A song I love a lot

This is quite a new song, from Coldplay's "Viva la Vida" album. I love this song a lot and I like to listen to it, especially when I'm feeling gloomy, or just back from a bad day at the office. It sounds kinda sad, yet the lyrics seem to reach out to encourage me at the same time. Barely a few weeks ago, I was supposed to post this up but I forgot. So I'm posting the lyrics up now, not because I'm feeling anywhere near SAD now (on the contrary!), but just because I find it important for myself to jot down what I felt at that particular time.

"Lost" by Coldplay

Just because I'm losing
Doesn't mean I'm lost
Doesn't mean I'll stop
Doesn't mean I will cross

Just because I'm hurting
Doesn't mean I'm hurt
Doesn't mean I didn't get what I deserved
No matter and no worse

I just got lost
Every river that I tried to cross
Every door I ever tried was locked
Oh and I'm just waiting 'til the shine wears off

You might be a big fish in a little pond
Doesn't mean you've won
'Cos along may come a bigger one

And you'll be lost
Every river that you tried to cross
Every gun you ever held went off
Oh and I'm just waiting 'til the firing stopped
Oh and I'm just waiting 'til the shine wears off...

Step into my new shoes

Bought 2 new pairs of shoes from Queensbay Mall on Sunday. Not feeling any regrets up till now cos I haven't bought anything for myself for so long! Been saving for my U.S. trip which is on the 20th, gosh, the exchange rate is mean!

Black peep-toe low pumps - RM49.90

White ballet flats - RM39.90

There's a disadvantage to buying cheap shoes - they scrape your skin badly and leave scars! Leo told me not to buy anymore - Guess flats cost only $10 in the U.S.

Whoopee! ^__^

Feeling ill... but not quite there yet

Battery running low... with my daily supply of eggs, Cheezels and Yakult gone. :-(

What do I do? I go out and get some. Plus some reading material.

Pet Peeves

Pet Peeve #1 - Treadmill hoggers

I just can't understand why some people are so insensitive to hog the treadmill for >1 hour during peak hours, especially when there are so many others still waiting in line to use the equipment!

I don't mind taking my run outside when the sky is clear but it was raining yesterday. C'mon, I know the treadmill is free and all, but give others a chance to lose some weight too!

Pet Peeve #2 - Insensitive, male chauvinistic remarks

Former MCA president Dr Ling Liong Sik remarked that men have a need to "exhaust all their extra energy", therefore male adultery is acceptable if nobody knows about it.

UNBELIEVABLE!!! But I guess anything can be said/happen in Boleh-land, even a shameless man can go through a "baptism of fire" and be voted in as MCA's No. 2 these days. MCA is hopeless.

小狗不见了

最近开始追看TVB的《当狗爱上猫》... 在其中一集，狗主角小巴被罗家良遗弃在大公路边，还上错货车，被载到很远的地方去。大家在大公路附近找来找去找不到，怎知小巴最后很聪明地自己认路走回家。

看到这里，我的泪水不禁滑过眼角。我家小狗已经“跟佬走”超过三个礼拜了。通常它离家出走，最多不会超过一个礼拜就会在我的家门外摇着尾巴嚷着要进来。但这一次已经走得太久了...不晓得它到底发生了什么事...不晓得它会不会回来。

妈妈说，小狗很有灵性。前一阵子我们一家人在讨论我们到外国旅游那段期间，要怎样处置它。想不到它却自己先走了。不懂是不是因为听懂我们在说着它。回顾当初，我少抱它了... 它临走前我也没有好好 sayang 它一下。:-(

小狗，你快点回来吧~

周末日记 （短篇）

上个周末，本来以为一定要留在家里做个闷蛋了；因为一通电话，变得异常忙碌。

表弟要戴四方帽了，舅舅一家人从吉隆坡北上UUM 出席典礼，妈妈临时通知我说他们一家人要在我的家留宿一夜。我的 surprise，妈妈也跟着上来了！

时间流程：

星期六

• 早上和广康、贤智约好到槟城州图书馆找资料。
• 先医饱肚子再说吧！我们到街上“王昭君”吃酸辣鱼肉米粉汤和鱼肉河粉。好好吃哦！^__^
• 到达 Dewan Sri Tanjung。原来那里是没有所谓的图书馆的！被广康的朋友“老点”了... 那里的看管员还告诉我们，槟岛是没有图书馆的，叫我们到北海的图书馆去。有没有搞错！被称为“文化沙漠”的怡保随手占来就已经有两间了... 堂堂一个槟岛竟然没有图书馆？我不信！
• 打了个电话给朋友，她告诉我州图书馆其实在槟城跑马场附近。
• 广康说反正来到街上，就先去观音庙，那里有图书馆，现搜搜看吧。那里很少我们所要找的英文书籍。
• 成功到达槟州图书馆。那里星期一、星期二是休假的哦！成功找到我们要的东西，在那里呆到下午三点多。
• 到 Prangin Mall 吃午餐，在 D' Oasis Cafe 叫了个 set lunch，草草了事。然后到楼上 IT 中心替弟弟的 portable hard disk 换了一个 casing。（事后发觉，治标不治本。T_T）
• 回去收拾家里，待会有客到。
• 下午六点，妈妈还有表弟一家人到了。休息了一会，带他们到 Cherry Blossoms 吃东炎大餐。
• 晚上八点半，我去 Pantai Jerejak PKR 服务中心那里上 Photoshop class。
• 晚上十点半，去 Queensbay Mall 把妈妈还有舅舅、舅母载回家。好彩我快了一步上车，过后就下大雨了。
• 冲完凉，混混沌沌地上床睡觉。

星期日

• 早上八点就起床了，带舅舅一家人到 BB Cafe 吃早餐。过后他们就北上了。
• 和妈妈到巴央巴鲁大巴刹买菜。这一次和平时上巴刹很不同；是买我一个星期要煮的菜。
• 然后和妈妈到 PISA 游了一小时泳。好累~~~~~~~~~
• 午餐带妈妈到 El Mondo's Pizza 吃 Pepperoni 牛肉比萨。
• 妈妈坐 2.15pm 的巴士回怡保。
• 第一次用 Yeap Chor Ee road 到 Gembira Parade 做 facial。好舒服，真享受！~
• 下午五点就回到家，同时，妈妈也已经回到怡保了。
  
  

Genting Revisited

Just came back from a weekend company trip to The Land of Rollercoasters and Slot Machines. Somehow, I felt the trip with him on the bus was shorter last year. Time really flies when you're beside the one you love! Yaya... I know, I'm my corny-self again... but I couldn't help sighing looking at all the spots we'd been in together... celebrating my birthday at Starbucks, jumping on the bed in the hotel room, strapped onto the rollercoasters together, watching that god-awful Nicholas Cage movie on heavenly OSIM massage chairs in GSC, taking a photo on the Golden Gate Bridge replica... Wowee! I can't believe I'm actually gonna see the real one come next month!!!

So... back to the Genting trip... we checked in, had a quick shower and headed for the Theme Park straightaway. Going to the Theme Park I somewhat feel a lack of excitement, cos I have been on most of the rides for more than a dozen times now! *yawn*

Solero Shot

After going on this, all the remaining ones eg. Corkscrew are just childplay. But how? Do you think I can brave the Stratosphere Tower one? I think I'll just scream... "OMFGGGGGGGGG..." up there.

Waiting in line for the Solero Shot

Superman

Finally! Something new that I've been dying to try since its inception! RM10 if you have the all-day wristband, RM12 without it. What I felt: scary at first but after the first two turns you get bored and numb and gross after bumping your chin numerous times on the saliva/sweat-coated cushion which stinks to 7th heaven!

Afterwards, we went back to the hotel room to wash our face and hands before the dinner. First World Cafe buffet sucks... yet it kept me full... *whatever*. Continued with the Indoor themepark: rollercoaster, Motion Master (again, Ali Baba sucks!!) and bumper car!! Then went off to meet my bestie and her new bf for the first time! Spent some quality time alone with her afterwards... chatted with her until 2am.

The next morning, I saw a winter jacket sale! With lotsa advice from my extremely helpful colleagues, I bought 2 winter jackets - one for my mom and one for my dad - to bring to the U.S. The women's cost RM59 and the men's cost RM99. The inside was fleeced and the outside was wind and waterproof. So cheap!!! ^_^

And this is what I do when I'm waiting for the bathroom.

*End of story*

Emily Giffin - Love the One You're With (Prelude)

I'm a rare fan when it comes to chick lit... no Sophie Kinsella whatsoever nonsense for me... but this book caught my eye when it was first introduced at Mostlyfiction.com. Since then I'd been waiting for more than 5 months for this book to arrive and to be sold on our shores... finally in Oct there's a paperback version selling... but at a ridiculously sky-high price!!!!

Since when did chick-lit deserve to be sold at such an offensive price!?

Cecelia Ahern's "P.S. I Love You" is another extravagantly priced book at Borders costing >RM50!

Ah well, I'd already read a few pages of "Love the One You're With" online... and well... although it does seem to be screaming out 'Justification!' when I'm having doubts and second thoughts in our relationship (no offense intended, honey)... I was totally hooked on it... and just can't wait to flip the pages... btw, I thought to myself, how many other paperback versions would there be?

Luckily it is Border's Best at 20% off this week... and together with my RM30 worth of Border's vouchers, I decided to buy it at RM22.72. But still... *sighs at the price*

Hope I shall have a good read at Genting this weekend. :-) And I shall once again re-discover that yes, I'm Lovin' The One I'm With...~

Our new Finance Minister / "future PM" = Out of Touch

From today's The Star:

DPM: Our economy is stable

KUALA TERENGGANU: The country’s economy is stable despite the financial meltdown affecting many parts of the world.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said that although the Government cannot deny the fact that the domestic inflation rate had soared due to hikes in petroleum prices recently, it had embarked on several proactive measures to address the stability of the country’s economy. <-- WHAT proactive measures?!

“Our inflation rate is much lower than in neighbouring countries,” said Najib during the launch of the World Endurance Championship 2008 “countdown” at Gong Badak here yesterday. <-- Which neighbouring countries?! Myanmar? Indonesia?!

He said the Government also forecast that the instability of United States’ economy would have some effect on Malaysia’s economy. <-- 'Some' effect huh?! Very intelligent, coming from someone who studied Economics in the UK... spent too much time there studying or womanizing?!

He added that the Government would announce several packages to boost economic growth very soon. <--Let's see...

“The Government will also increase domestic expenditure to boost the economy,” he said. <--What domestic expenditure? U mean in UMNO??

And just last month, after Wall Street crumbled after the bankruptcy of Lehman Bros.; coming from the mouth of Sen. John McCain himself: "The fundamentals of our economy are strong"... then a few days later changed his words to: "the fundamentals are at great risk".

Sound familiar, Najib? Duhhh... It is definately not a good sign for Malaysians when our new finance minister cum "future PM" is SIMPLY OUT OF TOUCH!!

生命万岁！我要去听“冷玩”演唱会了！

Project 忙完的最后一天，我紧紧地闭上房门，用喇叭非常大声地播放这一首歌 - Viva la Vida （意思是：Long live the life，生命万岁！）。

这是一首非常热情奔放的歌曲，浮现的感觉和以往他们那些带有少许哀伤的歌曲很不一样。生命万岁嘛，正好适合我此刻脱离苦海的心情！乍听之下我心想，哗...主唱那位 Chris Martin 当上爸爸之后，把对新生命的热爱都灌到歌曲创作上。怎知到谷歌搜寻歌词才发现，原来歌词还真诡异呢！内容涉及到宗教 （“I know St. Peter won't call my name”）、革命等等很深的理念。后知后觉，原来专辑的全名叫《Viva la Vida or Death and all his friends》。炸到... 是不是意味着此专辑是要留给听众自己慢慢诠释其中意义呢？你可以称它为欢呼生命的专辑，或是隐藏着死亡过后什么的。

在同样一个专辑里另外一首我很喜欢的单曲是《Violet Hill》，第一次听它的旋律就被它深深地吸引住，重复播放不下二十次。歌词最好别去看，一看让我打冷颤寒入背脊骨。“Was a long and dark December When the banks became cathedrals And a fox became God” 真的让我毛孔悚然，我情愿他们回到 《A Rush of Blood to the Head》那样大谈政治。但在同一首歌里又有让人感动至深的歌词“If you love me, won't you let me know If you love me, why'd you let me go?” 真让人百感交集。还有一样很奇怪的是，那天我替 Leonard 拿车去 service，那间修车中心的名字竟然叫 Vivahill... 正是 《Viva la Vida》和《Violet Hill》的结合体。世界上有酱巧的事情吗？？？！

唉，不管如何，Coldplay 这 ultimately special 的 alternative rockband，我竟然有幸去听他们的演唱会！！！在大学时期深深迷上《Yellow》 和 《A Rush of Blood to the Head》时，真是连做梦也没想到有朝一日将坐在台下，听着 Chris Martin 的声音！！！更难的是他们是一个 UK band，竟然选了在我计划到美国的当儿去那里演唱！真是OMG！当然，以下的票是要谢谢我的亲爱的替我购买~~~ :-p



说到要到美国去... 美金兑换率上涨了，一美元兑换RM3.5！ 真糟糕，为什么之前没预料到呢？ 要花的总是要花的... T_T 只好努力赚回咯~

到时，我要大声呐喊：“If you love me, why'd you let me go!!!!!!!!!?”

没灵感

朋友问我为什么许久没有写部落了？
我说：“没灵感。”

来来去去总是那些琐碎事。
Project 完了，人也变得空闲了。
有位同事天天对我说她很得空。
看来我们都是天生犯贱。
一定要工作忙得死去活来才觉得生命有价值吗？傻的。
老板叫我自我增值，我得乘上班时间埋头苦读。

有几位朋友暂停写部落了。
是因为像我一样吗，生活变得琐碎，步伐变得零散？
还是因为根本不想再把自己曝露给人看？
祝你们早日复出。
也希望我的灵感早日涌现，那我就可以继续享受写部落的乐趣。:-)

Simply Heaven

Today I received one of the loveliest bouquets ever in the office. The twelve roses were nearly in full bloom -- I love roses in full bloom! Cos I'm not a great gardener... the buds simply just don't open when I tend to them. My colleague and I were wondering what to call the color of the roses, I thought it was champagne color but it seems champagne is more to a pinkish shade, and they're not yellow enough to be called that. Finally I thought of one good description -- off-white! Haha! And the color of the roses go so well with the lavender!!! Hullo... 我久违的薰衣草！

If I could, I'd name the bouquet 'Simply Heaven'.

'Simply Heaven' in vertical mode

Since I'm going home today, it'll be a terrible waste to leave them in the office for no-one to see. Why not I just bring them back home? 我想把花束的意义带得更远。我要把它转送给一位病人，一位我亲爱的病人。外婆，祝你早日康复。

And thanks, my darling for the lovely roses. ^__^

Tape-in celebration: Rasa Sayang Mediterranean Buffet

'Ambience' - Spice Market Cafe, Shangri-la Rasa Sayang Resort

Yesterday, our company was so good to treat us to a buffet dinner at Shangri-la Rasa Sayang Resort as our project tape-in celebration. I was so excited the whole day about the dinner as it would be my first time to sample it. And I hadn't been to a buffet for a few months already...

However, the first thing that came to mind after I walked into the buffet hall and looked at all the food was: "Where are the lobsters???!?" Needless to say, it was kinda disappointing for all of us first-timers as we were expecting much, much more from all the fanfare we had heard about the Rasa Sayang buffet.

There were no lobsters, no crayfish, no scallops, no delicious lamb chop, no char koay teow and totally no sashimi cos the SUSHI BAR WAS CLOSED!! In fact, the buffet paled in comparison to our marvellous experiences at the E&O buffet. After much bemusement, It was a great revealation when one of my colleagues explained to me that the theme was actually 'Mediterranean food' that night, hence the lack of seafood. :-(

You must be wondering why I didn't take any pictures of the food. Well my boss said that people usually come here for the ambience and not the food... so, there you have it on top, a picture of the 'ambience' from where I was seated. Notice the slow-turning fans... it was hot!!... because we sat outside due to the lack of dining tables in the air-conditioned hall.

I had 4 servings of the food (can view menu here):

1st serving - MEAT! satay, chicken tandoori, beef steak, fried softshell crab, etc.
2nd serving - soba in herbal black chicken soup with 'abalone' slices, meatball, needle mushrooms, black fungus and bean sprouts
3rd serving - finally, a clam, one more stick of satay and a little bit of rice
4th serving - watermelon, deserts, little cakes and strawberries and marshmellows dipped in chocolate from the chocolate fountain. I claim the devil's food to be very very decadent and chocolately though :-)
5th serving - 2 scoops of coffee/vanilla icecream doused with biscuit pieces and raisins and stuff. I didn't manage to finish it.

We took a walk in the hotel gardens to let our stomachs digest the food. It was GORGEOUS at night with all the spotlights on and the huge, towering, leafy trees and the splashing sound of the waves... I wish Leonard were there walking beside me.

All in all, it would suffice to say that I had a happy time, albeit a tad disappointed, but still thankful for the opportunity to visit the buffet at Rasa Sayang.

Project taped-in!!

Finally my project has taped-in! I'm back to freedom where I can hit the gym after work, cook my own dinner, sit in front of my computer screen to eat it while watching drama then curl up in bed with a good book afterwards. Ahhh... the good life...

But it would be even more complete if I had someone beside me to share my leisure.

Yesterday I was supposed to hit the gym because I was feeling really bloated from a whole weekend of inactiveness. But I went into the changing-room and came out after 3 minutes after realising that I had forgotten to pack my gym clothes! And I had to endure wearing my stuffy gym shoes for the whole day~

Anyways it was a blessing in disguise as with nothing to do, I was forced to clean my room. Paint is peeling from the walls of my room (my landlord won't care, I won't too) and flakes of it are covering my floor like snow. I was in the midst of sweeping the floor when thud! something dropped to the ground and it was a big, fat, ugly cockroach!

In my distress I gave out a short shriek, which abruptly ended when I embarassingly realized that there was no one around to help me deal with the disgusting creature. I looked around, what could I do? I couldn't bear the thought of smashing it into a pulp and cleaning the mess afterwards... I saw a can of Ridsect, (not the cockroach-killing one! I wasn't sure if it would work!)... faster grabbed it and sprayyyyyed with all my might at the cockroach while at the same time praying it wouldn't take flight on its huge, ugly brown wings!

The spray worked! It tried to escape but flipped over on its side... it was dying, its legs wriggling, body writhering with pain. It was semi-paralyzed. I was happy. I faster swept it up and flushed it down the toilet bowl.

Eeeeuu... there goes another encounter with the dreaded cockroach. After this, I hope I don't see another one until Leo comes back. Then, I can shriek and shriek and stand aside with my arms folded while my white knight deals with the cockroach with a rolled-up piece of The Star.

As I said, it was really a blessing in disguise because if I hadn't cleaned my room, I would have sat in front of the computer desk (where the cockroach appeared) happily eating my dinner as the cockroach would make its way up my leg and into my pants....................... eeeuuu

蔡依林 - 一个人

今天阴天 今天又是星期天
唯一的打算是醒得晚一些
反正我不知道怎样打发时间
出门或不出门 没差别

一个人 到底应该睡右边或左边
两个人 每一次争吵都值得纪念
一个人 偶尔感到寂寞在所难免
你的气味 还留在枕头边

一个人 我重新适应一切不方便
两个人 不一定就成全一个世界
一个人 关灯看见记忆的横切面
没有光线 过去那些情节 更明显

Third Penang Hill Cimb

Today marks my third time hiking up Penang Hill, also known as Bukit Bendera. We took the Youth Park trail up. Started hiking around 8.10a.m. and reached back down around 12.30p.m. It was kind of a personal achievement for me as I managed to do it without Leonard's help and constant encouragement (not to mention half-dragging me up all the way). I always thought I could make it only by holding on to him, but today I proved myself wrong. Well, at some point I realised that I have to face life stronger than ever, alone, when the person I miss is not by my side. Also, seems that I'm not that weak after all, my regular runs on the gym treadmill paid off by improving my stamina and willpower. I remember my first hike up, it felt worse than hell. This time around I had to stop once whilst climbing up the stairs to catch my breath and try not to faint.

Thanks to WM for inviting me for the hike, WH for the chocolate milk, LS for the yummy sandwiches, and Jules for hiking together with me at the last part. Now for that lactic acid to wear off... :-)

PDC Ladies Day

这是一个很女人的一天。为了让我们这些女性工程师能够更容易地融入男性占大多数的工作环境，我们的部门的 gender diversity taskforce 在八月十一日，在 B-suite 酒店办了一个 PDC Ladies Day，邀请全部门的女性出席，真让我们感到受宠若惊... ^_^ （男士们有没有很羡慕？）

当天包午餐，节目有：

Makeover
Photo shoot
Origami （这个我没有玩）
Fortune-telling based on face （竟然还有看面相的！ =_=''' ）
Fortune-telling based on signature （竟然说我的签名不应该用 ‘X’ 开始...）
Nail painting, manicure
Clay art （我做了一个熊娃娃）
Cupcake decoration （这个我也没有玩... 但是小蛋糕好漂亮哦！）
Beading （我做了一条链）
Head and neck massage （人工按摩... 好舒服哇~）

我做的链

我做的陶瓷冰箱磁铁 - 本人手工粗糙，陶瓷有裂痕... 哇

过后还让化妆师化妆，然后还好象业余模特儿那样被安排拍造型照呢！

有没有很青春的感觉？哈哈...

Dungeon Food

food courtesy of Delicious Delights

最近两三个礼拜的 lunch hour 都在公司里头吃外卖。
工程计划即将接近尾声，差不多整半队人都被关进密室里埋首工作。
密室叫着 “dungeon”； 老板就是我们的 “dragon”。

为了要让我们集中思绪，老板都会替我们叫外卖。我们是不必给钱的呢！
卖相还不错吧？
但是连续两三个礼拜都是吃同一家餐馆的食物，实在有点厌。
唉，最重要的，至少让我省下不少午饭的钱！

没想到我最厌的那天，捎来了有点不一样的餐点。
不是平常的炒饭，而是炒面，还有寿司和炸鸡呢！
算是有点小惊喜吧... 在这繁忙的工作日子...

White Water Rafting at Sungai Kampar, Gopeng

Haha... I'm feeling very adventurous lately. The outdoor activities have been getting a little frequent in the past couple of weeks.

On midnight Friday, I was suddenly jolted awake by the sound of my SMS ringtone. The text from Wei Xuan read, "Wanna go white water rafting with me and my friends tmr evening?" After a couple more text exchanges later, I was hopping on the Riverbug van together with his friends, heading for the Kampar River for my first attempt at White Water Rafting!

Boom-boom rapids

The rapids of Sg. Kampar are classified as Grades I-III. After my experience, I deem it extremely mild and not scary at all, even for a first-timer like me. I'd imagined it to be something more thrilling, like rafting off waterfalls in Indiana Jones. Seeing that I was the only girl on board, I added some screams and shrieks for effect lah...

At some parts of the river, we tried out some body-rafting techniques. We also climbed up a tree branch dangling horizontally across the river and mimicked the Olympic divers -- double somersault down! It felt like being a kid again, bathing in Sg. Bil. At that point I had the feeling that I had paid a little too much on the high side -- RM145 for the rafting. Darn. I didn't even capsize, nor get flung out of the raft! :-( But I did get a glimpse of some lovely Raja Brooke butterflies fluttering their pretty wings on the bank though. :-)

Us in the boat - Anybody interested in these 4 fit bachelors, feel free to drop me a comment.

Conquered Sg. Kampar!

Last but not least, dinner at Kampar's famous claypot chicken rice... YUMMYLICIOUS!!!

缺德

最近空气污染指数已经很严重了，今天在我家楼下还有人竟敢公开焚烧垃圾！真是太缺德了！

印尼森林大火虽然是烟霾出现的问题，但在自己国家制造烟霾，真是令人发指！

真希望他被自己烧的烟薰死！！！

笨人！还害到我生病了！！*气*！！！

远远

最近追看 Ntv7 播出的本地戏《有你终身美丽》，爱上这首片尾曲。 离我远远的是你； 突然间，好想你。

歌名：远远 歌手：林宇中

或许我不再出现
爱才值得你怀念
你也不想见
见了也不变
你痛苦转身的局面

或许我放的警觉
你才允许让泪浮现
是苦还是甜
想起我的脸
希望不是眼泪掉线

我只好离你远远
却已伤害你偏偏
我不配你的美
竟把你爱的狼狈
可是我离你远远
你越境靠在我眼前
已不见

你幸福爱我的脸
还欠你太多誓言
我也没资格实现
挥霍轻轻跳着你的从前
而现在的我只好

离你远远
却已伤害你偏偏
我不配你的美
竟把你爱的狼狈
可是我离你远远
你越境靠在我眼前
已不见
你幸福爱我的脸

再远远 你幸福 我会搁浅

High Ropes Adventure at Skytrex, Taman Pertanian Bukit Cahaya, Shah Alam

At the moment I'm typing this on my laptop, I'm also sipping wild berry juice in The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, One Utama. Shifting uncomfortably in my extremely low-cut empire waist top (it's the norm in KL these days), I'm feeling a bit lonely because Berry couldn't make it to meet me, and the boys have left. :-(

But it's still ok, I have Sia Ling's Skytrex photos to view and blog about now!! :-)

During the weekend I travelled down to KL again -- this time for an adventure amongst the treetops at Skytrex, Taman Pertanian Bukit Cahaya Shah Alam! Thanks to Chen Jie the organizer, a total of 19 people showed up that sunny morning. I say, daredevils we are not, just a bunch of working adults trying to recapture our youth!

Me and pretty Jace on the open-air bus

The last time I'd been to Taman Pertanian Bukit Cahaya, I was still a kid. It was a gruesome experience -- the memory of the open-air bus I was on running over that girl on a bicycle will be forever etched in my mind.

But nevermind, I was in a good mood that day and was determined to chase the devils of my childhood out of Taman Pertanian!

Gearing up - I love Chen Waan's waist! It's so tiny!! *envy*

Renting the climbing equipment is compulsory (no Spiderman here). Rental of the harness costs RM31.50 and you can either choose to rent the gloves for RM1 or buy disposable ones for RM2. The RM1 gloves stink.

No worries here, there are people to help you with the harness. The harness goes around your waist and pelvis, so it's kinda like a seat while you're suspended from mid-air. 3 things are hooked on your waist: 1 carabiner with short rope, 1 carabiner with long rope, and a pulley.

When you see horizontal ropes, unhook the pulley from your waist and hook it onto the safety rope. Hook the short carabiner on the pulley. Then hook the long carabiner onto the rope behind the pulley. When you see vertical ropes, hook both carabiners on the loop on the rope. The pulley is not needed.

Due to my well-known history of calamity incidents, I had to constantly remind myself each time to hook everything and double check, before leaping off the platform. Else, that's it. End of story.

All geared up!

Nicholas is getting more and more 'hiau' by the day. He won't take off his shades.

First Contender - the Brave Hau

California Fitness must hire this guy as its spokesperson!! He's morphed from a fat little boy into a fit young man now! When asked to go first, he practically RAN to accept the challenge. See how he eases himself up, effortlessly! That's what persistence long workouts at the gym can give you. :-) Still, at one point, he opted for the chicken-out path. "BWAK BWAK BWAK! CHICKEN!" (To Hau and Xuan).

Walking in mid-air

You think you can easily bounce across like Mario, but no. Each step is taken with a trembling foot. No, don't look down...!

Flying fox!

Just hook all the carabiners properly, take a deep breath, close your eyes and take the leap! But sometimes, it's easier said than done.

This is the ladder each one of us had to climb. Imagine Jack climbing the beanstalk.

I counted 45 rungs on the rope ladder. By the time I'd got to Rung No. 30, both my legs were shaking with fear and my arm muscles were breaking apart. I stopped a while to catch my breath, and made a stupid choice of looking down, back at my friends on the ground. It was so scary!!! After that I faster heaved myself up the ladder as fast as I could go.

Lesson learnt from Skytrex

1. Actually everything is just a fragment of your imagination. Once you know the logic behind it, and you have made all the necessary safety precautions, Flying Fox is actually safe. You won't fall crashing to the ground even if you let go both your hands!

2. Life is like Flying Fox. Friends can only cheer you on and give you advice. But you are the one to summon your own courage and take the leap of faith.

Memoribilia - At least each of us got an S&M glove for keeping

Us

All 19 of us!

After that, Bak Kut Teh at Klang~ Yum!! ^_^

我总是希望你没这么大意

--可爱的小兔、他摄于美国大峡谷

我总是希望你没这么大意。

或许我应该把你比喻成一只善忘的小松鼠一样，常常在找到松果后得意忘形起来，一转眼把松果藏到哪里就不记得了。慌慌张张地往这里钻往那里找，急起来就抓抓头、喘喘气地对我说，那 XXX 又不见了。

我怜悯地看着你，我以为我这一世都找不到比我更失忆的人了。

当我心情好时，我就会没好气地一面笑骂你一面替你找；当我心情不好时，我就会一声不响脸黑起来残忍地抛下一句：“你不见了什么不关我的事，也不要对我说”。你失落无助的眼神在我拧过身的背后停留着。

“我以为你会体谅我的。”

是的，既然两个这么相像的人都无法互相体谅，那还能啬求谁人明白？人的脾性就是这样；免得更深地伤害你，我选择逃避，把自己与你的事远远隔离；事不关己，谁也伤害不了谁。

请原谅我的自私；我不想一世人都在担心你。（但是我忘了，在同时，我也希望被人担心。）我希望你像小兔一样机警。

直到我冰冻的心因为纯真的爱把它融化了；我转过身准备用双手递送我的温暖。却看见你像阳光般的笑容，你高兴的呐喊：“我找到了，我找到了！”

我心生安慰，因为我知道失去的东西若真正属于你，它是会回来的。

P/S：今天他电邮了一些小动物的相片给我。刚巧 Google 换了 banner，因为今天是 Beatrix Potter 的生日。Beatrix Potter 是 Tales of Peter Rabbit 的作者。一直以来都很喜欢 Peter Rabbit 的绘图。原来，真正的兔子和松鼠，真的和绘图一样那么可爱。

1 year and 3 months

Bursts of pink fill my blue room

I'm so glad you still remember our special day when you're over there. ^__^

Happy Monthly-versary, darling.

Tiramisu for you

“Because I'll miss you.” 他说。

机场是离离合合的地方。哭得像泪人一般的情侣，机场的职员们都见惯不怪。

哭得小孩般害羞的是我； 但无法抑制，面对着即将的分离，胸中的感觉无法释怀。

给我一杯 tiramisu，把这份爱注入心里，甜腻一整年。

好羡慕那些在美国的人。那是我的梦想之都。

什么时候才能轮到我起飞， 飞到那宣扬民主自由的国度呢？

-The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf，星期四，他起飞前

P/S：可能有些朋友觉得腻了，想在这里对我说：“男朋友不在，那就找别的事情干啊。” 但我还有许多感觉想记载下来。最近太忙了，工作压力让我透不过气。我想把心底的话全都发泄出来。这是我发泄的唯一管道。就让我发泄吧。

你们都是我的好朋友 @ Jung Won Korean Restaurant

星期日，我下了一趟吉隆坡。好久没到这地方了，连朋友的妈妈都会说我有异性没人性。趁这一次正好有事情办，顺便到首都透透气，同时约了三两个好友出来聚一聚。

没想到朋友们都很爽快，在短短一天内一次过见了四位好友，还认识了一位新朋友。

中午，和思敏、秋韵逛 Midvalley/ The Gardens。以前 Midvalley 是我们假日常逛的地方，没想到在短短两三年内，变了这么多。旁边扩展出了一个 The Gardens，虽说高档货占多，但若仔细看看，也可能会挑到便宜货的，因为当时有很多折扣！可惜没时间。:-(

特别喜欢 Robinsons，里面有很多品牌款式，都是 Jusco，Parkson，Metrojaya 没有的。

午餐到金加利吃，思敏作主。呵呵！后来，伟轩和秋韵来了，我们再到 The Gardens 内的快餐寿司店 Oh Sushi! 看他们吃。里面的寿司好贵啊~~

晚餐国鑫请吃韩国菜，我们到 Jalan Ampang 的 Victoria Station 附近一家叫 Jung Won 的韩国餐馆用餐。好久没碰过韩国菜了，最后一次吃，应该是 '03 年在首尔吧！餐馆有 indoor dining 和 outdoor dining... 我们选择在外边吃，一边吃一边欣赏周围的美景，好不痛快！

照片拍得有点 blur。里面的韩国字，谁会念？

里面外面，好有情调... 但若下雨则更棒！因为有靓仔（韩国仔）撑伞！

很多盘 kimchi...

怎样想也想不起来 kimchi 华语叫什么，因为我平时都不看韩剧的。在韩国，只要在餐馆叫一碗白饭，kimchi 就会随盘奉上，因为 kimchi 的价钱已经被算在那一碗饭里面了。国鑫说以前他在韩国作穷书生时也是那么吃的。Kimchi 都不是很正宗韩国味，融入了马来西亚风味。但这对我来说比较好，因为我不太喜欢吃正宗韩菜！

韩国卧饼。很好吃呢！

食物很好吃，倒是忘了拍重点 - BBQ 猪肉、鸡肉和羊肉！还有专人替我们烤呢！都不用自己动手。而且在户外用餐，头发也不会染上烟熏味！

我也竟然忘了和重点人物（请我吃的人）合照！真善忘！:-S

我的好姐妹！ 这里看，我有瘦了吗？

这是把思敏弄得醉醺醺的东西~

在吉隆坡生活真的很贵，我带了五张 RM50 下去，回来的时候钱包里只剩下三张红色的，一张青色的，还有四蓝色的。而且，中晚餐还不用我自掏腰包付钱呢！~ :-O

巧克力

如果吃巧克力可以使人快乐，
那为什么我吃了一整块，

还是感到不快乐呢？

Weekend Retreat at Danai Spa, Penang

Last weekend, my sweetie treated me to a luxuriously decadent spa experience at Danai Spa, Penang! (I shall deem this experience as decadent ok, because never in my right mind would I spend that kind of money indulging in a spa for myself... sounds so... only for the datin-datins... gosh!)

Anyway, after getting a bit lost on the road, we finally reached Danai Spa at 4 o'clock. Enclaved in a hilly residential area just opposite the Tanjung Bungah hotel, it at first sight seemed modest - a bit too modest to me compared to its professional-looking branch at g-hotel!

We took the couple-spa package, consisting of a 90-minute Danai Signature Massage, 30-minute full body scrub and Destress Therapy Soak bath. In addition to the package, we could also use the outdoor facilities for 20 minutes. The whole experience would last for 2-3 hours.

Follow me as I embark on my first spa adventure!

He does looks like he really needs a spa, doesn't he? Poor thing!

Through this door... down the steps to the mythical garden of Balinese architecture...

I'm a Princess! Princess goes in to change in the dressing room...

Balinese princess getting her feet washed...

Ohh... si puteraku datang menunggang kuda... kemudian dicuci kakinya...

Lovely rainfall pool!

After bathing our tired/smelly feet at the pipe, we were led to this lovely pool, with little rainlets of water sprinkling from the top and all... so pretty. We were supposed to get ourselves a little wet by walking through the pool to the jacuzzi at the other end. Aahh... the clean and clear water... how nice if it were a swimming pool!

The garden decor was refreshingly sweet and simple with lots of greenery, pottery, Balinese statues and water features. I could almost imagine sweet Balinese music playing in the background and me, being chased by my dayang-dayang around a waterfall in a quiet forest setting!

Pathway...

Jacuzzi... Looked like something out of a magazine

Sipping ginger tea in the jacuzzi...

Us enjoying the jacuzzi together

Can catch a glimpse of the sea from the jacuzzi

Massage bed... how I wish we did our massage here

Cute Balinese decor on the roof

During my trip to Korea, our tourguide mentioned that no one in their right mind would go for a spa in Malaysia, unlike four season country citizens like Koreans, Japanese and Taiwanese, because the weather is too hot here! It did make a lot of sense as I almost had a dizzy spell from the warm jacuzzi in the hot afternoon sun. (Furthermore that day was EXTREMELY hot and dry...)

After the jacuzzi we changed into bathrobes in a small hut and went indoors for the massage. There are 4 themed rooms to choose from - Balinese, Moroccan, Oriental and English. I chose Balinese, but the Moroccan and English themed rooms are the best! The Danai Signature massage combines Thai and Swedish massage techniques - which I felt was still ok, since I don't like my massages hard (in fact, I don't really like to be massaged at all), but was definately not hard enough for Leo. He said he can get a better massage from Queensbay Mall at RM30. You know me, I fell asleep and snored pleasantly all the way through. ^@^~ One tip: the famous massage here is actually the Hawaiian Kahuna Massage, I heard it's very special, but of course, a bit on the pricey side...

Next up was the full body scrub - I had Ginger Salt Glow scrub while Leo had the Apple and Oats scrub for sensitive skin. For first-timers who haven't had a long scrub in ages, it's good to choose Ginger Salt to thoroughly burn and grind those stubborn dead cells off you! I love my scrubs hard, but I'll laugh when the girl scrubs the soles of my feet! I wanna try Milk and Honey next time for skin whitening. We felt and smelled so good after that... like a pair of marinated chicken wings.

Last but not least, we were ushered off into a bathroom with a nice big bathtub for our Destress Therapy Soak. We figured we needed the Destress theme after our heavy workload recently. On the contrary, the bath was so hot that it felt stressful... we kept leaping up every few minutes into the cold shower. Cold, warm, cold, warm... hmm... can be good for taut skin too.

We finished our entire spa experience by 7.30pm, feeling extremely pampered, a bit guilty for the decadence, and a bit sweaty cos of the heat. Our verdict: for the kind of service given, Danai Spa is a bit overpriced. But ambience and facilities were not bad... just felt a bit rushed at the first 20 minutes.

But if you ask me, I wouldn't mind doing it another time...! Anybody knows anymore good spas in Penang? ^_^