Finding the one

You know you've found a keeper when your friends complain about their boyfriends, their crushes, their flings and they go "all guys are the same", and you just keep quiet because you've got nothing to add to that conversation.

Rethink that proposal/wedding song, please - Marry You by Bruno Mars

I have, in actual fact, never given Marry You by Bruno Mars much thought until today.

I mean, just listen to the song, it's catchy and it has a nice tune. 
If you just do a simple Youtube search, you'll come across tons of proposals and wedding march-ins that uses this song, so it must be a really romantic song. Right?

WRONG.

For the first time in my life, I looked at the lyrics. Like, really looked.

And to my horror, I realised what this song is really about.

It's a beautiful night ,
We're looking for something dumb to do
Hey baby
I think I want to marry you.

(Do you really wanna marry someone who goes like "Hey, I'm bored and the night is still young. Why not we get married or whatever just so we have something to do?")

Is it the look in your eyes?
Or is it these dancing shoes?
Who cares baby
I think I wanna marry you

("And like, I'm not really sure if I want to marry you, but I'm so drunk right now I can't tell if I like you or your shoes, but let's just do it anyway.")

Well I know this little chapel on the 

boulevard we can go
No one will know
Oh come on girl

("Well, you don't need anything fancy do ya? And let's keep it a secret shall we, since it's just an impulsive thing that we'll probably regret tomorrow?)

yada yada. and it goes on to this:

If we wake up and you wanna break up that's cool
No, I won't blame you
It was fun girl

You get my drift. This, my friend, so far from being a romantic song that croons about how much a guy wants to marry the girl of his dreams and make her his wife. This song is about a guy who doesn't give a hoot about the girl, he's just suggesting it because he is pissed drunk and bored and has nothing better to do.

So if you were thinking of using this song, please, start looking for a new one.

So..K finally popped the question

I'm officially engaged!

He popped the question during our third year anniversary. I wasn't expecting it to be so early, but oh well, pleasant surprise! :D

We went to Morton's for dinner that night. I have no idea why but I was feel out of place at such restaurants.

It was a weekday but the place was packed. Didn't know there were so many rich people around. i mean, Morton's isn't dinner that you can simply afford everyday but the people looked real at home there.

Gigantic piece of bread. None of that thinly-sliced nonsense. okay I kid. But the bread here is seriously huge. You can like, make a meal out of it.

$90 seafood chilled platter. I got a shock when K ordered this because come on, there's like 8 or 9 pieces of food so basically you're paying $10 per bite. But to be honest it was really good la, you can tell the seafood was really fresh and the prawn...omg the prawn..so succulent.

T-bone steak. Ok la the picture isn't very well-taken because the lighting is really dim. But you can see how juicy that piece of meat is. And it was huge so we had to share it. I'm not really a fan of steaks but even I had to admit that Morton's is really doing something right.

Mashed fries pancake, or something like that. By the time this thing came we were so full we couldn't even finish it and had to cancel dessert. This seem mediocre compared to the steak and the seafood platter, but on its own it's actually quite nice I guess. But quite overpriced at $25. And we fed like half of this to Haha (our dog, sort of) so Haha had a really good and expensive supper.

Honours Thesis woes

Just started with my Honours Thesis interviews and realized that my questions needed touching up. It didn't really hit as close to the mark as I hoped it would.

OMG I'm hating my HT even before it officially starts.

SOSD Adoption Drive @ Cornerstone, Bishan Park (30 June 2013)

We finally went to SOSD's Adoption Drive at Cornerstone Bishan Park last Sunday.

I've been wanting to go for like, forever, but I always had things that clashed with it. The last time they had the adoption drive, I was overseas.

I think the last time I went to Bishan Park was like, for some sports event in my secondary school, that's like 6 or 7 years ago. Bishan Park changed really really a lot, it's so peaceful and green and serene now. And it's so dog-friendly it feels like a doggie paradise.

We had a hard time finding Cornerstone but finally managed to. 

 This is Rusty. He's so fluffy and furry and soft I really wanted to bring him home right there and then.

So many people were there! They had a special section cordoned off for puppies and it was like the most popular area. So we opted to look at some of the other more adult dogs.

This is Patch. She's named that because she has a tiny patch of white on her back, and she's wearing white socks (figuratively la of course :D)

Patch was really cute. but it was like she can't stay still. Hahaha. See how hard a time K was having trying to catch up with her.

We also spent some time with Bambi. She's really smart, she knows so many tricks and she walks on leash damn well. I went for a jog with her and she was so focused. I felt so blissful and energetic running with her by my side.

I really want a dog leh. Can't wait to get my own house so that I can finally keep one.

I've finally laid my hands on a Samsung galaxy mega 6.3

So, I've finally bought my Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 on Monday.

I was contemplating between the Samsung mega 6.3 and the upcoming Note 3 that is supposedly due in September, but I decided that I didn't want to wait that long (it'll probably be available in Singapore from only October or November onwards).

And oh boy, what a happening night we had.

K and I went to Kasia Mobile at around 8pm. Confirmed that they did not take cash and went on to the POSB ATM right next door to make my withdrawals.

But to my horror, my debit card wasn't working. Like, it just went in and came out again, and it gave me a fright la. Thought my card has been secretly replaced or something. Spent another 10 minutes talking to the CSO, went to Kasia Mobile to explain the situation, rushed down to the POSB branch at Peninsula Plaza (which closes at 8.30pm), queued for what seems like forever, got a replacement card, and then rushed back to Kasia.

OMG it was a nightmare. Feels like I was on a nightmarish amazing race.

But anyway, I got the last piece of the white mega. They were not giving free gifts anymore but at a price of $660 I wasn't complaining. The second cheapest option I could find was HTI Mobile at $680. And they were giving away free car cradle and charger, which is useless for me since I don't have a car and neither does K.

So anyway, I've been using the phone for two days now and so far I quite like it.

Of course, a lot of stuff are completely different from the apple system and I had to spend so much time trying to figure things out, but on the whole, I very much prefer this over my dying iPhone 4S. In fact, when I stare back at my iPhone now, the screen appears so small in comparison it almost feels like a toy.

I really like the huge-ass screen, it makes reading a breeze because everything's bigger. The touch screen is also really sensitive and not any lousier than the iPhone's. I'm still getting used to living without the assistive touch though. There are alike apps for download on the play store but it just feels weird so I decided to do without it.

The processor is supposedly slower than the Note 2, which K is using, but I didn't notice any significant difference. That may be because I don't play any games though.

One thing that I really miss about the iPhone is its autocorrect. You know how people always make fun of it because it sometimes over-compensates and autocorrects what you're trying to say to ridiculous words, but once it's gone, you realize how much convenience it brought. I'm always misspelling words now because I seem to be pressing the wrong keys all the time, so I actually took longer to compose messages now.

And there are always apps running in the background that I didn't open. They're just there no matter how I try to close them. I haven't figured out yet.

There's also a slight heating issue right below where the camera is, but then I also experienced this with my iPhone so it's not a big issue.

Actually what bothered me the most was the lack of choice of accessories for the Samsung mega 6.3. There are not many choices to pick from and I don't want to end up with a ugly casing. I wanted to buy a temporary one but even the ugliest cheapest cover costs like $25, which is a total rip off la. So I've decided to just use my phone naked until the one I ordered online arrives.

Anyway this is the case that I bought on eBay, quite nice right? Only $16 some more. Hopefully it'll reach Singapore soon and it'll be a good fit for my phone.

The haze is driving me crazy

The haze is seriously driving me crazy.

I've seriously never encountered a haze as bad as this one before.

I look out of my window, and I feel like I'm in a sandstorm or something. It just feels so depressing. I've kept all my windows and doors shut, and it does help to keep out the smell to some extent, but the microbes or whatever is just too damn hard to keep out.

My eyes itch and tear, my nose feels like it's in pain and my throat just feels all stuck together.

On the rare occasion that I do leave my room, the smell just hits you in the face once you open that door.

The PSI is just crazy high now. And the thing is, what gets reported may not even be the true figure because it's supposed to a 3-hour reading.

The 100 plus range is supposed to already be unhealthy, but now it's like, your heart does this little dance of joy whenever it hits that range because it's already considered very low compared to what is happening this feel days.

To make matters worse, the shops have all ran out of air purifiers and the N95 masks. It kind of feels like the end of the world is coming actually, because even the Samsung Mega 6.3 was out of stock when I went to enquire yesterday.

You see so much profiteering acts coming out during this period of time. A box of 20 masks used to go for around SGD20 I heard, but now it's going for exorbitant prices of up to SGD100 per box. And the justification these people give are that, if they don't do that, other people will just buy over what is left of the stock to sell at even crazier prices. But this shouldn't be what is happening right? Where is the humanity? Shouldn't this be the time where you're more compassionate and not hog stuff, especially when you know so many people are waiting for it.

I just read that the government is bringing in another 1.5 million of the N95 masks that they've stockpiled out of the 9 million. And the first thought that comes to mind is, why ONLY 1.5 million. That's not going to be enough to go around for sure.

So I've just bought the masks and a Honeywell 50150-N air purifier off Amazon because I'm so tired of waiting and the jacking up of prices. And  I'm expecting that the earliest it'll reach here is next Friday or next next week. Part of me cringes when I think of how much I have to pay for the stuff. I mean, the expedited shipping itself already cost as much as the air purifier. And what if by the time it gets shipped here the haze is over.

But the other part of me also worries that if I don't do that now, and the haze lasts until September or even October like what the ministers say it might, then I'm going to be dead.

I was also worried that even the Amazon ones are going to be gone if I wait any longer because I can see the number of in stocks decreasing. It's like, you never know the importance of such stuff until you desperately need it and can't find it.

I can't even sleep properly because it's that uncomfortable for my nose. If only my Honeywell and N95 masks can apparate or teleport themselves.

It's really times like this that makes me appreciate the fresh air that we usually have.

Samsung Galaxy Mega or Samsung Galaxy Note 3

I'm in a dilemma.

I really like the big-ass screen of the Mega 6.3, the iPhone that I'm using now has a screen so small it drives me nuts. So the giant screen would be a much-welcomed change.

But then again, the note 3 is coming out soon. And it's supposed to be one of the flagship products of Samsung, so it's supposed to be better right? It's not even launched and there's already so much hype about it, whereas for the Mega 6.3, it's launched alr, but like there's not even much advertising done.



The note 3 also has a better RAM at 2GB, and a better camera at 13mp compared to the 1.5GB RAM and 8mp of the Mega 6.3.

The thing is, I'm not sure of this extra 0.5GB of RAM will make much of a difference or not.

I mean, my usual phone activities just include whatsapp, calls, web browsing, FB, Twitter, calendar, reminders and that's about it. I don't think I need all those fancy stylus stuff.

Plus, if I get the Mega 6.3 I can recontract in the beginning of August, while I don't even know when the Note 3 will come out. Supposed it's launched in September like what people say, it'll definitely take another month or two before it reaches Singapore.

Oh man, which one should I choose.

5 June 2013 Updates

It's now 5 June, and half of 2013 is already gone. I hadn't set out any new year resolution, so I can't comment on whether I kept to them or not.

I'm into the second month of holidays (kinda) but it doesn't feel that long. I kind of feel like exams just ended. This semester has been a really long and tiring one. After three sems of loving the modules that I took, this sem's modules were a killer not because they were exceptionally hard, but because they were about stuff that I wasn't particularly interested in. And I was so caught up with camps and overseas trips right after exams it feels as though I haven't had time for a breather.

I can't say that I'm taking a break now because now I'm rushing things out for my honours year thesis. It was supposed to be due today but I shamelessly asked for a one-week extension. So now basically I'm just wasting that extension as well and hasn't really done anything concrete.

I just feel so drained academically. A few sems ago I was really excited about managing to pull up my cap, but this sem it's like I just don't care anymore, and my cap dropped, but I don't feel too badly about that either, after all, you reap what you sow right? I just feel so mentally exhausted and I really need a break. I foresee this three months (or rather, two months of what is left) will just fly by. This is the first time I'm actually not bored by the holidays, I don't even wanna get a holiday job or anything, I just want to snuggle up in my bed with book, or go watch a good movie. I can't wait to hand in the necessary parts for the thesis for now and just get that much-needed break.

K recently moved out from Pine Grove into his new place in Serangoon. It's a really cosy and spacious room, and I really like it. It's much closer to my weekend home but sadly, most of the time I'm in the West. The packing was hell, I really really hate packing. So in lieu of my move next year, I've decided to control my shopping, spend less and save more, so that I won't have so much things to pack this time next year. 

My mom recently commented on my front tooth, which is not aligned with the rest and jutting out a bit. It's something that I have been very self-conscious about since I was younger. She half-joked and asked if I wanted to get braces and I seriously contemplated about it for a while. But like, who gets braces at this age right, so ugly, plus I don't think I can stand the pain of pulling my teeth out. I thought about getting invisilign but they are crazy ex. I'm not about to clear out my entire life's savings to correct that one tooth. 

So I've dropped that idea (kinda) and psycho-ed myself on concentrating on other areas, like taking better care of my skin and hair, making more effort to go to the gym and so on. 

I've also been really self-conscious about my weight as well, imagine being skinny for the longest time and then suddenly you're not so skinny anymore, your jaw line is no longer as obvious, your abs are gone, your arms are getting flabby, your thigh gap is non-existent. It's not as serious to others la of course, but imagine the emotional changes you have to go through looking at the transition. Recently in the past year or so I've come to terms with it, but I've decided to try to get my weight back down, at least to 45kg. I'm hoping that few kg will not be that hard to shed la. 

I do still get mood swings, going between really contented and happy, to insecure and sad, but for the most part I'm pretty satisfied about where I'm currently at now with my life. I'm still really kiasu and trying to plan out the rest of my life, but I'm also learning to remind myself to slow down and enjoy what I currently have.

Surprisingly, I'm actually pretty looking forward to starting work. 

I hope year 4 would be a kind year to me and it'll pass by in a flash without too much trouble. 

A random joke

Little Johnny's teacher asks him to make a sentence using the following words: defeat, deduct, defense and detail.

Little Johnny says, "De feet of de duck went over de fence before de tail."

A house made of books...

I just want to be rich enough to buy books as and when I want to, without worrying about how insanely expensive books are. I want a floor to ceiling bookshelf that is covered with my favourite picks.

Than again, I want that with my clothes too.

I like my money where I can see it, sitting on bookshelves and hanging in my closets.

Oh, and don't forget food.

Random thoughts

I'm feeling really sentimental for no apparent reason.

I was browsing through tumblr during one of my long breaks (the kind where everything else is so much more interesting than your books) and I came across two friends' posts. Somehow one thing followed after another and I ended up going through quite a bit of their archives.

And one thing that really struck me was how powerful words are, and how we're so oblivious to others' feelings and sufferings. They were both struggling with different things, things that I wasn't aware of, probably because one of them I didn't talk to as much anymore, and another we didn't share much of our feelings. But it makes one realise how everybody is fighting their own battles, how people are struggling to keep afloat, to stay optimistic, and you never know because they cover it all up with a smile.

And it just kinda made me reflect about my own life. There are times when I just don't know what I'm doing. I don't know what I'm doing with my life, where I'm going, what do I want. And it scares me how helpless you are with all the different phases of life you go through. you can't slow down time, you can't keep things constant, the only thing you can do is accept it and move on.

It really troubles me sometimes when I think about how far I've drifted from my friends. The people I'm closest to at whatever stage is life tend to be people that I see the most often. It's not what I want, it's not how I envisioned things to be, but sometimes you just can't help it. Or can you? I really don't know anymore.

I often think back about how bitchy and fearless I was in secondary school. Yes, that was the time where you always feel compelled to give in to peer pressure, to do things that are cool and be accepted, but it was also back then that I was the most confident, the most comfortable in my own skin. I believed in my capabilities, I had dreams, but now, I find myself constantly in doubt, I doubt myself, my decisions, my capabilities, my life. Sometimes I just wish I can regain all that positivity.

It's the little things that make you smile

 You know how gwyomi is all the hype right now? This is K's version.

Sometimes, it's the little things that he does that makes me really mad and drives me up the wall.

But sometimes, it's the little things like these that makes me smile as well. :D

Being sentimental for no reason

Randomly came across an old friend's photos in my facebook newsfeed.

He was a friend I met in JC, he was the boyf of one of our seniors and he helped to coach us for my house cheer. We sucked and made a fool of ourselves during the actual day, but it was also a really interesting and memorable experience.

We went on to become good friends even after he broke up with said senior, and maybe it's because I find it easier to hang out with guys, we were closer compared to the rest of the house cheer group.

He was really nice to hang out with, very sensible for his age and all. And he made a really good friend.

And then we drifted apart and eventually stopped talking because my then boyf hated the idea of me having a close guy friend. We did meet up once or twice over the years, but things were already just strained and awkward.

I mean, I respect my then boyf's feelings and decisions, because after all, we were together at that point of time, and I really valued our relationship.

But from time to time I find myself wondering, was a good friendship really worth giving up on?

The Three Investigators series

After searching high and low, and contemplating if I should get them at exorbitant prices (but couldn't make myself do it), I've finally managed to locate The Three Investigators series.

These were brilliant, they were a staple in my childhood and I grew up reading them.

I have no idea why but I'm on a book spree kind of mood today (I bought the Roald Dahl Phizz Whizzing Collection at a whopping $100, they're a steal at that price I know, but they still milked my wallet for all it's worth), so imagine my elation when I finally found these.

The 4shared site where you can download the WHOLE entire thing as a rar file.

http://www.4shared.com/rar/ilB97JBO/The_Three_Investigators_series.html

A website I found with a different design for the books (and pages) from the above that you can download or read/print

http://www.goanwap.com/ebook-tti-list2-tti.html

And finally, the list of titles:

http://www.threeinvestigatorsbooks.com/originalseries.html

I found some other stuff pertaining to this series on scribd.com, but the titles were not found in the list, so I'm not sure what the deal is. 

Are there fake books of this series out there?

What happens when the fireworks are gone?

The initial stages of the relationship is the sweetest isn't it?

That time when you first start developing feelings towards each other, when you're unsure about how the other person feels, what the other person wants. Then comes the time of courtship, the young innocent love that just starts to blossom between two hearts. Then the passionate overwhelming warmth that lifts you off your feet and hand over your heart willingly, unable to think twice.

But what happens after that? The magic doesn't last forever. The instant quickening of the heart beat doesn't last forever. The I-can't-think-of-anything-but-you thoughts that runs wild in your head doesn't last forever.

So, what happens after?

When you've settled into a more comfortable rhythm; when you've grown accustomed to each other so much so that the person is no longer as special; when everything becomes normalized and naturalized; when you've gone from the I'm-so-crazy-about-you and everything-is-about you stage to the you-should-be-more-understanding stage;

What happens?










I find myself wondering about this a lot lately, missing that special feeling. I want to feel important, desired, sought after. But all that goes away as the relationship progresses, doesn't it? Maybe it's because I'm sick. Maybe when you're sick all the insecurities starts to grow and nibble at you. Maybe when you're sick you just want someone there to hug you, to pamper you, to take care of you, to make you well. And even if they can't, they'll just stay beside you. But instead, you're expected to be independent, to be understanding, to be reasonable, to be more like an adult.

What's so nice about being adult-ish anyway?

Brain Teasers: ALFA + BETA + GAME = DELTA

We were having a bonding event the other day and one of the task was to solve this equation.

I haven't actually done much mathematics since JC so my team actually took quite a while to figure this out.


ALFA + BETA + GAME = DELTA


Do you know the answer?

Each alphabet is supposed to represent a number. So if, for example, you think A is 6, B is 3, C is 7, then all the As will be of the numerical value 6 and so on.





The answer should be 5795 + 6435 + 2505 = 14735 or
                                  5305 + 2475 + 6595 = 14375




Did you get it right? :)

I’ve thought myself out of happiness one million times

Sometimes, just out of the blue, I'll feel as if a hole opened up in my heart, and then all the past memories just keeps pouring out uncontrollably. The smallest thing can trigger it off, happy ones, unhappy ones, it just makes you feel as if you're consumed.

I have been trying to come to terms with myself. After all, it's been a year and a half. I'm really happy where I am now, with who I am with. But sometimes, just sometimes, the memories just catch me off guard.

I've been trying to put everything behind. I've been trying to come to terms with what happened. I've been trying to remain on cordial terms with you. But sometimes it's just so hard.

Part of life is regret, is sadness, is longing. But sometimes we just have to accept things as they are, put our own desires aside, and move on.

I guess we just need more time.

Exam madness

It's the usual exam period right now, and there's just so much exam madness going on. There's so many people studying in school, hogging all the study places and cafeterias and even the canteen is so much more crowded during meal time.

Saw so really cute pictures though.

We're The Furballs (Dog Cafe @ Katong)

Went to We're The Furballs this evening and they've got two additional members to the dog family. There are a total of 8 of them now. :)

But it was quite crowded today, probably because of the public holiday. 

 Duchess and Slinky fighting over a straw they found. Lol. They were just grabbing on to it for a full 10 minutes with both sides refusing to let go.

 Still fighting...

In the end Duchess won. Lol. She was like dragging Slinky all the way across the floor until she won.

 Bui Bui!

Super cute right!

The dogs make me so happy. :D