Rest In Peace, Yee Poh

Yee Poh passed away in the evening. She lost her battle against cancer... She was Butterfly Poh Poh's half-sister. Uhm.. Butterfly Poh Poh was my maternal Grandmother, but she passed away when she was in her late 30s, I think when Mummy was about 14 or so. So I've never met her except in the pictures and we refer her as Butterfly coz it was believed that the few days after her passing, she came back as a butterfly.. Something like that... But yeah.. Yee Poh was technically my grandauntie, in Cantonese, it's '2nd Grandmother'.

Sighz... Can't believe it... 2 deaths in my family barely 2 weeks apart.. The other one was Uncle Tony, 2 Saturdays ago.. We were close to Yee Poh and her family.. The last time I saw her was when we visited her during the last CNY. She was still lively and all, but we never knew that she had been suffering from cancer for about a year, until we were recently informed about her condition. Mummy visited her on Monday, and Yee Poh was still talking and all, even told Mummy to "go back lar, go back lar, it's late already" (in Cantonese).

I don't know what else to write now... My mind's just so... So numb... I don't take news of people's deaths easily, what's more, family members'... All I can pray now is that may Yee Poh rest in peace and may she be reunited with Butterfly Poh Poh and my maternal Grandfather...

Would also like to convey my condolences to Der Der for the recent loss of his Grandfather..

50 First Dates

Watched 50 First Dates last night. I'm a huge fan of Adam Sandler+Drew Barrymore since The Wedding Singer, so yeah.. I loved it to bits!! It's a romantic comedy about a Marine vet, Henry who strives to achieve his 10-year dream of sailing to Alaska to study the underwater life of walruses. Hence, a long-term relationship is totally out of the question. He is very close to making his dream come true when a mishap occurs, landing him at the Hukilau Cafe, and is immediately smitten with Lucy. The problem is, she suffers from a permanent short-term memory loss due to an accident involving a stray cow, that wipes her memory clean every night. Now, he has to plan new ways to meet her and get her to fall for him every single day!

The movie reminds me of my first date out with sayang, to celebrate his birthday. It was after our BM Lisan (aural) test back in Form 5. We met up in front of the MPPJ library in State, where the benches were. I was still wearing my pinafore and all, and I gave him his present, which was a silver Sheaffer pen, engraved with his name on it. We went to Melody for lunch, and we watched Mission Impossible at the State cinema (yeah, the cinema pretty much got torn down now). I remembered being nervous with him, although I never did understand the movie plot. After the movie, we walked around just chit-chatting, around State, to Taman Jaya, to his house (nearby), finally we walked up to the bus-stop at Jln Gasing, and then my mum came to pick me up. There weren't any flowers or goodbye kiss or stuffs like that, but it didn't (and still doesn't) matter to me. I just remembered smiling the whole way back home and the rest of the night. ;) Wow.. That was what, 8 years ago! Goshh.... I can never, ever forget that special day..... *grins*

What's your story? How was your first date like? Here's Adam Sandler's song from the movie...

La-woo-kee-low is the place
Where I first saw your face
We liked each other right away
But you didn't remember me the very next day
Forgetful Lucy
Has got a nice caboose-ie
I used to trick you into pulling your car over so we could chat
But my favorite time was when you beat the shit out of Ula with a bat
Then we drove up to see Dr. Keets
And find out why Doug always has to change his sheets
Forgetful Lucy
Cracked her head like Gary Busey
But I still love her so
And I'll never let her go
Even if while I'm singing this song
She's wishing I had Jocko the Walrus' shlong
Forgetful Lucy
Her lips are so damn juicy
How about another first kiss?

~~ Adam Sandler - Forgetful Lucy ~~

To Be Or Not To Be Equally Yoked

Imagine this : You meet the girl of your dreams. She's brainy. She has a sense of humor. She's pretty. She's talented. She's the one you think of first thing in the morning when you wake up, and the last person you say Goodnight to before you go to sleep. Both of you click just like that. You can read each other's minds. You like to spend as much time with each other. You always have jolly good fun with her. You can talk about things, just anything at all under the sun. She's someone you can see yourself marrying to. You're someone her parents would just loveeee... Both of you are just sooo compatible with each other. The problem is.. She's a staunch believer in Christianity, you're not. In fact, you're not even a Christian.

Now what do you do? Most ppl will probably end up converting to Christianity, coz according to the Bible, believers were told "not to be yoked with unbelievers". Ok... The rest of the entry might be a little bit sensitive.. But hey, feel free to correct me. Apostle Paul once said that "if any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him". Understandably that a believer and a non-believer have different beliefs regarding religion, and perhaps their certain lifestyles might contradict. And that both should follow the same religion so that they go hand in hand and follow the same path towards the "light". But otherwise, they are just so right for each other. Going back to the situation, you believe in God too, but you're not gonna tell her, "hey look, you must convert to MY religion instead". Believer and non-believer can be together. They can live together. I have seen countless of married "un-yoked" couples who live happily with each other for many many years. So long as both of them respect each other's religion, so long as both of them don't step on each other's tails regarding religion, or the non-believer don't tempt the believer with his/her own beliefs. I don't see why they can't be together. I mean, if you're the girl in the said situation, why can't you give it a shot before saying that "no, my partner MUST be a Christian". Would you rather lose the opportunity of being with that special someone, knowing that you will end up happily ever after together, than having to give it a try at all?

Goodbye, Uncle Tony

Heard about Uncle Tony's passing this afternoon, due to brainstroke. He was married to one of Daddy's sisters, so technically he was considered my uncle. I cannot imagine how painful it is for Nyu Ku (3rd auntie, in Hakka) to have lost her husband exactly 8 months after losing her father. I mean, Gong Gong's passing was already tough to cope with, what's more losing another person you love so much...

Just want to express my deepest condolences to Nyu Ku, Angel jie jie, Eric kor kor, Loon, Chrystabelle and Nicholas for the loss of their husband/father/grandfather. I pray that time will heal their pain, but that the memories they had with/of Uncle Tony will always linger within them..

This Week's FridayFive

If you...

1. ... owned a restaurant, what kind of food would you serve?
Italian, but hhm... I might just end up eating them myself! I guess, the best will be a dessert shop. Varieties of dessert :- herbal teas, double boiled drinks, chendol, ice kacang, cakes, custards, jelly, trifles.. I'm feeling hungry now... Tsk tsk...

2. ... owned a small store, what kind of merchandise would you sell?
Books. I'm a nerd. Hehe.. I would sell all sorts of genres. I would supply comfy carpets, seats for them to sit and read. Perhaps add a small little cafe for them to sip their coffee while they indulge in their readings..

3. ... wrote a book, what genre would it be?
A biography.. Not me lar, but on someone else. Not necessarily be a celebrity, but of someone whose life experiences can inspire the reader, make a huge compact on the reader's life or just something the reader can relate to. If that fails, fiction then.. Hehee.. Although, actually, I'm terrible in writing.

4. ... ran a school, what would you teach?
Piano, definitely!! Perhaps not so much into preparing the students for exams, but more for those who wants to take up piano-playing as a leisure activity, like, kids, or maybe adults who never had the chance to play the piano when they were younger.

5. ... recorded an album, what kind of music would be on it?
A mixture of R&B, a cappella and piano-based. Something that are soothing to the ears, yet with deep, meaningful lyrics that you can relate yourself to.

Fond Memories Of The Sunflower Days

Had a very great night with the guyz, except for Tai Lou who had to stay home to babysit Gerald. I actually made a VCD : an Intro (like the intro for "Friends" tv series, 5 sets of photo presentations (from our Taylor's BDP days right to convo and after we came back to Malaysia) and finally a 40 odd mins of "interview" and singing sessions with the guyz. Oh, also with background music, transitions, titles and all, including a very nice CD label. Hehehe.. Ok.. That's a bit too much, right?

But, yeah, Hochai & Chien came to pick me up. Chin Haw wasn't feeling so well, so we stopped by at KFC to get dinner, and went to Sec 17 and got porridge for him. Headed over to his place, and Aneh was already there. They had their dinner, then it was a full 61 mins of total laughter!! 3 years of memories captured into 1 VCD.. Gosh.. Despite having to edit the stuffs and re-watching it sooooo many times, I just couldn't stop laughing. ;) From our Maggi mee dinner on the first night at Sheffield, to us releasing our 3 years of "frustration" onto Hochai when we "celebrated" his birthday with expired honey mustard and flour and eggs, to the guyz cross-dressing during the Contiki tour, to our numerous mortar board-throwing during Convocation, to the very final tour around Sheffield. And there was the singing sessions by Chien, Tai Lou and Aneh (he sang "Ai Xiang Shui", don't play play!). And the whole interview was totally hilarious!! Everyone were practically rolling over the seat or floor throughout the whole video, I think even Chin Haw recovered quickly. Hehehe...

Gosh... It totally felt like as if we had just opened up the treasure chest of memories that had been locked for nearly 4 years now. It was like, "Oh man.. Did I do/say that??", or "Oh man.. I actually forgot about that!".. Sighz... I miss those days.. You just don't remember how much you studied for the Finals and all, but you remember very well about the times you spent with your friends. And they're not just my friends. They were my coursemates since Taylor's, my housemates and my brothers. Nothing can ever replace the friendship that we have among the 6 of us, and especially nothing can ever erase the wonderous and tremendous memories we have had shared together. Cheers to that!!

Oh well, they suggested that they will send me more pictures to make a much longer video. I'm already looking forward to it. This time I shall make it as a DVD and add music lyrics to it, you know, like karaoke kind. Hehee.. Got to be high tech a bit larr...

As we go on, we remember all the times we had together
And as our lives change, from whatever, we will still be Friends Forever.

Viva la Sunflower House!

Just The Way You Are

Don't go changing, to try and please me
You never let me down before
Don't imagine you're too familiar
And I don't see you anymore
I wouldn't leave you in times of trouble
We never could have come this far
I took the good times, I'll take the bad times
I'll take you just the way you are

Don't go trying some new fashion
Don't change the color of your hair
You always have my unspoken passion
Although I might not seem to care

I don't want clever conversation
I never want to work that hard
I just want someone that I can talk to
I want you just the way you are

I need to know that you will always be
The same old someone that I knew
What will it take till you believe in me
The way that I believe in you

I said I love you and that's forever
And this I promise from the heart
I could not love you any better
I love you just the way you are.

~~ Barry White - Just The Way You Are ~~

Love the jazzy tune... Thanks, Der Der!! Dum dum dum dum... Kinda reminds me of Bridget Jones when Mark Darcy told Bridget that he likes her "just the way you are". Dum dum dum dum... Hehehe...

You Speeeee-ka Engleeeeshh?

Wai: Hey, me going to France this Sat
Me: Haaaaaa.... For??
Wai: Training again lor.. 1 month
Me: Wah.... Then you have to keep saying 'pa la vous ungles?' <=== Do you speak English? Wai: It's actually 'parlez vous anglais?'
Me: Kkakaka... Ooohhhh...
Wai: Kekeke... Good thing they're not sending you.. Otherwise sure die liao...
Me: Yah lor. I'd probably be swearing at them instead of asking if they could speak English or not
Wai: Hahaha... In that case you can ask them something like 'Poutarde! Vous parlez anglais?!?!?!'
Me: What's that??
Wai: Wait.. I think I just said... 'Bastard! You speak English?!?!?!' Hahhaa....
Me: Wah.. How do you pronounce? Pou-tar-deh?
Wai: Poo-tart
Me: More like poo-fart
Wai: Say Poo - Tart. Hehehe...
Me: Eeeyerrr... Poo flavoured tart...
Wai: Now can recognise a few swear words in French liao... Very handy..

Poo tart poo tart poo tart poo tart poo tart poo tart... Kkakakakkakaka......

This Week's FridayFive

1. What was the last song you heard?
'Above All' by Michael W. Smith . Very holy and soothing to the ears. When you just close your eyes and listen to the lyrics, it makes you really understand how Jesus Christ gave up His life for us, for our sins. How truly big of a sacrifice He made for us, even though He was rejected, despised.. And crucified. It just feels soo... Sooo.. Incredible...

2. What were the last two movies you saw?
"Love Actually" and "Mona Lisa Smile". I didn't quite like MLS, the storyline was too slow and monotonous. I much preferred LA coz I like British movies, their sarcasm and jokes yet also injects some sentiment and values into them.

3. What were the last three things you purchased?
Food, food and food. Hehehe.. Ok, to be more precise.. Nestle Milkybar choc (for me to munch on the way to Nikko Hotel for a seminar), currypuffs for breakfast, and Nestle Crunch chocolate ice-cream (also to munch).

4. What four things do you need to do this weekend?
Hhhm... More like 4 places I need to go to... I need attend an uncle's wedding ceremony+dinner. I need to go to Kinokuniya to get a book (I've ran out of something to read... Yes.. I'm a bookworm..). I need to go to Low Yat to help an auntie check out the prices for printer ink catridges and webcam. And I need to lend Pik Ngan the Square Pegs' final episode VCD (she missed out on that on TV last night).

5. Who are the last five people you talked to?
Was initially with 3 of my colleagues Wilson, Yuen Meng, Yee Yong. We were just having our own usual home-cooked food for lunch in the R&D room. We spent the whole hour sharing about each other's entire love life (more like, I was listening to theirs). And then the rest came back from lunch.. So.. Colleagues also lorr..

Waterfall Methodology

If you're in the R&D or I.T. field, you've probably heard of what the Waterfall Methodology is. It's a development life cycle where each stage of the work must be completed before you proceed to the next stage. The design specification has to be reaaaaaaaally detailed and communication between customer-developer as well as among the development team itself MUST be there so that the final product will turn out exactly the way the customer wants it to be. But what happens if there's a lack of communication? It becomes like this...

Hehehe... How true this is... A funny approach of the Waterfall Methodology, as explained by a certain Software Architect..

"My mom used to practice the Waterfall method early in the morning b4 go to pasar. First, she will do a simple study, what to buy, what to cook, who will attend for the lunch and dinner. Then she'll do the questionnaire approach, ask me, ask brother and daddy. At pasar, she will use the observation approach, to see those aunties buy what for their dinner. Ok, then she will look back into budget, is it enough to buy that or need to walk back again. Then cooking stage lunch time, mom will do prototype approach, to test and see the result. If no good, then will try other. If all no good, she will go back to pasar again, and continue all over again. This repeats, if the pasar already closed, she will need to wait until tomorrow! Then will do the dinner. If dinner all no good, mom will throw all the food, the woks and bowls all over."

Hhhm... I shall go home and ask Mummy what method does she use.. Hehehe...

Guess My Gender

Take the Gender Test and see if they can correctly guess your gender.

"It all adds up to... You are definitely a woman! Statistically speaking, you are a chick."

Woo hoo!! I'm safe!!! *phew* ;)

This Week's FridayFive

What was...

1. ... your first grade teacher's name?
Mrs. Chong . She had very fair skin, with short curly hair. Very motherly natured but also a strict person.

2. ... your favourite Saturday morning cartoon?
I can't remember if Care Bears was aired on Saturday mornings.. Hhm...

3. ... the name of your very first best friend?
My childhood friend, Lilian. Both our dads were best friends back in their high school days. Cool eh? 2 other best friends would be Gan Shen Lene and Danny Lim from my kindie. Would love to know where are both of them now...

4. ... your favorite breakfast cereal?
Koko Krunch with cold, fresh milk. Hehehe... Especially when the milk turns chocolate-ish... Ahhhhh.... ;)

5. ... your favorite thing to do after school?
Playing hopscotch or 'getah' with my classmates. Most impressed when the guyz were able to jump over the top-of-the-head length. Hehehe..