on, people who need you more than I do... people who mean so much more than anything you've ever cared about... maybe it's not time yet.
*sigh*
Sometimes it's not about what I want. Sometimes I just want to know, need to know, need to hear, need to see, need to feel like you want me around. I don't wanna be around just because I wanna be around. D'you know what I mean?
What if I really do have to go back on Thursday?
GOD, what do YOU want me to do? Where do YOU want me to be? Should I even be asking YOU these questions? Does it show that I have little faith? It does, doesn't it?
Love me
if you
dare...
13:12
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Sunday, August 19, 2007
Ekka!!!
As I'm typing, I'm uploading the Ekka pictures I took with my cam. There're still some taken by Vic, and also some by Mel... and possibly some by Amanda too, so until I get it from them, I can only post these... =)
It was a fun-filled day, but a tiring one too. Haha! Luckily we were lazy and decided to go later so we could sleep more. The initial plan was to reach there by 9:30am... but Vic (who went there a couple of days before) suggested going later coz there ain't so much to see. So we ended up meeting at Roma St Station at 11am, then plus the journey there & everything, I think we got to the RNA Showgrounds at say, 11:15am?
It was a gloomy day and the sky threatened to pour copious amounts of rain on the fairgrounds. It was predicted that it would be a rainy day, but I told them the weather forecast is always wrong anyways, so they'll probably be wrong about today too! So we started walking, and this year, somehow, I started on the back end of the show! We started off with the animals first... haha! So yeah, cattle, sheep, chooks, cats & dogs & fishies, piglets, humongous pigs, ducks, horsies, ponies... every kind of farm animal was on display!
Three little piggies to start the day! Aren't they CUTE?
My little pony, my little pony... lalalalala...
Ok, here's the huge-ass pig... Imagine, the piglets are about my elbow to my finger-tip each. *nods* Yep! Not exaggerating at all...
Oooo... this cow is HUGE-ASS, literally AND figuratively. K... let's see... If I remember correctly, the height is about my height... U can actually see a person walking behind ya? HU-U-UGE!!!
And not just every kind... every oddity was there too! Take a look at this!
This one's beautiful, I thought. The patterns on it... looks like scales!
Anyways, we went on to the food area where skimpy fat, ultra-skinny, and just nice little girls did cheerleading no-heartedly. They all look SO sad! And then there were Australians doing Taekwondo... and we had Dutch pancakes and satay and spuds and... basically fair-food (as in funfair fair, not not-too-bad fair)... corn! And... kebabs... aiyah... Anyhoo, headed on to the Woolies area where they have wine-tasting and cheese-tasting and yoghurt and drinks and chocolate-coated bananas that look wrong, according to Vic & Mel... And lollies and chilli and chocolates and... what else was there? Basically all the more "normal" foods... =)
Went on to the Showbag Pavillion! Think we spent the most time in there looking through rows and rows of bags stuffed with candy and novelty toys and useless junk and snack foods and old magazines, healthcare products, soft toys, more useless things, masks, wigs, fairy wings, angel wings, angel halos, tritons, inflatable chairs, flowers, cacti, boxing gloves, devil horns, even more useless junk, bags, frisbees, mini-skateboards, more candy, coupons & vouchers, coasters, towels, cosmetics, blah blah blah... the list never ends. They have stuff that are NOT in bags too... like posters, RC choppers & cars & bikes & boats, books, tattoos, badges, iron-ons, caps, hats, food processors, wrestling merchandise, soft toys, watches, accessories etc etc... And the place was just LOADED with people (though not as many as last year).
Willy Wonka!!! Imagine all the Nerds & Gobstoppers & Runts & Oompa Loompas...
Oh oh! Fruity ribbons! Lo-o-ong... aren't they?
Just a small sample of the number of people...
And to show roughly what it's like inside... all the stalls with showbags hanging around.
This is us, outside the Showbag Pavillion, when we finally finished walking it all...
Wow... I'm really ranting man...
Anyways, went on to see all the rides and games, where the spirit of funfairs really thrive! All the colors and lights and smells and sounds!!! Reminds me dearly of Charlotte's Web's cartoon which I watched when I was just a teeny wittle boy. *contented sigh (coz of the memories + I just finished a bowl of home-made katsudon that was too wet)*
Abdul, Amanda, Mel, Vic & me! At the gloomy fairgrounds...
Mel & I! Hahaha! See? I did put our picture!
Here's Amanda, Abdul & Mel staring at one of the rides... haha! Think it's some Space thingy...
It really was a pity that it was a gloomy day... washed out colors of the rides really takes the mood away... We decided that we would come back when it's dark to take photos of the lights, so we went to the arena to wait for fireworks!
They weren't fantastic though... you guys should see the Riverfire! Whooo! Anyhoo, by the time the fireworks were over, it was dark already... so here u go... the fairgrounds at night...
K, we were tired but happy with our (their) purchases...
Spinnin' Ferris Wheel! Wheee!!!
We were using a tripod & timer, and people were walking past, staring at us... haha!
Pretty pretty Ferris Wheel! 35m diameter only though... Can't wait to see Singapore's own!
Duncha think the clowns look damn scary?
Oh, this is fun. See the fainter lights spread out near the middle? Those are seats chained to the top while the whole thing spins... hahaha!
And all the rides designed to make you puke just keeps on spinnin'...
Look at the amount of soft toys they have! Wow-wee!
Haha! This booth has a monster in it... damn cute can!
Spinnin'...
Anyways, the Ekka is a, I'd say, cultural experience that people who can go should go. Once-in-a-lifetime... or in my case, twice in 2 years... (Vic's twice-in-a-week)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Today's service was talking about passion for GOD. Thong was talking about how it all stems from love. And love isn't calculative, concealing, and conniving, and he gave examples of that from the Bible. And I thought, do I calculate when I love people? Do I count how I can benefit from the relationship, or whether people can see that I'm giving so much into whatever relationship I'm in, or anything at all? Am I manipulative and scheming in a relationship? Do I manipulate people so that they will feel bad and do what I really want them to do? Reverse psychology is a wonder y'know, if you know how to use it...
So... am I? I sure hope not... but someone please tell me...
And after service, Thong gave an altar call to pray for a renewing of spirit, a rekindling of passion... and it was like in camp when I felt I needed to go to Pauline... I just felt that I needed to go forward. But I was holding back & thinking when I should go, coz there were alot of people out front already. The prod came from Mel, who sat next to me, and I knew she'd go because of all that she's involved in and all the stress & frustrations she's been experiencing. So when she wanted to go out, I went out with her. She went by the back though, and I was wondering if I should follow her. Instead, I went straight to the front... and I stood there & before I know it, before anyone came to me, I started to cry... then someone came to me, and I felt so paiseh to be crying! But I figured they must've seen it a million times... so I just kept on crying... He asked me why I came up front, and I told him, in between sobs, that I just felt like I needed to be there, and he prayed for me and my heart and, I remember when Mel first went up last time Huiru was here, she said GOD just prompted the person to pray for whatever's in her heart, even though she didn't tell him/her anything, and that was exactly what happened! To be cynical, I'd say it was a fairly general prayer... but to be faithful, I'd say GOD was working through them! And I'd much rather be faithful than cynical... so yeah.
After this guy (shit, I can't even remember his name after he prayed for me) prayed for me, I just stood there & continued crying... then when I realized most of the people who've come out have gone back, I didn't wanna go back, so I just sat in front, on the floor, and prayed & cried & prayed & cried... until the end of the service...
I could see Mel cried too... and though I'd really like to know why, I didn't ask coz I thought it'd probably be something really personal. In fact, I don't even know why I cried...
It has to be GOD.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Came home to an old couple in their 70's, and their mum, 91, waiting anxiously for an ambulance to come. They couldn't get their car outta the garage and were panicking abit. So I asked Jared to help open the garage door so they could get out, then I waited with them for the ambulance to see if I could offer any help. The bloody ambulance took forever la! Luckily the husband was feeling better than before. I can't imagine if someone had a stroke or heart attack or seizure or something, and the ambulance took like half an hour to come... Die already lor.
Anyways, so yeah... by the time I got home, it was like 9+ already...
Why'm I typing these? I think I need to sleep now. Wash the dishes and sleep... 3:30am... *yawn*
Good night everybody...
Love me
if you
dare...
19:49
0 thoughts on this post
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Hmm...
Hmm... it seems that I have a habit of blogging once a week recently.
Of course, the highlight of the past week would be Maxx Camp! Hahaha! Sorry Vic, I was lazy to upload my pics onto my com on Sunday. Now I'd be posting scenics on my blog first. Haha!
It's a really relaxing camp... nothing like Men's Camp at all. Basically, there were 3 sessions (talks/sermons/whatchamacallit), meals, a couple of games, and the rest is really just free time! Time to get to know each other, know new friends, deepen friendships, and basically just to have fun! The most fun, I'd say, is playing touch-footy... At first, I was like, nah... don't like sports. Plus there was this nature walk group going at the same time they wanted to play footy, and knowing me, I'm MUCH MORE inclined to go for nature walk than play footy... But the girls somehow ended up delaying & heading for the footy game, so-o-o... follow lor. Vic sat aside, so in the end Mel, Pauline, Emily & Felicia played... with a whole buncha others la... and we were just running & running... and dodging & twisting... haha! So fun!
K, I didn't have any photos of that... but I do have some of a little bushwalk we had to get to a waterfall... which was more trickling than pouring. But well, it's the walking & the fellowship we had that was fun. Haha!
Hmm... I don't know what on earth Vic is doing. Haha! I should know though, shouldn't I?
There we were: myself, Vic & Feli!
Shitting in the middle of the forest. Actually the roots made a small compartment that looked like a toilet bowl that sparked this lame shot. Pauline looks like a really happy shitter; Vic just looks bored... like "shit again... -.-"; and I just look really constipated. Hahaha! Shit, I always look constipated... *pfft*
Now doesn't Mel look like she's strangling Pauline? Well, she's not. Haha! She's hugging her! And Felicia was too tired to come down & join 'em so she decided to just "pop" out. Haha!
Haha! Poor Vic afraid to climb around... but no worries! Felicia to the rescue!
The place was beautiful too... just lots & lots of grass & fields. At night, we would take our sleeping bags out into the open, lie there & just look at the sky. I tell u, it has GOT to be the clearest skies I've EVER EVER EVER seen la! There were just BILLIONS of stars... it's like those outer space views, and star dust, and shooting stars, YES SHOOTING STARS!!! So many of 'em... And the stars were really twinkling! Twinkling for all it's worth! It was just SO beautiful, y'know? And as Vic mentioned, it really shows you there's a GOD. How can anything like that just occur by chance?! Do you know how STUPID that sounds? But no matter how I describe, only those who have been there knows what I'm talking about.
And in the mornings, everyone just goes everywhere to do abit of quiet time... and it's really nice to just lie in the sun and it's cold, and you're really just basking. =)
This was just after the quiet time session one morning. Look at the expanse of fields!
The campsite (the Bornhoffen Campsite for the Police Youth Citizens) was surrounded by mountains... and it's really like, out of civilisation like that... haha! But it was good... =)
General view of the northeast from the slope where we'd lie down & stargaze...
The view of the campsite from the multi-purpose hall...
View from the girls' dorm...
View from the boys' dorm!
Haha! I just got this from Vic's camera... That's Pauline clinging on for dear life from being thrown into the pool, which in the end, she ended up in anyways. Haha!
Sun (the Korean guy on the leftmost) was the first to be dipped... haha! I was planning to throw Mel in also but everyone else was planning to throw ME in... so I told Vic that I was gonna carry her & jump in together with her... haha! In the end, we were all wet and the water was really icy cold... biting, freezing cold... haha! So here we are: the wet ones...
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Watched "Amazing Grace" with Louis, Mei, Tiffany, Dawn & ST on Tuesday... It was a good show, just that the only link I could find between the story and the title is the origins of the song... when a slave-trader was touched by GOD and he gave up the slave-trade and he wrote the song. To me, the show tells me more about perseverence and persistence and having faith in GOD. I shan't spoil the show for u, so I shan't say anymore. There were at least 3 quotes in the movie that really touched me though... but I cannot remember already since I couldn't have taken out my mobile to key in the quotes.
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Watched "Facing the Giants" last night when we went to Felicia's cell group. It's a really touching show... about how GOD does HIS work in HIS own time and in HIS own way, and how the faithful will be rewarded and how we need to always be thanking & praising GOD for all that HE's done for us... good or bad. Many times, I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes, and I really would have cried, except I didn't wanna break down in front of everyone. So I just kept eating popcorn, which by the way, was delicious... haha! And the show was good... really. Inspirational. And challenging for us to really trust in GOD. There was this pastor who goes around praying for all the students in the school by touching their lockers, and this coach had a little chat with him about his life. I love his analogy & it goes something like this:
"There was once 2 farmers who desperately needed rain to get their farms going. Both of them prayed very fervently asking GOD to send rain down to their fields, but only one of them went out & prepared his field for the rain, planting seeds and ploughing the fields. Now you tell me which one of them has faith that GOD will answer their prayer?
The one who went out to prepare his fields.
And which one are you gonna be?"
This calls for great faith, doesn't it? But it's so true... When we ask GOD for help, we often do not believe that HE'll actually do something. And without faith in HIM, we can do nothing! So next time I pray for something, I need to try having faith that GOD will answer my prayers. And even if HE doesn't, I'm gonna praise HIM.
"When we win, we're gonna praise GOD. When we lose, we're gonna praise GOD. Now let's take a kneel."
Love me
if you
dare...
10:07
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Thursday, August 09, 2007
Dinner last night...
Came home last night after what, a week's stay? at the Manors. Felt sad, yet also felt that it's time I came home. Everyone was saying I would be back really soon (like midnight or something. Hence the rant last night), like I couldn't control myself... well, here I am, sitting in my living room, typing this out, with the laundry in the washing machine. So yeah, I managed to sleep home last night.
Anyways, made dinner when I got home. I wanted seafood curry but decided it was too much to keep in my forever-full fridge with my ever-diminishing store of tupperwares & containers. So I had lamb chops in my freezer, which I took out to thaw, went to Coles to get some groceries for dinner to eat with lamb chops. Bought frozen corn cobs, frozen mixed veges, cherry tomatoes, alfalfa sprouts, snow peas, a carrot, a buncha asparagus, two 600mL of milk going for 50c each, a box of breakfast bars for Maxx Camp tomorrow... and I think that's it. So, aside from the milk & breakfast bars, I used everything for dinner. Scrubbed the thawed lamb chops with rosemary and oregano, let it sit awhile while I steamed the corn cobs & mixed veges & snow peas. After that, cooked the asparagus & lamb chops in butter... yummy! And to wash all that down with ginger beer (although not the best)... *licks lips* Might do that again tonight actually. =)
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Just went to shit... then dunno why I thought about shaving. Maybe coz I haven't shaved since Sunday. I've been looking to buy a new razor system... was fiddling with the idea of getting an electric one since you don't get nicked as much, and it's faster (I think), and you don't need the sink to do it. The downside is that it doesn't shave as cleanly. And then there's the choice of a foil shaver or a rotary shaver... and people swear by each one... so it's kinda confusing & expensive, so I decided to put that off till I earn some money. So now I'm looking at 2 brands...at 2 models specifically.
The Gillette Fusion, featuring 5 blades for shaving, and 1 at the back for trimming sideburns or whatever that requires precision.
Or the Schick Quattro Titanium, featuring 4 blades for shaving, but titanium coated for less irritation. Unfortunately, this is the only picture I could find of the Schick.
I don't know if more blades means better coz Gillette's advert showed a computer animation that shows how 5 blades is better than 3 (thus killing off its Mach3 line) by increasing surface area and thus reducing irritation. But Schick, although only 4-bladed, is titanium coated, which supposedly stays sharp for longer (think reduced cost) and causes less irritation than the Mach3. So I'm juggling between these 2 now... *thinks hard*
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Mel asked me for a swim later! Haha! I think I'll go... haven't swam since like the start of the year la... need to get wet... Plus, the weather's getting kinda hot lately.
Oh, did I mention there's Maxx Camp coming up tomorrow (Friday)? Bought myself a $60 sleeping bag that's cool enough to make me want it. Black with lime green corners, and an orange line along the zipper. Very bright, and very me! Haha! Yay!
Dunno what else to bring though. Might just bring the same stuff I brought for Men's Camp.
Ok, I wanna go Indroo to walk abit le. See ya later! =)
Love me
if you
dare...
08:20
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Wednesday, August 08, 2007
New blogskin again...
So I made a new blogskin... again.
I'm bored... and my iPod fever has gone down to a slight fever, fluctuating between slightly hot and cold. I'm still looking at cool, good iPod speakers for my home though. =)
I remember having quite alot of things to blog, but as usual, I didn't think to write them down coz they were supposedly significant enough & I thought I'd blog it on the day itself... Alas, that was not the case... again.
It's hard to do something against your will... especially if it's something you want so much... *sigh* Shit, I lost my train of thoughts...
K, nvm... something else to rant about: I hate it when people second guess me and they feel all smug about it. *bleah* Not that I'm offended la... it just goes to show how predictable I am. And how easily I give in to my weaknesses... eh? *nod me* So sometimes, I just have to go against my own tide & do what's not expected of me... Oh yes, that's what the previous paragraph was about... haha! I can do it ok!
Love me
if you
dare...
20:52
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Thursday, August 02, 2007
Missing the people back home...
Hi again!
Hmm... just a sad note whilst reading Shawn's blog... Saw Shi Ting's wedding photos, and especially the one where all of them were standing together... Simin, Melanie, Doris, Zhiwei, the newly-weds, Wendy, Jiashan & Shawn, Rev Chong... I really miss them. And I really wish I was there lor... and I saw Zilan also... *sigh* How I wish I could share in the happiness of my good friend's wedding... hai hai hai...
And to my other good friend, things seem pretty confusing for you right now. And trusting GOD may not seem to have any results. But I urge u to wait some more... It's hard to surrender your desires & live for GOD, I know. I so know... I'll be praying for you ya? And though so many negativity seems to be going on about your loved ones, may they not affect your view on the relationships GOD has intended for us. As long as we put GOD first in our relationships, HE will nourish, nurture, encourage, strengthen and protect that relationship with whoever. Don't despair because of the people around you ok? Take heart...
And all your doubts about your happiness & your work, I'm on your side about what you're thinking... that even though things are dry & mundane, it's how you live your life that's a testimony to HIS work in your life, of your trust & obedience to GOD. Don't be discouraged if u have a boring life. Alot of us have boring lives too... You can try new things, new perspectives to make your life more exciting! On the emotional side, I think things have been a little more than exciting eh? =)
Take care my dearest sister...
Love me
if you
dare...
20:59
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This one's beautiful, I thought. The patterns on it... looks like scales!
Shitting in the middle of the forest. Actually the roots made a small compartment that looked like a toilet bowl that sparked this lame shot. Pauline looks like a really happy shitter; Vic just looks bored... like "shit again... -.-"; and I just look really constipated. Hahaha! Shit, I always look constipated... *pfft*
Now doesn't Mel look like she's strangling Pauline? Well, she's not. Haha! She's hugging her! And Felicia was too tired to come down & join 'em so she decided to just "pop" out. Haha!
Haha! Poor Vic afraid to climb around... but no worries! Felicia to the rescue!
