survival list:
1) carefully lift up corners of mouth
2) bare teeth
3) widen eyes
4) go "hmmm" "ooh?" "really?" "no. i have no boyfriend" "im in NUS" at appropriate moments.
5) nod head where possible
(optional) exclaim "wah! you have gotten slimmer/prettier/ more handsome" "your child is very cute/clever/pretty"

DO NOT! under any circumstances, knee relatives in stomach when they ask why you have gotten fatter (like they can see beyond their bloating belly.)

and presto! this will be a relatively painless and bloodless Chinese New Year!

Chinese New year pics(prepare urself for a onslaught of pics):





my family keeping the tradition of taking photos on the first day. notice the visible lack of oranges and angpows? hahahahaha! Unknown to my family, tt is also part of the tradition..



This is clement, the cousin who should take credit for pullin thru his critical illness and then getting the whole family back together. he rocks! i insisted on taking this photo to boost my ego about my height.


unfortunately, the whole family caught me doing that and insisted that we shoot another photos including the stupid stool.




and my cousins and sisters developed a penchant for my boobies! ah wells.. a taste of my own medicine i guess.


my dad has been wanting to shave off his moustache for real. since last millennium. so who tinks he would look good without a moustache? all in favour say aye!


a formal shot of the cousins before we took control


PORT PORT! look to the port!


Aye aye maties! Attention to the starboard!


is it gonna rain on our ship?


hmm.. metinks a hole just sprung up on our ship.

ha.. like christine said, we are silly people but it was super funny at that time.




gambling..it's a good year for oxes to win money!



dinner


kong kong and mama


i like this photo mainly because i caught celine in one of her merrier moods. she jumped up to be in the pic. she's at ur left hand side if u cant see her in the corner.


my parents decided to change our ways to improve luck. hence we played mahjong when we came home. this may seem like nothing to outsiders but i'll have you know my dad and mum dun stay up past 1030p.m. so when they decide to play mahjong waaaayyy past their bedtime, it's amazing for us!

unfortunately for my dad, he doesnt thrive in the night. the following pictures show his cards before my sis's bf won. For some weird reason or another, my dad had already won. he just didnt noe it. below are pictures of his expression when he found out that he could have won. he was trying to make sense of it all.






happy cheena new year everyone!

note: all photos taken are from mother's side of the family. not close to father's side so too bad.

ah balls! i forgot to include this one..
Ox
Introverted, a hard worker, a leader, sincere, calm and tranquil Independent, Suitable as a pharmacist, realtor, farmer, academician, architect Suited with a Snake, Rooster, Rat, Monkey and Ox
Career
The Ox must be careful with all career-related decisions this Dog year. Keep a low profile, be productive behind the scenes and avoid confrontational approaches in order to succeed this year. Oxen should also not dabble in office politicking. 2006 is a good year for investments, so do your homework and try not to speculate! Your luck for this year depends on how your work quality - the harder you work, the more you will prosper.

The Ox must be supercareful in their relationship with their superiors. This year will see your boss disagreeing with you plenty of times, so the solution is for you to keep a low profile for the year, and do get your way through persuasion and gentle prodding.

Relationship
Oxen men, you may be tying the knot this year! Single Oxen, be prepared for lots of love luck - this year sees you pairing off with a potential life partner! The Ox women should definitely ask help from friends for this purpose, since they will succeed in love this year with the help from friends. But, regardless of sex, the Ox people should still proceed with caution, and try not to jump into fast relationships. You will do great this way!

Health
Health-wise, the Ox people will not need to experience any serious illness or health threats, but you may experience mild, nagging problems such as viral infections, cold, headaches and even a little emotional pressure. With these setbacks in mind, year 2006 should be a great time for the Ox to start cutting down the consumption of fatty, oily food!

happy cheena new year everyone!

i was curious about my chinese zodiac sign so i went and found out.. here are some excerpts from what i have read. most are pretty true. i have a feelin those born in the year of an Ox would have a great time reading thru the following! hey.. dun take it seriously kk? coz its all off the net..
i'm just saying coz the reports for the ox is not very good.

Never ask an Ox the question unless you wanna hear the truth.
Oxes may appear docile, but watch out! They also have quite a temper. They are extremely determined and work tirelessly to get what they want. Step by step and piece by piece, they move steadily toward their goals. People born under the sign of the Ox are dependable and stick to a routine until the job is done. They are fair-minded and good listeners, but they can also be extremely stubborn.

Because of their trustworthy character, Oxes will often hold positions of authority and responsibility. They always get ahead in the world. They must be careful not to become slaves to their jobs or profession. Oxes can be forceful leaders and eloquent speakers when the occasion arises. In troubled times they will have great presence of mind and will never be intimidated. They are very proud souls. Oxes are systematic and respect traditions. They mistrust things they don't understand,and they hate loose ends.They can also be vulnerable in romance. They are so straightforward that they don't relate to the love games others play. Since it takes a long time to develop intimate relationships, Oxes like long courtships. Once they have made up their minds, they are loyal and giving-almost to a fault.

Ox people are neat and punctual, honest and hard working. Oxes make ideal mates since they always do more than their share. They have a long memory and remember the little details others miss. Once Oxes are angry with you, they will carry their grievance a long way. When they are unhappy or upset, they will bury themselves in their work until they feel better. Oxes always pay their debts. If they owe you anything, they will never forgive themselves until the debt is paid. They always remember a favor, and though they don't use flowery words,they will show their appreciation in other ways. Their actions speak louder than words.

When Oxes lose their temper, they really lose it! There will be no reasoning with them, so get out of their way until they cool off. Always appeal to the head rather than to the heart of the Oxes. They quickly understand the pros and cons to the situation. Oxes seldom get sick and are not tolerant of weaker people. They should learn how to relax more.

Oxes hate to ask for help. If it takes them twice as long to accomplish something, they still prefer working alone. They want things to last and build them with care. Oxes love their home and family and provide well for them. They do well at long term investments with stability and firm foundations. They are definitely not gamblers. Oxes earn their success by their own merits and don't expect any free rides.

Forecast Period: January 29, 2006 through February 17, 2007

- Best Year For: Rabbits, Dogs
- Great Year: Tigers, Horses
- Good Year: Pigs, Snakes
- Mixed Year: Goats, Monkeys, Oxen, Rats
- Difficult Year: Roosters, Dragons

Your benefactor is the Horse.

"2006 is a stable year with few worries for the Ox. In your career, you can see benefits and profit from your hard work. For salaried workers, a job promotion is possible through your own efforts, and you may think about moving to a better place. Be careful when making new friendships, as you may have to deal with people who make you frustrated and consume most of your physical and emotional energy. Money luck is average to good; the busier you are, the more you gain, but it will be not easy to keep. Therefore, be careful of overspending and watch out for your wallet--some evil people will also be watching it. August and September are the most inauspicious for the Ox. Refrain from gambling or financial speculation."

apparently.. oxes go well best with snakes(4 years away from us) or if im not wrong..horse.. which is like a million years away from us.. Hahaha!

This is one of those years when you need to avoid Dog or Goat people because of the 'earth clashing' of signs in 2006. Projects you have on the go may suffer this year and your energies could slump. Don't share too many parts of yourself with others, as they may not respect it sufficiently. It's not your best year, so hop into the back seat, be detached and wait for 2007.

This is easier said than done.. since both my sisters are dogs.. and my dad is a goat. wth.

lalala.. tagged by pei

Name five of life’s simple pleasures that you like most, then pick five people to do the same.Try to be original and creative and not use things that someone else has already used:
1. walking in the rain and feeling the raindrops on my skin
2. peeling off wet or hot clothes
3. a compliment
4. a big ho ho ha ha ha tummy ache laugh
5. waking up to an alarm early in the morning and then being able to smile and fall back to sleep coz i dun have to get up so early.

and now... can i please see the lists for
1. Jillian (it's about time!)
2. Neela
3. Christine
4. Alden
5. Karen


hahaha seems to be the latest punctuation. Mostly, i dun mind it. But, lately, there has been a guy who msges me stuff like "Hi girl. what are you doing? hahaz" like wtf? what's so funny? or it can be just mundane stuff n he ends it with a hahaz. irritating lah.

i was pretty happy tt day when Yiqi asked me to sit next to her during lecture. it may not be tt big a deal to some but since i've been sitting alone in lectures, i felt really grateful to have someone scribblin beside me.

Bah. i do miss the whole sitting together routine tt we had in JC. especially during the first 3 months where the whole class was damn heck care and we were like passing notes or drawing ... oh! i forgot the name of the cartoon we did! and all the jokes we were making abt Mr price and all. Neels, do u remember the name of the cartoon? the storyline was always bizarre. damnit! and the Bingo? gosh.. then there was the giggling and jigglin about in the seat or leaning forward to whisper back and forth.. first 3 months were the best lah!.

then the following months resulted in hangman and bingo. well.. losing at bingo to be more accurate! hahahaha! i miss that. that kinda comfy feeling of company. of being able to talk abt anything, gossip abt other people and give nicknames all around.. laughin over seng tat and co. then there was pei's birthday present and all.. yeah we had our horrible times and all but still.. the good times were plenty!

well, i'm just glad tt i'm still in contact with pei, ting, (maybe) Neela(?) and Mel(?). maybe i could run down to australia and see ting and neela in their habitat this hols!but then tt means slaving at work .. hmmmm..

pineapple tarts update: half the huge bottle gone.

No. i don't think my heart can feel any more pain. she said.
watch this.he said as he plunged the knife into her.. and twisted it in deeper.

the weeks stretch out. when is it enough?

what's new with your life? she asked.
she thought for a while .. of everything tt has happened. everything of little consequence. what words can possibly sum it all up? Nothing, she replied.

how are you?
i'm okay. how about you?
i'm fine.
are you?

let's go out!
i can't.
why?
i just can't.

let's meet up!
i can't
why?
i'm ashamed.
of?
of what i have become.

breathe in. breathe out.

are you free?
...
please? coz i really need you now.
......
please?
.....
never mind.
ok.

i envy you. she thinks.
i love you but i hate myself when i'm with you.

you look sad.
i'm just stoning.

why don't you diet? what happened to you over the hols? why so fat now? how much weight did u put on? why let people continously talk you down when u seem strong enough to criticise back? how can you bitch about strangers yet when occasion calls for it, you go mute?

hello. why is there pubic hair on your face?
you are lame and kinda immature for a 23 yr old. is there no other thing we can talk about besides my weight?
you are kinda ugly. well.. To be honest, you are ugly.
You are boring to talk to.
Aren't ugly people supposed to have a better personality to match?
i have no idea why but for all your dieting, you dun seem to have lost any weight.
are those boobs real? coz they seem unusually perky. it almost seems as though your nipples are facing upwards.
you are irritating.
your voice is unusually high.
you have a face that only your mother could love. and a personality to match.
do you realise that when you talk, your voice gets higher and higher and every sentence seems to end in a question mark?
You think about how cool you are.. struttin all over the place. Honestly? You are full of rubbish. The thing about you is that your absence is valued more than your presence.
you are such a whiney follower.
your boyfriend is with you only cause he is waiting for his ex to come back to spore.
the only action your acne- ridden ass is ever gonna get is the self-made hole in your bedroom wall.
shaddap. i'm way much more hotter than you are.
for someone who is 23 yrs old, you are kinda stupid huh? what happened there?
standing behind the door when God gave out brains?
Honestly? you have the personality of cheese. stinky rotten cheese.
it's amazing for you to have survived for so long with a brain the size of a pea.
amazing.





No more. enough.

Other people shout and yell at the television when they watch a football match.
my elder sister shouts and yells when she watches a war movie.

i have a thing for army boys.
channel 5 is showing one of my fav movies "we were soldiers". many guys in army uniform. yum and then...
army boys don't look pretty with their heads blown off.

paulaners rock with with their one litre of beer mugs. pei and i had one mug each last night and my respect for her has tripled since she went and gobbled her share down with such gusto! i had to sip slowly from mine. damn.. no go me. But the beer there is pretty good.

plus, according to pei, paulaners has a very cute and hot waiter! hahahahaha! he is cute. and hot. in the dark. Ha! well.. to me lah.

in other news, preparations for chinese new year have never sucked as much as this year's. The drain clogged up so me mum and i had to spend the whole day lowering bottles down to get the water and whatever stuff down there .. fill up pails with tt disgusting muck and then haul it all the way to the outside drain to pour it away. it was dirty, smelly and disgusting.. looked like a black version of jinyu's health drink. Hahahaha!

in happier and less disgusting detailed news: im glad tt jill liked my cookies. im so sorry i didnt reply u last night but i didnt trust myself then! let's go check out nus library yes? love u much! i cant wait to put our entrapment into plan! hurry up finish ur exams already!

oh cute guy in vietnamese side! Oh no! more pretty heads being blown off

stole this from pei's blog:

i will not think of him.

my life... is more than just regrets damn it. i will not associate whatever i see with him. whatever i eat with him. whatever i do with him.

my life is going to be great this year. and im not going to allow ANYBODY to mess it up.

this is just one of the reasons why i love pei.

this is absolute bullshit. Everytime i let my guard down, something happens. Take today, it was totally out of the blue. My sister said she had some place to recommend. and where does she bring us? telok ayer road. where my relationship with andy began. i passed by the shophouse i was supposed to do a project on, the street where we parked and he got a fine, the shophouse alley where he took the scary photo, the exact route we walked. ARRGH!

this is not the bloody first time..it happens out of the country too! like the time my parents brought us to malaysia to shop and guess what? it was the exact same mall andy brought me to! imagine how cold and terrible i felt when the realisation took place!

or the very same hotel he took me to to eat dim sum. and u noe the worst part? i can't tell my family how i really feel. I don't want to sppoil their experience. So, i paste a stupid smile on my face and grin and bear it.. when all i reallie wanna do is run out and go somewhere safe. it's a terrible feeling to sit there and act normal when everywhere u look, u see a ghost of memory. and no one understands.

it's painful. and u cant tell anyone how u feel. so u bite ur lip, pretend to enjoy the food when u feel sick to ur stomach. your heart feels friggin dull and for tt very moment, you just feel defeated. it's a lousy feeling.

look. it's not tt im weak or tt im not over him.. i just don't want to be constantly reminded of him. If you are trying to quit smoking, how can u do it in a room where everyone is smoking?

yeah im trying to deal. but nobody told me that it would hurt so bad or be so difficult.

day 2 of baking cookies. what do you need to have in order to bake so many cookies?



many jars and an reasonably empty and neat table (rule has been broken here)


an oven.. and..


most importantly.. u need daughters who are nice enough to get out of bed to help you. Do not count in the fact tt they promptly fell asleep while cutting up the chocolate.


at the family gathering today. i was unaware that she was really taking the pic.. hence the half amused / cocky glare on my face... Now i noe what i look like when i act arrogant!

Adel, I just realised I cant read your blog cuz I dont have the password, but I can post on it! Weird huh? Hahahaha....ok dont worry, I wont be making anymore uninvited appearances on your blog. Ive decided to start blogging again, on my own blog not yours. So if you happen to be bored out of your eyeballs anytime soon, check it out.
-Neela

im sorry i had to password protect my blog. my younger sister found out about it and pissed me off. and i reallie like my webby so hence the password!

was at my grandma house when the ren ci charity show came on.
my dad started giving suggestions as to how they can improve the donations. he suggested:
- getting the NKF guy, durai, to be hung upside down above a tank of water. for every $1000, they will drop the dude a little lower. until he is finally submerged.
- showing his lovely backside to the audience. then caning him for every $1000.
- putting the minister's wife on the stage. the one with the peanuts comment, then for every donation put in.. open a box of peanuts to drop onto her head.


and this comes from a dude who doesnt even watch NKF shows.. much less donate. Now, i noe where my evil genes come from. but it was funny hearing my dad complain about how boring the show was.

take this online game:
http://www.okcupid.com/virgin

66% correct!You got 14 of the 21 people correct, and you did better recognizing the virginity girls. Overall, you guessed better than 78% of all test takers.

i won jianxiang! hahahaha!

show: without a trace. hot cast. okay plot.

im in a mood where..
- mickey should just drop dead.
- i wud love to knock a kid's ice cream off its cone and laugh at him.
- i wud love to pull down a few guys' pants and point and laugh and
shout "HAHAHAHA! 3 balls!'
- i wud love to twist the head of barbie off. perfect smug little bitch.
- a good fren shud step up to let me slap her about the head.

i cant stand it when:
- people beat ard the bush when they wanna back out of stuff. save me the time, energy and irritation by giving it to me straight up instead of going "yeah wells.. u noe lahz.." and making me have to spell out for them then they act all surprised that i suggest it when the whole conversation was heading towards that very point.
- people disturb me when i read. when i read, i read. that means your company is so very boring that i prefer my imagination. don't nudge or try to talk to me.
- people do cancellations then expect u to wait around to change their minds. hey i don't mind when u cancel on me with a bit of notice. i'll just make alternative plans. But, when u come bac and say ooh! now i can go out with you. Don't get angry that i'm no longer free. How childish is that?
- i'm grumpy

here are some random one liners from last night. Most of them are frm pei.. but i must take credit for the last one.

some people just beg to be hated.

Your love tonight is superficial.

Intoxicate me!

If brains were bananas, there would be some very skinny monkeys inside his head.

oh hooray! ben and jerry's ice cream!

12 more hours before i see you again. can't hardly wait!

time is funny. it seems like just yesterday i bade you farewell yet... these past few months have felt funny without you by my side. it's true. we spent so much time together before you left. so much so that when you left, it felt like something is always missing.

with you, i feel better and stronger. i'm glad you are back.

the wind comes back to join the tempest.

cheeyen. cheeyen. cheeyen. cheeyen. cheeyen. cheeyen. cheeyen. cheeyen




















Houston, Texas. Los Angeles. Las Vegas. New York ($20 a day!). San Antonio, Texas. San Francisco. Hollywood. Niagara Falls, Buffalo, New York. San Diego.

we did it all my dear. next! China/ Thailand!

PS do u realise tt im almost always standing on your right?

10 more hours...

when i bought tickets for King Kong, i paid money to watch a big ape. come on! the posters all show ape with girl. girl with ape. girl standing in the middle of ape and one dinosaur. ape on empire state building. so could you blame me?

and what happened? i see big DISGUSTING insects! wtf. for an entire hour, it was a terrible un-family version of Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. terrible. terrible. terrible! i spent half the time squealing while i watched in mesmerised horror as the giant centipedes, spiders, cockroaches ,and ALL kinds of whatever insects the wonderful imagination of peter jackson (thanks to rebecca for helping me with the name!) conjured up, crawling all over the big screen. the other half of the time, i alternated between hiding behind my popcorn and chris's jacket (shoulder was too bloody far away)! trust me, insects.. do not look good big!

and then! there was the dinosaurs. with their big yellow teeth! and how many T-rexes appeared? i couldnt count cause i wasnt lookin half the time. but if i was Ann Darrow in the t- rex scene.. and when i dropped onto the 56th t-rex, it wud be "oh.. stop playing with your food and kill me already".

but overall, im glad i watched it. go catch it in theatres now! i'm just warning ypu abt the insects. coz the one of the thoughts running thru my head during tt entire one hour was "so many friends have watched this.. and not one( *glares at ting*) told me tt it is not just about the monkey?"

adrian brody .... sooo dreamy! and dun you think niaomi watts looks a bit like nicole kidman?

rebecca and i were just talking about NS guys. and she's totally right! i remember there was once in french class, my french teacher was talking about his student years. Most european students take a few years off school and work to travel around and see the world. To them, it's like a transition into adulthood. And, when my french teached learned tt most of the guys didnt travel, he was shocked and gosh, you should have seen his face. Anyway, he was "but it's a transition into manhood! what do you do then?" and this guy mumbled tt we have NS here. pppfft! while it is true we can find pple who have matured from NS, let's just say that there are a few types of army boys around.

ps note.. the blogger does not harbour any resentment for army boys. in fact, i have a little thing for guys in uniform. yummylicious! just.. ermmm quit it with the whining.

Here We Go( Again & Again & Again & Again)
they are so enthusiastic. with them you learn all about their army jobs..their weapons. their role, their friend's role, their paperwork, their field mission... and their MSN nicks put "my resolution: loyalty to country, care for soldiers, fighting spirit"

the Ross
when you ask them "wassup?" the reply? "army lor" and then u may get an account on how their weekend sucked just cause they couldnt club. do we "free ones" club every week? twice a week? i seriously tink NS pple club more than students.

Countdown 2006.. Spread the Love!
these guys have actually calculated the number of months, days, hours, seconds and nanoseconds so that they can actually be "free". and they actually believe that "Knowledge is Power". So they tell everyone around them. its 2 months! 567 days left! 2 more years! honey... hear that? yep! that's the sound of nobody giving a hoot.

me army boy! *beats chest* Hear me whine!
these guys are simply incredible! they tink "hey! since i am in army, i suffer a terrible horrendous life. i deserve to be treated with kid's gloves outside" and sooo they think that just because you are not in the army, you have a carefree life! buddy. we have troubles too. just because we don't answer to the government's set timing doesnt mean we escape troubles from family, work and friends. yes, it is so not the same. but, we dun burden you with our studies, money and job problems to the point where u just wanna stuff food into ur ears just so not to hear any more.

The MLM
enought said.

The Horny One
being surrounded by guys makes some really .. well focused on the goal "get a girlfriend". so they keep on askin people to intro them to girls.. and sometimes they try to hit on their gal pals. which is just plain weird.

it's 3 am. i cant tink of any more.. so if u have some pls tell me so i can update this.. remember..

and you run so far to get away from it all.

i know it's a little late.. but here are some christmas pics!

my family's christmas tree.. now i dun mean to be bias but i honestly do think that our tree is one of the prettiest trees around!

presents galore! a view at all the presents brought to my uncle's house

another view.. we were supposed to stack them up nicely.. but it got too much!


waiting and wishing and hoping for christmas to come..

and santa finally gets impatient in the form of my uncle. heh and christmas began early!