Happy 1st Year Anniversary

Today is a very special day. As of today, at 1258pm, Andrew and I have officially been together for a year. It is our 1st Year Anniversary! XD

Happy 1st Year Anniversary, Hubby!

Andrew and I used to live at one of the University Halls. The hall of residence was called Reichel. From what we've heard, the place used to be a psychiatric ward but it got changed into a student accommodation since I don't know when. We used to live on the same floor too; the second floor, which is at the top-most excluding the "pent-house." I always had to walk by Andrew's room in order to go to the toilet or the shower. We've seen each other around but never really got a chance to talk. Perhaps we were both too shy? Perhaps not...

Then came the International Evening 2007 on 18th October 2007, which was held at the Terrace Bar in the University Main Arts Building. That was when we first got to know each other... He asked me if I was staying at the hall where he was staying and I replied yes; and I asked if he was the guy who lived in front of the kitchen and he said yes; then we introduced ourselves. Our meeting at that time was pretty brief as he had plans to go out with his friends that same night. So, I asked him if it was okay for me to take a picture with him before he left; and so we did; and he said that I could just pop by at his room if I needed anything; and that's exactly what I did the very next day...

I went over to Andrew's room with Amalina. I forgot what was the reason we gave for being there but anyhoos, he asked us if we could help out with his Psychology experiment. We filled in a consent form and some questionnaires... What happened after that I don't remember. A few days later, Andrew and I went to a fun fair held at Anglesey. I told him that I went to the fun fair the night before with my friends and he decided he wanted to go and asked me if I wanted to as well. I said yes although I'd already been there. It took us more than half an hour to get there on foot (could've taken the bus but I told him that we could walk there thinking it was pretty close by - at least it seemed so the night I went there by bus =P) My bad! Anyway, we went on a few rides and didn't talk much. I think that lasted until the last ride. He thought it was a ferris wheel, just like what the others thought the night before. But unbeknown to him, it was a ferris wheel... which flips you around 360 degrees at break-neck speed! I was laughing my arse off the whole time just like the night before as well. Apparently, I was the only one who thought it was funny. The others were scared to death. And so was Andrew. You should've seen the expression on his face when the guy test-turned our "cage" upside down when we first got into it! XD I lost my keys to my room that night too cos I did not realise that they had dropped out during the ride...

Then there was this one night, I invited him over to my room to have a few drinks (it was just WKD Blue, nothing strong.) We ended up staying up till the early morning talking bout nothing... I know we had an enjoyable conversation but what about, I can't recall. I don't remember what we talked about and neither does he. Anyhoos, I don't really know where I'm going with this post anymore apart from wanting to write down the beginning of our relationship... Well, I guess that's how it all began. Nothing special - at least not to you guys. I didn't really realise I was actually falling for him... But I'm glad I did XD

Once again, Happy Anniversary Hubby!

*******

Also, a shoutout to my parents...

Happy 22nd Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Love always from your eldest daughter,
Yeng

My First Tagging Game

1. Take a recent picture of yourself or take a picture of yourself right now.

2. Don't change your clothes, don't fix your hair... just take a picture.

3. Post that picture with NO editing.

4. Post these instruction with your picture.

5. Tag 5 people to do this.


Since Ada tagged me... So, I'll tag Anis, Bebs, Hiong, Naz and Syee...

Tiresome Thursday

I despise 0900 o'clock lectures! I had to snooze my alarm several times today as I was too lazy to get up to go to class. I'm sure you know how that feels. You just feel like staying in bed the whole morning instead of going to the lecture but you know that you have to attend otherwise you'll be way behind in class... My alarm rang at about 0745am and I snoozed it all the way through to 0830am and that was when I finally got up and got ready for class; usually, I would take a shower in the morning before my class but Thursday mornings are kind of a special case - at least for me; that does not mean I'm disgusting or that I stink cos I often take a shower at night before I go to bed as well... Anyway, because I went to the 0900am lecture, I kept thinking that it was already early evening but in fact it was only noon when I got to my seminar after an hour's nap in between. (Most of my lectures start at noon so by the time I have my next class it'll be around 0400pm till 0500pm).

It's now 0230pm and I just had bread and tea for lunch after a refreshing shower XD Now I'm feeling so fresh and wide awake - kindda! Just taking my time to blog now till it's time for my Early 20th Century Literature lecture. It's a good thing I live close to Uni - it's only bout 5 minutes walk! Actually, I kindda like where I'm living despite the fact that it's a shop-house and has got no living room... And also that it could get pretty noisy at night since it's near a pub... But at least it's, as Andrew puts it, strategically located. It's close to our Uni, the laundrette, take-aways (we live right above two of them - one Chinese restaurant/take-away and the other sells a range of Middle-Eastern/Indian food, pizzas, etc...), supermarket (Morrisons) as well as the train station. Despite the fact that it is "strategically located", I really dread walking up and down "Bitch Hill" (it's this really steep hill that's a bitch to walk on. Hence, its name as called by students in Bangor) just to get to High Street and back.

Anyway, Andrew just got back a while ago and he brought me my things that I ordered from the Body Shop Party at Home event that I mentioned in a previous post. I feel sorry for him nowadays such that he's been so busy from all his work - in terms of academic and co-curricular activities. He gets up at 0930am every morning and I'll hardly get to see him until the sun finally sets. I don't know what I can actually do to help him. Academically, he obviously doesn't need my help. Co-curricular activities wise, I don't know what I can do since I'm just a member and not part of any of the committees that he's currently heading. He's the President for one society and the Coordinator for the other. That's why his schedule is so full. He basically heads from one meeting to another with different committee members while attending his classes in between. Basically, all I can do for him is to listen to what he has to say whenever he has a rough time as well as preparing dinner for us.

Oh, in my previous post, I mentioned something about breaking the bond with MOE and stuff... That doesn't mean I'm actually planning to do that. I'm just trying to see what my options are in case things don't work out. I mean, I must be an idiot to actually turn down such a good job opportunity (I heard that salaries for teachers have recently been revised! XD). And think about the perks that I could get from working with the government... I could easily apply for housing, etc right? I mean, although I might get bored from the job and the students will probably be better at Literature than I am (this will really suck and be such an embarassment!) and bigger in size than I am... In the end, I get a job... Right? On the other hand, I kindda do hope that I won't be able to get a job within 6 months so that I can actually venture into something else... Or does that only apply to students who are bonded with the government but not as a teacher? Can those who are bonded as a teacher work elsewhere (in Brunei or overseas) if they are not offered a job within 6 months?

Tata for now!

Please Comment on This

Got up at 0830am this morning and chatted with Andrew's mom and aunt on Skype. I guess I'll be heading off to Singapore next summer! XD That is, after going back home to Brunei of course. Hmm... But I'm not sure when I wanna go home exactly cos I'm kindda interested in going for the CCUSA Camp during summer too. Gotta think about it again...

I've not been doing as much reading as I planned to. Stopped reading 'A Passage to India' for a bit and moved on to 'Annie John' by Jamaica Kincaid. Very interesting novel about a girl growing up in Antigua and especially how her feelings towards her mom changed during her adolescence... But I still can't figure out the protagonist's racial background! I'm trying to finish the novel by tonight so that I can move on to William Blake's 'Songs of Innocence and Experience' as well as T.S. Eliot's 'The Waste Land' for my seminar next week. Sigh... Why did I choose English Literature again? I've absolutely no clue about poetry! Although I do love reading some of the novels... But still! Why English Literature? I think the modules for American Literature are more interesting somehow... At least I think I'm better at American Literature modules than I am in English Literature ones... And my exam results kindda proved that too!

Anyway, what kindda results do we need in order to successfully apply for Masters in English or American Literature? And how much will the fees add up to? And is there any chance at all at deferring the bond with the government if, for example, we choose to pursue a Masters programme privately or wanna take a job somewhere else before that? And does anyone know how much exactly one will have to pay if he or she is to break the bond (those under MOE scholarship for a three year degree/ three year degree plus Masters)? If anyone has any information on these, could you please let me know?

Cheers! XD

My Reading Week

I attended a General Meeting for a student volunteering work that I've recently become involved in on Monday night. The meeting itself was okay. Andrew got elected as the Coordinator while all others that I voted for got elected for their respective posts as well. It's like winning a BINGO game or something for getting all the right numbers in a row! Congratulations to all the new committee members! XD

Anyway, there happened to be a BODY SHOP AT HOME party after the meeting. Being a loyal customer of Body Shop, I obviously stayed for it. And plus, it was for a good cause since about 25% of the money made will go to our Society. We really need the funds for publicity, etc anyway. Oh, all attendees at the party were girls EXCEPT Andrew! Hehe... He only stayed because I did. And also cos he thought that a Body Shop at home party only involved us browsing through the catalogues and ordering whatever we want. He must have felt really weird when it actually involved the girls having a makeover as well! I mean, he actually stayed through the party and got involved with the games, etc. LOL! Oh, and there were raffle tickets and gifts as well. Andrew's raffle and mine got picked up and we won me some goodies! XD

Since this week is my Reading Week, that means I've got no lectures nor seminars to attend. So, I decided to attend one of Andrew's Psychology lecture which started at 0100pm. I think it was called Developmental Psychology. It was actually pretty interesting. I stayed up through the first hour of the lecture while Andrew was snoozing off beside me. Hehehe... =P Yesterday's topic was on Family and Parenting. The lecturer, Mihela, showed us a film called 'The Caves of the Yellow Dog' which I think is a documentary about some Mongolian tribe. That film kept Andrew awake and was probably the most interesting thing that happened during the whole hour cos there was this scene which showed this little girl playing with dung with her sister and another little girl - which she was allowed to do since she asked her mom's permission to get the dung from her! Oh, and I did my part in donating to the Children in Need too! *pat myself on the back*

The lecture was for two hours and I left during the ten minutes break they had after the first hour. Went to the library to photocopy some of the critical essays on 'Everyman' from the books that I borrowed from the library two weeks ago and then returned them after that. Then I borrowed some more books from the library. This time they're books on Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. After the library, I went to Morrisons to do some groceries shopping. Then I got back home and relaxed for a while. Later, Andrew and I went to High Street after his class because he wanted to go to Clarks to get the shoes that he tried on the last time we were there (I brought him there to get a pair of shoes that I saw from a magazine). And this time he finally bought the pair of shoes that he really liked. And I'm glad he did too cos the shoes looked really good on him and he needed a good pair of shoes too for that matter. The price is well worth it - he keeps saying that the shoes feels very comfortable to the point that it's "orgasmic"! XD This happens to be his choice of words when he thinks that something feels or looks really good! Oh, and we've finally done our laundry too!

I didn't get on to the second reading of 'Heart of Darkness'. I'm currently reading 'A Passage to India' by E.M. Forster instead, which happens to be a really good book and it's not as difficult to read as 'Heart of Darkness' is.

And for now, I'm gonna get back to my reading! Toodles!

"Autumn Cleaning"

Got up at 0930am this morning. I think I'm getting the hang of waking up this early now... Had cornbeef (with lotsa onions) on toast spread with melting butter and tomatoes plus Ipoh's white coffee (which Andrew's mom sent over) for breakfast *yummy*

*This post will most likely bore the crap out of you readers, if there's any at all, cos it's basically bout me cleaning my room...*

Anyway, I finally got to cleaning my room today. I've told myself a million times that I should do that some day and now I've done it! I spent the whole day cleaning my room. Started after breakfast till bout 0600pm! I started cleaning the windows first. Initially, I thought it would be an easy job but it wasn't! I never really realised that there are lotsa stains on my window! Eww! So I basically spent almost an hour scraping the window till it's clear from the stains and wiped it (with berry scented cloth) till it's now squeaky clean, and smells good too! Man, I never knew that cleaning a window would be so tiring! I mean, it's just ONE window! Come to think of it, when was the last time it got cleaned at all? Damn the previous tenants!

With that done, I went on with my massive wardrobe. And I mean massive! It's got enough compartments for me to put all my clothes (including my luggage), my books, etc into it XD But that didn't take long since I've cleaned it when I first moved in. Then there were my tiny study table, my drawers, my "make-up" table, my three other tables and my shelves... They're all squeaky clean now! Yay me!

Then I stopped at 0600pm to cook dinner for Andrew and me. Eat, eat, eat... Then more cleaning done by me... It was the dishes this time since Andrew had to get himself ready for something that he had to do. Then he left to do that something that he had to do. Then I went on to clean the toilet and part of the kitchen... Got rid of all the black grime from the window and the areas near the window... And I only did part of the kitchen cos I was too tired from all the cleaning by then. So, I headed for a nice warm shower at bout 0830pm... Aaah... XD

The only thing left to do now is to vacuum my room - as well as Andrew's if I feel like it! And finish the other half of the kitchen... And perhaps, try to look for something that can actually get my heater really clean cos nothing seems to work! =( But all these, I've leave for tomorrow...

And now, I'm just ranting on my boring day on this blog after watching two episodes of 'House'.

And tomorrow's a whole new cleaning day for me. Wohoo?! Oh, and I've really got to get on to reading 'Heart of Darkness' again. Has anyone read it yet? If yes, can you please tell me exactly what it's about? And any ideas on its themes of race and anti-colonialism, etc? Cos I didn't get it at all the first time I read it. It's such a difficult text to read! =(

I guess that's it for today. Gonna get back to watching another episode of 'House' now before I hit the sacks... So, good night! Bon nuit!

p/s: Mom and Dad... See I'm not that lazy after all... I do do house chores (when I feel like it) And I go crazy with it once I've started... XD

Pathetic Fallacy

Another gloomy day, which seems to reflect my mood today somehow... Is this what Mr. Ray used to call 'pathetic fallacy'?

He and I had a talk bout our relationship last night. Where is it going? He's not sure. Neither am I. Although both of us seem-ed to want it to last for a very long time... Despite this, there are lots of obstacles in front of us:

What'll happen after we graduate? Will I have to go to Singapore since he won't even consider going to Brunei? Or will it just end after that? If I choose to go with him, what am I to do about my bond with the Brunei government since I'm under scholarship? Will I then have to pay it all back? Or should I just stay and be a teacher? If I do, will he wait for me? It'll be most likely that he won't despite saying that he loves me.

Should we hope for our relationship to work out like it did for Sharon's sister and her boyfriend? Or should we just keep going and cherish our moments together knowing that it will soon end after we graduate like what Vanessa and Mark are doing? Or should we just go with the flow and hope for the best like what Sharon and Simon are doing?

I really don't know what to do anymore... I'm feeling so lost in this relationship now. I know it's all mushy-gushy stuff bout the future and I probably shouldn't even be thinking bout it since we're all still young and studying... But then again, if you love someone that much, don't you just wish that you could be with them, always?

I know that the saying goes "If you love them, let them go" but what if I don't want to let him go?

Happy Birthday Mom! XD

Today's a special day cos... it's my Mom's 43rd Birthday!

HAPPY 43RD BIRTHDAY, MOM!!!

May God bless you always with good health and happiness! Just wanna let you know that I love you and I miss you loads! Take care always! XD

p/s: I hope that you like that card that I sent you! =D

Back for Good?

I am finally back to blogging! This time I won't be bothered with the fonts and colors, etc anymore because it's less of a fuss for me that way albeit more attractive (at least I think so...). So, I guess that would also mean that I'll be blogging more frequently as well instead of going on a hiatus based on plain laziness...

I've been waking up at bout 9.30am this week, which is considered rare for me because I usually won't be up before noon. So, I guess this is a good start. As the saying goes "Zhao shui, zhao qi - shen ti hao!" which literally means "Early sleep, early wake - good body!"??

Anyway, Andrew and I had bad jacket potatoes on Sunday which resulted in us getting sick - Andrew had fever and diarrhea and a lot of vomitting while I vomitted twice only. So he's kindda avoiding jacket potatoes for now and has not eaten proper food for a while since he'll end up throwing up again.

I finally got a headstart on my essay on Dubliners today. Got around to reading the book and some critical essays to help me with my writing. It's a bore though considering I've been sitting on my ass for the past few hours and end up with barely 500 words on my essay! Two-thirds more to go and it's due this Friday! Why is it not due during Reading Week like it usually is? Why must it be due during Week 6 this time? Sigh... At least that means I'll be free with nothing to do during the whole Reading Week (Week 7) although I'm meant to do my readings (unfinished readings). Hence, its name!

Work aside, the weather has not been good at all! Dark and gloomy all day long isn't helping at all! =( I want the sunshine! Or at least less dark, less gloomy and less cold windy days! Oh, and I want a bigger study table and brighter lights in my room, please! I'm currently using the dining table in the kitchen cos it's a lot bigger than the table in my room. Plus, it's got more space for my books to lie around! And space for food and drinks while I do my work as well!

And for now, I'm heading back to my work!