Farewell childhood, hello adulthood

With a blink, I’ve reached adulthood. 21 years old is no longer teenager or kid. I am proud to say I am an ADULT now! But sometime my face still looks like an adolescent, because of the stupid pimples... Well anyway, I managed to go through highschool, pre-University course (Cambridge A-Level) and should be able to get my degree soon.

Highschool passed by in cloud nine. Didn’t know and care anything much besides my school-band. I was so into my band that I had practice sessions almost everyday. I remembered that one of my Form teacher told my mom during the Parent Day that I go for band way too much and that might disrupt my studies (for my PMR, forgotten what it is called). Well I am lucky I did well for that public exam and managed to get into Science Stream. In highschool, besides going for tuition classes, all I do was band activities, street soccer, and hang out with bandmates and friends. Those days I was a real computer idiot. Computer wasn’t an important thing in my life, I can live without it.

Then it was A-Level. Met heaps of crazy people, and we called ourselves A-Level Monkey. Our A-Level was 1 year course (others were 11/2 or 2 year course) but we played almost the whole year, until the last minute only we started study. Still remember the barbeque party in Hooi Yee’s house right after our trial exam, which was about 1 month before our real exam. Had the blast of time at that time and with sweet memories that none of us will ever forget!

Finished my A-Level without any As, but enough point to go to a decent university. Hehehe. In the beginning, I didn’t plan to go to Monash University to do my Bachelor of Science (Biotechnology), thinking it is very expensive. Was appealing to my home court for going to New Zealand for Bachelor of Psychology, but lost because the Dad Judge rejected me the appeal. Instead of Otago University in New Zealand, I was given a choice to study in Bangkok University, Thailand… At the end of last court case, I was finally shove to University Tunku Abdul Rahman, and I personally don’t like it there. Why? No high-tech machineries, no good laboratory facilities, no good computer laboratory facilities, and the most important thing; the units that we study are not I want. Electives weren’t electives that you can choose freely from all the faculties. They were set and you need to take it no matter you like it or not.

Can’t take it after 1 semester, and when I heard my sister is not going to RMIT to study, I immediately negotiated with my dad about Monash. There wasn’t a big talk over our home court, and my dad judge passed my appeal with some teeth grinning of my opponent sister.

Monash University is really my correct choice! I got the freedom to choose my electives and good facilities. After all, I did not go away from my public highschool just to be stuck in some kind of Asian-you-must-do-or-die-units in university. I went in Monash with my two friends who later become my best friends. I also met heaps of new friends from all around Malaysia. I was no longer looking forward to go oversea to study but instead was looking forward to graduate with them, until one day; my aunt from Australia came back and generously sponsoring me for my final year of university. I was very confused that time… My family wasn’t the rich one, just enough for me to survive in Malaysia, but to go Australia, I will be giving heaps of burden. That time was directly 1 year ago, around Christmas. Finally I was given a green-light to go Aus to continue my one year study. I can tell my sister wasn’t too happy about this… During 2005-2006 summer holiday, I was working in Seapack Food Pty, which was my internship. Right after my internship, we (the whole family) went for China/Macau/Hong Kong trip. Came back 1 week after my semester started. That semester was my 2^nd year 2^nd semester, trying my best to do good because I will be going over to Aus. The whole semester was in a rush. Rushing to do my applications, my visa, my body check-up, my plane tickets, etc.

Once everything was settle, got the flight date I wanted for, 1^st of July; I rushed back to my hometown, Penang. I only spend 10 days at home, half of the time I was out hunting for good foods, meeting my friends, and just sit at home with my family. The day of my departure, I did not cry a single tear. I thought I will cry like a baby before I leave my family and friends, but I didn’t. Sat in the plane all by myself is a good feeling. Hehe.

Anyway reached Aus, and the next day I was out and about. Went out to find my good friend, Joce, that day was her birthday. Look around this unfamiliar world all by myself. Scared? No way, I done that many times when I went to China all by myself in early 2005. After 1 week in Melbourne, it was time for me to see my campus, Gippsland. When I reach Churchill, the first thing I do was, jaw-dropping. It was so kampong that I can hear cows moo-ing outside my room. There weren’t much of the mall, one supermarket selling groceries and some restaurants. That’s all…

After 2 months of staying in that place, I finally get the heck of it. Wasn’t that bad, I can do all kinds of sports that I cannot do back at home, such as jogging. I met heaps of nice people all around the world and some good local Aussie friend! I organised a Farewell Steamboat Party with my housemates and we had a blast of time over there. I was lucky to be able to move into that house, with less noisy monster! I was also very lucky to be able to see the outside world when I reached adulthood, 21 years old. In the first 2 months, I was counting the days I since I’ve reach Aus. But after October, because of the Final Exam, I stopped counting it and now it is half a year already, since I reached Aus. This half a year, I travelled to all kind of places, Daylesford for spring water, Air Force at Sale, Great Ocean Road, Philip Island, etc etc.

After 1 year of non-stop working, I finally get my 2 weeks holiday (which was the longest in this year, 2006). Going to bid farewell 2006 with more travelling (this time to Adelaide!). Should be back on New Year Eve and wave goodbye to 2006 in Melbourne and wave goodbye to childhood into adulthood! Hoping for the best next year, much of stuffs in front of me and I really need some luck! Just want to be a better person and be all rounder (but not stomach round)!

Food that I had in Melbourne Australia

Lentil As Anything - one of the vegetarian restaurant which you pay according to your guilt!

After coming over here for half a year (can u imagine how time flies?) I’ve tried almost every kind of food that Melbourne’s restaurants offer! Okay let’s list down what food I had. (People please don’t kill me for this entry)

Chinese Foods (of course)

• Dim sums
• sweet and sour pork/chicken
• Peking duck
• China style stirred fried chicken
• Shanghai dumplings
• Etc. etc.

Malaysian Foods

• Nasi Lemak in KL Café, Acland Street, St. Kilda
• Char Kuey Teow
• Mee Goreng

Japanese Foods

• Sushi (only for now)

Vietnamese Foods

• Chargrilled chicken, spring rolls with vermicelli in Mekong Restaurant, Swanston Street
• Spring rolls in Huy Huy Restaurant, Footscray
• Some kind of Fue in Huy Huy Restaurant as well
  

Chargrilled chicken and spring rolls on vermicelli in Mekong Restaurant

Indian Foods

• Murtabak (a bit Malaysian-ish) in Bishmi
• Roti Teluk
• Hare Krishna’s Vegetarian Foods

Aussie Foods

• Fish and Chips
• Roasted Chicken
• Stew Rabbits from The Farmers Arms, Daylesford
• Normally this stuffs. There is no Chicken Chop or something
• If it is really authentic Aus foods, they tasted weird…

Italian Foods

• Gelati/Gelato in Il-dolce Ice cream shop
• Chicken Parmagiana in La Porchetta
• Potato Gnocchi (pronounced as Nee-oo-ki) with mushroom source in La Porchetta
• Uncountable pizzas

Russian Foods

• Chicken Kiev

Greek Foods

• Souvlaki

Turkey Foods

• Kebab

Arabian Foods

• Doro Wot in Awash
• Some foods that I have no idea what they are called.
  

Some mixture of dishes from Awash Arabian Restaurant

Exotic foods for my 21st Birthday! I am a Cantonese, what do you expect?!

Exotic Foods

• Crocodile in Dragon Boat Restaurant, Chinatown
• Emu in Dragon Boat
• Kangaroo (cooked by myself in South8 residential house!)
• Quails in The Farmers Arms, Daylesford
  
  
  
  

how lucky are we

Was watching some series and they were talking about handicap people who have no choice of perfection, because they were born with such features.

Some of my friends, once reached 21, have already started shouting ' I am OLD........' or people started losing their hair and think 'WHY am I so UNLUCKY to have such losing-hair-genes'... No matter how UNLUCKY we were (stepping on shyte, pouring when you do not have a umbrella, pimples bloom, etc.etc), we are not as unlucky as those who could not survive after 6months from birth. Those who are slightly luckier than the blue baby, will face their life with uncountable discrimination...

How good can it be, with a biological clock ran faster than Jamaican sprinter Asafa Powell (fastest sprinter) and when he/she is in teen, the face already looked like an old lady/man - Progeria Syndrome...How good can it be, with extra chromosome 21 which causes you to look like a Mongolian and be mentally retarded - Down/Mongolian Syndrome. Someone I know has Down Syndrome. He is the same age as me, but he could never go to normal school, don't ever think of University...Now all he does is sit at home and play around the house. The worse part is that his family members are the one who are being discriminated...That is endless burden to the family members, both from the public and himself...

Having a good, perfect 10 fingers and toes is a bless. Look at those who has Lobster claw Syndrome. How can they type as fast as we could? Asian always complaining they are short, short short. But what about the Dwarf people? They are small size but do you know their organs are the same size as us? Only the bones are small....This means when the organs grow, they will have a hell of a time...Unbearable pain from the inside...

Maybe they have done something wrong in their past life? Not enough good deeds for the uncountable Karma? Maybe Jesus was testing the faith for Him? Maybe Lord Krishna was around? Whether is the God's fault or not, these syndromes are the real test for life. People have yet fully accept the handicaps and discrimination is high in every corner. Having people staring at your hands or face because they are different, is not a good encounters. Some where even orphans, so deformed that the parent just turn them back to the hospital....

Having such a good features with us, what more are we asking for? Please be grateful and don't think and look inside the box. When you are suffering, there were heaps more enduring the unbearable suffers...Be Grateful
Name and relationship are unwritten for privacy and protection. Pictures are not included as well. To know better about those syndromes, please Google them with your perfect hands.

Bushfire!!!!!!!

This time around, Australia is always almost covered by bushfire... This bushfire happen almost every year, until those who stay in the regional place know the tactic of 'shoo-ing' the bushfire away.

One of my friend, Ben (B.Webb from Post grad Science) recently told me how they channel the fire and let the fire go around the house! What a brilliant idea. At first I thought it was impossible, but most of those people in the country do that, by putting off fire around the house. They definitely need to continue doing that non-stop and by looking at my friend's size, I am sure they can do it. He is double my size and about 3 feet taller than me....

Oh Okay. Speaking of bushfire, some people might wonder why this happens everywhere... In Biological Science term, the eucalyptus tree which is only found in Oz has volatile oil which excretes out during summer and due to the oven hot weather, burn is easily ignited. What fascinating about these trees are they have seedling which could only germinate when they were subjected to heat and fire! The studous parent tree basically need to burn to death only to let the offspring out! Touching. Hahaha

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh while we were in the story with the name of Ben, let me tell you all something.
There are heaps of Ben in Australia. It is like John in US, the most common name. I know like 4 of them, all in Aus. Although Ben Ho is not an Aussie, but he is in Aus. He is counted in as well. Hehehe. There is two Bens from Science, one Post grad and another is only Under grad (Ben HO/Who?. hehehe). Then there is Ben from Arts and then there is Ben from don't know which faculty but stayed in South3. There is another Ben from some other place and currently crashing over my friend's house. How many Ben is in Aus? I wonder...

Okay enough of crapping, time to watch Nip/Tuck Season4!!!!The story getting so so complicated, I starting to dislike it...........

Tribute

Hurrah

Finally finished renewing my template again!
This time I am more daring and change the whole blog setting with my lousy html knowledge!
Thanks to those who donate 'I might be charged with plagarism' the picture and background. Search high and low for those...Very proud with my new blog!!!!Hehehe

And last but not least need to thanks those who helped me out (finding Photoshop software and remind me of how silly I am, that I can do my title with just Paint...)

There you go, Life Your Life to the Fullest with Melbourne/City Theme!!!!

Cheers
Lex

Crazy Weather

Okay I am going to be short for today. Heaps of things to do, just suddenly I thought of telling you people about this crazy weather of Oz. Now I am freezing cold because the weather is only 11degree. Cold huh?! Wait!!!!!Want to know how 'cold' was yesterday? 44degree in the afternoon...I basically baked inside my room (room temperature around 34degree, and it is oven dry hot). This biggest changes in weather/temperature I ever experienced. 33degree difference.....

Wait wait wait. Yesterday as I've said it was 44 degree in the arvo, what about night? 22degree. That was the biggest changes in a day for me man...Once the sun go down, the oven stops!, and come in the cold air in a seconds......What can I say, Oz, especially Victoria has this say that goes like this 'Don't like the weather? Wait for awhile'. And it is correct. One minute it was pouring, another minute it stops completely and there is sun... It hailed heavily outside and I cannot go out? I waited for 3 more minutes and clear sky with stong sunlight is out. Don't like it? Too sunny? wait again, it will soon drizzle again!Then then, wait again, you might get the wind that is so strong that it feels like it could blow away your roof!

Trying to adapt this weather, and hoping for the best and the night to come. Tomorrow will be the same, the weather forecast said it will be sunny with temperature around 7-22degree...Well better than I need to barenake and oven bake until goldenbrown and ready to eat.

You people might not believe me, saying the weather forecast might be wrong (like Malaysian's), but believe me! I have a thermometer outside my room (at my window) and a thermometer in my room)!!!

Nostalgia - Penang Food

Recently one of my friend (Ms Huiru Lim) went to Penang and took all the Penang good foods pictures.....Drooling now....
What food I missed the most? Okay okay this is the list!

• Wan tan Mee (my number 1!)
• Ookyo (some hokkien drinks with jelly in it)
• Char Kuey Teow
• Char Kuey Kak
• Hokkien Mee (The prawn mee for those outside penang)
• Tai Lok Men (The Hokkien mee for those outside penang)
• Curry Mee
• Mee Goreng (has be to Mamak made)
• HongKong style Chee Cheong Fun
• Lam Mee
• Loh Mee
• Grilled Chicken (siew kay yet, ngo chung yi sek)
• Belacan Chicken (Will hunt for these even after midnight, when my saliva start to overfeel)
• Tambun Pia
• OoChien (Fried Oyster)
• Nasi Lemak
• Belacan Kangkung (over in Oz, Kangkung was sold $8 per kg....means RM24 per kg. Wth...)
• Belacan Fried Rice
• Chicken Cordon Bleu
• Chicken Chop
• Satay
• Char Siew, Siew Yuk
• Loh Bak
• Lok Lok
• Chuu Hu EngChai (Cuttlefish Water Spinach)
• Hainan Chicken Rice
• Bak Kut Teh
• Tu Kah (Deep Fried Pig Leg)
• Dim Sum
• Ambla SumPui (Ambla is fruit)
• Cendol
• Tambun seafoods
• Otak Otak
• Chau Yee Min
• Sa Pou Min/ Nga Pou Min
• Grilled Fish
• Tau Fu Fah
• See Kua Teng
• Ak Bah Muai
• Swatau Lane's Ice Kacang
• Rojak
• Kuey Teow Thing

Drooling Drooling. This is only the Hawker foods

Then of course here come the restaurant foods

• Vietnam Kitchen (something similar to Mekong in Swanston Street, Melb)
• House of Padington (they said it will be having a branch in Queensbay Mall, Penang)
• Kim Gary HongKong Restaurant
• Secret Recipe

Oh Dope, the whole floor is flooded with my drools....Better stop now.

Hopefully can find some pictures and post it here

Malaysia Boleh?

Malaysia Boleh! Is the shout for Malaysian in Malaysia. (means Malaysia can). I in particularly never said such thing out loud and proud...When I use this phrase, my Exclamation mark (!) will be replaced with Question mark (?) and when I talk bad about my own country. Hehehe

What can I say? Malaysian really BOLEH spend their money on useless stuffs, tallest building with empty offices, useless connection of bridges, heaps amount of traffic light in 1 straight road(about 13 of them...can u imagine that?). So where does this money come from? Of course from the petrol they extractedLAH. Overcharging the citizen with petrol, when it should be much more less...

They also very BOLEH in dividing everything racially. Malays should be included in every company in Malaysia and they should be in as high post as possible. WTF? Malays will get financial aids for parenting. WTF? In a public unversity, quota for Malays is 70%, no matter how stupid they are, and with loans. WTF? Malays do not need tax in PizzaHut. WTF?

Where is the Chineses and Indians? Ain't them Malaysian as well? What do they get?
Oooooh they get heaps apparently. They get to pay taxes which in turn goes to the Malays as financial aids. They get to be unemployed and get nothing.

Almost 90% of my chinese friends would not like to go back Malaysia to work. Will they find a job, this is another question. About half of my Malaysian friends in Oz will like to stay back for Oz Permanant Resident and work in Oz. Or they will go Singapore to work.

Maybe after another decades, there might be no more Chinese in Malaysia. Will Malaysia survive with that? I have no idea. Let's wait and see!

Adult/Bloke Magazine

Aus FHM (left) and Malaysia FHM (right). See the difference?)

Well, I guess my blog is starting to be a boring place...So am I...Okay need to change something. Let's talk about something fun (for the guys) and something for the gal to stare and be disgusted (or excited!)

Over here in Oz, people are so open that they could sell Adult magazine legally. Even Bloke/Lad magazine consisted of high degree of nudity! This will never happen in Malaysia. People in Malaysia are just so conservative (or only the Malays) that even FHM which is a bloke magazine will only show gal in sexy clothes. By clothes I mean a skirt/dress/t-shirt & jeans/etc etc. Over here each model in FHM magazine wear only bras and panties/ bikini!
We are quite lucky to have some FHM magazine anyway. Hehehe. Be grateful!!

Adult stuffs are everywhere in Oz or oversea. Adult shop, Adult section for the Video Renting Shop, Adult section for bookshop, etc etc. Guys I know what are you thinking now (your evil grins showed across the screens....) Bare in mind that custom in Malaysian Airport are very strict on that and IF you get caught with those....No idea what is the consequences and don't want to know as well!

Where my future lies?

These few days, I've had some up and down moments. These up and down moments always related to my future. Where will it lies? Well I'm very unpredictable, so is my future UNPREDICTABLE like Australian weather (cited from My Aunt, 2006).

First up moment will be when my supervisor Kirsten Shliephake (or Kirsten only) told me that people in Australian Sustainable Industiral Research Centre (ASIRC) are very impressed with my work and my enthusiasm! She added that if I want to do honours, she can help me find more scholarships from ASIRC as well as other companies!!!!Hurrah!!!!

Then down moment will be when I get my results. It is not a complete down, but I am a bit disappointed with Environmental Microbiology which only get low credit (C)... You need at least high credit (65-69) average to be appointed with honours programme. Hopefully next year they will be more lenient to those wanting to apply for honours.

After a few days of down, I've got a up moment again! This research I am currently doing, might be just an introduction to a possible 1 Year Honours programme (of course I will be the one doing it, because I've started it). Kirsten was saying this Third Year research will be a carrot luring the Transfield Service people in giving us grants in doing the 1 Year research more related to Biodegradation! At the same time, my down is that this research project will be more related to Instrumental Analysis than Microbiology.

No worries, all I need to do is score well for the coming Industrial and Food Microbiology unit, with hopefully enough Distinction for my other units to enable me for Honours Application and enough MONEY for my Honours. But for now, I need to enjoy my summer!!!

PS: You might be wondering, why this idiot suddenly want to take up Honours? The answer is: I am trying to get Aussie PR which need you to study in Oz for at least 2 years.... Why not go back Malaysia? Sorry I am not a patriot and I don't think the Chinese in Malaysia is treated they way they should. But partly will be the money. How much I've spent in Oz, could not covered up if I work in Malaysia.....

Better than failing

Every semester, right after the final results for our units are out, we will tend to compare our marks with others. Even throughout our study life (from higher primary up to university) we tend to compare with each other. Maybe this is what Asians tend to do or maybe it is just a norm for all the students.

Sometimes, what mark is actually regard as a good mark? High Distinction(HD)? Distinction (D)? A (for the Malaysian, so is English)? Well how high the mark don't refer to how well you actually did. It refers to how good you memorise-and-vomit-out during your exam preparation. Of course it depends on how good is your luck and your lecturer/teachers.

Someone told me before, studying and exam is totally a different thing. Exam is the part where they test how well you understand the unit or subject. No point of getting high results, ending up cannot apply to the outside world. Good in results means you are so call 'good' in that. And there is something not good about Asian community that I've realised since I come over here, is the Labelling. People (student/graduate) are labelled as Good-Student, Top-Student, Bad-Student, Idiot. People from Science stream are the Good-Student and above, Arts students are those idiot who cannot go up the Science stream.

Well that is actually untrue. I know heaps of people who are doing Journalism and they are very good in it, they are even better than I am! My supervisor ( Aussie who born in German) was telling me that study is something that interested you. Mark is not everything, good results do not means you will be good in everything.

Do your best and then enjoy what you're doing!

Nomadic Life

White hails (from hail storm 15.11.06)
My life these days filled with boredom and lab sessions… Summer and I m not having my most relax time of the year. Argh!
Right after my final finishes, what I’d done is slumber around my South House (SU8) watching TV, watching anime and involved in anime downloading marathon. People are going away and I need to get their anime ASAP! Woke up at 1-2pm and go to sleep at 3am. After finish downloading my anime (left 1G on each of my hard-disc, I wished to download more, but no more space) I started packing my stuffs. At that time I am the only one left in the South House. I needed to pack my stuff because I will be moving to North House (summer house) for the summer. Pack pack pack, throw throw throw. People just are left heaps of their stuffs in the fridge and go back to their hometown…The stuffs that are still eatable and still looked okay; I’d tried to eat them up. Now my sauces are like the one in restaurant, with 4 kinds of vinegar (Japanese, Chinese, Italian, English).

How waste and irresponsible….

For that one week, I do not need to buy any groceries

Moved to my new summer house, heaps of new people I never met before. Cool!
In my new summer house here got equal amount of Asian and Aussie. Aussie I don’t really see them around (maybe enjoying their summer in some beaches at the mean time) but the Asian is a headache… Chinese from China apparently have different sleeping pattern than most of the people around here (Aus, or maybe me...). They will normally sleep at 7AM and make the hell of noises during midnight up to 6am….What a nuisance!!! Well at least I did wake up and tell them off. During the weekend of course I went to city to have an joyful weekend!!!!! Went to eat the foods that I’ve been missed for so so long. That saturday Vivien is my victim because she was dragged around to look for foods by me!!!!! Ammie write me confusing sms, end up I could only invite her for dinner, along with poor Vivz. Anyway she needs to have her dinner, just that we have been eating 4 afternoon teas!!! She said she is going to kill me if she got diarrhoea at night!!!!

Strawberry dip in Max Brenner (with a pretty sexy background!!!!That is by accident, pls forgive me gal!!!!!

Chargrilled chicken with spring rools in vermicelli in Mekong restaurant

Last week was a hectic week. Monday came back to Gippy from city, Tuesday need to go for lab at 10.30am to 5pm. Wednesday got lab again at 11pm to 5pm. Just when I thought that’s all for this week, my experiment couldn’t finish and I need to go for lab again on Thursday, again until 5pm.

Now that my stupid old summer house got no internet connection, I need to move to West again. Move move move, pack pack pack. Hopefully this is the last time for this year. I am currently living a nomadic life. Luckily there is no such House as East House. If there are such houses, then maybe I will need to move there as well…

Black and White

The title is not related anything official and serious.
Summer is coming.......Daylight is longer than night and flies are definately more than winter.
Okay okay lets see what can I find stuffs in BLACK color and in WHITE color.

Shall we begin with BLACK:

• There is no such thing as white swan, ONLY BLACK swans (in Oz I mean)
• All the penguins are BLACK (Duh)
• There are more ALL BLACK cows in the fields, so is most of the horses
• There are famous cheapskate brand call BLACK & GOLD
• Aussie like to wear ALL BLACK clothes and dye their hair BLACK even they might be blonde or even beautiful white blonde
• People especially Asian is getting Darker because of the sun (super tan, one example is ME) while the white Aussie will get sun burn only. Which one better? Hmm........
• Heaps of ppl wearing sunshades which is BLACK to protect their eyes from the UV
• Black fat flies are everywhere trying to get into your mouth and nose.......
• and lastly more gals are wearing BLACK lingerie!!!!!!!!

Okay enough of black, lets talk about WHITE to evens out everything:

• There is about the same amount of WHITE sheeps in Oz, still don't see any black sheep yet
• There is definately more WHITE than yellow or black ppl (Duh again)!Eventhough they tried to tan themselves, ending up having skin cancer
• Aussie's hair has very light color, the best for me is still WHITE blonde
• the Oz famous nut is Macadamia nut which is WHITE
• most of the boardshorts in Oz (Billabong, Quicksilver) are WHITE
• Argh, I've no idea on anything that is WHITE anymore. If you people found out something feel free to send me a comment.

TV addicts

Kelvin did tell me that I am a TV Addict, but I denied it in the beginning. Then after thinking about it, I did realise that I am A TV addict. Or should I say TV/Movie/Anime/Sitcom Addict. One day without these will be a living hell for me.....

Well you cannot blame me, blame the TV and my sister. The first thing to blame is the Television because in Malaysia, there were heaps of stuffs to watch. Back at home, we do not have Astro (Austar in Oz) yet I like to watch TV. The second person to blame is my sister. She is a real TV addicts, both of us like to hide in her room and watch TVB series in very low sound volume when my dad ban us from watching TV. We will sneak out to rent TVB series from the Video Shop and hid in her room and watch that.

Then another best place for us to relieve our urges is our Granny's house. Everyweekend we will sure go to our Granny's house as she is a nice lady and always allow us to watch tv and movies. Will watch until late at night (somedays until 12am, which is considered late for us back then) and come back the next day! Before we go up to her house (mind the word 'up' in de sentences because her house is on the hill) we will buy heaps of movies in video cassette.

Now with the new technologies, and my dad's TV-ban-demolition, my sister and I both can open our own Pirated VCD/DVD/CD shop!!!!This is what my dad said, and now he no longer care about us staying late to watch movie and tv as we had grown up!!! Worse is when I am in Kuala Lumpur staying in my cousin house in Puchong. She has subscribed Astro which has all the channel, including Channel39 and she always go to work in the weekdays. So basically if I have no class in the morning, I will wake up and lie down in the couch and watch MTV or NHK or AXN etc etc. If this channel has no nice series to watch I will just flick to another channel!!But my best channel is still MTV, songs with mtvs and some funny stuffs.

In the beginning before I come over here, I was a bit scare as there will be no idiot box or anime and cheap DVD and VCD. So I thought. Still addicted to TV, everyday will watch the Futurama and Simpsons followed by House and on weekends will watch Australian Idol. Animes also are easily obtainable and is free of charge! Well I AM a TV Addict and I am proud of it, it is not causing any trouble to me in my daily routine.
So just lay back and watch TV,
Cheers!

Monash University Gippsland Campus

Can't believe it is already 1 semester over here in woop woop (countryside). Suddenly thought to letting everyone (those not from Gippy) see the sad-looking campus that we (I) had.....White buildings are the campus building while the buildings at the South and West side of the campus are called South Unit and West House, where we stayed...I stayed in South Unit, the most far and cornered unit (Use your own common sense if you want to check it out...)
Now look beyond my campus. What do you see? Paddocks? Yes all around us are farm lands and bare lands, Imagine how I can still survive this? Hahha
Picture taken from someone in eBlogger from the air!
There you go, my campus Monash University Gippsland Campus (or just Gippy)

Entries that I should put it up 2 weeks ago..

Sorry guys for the past two weeks I was busy with my exam preparation. With my final behind me, I could write the stuff I have yet write! Beginning with Gown Day.
Gown Day? It is not a day where guy and gal wear gown as in ball gown... Close but not. It is the day where guy and gal (international students only) wear graduation gown to take pictures with friends and around the campus (Gippsland). Well this is them where the ISSU (International Student 'something' Union) get their money from us, some regarded us as filthy rich kids, but we are not. Anyhow got invitation from both Vivien and Ammie my mentor. So need to become kuh-lei for both of them... At first I thought I will go to there for the morning tea, but end up being kuh-lei for the whole day. Follow my bosses around and take pictures for them. Of course I did include myself into as well. Seeing people wear the graduation gown make my blood boiled for that as well. Next year I could wear that gown and make my kuh-lei to take my pictures!!!!Hurray!!!!During the group photos for my seniors, I basically stood there along with Ben on almost every group photos....The rest of the day went by with us taking pictures and more pictures
Sorry I forgot to take those pictures from my mentor...Will take it after her final!

Japanese Festival (29th October 2006)
Morwell and Latrobe Valley Council was making the Japanese Festival for the Japanese culture awareness for the aussie around this Valley! It was on Sunday and the next day I got Pyschology exam but I don't care!!!Japanese Festival is more important. Haha anyway it is just MCQ exam, so I thought. The festival is nice, with us waking up kinda early to set up the place and start preparing the stuff for coloring competition. Followed with preparing Takoyaki (octopus ball) which we were selling and were sold out 10minutes after they were out from the oven. Yes they make Takoyaki from the oven not from the hot plate.....Well anyway it tasted almost the same...Yee Pei, Yi Vern, Anton, Hendrix and I basically just walk here and there to buy Japanese stuffs!!! Tong lei tong hoi!!!!!!!!
Pictures I m just too lazy to upload them. So people want to see them can go to my friendster!

Kinda lazy now, wanna watch some anime then have a good night sleep for tomorrow I will be meeting my supervisor

Cheers

End of something Nice, Beginning of something Beautiful

One happy family!! Too bad Laura wasn't here..
-Mouth watering foods (both veggie steamboat and meat steamboat)-
End of something nice, beginning of something beautiful. Does this mean my end of exam and beginning of my research project?No. I am actually saying housemateship and friendship. At the end of next week, all of my housemate will either go back to their hometown or just their home in Aussie. Almost half of them are not coming back, graduated or nurse replacement in somewhere far (Mel I don't know how to describe your nurse course stuffs...I am bad and I knew that. hehehe)... Sad? Not really.
So this phase is the ending of something nice (housemateship, I made it up myself) and beginning of something beautiful (friendship). Cause I still have their contacts, their MSN ADDRESS!
Had a nice nice steamboat, organised and hand-picked the meat by me and hand-picked the veggies by Mel. The homemade steamboat soup is actually quite nice! One veggie boat for Mel who is a vegetarian and another carnivore boat for Josh, Kelvin, Calvin, Yannick and me! Too bad Laura went back to her home in Lake Entrance so early.... Really have a good and nice dinner together and play with our food (not actually, made it up myself again).
Although I did tell some people in the Science faculty that we South 8 people are eating steamboat...Didn't know the news spread so fast....Countryside people are just too free and news (even low voices) will spread like wild-fire. Anyway what is the problem of people knowing us eating steamboat?

Just finished my stupid Psychology interlearn!!!!!Last assignment!!!!!BUT.....next week is my final already.......study or play? both at the same time. hehehe

Mid-autumn celebration

Being so far away from home, sometimes make me homesick (Ah Ben, I m bluffing). Then I get this lovely website from my best friend from Malaysia. Thanks a million, you make my night of mid-autumn happier!L,E. Xai stands for my nickname (Xai being Shit, cause I m full of shit...hahhahaha and I am proud of it!)
Thanks thanks thanks!

Spring is Coming

Cold air moving away....Leaf started blooming on the gum trees, flowers (yellow, blue, dark red, pink, white etc) are blooming as well on the ground and around the place. More birds start migrating into Aussie land. Some of the clothes were removed as well!!Hehe.
All this changes might be good, but one change worsen my opinion on spring. THAT IS THE BUGS. You will be amazed how MUCH bugs found in Aussie.
Start wif beetle. At the end of the winter, I think that was the mating season for beetle. They covered almost every inch on the walking pathway. Not that I got any phobia on them, they were just annoying, I don't want to kill them that is the problem. Some of the more 'clever' ones, managed to crawl into our house, into our toilet and some into our rooms. This caused me to try my best taking them outside again....
As the days go by, and it is getting a warmer, flies started to come in. Flies in all kinds of sizes manage to escape the flies net on our door and our windows....Some were just friut flies (Drosophila melanogaster), some were big fat 'juicy' horse flies....Aiks....You might be wondering why there were so many horse flies? This is because there were more cows and sheeps than man in Aussie. And guess what they do most of the time? SHIT, yes they shit a lot. This is how the maggots of the flies feed on them and became so juicy....
Now there was another invader in our houses.....Spiders! Like the flies, they come in with difference sizes. Some are big with long hairy legs...some are just small spidy. I have no idea who venomous are them, so what I can do is chasing them with my pencil into empty room and close them up, hopefully they don't come out again....
Well this is spring, what next? tarantula? Bees? Ants? Termites? (Luckily over here has less mossie than in Malaysia)

Sale RAAF Base trip

Today's started with normal boring day of lectures (Abnormal pyschology is making me abnormal). Then right after the lecture finished, there was where the fun began. I was currently taking the Third Year research project with ASIRC (Australian Sustainable Industrial Research Center) and I will be the characterisation of RAAF (Royal Australian Air Force) fire extinguisher foam-water wastewater.
Reached Sale after 45 minutes of traveling by car and we were greeted by that Plane. We went in and get out visitor pass and inside what we do I don't think that will interest anyone.
On the way back, my good supervisor purposely drove pass the Loy Yang Power Station and its coal pit to amaze me! And I was amazed!! The size of the coal pit is twice the size of Monash Gippsland campus (including the residential houses). Then we drove through the highway in which the left side is the coal pit and the right side is the power station. And the coal was transported through the tunnel!!



















The dark brown part was the coal pit with enormous size

Perfectionist Vs Imperfectionist

There are two types of people found abundance on this planet. Either they're perfectionist or they're imperfectionist. Some even brought the imperfectionism degree to the point where they become slackers.
Perfectionist: They're the people whom like to make everysingle things in their life perfect. Some are hyper perfectionism which they think they are the most perfect person (guy/gal) in the world and what they do and see are perfect. They won't take failure and take any mistake made. For them there were no errors in everysingle things they made. But how can that things happen? How can someone not make mistake? or a slight error? For guys, even you will shoot your pee outside the toilet bowl and leak....hehehehe. How can anything go successfully without error? Good scientist won't get the answer of curing STD without mistakenly found penicillium...Accepting mistake should be part of one life. So why don't make your life happier by accepting some mistake and listen to other people what they have to say.
Imperfectionist: They're called happy go lucky people as well. Luckily they do accept mistake but made heaps of mistake as well. hahhaahaa. I think I could be categorised into this group of idiots. I made heaps of mistake, mistake in my study or experiment, mistake in life and more uncountable mistake. And I do accept failure as the mother to success. Without failure where is success? I say imperfectionist is different from slacker as a slacker tends to do nothing and don't even care about the mistakes done.
So to all the perfectionist out there, don't make your life and others a living hell. Let go and be merry! And to all the imperfectionist out there, keep up the good work and don't become a slacker.

Philip Island Trip

Nice wave down the rocks near the Seal Rock, good to use as introduce picture.
Little penguin stuck in the walk place.
Possy me at the Cowes looking at the ocean beyond
Nice Seal Rock with this living rock. hahaha
This guy is my relative, noctunal like me!!!!
These photos was taken on Philip Island by my good friend's camera. So now only I get these photos and post them up.
That animal was wallaby, cute and short kangaroo-look-a-like marsupial.

Uni Study Break HOLIDAYS

My holiday started 1 week earlier. Way different from my Monash friends, I’d my holiday the week before them and need to go for lab block during the real break. Anyway, during this 1 week break, I went to Melbourne city to find my aunt. First three days I’ve basically sat at home n do my reports (of course I did sneak into city for some good good food like gelati from Lygon St., and Chocolate Lick from Max Brenner’s Chocolate.
On Wednesday I had this angel/devil talk around my head for buying the boardshorts from JayJay, I took the shortest time to Flinder’s Station and went back my aunt home early.
Thursday is an interesting day. My uncle brought for a ride in The Great Ocean Road (TGOR). TGOR was a glorious ride along the seaside. However there is this say ‘no pain no gain’ and it is true for this ride. The road from Loin to Apollo bay is so winding that it made me headache. Had picnic lunch at Apollo bay and it was nice sitting in the sun at around 15°C (I guess it is 15 or less?). The waves were the most eye-catching. After about 1 hour from Apollo bay, we reach the Twelve Apostles. Although another apostle had fallen to Judas, I guess there were still se7en standing. These Apostles were super duper marvelous and impressive until I could not take my eyes from them. Then it was followed by more traveling n traveling.











Left: spring water from the groundwater, contained a lot of mineral which tasted like rusty water and Right: Tuscan design homestead.
Weekend was the days of mineral spring. Early friday morning we travel to Dalyesford (somewhere near Ballarat? I think). I was staying in the homestead but I reckon mine is better than my aunt and uncle’s manor, more classic and it was in Tuscan design. I’d dinner at the local pub, chicken kiev with Carlton Draught (I’ve started love Draught as it was smooth and not beery). Came back home and learned and played a few games of mahjong (only beginning mahjong). Before I sleep I went online through WiFi at my homestead while watching Jungle 2 Jungle by Tim Allen.
The next day began very early…8.30am woke up by aunt and went for a walk around the lake. We did go to the mineral spring of Hepburn Spring. This was basically water pumped from the groundwater which contains a heap of mineral. It tasted weird, something like rusty water and gassy (forgotten to take some for my friends…). Came back and played more mahjong (anyway that was a mahjong trip of my aunt with her mahjong friends). Dinner was the best meal I ever had yet the most expensive. Starting with entrees, it was fried quill, then it was roasted rabbit and potato fritters and Mediterranean veggies. With Draught beer, this meal costed my aunt A$40 and it was in a pub (a more famous pub call Farmers something)… Sunday was just a normal day traveling back to city and rest.
My holiday ended so hasty without me knowing it.