Wednesday, July 11, 2007

My Gaming World

I love playing PC and Nintendo DS games. Here's my pick of what rocks and what can be ignored :


Puffyrazzi Favourites

1. Dreamfall : The Longest Journey II
-A continuation from Part I which i played 2 years back but much slicker and with better graphics. Fantastic story development. I recommend this for adventure-game lovers.
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2. Syberia
- This game came close to topping this chart of my favourite games, but the storyline is slightly weaker. There is a Part II to this game, but it is too short and not as impressive as the original.
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3. Phoenix Wright : Ace Attorney
- I love this cute little mystery-solving game. With its cutesy characters and funny dialogues.
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4. Neighbours From Hell

- The naughty little game needs a lot of cheekiness and brain-storming

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5. Sims Makin' Magic Expansion Pack
- My favourite among the Sim series of games
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6. Hotel Dusk : Room 215
- I love its shady and jazzy theme. Wished it was longer though.
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7. The Longest Journey I
- Received rave reviews from the adventure game lovers when it was first released. I love it too!
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8. CSI 2 : Dark Motives
- CSI released 4 games but this is the only one that i truly appreciate.
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Puffyrazzi's Hall of Shame

1. Cooking Mama

- Fun in the beginning, but then later got annoying.

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2. Agatha Christie : Murder on the Orient Express
- The worst adventure game i've ever played. It made me go 'what the...'. Bad, bad storyline, bad, bad game planning and too draggy.
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3. CSI 3 : 3 Dimensions of Murder
- They should rename this CIS : Bedebah haha
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4. Maple Story

- Pretty fun, but did not need any brain power, just mindless killings. Totally wasted my time and energy. Glad i put it behind me.



OK, that's about it. I've tried to learn to play games on PS2 but i'm not really good at using a game console, so i sort of gave up on it. I still prefer PC games, especially adventure games ( e.g. Syberia and The Longest Journey). Anyone with any good recommendations of adventure games, please let me know! It's so hard to find one with a good plot.

Other games that i'd like to try but have yet to get my hands on them:

1) Trace Memory

2) Harvest Moon

3) Trauma Center : Under the Knife



Alrighty then, have a nice time. Do try out Dreamfall : The Longest Journey. Oh, but you'll need
to know the storyline from part I, so i guess you'll need to play from Part I. It's worth it!





Thursday, July 05, 2007

Sheraton Towers 29 June

Photos from a recent company function, we stuffed ourselves silly by indulging in photo-taking instead of the 8-course dinner. Haha... Let me bring you on a walkthrough of my colourful colleagues :
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Group photo-taking. There are a few people missing though. What a pity. Colour of the day : Black, white and grey
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Snapped a few shots with some colleagues i hardly have chances to take photos with. Here's one of them, Team Supervisor Aziz ( whose voice usually can be heard miles away)
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The two little sisters of the lab. Do i look like 5 years older than them? haha...i feel so old beside them. One interesting bit : both of them can't be more different than day and night in terms of personality and work style but i love both just the same. One of them is leaving us soon for a new horizon. Good luck!
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Woohooo....some of them are impeccably-dressed that night. I'm too used to seeing them in their work uniforms and unkempt hair. What a change to see the technicians with well-coiffed hair and nicely-pressed clothes!
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The cute-as-button Basket! This feisty gal has a bubbly personality that is almost contagious. Haha...Check out her cleavage! Oops, she's so going to scold me for this =P
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Tsuey Tsuey and Sixian. They are always very outgoing and easy to chat with. Nice photo, except for the extra antlers on my head courtesy of my 'very mature' Senior Chemist. Haha....
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My partner-in-crime, Batman (without sidekick Robin). Been partners close to 1.5 years. After many glasses of bubble teas, coke lights and buckets of KFC, we are finally separated and working with different people now.
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A very special photo. I've never seen 2 people standing further from each other than this whilst taking a photograph. Probably cos we always work closely with one another, we need a bit of personal space ;)








Sunday, July 01, 2007

No More Sorrow

By Linkin Park
Dedicated to a Madman at my workplace
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Are you lost in your lies
Do you tell youself i don't realize
Your campaign's a disguise
Replaced freedom with fear
You trade money for lives
I'm aware of what you've done
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No, No more sorrow
I've paid for your mistakes
Your time is borrowed
Your time has come to be replaced
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I see pain, I see need
I see liars and thieves abuse power with greed
I had hope, I believed
But I'm beginning to think that I've been deceived
You will pay for what you've done
Thieves and hypocrites
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No, No more sorrow
I've paid for your mistakes
Your time is borrowed
Your time has come to be replaced
Your time has come to be erased
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Sunday, June 24, 2007

Thanks For The Great Birthday

Firstly, some recent photos of Puffyrazzi and Wendy's birthday celebration :

Having our birthday cake after dinner. Happy birthday Wendy!
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A smile for the camera. Would you take a look at that pair of eyebags!!??
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Rest of the gang chatting and catching up
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Partying in Wala Wala after dinner. Ann posing with Anne :D
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Eng Lee unveiled!!! After so long, we all finally met Wendy's new boyfriend! Why is Sheauching grinning?


Also, some shoutout thanks to those who made this a very memorable and joyful birthday that Puffyrazzi enjoyed so much :
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1)Pa, Ma, Puffy, QQ for always remembering and the well wishes that never fail to come on time.
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2) Crispy, where's my birthday present?
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3) Lynn ( dajie), thankie for the Ballerina in advance.
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4) The gang for the really fun celebration, especially to Sue for planning and Ah nee for the present. Also to Chui Ying, Chih Wei, Eng Lee, Shin Yen, Sheau Ching and Jeremy for dinner :P
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5) All from lab. Big big hugz to Basket Chen Xiao Lan for the carefully-thought presents. Also to her and Wanqing for coming up with this nice big chocolate cake ( am also very very grateful to Daniel who actually drove to Orchard to get it :D ) and the big lab family who shared them.
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6) Wolfie for the 'promised-and-coming' present, chocolate, tiramisu cake and bouquet.
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7) OK, these are not birthday presents but they came within my birthday month : Cuicui for the multiple presents from Brussels (Belgium), Xie for bringing an Eiffel Tower back from Paris and Chui Ying for the New York keychain and Idaho personal care products...hahaz...
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8) Kok Siong for the Siam Kitchen lunch
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9) To some others for wishing me through SMS or MSN. Thank you very much
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Yay yay yay... i'm wishing for an even better birthday next year!

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Puzzling Mysteries

1.What is Puffyrazzi posing for a photo with?
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2. What in the world is this?
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3. What is Frosty trying to do?
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4. Why is Puffyrazzi sniffing a piece of paper so closely?
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5. What is this sad looking place?
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Answers :
1. A coffin. The Ulu people from Sarawak used to suspend their coffins that way
2. Kimchi Puffyrazzi made in a class
3. Trying his best impersonation of my Penguin water container
4. I'm actually leaving my lip print on the paper for a game
5. Kuantan Airport



Friday, June 15, 2007

A Good Sporting Week

What a week for avid sports fans! I'm still feeling high over last week's brilliant moments from various sports that i enjoy. First of all, a big YAHOO goes over to Lewis Hamilton who FINALLY FINALLY won his overdue first race in F1 at the Canadian Grand Prix last Sunday.

Now the whole world will be waiting with bated breath if he will win the Championship in which he is currently leading by 8 points from Alonso. Of course the Canadian Grand Prix was a classic race. It was chaotic right from start to finish. I was elated to see Felipe Massa black-flagged and disqualified from the race ( no love lost between me and Massa haha).

The shocking moment of the race came when Robert Kubica had a colossal accident, really massive and the spectators all gasped, reliving Senna's death back in 1994. But kudos to FIA and their impressive safety measures these days Kubica walked away unscathed, minus a slight concussion and a sprained ankle.

If only the race had gone on for another half distance, i would have no doubt that the winner of the race would be the safety car...haha...it appeared a grand total of 4 times throughout the race and only 12 cars out of 22 were classified at the end of the race.

Lewis Hamilton
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For the last 2 weeks, i spent my nights watching the live telecast of French Open, direct from Roland Garros, Paris. The eventual winners were no surprise : Clay-court specialists Justine Henin ( women) and Rafael Nadal ( men).
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I had rooted for my favourite player, Roger Federer, since the beginning but i didn't expect him to win. Had he won, he would have made history and might just go on to make this year the 'Roger Slam' year and hold all four Grand Slam at the same time ( a rare feat). I must admit Nadal was too strong on clay. He played flawless tennis on his favourite surface and he deserved the win.
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Also, really great play from Justine Henin. I once remarked that the way she moves on a clay court is like an ice skater skating on ice, smooth and swift. What a joy to see her glorious backhand ( the best in the world of tennis, even better than Federer's one-handed backhand). The final was a little short, her opponent was the beautiful Ana Ivanovic. Ana showed a lot of promise but she lacked mental strength and experience.

Justine Henin
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And now, i'm waiting to see if Real Madrid or Barcelona wins the Spanish League....ahhh...

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix '07 Robert Kubica Crash

Watched this race yesterday and what a chaotic race! A massive accident for Kubica. As a big f1 fan, Puffyrazzi is glad Robert Kubica is fine.

Saturday, June 09, 2007

~QQ the SuperDoggie!~

It is time for another QQ post again. Finally, after getting him for about half a year, QQ's birth cert has finally arrived! It's like getting your identity card for the first time! According to my mom ( who is now a proud owner of a cute shih tzu) who's been reading up on shih tzus, the best quality shih tzus have a white-tip tail and the top of the head is also white. QQ shows both of this 'high quality' marks. Haha... QQ is an A-grade doggie!

He has grown up so much since November. He loves running around our house, playing in the garden right before bath time... and Crispy informed me that he enjoys having the hair dryer blowing him dry after every bath. He thinks it's spa time...!!?? He also enjoys having a mock fight with our Pomeranian. Though he is stronger and bigger, he always lets the smaller and older dog win, not a kiasu dog at all! Tsk tsk...


QQ goes for an evening walk after dinner everyday. Or rather, he brings my dad to walk everyday, from the way he's pulling the leash. They told me that the leash is fast giving way, so they will be needing a brand new leash soon. Speaking of his food, he virtually swallows the contents in his bowl in under 5 seconds. All the food in the world just does not seem enough for his bottomless pit!


Aahh...here's a nice pic of QQ being groomed. His hair is so long that he needs to have his fringe tied up so that he can see us clearly... Being groomed is also a luxury for him for he gets alot of attention during grooming. The only bad thing about his nice fur is that we need to limit him in the house as he gets filthy really fast if he goes running around in our garden. He will also begin eating the flowers and chasing butterflies if unsupervised... haha....
Puffyrazzi's going home in July. Will be capturing more photos of the SuperDoggie QQ at home!


Saturday, June 02, 2007

The Public Transport Society

I've noticed recently that i lose my temper most when i'm out of my house and out of my workplace. Of all places, i always blow my top when i'm either waiting for a bus/train or riding on a bus/train. OK, haha..i admit that i don't have the best temper in the world ( it's my genes dammit!.... my family members all have fiery personalities =P), but being in a public transport really tests your patience.

OK, so who am I to complain... i can't drive and i don't have the money to sustain a car... hehe... I did learn to drive and managed to drive a couple of times before my mother concluded that it's too dangerous to ride in my car ( I don't brake when cornering a'la F1 driver).

So, what are the ugly society behaviours that make the public transportation here so unpleasant, leaving me hot and flustered? Let me count the ways :


1) When i board a bus, a same pattern is observed over and over again. Two seats will be taken by one person who chooses to sit on the aisle seat rather than the window seat. For example, you board a bus with 40 seats and you see 20 people sitting on the aisle seat. You have no choice but to look really apologetic to one of them and then try to squeeze into a window seat beside them. This happens without them moving a inch to let you in, sometimes throwing an icy cold stare at you.
Puffyrazzi's suggestion : Sit on their lap

2) Almost similar to point 1, except that this time their outer seat is occupied by their bag or grocery bags. Excuse me, but did your bag pay for the bus fare too?
Puffyrazzi's suggestion : Similar to point 1. Sit on their bags

3) I board a very crowded train on weekends. Most of the people are standing and there you see a selfish SOB leaning his big fat body on the supporting hand rail, looking oblivious to all the people around him that are swaying from left to right without support.
Puffyrazzi's suggestion : Since you're making your body part of the rail, i'll assume you're a rail. I'll hang on to your body parts then.

4) You wait for a train at the station. Just when the train is pulling in, all the people around you jostle to the front of the MRT door, blocking people who are coming out and squeezing in to get a seat. I'm pretty used to this scenario, it even happens during off-peak hours. Even a 70-year-old aunty can beat me at this =)
Puffyrazzi's suggestion : If you can't beat them, join them! Anyway, i've witnessed an angry woman actually shouting at the selfish bastards to move out of the way of alighting passengers.

5) Be it bus or train, the passengers prefer to stand near the doors so as to be the first to disembark. Seats furthest from the door are normally ignored. Therefore you see a bunch of loonies standing near the entrance/exit, depriving others of getting onto the bus/train.
Puffyrazzi's suggestion : This is not a good suggestion, but i somehow hope that someday, an accident will occur where the door opens during travel and people start to realise maybe standing at the door is not such a good idea after all.

And to summarise the point of this post, YES KIASUISM STILL PREVAILS.... but i admit i sometimes am also guilty of more than one of the above...heehee...kiasuism is beginning to rub on me.... arrrggh...helpzzz!

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

A Poem for Myself

Birthday Blessings
Instead of counting candles,
Or tallying the years,
Contemplate your blessings,
As your birthday nears.

Consider special people
Who love you, and who care,
And others who’ve enriched your life
Just by being there.

Think about the memories
Passing years can never mar,
Experiences great and small
That have made you who you are.

Another year is a happy gift,
So cut your cake, and say,"
Instead of counting birthdays,I
count blessings every day!"

By Joanna Fuchs

Saturday, May 26, 2007

Sunshine Gal for a Weekend

Hey there! After a bout of sickness for almost an entire week earlier this month, i decided to head south to the little island Sentosa for a quick recharge, with the sun, sea and sand as my friends for the weekend. The weather was scorching hot, with occasional cloudiness. It was the perfect fine weather for a beach getaway!











Sentosa was brimming with locals and tourists during the weekend. When i was out swimming (actually more like sitting at the shore), there were many others like me basking in the sunlight by soaking themselves in the sea. My heart really went out to the lifeguards. They were grossly outnumbered by about 200 to 1...hahazzzz....







Anyway, after swimming in the 'so-called' beach ( I, as a Malaysian East Coast gal would never call that a beach), i also went cycling. Hmmm.. i have not been on a bike for such a loooong time. And to imagine, i used to cycle every day for 5 years... Whoo hoo...actually cycling is a really fun sport...really enjoyed myself as i cycled along the coast~



Felt much better after the rest and sun... Till then, wait till my next weekend getaway post yah? =P









Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Home Away From Home


What's the longest time you've spent away from your home? Have you ever experienced life living in a hostel with fellow school mates? Puffyrazzi spent 5 years of her life, moving 5 to different rooms in a span of those years. Two years spent in Hua Zhong Hostel and 3 years in King Edward VII Hall. What are the perks and the downsides of being away from home?



1) You put up with bad food....constantly

The caterers in HZH loved to flood my plate with gravy, their food was decent but nowhere near what i can eat at home. No wonder i lost so much weight.

First 2 years in KEVII was bad. They serve all sorts of weird food during teatime (e.g. UFO - Unidentified Fried Object and sticky brown cakes one can recycle as blue tack). They changed caterer during my 3rd year and there was a vast improvement.



2) You learn new tools of the trade which may or may not come in handy someday

This is applicable during my uni days. Being in large groups of commitees, i was able to grasp some organizing and social skills. Not to mention i'd never imagined i would ever touch a Light Console or act in front of paying audience in my entire life, and i did just that!


Orientation Committee trying out our games before presenting it to the freshmen




Being a member of a Theatrical Production taught me artistic and technical skills



3) MSN Messenger and ICQ rule your life.

Me and my roommate used to MSN each other eventhough we're sitting next to each other in the same room. Downright lame, i know =P



4) No Mom and Dad to pamper you when you're sick

The only time i was really really sick was during one of my JC days and my roommate took care of me really well. She's my saviour, Hallelujah!



5) You have friends from all sorts of ethnicity

KEVII had a really vibrant group of hostellites. I had friends from Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, China, India, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Vietnam, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nepal, Thailand etc. This may not be that good at times, when there are cultural differences. For example, my hall used to have this Chinese guy who sang Chinese Opera on top of his lungs wherever he went. And those Mauritians, they love to booze but we also love to booze WITH them! They have good beer from Mauritius...




People of different nationality came together as one. I'm the one in white on the extreme right.





6) Getting to your room is often a good exercise

I'm not sure what's with those architects who design hostels. In HZH, i stayed on the fourth floor and in KEVII i stayed on the 6th storey. It was especially strenous in KEVII when i had to travel from E6 to find a friend living in B4. The journey probably took me just under 3 years. HAhaz...



7) The solution to your homework is always not far away

No matter how badly stuck i was doing an assignment, i could always find a way out within minutes. Cos your classmates/coursemates were everywhere around me! This was also beneficial when an exam or test was around the corner and we could organize group discussions.



8) You make close friends that last for life

I relied on my friends around me. We were always there for each other, during the good and bad times. We got to see each other during our bad hair days, bloated body days and we talked to each other all the time, hence we got to know each other inside out.





Photo taken in 1999, but still tight friends today.



9) You play sports like a maniac

Being in a hall of residence made me a sport nut for all 3 years i was there. I tried playing all sorts of different ball games, now i can boast to many what different sports i can play. The list :

i. Basketball ( thanks to Joyce who signed my name up)

ii. Handball ( also thanks to Joyce)

iii. Volleyball ( Joyce played better but we never failed to turn up to support the TH guys)

iv. Badminton

v. Tug-of-war ( Can't imagine me doing this, huh?)

vi. Netball (but i kept playing this basketball style)

vii. Squash ( Kenny taught me this)

viii. Snooker ( oh boy, i was lousy, very very lousy)

ix. Softball ( only occasional throwings in the weekend, i was a serious player back in sec school)

x. Soccer

xi. Hockey ( the most dangerous sport, EVER)



10) Danger lurks in every corner

I've had my shares of bizarre stories from those hostel days. There were peeping toms in toilets, and underwear thieves. I've had 2 brand new t-shirts stolen from my laundry line...sigh...


Me and my b-ball friends ( Joyce, Sook Fong and Mary) had a brush with a python during the wee hours one holiday and it scared the shit out of us.


One of my friends, Olivia, saw shadows when she was stationed at a Japanese Bunker during one of our Orientation programmes.


The best must be when all 16 KEWOC members were all sleeping together in the KEWOC room after a night of making starch for orientation. Ah Guan claimed he saw a long-haired female 'Ah Tiang' floating into the room and he forced himself back to sleep. Hahaz. . . such juicy stories.



11) Birthday celebrations are painful...for the birthday gal/guy

The normal would be getting freaking wet, pouring buckets of water over the birthday gal/guy, sometimes flour after that, or whipped cream. Guys will be pillared where it hurt the most ( the ritual best known as 'Tiang').




Chui Ying getting wet and dirty on her 19th birthday



12) You do some really stupid stuff collectively

Just some of the idiotic stuff i can think of on top of my head now :


Me and my friends dressing up and imitating poses from boybands in magazines and photographing ourselves. The photos are now kept in a safe with no immediate intention of showing itself.
OK, one secret exposed is as far as i can get!
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13) There will be massive gatherings all the time
There were always alot of people around you all the time, it made me much happier that way, as i tend to slump into depression if i'm alone too much. There were always BBQs, Hall suppers, birthdays, and many other reasons for gatherings.


I love this photo. Everyone looked so happy
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14) You and your friends have many secret codes that only those among you can understand
Examples of codes i had with different groups of friends,
Vinnie and Becky, Coconut tree, Toadie, Fellow-yellow-lover, TH number 12, Rumah Mayat and so on.
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15) You get a sense of attachment to the certain places you hang out in
For me, the first two years in KEVII was mostly spent in its MPC. Everyday after school, i would be heading there for sports training. During the holidays, i would be trying out orientation games there.
In my final year, almost half of my time was spent in the dance room. I loved it there, i have not danced since i graduated and i really miss it sorely.
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One of my favourite places in KEVII hall, The Dance Room

For those of you who had not experienced life away from home, it's a shame for you, cos it was one of the most memorable phase of my life. I love those times and i wouldn't have traded them for anything else!

Saturday, May 19, 2007

Handmade with Love

Do you like accessories? Brooches, bracelets, earrings and other ornaments? My eldest sister, Lynn, has taken a liking to making various accessories using numerous types of material she picks up from shops around Singapore. She has been practising for more than a year and her finished products are now pretty impressive. She only uses the best materials she can find and her products are all handmade WITH LOVE!

It's great to have such a hobby if you're creative. I wish i am as patient and creative ( or even half can be good too!). Anyone interested to see her other creations, please visit her blog :

www.handmade-with-love.blogspot.com

Here, i give some sneaks :

Wild Rose (earrings)

Chrysalis ( Bracelet)


Friday, May 18, 2007

CSC birthday celebration

Another birthday came by recently. This time, it was CSC's birthday we were celebrating. Our group was smaller again this time, minus our some of our group members scattered around the map ; 2 in UK, 1 in US and 1 in Holland. Sob... Sob... Anywayz, we still gathered and had a nice dinner, plus our must-have birthday cake and present!

A jolly good cake for a jolly good fella!


A birthday song, a wish and blow out the candles!


CSC's birthday present came as a request from his wife. A smart casual shirt. =)



As 3 of our members were sick around the time of the gathering, we had healthy, bland Chinese food, with herbal soup and light on the chilli.




Sunday, May 13, 2007

Poor Frosty

My poor baby Frosty is feeling under the weather! The poor dear has been sick since last Wednesday night. After visiting the vet, he had to wear baby diapers and an E-collar ( see photo).

Speaking of the vet, he was so angelic during the visit. Never scratched nor hiss at the vet and nurses. But upon coming home, he refused to let us change a new diaper and even pulled out the catheter the vet stitched on him.

So, my baby is now being hospitalised with the vet. Hope that he will get well soon!

Thursday, May 10, 2007

Lele and Kaikai at Sea

LL : Harlow! MIB3 are going to attempt sea transportation today. We're gonna steer a big boat!
KK : Ya, big boat big boat...
LL : Welcome aboard! Superstar Virgo...



KK : Wa, steering is tiring. This is too high for me... where's my 'khor khor'???
(somewhere else in the ship...)

LL : Wow, the view is breathtaking. So comfortable here... where's my 'didi'??
Oops, i forgot that we were supposed to be steering this ship.
But it's so nice here, i'll get KK to join me.


*rock-a-bye baby*.....