dreams. moments. blue skies.

Sunday, February 27, 2005

día de nada

That is "nothing day"in spanish.
Me and ellen are gog to learn spanish.
Me for work; she for fun.

Yesterday, for some reason, both of us were in a moody mood.
Part sian, part depressed (altho she hates tis word), part bored, part moody.
It started when i woke up at 1pm,
and out of sheer boredom, decided to pack my wardrobe.
And I called her in the middle of packing...
And we decided to go out.
Cos being bored and moody together is better than being bored and moody alone.

And so we went to Suntec City...
With the weather reflecting our moods, all grey looming skies and cold breezes,
We knew the day was destined to be non-positive.

We were discussing a lot of things....
Cos when u are sian, there's usuually no one cause but plenty of ill factors.
And we thot abt other people versus ourselves....

My elder sis, for instance.
She's just shy of 28, but she alredi has a Master's degree and
A whole real house in Amsterdam. An okay job there too.
In fact, a whole new life there.

And then, on the other end of the achiever's spectrum,
there's our good fren Debra, who's turning 27.
But with nothin to her name.
We were not being mean or meaning ill,
its just comparing people.

I also mentioned another fren of mine, who's turning 28 too.
She's forever complaining abt her job, her dire lack of a man, her watever.
Talking to her wears me out, cos there seems nothing she's happy and contented abt.

And we thought abt it... where will we be at the very-near-future of 27-28?
We didn't had any answer though.
But we consoled ourselves that at 24,
We both had our own vehicles at least.
Her, a good hardy chopper bike,
Me, a small car.
And a bosom reliable always-there fren in each other.

On all accounts, if we were to look at it,
My sister would seem the winner.
She had the most.
But I don't envy her for it.
I felt that she had paid too high a price for it.
Given too much up for tat.
And given a choice, I would nv opt for tat.

Perhaps it's all part and parcel of building a life elsewhere.
You have to give up someth to start something new and afresh elsewh.

She comes home for 2 weeks....
Two short nothing weeks, and altho she doesn't say it out loud,
I know she feels like a stranger somewhat.
A stranger in the family.
A stranger among all our relatives when we visited our grandma.
No one expected her to be here.
No one anticipated that she'll fly back in a heartbeat like tat.
And when she does,
The awkwardness and their disconcertion
Subjugated the love and grandeur of her action.
Witnessing it is sad.

I think a lot of us underestimate the effort we put into our daily lives.
Keeping ties with good old frens.
Witnessing one another's lives evolve, change. Even if it's one boring, moody day.
Having a wonderful family and keeping it wonderful.
All the simple nothingness of everyday life here.

We keep thinking there's some big huge opportunity in the world out there for us to grab.
The carefree lifestyle, the big nature, the gracious nice people out there...
An exotic vast world for us to discover.

In comparison, where does having a cuppa at Jalan Kayu or at tat familiar kopitiam stand?
Or playing pool at that dingy Selegie pub?
Or a dawn jog with ur fren who live down the road?
Or hearing ur dad ask you abt ur job and teasing you abt ur horrendous driving at dinner?
Or spending 3hrs washing the car with ur maid?

It's all these small moments that make up the big grand life we think we have, isn't it?
One year aft I returned from Australia,
I got it back.
The ultimate feeling of home.
That everyth clicks. That I love it here and am here for the long haul.

The feeling that this is my life, simple and nothing as it is.
I am not chasing some big dream,
I may probably nv see the huge world out there.
I am not experiencing grand winter.
Have not even seen snow when my sister was ploughing her driveway in Amsterdam.

But life is so happy here. So nice and simple.
It was what I wanted. It is what I have now.
And it's enough.
It's ok if I never earn British pounds or Euro dollars or see America or Tokyo or Paris.
I have my family, my friends.
I have that simple comfort that even when I feel slightly sian one weekend afternoon,
I can have chocolate brownie and contemplate life with good pals in town.
And come back feeling on top of the world.

:) A genuine right-from-the-heart smile.

Saturday, February 26, 2005

eastwood

Watching good movies leaves me dumbfounded.
If I appreciate any art at all, let it be films.
So many shows have rendered me speechless aft the credits roll...
Hotel Rwanda, Constantine, The Pianist...
And today,
Million Dollar Baby.

Not sure wat it was that was so absolutely spellbinding abt this show.
But it sure made me very contemplative...
I think Clint Eastwood has this contemplative, sensitive approach that illuminates his films.

I thought.... how many pp lead lives like Hilary Swank's character?
What does it take for a woman to have the temperament and grit of a boxer?
To take punches in the ring? To bleed and box 24/7?
And if someone really has a life like tat, how would he/she turn out?
Where would all that feeling of injustice go?
Is God playing fair?
It jus makes you so sad.

And the dialogue was so nice to listen to.
So real... it doesn't sound scripted.

My heart ached while watching the show.
It's sometimes so painful to learn of pp less fortunate than urself....
Maybe that's why we like to keep in our lil bubble and imagine the world works like ours.

Watching good movies always makes me like tat.
It leaves me in a trance for quite a while...and its so hard to switch perspectives and get back to ground.

Friday, February 25, 2005

long week

Been a long week.
Altho technically, I haven't "started" work yet cos i'm still in training.
But tis shld be the last wk of training alredi,
So.... shit, longer wks ahead then.

But training's been fun.
Our group of 7 monkeys are pretty close...
I'll be sad when we do diff shifts once work start.
Hope the shifts won't disrupt my life too much...
It does sound weird though.
Like tomorrow, I'm doing 7am-3pm.
Then the whole of next wk, we'll all be on the graveyard shift...
11pm-4am. But its only 5hrs, as compared to the usual 8hr shifts.
And free cab rides. Tink I'll leave my car at home then.
Reuters is too nice, really.
If they treat us so well and provide so much for all employees,
How the hell do they still make so much $$$????!!!


Been trying to shop this week, but my shopping plans alwaz get thwarted at the last min.
Tomorrow, I must I must find time to buy stuff!

Brother gog back Melbourne tom.
As it is, I can hear him ransacking his room,
In the pretext of packing his luggage.


My train of thoughts is going ooooozy
Cos I'm getting v sleepy.
That's the report for the day.

Tuesday, February 22, 2005


4D Posted by Hello

my wheels Posted by Hello

kayaking at ECP Posted by Hello

wee wee + deb Posted by Hello

bday gal  Posted by Hello

club med Posted by Hello

moi+len=best pals Posted by Hello

sistas at Original Sins, 210205 Posted by Hello

no time...so here's the gist

Five Things to Scream About:

1. My grandma is recovering. I've just witnessed a miracle. Praise the Lord.

2. Reuters is cool. Everyone is cool. My batch of people is so nice. I like gog to work!

3. My sis is in town. She came back to see my grandma. Great to have her back. If only for 2 wks.

4. I am finally making good use of my digi cam. Wonderful device.

5. I've burnt 3 great CDs. Back to being the music pirate. But it feels so good.

Sunday, February 13, 2005

Had a good time with debra and ellen yesterday.
And ended up with a 1am showing of Constantine.

Yea, I know Keanu Reeves was stiff as wood,
but the movie was intriguing.
At the very least, it was from the devil's perspective.
So many of us worship God, believe and have faith in him...
And know so little abt the other side of the coin,
Abt how the devil operates. About hell. About things not pleasant and contrary to God.
Constantine brought that out,
And reinforced the very realities of hell that we think we are immune from.
Anyway, yea, it's a fictional movie, so lets leave it at tat.

My grandma is not doing well.
I have this great impulse to do ALL i can to save her and relieve her pain.
What can I do? Pray? Keep vigil at the hospital?
It makes me wanna weep jus to know all the pain shooting thru her fragile skin and bones.
How is that legitimate and right? How can it be?
I found myself quietly thinking....
Grandma, pls don't die. I am not prepared for it.
Please live. Please fight the pain and breathe on.
How can things end up like tat????!!!!!!!!!

How can i start work tomorrow in the right frame of mind?
Lord, if you will, heal her.

Saturday, February 12, 2005

melancholic state

Finally, my blog has pics.
How does such simple idiot-proof technology escape me for so long?
I've been figuring it out since the last sem in uni... till now, 2005.
Ok, let's not emphasise this.

But this is gd news.
It means I can finally make gd use of my oft-neglected digi-cam.

Today's the 3rd day of CNY.
It ought to be happier than this.
My grandma got admitted into hospital today.
Unbeknownst to everyone except my uncle,
She had went for a major stomach op this early morning.
At about 4.30am.
My parents only knew abt it when the 1st op was unsuccessful,
And they rushed down.
Without having the time to inform us, who were all sleeping.

I was jus abt to hit town to meet my fren,
When Mum called for all of us to go down.
Cos gran was in a "critical stage" and may not pull thru.
We went and waited outside the op theatre for 2 hours
And then her 2nd op finished and she's left unconscious.
Alive, but knocked out and can't breathe without aid.
She's recovering in the ICU ward
And we'll be there again tomorrow.

It's bizarre how fast things can happen.
On wed, she had the time of her life playing and winning mahjong games.
I hadn't seen her so happy and healthy for ages...and I remember my bro and I remarking on her radiance and fantastic mood.
Today, she's had 2 major ops.

What was it that they say again?
Living each day like it's your last....
I hate such cliches to stare me in the face like that.

Take 2 Posted by Hello

Me and Sylvia @ Suntec Posted by Hello