goodbye 2007

It's time to say adios to one roller-coaster-ride year. So much has happened in a very short period of time - successes, failures, ups and downs. Let the past be a lesson for the future undertakings.

Not to be forgotten, the things I am thankful for:

1. To perform dances after so many years
2. To run for marathons, eventhough it's not a complete one
3. To graduate with wonderful results
4. To conquer the highest peak in South East Asia
5. To be part of the most gorgeous wedding
6. To be employed by a foreign financial instutute

What made my day was the following words by my boss:


"Thanks for the cupcakes. They're delicious! I believed you received heaps of compliments already. Wishing you a good year ahead and may your aspirations come through. But your efforts are needed of course!"

holiday spirit

Yesterday at work, I was thinking for making the typical Xmas meal for today's dinner. I thought since I have the day off, maybe I should be adventurous again and explore my ability to cook (yet again). All the holiday spirit just died away today.

I woke up extremely late when I was supposed to go to the market in the morning to get the ingredients for dinner. That's when I realised I couldn't be bothered anymore. Well, of course there were other reasons too but it is best they're left unsaid.

3 hours I was in the gym for and that's the longest I have been in there. Craved for Departure Lounge's sandwiches after that but ended up in O'Briens instead. All the things I did when I was in Britain are slowly coming back to me.

Let's take this a day at a time.

happy xmas

I'm at a place where people neither have a wonderful-roasted-turkey-with-stuffings Xmas eve dinner, nor am I at a place where people have family barbeque during Xmas day. Sadly, I am at a place where the road traffics don't move, cars are bumper-to-bumper, and drivers are not ethical.

I miss the romantically decorated Edinburgh city. I miss the German Market where I could enjoy the sinful crepe with nutella. I miss the ferris wheel which would allow me to admire the long stretch of Princes Street from the top of the wheel.

My family and friends must be thankful that I don't celebrate Xmas. Because if I do, these are on my Xmas list:-

1. A spanking new mobile phone (my current mobile phone is slowly falling apart)

2. "A fabulous classy red f*ck-me shoes"

3. That gold sparkling dress

4. A whole box of make up set

5. A silver ball pen with my name engraved on it.

6. A bank account with lots of monies in it.

Sigh. Merry Xmas you all.

favourite quote of the day

"So.. I heard that girls who go to the gym during the weekends are single."

I didn't know how to respond to that statement right after it was said to me. I managed to blabber something out my mouth. I remember saying "time management" and what-not. I thought that's definitely a no-no to say to a girl. Forbidden, especially to a girl who is actually single.

It is interesting to hear funny pick up lines and how far a guy would go just to get a drink with a girl.

walking down memory lane

2 days to Xmas and I'm looking forward for another day off work! Eid-ul Adha was just a few days ago and it was celebrated moderately by us. I actually spent most of the day catching up on my beauty sleep. Been staying up late watching McDreamy in action. **droool**

This month is a month of excessive spending. Strangely, it wasn't for my new clothes or new shoes. There were too many gatherings - from farewells to reunions.... and hell they cost quite a damage to my pocket. Looks like I'm going to begin the next year with very little money in my piggy bank.

Although, I am filled with joy and happiness to share some wonderful news from my high school friends. One is engaged, the other too is engaged and one more is having a baby! What an exciting way to end the year.

Not only am I hearing these great news from them, I'm also bumping into familiar faces which I haven't seen in a long 7 years. They all look the same, just like how they were in school uniform. Makes me wonder whether they think the same of me but to be honest, I hope they notice some changes because I think I have grown so much since the last decade.

I have grown to love cupcakes!
(Picture taken at Bijou)

those days

I'm officially an elderly lady as these days I am lacked of energy and I get tired very easily. I tend to get very forgetful and even a diary doesn't help me remind of my appointments. This isn't a problem those days when my brain memory capacity was still unlimited.

I have never thought that I would get sick of driving. Lately I would rather be on the passenger's seat and enjoy the ride. This feeling is solely contributed by the journey to work which is always packed with cars. I now hate traffic jams with a passion. I don't think anything can beat this hatred I have towards driving. So anyone who wants to meet up with me, please have the courtesy of picking me up :)

It's a special weekend this time because somebody so important to me is in town! One of my best uni mates is in KL this week for a job training and oh wow, I cannot believe I'm seeing her after the uni days in my country. She told me she loves it here as she has me to see, loving the food and of course is impressed with our developed city. All I could do was to feel very flattered...


Uhuh, we were actually in KL when we took the picture. It looks as if we were somewhere in Europe with the lovely Xmas decorations. We had a lot to catch up on and also too much to bitch about ;)


Because I go to the city centre every day lately, I came to realise again that the twin towers are beautiful. I was kinda lucky that the sky was very clear when I took this picture. I still have yet to cross the sky bridge which connects the two towers and I remember that being in my To Do list for 2007. 15 days left to achieve this... it's definitely not going to happen.

I need to think about my new year's resolution.

historic city

Malacca was beautiful on the day we went there. It didn't rain and it wasn't too hot. As you can see in the picture below, the skyline in Malacca on Saturday was amazing. Cloud patches were everywhere and the we could feel the sea breeze blowing against our bodies.


The drive to the history city didn't take too long although the traffic towards Malacca city centre was heavy. The journey from the exit toll booth towards the city centre was around 10 km ride apart and it felt like there were traffic lights every 200 meters.

What amazed me the most was the trishaws. They were excessively decorated and each trishaw has their own loud music on. Any music you want, you can definitely get it. From Malay ballads, to Malay dangdut, to English rock, and to RnB hits.


There were a million and one kind of musuems too. I was tempted to go to the Stamp Museum mainly because I was very curious how fast I could fall asleep in there.

During the day, we manage to see the A Famosa fort, hiked up St Paul's Hill to see his church, and walked to and fro on Jonker walk. One question: Is Jonker the English name for Hang Jebat, one of the warriors of Malacca? Anybody knows?


Finally before we headed back to KL, this caught my eyes. First I saw it from a distance and I thought my eyes were playing games with me. I went up close and confirmed that it was written London on it.

Malacca is a place worth going even for a day trip. I really recommend it!

sayonara

It's scary how time flies so quickly. Today is the first day of December and in 30 days we'll be saying goodbye to 2007. An exciting year I have to admit but let's not talk about it until the end of the year.

The last few weeks have been very hectic for me. There was too much going on until I didn't have the opportunity to get enough rest. Because of that, now I'm unwell and I suspect it's the viral fever which is circulating around.

Last weekend I went to Damai Laut, located just across Pangkor Island, for our bank's CBD retreat. I had to forgo my cousin's wedding just because of the compulsory attendence for this business trip. And let's not forget that I was the emcee for this successful event.

To be honest, it's not so much of a retreat. It's all work, work, work for me and my CMT10 colleagues. What made it even worse is that we had to take the old road to reach our destination. Let me tell you something. My team leader isn't a safe driver.

He had a little too much to drink the night before our departure back to KL. No thanks to him, we were short of one driver, so I stepped up and offered to drive. It was a honourable thing to do i.e. to let my other colleagues sleep during the journey back. I conked out right after I reached home.

Last Wednesday before our 4 months attachment, all of us went for a hike up Bukit Melawati. I was already sick by then, but I had missed the first hike last Hari Raya so I told myself I'm not going to miss another one. The hike reminds me of Mount Kinabalu but obviously it wasn't like it. Hiking was fun but later that evening, my body temperature went up, up, up.

After all these outdoor activities, I am now very tanned and my skin is full of mosquito bitings. Don't get me wrong, I still love being outdoors but for the love of God, let me get some rest. Honestly, I don't think I'm going to recover from my fever anytime soon.