HaPpY ChiNeSe DoGgY YeAr!!!

Ha, I'm actually posting my holiday greetings on time this time... Happy Chinese New Year everyone! Since it's the year of the dog, my Sassy is now going to have elevated princess status this year... but I'm still gonna be whacking her butt for fun every now and then anyway! Bwahahaha! Here's the token cute Sassy photos to suit the season. :D







Sassy was pretty tired, so she looks pretty sedated in the pics... Anyway, wish you all a bow wowing chinese new year with lotsa blessings, good fortune and all that good stuff. And for those who're still single, get married quick so I can get ang pow from you next year. Hehe!

Singapore Zoo pics - Part 2 (Awwww....)

Well, since my photo posting program screwed up on first post, and I can't add more pics to that post, I have to continue my Singapore Zoo pic collection in a second post (so do read the bottom post first before this one, then it'll make more sense).


And now, for the best part of my photo collection...the pics that make you go "Awwww...!"


Monkeys cuddling? Awww.....


Baby pygmy hippo with mummy? Awwwwww...


Pigs sleeping like pigs? Awwwww....


Baby mole rats all cuddled up to sleep?? Awwwwwwwwww......


I don't need to say anything except Awwwwwwwwww.......


Poor little sunbear stuck indoors during the rain?? Awwwwwwww....!!!

Well, that's concludes my tour of pics that make you go "Awwwww....". That's also all I have of my zoo trip. Hope you enjoyed my pics, and managed to endure my corny narration. Hehe! :P

Singpore Zoo pics - Part 1

After many moons of promising to post those pics from my trip to Singapore, I finally decide to get my lazy arse round to doing it. Of course, there are way too many to post all at once, so lemme start by bombarding you all with the pics I took at Singapore Zoo. Enjoy, my fellow primates!

Let's start off with a greeting from this cute little bugger I met at the petting zoo. I dunno why they call 'em guinea pigs when they don't look a thing like pigs, and I doubt they're from New Guinea...(I could be wrong)


I think this guy I met near the zoo entrance wanted to say hi, but was a bit shy...


The croc was doing what it does best at a zoo...laze around 90% of the time...


This very purrrty white Bengal tiger was happily wading around the pool...probably thinking how nice it would be to have one of the zoo visitors over in its enclosure for lunch


...Or the tiger could be hoping to have over the zebras, so he can let them know what he thinks about them copying his fashion sense :P


The penguins are also into the black and white look, but aren't too hot about stripes... Well, they're not too 'hot' about anything, I guess...


And while the penguins are looking smart in their "tuxedos", the tapirs prefer to be more comfy in their big "diapers".


And since we're on the subject on fashion, check out the prints this guy is wearing. Nice! Now if only I could remember if this was a leopard or a jaguar... I think this was the jaguar...


...And I think this was the leopard. Cute fella is waiting for a zookeeper to drop some food into his cage. I'm sure they don't always look this dumb.


Surprise, surprise, the cat in black isn't a panther, it's ALSO a leopard! Guess it wanted to go for a more slimming design than the prints...


The giraffes obviously don't need to care about the slimming effect, since their height makes up for whatever extra baggage they might carry around!


But let's not stray too far from the subject of felines just yet, coz' I haven't even gotten to the king of the cats yet...the lions! Or more like, the lion and some lionesses...who are all in their very royal act of... lazing around....*yawn*. Oh well, it IS a zoo, and not a circus...


Just in case you couldn't tell, the lioness is the one not having a bad hair day


Okay, the cats have had their turn in the spotlight, now for some other animals that you probably don't wanna get into a fight with...like these jackals, or wolves, or whatever dog-related animals these guys are...(hey, I'm not an animal expert yet, so sue me!)


Or check out the massiveness of this mean looking White Rhino. Just imagine getting rammed by this fella... Ouch ouch ouch!


One of the animals I really liked though was Inoku...this handsome polar bear that was born and bred at the Zoo itself! His mum is somewhere at the back, and she's actually smaller than him. Didn't get a pic of mummy though (she was kinda shy)


Here's a pic of Inoku out of the water, looking very big and bear-like!


Man, all those big scary animals have gotten this guy so scared, he wants to hide!


But then Carlos, the sea lion, eventually overcomes his fear of Inoku, and starts to warm up his tenor voice instead.


In a few seconds, Carlos is showing off some of his moves to his adoring fans. Suffering from low self-esteem, this guy ain't.


I became such a big fan of Carlos, I just HAD to get a pic with him. He even gave me a kiss! Ain't that nice of him? Though I did have to pay $5 for the pic...and his breath smelled like fish...


Got a complimentary pic with a big boa thrown in free though, so the $5 was all worth it! :P


But I think Carlos had to hide his face again once he saw these big guys. No wussy sea lion can lift a whole tree trunk like that, not to mention wave at the same time!


The elephant must use that guy to exercise his trunk for the big stuff...


When not required lifting stuff, the elephants are a pollutant-free method of transportation (unless you count the stink from their poop, of course)


And after a long day's work, well, the big guys need a break too...


Now on to some not-so-big and more agile members of the animal kingdom... the primates! And what better than a glimpse at the grooming regime of the orang utans.


This little bugger looks like he can't wait to get at a nice, juicy coconut.


I'm not quite sure what kinda primate this is, but I know he's a real head turner!


Maybe he's just as confused as I was about all these weird-looking signs at the zoo!


These two red-butt monkeys looked like they were having a romantic moment together...


These two monkeys were, well, being monkeys...


These guys seemed to be a pretty close knit family...Doesn't it make you wanna go "Awww"?.....No? Well, nevermind, coz' in part 2 of my Singapore Zoo pics, I shall present.... pics that make you go "Aawwww..."!

Granny's accident, and a rip-off hairdo

Well, this happened a week ago, but since I haven't had the time to report it so far, I shall do it now: My grandma had a fall while I was taking her to church last Sunday. Basically she was going down the stairs (which she normally does ok, so I didn't think anything would happen) when she slipped or buckled on the last step (fortunately not anything higher) and landed on her behind on the level floor. It didn't sound too hard, but she was in pain, so I took her back home again and left for church, thinking she was just be sore for a while. Later on in the afternoon, my mum found out that my grandma couldn't get up from her chair and she wasn't sitting properly. And being the amazingly non-complaining person that she is, my grandma didn't say a peep about how much pain she was in, so once my mum realised grandma was having trouble, she alerted my dad, and my dad woke me up from my afternoon nap. After which we did a whole lot of wondering what to do and who to call, and eventually my dad, for some reason, didn't to send her to a nursing home in Cheras, instead of a hospital first. Apparently because the nursing home gave free doctor's checkups, so they could check what was wrong with her. So we called them to help, they sent over an ambulance (coz' we were afraid to move granny) and we promptly flew all the way to Cheras, bypassing all the tolls and long traffic light queues along the way coz' of the ambulance (that's the way to travel!). Anyway, the people there could only do an x-ray on grandma the next day, and found out that she had a fractured right femur (the big bone in your thigh, for the non-biologists). So now she's being cared for at the home, and wearing some support thingy that will supposedly help her heal faster.

Fortunately, she seems quite happy at the place because it's big and clean, and the people there are nice to her, although some of the other old folks tend to make a bit of noise ever so often. I feel kinda like kicking myself coz' I could've prevented her fall that day somehow, but ah well, I can't fret over what is done. I'm glad at least that my grandma isn't too fussy about things, and is happy where she is.

Anyway today, I decided in the spur of the moment to go get a haircut with Mei Ling. After lunch, we went on a little road trip around SS15 and SS14 to find a cheap haircut with highlighting, and found all of them a bit too expensive. So we decided to do the cut on our own some other day, and go to my place to do red highlights for each other coz' I thought I had some red hair dye. Turns out the hair dye that I thought I had, wasn't there. So then we decided to go to a hairdressor in Court 2 that was suggested by another friend coz' she said it was cheap. So we went there, met the lady, who seemed like a nice Christian lady, smiling a lot and all, and she told us that haircuts for us would cost RM12, and highlights would cost about RM50 for Mei Ling and RM60 for me since my hair was longer. It seemed like a good price, so we said ok.

Mana tahu, once she cut our hair and got the dyes ready, she just started applying as though she was doing a full colour on my hair instead of highlights. So I reminded her that I wanted highlights, and she was like "Full colour is nicer than highlights!" and so I said ok, and she convinced Mei Ling to have a full colour too. I suspect that she wanted to do a full colour coz' it's less time consuming than doing highlights, especially for two people, and she had a waiting customer. Later on, when we were done, she said she had to use an extra tube of dye for my hair coz' it was so long, so the cost of the whole colour became RM80. Plus my cut, which was RM12, I had to pay RM92 for the whole do. And now I'm pretty pissed coz' I feel ripped off by that lady. She insisted on a full colour even though I asked for highlights, then charged me a lot more than the initial price she gave us for an extra tube of dye she didn't even tell me she used! Crap! And she acted so nice all the time too, so I didn't even make a fuss at the time. Now that I realise it, I told her off through an sms. No rude works or anything, but just told her I felt cheated coz' she charged me for something I didn't ask for without telling me. *Sigh* Never again will I got to a hairdressor for colouring or highlighting or anything else except a normal cut. And next time, I'll make absolutely sure of the price first before agreeing to anything, and I'll refuse to pay anything more if they add anything extra to my hair without asking me if I'm willing to pay first. Geez... and to think that she was so nice too. I dunno if she intended to rip me off, but I'm not putting it pass her. I'm definitely not gonna recommend her to anyone, especially since one side of my hair turned out to be longer than the other. Ack, if only I could find a trustworthy hairdressor who doesn't try to rip off people and can cut hair really well without charging a bomb. Does such a creature exist in this world?? :P

Anyway, Happy Chinese New Year to everyone, just in case I don't get round to the whole festive greetings on time! Wish you all prosperity and joy and lotsa lotsa wealth this year. Good when you have to pay ridiculous prices for one silly haircut.

Those things in my head called thoughts

Garsh, is it ten days into the new year already? Before I know it, it'll be 2007 soon.... :P I know I've been kind of absent from the blogging scene for a while, and yes, I still haven't put up the pics from my Singapore trip (will do that when it's not 3am and I'm feeling slightly braindead). I'm not proud to say that my absence have been mainly due to me being stuck to my brother's PS2, like, almost every free second I have. Yup, sad to say that ever since he bought that PS2 last year around November, I have become quite the video game addict. I just only finished playing Prince of Persia 2 tonight, which I thought was like the best game ever mainly coz' of the rock music (which my brother hated so much!) but also coz' of the cool gameplay and the interesting storyline. My only main peeves were that the game had lotsa unnecessary sexual innuendos, a couple of swear words, and plenty of blood spilling, which makes the games less than family friendly. There were these female baddies that would say things that made me think they were eternally horny dominatrixes, which makes me wonder what went on in the heads of the folks who made this game... *shiver*

ANYWAY, my addiction is finally going to be cut short when my bro leaves back to the United States on Wednesday for work, as he's taking the PS2 along with him. I'm actually glad coz' now I can get back to actually doing something productive with my time.... though I will miss being able to play DDR at home! I haven't even been writing in my journal for several MONTHS, starting from around the time my bro got that PS2. Which I don't think is a good thing, coz' the journal is the place for all my deepest, darkest thoughts, and if I don't take the time to write and mull over those thoughts, they end up hanging over my head like a cloud and I don't deal with them. Writing also usually gives me a fresh perspective or revelation on my deep, dark thoughts, which is usually something positive. Of course, writing about stuff that really frustrates or saddens me also forces out all those really annoying bad emotions. Which is maybe why I haven't really been wanting to write in my journal, coz' it's a lot easier to vegetate in front of the tv and just not deal with those emotions. :P Coz' I seem to be having quite a few of those lately.

Where do I start? Well, first of all, I've come to realise that I have a lot of fears in me that know I shouldn't be having. Fear of actually having to get a real job soon and having to face the dog-eat-dog working world while earning my own keep and dealing with all that 'grown-up' stuff like bills, and buying house and car and whatnot. Fear of getting too close to people because I don't wanna get hurt. And other fears that I don't think I wana get into detail about. And then there's the frustration of being around a certain person who is so negative and acts like the whole world, even her family, has something against her even though it isn't true. And then there's the annoyance at myself for being super impatient with my dad even though I try not to be (not very easy to be patient though, when he does things like asks me the same questions over and over again, or makes me teach him how to use a computer program that he has already used before but can't remember how to use it and he refuses to fiddle around with the program til' he figures it out again, even though I tell him it's the best way to remember how to use a program!). And there's also the annoyance with myself for my laziness in various matters I know I should do but don't do it, like sending out more resumes to companies, or editing some videos on my computer, or waking up earlier to get to work (which has flexible hours, but I almost always reach there no earlier than 1pm).

Basically, I've been kicking myself for being and feeling all these things that I know I shouldn't be and I shouldn't feel. I know I shouldn't fear anything coz' God did say that we don't need to fear or worry, and that worry is a waste of time (so true). I know I should be improving myself and be more patient and hardworking, but I find myself slipping back to old ways.

I suppose just things are only human. But I really don't think I wanna go into 2007 being the same old person I am now. So I guess some new year resolutions are in order! But right now, I need to stop thinking and get to bed. Zzzzz....

HaPpY NeW YeAr!!

Hey all, I'm a little late again with the festive greetings, but here I go: Happy New Year! Wishing you blessing and happiness and love and all that other good stuff!

I wasn't around for a while coz' I went to Singapore for holiday last week with my friend Kooi Im, and had my countdown there. I went to the zoo (but of course!) and also met up with Charlene, the lady from the research and conservation department, whom I've been corresponding with for a job there. She turned out to be super nice, and we just chatted a bit so she could know more about me and I could ask more about what they do at the zoo. Actually, I think I did more asking about the zoo than she did asking about me! So it wasn't actually an interview but more like a 'getting-to-know-each-other' session. She did say that my CV is very impressive, and that they are planning to expand the research and conservation department this year, which is GOOD coz' they're gonna be needing more people then! The bad news is that apparently, many other people have applied to work at the zoo as well. But the other good news is that she said is was good that I went to meet her face to face, whereas the others just sent in their CV, but she hasn't met them personally. So meeting up with her does give me an advantage, I hope! I definitely showed that I really wanted to work at the zoo, which I think is good. Only thing is that I don't think I 'selled myself' enough and didn't stress on my abilities that would be an asset to the zoo. But I just sent her an email, saying thanks for meeting up with me and also highlighting some stuff about me which I think would be plus points for me. If anything else, Charlene can hopefully tell that I really really really want this job, with all my persistance! Well, all I can do now is hope and pray that I will hear the good news from her really soon. Pray for me, pretty pleeeeease!!!!

Oh, I also visited the Night Safari, Underwater World and other places on Sentosa Island, as well as the Singapore Science Centre. For the countdown, we went to Clarke Quay, which is the riverside where there're a lot of posh restaurants that cost a bomb to eat at. We ended up eating at McDonalds and hanging out at the nearby shopping complex until it closed before hanging out at Clarke Quay. There was a mardi gras, so we watched that for a while, then headed to a bar to buy and share a Singapore Sling (famous local drink) and stood around watching football until the countdown. After that, we watched the fireworks and then went back to our hostel. Kooi Im got a bit drunk from the drink (very low alcohol tolerance due to low body mass, a.k.a. she's too freakin' small so she gets drunk easier than big girls like me!) so she got to bed pretty quick. Got a lot of pics, so I'll get round to posting them soon, I hope. :P Anyway, the trip was really fun, even though I did so much walking around and my feet were dying most of the time. Now it's time to get back to normal life and a new year...