@loha

2007-10-31T23:06:00.000-10:00

Quick updates for those who care.

Raya came and left. Erin and I spent the morning at the raya gathering in ala moana park. Met a malaysian aunty and bunch of really nice Indonesians. After the lil meet and greet session, Erin and I decided to celebrate. So, we went over to her place and cooked a couple of dishes. I made 'kuah kacang' which turned out to be pretty good actually after round 2 of experimenting. God knows the kind of improvisation I had to do! Erin received a care package from her mom last yr that had brahim's instant rendang paste and nasi impit and lemang! We finally sat down to a raya feast accompanied by raya music. It was bittersweet. I'm glad I didn't spend raya alone though. That was a good first raya day in Hawaii.

Hope everyone had a good raya too.

I've started paddling again. Yippeee!! My life now seems to revolve around paddling more than surfing. I am however planning on getting a longboard pretty soon so that I can head out to north shore on sat mornings. Lately I've been filling up my spare time with doing water sports. The other day I went out and did Stand-up Paddling again. That was super fun. Here's a couple of snapshots.

Paddling started last week. So stoked to be paddling again. I desperately want my own OC1. (one man canoe). Alex my old coach might be selling his, so who knows, I could still probably own one! Those things are darn expensive though. Surfboard? Canoe? Surfboard....or ...Canoe??? hmmm...I managed to go out on a one man with Vanya and Mike last sat afternoon. We paddled out in Kaneohe bay. It was windy as heck so it was a lil choppy and I hulied! haha. My first huli on a one man. That's always fun! The Naia Iki canoes by John Martin is so nice. And he's such a nice quirky guy too. It's sad to see how these other boatmakers are starting to manufacture boats in China and therefore throwing out these local businesses. I hope John Martin sticks around long enough till I can get my own handshaped canoe!

I have to note this down before I forget. On monday, I was give the honor of stroking 'Sasha' the 6 man canoe. Sasha was stroking sasha. Yup! I have a canoe named after me!! How cool is that!!..But anyways, my first time being in seat 1 and stroking for 30mins non stop. It was tough as heck but I was too proud to give up on Sasha. It was a perfect day of paddling. :)

Work at the ice cream store has been going great. However, I did find out that my co worker is bisexual which freaks the hell outta me coz he's hitting on me at the same time! eurghh! Thank God we don't do the same shift! Customers have been awesome. I've been making friends with some of them especially the adults who come in with their lil kids. Best part of the job is serving ice cream to the lil ones and see their face light up! :) I still remember the days when i would follow mummy to Khidmat supermarket just so that we could get ice cream after shopping. It was the best treat ever. Although now i'm paying the price for it. Gotta keep on swimmmmminnnggg..haha

Throat feeling dry. Hope i'm not getting sick! Eyes closing on me. Time to say good night. Hasta manana.

SeLaMAt HaRi RaYA!

2007-10-14T22:43:00.000-10:00

To all my muslim family and friends,

______

SELAMAT HARI RAYA

Maaf Zahir & Batin

________

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Eid celebration. Wishing I could be back home at my grandma's to celebrate this festive season. Missing home, missing food, missing family, missing friends.

Have a blessed raya ...Stay safe everyone!

A week gone by

2007-09-30T21:43:00.000-10:00

Lounging on my couch in my room with my laptop and 'brothers and sisters' is playing on the tv right now. The show reminds me of the days when my siblings got together. How there was constant bickering but yet we would all get together at the end of the day. We've all got different personalities and we definitely don't see eye to eye on many things but somehow there's no denying that we're definitely sisters when all of us get together.

Changing the topic, I have injured my wrist thanks to Saturday's work night. I was left alone in the shop for the night and it was gruelling. At one point, the queue was all the way to the door and some were even waiting outside. Not only I had to scoop ice cream, I had to make halo halo (filipino shave ice desert) and I even had to make shave ice. It was non stop craziness. Today, I'm left with a sore wrist. It's really uncomfortable. I think a wrist brace will be on my next shopping list.
Ohh a quick one. A french guy came in to the shop today and ordered green tea milkshake. Have you heard of such?! Yeah! Neither have I. Nonetheless, I was happy making the shake for this cute french guy who spoke french to me. Haha! I need to brush up on my french! Such a shame that I can't speak it anymore. Anyhoo, I've noticed that the young guys that come in, feel kinda obliged to tip me. Oh well! I ain't complaining. More gas money for me! :)

Tomorrow I shall bid farewell to a friend that's been more than a friend to me. In fact I do not know what I'll do when I wake up the following morning and realising that it's no longer gonna be the same again. I hate saying goodbyes especially when I never know if I'll see em again.

Au revoir mes amis.

First night at Dave's

2007-09-22T07:58:00.000-10:00

Hehehe...I survived my first night working at Dave's ice cream shop. I must say it's quite fun. The hours passed by rather quickly. It was a lil daunting at first minding the cash register. It's been a long time since I handled money. I got comfortable with it rather quickly though. The scooping ice cream part? Now, that's a skill I've got to master. Making the perfect balls of ice cream ain't so easy after all. Me thinks me arm is only going to get bigger.No good no good at all.

Upside of working in an ice cream store..the cute guys that walk in...hehe..ooh and I get to take home the tips. Yeay.

Last note, one leaves and the other one comes but both unavailable. Why oh why oh why. Either way, it's still a good distraction. :)

Busy bee

2007-09-20T20:49:00.000-10:00

For the next year, not only will I be working full time but I'll be juggling 3 jobs! This is what happens when the credit card bills rack up and no one is helping me clear it up. I'll be working everyday. During the day, it'll be the accounting job which starts at 7am. In the evening to late night, i'll be doing data entry for a local bank. During the weekends, I'm scooping ice cream at Dave's ice cream shop. I will not have a life. It's not if I want to anymore, it's I have to. I'll be sacrificing a lot of things including being able to paddle again and also not being able to surf in winter. It's just too bad when you help people and they turn their backs on you. It's too bad you take their word and trust and they disappoint you. For helping out others, this is the price I have to pay. When will I ever learn my lesson. When will I turn my back on those who turn theirs? It hurts so bad to know that you're put in a situation out of your control because you trusted others. It really really hurts when you struggle and you keep on struggling while the others live life joyfully. Sigh...

What to do. C'est la vie!

If i go m.i.a. You know where to find me! I'll be at work!!

Ramadan

2007-09-16T18:54:00.001-10:00

It's Ramadan month. A month when all Muslims around the world fast from dawn till dusk. Not only it is a month that we Muslims refrain from eating, it is also time for inner reflection, devotion to God, and self-control. Fasting is a way of experiencing hunger and developing sympathy for the less fortunate, and learning to thankfulness and appreciation for all of God's bounties. Fasting is also beneficial to the health and provides a break in the cycle of rigid habits or overindulgence.

So, selamat berpuasa to all fellow Muslims and I'd like to take this oppurtunity to ask for forgiveness for any wrong doings or hurt I may have caused.

Missing my family and friends terribly. It's this time of the year when I miss them most. Not being able to sit down with everyone at the dinner table to break fast. I can still remember last year when I would attempt to cook for the family and I'd make curry puffs. There was always a feast during buka puasa time especially when we would go to kampung. I miss my grandma. Miss gathering with the all my aunts, uncles and cousins during Ramadan. It's gonna be tough for me this year now that I'm all alone especially when Hari Raya comes around. Love you all lots dear family and friends.

2007-09-16T12:13:00.000-10:00

I've revamped the site. Felt a need to change yet again. Filled up my whole saturday thanks to boredom. A ton of things to update. Will do soon maybe later on today. In the meantime, I'm going over to Vanya's to watch the Arsenal game. Later peeps!

Happy Merdeka Malaysia!

2007-08-28T22:45:00.000-10:00

Selamat Hari Merdeka! to my beloved country who will be celebrating her independence on the 31st of August and happy birthday to Dodo wherever he may be! This year will mark Malaysia's 50th year of independence and I'm sure they're gonna celebrate it with a bang back home! I'm homesick! I finally caught up with a whole bunch of people back home! Glad everyone is safe and well.

Since Kauai, I've attempted Stand Up Paddle Surfing. Yup! I managed to do this.

Angie, Vanya and I had a blast on sunday. We stood up and fell countless number of times but at the end I got the hang of it and looked like a pro!! All I need to do now is learn how to catch a wave on it. Looked way easier than it actually is. It's a whole lot of balancing. An excellent work out. It was so much fun though. Thanks to Eric, the store owner who lent the board out to me for free. :) Only 1 problem, neither of us brought our camera out that day. Bummer! It would have been hilarious having shots of us falling off the board! Hoping to try out again someday and hopefully next time, I'll have it on camera.

Other than trying SUP, I enjoyed another movie night on the beach. :) They're showing Pirates 2 this coming saturday! Definitely watching that! Hopefully bus stop boy and I will make it back in time from the hike/swim that saturday.

Finally got to watch this local raggae band called Ooklah the MOC in Kailua the other night. Bus stop boy invited me to join him and his friend. He nearly had a heart attack riding in my truck down the Pali!! haha...the dude was a nervous wreck! When he said he was cautious, he really meant CAUTIOUS coz he was freaking out with my driving! I doubt he'll ever ride with me again! haha

I think coz of my lil speed devil stunt down the Pali, I might have injured my tires coz they were swollen a couple of days after! Spent a whopping $350 bucks changing all four tires! Am super broke now!

My eyes have been bugging me. The right eye has been infected twice now. I'm not too sure why. I feel like there's a scratch in my eye. So, I've been using my glasses this past 2 weeks! Eeek! Hate using glasses! I look all nerdy. Hopefully the eye doc can tell me whats really wrong with it when I visit her this saturday. I hope she doesn't tell me that I can never wear contacts again! I'll just flip! There goes my life. Half of my life is spent in the water! And not being to surf and swim again will just make me go crazy!

K. enough ramblings. Bore myself to death. Time to watch Oprah and fall asleep on her show! Hehe..

Bon soir mes amis. * i really need to brush up on my french!*

Wonderful Kauai

2007-08-08T21:08:00.000-10:00

Had an awesome weekend in Kauai. It's absolutely beautiful. The drive up to Hanalei Bay where the race was held reminded me of driving in the east coast back home minus the ridge! Day started at 4.30am. Vanya picked me up from home and we headed to the airport. When we arrived in Kauai, we had to make a mad dash to the rental car. We had to make it to make it to hanalei bay in time for the race and the drive was to be around an hour. Most part of Kauai only has 1 lane roads so traffic was a killer. We made it in time fortunately and the first race had just begun.

Hanalei is absolutely pretty. The bay was packed full of paddlers that morning. All eager to paddle and win a race. We went out, had a lot of fun paddling, gave it my all. Unfortunately we came in last place. But the best part of it, we were still the 14th team in the whole state! That in itself was pretty impressive.

We hung out at the race until 4pm then we had to drive back down to Lihue to drop Vanya off at the airport. We drove back to Hanalei just before sunset. Just in time to set our tent. Angie and I found a good spot right facing the pier and boats. We enjoyed a beautiful sunset in Hanalei.

After a quick shower, we drove to Princeville town plaza and headed back down to Hanalei and had dinner at Kalypso. It was good food, good music and good company. We were supposed to join the Molokai club for drinks as they were camping out next to us, but we were too tired. Slept under the twinkling stars, sound of the waves rolling in and the rain. The most peaceful sleep i've had since being here.

Next day we woke up the sound of the rain. Once it stopped, Angie and I went for a morning walk along the bay. We had the oppurtunity to watch the distance crew who were paddling from Hanalei to the Na Pali coast preparing for their race. Canoes everywhere escort boats picking up paddlers. It was a busy morning.

After realising we couldn't get to do our ziplining as it was all fully booked, Angie and I decided to hike the Na Pali trail to Hanakapi'ai Beach. The hike took over an hour. it was breathtaking. The sand is pristine. It was absolutely pretty.

Unfortunately, swimming at the coast was not advisable as rip tides were strong. Realising this only when reaching there, we knew we had to go back to Hanalei for a last swimming session. Spent little time at the beach before we headed back. The hike back was torturing. The sun was piercing and the heat was crazy. I had to drap my towel around me to block the sun from killing my skin!

After successfully making it down, we rushed to Hanalei. Swam for a bit and then headed back down to Lihue airport.

It was an awesome weekend. Wished it was longer! :)

Angie and I are planning another trip to kauai.

States Championship in Kauai- Here I come!!

2007-07-30T23:02:00.000-10:00

Woohooo!! States here I come!! Novice B women made it to states by luck! So, the Kauai trip ended up being worthwhile after all now that we found out that we'll be racing. I'm excited. After missing a week of paddling, we hit the water today again. It felt so good to be paddling again. =)

I shall post pics up once I return from Kauai this weekend. Will be racing in Hanalei Bay, one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Will be camping out at the beach with Angie and will also be doing a ziplining/hiking/kayaking tour. Not too sure what else we've got planned out but it's gonna be awesome.

Been sick lately. Had a relapse of the cold and now a red eye infection! Just keeps getting worse. Not too sure why my immune system is at it's lowest now. Anyhoo, must get better by friday.

Aloha people.

Office girly girl outing

2007-07-17T21:25:00.003-10:00

Today at the age of 25, I got my first professional manicure. I joined a few ladies from work who were getting a manicure and pedicure done. It was such a girly girl night out today. Ladies had their toes painted in shades of pink and red and with flower motives on them. I just had the simplest thing done to my nails. I must say the whole experience was rather fun. My fingernails are now in a shade of pearly white

After the nail salon, we made our made to a mexican restaurant. can't recall the name of the resturant but the food was excellent.

My first girly girl night outing

John D.Kaupiko Regatta

2007-07-15T22:37:00.001-10:00

It was the Hui Nalu regatta today. It was a big day today for us. Although we came in 6th, it was our fastest time of 2.04mins in the season so far. Coach was pretty darn happy with us today. :) We are coming along together as a team and we're getting stronger. Unfortunately, we are also at the end of the season. The final race, OHCRA championship, is on next sunday. One race left to go. :( Overall, it was a good day today.

2007-07-15T00:05:00.000-10:00

Body aching. Shoulders are sore thanks to 3 hours of paddling this morning. I am in pain. The best workout I've ever had.

1 race tomorrow. Another 1 more to go next week.

Then it's a trip to Kauai.

Wish me luck people!

Aloha.

Novice B Women

2007-07-11T22:33:00.000-10:00

Here you go folks. Finally a picture of my team (well part of em anyway). This was at the 2nd regatta race in Kailua Beach.

L to R: Angie, Marie(behind), Kay, Me, Michelle, Vanya (in front), Alyssa and Jessica. :)

Paddle surfing

2007-07-10T21:43:00.001-10:00

My next adventure. Stand-up paddle surfing. :)

2007-07-09T20:46:00.000-10:00

Ladies and Gentleman, introducing..................

my WHITE KNIGHT! :)

2007-07-08T20:47:00.001-10:00

Someone has a new camera!! yeay!! and it's a Sony!yeay! actually was contemplating whether to switch to a sony from canon, and finally made up my mind based on 1 lil factor. it has a battery indicator. long gone the days where i'm in the middle of taking an important shot, the camera dies on me. sorry canon. i'm a loyal dog. but that reason alone made me think twice. but yeay! new camera!! pics! lotsa pics! soon soon! :)

My new Sony DSC-W80. Do I need a new camera? Yes. Do I need one right now? No/Yes. Do I deserve a new one after 3yrs? Yes. Can I afford it right now? No. Am I bloody broke? YES! eeeeeeeeeeeeekkk!!

2007-07-07T22:48:00.000-10:00

July 4th celebration came and left. It was a memorable one. My first July 4th in Hawaii and how did i celebrate it? Of course with paddling!! haha..yes. nothing new with me and paddling. had a race in waikiki. it was the best one yet. we caught a wave coming in on the canoe. a 3ft face wave! it was an awesome experience. lost 1.5seconds to taking 3rd place so we came in fourth! still better than all the previous runs. we even hulied on the way out! it was so much fun though! the paddlers all congregrating on waikiki beach. an event that has taken place every year for the past 60 yrs or so i believe. it's nice to be part of this hawaiian tradition. it gives me somewhat a better meaning to living in hawaii and experiencing the whole hawaiian culture.

later part of the day was spent at a cookout in magic island. joined jean and ben and their friends for a bbq. had yummy food. concluded the night with laying on the grass, staring up into the sky and watching the amazing display of fireworks. it was another wonderful day in paradise.

so, here i am, 3 days later. alone in bed at home nursing a cold. caught some bug from god knows who which started on monday and brought me down on thursday and friday and today i feel a lil better. just that one lil itch in the throat still bothering me. go away you lil itch!

boy updates.haven't seen bus stop boy, waiter boy or paddler boy. waiter boy is pretty much history unless i run into him again in sansei. bus stop boy is around somewhere. and paddler boy. now, thats when i say watch this space.

later peeps!

Quick updates

2007-06-23T23:26:00.000-10:00

Hey y'all. Once again apologies to those who swing by and notice i'm behind in updating. Here's a quick update.

1. 2nd race, women's novice B progressed and did not come in last place. The regatta was held in Kailua beach. Same place i went kayaking. Rough winds but we pulled through. We nearly came in 5th out of 7 boats as we were just a second behind. Nevertheless, it was progress.

2. 3rd race. Nanakuli beach out in Wainae near Makaha in the west coast. I had to steer for the Mixed Novice B. How was it? Nerve racking. I had one day of practice on friday. When I found out i was going to be the steersman, i freaked out. I thought the coach didn't need me paddling anymore. I thought i was being punished. Then i figured maybe i heard wrongly. Maybe i was steering just for that 1 race. But the night before the race, when we were camping out at the beach (more on the camping out thing later) my worst nightmare came through when my coach confirmed that i'd be steering from that day on. I had to psych myself out again. I asked if i should be happy or bummed about not being able to paddle fully. he said i should be happy if i want my crew to make it to states. And he thinks with me steering, i can bring the crew to the state championship. So, race day. How did it go? Mixed novice B kicked ass. we came in 5th out of 11 boats. I was loving it being at the back of the boat, being in control, steering and paddling and pushing my teammates. I was exhilarating. The boat was pretty straight all the way through and we did not huli (flip). Coach was proud of me. I was proud of me. How did the women novice B do? They lost. Last place. Boo hoo. Hopes of going to states, just vanished.

3. So, 4th race coming up tomorrow. I am not steering. After last week's big disappointment, my coaches came to their senses and realised that they needed me paddling for the women's team more than they needed me steering as I am the strongest paddler they have.Tomorrow shall be the biggest challenge. Coming in at least 4th so that we still have a chance to make it to the state championship. Advised the coach that the reason the crew came in last is because they had weaker paddlers so this week, he took my advise and put the stronger paddlers in the boat. Hopefully it'll pay off. We need a win. Wish us luck.

4.I am on way to landing myself a permanent full time position as a Staff Accountant and the Salvation Army. Yippeee!!

5. Waiting for paperwork to arrive for purchase of Condo in Cheras for dad. Now i have a mortgage over my head that i have to settle within the next 5 yrs! A lot of financial organising going on right now.

6. I am loving my truck! Yup people! Sasha bought a truck!!! Her dream came true. :) It's a 1994 white mazda auto. New paint job and a lot was done to the truck and it looks and runs super nice. I'm so happy. I actually bought it the day before my first race. It was a steal. Only thing i need now is my surfboard and i'm set for north shore this winter. Yeay!! I have wheels!!! Driving my truck all around the island!!:)

7. Social life = working out. Been hitting the gym everyday the whole week. Training 2 of my colleagues. Love working out. I have lost some weight and an inch or two. Boardshorts falling off me now. Happy that my outside now finally matches how i feel inside. I'm loving every moment and every part of being in Hawaii.

More updates tomorrow. Need my beauty sleep for the race tomorrow. :)

Aloha!

1st race = :(

2007-06-03T20:32:00.000-10:00

Today was out first regatta race. Novice B women lost. :( I'm so disappointed beyond words. We had an unfair start. It was worthless going out to race today. They chose to fix something on the boat before our race and that delayed us getting to the lineup and once there, we had to just go! that sucked! no one was prepared. last place. what a joke! although it's our first race, it's still no excuse for us coming in 5th. this coming sunday we'll be racing in kailua. it supposedly has tougher conditions than keehi lagoon. pray for us people!

for now..i shall crawl under my blanket and wish today did not happen. if only there were tougher chicks in my crew. it would have helped. maybe 5 more of me!! heheh....oh well. wishfull thinking.

hasta luego!

Events

2007-05-28T21:34:00.000-10:00

So it seems I suck at updating my site. Yes, it's part laziness yet again and part busy. Quite a few events took place this month and every time i try to update, i get distracted. Now there are too many things to jot down.

Hmm..where shall I start. First of all, a big farewell to Wei Teck. He has left Hawaii and is on his way home. He's having a time of his life now vacationing in different countries. At this present time, I think he's somewhere in Hong Kong. Missing him loads. He was a wonderful roomie and it's so sad to see him go. Can't thank him enough for showing me the ropes and for introducing some Malaysians and Singaporeans to me. So, we said goodbye at Fook Yuen restaurant and about 15 of us were there to attend his farewell dinner. Had a feast! Met a couple of interesting people. One being this Peruvian chinese girl who shall take me salsaing and says I must go to Cuba single!! haha...the other is a malay girl who's from a fairly wealthy family and is now stepping into the working world and face the harsh reality. No more being a wild child. I have not met up with either one as my schedule is fairly packed and mingling and making new friends right seems like a chore. But soon once everything settles I will definitely give em a ring.

Another event this month that I participated in was the industrial charity walk. It's a 6 mile walk from ala moana beach park to waikiki and back. It's definitely not a standard walkathon. It's mainly about walking and eating. Yup! Eat and walk! At every checkpoint we were being fed; Cookies, chocolate, ice cream, watermelon, sandwiches and more. they feed us breakfast and lunch too! I walked with my co-workers. Angie, Dionetter, Jean and Sarah. We had a blast even though the sun was beating down on us!

My first canoe paddling race took place last saturday. It was a pre-season race. Regatta season officially starts June 3rd. Saturday was more fun than actual competition. My team (Novice B women, the beginners) did pretty well considering it was our first time out. We lost to the pros though. They weren't even supposed to be racing in our division. Like i said, it was more of a fun race than anything else. I now understand how the races work. A lot of waiting for only that 2 minute race. Started the day at 7.30am and it was over at 3pm! a lotta lotta waiting. it was fun though hanging out with my team mates and cheering my coach on when he was racing. This is definitely a lifestyle.

The following day, i followed my coach to watch the Hui Wa'a association regatta race. Hui Nalu the club i paddle for belong to the other association called OHCRA. I was overwhelmed by the amount of people and clubs that were there and according to Alex, my coach, that was just a third of the amount of people we'll be seeing at our meet. Anyways, the waikiki beach girls paddle under Hui Wa'a and they kicked ass. They are the state champions. Watching them made me sooooo nervous with our up coming race this sunday. I pray we make the top four spots. Our eyes are on the state championships where OHCRA will battle it against Hui Wa'a. Wish me luck people. I have butterflies just thinking about this sunday.

A lot of updates. Summer swell is hitting the south shore. Once i get me my car, i'll be hitting the surf whenever possible. Canoe paddling is taking a big chunk of my time now. But surfing shall keep me at peace. Although, watching 5o people at one peak chasing for that 1 wave, i begin to wonder if i really will have fun or will it just kill my love for wave riding. I miss home. I miss my homebreak. I miss my friends and family. I miss the familiarity. But I know one day i might just make hawaii my home and therefore i should start getting to know it better.

Aloha people. It's time for bed. Have fun and be safe! :)

Kailua and Lanikai beach - Kayak trip

2007-05-07T23:15:00.000-10:00

2007-04-21T10:27:00.000-10:00

I've finally gotten a chance to sit down and update my blog. Thanks to my injury. The cause: over stretched. I was bending backwards to stretch out after paddling practice, and kinda over did it and something popped. Not too sure what popped. It's coming up to a week and the pain is still intense. I cannot find out what is wrong with the side of my waist coz i don't have insurance. Temping job. No insurance. Now in pain. No insurance = no doctor = suffer pain. It could be a muscle pull, a twisted nerve or maybe or unlikely a broken cartiledge. who knows. I've been going for reiki treatment with Kat at the office. Hopefully it heals soon coz regatta is starting up soon and training begins next week. I cannot afford to miss training.

Paddling has been keeping me busy during the week after work. Last weekend i went kayaking with singaporean aaron, gabriel and japanese girl naoko in kailua. That was fun. We couldn't kayak all the way to Mokulua island across from Lanakai beach coz we started late in the day and were waiting for gabriel and naoko forever!! the poor couple couldn't paddle for their life and their boat even tipped over in the ocean. it was too funny watching them struggle to get back on the boat. after kayak session, we walked all around kailua town looking for aaron's friend's restaurant. after all that exercise, we were famished so aaron's friend fed us with delicious mediterranean food.

i came across waiter boy at the sansei that night.sarah and i went there to grab a couple of drinks and to stuff our face somemore with delicious shrimp dynamite. it was awkward seeing him after 2 months.

a whole week of feasting beginning from easter weekend. this week sarah and i had to slow it down. we've been pretty good so far. :) slow slow weekend. no surfing :( no hiking :( no kayaking :(...boohoo

2007-04-09T22:16:00.000-10:00

Easter weekend. Bumming around. Stuffing face. The only productive thing i did was climb koko head. all of the 1000steps to the top of the hill. it used to be a train track but now it's just a foot trail up to one of the nicest view. you can even see neighbour island molokai in the distance from up there. i call it the never ending stair master. why go to a gym when you can get the same workout for free and surrounded by mother nature. i must make this weekend a lil more active.

i need to brace myself for this coming friday where i'll face ultimate test of feeling left out. hahaha...the whole office is going out for an employee recognition luncheon and poor miss sasha was not invited!! sucks eh! thats what happens when you're not permanent. darn it!! but it gives me the day off which works even better for me!!

another day of paddling... a lot of confusion..hopefully everyone comes together!

Outrigger Canoe paddling

2007-03-28T21:06:00.000-10:00

First day out paddliing at Hui Nalu Club.

Can't feel arms.

Need massage badly.

Activities

2007-03-25T12:26:00.000-10:00

Been busy lately with activities. Hence the long absence.. Here's a rundown of what i've been doing.

Friday Happy hour at Mai Tai with a few workmates. It was me, leah, sarah, mike, chad and the other sarah. A few others were supposed to join but couldn't make it. We sat there from 5.30 all the way till about 9pm. Then sarah and i went over to old spaghetti factory and stuffed ourselves.

Saturday St Patrick's day block party. Joined sarah, leah, autumn and their friends at Chinatown. They had some bands performing. All the haoles were out that night in chinatown. I swear to God i felt so out of place. All the white boys and girls were out and there were only a few colored people there. Nonetheless, i was adorned in green beads courtesy of sarah. it was a very wet night. We left the block party around 11pm coz we were starving. Went over to ward center. Had somemore drinks and food at Ryan's Bar and Grill. Joined Autumns's friends and sister.

I went for a hike yesterday finally. I was accompanied by a new found friend, Marc. He brought me hiking up to Wa'ahila Ridge Trail, a 2.4mile hike. It's been a while since i really hiked. In fact the last would be mt kinabalu about 6 yrs ago. Today, i'm feeling the pain. We had a lil picnic up the summit. It was a really good hike. Need to go more often. I completed the night by watching a movie at the beach. they were showing little mermaid at queen's beach. :)

today, i skipped surfing. Didn't wanna overdo it. calf and arms aching. i'm still gonna go swimming at the beach later in the evening though. i'm looking forward to tomorrow. i shall be entering a canoe paddling club. first day of practice begins tomorrow. I'venever paddled except for kayaking. kinda nervous. but it should be fun. hopefully make more friends. first regatta begins in june. wish me luck people.

stomach calling. will keep you guys posted.

aloha

Aloha Niki

2007-03-18T10:11:00.000-10:00

Finally, a friend came to visit. Niki came and left. She visited for a week. It was unfortunate though that out of the whole week, i could spare 3 full days with her. But nonetheless, it was a jam packed 3 days of circling island, surfing, snorkelling and EATING. Niki reminds me of cookie monster with all the cookies she chomps down!! hehehe..i picked niki up from the airport and welcomed her with a lei :) good ol hawaiian tradition. we then took the shuttle off to waikiki and had dinner at the famous 'Duke's' restaurant. Following evening we walked around waikiki and watched the hula performance. friday morning i rented a car and we drove up to waikele shopping center. we didn't shop a lot just a couple of things. not super cheap just slightly cheaper. we continued the drive up to north shore and went sightseeing. showed niki haleiwa town, waimea, pipe, sunset and took a stop at Giovanni's shrimp truck! the shrimps were soooooooooo good. we continued the drive down the east side into kailua where we had to do a lil detour coz i took the wrong exit but we finally managed to end up at sandy beach and made a pit stop at the blow hole. unfortunately for niki, her camera got blown away by the wind and it broke! it literally flew away like paper due to the strong winds.
on saturday, we started the day off pretty late. we had lunch with teck at the vietname restaurant and had some yummy vietnamese beef noodle. we left wei teck to go up to haleiwa for an evening surf session. the waves were good that day and hardly anyone out. niki and i had lotsa fun. we each rented an 8ft softtop. we hit the surf again early sunday morning as the boards were due by 11am. surfed for over an hour. caught a few good rides. we were pretty sore after the 2 days of surf. we stopped over at waikele again on the way home. we had another lunch session with wei teck and this time it was dim sum. wei teck our tour guide brought us to pali lookout where we enjoyed the beautiful view of the east side. then we made our way for an evening session at hanauma bay. :) niki's first time snorkelling session. she was ecstatic. and i was enjoying myself laughing at her and her snorkel mask dilemma. she was having a hard time with those supposedly 'dry' snorkel mask. the snorkelling isn't as great at the one back home. fishes were sparse. water was shallow. but we did see a pretty big fish and me and niki made a run for it. she was kicking at 100 miles per hour!!! hahhaha...we completed the day with a sushi outing at the jap restaurant.
monday i had to go to work, so niki was all alone at home. felt sorry for her. couldn't bring her around. i came home a lil early and we had dinner and a mexican restaurant in waikiki. there was a spanish waiter there that came up to us. i asked where the salsa bar was. on tuesday night after a big meal at wei teck's buffet place, we went over to the supposedly
'salsa night' at zanzabar in waikiki. i swear i would never step in that place again! it looked like a chinese restaurant with all the gold and mirrored walls. there were about 30 people of which only 10 were on the dancefloor. hardly any men!! and of course the waiter dude was there showing his moves and dancing with all the ladies in sight!! some tall spanish guy pulled me to dance, and was trying his best to get me to go for dinner with him which i refused.
on wednesday niki took a bus trip by herself up to northshore since i had to work. poor girl got all the way to pipe coz the waves were around 12ft that day only to find my camera battery went out. i think she managed a couple of shots only. :( sorry guys. sorry niki. and then she jumped back on the bus. the cold bus didn't help her with her health either. only made her worse. she reached honolulu, met her at the mall. hurried back home so that we could catch the bus to the airport.

well, not much of an action packed week but a lot of food for sure. i hope those 3 days were sufficient. at least we did get to do some surfing and snorkelling. :) when i get a permanent job which will be pretty soon i shall definitely take the whole week off to go jln jln with whoever that comes visit.

aloha!

Another surfing weekend! :)

2007-03-05T21:59:00.000-10:00

I spent another weekend at the northshore. this time it was just me on my own. Linda left on wednesday morning. I booked a night at backpacker's plantation village thinking that i would meet ainsey, the friendly aussie dude. unfortunately, i found out he had left just a couple of days before and i didn't get a chance to say goodbye or swap emails. anyway, alex the argentinian was still around though. that's another story all together. i arrived at backpackers at just after 1pm. took the shuttle there. had lunch and hit the surf. i was bodyboarding at pupukea/ehukai. the swell was pretty small..about 5ft. it was super crowded for a small day. it was a long wait in between sets. one side of my contact lens came off which made it even worse. however the sunset was gorgeous..and on that particular day...not only was the sunset being wonderful on the west, there the tail of a rainbow towards the east side. it was just paradise at its best. on sunday however, was another day altogether. hit the surf after a lie on the beach in the afternoon. i had a hard time deciding which sandbar to surf at. there were a lil less people, but the waves looked more promising which an occasional big set coming in...i finally went in. current took me out!! it was hard paddling back to shore. i surfed. waves were head high and some sets came in overhead. i even surfed with kainoa mcgee!!! that was the highlight of my day. i think i got in his way when he was paddling for a wave. oh well...not my fault..i was just trying to get out. anyway, he wasn't pissed. thank God! i stayed out of his way though...out of their way...although i did take some beating...i took of on one large one, and i ended nose diving!!! what a waste!! waves were fast..alll i could say to myself was "just go"!! that kept me. a set came in from far..long shoulder...closing out...everyone was rushing to paddle forward but to no one escaped the whitewash. it was heavy ducking...i got out...praying that the contact lens didnt come off..turned and saw a foam of white water and people's heads bopping out of the water. to be honest, im glad that i went through the may typhoon swell back home...that prepared me a whole lot for the surf journey here. i now learn to panic less. i now push myself even more and see that big set coming in and just going forward. no waiting. no second guessing. i think it shows in my face how i keep pushing. one wipeout after the other but i kept going back. too off on a couple of big ones. didn't get the best rides but that day was about pushing my limits. and i felt i did just that. the guys were looking..probably wondering...couldn't figure out who i was or where from. i guess it was intriguing to them to see the only bodyboarder chick out there. :) it was satisfying..left the beach to take a shower, a local stopped and asked me how the surf was..he was right..i did get a good workout. and my body is telling me just that today. it's pretty sore..especially my arms coz it got hit by one of the surfer's board. it hurts a lot. nik is coming this wednesday. i'm dragging her into the water at northshore. hopefully the comp will be on this weekend. i would love to see some chicks kick ass at pipe.

eyes closing. time for bed. nite nite

Happy Birthday Linda

2007-03-01T21:42:00.000-10:00

Dinner at d.k Steakhouse.

farewell my dear friend. we shall meet again one day....

they can never be happy

2007-02-26T00:04:00.000-10:00

some people can never be happy for you. they try to bring you down constantly. why they do that? i have no idea. maybe to make themself feel better about themselves? but when it's your own flesh and blood bringing you down, it hurts. i was told i was never gonna make it to hawaii. i was told that i did not know what i was doing. and here i am now, in hawaii having a good life. a life that they probably wished they had if only they weren't so negative about everything in life. it hurts me things go right for me, they can never be happy for me. they have to give their 2 cents in everything. why the advice? because i've screwed up my life? because some guy left me? because i ran home without any money? of course none of those has happend to me....so why the advice? i say don't give advice when it's not needed. cause then it's just worthless. it's hard...it's really hard having to hear the negativity all over again. it's pure luck that i came here? it's pure luck that i got a job??? you think someone can get that lucky!!!! of coure not!!! i've worked hard for it...i know i'm good enough to land a job. and i followed my dreams and went for it...maybe some of you out there should do to..instead of crushing other people's dreams and happiness. they really never learn...and then they wonder why i am the way i am...i rather be me, happy, content than them, sour and lifeless.

the birthday weekend

2007-02-20T23:02:00.000-10:00

it was one of the best birthday i've ever had. i spent 3 days and 3 nights at the north shore. i arrived at 10pm on fri nite at backpackers plantation village. after a 2 hr bus ride, i was greeted by a room full of strangers singing happy birthday to me and ms linda was nowhere to be found. she had left and only returned an hr later thinking that i bailed out on her. she saw and she was ecstatic. the housemates had been telling me that she had waited the whole day for me and she was looking forward to celebrating my bday. she bought a card, a present and even surprised me with a cake and they all sang happy birthday again. :) it was a wonderful night.

on sat i decided to go to haleiwa town. we had lunch at a lovely thai restaurant. then we ventured around haleiwa town and did some shopping. i finally bought myself a pair of rainbow sandals at $50 per pair!!! and you know why they cost so much!!! but it has been all worth it. i bought a lil cute dress as well. we bought some infamous haleiwa shaved ice and headed down to the beach. watched the surfers till the sun went down. that night, we were invited by the guys at the next cabin to go to the bar but we had already made arrangements to go to another place with a local guy that linda made friends with. he however did not show up!!...linda was bummed and was ready to sleep. i however was all ready to party. and so we did. we went down to haleiwa and joined our neighbours. i've never been greeted by a room full of men and very few girls. the ratio was about 4:1!!!! linda and i danced the night away. the band called swampa zz was awesome! one of the neighbour guy, this argentinian dude was getting too close for comfort. the whole bar saw me trying to snub him away the entire night. he didnt even let me dance with the other people!! he would cut them off. so i retired and hung out by the wall and chatted with a local guy. of course he was trying to hit on me and ask for the number and of course i did not even bother to give. we left at 2am when the bar closed. the following day on sun, we went to haleiwa again so that i could surf. i rented an 8ft longboard for $18 a day. waves were pretty small but some sets cam1e in at waist high. i couldnt believe i was actually surfing after 2 months! i was even riding the nose!!! it was soooo much fun!!! after surf, we were invited by the family to have dinner on the catamaran. we chatted and enjoyed a good meal prepared by the daddy. at one point of the night, linda fell down into the hull. she did not notice the opeing into the hull and slipped right through it. she had injured her ribs as she slammed again the opening. we finally left at 9.30pm. i spent the night at backpacker's sofa illegally since the beds were fully booked.

monday came around, linda was feeling worse. she could not move. i didn't know what to do except for bandaging her tummy. i left her to rest and went for a bodyboard session at pupukea which is the sandbar after pipe. i rented a bz board for $15 a day. it was a pretty good board. the weight of it does hold it down. it was slightly overhead. the wind was blowing really hard though and made the surf a lil choppy. i was charging the waves. beating the surfer guys out. one wave after another. i was on a natural high. i had to pull myself out of the water so that i wouldnt miss the bus home. i hitchhiked back to waimea from pipe. got pickped up by this kind tattoo artist from waikiki. i think i'll pop by his shop one of these days and wish him again. linda's friend droppped me off home. slept like a baby. woke up the next morning at 8.3om am and i didnt know where i was or was i supposed to do. until i realised it was a work day!!!

it was a fun filled and jam packed weekend. i've got the biggest grin on my face. :)

sweet dreams people!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!

2007-02-16T00:00:00.000-10:00

the clock is ticking to countdown as i'm typing this. 3mins to go. i'm finally turning 25! a qtr of a century!! danggggg!! that's old! this yr has been magical for me.. the path of life that was long overdue has finally arrived. i'm content. i've never felt this feeling of calmness before. so, here's to another 25yrs of adventure!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SASHA!!

Room hunting

2007-02-13T20:53:00.000-10:00

This past 2 weeks have been nothing but looking through the classifieds and going through the listings on craiglist for a room or cheapo studio to rent. lodging is mighty expensive here in hawaii. hopefully i can get a decent studio with at least a stove at an affordable price. spending 1000bucks on a tiny lil hotel studio ain't gonna work. tomorrow i'll be checking a room nearby the university area and also a studio right opposite to where im located now. hopefully the studio lady can hold it off for me till end of the month. looking forward to seeing nikki next month. hopefully i can get this accomodation thing sorted out asap. hmmpphhh.. either way, we're still gonna have a good time chica! yeay!!! :)

Bob Marley Fest - Fri 9th Feb

2007-02-12T23:22:00.000-10:00

Hmmmmppphhh

2007-02-08T19:00:00.000-10:00

This was today's horoscope from taken from friendster:

Aquarius (Jan 20 - Feb 18)

The Bottom Line
If amping up you career isn't on the top of your to-do list right now, it should be.

In Detail
If amping up your career isn't on the top of your to-do list right now, then it should be -- especially today, when a quiet yearning for something more challenging crescendos to a deafening din that can't be ignored! So do yourself a favor by checking out a few employment websites. Just start by exploring what's out there and figuring out what you may want. Remind yourself that change is possible. Further education may be a stepping-stone to your new goal.

Funny thing is I was thinking bout this issue this afternoon at work. Whether i want to spend my hours sitting in front of the computer in an office doing monotonous work. hmmm....as i pass the university of hawaii on the bus on the way home, my thoughts went to the language course that i have been wanting to take. hmmm...i wonder if it's really true after all...oh well, lets waste more time by pondering on it for the next hour. ciao cin cau!

Weekend at the north shore

2007-02-06T22:24:00.000-10:00

Aloha! Just a quick update coz i've been sooo lazy lately. I spent the last weekend at north shore. Stayed over at plantation village with linda. Watched the Billabong Monster Enery Pipeline pro on sunday. Saw all the famous faces such as Kala Alexander, Danny Fuller, Dane Reynolds, Kainoa McGee and a whole bunch of other guys. I read about these guys, but it was hard putting a face to those names i read about. They look different in person. Had a small chat with Kalani Brown. I think it was Brown. The contest was excellent! Finally i get to see a competition live and pipe at that. It was and awesome experience. I could see the guys pulling into a tube, disappearing and reappearing. I could also see how shallow it was coz as the waves are about to form, it sucks the water inwards and i could see the reef jutting out!!!! can't imagine surfing in that condition. surfing at rocky point that day was pretty scary enough for me.

aside from the contest, i also had a chance to go down to haleiwa to visit a family who lives on a catamaran. yup! a catamaran. family of 5+1 who have been travelling on sea for 5 yrs! their kids are aged 9 and 7yr old twins. linda and i hung out with the kids and were entertained by all their stories. we made it back to north shore and hung out somemore at the beach as it was full moon before we called it a night. it was freeeeeeeeezing cold that night. i could hardly sleep. was supposed to wake up by 6.30am to get a ride with one of the surfer guys to a surf spot. but by cold night, i knew the water would be freezing in the morning. so i gave it a miss!! it's ok. i have all 3yrs and maybe more to surf to my hearts content! hehehehe...

ok..eyes drying up. contact lens needs to be removed. nite nite people. have a good day whereever you may be! aloha!

1 month anniversary

2007-01-30T22:46:00.000-10:00

tomorrow shall mark my 1 month anniversary being here in Hawaii. i can't believe it has been a month. time just flies when you're having fun! here's the latest update:

i got myself a job. i am on my third week of work at salvation army doing their AP. Office is located in an area called Manoa and it's up on the hilly part. Takes me about 45 minutes to get to work via 2 buses. I start at 8.30 and i get off at 5pm which just leaves me enough time to enjoy the sunlight. i'm replacing a lady who is going off on maternity leave so right now it's a contract job however it could turn permanent. i'm getting paid more than what i earned back in jersey doing less work. however, AP is not my favourite thing to do as it's so monotonous. i enjoy doing bookkeeping as it keeps my brains exercised with problem solving. but like they say, "beggars can't be choosers". i shall settle with it as it is a non profit organisation and i've always wanted to work in one and it's close to home and it's paying my bills. :)

i've finally gotten my room pretty much sorted out. i'm surrounded by 4 cranberry walls which just keeps me in bed more than i'd like to be! as usual, the mess is endless. every morning picking out and chucking away outfits only to settle with the first pick. only thing about room is that it's by the walkway and thefore i can't' open the damn curtains and windows. :( so no bright sunshine waking me up in the morning that's for sure. i'm loving the apartment. loving the location. it's right infront of the canal and it faces waikiki and diamond head can been seeen in the distance. it's an amazing view both by day and night. as i open my front door i'm greeted by the mountains and it reminds me every morning of where i am and how lucky i am to be here.

well, have a lot more stories to tell. unfortunately these cranberry walls are getting the best of me and i hear the bed calling out my name yet again..... bon nuit mes amis!

Big Island, Hawaii

2007-01-14T21:30:00.000-10:00

Another week has gone by...pretty quick i must say. i'm still jobless. only because i've just gotten round to submitting my resume online to a couple of places including Starwood yesterday. Yup..i know i am a procrastinator. i have to keep reminding myself i'm not here on holiday but it's difficult not to enjoy this paradise. the holiday vibe is everywhere. i finally went to the northshore last tuesday. waves were big! not big enough they say to hold the bodyboard contest but to me, it was already HUGE! and no i didn't get out there. i think i would have just drowned myself to death. anyway, i finally got to see the infamous pipeline, sunset and waimea. only place i haven't checked out yet is haleiwa. will have to do that some day. sunset was HUGE! bigger than pipe. the surf was way way out there. even waimea was blowing. but the locals says it ain't big yet!!! wtf! i can't imagine it getting any bigger! it was already double overhead at least. i managed to watch my local friend bodyboard at pipe. i probably would have gone out there had it not been for some crazy huge sets that came in. if i were in the water, i think it would have just sucked me and thrown me in every direction.

wednesday, we took a flight to Kona, Big Island. I went with 2 other girls and 2 guys. We rented a car and drove around. Saw the black sand beach, and also visited the volcano. fyi, the volcano is still active. we saw steam coming off from the volcano but couldn't see any lava flow. i guess coz it was still bright in the day. but being on that volcano and hard rock lava everywhere was amazing. we drove to Hilo airport to drop the guys off and did a 3hr journey back to kona. We girls stayed at the sheraton resort and spa in kailua-kona. a beautiful hotel. the following day on thursday after a loooong breakfast and walk around the hotel, we took a drive up to check out the kahala coast and its white sandy beaches. the beach was gorgeous. crystal blue water and white sand. on our way up to the northern most part of the island, we caught a glimpse of the whales from far. we could see it blowing and it's tails flapping. we spotted about 10 whales all together. it was said that the whales migrate to that part of the ocean during winter. it was an amazing sight. we didn't expect to come across them. on the way up to a town called hawi, a beautiful rainbow emerged. it was absolutely gorgeous. it's the brightest with deep set colour rainbow i'd ever seen in my life. it was breathtaking. after reaching the top and checking out the view of the kahala coast, we continued our journey down to a town called waimea. it was a spanish cowboy town back in the 1600s but now it looked like an abercrombie and fitch ranch village. we hit the pool to unwind after a long day out. enjoyed the jacuzzi and did some silly high school girls antics. we joined a lei making class on friday and made our own leis. we checked out from the hotel at noon just in time to turn the car in to the rental company only to find a flat tyre and subsequently getting a late charge upon return. not only that, we had also missed our flight by 3 minutes thanks to the airport security!!...had to wait an hour plus for the next flight. and last but not least, when we reached honolulu and claimed our baggage, one of the girls had lost the her bag. the airport had misplaced her bag and till today it is nowhere to be found. lucky she only had a couple of clothes and some usb cables in there and not her important documents. after sooooo much drama, sat was resting day in bed. and today sunday, we hung out at ala moana beach on a gorgeous hot sunny afternoon and at 6 we headed down to waikiki beach to catch another hula performance at sunset. another week gone by. another week ahead to look forward to. it's been a tiresome but fulfilling week and so i'm gonna call it a night here. aloha everybody.

Updates!

2007-01-06T23:51:00.000-10:00

A quick one before i hit the sack.

sat (today) hiked up diamond head with denise, linda and emanuel. view was breathtaking. of course silly me forgot to load up the camera with the battery. silly silly me. i guess there has to be a next time. then, we headed down to kuhio beach at waikiki to catch the free movie on the beach at sunset. they were showing the movie click feat adam sandler. i took a dip in the sea and when i got out it was freezing. plus it rained a lil bit off and on at the beginning. the sky was clear and stars were sparkling by the end of the night. it was a gorgeous night. later on, denise, linda and i hurried off to catch a bonnie ray concert. unfortunately it was already ending...denise jumped the fence and got to see bonnie ray upfront. lucky for her!!! a day full of fun shared with some really nice fun people.

fri(yesterday) noon: got myself a laptop. HP. amd turion dual core. 80gbhard drive.1gig ram.dvd,cd burner. all in all about USD600+...not too bad i say. evening: caught a hawaiian performance at the beach during sunset. wathced some girls performed hula dancing accompanied by hawaiian musicians. it was gorgeous. i think i wanna go learn to hula. hehehhe..
had dinner at shorebirds restaurant at outrigger reef hotel with denise. a good and cheap dinner. called it a night after that.

more updates soon. too tired now. need to catch more zzzsss...gotta go meet some pros tomorrow. aloha!

2 days in Hawaii

2007-01-03T01:09:00.000-10:00

more to come.....

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2007-01-02T07:28:00.000-10:00

Aloha from Hawaii. Yes that's where i am now in case you're wondering. Landed myself here on Dec 31st 2006, 9pm. Countdown spent at waikiki beach watching fireworks. Currently staying at a hostel in waikiki. looking for a room to rent asap. Will get back with more stories once everything is sorted out.

Byeeeeeeeee heheheheh

under the weather

2006-12-11T09:37:00.000-10:00

its 3.37am. i'm still up. slept the whole day and now can't seem to get the eyes shut. the internet is still acting up. seems a lot better during the night. making full use of it now. would like to announce to the world that i shall be returning to the states on Dec 23rd and making my way to hawaii just after christmas. I have found myself in a lil sticky situation. I was supposed to crash in a friend's place but now, my friend has some company over and therefore i am homeless. I don't quite know how i'm gonna sort this one out, but i have to come up with something real quick or otherwise i'll be stuck on the streets. I know i can't go knocking at mom's for her husband wouldn't be too pleased. Hmmmmmm....sigh..another one of those days again.

I am currently under the weather. Have caught the flu bug. It's been keeping me on the bed the entire day. Was supposed to catch the swell that came off typhoon 'durian' but this damn flu is making me too weak to surf. I think i might need to go get a jab if it carries on like this.

Another 11 days left in this country. i've got my days pretty much planned out. a surf competition this weekend which i am yet still unsure of whether to participate or not and then another swell hitting sometime next week which will be my last surf in this country this yr. another yr gone by. when will i be back again? only God knows. I'm looking forward to the unforseen. enjoying this ride called my life.

aloha people....

still here!

2006-12-07T18:55:00.000-10:00

yup.i'm still in kl..should have left yesterday but finally decided to postpone my flight to the 21st. had some last minute reasons in doing so. anyway, kak shirin's wedding went well i think. a lot of people turned up. mostly dad's friends of course. the groom is going back to london this sunday night. she'll be leaving sometime in january. nadi leaving in april. its back to an empty household again for dad. feel sorry for him. thank God ayesha is around to keep him entertained.

i've just returned from a 3 day trip to the the east coast. yet another one. waves were huge on monday. tuesday was still awesome but it slowly died down by wednesday. i heard thursday was pretty small. i finally made full use of my surfboard after 3 yrs of keeping it aside. i've realised that its not so difficult to surf on my board..only that i need to learn to pop-up much faster to avoid getting wiped out. i did pretty good i think for a first full attempt. me and leh surfed till dusk on tuesday. sky gave out some awesome pinks rays. it was a beautiful night. we had a good time.

i better sign off before the internet dies on me again. having problem with streamyx. till later!

adios amigos.

surfs up! ti

2006-11-24T03:03:00.000-10:00

if you've noticed that i've gone mia. its coz im currently away in cherating. on a last vacation before i leave for states in 2 weeks. i shall be back in kl soon. big birthday shout goes out to kakak. her 31st yr. HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAK!!!!

adios

2006-11-09T16:39:00.000-10:00

2006-11-07T05:55:00.000-10:00

Past 2 weeks have been hectic. With raya celebrations and then surf sessions. finally get to celebrate raya in kampung after missing it for 2 yrs. i have to make it a point come back for raya every 3 yrs. :) to cut the story short as its half past midnight, we had an open house on saturday for family and friends. dad's friends actually. cooked 2 dishes...the rendang chicken (my specialty) was a hit..hooray to me!! my first attempt at cooking for a large group of people. after an overnight session of cooking followed by an early start to more cooking then entertaining and finally cleaning up, i was pooped. 2 days of rest and then it was the start of many cherating trips. hitched a ride with joel on tuesday morning. spent the first 4 days surfing weak waves in kijal. sizeable but less power. the wave that we had been waiting all week finally arrived on saturday...there were about 40 poeple out in the line up..it was a good day. kijal was pumping clean head high waves. kuari was showing signs of return too. unfortunately, waves from saturday didn't not follow through to the next day...waves were a little smaller, a little less powerful and not soo clean...nonetheless, it was a good week of surfing and partying..yup!! party!! more on that some other day..

adios amigos..

Selamat Hari Raya

2006-10-23T17:08:00.000-10:00

Selamat Hari Raya

Maaf Zahir & Batin

Raya has finally arrived. I'm pooped. Body aching, head aching, feet aching..everything aching. I'm gonna head on to kg to spend time with grandma, aunts and cousins. Will write more once everything goes back to normal.

Tadelu!!

Ou est le 'cotton candy'?

2006-10-16T07:23:00.000-10:00

Just returned from a pretty good night out. Spent my buka puasa today with Mals. I broke fast with a special homemade banana shake ala Mals which was quite good. That alone filled me up but we did drop by at the indian restaurant to have some mee goreng. I spent a good 4 hours with Mals today. I think it's been about 3 months since we last saw each other and it was good to finally spend a night with her just hanging out and chatting away.

After the visit to Mals, i hurried off to see boyfriend as I had promised him that we'd go for a date to the fun fair. I was looking forward to the fun fair for a week now. I have this weird fascination for lights. I love bright and colourful lights and the fun fair today offered a variety of them. I was actually most looking forward to my usual dose of cotton candy. Can you believe that there were no popcorn vendor or cotton candy vendor at this fun fair??? Tis not a fun fair till you have cotton candy machines. I was not a happy camper. We both had a go at the gaming booth. The games were quite expensive. After spending RM20, I only managed to win a pencil and a keychain. How pathethic. Nonetheless, i was entertained by the lights and ferris wheel which i didn't ride. maybe next time i'll have a go at the rickety ride. till then, i shall dream about my cotton candy. bon nuit!

2006-10-15T23:56:00.000-10:00

kinda upset right now at the fact some people take me for granted. i let myself be stepped all over again and again and again...i'm getting sick of it. some people come crawling and begging to me in their time of need but when they're back on their feet again, they couldn't give two hoots about me. i'm sick and tired of the way some people expect me to do things for them but when asked to return the favor, they become so calculative and worry bout themselves only. i hate how people become greedy. i hate the way people think i'm obliged to do things for them. i hate empty promises. they give you their word of honor but when it's time to deliver, they take their word back and pretend that it was never uttered in the first place. arrrrrrrrrrrggggggggggghhhhhh..... when you don't do it they say you're inconsiderate and when you do it they can't be bothered to say thank you. that's why i rather be left alone in my own world where putting up with this kind of crap is not even an issue...

half way through - countdown to Eid

2006-10-09T23:56:00.000-10:00

It's been 15 days since the Ramadhan began and only 2 more weeks left to go before Eid begins. I somehow feel that this yr's fasting has gone by pretty quick. Before I know it, we're already half way through. The festive spirit can be felt throughout. The malls and streets are adorned with festive decorations and lighting. Spent the weekend in Kampung. Ended having to help aunt paint the grill and nadi helped her out with curtain sewing and even steve got to do some flower arrangements. :) 2 days spent buka puasaing in kampung with all the delicious food and not forgetting grandmas wonderful cooking. Next time we drop by kampung will be the start of cookie making session. It's been 2 yrs since i last enjoyed raya. I'm glad i'm back home this yr.

Aside from helping out in kampung, i managed to squeeze in some time to visit a skatepark. Joined Leh for a trip to kg batu in jln ipoh. The skate course is a pretty good size with a half pipe and a bowl to complete it. I had a go at the pipe after waiting for leh to tire out. I couldn't master it as i was having trouble turning the carver board and flowing through with it. arrrgghhh..it was quite frustrating really. just watching leh doing it so smoothly and easily made me push myself even more. thats the problem with me. i can't sit still and just watch. i HAVE to try it. and when i can't do it properly, i beat myself to death!!...i just wanna be able to do as good as the guys do. if they can do it, so can i right???? hmmm....anyway, although i couldn't manage the half pipe, i was glad to find out that the bowl was more my kinda thing. unfortunately, the bits of puddle here and there kinda spoilt it all so i couldnt get to enjoy it fully. it is quite intimidating to go to a skate park full of guys only to find yourself the only girl around and all eyes were on you. after psyching myself out and ignoring the stares, i became more comfortable and enjoyed the whole tumbling session off the pipe. i foresee more trips to the skate park in the near future :)

last note, was lying on the sofa when my lil niece got hold of nadi's camera and started snapping away. although little, she can take some pretty damn good shots. not bad for a 3 yr old.

Downhill downpour...

2006-10-01T02:20:00.000-10:00

Friday finally came around, as usual we all congregated to our weekly meet up at dharoos. sky was clear, wind was blowing, it looked to be a perfect skate session. half an hour passed by and the weather didn't look too promising. we scooted off to bangsar only to be greeted by a slippery wet slope. drizzle soon turned to heavy rain. another night wasted, another week of wait. no surf and no skate. *sigh* it wasnt our night.

since the night was still young, we headed down to the mamak shop and had drinks. after filling our tummy, we decided to check out the hill again. the rain had stopped and the road was still wet. a lil dry spot here and there but too dangerous to go all out skating. so david and han began what they do best;sliding. it was too difficult for me to just sit there and watch them enjoy themselves with the sliding. so ms oh so brave here decided to attempt sliding. it was nerve racking. i've never felt such pain in my rear end as i did that night. did ms oh so brave succeed? oh yes...she did!!!! yeay!!!! although she needs to perfect the technique she is now on her way to become a slider :)

Penang

2006-09-27T18:04:00.000-10:00

Well I'm back from Penang. It was just a 2 day trip. Work related and no, it wasn't a holiday. Actually, i was just tagging along nadi and shirin who were helping out dad run a 1 day course in Penang. I did manage to check out Gurney Drive thanks to Ivan. Met him and Sam and had Penang Cendol. :) Penang was different from what I had imagined. I didn't get to see much of it as i couldn't really afford the cab ride. And sad to say, i left penang without checking out the authenthic penang char kuey teow and nasi kandar. Hopefully, someday i'll get to enjoy the real penang. Adios people!

Ramadhan

2006-09-23T06:43:00.000-10:00

It is the start of the Ramadhan month. Time has come where Muslims all over the world begin fasting for a month and that includes me. Yes people..I do fast! I am looking forward to the fasting month as i somewhat do enjoy it, the only thing i'm not looking forward to is having to miss out on surfing. The waves are coming in and it'll be a whole month before we get to enjoy them. *sigh* oh well, they say patience is a virtue and i'm sure God is just making it sweeter for me once i hit the water come raya time.

So to all fellow Muslims, happy Ramadhan!!

p.s As of a couple of weeks ago, i became broke and reached '0'. So to those who have not seen me or to those who i can't find my way to see, it's not because i've forgotten you or ignoring you. It's just plain simply coz i'm broke. I will however try to pay a visit before i leave to US.

Btw. I stopped by MAS ticketing office to have my return flight postponed only to find out that it'll cost me USD100 to have the date friggin changed. Arrrggghhh!! Such a bloody rip off!!! So,I'm considering setting up a 'sasha fund' so that i can postpone my flight. So to those who are feeling oh so generous and caring, donations and sponsorships are most welcomed! hehehehe...

ok, time for bed. must wake up in the wee hours to fill tummy. Happy Ramadhan to all my Muslim friends. Cheerio!

Mummy!

2006-09-03T16:53:00.000-10:00

Mom came back for a short holiday. She left this morning. I was quite sad to say goodbye to her last night. I think she was too. Although it has only been 8 months i have not seen here, it felt like ages. I do miss her terribly at times. Eventhough i did live with her for 2 yrs, i could never really talk to her or spend much time with her. Oh well, i shall be seeing her soon. 2 months to be exact but i wont hang out in Jersey for long since I have to settle down in Hawaii. Which reminds me, i'll be in hawaii in 2 months!!! Gosh!! I have to start doing my research on the state and i've got to start organizing everything. I do hope I get to go as my fate is now in Nadia's hands. Sad but true!!! Price one has to pay for helping another out, hopefully it'll be worth it!

I hope mummy had a safe and good flight. See you soon ma! Love you lots!

Happy Merdeka Day!

2006-08-31T06:14:00.000-10:00

To all fellow Malaysians out there, Happy Independence Day! Well after 49yrs of freedom we ought to consider ourselves lucky and proud Malaysians as we continue to live in this peaceful beautiful country of ours.

Countdown was celebrated at Dharoos Mamak in Uptown and then we had our own special merdeka downhill session where JD finally joined this yr!!! Skated ourselves out till 5am and then grabbed a quick bite at the local mamak before heading home. After 3 hours of much needed rest, we had to drag ourselves out of the house to go surf at the pool. Thought we'd be the first ones out, unfortunately a couple beat us to the last 4 boards available. So the long wait began to register for the 2nd session at the pool. Lo and behold, 10 mins before 1st surf session starts, channel v comes up to me and asked for 5 surfers to surf for their shoot!!! Freeee Boards!! Yeay!!!So, look out people. Our faces might just come out on Channel V Asia. There better not be any close ups!!

Shall call it a night. Only had about 3hrs rest for the past 30hours. I'm pooped! 2nd sis arriving from London tomorrow. That'll be another episode. Till then, buenas noches.

Table for 6

2006-08-29T16:29:00.000-10:00

Dinner last night was spent at Renaissance Hotel with very close friends. Nadia and I were joined by Nik, Sulaiman, Steve and Leo. We decided to take the LRT from Bangsar to KLCC instead of having to sit through traffic. Then it was a 15min walk to the hotel in which i had to snap the strap of my heel!! With one strap left to secure me from walking barefoot, we reached the hotel and i took revenge by stuffing my face with all the scrumptious food and not forgetting the cake!! :) I couldn't take the walk back to KLCC with a half broken shoe so Nadia the pro heel walker (she calls me an amateur) took over my heels. Benefits of having the same shoe size as you're sister!

All in all, i had a good night. I hope everyone else did too. Maybe one day we'll get to do it again. Muchas Gracias mi amigos.

All set!

2006-08-28T17:50:00.000-10:00

I've finally tweaked the site. I'm quite happy with all of it. Here's a quick update on what went on for the past month or so.

- Attended Pussy Cat Dolls concert (no, i didn't waste a single cent on them, i
smuggled myself in)

- Ipin's weddingl; congratulations to him and Erina and may they lead a wonderful life
together

- A week of feasting on food. Started on monday with dinner with the king of fruits (durian) and ended the next monday with steamboat. i'm super stuffed just thinking bout all the food that i gorged.

- Surfing and bodyboarding during school holiday week. Surfed and surfed away and improved a whole lot. it was practically just me and nadi in the pool. fun!fun!fun!

- Friday nights downhill skate session at Bangsar hill. We finally found a spot where no one would chase us out.

- Lastly, Terri's birthday party at Laundry Bar. A close group of surf friends gathered together to celebrate David's gf's birthday. We danced the night away and drenched in sweat. Everyone got their grove on. It was an unforgetable nite. :)

Will keep you all posted. Aloha people! :)

yeay

2006-08-18T20:32:00.000-10:00

yeay!! yeay!! yeay!! me found new page designs...i likeeeee...i loveee...let me know what you guys think. i'll stick with it if i get the thumbs up..

back soon for more updates.

2006-07-25T07:22:00.000-10:00

Where did my background image go???...Arggghh!!!...i hate messing with these things!

2006-07-25T06:51:00.000-10:00

I feel a lil tad guilty for abandoning this so called blog of mine. Although I must add that there are valid reasons for doing so. One just simply being the fact that I'm lazy. Too many things have been going on lately that I just am not in the mood to tell the whole world (or whoever cares to read) my going-ons. Not that I'm being snobbish or anything, just that I don't think writing about how broke, how confused, how lost and how sick I am to be of any interest.

Well, now that we're on the topic of my disapperance, I am currently looking for a temp/contract/hourly job. I am in dire need of some quick cash as I do not want to depend on him to support me constantly. Not that he minds of course but I personally have this thing against not settling my debts asap. I'd rather get that over and done with than having to prolong it. I admit my mistake for not being more cautious with my money since I got back. I guess I got overexcited about enjoying life again. I'm not one to worry about money as I have always made sure I got myself covered but now I'm running low, very low, and it's gonna dry up sooner than later.

So, these are the down months...Need I say more...

Buenas Noches Mi Familia y Amigos

Reflections..

2006-06-07T21:27:00.000-10:00

It has been 6 months since i first arrived home back in January. Is the glass half empty of half full? As i sit here pondering what i've been up to for the past 6 months, I've realised that there have been some memorable moments. Here's a few of them:-

1.Miri surf trip with him and meeting up with Jules and his mom in Brunei
2.KK trip with Kak Shirin and meeting up with Sudin and Dodo
3.Quiksilver Revolution Tour. Hanging out with surfer friends and Haq and co
4.Bali trip with surf gang. Met Otong of G-Land who became my BB Sifu :)
5.East coast May Swell out of nowhere and i nearly drowned thanks to the 12ft waves.
6.Phuket trip with Niki. Surfing with Brian and watching a cabaret show with Niki :)
7.Downhill session at Tmn Tun. Getting chased out by the cops
8.Birthday Dinner with family at Renaissance Hotel, kl

That's all i can recall as for now. There's many more to come..:)

Phuket trip!Finally!

2006-05-27T02:31:00.000-10:00

Salut! Yes i'm back from phuket ALREADY! So soon i know. I wanted to extend but due to the whole financial thing, i didn't want to get myself into trouble. How was phuket?? First i must add that it's completely different from Kuta! As per Basit's description "Phuket is like Penang". However, i must add that Phuket is VERY hilly. Transportation is quite pricy. I ought to stop bitching about the taxis in KL. A short 8 minute ride could cost RM10!! BUTTTT food is pretty cheap.This scrumptious meal below only cost RM8!!

As Nikita was away doing her work thing, i went over to Kata Beach and met up with Brian for some good surf. Waves were pretty good that afternoon but according to him it was much cleaner in the morning. Sets came in and they were roughly head high. I didn't know the whitewash could get pretty heavy. Locals were not as agressive as as Bali. They're much mellower and nicer. There were roughly about 20 surfers only in the water. I found Phuket to be quite peaceful and quiet. This they say was due to the fact that i just so happened to come by during the low season. Otherwise it'll be full of people. I didn't get to do the whole ko phi phi, ko pha ngan island hopping thing as there was not enough time. Maybe the next time around. and maybe when there are no waves. :)

The best waves ever!!!!

2006-05-18T06:40:00.000-10:00

First 3 pics were of Kijal Waves. The last one of Kuari. Who would have thought that that malaysia would produce such unbeliavable waves in the middle of May. All due to the typhoon that hit Phillipines. Those who missed it missed out on a whole Lot! Kijal was barelling and waves were double overhead. Kuari was pumping out awesome overhead waves. Unbelievable. Well people, get your big boards ready coz this yr we're gonna see Kuari in action!!!More to come...

Bali!

2006-05-13T07:55:00.000-10:00

Well, as some of you may know, i am back in town. In fact i have been back in town since friday. Just that i haven't gotten a chance to actually sit down and get my thoughts together. I'll start by saying Bali was paradise. :) I wished i had extended my stay for at least another week or so. 8 days was too short of a period for bali. So many places to go, so little time. The waves in Kuta were pretty small..chest to shoulder when the sets came in. Outside Kuta was pumping though. Places like Balian, Madewi, Uluwatu. And no I didn't have the guys to surf Uluwatu nor Balian as it was like double overhead! I was somewhat disappointed with myself as I was having trouble catching the waves. Only after the third day, something kicked in, and i was catching quite a few good waves at Balangan. You read about all these surf spots in the magazines but when you put a face to the name, it's like a whole different scene. This being my first trip, I had no idea Uluwatu would look so beautiful! I also had no idea Kuta was so commercialised and busy!!! It is unfortunate that I didn't get to visit those real Balinese places such as Ubud and all. I heard its gorgeous there too. I am however arranging another trip for end of august. Anyone wanna join me?...

Quiksilver Revolution Tour - 22nd April 2006

2006-05-10T08:20:00.000-10:00

Sorry Nadi..I know this is way overdue..i know it's not much but it's all that i've managed...

Here are some shots of the event by day...
the place was buzzing with bikini clad girls and skaterboys. mind you most of whom were underaged. all surfers congregrated in the cabana on of the islands and had front row seats to watch the pros do their thing. it was absolutely exciting seeing em pros trying to do their big airs with the help of the jetskis and the 'oohhs' and 'ahhhs' that followed!
and by night..

come nightfall, the party really kicked up and the music turned up a notch... everyone was glad to be out of the heat and the pool was full of people... it's very rare you get to swim during the night in sunway lagoon and when you do, it's one heck of a pretty sight. had a good time playing all those silly water games with friends..
too bad nikki had to leave early. the heat got to her and this was a shot taken before she got carried away in a stretcher!! hehehe... don't worry nikki!! no one will remember!! :) i met a whole load of people whom i haven't seen in a long long while including all the ex-lifeguards and some of the other staff. some whom i couldn't even recognise anymore! it was good to see them again though after such a long time!
i was busy juggling my time hanging out with my bro haq and crew and the surfer group. i'm so glad that haq and gang turned up and actually enjoyed themselves.
and finally a shot of me and my "abg angkat" haq. we're like two peas in a pod.
the similarity can't seem to end. he is definitely the bro i never had and i am blessed by God to have him in my life. I have to say thanks to kakak though for this.
and lastly, it's my bro and me and his lovely wife, anusha. being an aquarian herself, of course we instantly clicked and what a wonderful "sister angkat" she is. both of em are like my second family. they're constantly feeding me and keeping an eye on me. :) overall, although the surf demo was quite disappointing as the pros didn't land any of their moves being towed in and they didn't do any free surfing, the place, the music, the friends made it all memorable. aloha everybody..till next time! :)

what say u?? hehehe

2006-04-20T17:31:00.000-10:00

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One of those again!

2006-04-14T20:00:00.000-10:00

Apologies due to those who have been waiting for my updates. I have been thrown into the unavoidable exam phase. Oh yes it's back again. Didn't think after the last one in December, four months flew by so fast. So back to the books and last minute studying.

Just a reminder to all that i shall be disappearing from end of April to early May for yet another surf trip. BALI!! HERE I COMEEEEEEEEEEE!! quite obvious ain't it where all the excitement lies. I am however trying to control it till after exams but how on earth can you NOT get excited over surf trip with your mates to BALI!! So Nadi, eat your heart out!! hahaha...EVERYONE is going and I mean EVERYONE. :p

Anyhoo...i'm relieved that Nadia has managed to get her act together and finally got the car. Nadi: Pls take proper care of it! And oh ya..If i do somehow land there first before hawaii, you shall be driving me around! :)

Big sis Shirin went back to London on monday. She is not doing terribly well. I hope she sorts herself out. Kak Shirin if you're reading this: Byk byk lah berdoa ye. Go do what you have to do. It's about time. Ain't worth wasting it.

Times up! Catch ya'll later.

it's been that long??

2006-04-09T20:22:00.000-10:00

has it really been that long since i last updated my blog? have i been that occupied? wow! time really flies. i have been busy with the family. kak shirin came back about 3 weeks ago and she's leaving tonight. went on a trip with her to sabah and stayed over at gayana island again..i'll post some pics up soon..aside from that, we've been going on family outings to mkn and such..i've got my lil niece bugging me right now..blogging shall be postponed till she falls asleep..to be continued....

Over so soon...

2006-03-17T03:22:00.000-10:00

I just can't seem to come to terms with the fact that the monsoon season is coming to an end. :( No more waves, no more surf. oh how boring life can be now! Although there are some bouts of ripples to be felt, it's no where near as satisfying as it could be. 2 months have gone by but i still feel like it was just yesterday. 2 trips to east coast is not enough!!! 2 yrs of waiting, and only 2 trips??? Not fair!! I want more!!! My brand new MS Board is craving for more action.
OK...signs of depression setting in. I guess it's back to my skateboard. I must add that i have now started to carve on flat land. It's one heck of a workout. I am finding it a lil bit difficult trying to keep the momentum while carving..i guess at times like these, it's best to be a surfer. it's a whole lot easier. now, if only i could stand on my bodyboard..that'll help a lil bit...but anyway, as i was saying..the carver is excellent. i think i'm finally experiencing the best of my board. i better not get too comfortable with it or otherwise parting with my carver is gonna be too painful.

so i've started swimming again in hopes of losing that 10 pounds or more that i've gained within a span of 2 bloody months!!!! gosh!! i feel like a whale..if only it is easy to get rid of it as it was gaining it. am on a diet too...trying out the 'no rice' diet..mee hoon doesn't count right??? everything in this country consist of rice!! everywhere it's rice rice rice...i hope i don't give in too quick too temptations...i neeeeeddd to get fit again for my bali trip!! oohh!! that reminds me...it's only 5 weeks away!!!! *yippee*

i've got a splitting headache thanks to the chlorine content + hot sun in sunway lagoon!! i need to go pop some pills..

adios amigos!!

M.I.A

2006-03-13T06:06:00.000-10:00

ahh yes...i'm back again after a short disappearance..not really in the best of health right now...got the flu and sorethroat going...off to bed soon..just a quick note to say that i'm still alive for those of you who are wondering..

will keep you all posted!! bon nuit!

an unforgettable surf trip...

2006-02-27T19:43:00.000-10:00

it's him and me!!

2006-02-27T07:47:00.000-10:00

i miss this..

2006-02-27T07:43:00.000-10:00

i need my sea!

2006-02-21T03:44:00.000-10:00

so,i'm back in town after a wonderful weekend trip. miri and brunei was excellent. it's just sad that niki couldn't join us. the hotels we stayed were lovely. marriott miri was gorgeous. i'll post some pics up once i get them uploaded. patience people! anyway, we met up with jullian and chilled with him. he brought us around miri town which was really nice. the town just reminds me of the days when i used to grow up in kk; the whole city by the sea kinda thing. it's wonderful. one could definitely get comfortable living by the beach. i for sure could. hopefully one day i will get to own that dream house by the beach. anyway, apart from miri, we managed to take a trip up to brunei. spent a night with his family. it was fun just lepaking. we even managed to catch some surf in brunei!! it was pretty choppy and small but nonetheless, it was fun. i'll definitely post some pics up. hopefully by end of the day!

later!

happy birthday to me!!

2006-02-15T23:45:00.000-10:00

boy oh boy! a year older and a year wiser?? older i know for sure but wiser?? i guess we shall wonder bout that later on. ;p i'm spending the day babysitting my niece.the least i could do since i have been away for far too long. she's adorable but a naughty rascal! note to kakak: yes..i do care about my niece..

anyways, going for dinner with my family tonight at the hotel. wishing that nadi and kak shirin was around too. God knows when we'll all get to be together again. i'm sure it'll be sooner than later.

going to miri and brunei over the weekend. will let you all know how that goes!

cheerio people!

Surfin Cherating..

2006-02-01T01:01:00.000-10:00

Hullo!! I'm finally back from the long awaited trip to cherating!! NAdia:Don't be jealous ok! hehehhe...Me and Nikita had lots and lots and lots of funnnnnnnn..Weeeeeeheheee...We spent a total of 5 days there..3 days surfing like crazy and the remaining 2 left spent chillin by the beach and entertaining the lil kids coz the waves died down..
buttt...i just got on the net and found out that the swell is coming in again and guess who'll be going to cherating again this weekend?? hehehe....we shall wait and see..i know daddy dearest will be pissed but hey..it's been 2 years since i last surfed in the ocean. i think i deserve a break right? anyways, will see how the weekend goes.

spending the weekend with ipin and and leh was fun filled. me and niki probably drove them nuts laughing and hollering in the sea and hassling the both of them. we were just having so much fun!! nadia, too bad you were not around. next time ok!! i hope we didn't scare ipin and leh too much that they won't wanna let us tag along next time! :) highlight of the whole trip was driving up to KT and spending the evening with JD!!!! heheheheh..all in all, it was great to be surfing again good friends. i feel so alive now that i've got my life back again. :)

c ya later aligator! aloha!

balik kampung!

2006-01-18T21:59:00.000-10:00

hello people!! i'm back in action. i have finally arrived in malaysia. so far things have been ok. getting tanner by the day. not gonna even mention the heat although i must add that is it somewhat bearable. i haven't met up with that many poeple yet. have only gone bodyboarding twice in lagoon. no trip to cherating as yet! it's soooooo difficult for me to meet everyone and get things done. dad sent the car for repairs. it hasn't been fixed as of yet. God knows when i'll get that back. so far i've only stayed out of the house 1 night. even that was a battle in itself. hate fighting with dad but he can be really forceful and controlling at times. it's damn hard. i can't complain though bout being back coz at least i get to see my bf. he has been wonderful. i have only spent a day with ayesha since she's all the way in k. selangor. a bit far for me to get to. but that lil girl is so cheeky. hopefully when i get my car, i'll get to spend more time with her.

well, i'm off now..gotta go home before dad starts hollering.

c y later aligator!

Bonjour 2006!!!

2006-01-01T07:25:00.000-10:00

Happy New Year everyone!! Hope this year brings all the good stuff for everyone :)

Here I am into 2006, and i get out of bed 12noon! some things just dont chage eh! hehe..

hope everyone had a good new yr celebration! and yes nikita..my turn will come!! haha..

ciao!

Yeay to Santa!!

2005-12-25T08:50:00.000-10:00

I know miracles do happen but I can't believe Santa actually made my wish come true!! After bitching and moaning and sleepless nights, finally I got my christmas gift! Someone just bought my car :) And they bought it at the price I was asking for. A group of chinese students came by and looked at it this morning and immediately put a deposit on it. No more begging!!! Yeay! I get to turn people away!! I'm on such a high right now it's ridiculous!I'm sooo relieved. Now time to face another headache. It's time to pack!

Later!

Merry Christmas people!!

2005-12-24T15:08:00.000-10:00

Wishing all a wonderful Christmas Holiday and a joyful New Year!!! :)

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Can I bitch and moan now??

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OK! Like it or not, I'm going to. I don't mean to put a damper on the christmas holiday spirit but I'm not exactly having a wonderful time! My car has been giving me soooooo much headache. Not because of it causing me mechanical problems(well yeah that too but just abit) but because I can't seem to get rid of it. No one wants to buy my car. I'm selling it at $4k. And the car is only 5 yrs old!!Why won't anyone wanna buy an 01 Hyundai Elantra?? The mileage is pretty low considering it is about 5 yrs old. People wanna cheap car, but they don't wanna settle for a crappy one either. So, mine is perfect!!! It's good and it's reasonably priced. It's even on the low side. Hmmppphh..I'm not sure what to do. I need to get if off my hands within the next 2 weeks or I'm screwed. I might just end up selling it at the junkyard at the rate things are going. I've even got the for sale sign up on my car and I've posted it on the net. What else should I do? Anyone have any ideas? Hmmm...

Anyway..wishing him a merry christmas. I know he's having a wonderful time in the east coast right now. I hope he catches some good waves for me.

Cheerio people. I hope Santa will make my wishes come true! :)

Presents!!Yeay!!

2005-12-19T15:04:00.000-10:00

Some snippets from this year's christmas gift exchange. I got myself a really warm nice throw, some candles, aromatherapy body wash all courtesy of Erich. I was touched. Pampering for moi!

I've got more to spill tomorrow. Gotta start studying for exams tomorrow. Wish me luck people!

Question of the day??

2005-12-09T19:05:00.000-10:00

Do you be with someone who only likes the inner part of you and not the outer too? Or do you only be with someone who like both the inside and outside of you? Do you be with someone because they have a nice personality or because you like the way they look? I would think one would be satisfied if they found someone whom they love as a whole and not only part of them. Do you live with someone because you like their personality but then learn to settle with the way they look and vice versa? Is it good to just settle with someone because you like 1 part of them instead of all? How important is it to like someone in and out? To find that they are beautiful both inside and outside? There are those who be with someone because they have a nice personality but not really liking the way they look or vice versa? How long can one live with another that way? One thing for sure, it sure hell does make you feel good if you are loved both inside and outside instead of just a part of you...

Winter morning!

2005-12-09T05:22:00.000-10:00

friday morning snow storm! i drove out the house thinking i could brave the snow storm. it was a big mistake! my car was about to get stuck but i managed to pull out just in time! it was scary! didn't wanna get stranded in the storm. i'll probably hit the road again later today. office is open. life goes on doesn't it come rain or shine...

The office Christmas Dinner

2005-12-04T15:27:00.000-10:00

No money no talk????

2005-11-25T16:56:00.000-10:00

What do you do when you are always the one to offer a helping hand but when you do finally ask for help, people turn their back on you even those closest to you. I guess there's nothing you could do but just move on. But what if that someone is a person you've always respected and loved? Do you get upset? Do you feel disappointed? Do you feel betrayed? I didn't know money could speak a thousand words. I didn't know it would matter even if's just landing it out for a couple of weeks. I know how it feels to be taken advantage of with money but I still try to help as much as I can especially when I know it's not gonna cost me to much grieve but it's just surprising that others do not feel the same way you do. So I guess, there's no one else to rely on except for yourself...It just makes me wonder why are people so selfish when it comes to money?...

HaPPy ThAnkSgiVing..

2005-11-24T18:38:00.000-10:00

Happy Thanksgiving y'all!!! No thanksgiving dinner for me though. Been in bed the whole day just lazing around. I definitely have to give my thanks today. This could be one of the happiest days of my life..I found out I passed one of my exam papers and my coursework for the coming exam paper. Anddddd his dad has given the green light with us being together!! yipeeee!! I'm so so so relieved. That's one big hurdle over. Few more to go..Thank you God! :)

New found friend..

2005-11-19T14:32:00.000-10:00

Maybe living in US ain't so bad. I guess I am just at the wrong place. I have now realized the meaning to southern charm and I finally realized how different the southerners in this country are compared to the east coast or west coast. Just when I think i will be friendless in this country, i have finally found a girl friend. Although she is all the way in TX and I in NJ and we have yet to meet each other, it's so much fun to be just gossiping about work to each other. It's just too bad that we work in different DCs or otherwise we would have made a great team. We are pretty much similar in terms of how we think and what not. So it feels absolutely great to have a friend. It's just amazing what girls talk about when you get them together! Although I will probably never meet her, it does give me hope that maybe there are some people out there who are friendly. It is true however that those in the upper east coast tend to be a little more unfriendly. It is hard to come across people who are willing to welcome you into their homes or even take the time to introduce you to the area or people even when they know that you are new to the country. Unlike malaysia, people here are not very hospitable. So finding friends here is really difficult. The hardest part about living here is that when you are friendly to a guy, they take that as a come on and they end up thinking that you wanna go to bed with them. Just coz a girl is talking to a guy, that doesn't mean she wants to sleep with him!! Hmm..well yeah..i guess it's something I gotta get used to. There are always gonna be pros and cons with moving to new areas...

Luv u Ayesha

2005-11-15T16:37:00.000-10:00

I think November has been most trying times for my family. Now my little 21/2yr old niece is in the hospital. She's admitted for broncho pneumonia. I do pray that she gets well soon. She sounded so weak when i spoke to her.I do miss her dearly. I do regret not being able to be there for her to play and care for her like an aunt should do. Hopefully, I will see you soon Ayesha. Get well soon baby girl. Love you lots - Aunty Sasha

What say you??

2005-11-13T04:58:00.000-10:00

Thanks to nikita, I got this from her site. My family and friends ought to know if this is true..Go figure yours out.

Your Brain is 73.33% Female, 26.67% Male

Your brain leans female

You think with your heart, not your head

Sweet and considerate, you are a giver

But you're tough enough not to let anyone take advantage of you!

What Gender Is Your Brain?

Welcome to winter...

2005-11-12T15:08:00.000-10:00

Although it is not officially winter yet, but the weather sure is spelling out w.i.n.t.e.r. Some parts of NJ have already snowed!! yup! in the middle of november..

mom is back. i have been feasting on rendang with ketupat and kuah kacang and all the yummy kuih raya. thanks to my big sis for packing em up for us!! oh and i also got some caramel cookies from him..so sweeeeeeett..hehe

i think i might go catch lion king on brodway next week. go check out the christmas tree at rockefeller too. rent is coming out in the cinemas. i'll probably go brave the cinemas by myself just for rent or maybe check out the broadway show first. hmm..and oprah has the colour purple out on broadway too..arrgghh...soooo many choices. nikita!! where are you?? come here quick!! we need to go for more broadway shows. avenue q was so funny..but i couldn't keep my eyes open throughout the show!! and so did nikita!!! hahaha..we were so tired from walking around the city.

well, i'm gonna go stuff my face with more kuih raya. adios mi amigos!

One after the other...

2005-11-08T18:14:00.000-10:00

Just recently my grandma and dad were sick. Today I received more upsetting news. My dearest closest cousin whom I grew up with just had a miscarriage. I received the SMS late evening today and was shocked. Just a few days ago, i was chatting away with her and everything was fine. I wish i was back home right now to comfort her.
I hope she gets well soon. I'm sure God will take care of her little baby boy. He must have loved him so much. I hope you get well soon Along...

Thought process....

2005-11-06T14:28:00.000-10:00

I am a victim of wonder. I am constanly searching for an answer to every question. My everyday vocab has boiled down to why, what and if. Lately I've been cooking up so many questions which are still yet to be answered. I don't know why I come with all these thoughts but I'm constantly wondering. I cannot stop asking myself questions. This thought process is driving me nuts. I have to learn to take things as it comes. I have to learn to accept things as they are. I have to embrace things that are out of my control. Not knowing where I'm headed does create feelings of insecurity and fear. I am scared, confused, lost and everthing else jumbled up into one...

Last weekend...

2005-11-05T19:54:00.000-10:00

This will be the last weekend i get to spend on my own. Parents went back home last week and i've had the place all to myself. I finally get to feel comfortable being home. Unfortunately, all good things come to an end..and mine will be in 3 days. :( not looking forward to it.

last note. i hate the idea of fish tanks. i hate seeing the fish cooped up in a tank instead of being able to roam freely. parents have 2 tanks in the house! and 1 of the big goldfishes died on me!! it was horrible fishing out a dead fish out of the tank. *eeewwww* one of the most icky things i've done. yucks.

SeLAmaT HaRi RaYA!!!

2005-11-02T15:58:00.000-10:00

To all my dearest family and friends:

"Selamat Hari Rayaaaaaa..Maaf Zahir & Batin"

I hope eveyone has a wonderful raya. I wish i was back home with my family and friends. I miss my kampung, my nenek, my dad, my sister and fmaily,and all my relatives and friends as well as the food and kuih muih!! I'm dying for ketupat with kuah kacang, lemang and rendang! *yummy*

I am glad to hear that nenek is out of hospital and feeling a little better. I am glad to know that dad is feeling a little better. He does however need to have surgery and that'll probably cost around 30k. I better start sending what little money I have home for him.

Well, it's the 2nd raya i'm away from home. I guess i'm getting used to this loneliness. Nevertheless, life goes on. Maybe one day i''ll be around my family and friends again.

Just the mere sound of takbir raya brought me to tears just now. Loneliness just kills right now...I wish i was home...

Get well soon...

2005-10-30T12:19:00.000-10:00

Raya is around the corner. I received news that grandma was admitted into the hospital at 2am. Grandma is sick.

I also received news that my dad is sick. He collapsed the other evening at a wedding reception. Since then his chest has been aching. Dad suffers from a heart disease. He too is soon to be admitted into the hospital. Dad is sick.

The of the most loved people in my life are not well. I am left feeling helpless. I feel so useless. If only I had money to send my dad to a good hospital instead of him going to the inefficient gov. hospital. I wish I was not so far away so that I could go and take care of him. I am torn into pieces.

I hope everything will be ok. Prayers go out to dad and grandma.

'Dear Acha, I'm sorry I am not able to be around to take care of you...Pls get well soon. Lots of love from your daughter'

Thank you!

2005-10-29T08:11:00.000-10:00

Just wanna make a quick shout out to Glynnis Tan for helping me fix this page. I think it looks so swell now. I feel its so me right now! hehe..Me mucho happy!! *yippee*

Like a Storm...

2005-10-26T02:55:00.000-10:00

How would it feel to identify yourself as a storm? How would it feel to know that you may be a black cloud that looms over someone? How would it feel to be the storm that pushed the sun away? To be the storm that shook up their life and leave a mark? How would it feel to be the storm that challenged another to a battle?

Well..it sucks for sure..
Not by choice I know, but it just so happens..
Never come too close, or the storm might brew again..
Too scared to face the storm?? Then steer clear away from it..

New outlook..

2005-10-23T06:29:00.000-10:00

I got bored again. Instead of finishing up my 2000 words assignment, i decided to play around with this site. After 3 hours of meddling, i have finally settled with this. (actually this was the only skin i could find of the beach)Anyway, there's one thing that is bugging me and I just do not how to fix it. When I view this site using netscape everything seems to be in place however, if i view it with IE the sidebar is all the way at the bottom. I've changed this and that and I still cannot fix it! Somebody pls help this idiot!!!!!...

Sushi outing..

2005-10-20T10:29:00.000-10:00

Much awaited photo of the lunch outing with some close colleagues. Nikita, I actually had sushi!!

Inner conflict..

2005-10-18T16:09:00.000-10:00

I have finally found the words to express my biggest insecurity. It's not about looking beauuutiful neither is it about looking slim and slender. It boils down to matching my inside with my outside. Those duo on the tv show "what not to wear" really know what they're talking about. Unfortunately it's not about how to dress or the clothes i choose to wear. Those to me are just quick fixes. To me it's about looking the energetic part of me. If one were to see me walking across the street, one would not assume that I am a surfer, swimmer, an outdoor adventurous kinda gal who is constantly seeking for an adventure. I would think so too as I am all too familliar with the reaction given by people when i tell them i hang out in the water the whole day being a lifeguard and a surfer and also a skateboarder at the same time. It's the standard eyebrow raise which is then followed by "seriously?? are you sure?? i would never have thought that!". Or the fact that i dont drink or smoke but hang out at clubs is questionable. But thats another whole topic.

Well, what i'm getting at is me wishing that my physical appearance matches my personality. I am an active person. (yes..i know i do love my sleep!) I'm always out and about. i am not a homebody. i love hanging out with friends. i love doing sports and activities. i love extreme sports. i love being spontaneous. i love living life on the edge(that is if under normal circumstances), i am healthy (a lil too healthy i would say) butttttt...when i look into the mirror, i see someone else staring back at me. i could do without the big arms, thighs and rolls!! i need to get my soul and my body to somehow connect. or i'll forever be incomplete...