The Take-Home Test

*This entry is a compilation of bits and pieces, written in disparate snippets of time*

Early hours of October 7th

I am tired. :(

It's 3.21am and all I want to do right now is crawl under the duvet and let dreamless waves tussle about in my mind while I procrastinate the guilt of procrastination until I wake up.

Currently waiting for the last clip from Pride & Prejudice: The TV Series (Yes, There is a TV Series!) to load from YouTube. It has taken HOURS to get an episode, I'm praying it's worth it.

Why? All thanks to my Television Studies take-home test, which commences today and must be handed in on Monday next week.

But because I have a journalism story due circa 17th and 2 exams to study for, I do not have the luxury of stretching this take-home test until Monday.

I. Must. Multitask.

Trying not to fall asleep at the wheel while the last clip loads... I need to switch off the Internet connection when it is done.

2 questions for the take-home test: one on Sports and the other of British historical TV drama (hence the "Pride & Prejudice").

I am tired. :(

A tag by Malati (http://www.green-rabbit.blogspot.com/) to keep me awake for another few minutes:

Instructions:
a) Answer the questions below, do a Google Image search with your answer, take a picture from the page of results, and do it with minimal words of explanation.
b) Tag 5 other people to do the same once you’ve finished answering every question.

1. The age you’ll be on your next birthday

No longer a teen. Bah. No more excuses.

Also the speed limit I'd like to go by. :D

2. A place you’d like to travel to

The city, not the statue.

3. Your favourite place

4. Your favourite food

Nothing beats Mummy's home-made chicken pie.

5. Your Favorite drink

6. Your favourite pet

7. Your favorite colour combination

8. Your favourite piece of clothing

9. Your favourite TV show

10. First name of your significant other

11. The town in which you live

Pic N/A

12. Your first job

13. Your dream job

14. A bad habit you have

15. Your worst fear

16. What you'd like to do before you die

17. Tag 5 people:
Kimberly Lim. Lee Eu Jean. Anis Datt. Sarah Rostam. Tee An Nie.
And Vanessa Tan when she finally sees this.
Yeahhh that's 6 people, but as the overused saying goes:
"rules were meant to be broken". :D

2109 hours, October 7th

Today was the Monash Scholarship Presentation Ceremony at the Plenary Theatre in Building 2. I don't think I've ever seen an awards ceremony held in such a puny, cramped little space before!

Dress code was "semi formal". To make a "statement" in not conforming to insanely boring rules, I went to uni donning my very consistent T-shirt and jeans. Upon seeing fellow students walking from the carpark to uni in very, very formal attire... I started to feel a little less sure of myself.

Thoughts running through mind included:

Sh*t. They're gonna make me leave the hall. Uh-oh. Damnit. Why why why couldn't I just have worn a normal formal blouse and slacks like every other person? Whyyy do I always bring this upon myself?! Sh*t sh*t sh********T!

BUUUT true to the T, worries almost never come true. :DDD The ceremony came and went without incident (nobody chucked me out of the tiny little Plenary Theatre), I was NOT the only person in T-shirt and jeans (hey, at least I seized the opportunity to wear my blazer! HAHA), and I made a few new friends (hence fear of dying of loneliness dissipated once I started making friends with everyone within speaking proximity)! And got a cool blue folder, and a nice big fat cheque. <3

[Pic: My new favourite shirt that says "Don't Trash. Love Our Oceans."]

The VAST majority of scholarship recipients present were Engineering students, the 2nd-largest number in Business School students, with a few clusters of Biotechnology students and a handful of Computer Science whizkids.

And then, there were two rows on the list that were odd ones out: Shangari Subramaniam (Bachelor of Business & Commerce/Bachelor of Communication double degree) and Pung Sha-Lene (Bachelor of Arts). Hahahaaaa we were FAST FRIENDS. And it turns out Shangari's in TWO of my classes! LOL. She knew me but I didn't know her - well now I do! :)

Also thank yous to 2 Engineering students Lam Weng Hoong (Bachelor of Engineering) - he sat next to me - and a girl whose name I can't remember (and can't seem to find in the booklet) for being such brilliantly entertaining new friends that the ceremony wasn't as wonderfully boring as I expected! :D

ALSO ALSO - free lunch was provided. :D Well, "FREE" insofar as "a tiny percentage of the enormous amount of tuition fees Monash gets from students".

On a different note - MPAC's play is coming up at the end of this week! If you haven't already got other plans for Friday night, and you want to make this particular Friday night a different experience from your other Friday nights (sleeping/clubbing/shopping etc), do consider going for MPAC's play! :)

Don't ask me what the play is about (I don't know why people even ask me that, HAHA, I am neither a member of MPAC nor a part of the play) because I don't know - but come to show support! Performing arts is the new expression of tomorrow! :)

I shall end this bi-annual H I A T U S post with one of the dozens of new pictures I found on the Monash student drive. Yeahhh I click everything. Hahahahaha. Where's the fun in life without a bit of nosing around, eh!~

[Pictured: Last year's School of Arts staff. Some minor changes seen in this semester.]

"A failure is a man who has blundered, but is not able to cash in the experience." -Elbert Hubbard

I have a question for you:

Can a Perodua Myvi fit into this parking space?

Twice I have been thwarted in my fruitless attempts to side-park into this particular space! :( I try and try and try but I just couldn't do it properly. On two separate occasions!

It looks like a very big space to me,

but is it possible there isn't enough space for a car to park there?

Mind-boggling.

Baffling.

Baffling.

Hahaha.

a matter of construction

The poet, Thomas Macaulay, said these words - which I believe ring true - "Perhaps no person can be a poet, or even enjoy poetry, without a certain unsoundness of mind".

The thing about language is that language is made up of words. You can't actually hold words in your hand and toss it around to weigh each one. Words are alive - living, breathing creatures that change and grow to encompass the great expansion of life and civilization as we understand it. So, the language we speak - the words we use - is it really anything more than a matter of construction?

If you're familiar with the old British comedy series "Yes Prime Minister", you'll have heard of the term "irregular verb". For example, "I am eccentric, you are an individual, and he is around the twist." I think they're hilarious! It just goes to prove my point that words are a matter of construction.

Ah. Well, anyway - to stray away from the potpouri of relatively abstract musings in my head, I attended my very first neighbourhood committee meeting on Saturday. It was at a neighbour's house, and lasted from late afternoon until night had fallen - it took longer than anyone expected, I think. And mostly because there was just so much to debate about, and so much to discuss.

Safety was really the topic of discussion. With the rising crime rate, especially in our own backyards, how can we isolate ourselves from this any longer? The "It-Won't-Happen-To-Me" mentality is just another form of living in denial. It could happen to anyone! And it has happened - to neighbours, family members, friends, colleagues, schoolmates - it has been growing so rampant, and the police can only do so much.

We have to take action. We have to keep an eye out for suspicious characters and look out for our neighbours. We have to stop being so selfish and cowardly and for goodness' sake, REPORT suspicious behaviour to the police, or your local security.

So many issues came up at the meeting - among those present, besides concerned residents, were the President and Vice President of our neighbourhood resident owners' association. One of the most disappointing stories he shared with us was that there were literally people who saw break-ins or robberies happening, saw the criminals - but did nothing, simply stayed in their houses and came outside only after the criminals left, loudly proclaiming that they saw everything.

The question was - why didn't they CALL the police or the security guards?

It is understandable that one may think if you ignore something, it will just go away. But your house could be next, or the house of your loved ones - call the police/security, the criminals will get caught, and they'll be put away!

Grr. Some people are just so incredibly frustrating!

Anyway, now that I've got a bit of spare time on my hands, I'm definitely going to take up an active role in the neighbourhood safety measures. It turns out there's a huge lack of manpower from the youth - the committees are always made up of retirees and housewives. They need people who know how to use computers and have the energy to get stuff done quicker.

I deeply hope that the state government will implement the Rukun Tetangga system again, but even if they don't, you - we - can still do whatever we can to help!

facebook funnies

Okay, we all know Facebook is all the rage nowadays, but do all of us realise just how hilarious and funny some of its applications are? I laughed so hard at some of its fun stuff, like 'Superlatives' or all the bumper stickers they've got.

OH and not to forget, their 'Compare People' application, which I added for a minute coz Rachel told me I got voted "smartest" on her network (hahahah so I also want to kaypoh-lah) ... and when I saw the full votes I got for all their absurdly funny stuff, I thought I'd share some here:

*Quick explanation: '2nd', '3rd' etc is for the ranking in your network of friends, followed by 'most ...' what u were voted for, and a number (the number of votes u got).

There are the nice, butter-me-up ones like ...

2nd
more generous
5 votes

2nd
harder worker
5 votes

3rd
more artistic
7

6th
kinder
2

13th
prettier
3

13th
more outgoing
4

14th
rather hang out with for a day
8

Then the more 'practical' ones ...

16th
would make a better mother
1

18th
more useful
5

19th
smarter
2

24th
rather live with
5

27th
more well-mannered
3

29th
more trustworthy
3

34th
more creative
4

34th
better public speaker
3

34th
studies harder
6

And then whoever voted me for the below made me snort with laughter, coz it's just soooo silly:

35th
hotter
1

36th
rather date
1

36th
more naturally talented
4

38th
more powerful
1

39th
more reliable
4

47th
a better profile picture
1

And the rest ... I can't help questioning them!!! :P

51st
smells nicer
2

who smelled me??

52nd
am I more jealous of
2

????

56th
more organized
1

only 1 person voted me for this?? (ROFL)

56th
better at science
4

OMGGG HAHAHAHA SCIENCE?? what do I know about science??

57th
braver
5

HAHAHA I am the synonym for 'no spine' lahhh...

58th
would i rather take shopping
2

......... if u're talking about shopping for FOOD?

59th
cooler
8

seriously??! ME?

77th
more likely to skip class
2

WHAT?? HAHA! I would never voluntarily skip class!

70th
rather get stuck in handcuffs with
5

who are u five people?? Simply press the button is it? Hahahha!

69th
can drink more
6

errrr ... maybe u've never met my friend vanessa, who will be happy to tell u the story of the time when i held the champagne glass until it warmed to my body temperature ...

ALLLL riiiiiiiiiiiiiight, that's where the funny ends! :]

The others I've pasted below, just as my own keepsake for future laughs.

64th
more confident
5

67th
sexier
2

68th
rather be trapped on a desert island with
2

69th
better listener
2

75th
rather sleep with
3

75th
better singer
3

75th
more famous
2

78th
a better body
3

80th
more likely to succeed
2

81st
better dancer
3

81st
more talkative
6

81st
rather marry
2

86th
more likely to win in a fight
4

89th
a better sense of humor
4

91st
rather kiss
6

91st
more adventurous
4

91st
happier person
3

92nd
more athletic
3

93rd
more entertaining
3

97th
better taste in music
2

99th
better hair
2

99th
funnier
4

99th
rather travel with
4

99th
more attractive
2

100th
more tech-savvy
4

102nd
more popular
5

104th
prettier eyes
1

106th
better friend
3

108th
a better laugh
6

110th
rather have dinner with
2

110th
more loyal
2

111st
a better smile
3

116th
cuter
1

116th
nicer
2

125th
more fashionable
1

127th
crazier
1

129th
more likely to do a favor for me
1

little bits of fluff

Hi everyone! :]

I don't actually have anything new to update on, so I'll just dig up some slightly old news.

A relatively new dim sum restaurant has opened up in Damansara Jaya near Atria, and it's bustling with activity! It's pretty delicious (and very affordable!). :] Do give this place a try when you have the chance!


I'm so sorry that I don't have photos of the dim sum BEFORE my family ate it! :P Hahahaha! But I just wanted to post up this dirty-dishes picture to show that all that only cost RM46.

Why is it so much cheaper than other dim sum restaurants?

No air-cond.

HAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA.

Okay, next we have snapshots from my favourite restaurant in the whole wide world ...

TGIF's!!!

That's half-a-rack-of-ribs in the photo, and the other dishes are fajitas. :]

All riiiiiiight, hope that's worked up an appetite for you. :D

Besides the universally-acclaimed topic of food, food and food ... nothing much has been going on in my little world. :]

I've gotten some of my second year books from Serene Kan, so I've started reading a little. We have a summer reading list to complete before term starts, so I'm taking it nice and easy. :] It's so much more pleasant to read for leisure rather than read for exams-which-are-coming-up-next-week! Hahahaha!

Perhaps I'll blog about the subjects once I've read a bit more on them. :D

Until next time, take care! :]