I think Disney gets a really bad rep. People tend to switch off the moment anything from HSM or Camp Rock is seen or heard. “Ughhhh, I hate HSM!”
Okay sure, fine, so most of the storylines are incredibly cheesy and unrealistic. Disney can be accused of making young children believe in unrealistic happy endings.
But SERIOUSLY LAH. How many people do you know are truly so gullible as to believe that everything will work out perfectly like in the cartoons? Complete with a prince charming and a dead villain? Even my kid cousin knows it’s unrealistic. Don’t shoot people down for believing in happy endings, because optimism is overrated but completely necessary for our mental wellbeing. In any case, how most of us are smart enough to imagine a happy ending within the limits of reason, a happy ending we can work for. (Friends, please don’t prove me wrong on that point. Lol.)
Whether or not belief in happy endings is something good is a debatable issue, so I’m going to leave it at that. But what troubles me is that we have not only stopped watching the movies but also the songs as well. I get my friends groaning over HSM and Camp Rock songs whenever they come on over the speaker.
Somewhere along our hurry to shed our childhood and be viewed as people with mature tastes, we also lost the ability to appreciate Disney for what it also is: a producer of good music.
I have no problems in admitting that I love listening to Demi Lovato’s Camp Rock tunes and Disney music from the days of The Little Mermaid. Disney’s cheesy, but it’s not one of the biggest sources of the world’s entertainment for nothing. Their shows have quality lah!
Actually I just had to tell you about this, because the song Prince Ali from Aladdin is maddeningly stuck in my head. I feel the urge to play it whenever I walk into a room.
“PRINCE ALI! AMOROUS HE! ALI ABABWA!”
-___________________________-“
This post is so chinchai! But let me assure you, IT IS NOT MY FAULT. I actually wanted to blog about the conversation I had on msn last night with Zean Shiung about accommodation at MDO! But I couldn’t. Because while he was being so funny, posting the conversation up is going to get a lot of important people pissed off with us. Or specifically, him. (Sadly, none of them are politicians, but still.)
This is all your fault, Zhaun! All the clean bits make no sense if I leave the censored bits out! ):
What a waste of good blogging material. Pfffffft
Labels: Friends, Musings, Random-ia
Damn! Now I remembered what I wanted to say last night with reference to the previous post.
“You can never truly be free if you admire someone too much.”
I don’t know who said it, but he was one smart guy.
***
Today, I went to the bank wearing a t-shirt with the Flash on in. While talking to the teller, I see a man with a Superman shirt soon walk in after. Minutes later a man with a Batman shirt walks in. We all high-fived. MLIA
Today, I realized that I have a LOT of intelligent/nerdy friends. I didn't know why, so I made a flow chart to help me understand... question answered. MLIA.
Today my dad asked me where I got my cool pencil. When I told him I stole it from my stepfather, he was so proud he bought me a box of donuts. MLIA
Today, I just realized I was dancing in front of the huge living room window. I was using it as a mirror. Those on the outside were using it as a window. MLIA
Today, during an engineering class, my team was having trouble with the rocket boosters on a test launch. My teacher then said, "Come on guys! This isn't rocket science!" MLIA
Because NuffNang tells me that you’re the most frequent visitor to my blog. No one visits my site as much as you do. I’m not scared, I’m not freaked out. I’m not going to call you a stalker and defame you. But I’m not flattered either. I don’t feel overly gratified that someone, one person at least, finds me interesting. It’s just that it feels surreal, the fact that a person as ordinary as I am could ever inspire anyone so much, when there are so many people out there who have achieved so much more than I have and think so differently from the rest of us. In my opinion, they are far more inspiring than I could ever be.
It’s funny because I spent part of the day believing that I was being looked down on and feeling like the bottom of someone’s shoe. And then I come home to the realization that to some people, strangers even, I mean a lot more.
But I digress. Thank you for letting me know that my words and actions have influenced at least one person in some way. If you really want to know, I see the person I used to be in you. And I’m sorry, because the few times I actually had contact with you, I did not do much to help you believe in your capabilities. In fact, I may have directly contributed to your lack of self-esteem. That alone should prove that I’m not all that much worth looking up to. Knowing that you read my blog makes me feel incredibly guilty, and gives me the feeling that I need to make up for putting you down. So here’s what I think you should know.
This is a year too late, but don’t let setbacks get in your way. I know I talk much, seeing as I put you down once. But I have faced as many setbacks as you have, believe me. Everyone has. It’s the way they deal with their setbacks, no matter how harsh, that makes all the difference. JK Rowling said in her address to the Harvard Alumni Association in June 2008:
“Some failure in life is inevitable. It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all – in which case, you fail by default.
Failure gave me an inner security that I had never attained by passing examinations. Failure taught me things about myself that I could have learned no other way.”
Be proud of where you failed. Know that you actually tried. (I should eat my own advice, but whatever!) Know that with a healthy dose of confidence and a smattering of luck, you’re not far from being where you want to be. What I’m saying is terribly clichéd, but clichés are clichés for a reason.
And another thing you should remember: the grass only looks greener on the other side.
Now stop wallowing in self-pity. Get out there and show the world what you can be.
Yes, this post really is directed at one specific person. S/he knows who s/he is. (: And I’m sorry if this post makes no sense, but I’m sleepy. Next time I feel like motivating somebody, I won’t do it at 2am in the morning.
I plan to bake something tomorrow. 3-day weekend, HERE I COME! :D
PS: Please don’t let this deter you from reading any further! My blog stats dropping like cow only.
Almost one week ago I went vegetarian for Lent. Pescetarian to be exact, but I’m lazy to explain myself to those who don’t know what that is. Being vegetarian makes me feel awesome! I never feel completely full, but that means I never feel bloated. I always feel comfortably right. But, obscene as this sounds, I miss the taste of meat. :X
There was something bugging me. Had been bugging me for a while, actually. But with all the things that have happened today, it doesn’t feel like much of a problem anymore. Besides, Pei She said it so much better than I could ever have put it.
On a random note, to the Ed Boarders, did you know that I used the pens you gave me last year to write with during National Novice? And I’m using them during college too. I’m the only one in class who uses an orange pen to write chemical equations in chemistry. My notes are so awesomely pretty that I actually feel like studying them!
I know how completely disjuncted this post is, but I feel disjuncted. Though I suppose disjunction is no excuse for lousy blogging. ):
On another completely random note, congratulations Peter Heng on getting accepted into UCL!! And also to Ian for getting into Cambridge, but that’s old news. Besides the fact that the feat itself is utterly amazing and totally worth congratulating publicly, I’m also trying to avoid making a certain someone jealous by mentioning Peter exclusively. *grins*
Being unattached to anyone is awesome. I can tease everyone and not get teased back.
>:D
Labels: day-to-day, Friends
xx August 2007
Debated for the first time. Lost the 2nd round. I remember thinking about joining debate the following year but I never got round to it.
26 January 2010
Attended a debate workshop hosted by Omar Salahuddin.
A few days later
Ian calls and asks if I want to take Yu Li’s place in an upcoming debate competition. I agreed.
12 February 2010, Thursday
Printed out a debate handbook by Simon Quinn. Started reading it. Took it to Penang with me. Brought it with me on my angpow-collecting rounds. Did nothing else but read it the whole time.
16 February 2010, Tuesday
Finished the debate handbook.
17 February 2010, Wednesday
Met up with the HELP and CHS debaters. Met my team mates for the competition, Carmen Chua and Rachel Gan. I was to debate as a high schooler. Debated for the first time since Form 3 on two motions:
THW Allow Iran To Enrich its Uranium (OPP)
THW Legalize Prostitution (GOV)
18 February 2010, Thursday
My second ever debate practice at Ian’s place. Debated one round on the motion:
THW Ban Any Schemes Intended To Cure Homosexuals (OPP)
19 February 2010, Friday – National Novice Debate Competition @ UiTM, Shah Alam
Round 1: THBT Elite Schools Are A Mistake
GOV: MMU Cyberjaya 2 / OPP: CHS 1
Verdict: CHS 1
Round 2: THBT Politicians Do Not Have A Right To Privacy
GOV: CHS 1 / OPP: UTM 2
Verdict: CHS 1
Round 3: THW Ban Tobacco and Alcohol Companies From Sponsoring Sporting Teams and Events
GOV: CHS 1 / OPP: UT MARA 1
Verdict: UT MARA 1
20 February 2010, Saturday – Competition continues
Round 4: THBT Life Is Sacred But You Can End It If It’s Yours
GOV: CHS 1 / OPP: UKM
Verdict: UKM
Round 5: THW Allow Airlines To Charge Passengers Based On Their Weight
GOV: INTEK 4 / OPP: CHS 1
Verdict: INTEC 4
Round 6: THW Legalize Prostitution (!!!!)
GOV: CHS 1 / OPP: UCTI Zeus
Verdict: Silent round, but I think we won. (:
***update 24/2/2010: we did!***
Total: 3 wins out of 6.
Anyway, this is to explain where I’ve been the last few days and to tell you just how difficult it has been the last week. I started practicing on WEDNESDAY and the competition was on FRIDAY! And all things considered, especially the fact that we were debating against universities, I think we all did really really well.
Debaters, you tell me!
In the end, none of the 2 HELP and 3 CHS teams broke through to the octo-finals (only HELP 1 qualified to break, but they didn’t), but I had a lot of fun. So much fun that it almost, I repeat, almost overrides the fear of the impending screwing I’m going to get on Monday due to the fact that I have not touched my college holiday homework at all. Which I intend to go do something about… After this gets posted up!
Labels: day-to-day, ECA
I am addicted.
I am scared, nervous, and excited about tomorrow. I don’t want to fuck up. And I’m scared that I will. But I am addicted all the same.
Sometimes I feel like 5 posts on the main page is way too small for this blog and the frequency at which I blog. But I love to write. I love to tell people what’s going on in my head. Yet I don’t want to assume that people find everything I say important and useful and inspiring. So 5 posts it is.
Now to return to my nail-biting.
Do not condemn the judgment of another because it differs from your own. You may both be wrong.
- Dandamis, sage (4c BCE)
The word was
“CONTRADICTORY”
!!!
D:
Labels: Quickies
This is a quickie before I head out on my angpow-collecting rounds.
HAPPY YEAR OF THE TIGER!
And couples aside, to those celebrating Singleton’s Awareness Day (with me!), here’s to us:
Yeahhhhhhhhhhhhh :D
Labels: Quickies
Jimmy Durante – Make Someone Happy
My parents come alive every time we come back to Penang. This morning, Mom borrowed my cousin’s bicycle and cycled all the way to the temple in Pulau Tikus which is 5km away. Then she cycled back and was home before I even got out of bed. She’s so chipper right now that even the prospect of having to help prepare two reunion dinners tonight couldn’t get her down. Dad puts his computer in front of the window and every time a breeze blows through and ruffles up the sea-green curtains of his room, he stops tapping on the keyboard for a few moments and sighs with happiness. To them, their hometown is an escape from their workload back in KL, hectic city life and a return to their comfort zone.
I am a city girl born and bred, and so sometimes Penang can drive me fairly crazy because hardly anything happens here. All the rockstars perform in KL and Singapore, and all the happening events, rallies and gatherings start in KL. Good movies take weeks to arrive here. Like the time I was here after my class trip last year, I nearly went nuts because everything was so stiff and sleepy.
It’s not like that for me all the time, though. Most times I can appreciate what my parents see in this place. It’s a refreshing change from the intense materialism that comes with city life. Having spent at least a quarter of my life here, I’ve been made equal parts Penang girl and KL-ite. Here, no one will bat an eyelid if you wandered out on the street wearing sandals with socks or rat-eaten shorts and t-shirts. In Penang, most traders actually smile at you in a really warm and friendly manner. Even the younger ones. Back in KL, the only ones that smile at you are the old shopkeepers. The younger sales assistants are so sour-faced that it puts me off buying anything in their shops. KL is a happening place and it’s great for me because it means life is never dull. But life there can seem awfully superficial at times. There’s a niceness about Penang people that sets them apart.
On the whole, Penang people are not just nice. They are different. The girls are spunkier, the boys are less brash, and the atmosphere is more welcoming in general. It is a lot less happening, but the general warmth of the people can make up for it.
And Penang food is awesome. There really is no question about that.
(Which reminds me, I REALLY REALLY have to get started on my Malaysian Studies scrapbook. But I digress. Unrelated topic counter #1 –.-)
My parents are true-blue Penang-ites. Practicality goes, not appearance. Almost everything they own is over 5 years old. Take care not to be hypnotized by the glittering city lights; don’t lose yourself here in KL. More than once, people have told me how nice my parents are. They’re serious on the surface but it’s not that they don’t have a sense of humor; like me, they just have a different sense of humor. I tell them it’s because they’re Penang people, although I don’t know what makes them that way.
My dad’s hypothesis is this: if you grow up in a beautiful environment i.e. surrounded by wind and sea and hill, and always have good food on the table, it gives you a certain confidence. Rather than growing up in a concrete jungle hemmed in by the latest technology, in rural areas you get to run free. *cue Born Free theme song!*
What he says is true to some extent. So why are the HELP students from other states so shy and less outgoing than the KL-ites? Maybe it’s the sheer volume of the KL-ites that intimidates them and puts them off. In truth, I think the kids from other states may have a lot more substance than the KL-ites. Because it’s as if being born in the centre of all that’s hip and happening in this country has given us a special status above all the other more ulu (backward) places.
Don’t be fooled. You can be so much better than us if you’d just let yourselves shine, the part of you that was born free. Remember that old saying from some cheesy old movie (yes, I like cheesy old movies!)? You can take a girl (or boy) out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of a girl (or boy).
Most of what you see is just a lie built up to make it seem important, needed and imperative for growth and progress, when actually it’s about as deep as a rain-puddle. We judge and we are judged daily by appearance and achievements, and extraversion is everything. Here, the more extraverted you are the better, even if it means getting in people’s faces while you’re at it. Those who aren’t extraverted try so hard to be so and ultimately fail because they don’t realize that you can never be who you’re not meant to be. And when they fail they become sour-faced shop assistants who put you off buying their own wares.
By all means have fun here in KL. Go out and watch the latest movies, rock it out at concerts, watch plays and try out all there is to try. But don’t be intimidated by the people. Look past our outward loudness and see people who turn to putty without their iPod, hand phone and internet connection. See people who balk at the idea of 10-day jungle treks and tending to mentally retarded orphans. Board an LRT, ride it to the end and get off without ever once speaking to anyone, making eye contact or seeing anyone smile. See people who look down on someone who doesn’t speak the same, dress the same, watch the same TV shows, listen to the same music and ultimately, doesn’t think the same. See people like that, and realize that this is what city life does to young people. See people like that, and don’t be intimidated. Know that you’re so much better than we are. Then prove it to us.
Take care not to be hypnotized by the glittering city lights; don’t lose yourself. Like we often do.
Labels: Musings, Very Long Posts
I’m re-reading my blog of 2009. Two thoughts came to mind, the first being: I wonder what happened to the writer I used to be?
I used to come out with some whacky, spontaneous post or a long thought-provoked ramble every couple of days or so. I was pretty consistent. It was easy to come up with something to say.
What on earth has college done to reduce my writing skills to that of a third-grader?
Re-reading the blog of 2009 has made me realize one other thing: I am really, really proud to be a part of the graduating class of CHS 2009.
The first two years of high school were emotionally tense and full of drama. Every few days we’d hear about someone bitching and backstabbing someone else. The kids regarded as “cool” were always involved in some disciplinary issues every other day. It got so tense that at one point, I really looked forward to the holidays. Being emo was the norm, and everyone was going around saying, “Life sucks.”
Form 3 was the let’s-have-fun, damn-the-consequences year. I’m not exactly sure how this happened, but for me it was because that was my very first year (in my entire life!) in a B class. I had never experienced that kind of wildness and lackadaisity towards studies that the 3B3 environment provided. I rather took to it, and it was a sort of miracle that I pulled out of that year with straight As for the PMR, a distinction for Grade 7 Piano and my first boyfriend in my hat.
Form 4 was the year everyone started to get serious. How could they not, with the whole science-or-arts streaming thing going on? Seeing our seniors face the SPM also lent to the pressure; oh shit that’s gonna be us NEXT YEAR thoughts started cropping up. On top of that, we were also being given bigger, more significant responsibilities, and at the end of the year, many of us were awarded posts in clubs and societies which we had to receive with both hands and meet head-on.
In other words, many of us grew up, even if only a little. On the whole, we realized that some grudges, judgements and relationships were so petty that they were never worth holding on to. So we let them go and looked for better things that we thought worth our time.
And then came Form 5.
If I had a look at everyone’s 2009 resolutions, I’d bet they’d all look more or less the same:
- Study hard for SPM!
- Make up with everybody before I leave high school.
- Have fun!
The gist of it was DO NOT REGRET THIS YEAR.
Compared to the first year of high school, there was hardly any drama… At least, none that I was aware of, and none that was not resolved within a reasonable time frame. For many of us (myself included) this was the first time we experienced the joy of learning and of working with people you’ve been around for 5 years. Many of us took the pains to make up with every person we’d ever fallen out with, and maintain good relations with everyone else. The atmosphere on graduation day would have been really rosy, bar certain incidents I will not mention for the sake of consistency in this post.
If you notice, the happier years of high school were Form 3 and Form 5, which were the years of the PMR and SPM. What is it about exams that brings students closer? Maybe it’s the long hours of cramming, and the numerous study groups, many of them pulled together at the last minute, many of them ineffective but fun. Maybe it’s the feeling that we’re all facing a common enemy, and that even though exams reflect individualistic performances, if we worked together we’d pull through somehow. Hence all the note-sharing and exams tips being yelled from classroom to classroom. Maybe it’s addiction to the feeling of triumph that we get when we tackle a particularly difficult subject and win. (You have no idea how high I felt when I scored my first ever A1 for Chemistry in the trials!)
Or maybe we were just a bunch of particularly kiasu, typically Chinese students.
Whatever the reason, my point is that exams are not big bad events. Exams are not to be feared. Because really, unless you’re dyslexic or have serious learning disabilities, the only reason anyone does not do well in exams is because they didn’t work hard for it. I would go as far as saying that because of the way they can bring a group of people together and stimulate mentally, exams are to be welcomed and looked forward to. I know I secretly did.
Now you know how much of a nerd I am. –___-
Exams make up much of your high school life, and like it or not your attitude towards exams is going to make or break your high school experience. If you meet and treat exams right, you’ll not only enjoy high school but you’ll come out of it never fearing exams ever again.
I know we did. CHS 2009. Most of the people around me anyway. I remember coming to school in the days before exams for history study groups and drawing stickmen stories on the board to illustrate the story of the Birth of Islam. I remember sitting together with the people I fondly call the Chemistry Giants (David and Prashanth) and the Physics Genius (Hock Eu) and feeling rather insignificant while going through everything with them but having fun anyway. (Whether or not they remember this I don’t know and I doubt it, but thanks guys! I had fun, just so you know!) Sadly I was never a genius in anything except English.
I need to wrap up right now, and I think I shall regret this in the morning. I just don’t have the gift of bringing a story out spontaneously and well at the same time! But my point is that my last year of high rocked because I was given the grace of appreciating every minute of it while it was happening. That and I was surrounded by an awesome batch of students. (: It helps to appreciate it right now, because it helps when you get to college. It’s so different from the cushiony environment that high school was, but I don’t miss high school. I have no regrets because I had fun all the way through Form 5.
Safe to say, I think my earlier worry at the beginning of this post has been unfounded, or at least partly. *grins*
If you’ve been following my Twitter for the past week or so, you may have noticed that I was complaining a lot about homework homework homework and never specifying what kind of homework it was.
Well guess what everybody, HOMEWORK was actually a codename for something else I was working on! And that thing was…
KIMBERLEY WONG’S FAREWELL GIFT :D
(ohmygod, failed attempt at being a code-speaking spy –.- I will obviously never make the FBI.)
The farewell was on Tuesday, and on Monday afternoon I was panicking so badly that I asked Hock Eu to come over and help. In about 3.5 hours, we managed to turn a pile of sugar paper, black cardboard, metal, and 74 photos into… THIS:
I give you my favourite two pages of the whole album:
I started laughing every time I looked at this page.
See here for what they did to the album after I gave it over to Hock Eu to complete. (:
I wasn’t able to make it to the farewell itself, but I HOPE I MADE YOU CRY, KIMBERLEY! :D
Have a smashing time in Australia and don’t scare away too many kangaroos. (:
Labels: Friends, High School
Woh shit.
Everything looks sooo beautiful and clear on my dad’s LCD screen.
Compared to the computer I normally use, this is like staring at something with my contacts on.
I DON’T WANNA GO OFFLINE, IMMA JUST STAY HERE AND ADMIRE MY BLOG ON MY DAD’S LAPTOP. :D
And I heard yellow house got 4th place in the cross country yesterday. Which depressed me no end, just ask Kai Boon! )’: I feel your pain, yellow house members!
Something else happened today that gave me a lot to think about. A long post is coming up. HEADS UP, PEOPLE!
One of the many good things about HELP: it’s in KL. We get Federal Territory Day.
And so today, for the first time I made cookies without adult guidance!
I know, I know. FAIL. –___-
But still, not bad for somebody who’s been a kitchen noob for the last 17/18 years! *grins*
Guess where this picture was taken!
Looks like some secret gangster hideout.
Here’s a hint! -
Yes, that’s a water tank.
Something really weird happened on Sunday morning. My parents were woken up by a loud CRASH followed by a splintering sound. It appeared that something had crashed onto the roof of our house. One of the lights in their bathroom was damaged, having been knocked loose by whatever had crash-landed on our roof. It sounded like something had broken. Parents, being parents, got worried. My siblings and I just got excited. :D
They called our neighbor over, who is a regular handyman. And we did this:
We went up into the roof!
And so that’s where all the pictures were taken.
My brother was having the time of his life playing detective up there.
We didn’t find anything. No broken tiles, dead bodies or bits of UFO. Whatever hit the roof of the Tan Residence remains a mystery. But here are some of the possible solutions we came up with:
- Pigeons kung-fu fighting in the loft.
- Civet cats having a rough and tumble.
- Illegally dropped frozen airplane droppings. Everything would have melted and evaporated.
- Transformers from Cybertron crash-landed, then fixed up the roof and left.
I think you can tell which one we wish it was!
Anyway yeah. This is just to tell you that I went up into the ROOF of my house! *grins*
