*Phew*

Results are out. And I was on the brink of tears as I heaved a HUGE sigh of relief.

Wui Li's right, it feels so much sweeter to receive good news when you've been expecting the worst possible.

I'd like to convey my thanks and appreciation to those who have been constantly giving me encouragement and also the multiple attempts at trying to brighten up my day. Special thanks to both Qi Hong and Wui Li for the encouraging sms-es. Oh, and Jia Ling too wishing me good luck this morning.

Have to admit that I'm a little disappointed at my tax results though. I could've and should have done better.

And yes, I'll let this serve as a lesson to me. No more fooling around in this course. It's not the same, and won't be as easy as CAT was. Yes, time to sober up, work harder and focus on getting better results for this semester.


By the way, didn't know that ACCA results day was so infamous. Apparently news has been spreading to non-ACCA students as well. Thanks Wang Sheng for contacting out of concern. Pray that my friends and other students would receive good news too. All the best people!

*Sigh*

Haven't really been in any mood to blog lately. Thus, the total "nil-ness" of updates.

Was supposed to blog about my Chinese New Year, but now when I come to think of it, actually it's nothing much, and it's not as if it was so interesting that I had to tell the whole world. So yeah, screw the CNY update.

Haven't been having enough sleep lately. My fault, I've been staying out late and haven't exactly been efficient (okay, it's not at all) at doing my homework.

Haven't been in a real happy mood this past week. Partly due to me PMS-ing, the painful blisters on my feet from my excessive training and also worrying about my results which would be out tomorrow. I'm already expecting the worst outcome, but I'm the kind that worries a lot, so expecting the worst isn't exactly helping either.

But why am I complaining. I brought on everything myself, so I only have myself to blame.

So right, you can just screw this post and save me your encouragement by not commenting. I'm just letting things out. *Phew* I do feel a little better now. At least I think I do.

And now, off to doing more homework.

Zzzzzzz....

Happy Chinese New Year

Happy Chinese New Year!

The zodiac starts a new cycle again as the little rat gets its turn on the throne this time.

And like how everybody wishes everybody, I'll say the same and hope that all you readers will have a prosperous new year:

Full of wealth (Hopefully more ang paus this year, with bigger notes inside)
Good luck (Buy more 4Ds!)
Good feng shui (Experts have been saying that luck will be coming in from the north)
Good health (Exercise more and watch your snacking... no more siew yeh lo..)

and an abundance of everything you could be wishing for and looking forward to.

恭喜发财! 新年快了!



Picture extract from postcard released in China.

Love 2008 by Ilana Yahav

A little request:
Just spare a little of your time, just 5 minutes would be enough, no more that that. Sit back, relax and enjoy this beautiful clip.



It's amazing how one person, using only her creativity, can make such a beautiful picture out of something so plain and ordinary such as sand. Of course, the music helps too. But it's a shame to know that we usually do not appreciate the simplest of things in life. I hope that this video would be a little food for thought for you, as to how the simplest things in life can be the most enjoyable but is often under appreciated.

Art by Ilana Yahav. For more amazing sand videos please visit www.sandfantasy.com
Music by Merav Josef-Levy, Sax by Tevet Sela.

Wasn't Meant to Be

Har! I bet most of you are thinking - Oh yes, finally this girl here is going to reveal something about her private love life that was...
or that is...
or that will be...
or that would have been...

BAAAATSU! (Means wrong in Japanese)

Ima here to talk about something else.

Remember me mentioning once that as a "New Year's Resolution" I'd make sure that my blueberry muffins would successfully turn out golden brown instead of the muddy green colour that happened the first time? (No? Go read my older posts lah.)

Well, looks like it was never meant to be...


It was a Wednesday. One of the nicer days of the week in which I do not have any classes or any other obligations. So, casting aside my precious Wednesday afternoon in which I could have taken a little nap or even do a little bit of studying on my part, I decided to give the muffins another try.

And a horrible afternoon it turned out to be indeed. T______T

1st incident:
I realised at the last minute that we've ran out of milk.
Not a big problem whatsoever. I immediately dispatched little brother the milk and delivery boy to purchase a small carton from the grocery shops near my home. He took quite a few minutes to complete his simple task, but finally he came strolling home, milk and change in his hand.
Problem solved in 10 minutes.

2nd incident:
As I was halfway through making the batter for the muffins, I opened the cupboard and got the shock of the day.
There were only 5 muffin paper cups left. How was I to freaking fit such a big batter into only 5 cups? Even if I did try the result would have been ridiculous. Imagine having to gobble down a muffin the size of a football!
However, it wasn't as if the problem was impossible to solve either. Off went mum and dad to Carrefour to purchase some extra paper cups.
Problem solved in 20 minutes.

3rd incident:
Returning from Carrefour, mum handed me the plastic bag with the paper cups.
*Opens the bag* *GASP* "Mummy!!! What is this!?"
Snuggled in the bag were paper cups the size of barely a third of my muffin mould. Sad to say my mum didn't even check the sizes of the paper cups before purchasing it. And I even gave her a sample to bring along to compare!!! (She said she didn't bring it out of the car, at that time I was like seriously nani sakana -wtfishes- already)
No big deal, mum hurriedly rushed to a bakery near our home and managed to purchase the paper cups of the right size.
*Phew, finally!*
Problem solved in 20 minutes.

Last and final incident:
The batter is done. The muffin mould has been lined with the paper cups. I'm super confident that my recipe has improved greatly this time, and I even believed that the colour would turn out better this time.

But as I said, it was all not meant to be.

Before spooning the batter into the cups, I take out the oven and turn it on, leaving it to heat up. Once done, I start spooning the batter into the cups. I'm almost done, and smiling with glee. "Ah..." I thought to myself, "... both my family and college mates are gonna enjoy this batch of muffins!" Putting down the spoon, I turn to regard the oven. And then...

*Pak* *Pak* I hear some weird sound from the oven. Curious, I move towards the oven. Looking at the temperature needle, I get the second shock of the day. "Eh? I've left it on for almost 15 minutes already, why is it still pointing at 100 degrees Fahrenheit?" Gingerly, I reach out to touch the oven's base. "Heh? Not hot also?"

And then it dawned on me. "Oh CRAP! Don't tell me the freaking thing fused!?"

So off I rushed upstairs to ask dad to take a look at it. Well he did, and he even changed the fuse of the switch, but it still wouldn't work. "I don't know what's wrong lah..." Dad said before retiring back upstairs.

Wiping my hands on a towel, I sat down at the kitchen table in dismay. Throwing the towel on the floor, I had to restrain myself from shouting out loud which would have certainly not been a good thing.

"WHHHHHHHHHHHHHHY!!!!!!!!?" (In the world did this have to happen)

The End


And so you have it, the tale of the muffins that was not meant to be. Okay, I have to admit lah, the paper cups and the milk thing was kind of my fault for not checking and informing my mum about the shortage earlier. But yea, the oven's still not fixed and I don't know when my dad would seriously get down to see what the real problem is, or even if my mum would purchase a new one (which I'm sure she really wants but may not be able to). So I don't think I'll be doing baking for a long time to come. And just when Chinese New Year is around the corner. T_T

Epilogue
As we didn't want to waste the batter, and it was getting late already, mum suggested we put the whole thing into the microwave to cook it. And so we did, after about 2o minutes in the microwave, it was done.

The result?
Well, the "cake" had some streaks of mouldy colour. But frankly, it didn't taste all that bad, although it didn't have the aroma it should have had if it was baked. And since it was microwaved, the sides were a little dry as compared to the middle.

Ah well, I didn't dare offer it to my college mates, but at least I'll have something to snack on in the afternoons when I'm feeling hungry. Yup, I'm glad I have my "Blueberry Muffin Cake" to accompany me through my boring and hungry afternoons.

Umbrella

Hmm... Yes, yes, I know this song isn't all that recent and you're probably sick of it, but just in case you haven't seen these 2 different versions of the song, I'm strongly suggesting that you should.

The first is the MV by Vanilla Sky. Extremely entertaining, and uh, could be arousing if you're into such things. (Hinting at a certain someone whom I'm sure doesn't visit my blog =p)



This second MV is by a Swedish band, Lillasyster. The drums are more powerful and heavier compared to that of Vanilla Sky's, and the guitar isn't bad either. However, I still prefer Vanilla Sky's version of the vid XD Not just because it's more entertaining but also because of the singing.



Well then, enjoy!

Vids brought to my attention by my bro who caught it on Hitz.TV

Happy New Year!

A new year calls for a new resolution, a new year calls for new beginnings.

A new year, also calls for a new template.

Happy New Year, everyone! Happy 2008!
May your new year be as exciting and as good as it was the year before (or as Jia Ling says, it should be better than the last), and may you find whatever it is you will be looking for or may whatever it is find you instead.

A little insight to my new year's resolution...
- To be much more patient and not blow up at the slightest agitation on anybodies part.
- To be more consistent and not do any more last minute studying.
- To actually watch my mouth and think carefully before blurting out anything that may hurt others.
- And to ensure that my blueberry muffins don't turn out the colour that it did the first time. I shall make sure that it will be golden.

God bless always.


PS - Please excuse me for the messed up condition my blog is in now. It's 3 in the morning and I am craving for my bed. Will try to fix everything up properly as soon as I think I have enough sleep. ( Which may be never. Muahaha. Just kidding ;D )