The year 2008 will be closing in. When I minus 2009 with 1979, means I'll be 30! I'm as usual, having contradictory thoughts about what the new year means to me. On one hand I look forward to turning 30! But on the other, due to conditioning from society, we're supposed to dread about turning 30.
I would like to recap about my most eventful year of 2008. The last time that I had a blast that I vividly remember was the year 2004 - when I backpacked Europe in Autumn, travelling under a youth pass (under 26). This year, I'm proud to say, I went to
Kuantan in early Jan (with sayang)
Singapore in Jan (with bgf)
Miri / Mulu / Brunei in end of Feb (with sayang)
Borobudor in June (with bgf)
Singapore (again) in July (with sayang)
Hong Kong / Macao in early Sep (with sayang)
Ladakh (India) in late Sep (with bgf)
Kuching in Nov (with coursemates)
Now you see how this year has really been fabulous if not crazy?! So when I argue with my parents that I have no money, I really mean it. Thanks to all the trips that just came to reality without much planning effort! Considering I love planning...
Each of the trip is unique. The most incredible trip gotta be Ladakh, the land of the extreme (climate). I was simply overwhelmed by the sheer magnitute of the high snow-capped mountain range & cloudless blue sky. But I was also sick whenever the road becomes winding & bumpy, whenever I couldn't take the weird food, when the temperature drops below 10. My life in Malaysia and their life in Ladakh is worlds apart. Like I landed on a different planet, luckily they speak English. Or I'll be speechless & jawsdropping through out my journey in Ladakh.
There's this nice guy call Amchi, he's the herbal medicine doctor serving MIMC. He invited all of us to his house in a faraway village where ven sanghasena was born. He's so warm and always smiling and obliging, and he's like the guy when you walk on the street, everybody know your name! He took around the town, and although we were on a tight schedule, he didn't care! He was laidback and he just talk and talk with all the people he met along the short stroll down the market road. If only the people back home were that humble, charming & friendly... *oh ya he's still single and probably available, if he's not going to become a monk*
Next best trip was Borobudor -- I love history/culture + architecture. I woke up 4am to see the sunrise from atop of Borobudor stupa. 'nuff said.
Since I adore ancient buildings & experience different culture, I actually don't fancy HongKong / Macao. But what the heck, can free stay just go again.
I guess I can relate to nature quite well, the trip to Mulu cave -- the world heritage site, is definitely well worth it. I wouldn't mind going again! The long nature walk & cave climb was actually fun! What more seeing millions of bats circling in the sky... walking into the largest cave passage in the world... seeing the garden of eden... simply awesome. Funny I remember we met Julie and her parents (who speak french only from Canada) right from the start of the trip, when we boarded the plane. We stayed in the same hostel, we see each other during meal time. And I can still see her now when we go attend the MPO concert! :D *thought im getting sien with the orchestra*
I hope this post doesnt sound too braggy, but 2008 is just one of those year in your life that you'll want to remember and appreciate. And being a forgetful person, if I don't recap my wonderful 2008, I'm afraid if I'll lose the memory.
The year 2008, is also the first time I bought a house under my name (sharing with sayang).
The year 2008, is also when I finally quit my job from a vendor company to join end-user company.
The year 2008, is also when it's the last time I became chairperson of idc and finally can breath when another person could take over. I always believe in letting younger / newer person to take over the organising. The younger / newer person may not be better, that's where I realise the opportunity to have training & development. Let there be movement, let there be changes, let there be test, so that we can all know what's the result, what's the impact - negative or positive - if never try, never know!
Being not-so-young, I wish to get involve with more technical IT stuff for the Buddhist community front. In fact training & development sounds good. Its like you don't want to be hands-on running around doing the donkey work, but you want to be supportive, create the platform and opportunity for others to learn to be better. To be indirect driving force to make things happen.. for the bigger picture.
Apart from my own life, of course 2008 has the China Olympic that made history. I have high hopes for China... becos I truly believe in positive thinking. It seems like China represent a nation that defines 'changing for the better in action' or 'nothing is impossible'. You aspire for it, you work for it, you get it. I hope greed don't get in the way, although its easy to fall into the trap of greed.
The 2008 economy, I will have no say. Just waiting for the economy to reach its worst, then start asking people to buy! If its true that property price will drop, then I'll suggest to my bro to grab a title for himself.
Come end of this year, my dad will officially retire... which is good, then he can spend more time with mom, and mom will not get so naggy and there will be peace for me. Ahhhh.... bliss :D *you just don't wanna know how easily my mom can get on my nerves*
2008... many close friends got married, got babies... I just wish that in 2009 my new house will be ready, and who know whats instore?!
May the blessings of the triple gem guide and protect everyone always.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Friday, December 19, 2008
My boring update...
Been trying to fix my dad's compaq laptop *which im currently using right now* which freezes within 2 minutes each time it boots up. Its been days... so I have actually given up on trying to salvage my last bit of photos not backed up to my ext hdd... atleast I already had LL's pic in the hdd but I couldn't burn it on dvd to deliver to the newly weds couple.
Today... with the intention to FORMAT the entire C: drive... the laptop seems to be WORKING FINE... *so far* quickly I save up whatever not saved earlier. But I know ext hdd is not foolproof... you'll never know when it'll get corrupted or if its actually infected... blah blah I have a problem with "keeping too much stuff and dunno how to throw things away".
~*~
That brings me to my new house... I so wish to start decorating my new house, so can I start placing all my 'stuff' there. And then let sayang the SJ to arrange it. There's this ding-dong with the interest payment for 'late' settlement to the vendor. Which sayang is trying to settle... of which I have no idea what's the ding-dong all about.
~*~
And there's the dog in my house... of ALL places, he likes to wee wee IN MY ROOM! DOHHH!! And the stupid thing is I can't understand why. Why in my room?!! Mom have already raised her voice to yell at the dog many times "NO! NO!" But if I put myself into the dog's shoe... the meaning NO is not registered into its brain. There must be a reason WHY it has to be in my room UPSTAIRS! His 'place' is always downstairs...
Do you think it might be related to sayang always irritating the dog, so much so he dog takes 'revenge' to irritate me?! You know before this... he dog always bite my shoe, of all shoes only my shoes 'kena'. Why my shoe?! Why my room?!
Its a mystery that really cannot be solved.
~*~
Work : wow... just like how I've imagined, maybe its really very obvious... they're moving towards shared-services operation across the region. Logically there should be redundancy in manpower, but CEO say no job will be cut, only the people will be moved. And got change means got improvement mah! So I'm all supportive of this new big re-org, though the top management always seems to be at centred at Spore... doh.
At this point in my career, my wish is for 'the company want me & I want the company'. And not like my 1st company : I want them - they don't want me. Certaintly not like previous job : They want me - I don't want them.
~*~
Today at work, instead of working... I disguised as family travel agent, trying to draft out a Europe in Spring for my mom... and it has to include a visit to the flower garden... in Holland! See I'm very good at 'day-dreaming'.
The motivation to start plan for Europe in Spring for my mom is... mom is considering to join another family uncle to travel to Eastern Europe for 20days using around 15k. Hmm... I think my mom should focus on London-Paris-Amsterdam! She's been hoping to visit her cousin in UK for so long... she likes flowers... might as well use the 15k to go Western Europe which will appeal to her more?! *of course the indirect motivation, is if I'm doing the planning, it must suit me, just in case I wanna tag along!!*
~*~
So what's my plan for 2009?!?!?
Today... with the intention to FORMAT the entire C: drive... the laptop seems to be WORKING FINE... *so far* quickly I save up whatever not saved earlier. But I know ext hdd is not foolproof... you'll never know when it'll get corrupted or if its actually infected... blah blah I have a problem with "keeping too much stuff and dunno how to throw things away".
~*~
That brings me to my new house... I so wish to start decorating my new house, so can I start placing all my 'stuff' there. And then let sayang the SJ to arrange it. There's this ding-dong with the interest payment for 'late' settlement to the vendor. Which sayang is trying to settle... of which I have no idea what's the ding-dong all about.
~*~
And there's the dog in my house... of ALL places, he likes to wee wee IN MY ROOM! DOHHH!! And the stupid thing is I can't understand why. Why in my room?!! Mom have already raised her voice to yell at the dog many times "NO! NO!" But if I put myself into the dog's shoe... the meaning NO is not registered into its brain. There must be a reason WHY it has to be in my room UPSTAIRS! His 'place' is always downstairs...
Do you think it might be related to sayang always irritating the dog, so much so he dog takes 'revenge' to irritate me?! You know before this... he dog always bite my shoe, of all shoes only my shoes 'kena'. Why my shoe?! Why my room?!
Its a mystery that really cannot be solved.
~*~
Work : wow... just like how I've imagined, maybe its really very obvious... they're moving towards shared-services operation across the region. Logically there should be redundancy in manpower, but CEO say no job will be cut, only the people will be moved. And got change means got improvement mah! So I'm all supportive of this new big re-org, though the top management always seems to be at centred at Spore... doh.
At this point in my career, my wish is for 'the company want me & I want the company'. And not like my 1st company : I want them - they don't want me. Certaintly not like previous job : They want me - I don't want them.
~*~
Today at work, instead of working... I disguised as family travel agent, trying to draft out a Europe in Spring for my mom... and it has to include a visit to the flower garden... in Holland! See I'm very good at 'day-dreaming'.
The motivation to start plan for Europe in Spring for my mom is... mom is considering to join another family uncle to travel to Eastern Europe for 20days using around 15k. Hmm... I think my mom should focus on London-Paris-Amsterdam! She's been hoping to visit her cousin in UK for so long... she likes flowers... might as well use the 15k to go Western Europe which will appeal to her more?! *of course the indirect motivation, is if I'm doing the planning, it must suit me, just in case I wanna tag along!!*
~*~
So what's my plan for 2009?!?!?
Sunday, December 14, 2008
a wedding shoot story
I have to thank peter for giving me some tips here and there esp on photoshooting skill. Basically I'm still not well-verse with 'M' mode, to be on the safe side, I tend to leave it to 'P'.
Earlier on the advise given was closed up shots not close enough, wide angle shots not wide enough. Hmm... I guess I understand what he meant. Later on, he gave more terror advice like I should improve my still shots further, esp for dinner shoot by using a tripod throughout the night!
Yah.. even with a flashgun... *still not sure how to fully make use of it* there are many shots should turn out not clear. And I don't know how to do effects with the setting... dunno where point the flast. Luckily there's another more 'pro' photographer (think the lense like mco's lense, the body is 350d, same flashgun model as I used)... he managed to capture the whole morning ceremony, and speed-edit to show some shots for the dinner.
My mom thinks his pictures were 'nice' and I agree that his pictures were 'clear'. But sayang said he don't like the photographer! Hmm.... maybe cos we've seen ALOT of better pictures... so other 'photographer' seems not good enough.
Well I don't wanna comment about other people... but I do notice... he tend to firing it away endlessly without looking through the viewfinder. Where as for me, you see how my nose is so flat or looks 'red' that's becos I press the camera so hard into my nose trying to look through the viewfinder red dot focusing... particularly onto the eye of people.
Sometimes I use the brainwave to send signal "look here!" errm.. well sometimes it works... but nothing beats just shouting out to the people to look into your lense!
Anyway... a long way to go... to reach that standard. It was flattering to note (from peter) that my still shots is 80%, gotta put in more effort to reach 100%!
- if close up go nearer
- focus correctly
- steady the hand / use tripod
- if wide angle > upgrade my lense!
I hope I didn't bore the hell out of sayang, for spending his time sitting at a table with elderly people he don't know. He could have been doing something else that he'd be more happy doing... but I was not dai-fong enough let him go, instead he had to virtually accompany me (I was always not at my seat most of the time). You know its not nice if we don't show up for a dinner, when the host had reserve a place for you.
So now... should I first get a flashgun or a better lense? If only I know how to charge people accordingly for my service! It's alot of hardware, technicality and skills involved!
Next time when uncle/aunty ask me "are you professional?" I should reply -- I try to provide people with good photograpy service!
Earlier on the advise given was closed up shots not close enough, wide angle shots not wide enough. Hmm... I guess I understand what he meant. Later on, he gave more terror advice like I should improve my still shots further, esp for dinner shoot by using a tripod throughout the night!
Yah.. even with a flashgun... *still not sure how to fully make use of it* there are many shots should turn out not clear. And I don't know how to do effects with the setting... dunno where point the flast. Luckily there's another more 'pro' photographer (think the lense like mco's lense, the body is 350d, same flashgun model as I used)... he managed to capture the whole morning ceremony, and speed-edit to show some shots for the dinner.
My mom thinks his pictures were 'nice' and I agree that his pictures were 'clear'. But sayang said he don't like the photographer! Hmm.... maybe cos we've seen ALOT of better pictures... so other 'photographer' seems not good enough.
Well I don't wanna comment about other people... but I do notice... he tend to firing it away endlessly without looking through the viewfinder. Where as for me, you see how my nose is so flat or looks 'red' that's becos I press the camera so hard into my nose trying to look through the viewfinder red dot focusing... particularly onto the eye of people.
Sometimes I use the brainwave to send signal "look here!" errm.. well sometimes it works... but nothing beats just shouting out to the people to look into your lense!
Anyway... a long way to go... to reach that standard. It was flattering to note (from peter) that my still shots is 80%, gotta put in more effort to reach 100%!
- if close up go nearer
- focus correctly
- steady the hand / use tripod
- if wide angle > upgrade my lense!
I hope I didn't bore the hell out of sayang, for spending his time sitting at a table with elderly people he don't know. He could have been doing something else that he'd be more happy doing... but I was not dai-fong enough let him go, instead he had to virtually accompany me (I was always not at my seat most of the time). You know its not nice if we don't show up for a dinner, when the host had reserve a place for you.
So now... should I first get a flashgun or a better lense? If only I know how to charge people accordingly for my service! It's alot of hardware, technicality and skills involved!
Next time when uncle/aunty ask me "are you professional?" I should reply -- I try to provide people with good photograpy service!
Thursday, December 04, 2008
Trying to blog like my cousin sister
you know my mom and bro?
The are SO funny?!
Bro called : cheh ah how to go to Jln Raja Chulan?"
I ask which building he wanted to go in Jln Raja Chulan..
guess what... and he don't know!
He said : ahya you call mom lah!
She want me to go to dunno what building in Jln Raja Chulan
but she cannot explain how to go there!
She want me to go to dunno what building in Jln Raja Chulan
but she cannot explain how to go there!
So I called mom, who naturally yell back :
... haiya! I want him to go to Wisma Bousted in Jln Raja Chulan
... how to explain to him you tell me?!
your brother hah!! Jln Raja Chulan also don't where!
your brother hah!! Jln Raja Chulan also don't where!
OkOK.. so Wisma Bousted is it, and I nicely call back my bro to navigate him in under 5 sentences :
...you know Menara Maybank go towards Bukit Bintang?
uh ha..
...you know Istana Hotel?
errr dunno..
...ok you know menara KL? Its on your left
uh ha..
...ok if menara KL on your left, Wisma Bousted will be on your right,
open your eyes as you pass by Menera KL.
open your eyes as you pass by Menera KL.
~*~
So any anyway, the more I read my cousin's blog the more I'll laugh!
She is so funny! The way she writes...
She is so funny! The way she writes...
Maybe it reminds me of me when I was her age
oh my GOD.. that's why I like her!
*I think she thinks this big joon jie jie is cool*
like joon jie jie who remembers she fancy 'boxes' and 'tin' for her crap storage...
like joon jie jie take such beautiful pictures of her overseas trip to show off...
like joon jie jie who trail American Idol and also root for our SAME favourte idol!
If I was 13, I probably go AAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh
for DAVID ARCHULETA
If I was 23, I'll go OMG aaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh
for DAVID COOK!
Now?! ERrm.. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh
for DAVID COOK singing MARIAH CAREY's Always Be My Baby!
We're so alike... i think...
like we're both from chinese school but essentially speak english alot at home...
basically mix with chinese-ed friends but still speak english with them...
like we were fat in school (ok she's fatter & chubbier, so she's cuter)
of course we were smart too! :P (of course she's smartER)
we're the only girl in the family
we both have got a funny and less smart younger brother
we both like to say dddDDOHHH!!
we're both "nice" and temple/church going "good" girl :D
I go temple she goes to church!
...hahaha... my funny cousin sister with very same gene as me
i have this imagination inside, that if I could choose somebody to be emcee for my wedding dinner,
the female emcee would be her! Like SO freaky DOH!!
she'll go: "yahhh... so you're all here for Joon jie jie's wedding.. uhh.. am I supposed to say Thank you for coming?! ok FINE... Thank YOU for COMEing. OK LETS EAT.. im hungry!"
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