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[10 Feb 2012|02:40am] |
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PARTIALLY FRIENDS LOCKED
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| Beijing: day 1 & 2 |
[11 Jul 2010|03:47pm] |
I am finally in Beijing after so many years of wanting to come here. but i guess if i did come here when i was 7, it would have looked pretty different. It is quite nice here really, especially in the Central Business District, which looks no different from Singapore, except that everything is written in mandarin.
For now, I am just so thankful for the cool weather, although it is often cloudy and it rains slightly, and visibility is superbly poor. Took a drive around the Olympic Stadium, and all I could see was the outline of the stadium, and it wasn't very photogenic today because nothing will show on your camera. Basically the past 2 days have just been eating and loads of eating. the real life starts tomorrow, although I must say it hardly feels like I have left Singapore at all. I think I have moved around too much, slowly the world is becoming my home.
I am only blogging here because I can't use Tumblr here. bahh.
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[20 Jun 2010|01:48am] |
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it is 1.46am and the library is going to close. haha so lazy to move though. i have ceased to feel sleepy. suddenly i am back to my normal self last year. when i don't feel sleepy...but then suddenly i feel the need to crash at 3am. good times. i used to get so much done then.
can't say the same about myself this year. so frustrating.
today is such a slow and sluggish day. but quantity is being replaced by quality. simply because BECKETT IS A GENIUS. i am just enjoying my time rediscovering his brilliance.
one more paper. let's go go go and ace it.
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[11 Jun 2010|10:22am] |
so i am packing up and moving out of my room and on campus for the next 2.5 weeks just for the exams, i realise that i didn't actually use any of those 'study mechanisms' that i have devised over the holidays to aid my revision.
epic failure.
which is proven by how i have like 5 novels to read, 300pages of notes to read and one essay to finish.
BAHHH.
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[22 May 2010|09:51pm] |
reading about 'flowers in manure' as a way of describing a film studio's down-to-earth style is making me sleepy.
So is the singapore-esque weather here.
i shall survive till my espresso break.
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| at least the compass is pointing somewhere |
[15 May 2010|07:14pm] |
and it is pointing to the north!
finally i have some semblance of a summer plan. although now that i think about it, it is intimidating. exciting but intimidating. and it also means that i won't be seeing that many people in singapore, and i will miss out on all the fun of 'nuahhhing'. reason for this: i am off to beijing from 10th july to 22nd aug (i hope my mom has booked my tickets) for an internship :)
so, time to unearth all that knowledge of mandarin. rusty rusty mandarin. i even got my romanji and hanyupinyin mixed up when i was talking to chloe last night. not good. instead of 'dian hua' i typed 'denwa'. so going to die for the 6 weeks.
now...i shall try convincing my mom that i should go to japan after beijing, especially since i now have a place to stay if i visit :)
this is going to be one financially poor summer.
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| this is like a commercial break |
[17 Apr 2010|01:39am] |
away from the angst in the earlier entry, now we have a commercial break: (can't resist this)
i found a new happy food! a new flavoured chocolate which i brought back from brussels a while back. no prize for guessing what flavour it is. hahaha yea if you are thinking greentea, you are right.
i don't usually like milk chocolate, but this sencha infused milk chocolate has a nice taste to it. it is creamy from the milk chocolate, yet slightly bitter from the sencha. :)
(i will furnish it with a picture if i can remember to do so later)
okay i only have 2 bars of this though...so i will have to eat this slowly.
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| turning geek |
[14 Apr 2010|11:07pm] |
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enlightened |
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i was reading about Pulp Fiction by Tarantino and whatever i was reading mentioned that the film is very exclusive because you are only included into the world if you understand all the allusions made in the films, and if you don't, you just don't get the film and so you are not in the exclusive group in the cult culture.
but after studying the film, reading and re-watching it again for the 3rd or 4th time, i see how the whole film works and suddenly i find myself going 'OH. what a genius!'. i used to think the film was abit difficult to watch because it was so weird, so in your face and i couldn't deal with the violence because it was so comic. and that is just wrong. but now, i think the film is funny. genuinely funny. a genius sort of funny aka a geeky sort of funny. LOL.
i think being a film student definitely kills the ability to watch a film normally. but at the same time, it is good because you get such insights about films. and soon enough, i might be able to talk abt films like a film fanatic: 'did you see that? what a work of genius! he was hiding there all the time! i saw it and i knew it was going to happen!' etc. hahahaha.
or maybe not.
but i was watching a swedish romantic comedy the other day, and because we were studying romantic comedies, i finally saw what it meant by 'self-reflexivity' and the model of a romantic comedy is pretty much the same internationally. but the one i watched was more enjoyable than the standard romantic comedy because it is the men that are the victims to the idea of love. almost like in 500 days of summer (which was good). it is just too hilarious. enough with women being the victims. time to turn the tables of being a 'hopeless romantic' around. HAH.
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| this is why my weight just goes up up up. |
[13 Apr 2010|12:41am] |
i am going to miss london and its food. back to leamington it is tomorrow. away from accessible good food. it is going to be up to meet to cook and bake all these little yummy treats. yummy only if i succeed.
i think i am doraemon reincarnated because like him, i like dorayaki. which is why i spend alot of time going on missions to look for dorayaki. and it is not just one type of dorayaki. i just go on trying all the various types i can get hold off too. YUMS. can't get enough. i think i like dorayaki more than i like icecream.
so anyway after having had 4 different types: i rank the matcha mascarpone adzuki one top. that one was just SO GOOD. the matcha was thick enough, but it was also creamy and smooth because of the mascarpone and just to add that final touch to complement the texture, there were the little bits of adzuki there just to break the creamy-ness.
Next favourite i guess would the the ordinary adzuki flavoured one: only because it tasted traditional. no fuss. just nice traditional dorayaki.
i can't decide between the next two: the ordinary matcha one and the adzuki mascarpone one.the adzuki mascarpone one wasn't that good though. it was too creamy. the adzuki was lost in all that mascarpone. and the matcha flavour wasn't that strong.
next flavours to try: golden chestnut and also custard (i have had the custard one from isetan in singapore and i don't remember it being particularly memorable. so that says alot)
so while i was picking up nice little things that i have missed sorely, i picked up a matcha mochi (chocolate) too. it was so convenient to just sweep it into the basket. this one is nice but i think it is because it caught me by surprise. I didn't actually intend to get this because i thought it had a chocolate filling. and i don't like chocolate-filled mochi because it is just chocolate. nothing spectacular. of all the japanese trademark flavours to choose from, why bother with chocolate. bah. to tell the truth, i bought it because when i was checking it out, i dropped it on the floor. and since i don't think it is nice to drop such a delicate thing that had matcha powder sprinkled on it (which looked less delicate after i dropped it), i bought it with the theory 'once broken considered sold'. go ahead and laugh if you think if it such a retarded reason, and laugh even harder if you think it is my way of finding and excuse to buy more sweets. hahahahahah.
so anyway, the point is, i ate the mochi going, well might as well eating since i bought it. but hmm. it was green inside. it was matcha chocolate. YUMM. (by the time i realised, half was down my gullet already). it was a very pleasant surprise and it tasted quite good. the mochi itself wasn't too thick and the matcha chocolate was nice and creamy. BUT, only if you like matcha and sweet stuff.
okay that is enough food for now. this is like a little review on solely japanese sweets. and specifically from japancentre. lol. maybe next time when i have tried all the cakes from scandic kitchen. i can end up doing one on their cakes. which if i am going to end up in london for a month in summer, that seems pretty likely.
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| multi-tasking has its downside. |
[10 Apr 2010|12:23am] |
it has happened in new york and now it has happened in london: spraining my ankle by accidentally skipping a step. Just that this time, i can only say: serves myself right for multi-tasking.
i hardly even left the house, got out of the lift and was walking down the steps towards the main door and while i was doing that, i was sending text messages which meant that all my attention was on my phone rather than where i was going. Result: skipped a step and somehow ended on my ankle. it was so painful i yelped. and then hobbled and cringed and set on the steps for a while. I am pretty sure there was a cctv there and if anyone happened to be viewing the screens of the cctv, they must have found it very funny. I found it so funny myself, i was half laughing and half yelping in pain.
what makes this whole thing so stupid is the fact that because i have sprained my ankle, i can't go out for kallina's birthday celebrations tonight but i have already bought the tickets for the club tonight. In addition, the only reason why I stayed in London for so long was because of the birthday celebrations but then it turned out that i can't make it. It might be a blessing in disguise though. but still...i was actually all ready mentally to go out tonight.
my ankle is swollen now and i guess i didn't help myself when i still went out today because firstly, i was already almost out of the house, and well i figured i could walk and it wasn't painful. stupidity huh?
but in a way, i am very happy that i did go out because i managed to buy stuff that made me happy: FOOD. I just had the most amazing dorayki filled with matcha mascarpone and red bean. I haven't seen this flavour before so I decided to give it a try and dumped it into my basket full of other stuff from japan centre (including a book of essays) and hmm it was a good choice. I think it tasted way better than the ordinary matcha ones. A pity i forgot to take a picture of it.
sigh, this is what i miss about being in the city. i can't just go out and get all my favourite things/foods. i secretly wished i studied in London instead. Then my weekly isetan grocery shopping can be replaced by japan centre. I can also get whatever books i want off the shelves. I can go to my favourite cafe to read a book without bumping into people. I am spoilt by the freedom and the choices that the city offers. BIG SIGH.
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| because we are half-way through the week |
[08 Apr 2010|03:12am] |
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so one application down. alot more to go. but yes. one down means one down. at least i have started officially. :) (don't you just love my positivism)
i just watched Time Traveller's Wife. SO GOOD. it gave my already rather saturated brain a headache. but still good. how one earth to people think of such things i wonder. but hey, it works as a literature and film material that is interesting. so i'm not complaining.
on other note, i want to complain about how i realise i really really enjoy writing. but it is slightly psychotic because it drives me insane with the stress, yet i do it as stress-relief. BIZARRE OCCURENCE. i guess it depends on what sort of writing. and when i write i think. write = thinking. plus it makes me feel productive. at least you can say 'one essay done'. reading one entire book somehow doesn't have that same impact of productivity. and in anycase it takes me forever to finish reading a book.
tomorrow i shall go out and study/write. i might go out to find inspiration for writing samples. and then i will do my reading at home. ah whichever works. i need to actually finish reading a couple of things. because i still have books in my luggage which i brought to london but i have yet to touch. tsk. what a waste of luggage space. lol.
alright back to work.
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| It was like a Beatles' tribute |
[06 Apr 2010|04:34am] |
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Across_the_Universe_%28film%29 -- wiki information on the film Across the Universe.
I just spent my night watching this film. Came across it by chance, but since it was directed by Julie Taymor, I thought it was a definite must-watch. Glad I watched it though because I quite enjoyed it and I really like Julie Taymor's aesthetic style (the huge mask puppets that was in her version of Oedipus Rex made their appearance again).
The film isn't actually visually coherent but narratively plausible. I like how all the characters were intertwined together and how they crossed paths at the start of the film. My favourite scene was the one done to the song 'Strawberry Field'. The images were so stark and poignant, especially in its metaphorical representation of the Vietnam War.
On top of all that, it was good to hear songs from The Beatles again. The good ol' 1960s with the hippies.
I was quite surprised that the film was made in 2007. haha I would have thought it was earlier.
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| granola is more than something you have for breakfast |
[03 Apr 2010|04:17am] |
i was googling granola so that i could explain what 'granola' was. and i found this on urban dictionary:
An adjective used to describe people who are environmentally aware (flower child, tree-hugger), open-minded, left-winged, socially aware and active, queer or queer-positive, anti-oppressive/discriminatory (racial, sexual, gender, class, age, etc.) with an organic and natural emphasis on living, who will usually refrain from consuming or using anything containing animals and animal by-products (for health and/or environmental reasons), as well as limit consumption of what he or she does consume, as granola people are usually concerned about wasting resources. Usually buy only fair-trade goods and refrain from buying from large corporations, as most exploit the environment as well as their workers, which goes against granola core values.
so...you can actually say 'you're such a granola' or 'stop being a granola' ? interesting. i wonder if it works with other food words.
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| some progress is better than no progress |
[02 Apr 2010|09:31pm] |
i don't actually think anyone reads this anymore. i will find a time to revive it proper. obviously not now. unless i am bored enough or when i am free enough after doing up the magazine and all that stuff.
just came back from eurodisney with jiayi, shinbin and guiyi. it was great! although i must say that i really hate scary rides. they were alright when i went through them. but i am not really sure if i want to sit through them again. i mean if you ask me to go on a ride now i will be like HMM. sort of like an in between. it is a NO as much as a YES. i know i am confused. i am always confused.
it was a much needed break though. i think i have screamed everything out all at one shot. all those times when i go 'i feel like i need to scream my lungs out' were accomplished during the rides. especially during the 'finding nemo' ride which didn't have any 360deg loops but it was shit scary. i just hated that one. and it is quite embarrassing to say so, but i actually swore on that ride. lol.
now it is back to reality, having to study, do internship applications and write up all the articles of whitesquarejournal (which is some webzine which a couple of my classmates and i are trying to start up). i realised the amount of shit i have to do, and i have just lazed around and wasted 2 weeks of my 5weeks break. ah well. not too late to start now i guess. i better not randomly pretend to want to read a bed, and then all i do is just doze off and go to sleep like a pig.
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| let's attempt to revive this dead blog. |
[21 Mar 2010|02:02pm] |
i haven't actually been updating this. too much happening, too much to write about don't know where to start so i didn't bother. but hey! it is the easter holidays now. WHOOOHOO. and my body is obviously celebrating by sleeping as soon as i sit on the bed and not waking up until i really need to eat or really need the toilet. lol.
well it was a really good end of term, just chilling and hanging out. going out to eat and now i celebrated the start of the holidays by buying a couple of cds and films. i am going to just hibernate at home this holidays. sit down chill and read. sounds splendid.
on other thoughts, i had espresso martini the other day and it was so good! it was like iced coffee. yumm.
i might actually start blogging properly soon. depending on whether i have time outside trying to do my writing samples and writing articles for this new magazine that a few of us are trying to start. exciting times!
haha okay. first thing to do for the holidays: SORT OUT THE MESS IN MY ROOM.
x
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| let's get this down before the Short Term Memory kicks in. |
[19 Jan 2010|09:17pm] |
i am actually listening to the school radio. For some reason, i thought today was the day where my classmate's radio show is going to be on air, but of course i thought wrong. but ah well, might as well stay on the channel. Will remember to listen to luke's show eventually.
i reckon it is going to be funny hearing your classmates speak on radio. LOL.
but the music's not too bad, my new replacement for music after i got rid of spotify from my computer this morning because some virus was detected. ah well.
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| wonders how thick the snow outside is now. |
[05 Jan 2010|10:46pm] |
the snow shower has gone on for quite a few hours already. with random heavy snow intervals. but it is looking very pretty outside and i am not complaining because i am hiding in a very warm room, but to be honest, the temperature today isn't as cold as yesterday.
to me, this is a good weather, very calming for the heart.
was supposed to play badminton with chloe but we got lazy and the irregularity of the buses drive me insane.
in any case, i hope the snow will be thick enough for us to go out and have some snowy fun!
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| HAPPY NEW YEAR |
[01 Jan 2010|10:41am] |
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greetings from the london eye! Well okay to be honest i was ther abt 2.5hrs ago. But considering how the london eye is just behind this building i am staying in now, i will still consider myself being at the london eye.
I have a feeling 2010 is going to be great. Haha i can just feel it. Maybe it matters that i saw the massive and pretty fireworks display life, and from a good distance. Not close enough to get all the smoke, but near enough to just feel it going off in the vicinity. The best thing: we didn't need to queue in the cold and stand out there early. All we had to do was take the elevator down at 11.45 and just be there. Hahhaahaha. And before that we were playing monopoly. So at 11.45, we were like 'okay, time to go go go'. And after that you just walked back into the warm building and continue the monopoly game in the hse. Awesome. Never had a better new years eve. Written my resolutions too. So all i have to do is attempt to stick to them. Need some positivity in life and i am feeling it. and that is a gdthing i am guessing.
New year new beginnings. And it means alot to me. 2009 was pretty shit. It had its good times, but the shit times were quite shit. hopefully that is all over and done with now.
Hope all of you will have a great year ahead too :)
xx
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