Hey world, a quick update.
I'm currently in Bali. We're leaving for the beach soon. It's beautiful here, I've forgotten how cultural everything is. I can't wait to watch the dances. ;)
Jakarta was alright. Interesting, really. Getting pickpocketed on the first day there put a damper on my mood but it's OKAY. My hp's gone but I'm still here [or there] and that's what matters, right? :)
Everything's really cheap there, it's almost a ripoff. I've got 11 dvds for less than $10 so let's hope the quality's good.
Alrighty, time to bathe.
Bye!
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Such a lovely place, such a lovely face.
She got a lot of pretty, pretty boys she calls friends
How they dance in the courtyard, sweet summer sweat.
Goodbye, Singapore. I'll be leaving for the airport at 1.30pm and I'm... resigned to it. I think it's just that I haven't been meeting up with everyone so I don't feel like I want to leave the country just yet.
Nevermind, I don't want to talk about it.
Oh well, hope that job's still waiting for me when I return.
Posted by Ira at 11:29 AM 2 left comment(s)
Sunday, June 24, 2007
A key that could use a little turning.
My mom's birthday is on the 26th of June, but we'd be in Jakarta then [:(] so we celebrated today with a lunch at Sanur. Noreen was kind enough to treat us and yay, the food was delicious.
Her friend who came over to discuss their project actually bought my mom a cake. Can you believe how sweet that gesture was? She did it on her own accord, without anyone asking and refusing to accept payment. =)
So yepp. My grandfather joined in for a picture and that made it all very funny firstly because he had to be given explicit instructions to not blow out the candles and secondly, when he saw the big "P" [the cake was from Prima Deli], he assumed we had gotten the cake from Pertapis. My sister's friend almost fell off the sofa laughing at all the kecoh-ness.
Don't ask me why his mouth was wide open, haha.
Posted by Ira at 10:55 PM 1 left comment(s)
Saturday, June 23, 2007
This was her element,
this was her friend.
'Sup, sexycats! This is where I'll be staying at in Bali. It looks good, doesn't it? It's an apartment really, not a hotel which means it's more affordable because it doesn't have hotel facilities and services. All the same, it does look pretty.
I'm whacked after dropping by at Hasyim's friend's chalet. Hmmm they're a bunch of fun people but but but I don't understand them because they speak Malay way too fast! I spent most of my time just staring interestedly from one party to another, haha.
Yeppers, I'm trying to look on the bright[er] side of going overseas. Manicures, pedicures in Jakarta perhaps? Lounging on the beach in Bali? You hate me, doncha? Haha =p.
I was looking through my pictures and upon stumbling upon the Social Night pictures.. I miss my hair then! Kay, what I miss is, styling my hair and dressing up. Hehehe I miss taking pride in my appearance. :D
Posted by Ira at 7:44 AM 3 left comment(s)
Labels: relationships, vacation
Friday, June 22, 2007
I've been thinking...
and I don't quite like what I've been thinking. But let's move on to sunnier pastures, shall we?
I like spending time with my cousins, yessir I do. I think it's because I rarely get to spend much time with them that I really treasure the time I do spend with them and sometimes things end up being wildly funny.
It also gives me a break from all things Singaporean and high-maintenance.
Can't wait for Redang. :D
Posted by Ira at 11:26 PM 2 left comment(s)
Thursday, June 21, 2007
"In need of a fresh start"
This entry is a cumulative one - it's a result of several days of mindless scribbles, being uploaded at one shot. So if it doesn't make much sense, then, oops! Haha.Karen Armstrong is inspirational. To be honest, we were really having second thoughts whether or not we should go and in the end, I'm really glad that we went. Inspirational not only because the talk made sense but because it made me want to be like her. I want to be as well read, as accomplished as that lady, who sat up there, occasionally dissing politicians [Dr Yaacob Ibrahim was being a good sport beside her, haha], telling us to look deep into our inner selves, live with compassion and be guided by The Golden Rule.
So I've started work. Albeit it's only for a few days and it's with my sister but all's good. The work is tiring but a helluva lot of fun - I think Hasyim and I work well together because we managed to finish everything before the allocated time. I think this is the perfect job for me because:
1) It's only for a few days which is perfect since I'll be leaving soon.
2) I get to work with someone I like...
3) and my sister. HAHA, she's a good boss. Really. She won't distract you while you're counting flyers! =P.
So watch out for The King and I, yo. If you do decide to go, remember who helped, hahaha.
Anyway, about the overseas trip(s). It's not just Jakarta now, but Jakarta for a few days followed by a domestic flight to Bali to meet up with my uncle and some cousins there. Back to Singapore for a few days followed by Redang with many more uncles and cousins, then back to Singapore again for another few days and finally KL.
It's not something I'm looking forward to for many reasons. :( We've shed so many tears and I've had so many sore eyes [after crying] and yes, I will go, but not because I want to but because I have to. Did that sound a little weird? If it did, it's just cause I don't want to outwardly state my reasons, haha.
I'm feeling apathetic. I figure, in a twisted way, the long trip coming up is good because it will let me clear my head. Sometimes, space is good. Nyeheheh.
I think tomorrow might be our last day of work. Maybe, only. Hopefully not because it is quite fun, mindlessly routine, but still quite fun. Gathering documents and now having a favourite stapler is new to me. Work's also interesting because of my crossing paths with office folk [like SECURITY GUARDS] who are usually very irritable. I reckon being cooped up all day does wonders for your personality. But it's just fascinating, the different characters you meet and while walking around the area, I've discovered completely new places in Singapore. Well, then, that should come as no surprise because I don't really know my way around this island but but but still, the quaint shops around the area and multitude of pubs create a colourful variety that really makes me wonder where I've been all this while, haha.
What is my job, exactly? I'd like to call myself an [unofficial] personal assistant. :D
Tuesday's looming. I'll leave on the 26th, return approximately on the 12th of July. 2 weeks here and then KL.
Won't you say goodbye?
Posted by Ira at 11:21 PM 2 left comment(s)
Labels: heartache, hiatus, relationships, vacation
Saturday, June 16, 2007
I'll fight and defend.
"If he makes you cry, why don't you leave him?"
I looked at the moon and said,
"Moon, would you ever leave your sky?"
Gotta admit, S.W.A.T is one of my favourite movies. Action flicks, man, bring it on! Bring on the fights, the attitude, the tight, taut, toned bodies.
Hondo: Technically, our watch has been over for 12 hours.
Street: So?
Posted by Ira at 1:39 AM 2 left comment(s)
Labels: relationships
Friday, June 15, 2007
Lips of an Angel.
I'll be leaving for Jakarta on the 26th for about a week and a week upon my return, will be heading for Pulau Redang. After that, it's back to KL. I'm not quite looking forward to the former as it's more of an obligatory trip, and I doubt I'll have much fun because I'll probably be the youngest, visiting complete strangers.
I don't have much of a choice though, I have to go. It was a funny, emotional night we had last night which consisted of me coming up with a list of reasons why I didn't want to go and which ended with my dad hugging a crying me. It seems like no big deal now, but yesterday, it was an enormous deal. :P
So okay. Maybe there are some things daughters have to do for their mothers.
Today, I did nothing but read. Read, read and read. I have a headache now [well not anymore, after I popped painkillers] but I'm eager to finish up the book. It's not bad. There are other Irish writers who are good but this one makes for an interesting read as well.
Posted by Ira at 4:47 PM 4 left comment(s)
Labels: vacation
Monday, June 11, 2007
Of quiet musing
Be the man I know you are and not the boy they want you to be.
I think staying home with this bad headache and fever that is just about to go down is giving me too much thought time.
I feel, wasted. All of a sudden, I feel like I've been given a terrific opportunity to be at university and I'm wasting it all by not living up to my potential. Reading through past transcrips and testimonials makes me realize that maybe I wasn't so bad, back then, when I really wasn't so bad. Haha. Being drunk on all this new found freedom has made me complacent and irreverent towards my books and notes.
There was this article on elitism quite some time back in the papers and a girl mentioned that being in a prestigious JC shattered her self-confidence and caused her to perform less well than was expected of her. I think I felt that way before. I mean, how could I possibly be smart when around me there were people who could, for example, score as many as eleven destinctions at his A-levels? Or people who could be both an OGL and a triple science student with three special papers. Then there I was, supposedly smart, yet struggling to cope and remain afloat amidst these really smart people.
How silly could I have been? Saying that's an insult to everyone who has ever worked hard for anything. And I see now that her mentioning that is simply a way of informing the world that she has a bad attitude - that she chose to let her surroundings define her.
There will always be people better than me, people prettier or more popular than me. That I can count on. But I can also count on the fact that I, am what I can count on. [Does that make sense?] Believing in myself is important. Pushing myself to fulfill my dreams for no one other than myself, to reap rewards simply because I want to is a more powerful force than if someone else wants me to. When I want to, I do better than when I have to. Self-motivation is a matter of choice.
Never be afraid of a challenge. Never be afraid to give it your all.
And the same experience can create two different types of people. Maybe instead of feeling lousy at college, I could have taken that as an indication for me to spur myself on to greater heights. I didn't and I'm fed up with maybe(s).
I've got this blood coursing through my veins and hell [or heaven?], I'm going to make things work this time around.
I think we just need some constant reminders to believe in ourselves. The next step would be to turn that belief, that faith, into action. It isn't going to be easy. But it's going to be for me. And that's more than enough reason to stick to it.
Posted by Ira at 6:54 PM 6 left comment(s)
Labels: determination
Dance for yourself;
if someone understands, then, good. If not, then no matter, go right on doing what you love.
I listened to the BBC this morning for a little while, sprawled across my parents' bed. Lovely accents, haha.
Sometimes it's difficult to get off your high horse once you've climbed on it. Sometimes you just want to scream at everyone to stop and give you some breathing room because, simply because, you want it. You don't care if you're being unreasonable, if you're being whiny or simply throwing a tantrum because you just want it and damnnit, is that so difficult?
Posted by Ira at 7:35 AM 0 left comment(s)
Saturday, June 9, 2007
Listen up:
But don't even bother to think of me. Because even your fantasy of me? Isn't interested in you.
Posted by Ira at 12:21 AM 0 left comment(s)
Thursday, June 7, 2007
Livin' on a prayer -
livin' on a prayer,
Take my hand and we'll make it - I swear.
Hello world. The view's dandy from KL, haha. Anyway I'm on the path to make ammends with some. An apology's a bitter pill to swallow but it's got to be done. Everything else I have to say about PB, I'll reserve for when we meet up.
Apart from that, it's amazing the things you learn or rather, discover when you work with people. You learn about other sordid tales going around [honestly, do people really have nothing better to do?] and you learn alot from how people handle things as well. There's this song by Bowling For Soup - High School Never Ends and it fits because hey, people will always always always talk.
After being in such an environment for a very large part, I've learnt not to care. I mean, some of it still hurts, but then such incidents have a silver lining - you learn who your true friends are and you form better friendships along the way. =) Like after that night, Kamie and Ruz called me to talk things over and that helped alot. You also learn not to take alot of things for granted and that sometimes you just can't please everyone [because there really are some very weird people on this planet!].
After all, as Oscar Wilde said, "The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about."
Posted by Ira at 11:21 PM 4 left comment(s)
Labels: heartache
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
Beauty fades but ugly is to the bone.
Personal hiatus. To work on the things I love.
Oh sweet, with the rest of the holidays stretching out in front of me...
It's time for some good lovin'. :)
Posted by Ira at 3:05 PM 0 left comment(s)
Labels: hiatus
My baby you,
are the reason I could fly.
My parent's anniversary was on the 3rd of June and they celebrated 37 years of marital bliss. We made it into a surprise, my sisters and I - my oldest sister [the incredible cook] whipped up very very delicious nasi briyani and we ate on the terrace. On her command [yes, she's bossy sometimes :P], we carried the kitchen table out to accomodate the many dishes.
Dinner was, let me say this once again, very good. She even had to go back to the kitchen to top up on the rice. The ayam merah was mmhmmm, da bomb. Haha :D
After dinner, came the surprise. We had gotten her a brownie cake from Mrs Fields, which is really one of the best brownies I have ever tasted. Then came a card from the three of us. I think my parents were touched because they didn't expect us to do this for them. It's the first time the three of us collaborated to do this.
I tell you, lugging a huge cake box all the way from Lavender home was horrible but they're happiness made it all worth it. But in the photos above, my dad looks pretty stiff, huh? Hmmm.
What made my mom really tear up was receiving a card from my dad. She creeped into my room, beaming from ear to ear, almost tearing up and almost squealing because she was so happy. She said it's the first card she received from him in a long, long time. :D
Here's to happy years ahead!
Posted by Ira at 2:07 PM 3 left comment(s)
Labels: anniversary
Saturday, June 2, 2007
I wear a halo when you look at me.
I never promised you a ray of light
I never promised there'd be sunshine everyday
I give you everything I have, the good, the bad
Why do you put me on a pedestal
I'm so up high that I can't see the ground below
So help me down you've got it wrong
I don't belong there.
One good thing that's coming out of all this is that the three of us are getting closer, haha.
So alright, I'm off in a bit to meet Hasyim and get lightsticks. By tonight, the finalizations for Fright Night will be completed and the ever-changing list of helpers will hopefully stick.
Posted by Ira at 10:33 PM 2 left comment(s)
The Sweet Escape
Sometimes, in the midst of everything, it's nice knowing that there are people there for you. An unexpected message from an unexpected someone showing they care is always sweet. In the end, it's your friends who make it all worth it. Acknowledgement from strangers amounts to nothing compared to the support you get from the people who matter.
And of course, Hasyim's always there for me at the end of the day.
I'm just putting in this final burst of effort for that one night. After that, it's auf wiedersehen for me. I've been keeping mum about this for quite some time and have given it much thought. It's not simply a case of bad attitude nor is it so much about loyalty among friends. It's not even a case of giving credit where it's due because none of us asked for it.
It's a case of bad judgement and a bad call, with no move to make ammends leading to my decision to stay away.
Posted by Ira at 10:12 PM 0 left comment(s)
Labels: heartache