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Its December 25th tomorrow!Yay

2007-12-23T20:31:00.000-08:00

woops. an outdated photo taken last year. the blue-hooded creature lurking nearby the tree is whitney. if i remember right, iza took this photo. pier 39 during thanksgiving/christmas is absolutely brimming with life. ah good times. and good times now too. its so good to be back home for christmas. finally! Merry Christmas, my dear friends in Davis, KL, Spore, Ipoh ,Japan, Paraguay, Korea, Mexico, or wherever you are! Have a joyful one, ya

A year and 7 races later

2007-12-22T02:14:00.000-08:00

it has been the support and encouragement of my friends both from Davis & Ipoh that really kept me going!Thanks, guys

I had always known that I'd be a runner. During my high school days, running was always something I did just to keep in shape. I never really tried to race because, truth be told, there were always people telling me that I wouldn't be able to do it. Or, their words translated to mean that. I remember an incident, where a friend, upon learning that I go running in the evenings, said that I would be better off if I didn't run because running causes people to gain weight instead of staying in shape. I mean like, isn't that hilarious?

Anyway, fast forward 7-10 years, and look who's running places compared to those who were on the high-school track team? I've never had the opportunity to represent even my house teams running, simply because they always looked for someone skinnier, taller, or the daughter of the physical ed. teacher.

Nov 2006: US Half Marathon, San Francisco, CA
My first half-marathon (21km) which I had originally planned to do in Nov 2005. Due to workload and the pressure to 'not lose it' during my Junior year, which is the toughest year for students (which is true!!!) in American varsities, I had to let my training bring over to the next year. It was my first race in the US, and I loved every single bit of it! Running across the Golden Gate Bridge and under around the bay, it was the dream run I had always imagined it to be. My time? 2:18. Not bad for starters!

December 2006: California International Marathon, Sacramento, CA
My first marathon (42.195km)! Yay! And it was a blessing indeed, to have been able to train with Whitney for it. Not only were we unprepared for it (we had both strained our muscles 2 weeks prior to the race), but we also finished within 6 hours! I hold dear memories of this race. Finishing time? 5:44.

February 2007: Davis Stampede, Davis, CA
I called this my Birthday run, a gift to myself. Reason was that it was just 2 days before my 23rd birthday. I found myself feeling rather funky with my new haircut, so I figured, why not LOOK funky too? Hence the band and that silly smile plastered on my face! Ha. This was a wonderful race simply because it took us around Davis, the place where I stayed and studied for 4 years! Even though Whit and I would run 6, 10, 15 miles around Davis, this took me on a pretty different route to West Davis. At certain points, I felt like Dorothy in Wizard of Oz because of the golden colored fields and farming land that we ran by. Finishing time - 2:12

June 2007: Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, San Diego, CA
Yay for this one! Ryan, Whit, and I traveled all the way to San Diego and even got stuck in Mexico for a night! Hahaha. As usual, I wasn't 100% prepared for this run, so I was basically praying that I wouldn't get injured. Turns out that God kept us all alive, through the insane San Diego summer heat! You won't be able to see it, but we all got sunburnt badly. I looked like a lobster the next day. This run was really memorable to me because I actually drank half a cup of beer midway! Yes, beer. Um, it was hot, the beer was cool..I gave in. I want to believe that it helped me go on, because after that the race seemed easier, or maybe because being a little drunk takes away the pain a little. LOL. Anyway, this was my last run in the States before I returned, so definitely memorable even if it were not for the beer incident. Finishing time - 5:22

Dec 2007: Standard Chartered International Marathon, Singapore
Now, this is the race that I had trained diligently like a good girl for 4 months! And I am proud of myself for being able to run 33km within 3:45 with pacing. What happened beyond 34 km was out of my control (yea, i was working towards a sub 5 race). Basically, both my quads jammed big time. Like, seriously. I don't really know how it happened, but I suspect that too much Mentholatum and too little salt intake had to do with it. Without Whit around, I guess that I just forgot to down a packet of salt (YUCK!) prior to the race. Hehe. But, nvm. I trained well for it, and I ran it well. What amazed me was that my recovery rate took only 48 hours! Yes, no kidding. I was up and about on my two feet without any pain or aches by Tuesday! And see that guy in red up there? Well, I believe he was a godsend. I was 1 km away from the finish line, glycogen-depleted, lactose-infused muscled and all, when he came by me and said "come on! Let's go! Home run!" And together, we semi-ran/hobbled to the end. Hey man, if you ever happen to chance upon this blog, Thanks! cos i never got to thank you that day. Finishing time - 5:40

Sept 2007: Yuk Choy 6k Charity Run, Tambun, Ipoh
A small race that won me 7th place and RM50. Not much, and not bad, since I found myself among the top 10 women runners in the open category. Time: 33 minutes something secs

Oct 2007: Polis Diraja Malaysia (PDRM) 5k Larian Mesra, Ipoh
Another small race in Ipoh. The medal was lousy. Earned 8th spot in the women's open category and RM50 as well. Haha. What's it with RM50 these days?! Anyway, I liked this 5k because I outran a competitor (somebody who outran me in the Yuk Choy run) at the last 2k. I was even able to run another 5k after the race with Mui. We were like running against the crowd and the police were like, "er" and we were like "sudah habis, sudah habis!" hahaha. Time: 25 minutes something secs

Well, I guess that's it for a recap of the year's running events. It has been a good one, with all the friendships fostered and the useful knowledge reaped. On to a new 2008 I go. New place, new friends, and most of all, new experiences! Woohooo

Gary Larson

2007-12-20T03:25:00.000-08:00

My all-time favorite cartoonist..with some doggie humor

Now that I'm here

2007-12-19T04:08:00.000-08:00

I now understand why young people prefer living in kl

Found myself getting used to the highways and roads. My 1st weekend here, I managed to drive myself to Bkt Aman at 5:45am in the morning to run with Pacesetters. Even though I 'lost' my way trying to follow the directions which Tey gave me, I was able to 'bang' my way through and end up in the right place. *Phew

And which route did I run? The Double Hill route! My first hill run in KL! And the first in my life! I tell you, its just called Double Hill - its actually a 6 to 7 hill route! Big liar, whoever it was that came up with that name. Tsk tsk

Spent the previous week in Malacca visiting Invitrotech and Tropical Bioessence. Was good. Got to know my campadres a little better and had some time to myself to relax and think about stuff

I recently got my hands on a couple of interesting books. If you must know, I have never ever attempted to read books on motivation and success. I had always thought that those books were for people who just didnt know any better. Even after a friend of mine lent me "Who Moved My Cheese?" 2 years ago, I never gave it a second thought that those books would do me any good

Well, I guess, I just didnt know any better. LOL. So who's the fool now! Ha

Well, I believe its not too late for me to join in the game. I am rather serious on not becoming a scientist! Yay. On to greater heights!You go gal

More updates coming soon. Wait till I get a hold of my laptop and wireless connection in Ipoh

BTW folks, this is an awesome book! Everyone should read it! No kidding

And this just out of the box. I'm a sanguine! Yay. Wasn't really sure until Iqliema convinced me. I always thought I was more of a choleric. Maybe its because I never liked the seemingly sanguine crowd back then in high school . I just felt that they were all fakes. Cynical me back then. Ha! Maybe I was just more of a thinker then than now. LOL. But yes, they were fakes. And they probably still are

Pictures, to be up in my next entry

In real life...

2007-12-09T00:52:00.000-08:00

runners look like shit when they run..

Don't believe me? Well, here's yours truly au natural

And here I am, au natural toobut on my way to 8th placing in Ipoh's Larian Mesra PDRM 2007..

ha. and i always wondered, how ugly could it get

many thanks to Tey for snapping such a high quality pic of me

you can even see them zits on the face

for more ugly running pictures, visit PM Tey's Blog

Last days

2007-11-28T17:38:00.000-08:00

Yay! A weekend to look forward to. Last day at work today. And just before I get too busy to update.

I realize that I'm naturally good at leaving. Its beyond me to get emotional or melancholic when its time for me to pack my bags and leave. I've done it more than a couple of times in fact. When I left Form 6 for Shah Alam, when I left Msia for Davis, and when I left Davis for Msia. It never seems to strike home that I should be sad. Why should I? Its not like I'm leaving life. Maybe I'm naturally cold-hearted. I leave the people whom I love and those love me without a second thought that I may not see them again. Ha. But what's so sad about that? It would have been sadder to not even get to know them in the first place yah? And what about people who leave? Gee, I don't feel for them either! What the heck is wrong with me? Maybe I have a gene in me which has evolved that makes me a knuckle-headed person unaffected by departures.

On another note, the marathon is this Sunday. Yay. My last run will be today. 2 miles is the ideal, and it will be darn hard to refrain myself from doing more. How do you make yourself stop when it feels so good? Honestly speaking, I haven't been feeding myself as well as I had planned. Partly because I find myself squeezing in time to eat and when I'm rushing to shove food into my mouth, I can't eat a lot. Which is what i need to do! Eat a loT! It's what we long distance runners call 'carbo loading' before the day of the42.195. Only 3 more days to go, and I know I should be doing better in terms of food.

About work. The past couple of days have been pretty quiet and uneventful. THe boss is at the BIO2007 conference (which i declined to go so i can have enough rest), kak Sha is at her university giving her presentation, en. fauad was away one day, en. ali away another day, leaving only me and dr. guna around in the lab. Hehe. And so i spend my time taking pictures of the cells, refilling pipet tips, visiting the mice, surfing the net, following dr. guna to see the sheep, and wasting time. haha.

Pretty myeloma cells which I snapped with our super microscope camera for fun! LOL

Boy, I sure am gonna miss this place. Only 5 weeks but its been a great learning experience. Still, its time to move on, baby! Onto higher grounds! I keep getting the nagging feeling that career as a researcher is not for me. I'm like the classic case of a fresh graduate who finds the perfect job that matches her skills can't decide if its for her.

And i realized i haven't been updating about sara lately. Ha, that dog is one of a kind. She's wierd. Sara finally learnt how to dig. So she has been in a digging frenzy of late. And I think that's how she got ticks on her now. We managed to pluck 3 off her body last night. I felt like a mother monkey looking for those blasted creatures hidden under her fur. You know, maybe getting a monkey would do the trick. HAha. So off to the vet she goes today. Poor doggie.

Btw, did I mention about the time when no one was home, and it rained heavily with thunder and lightning? And fyi, Sara is terribly frightened at the sound of loud thunder. When we came home, she was nowhere to be seen. And after a few minutes of searching, we finally found her under dad's bookshelf - STUCK! She had hid herself so far in under the narrow bookshelf that she was literally frozen stuck under it! LOL. Stupid dog. And she didnt even make a sound. Haiyo

Okay, back to me. I realize that I probably need more shoes and pants for work. Darn. I knew i should have gotten more while I was in US. I can't seem to find good shirts here in Ipoh. Ha. Right. There you go. I should probably save my energy and go look in KL instead since I'll be there next week. Yay. I can't wait to meet up with Iza my ex-housemate & collegemate. I'll be stationed in Marditech Sdn Bhd, which is just opposite from the UPM area. And I heard from my colleagues that UPM guys are hot! Iza even said her eyes were sparkling the day she started there. Yes Iza! We go look for 'manly man' men together gether yah?

Also looking forward to joining the Pacesetters while I'm in KL. Pretty bummed about leaving Roadrunners though, since they have been a nice bunch to run with. Thanks to them, I've been able to improve my times and learn more about the running scene in Malaysia. The folk, both young and old, whom I've had the privilege to know. Simon, Phillip, Jeffrey, Mui, Amy, Jane, PK, Frank, Lai, and many others.

Taking it from Ipoh to KL..

I will probably never forget the last 10 miler I did with Mui and roadrunners last Sunday. It was a cool and dark morning around 5.30am, and the full moon glowed its yellowish-white shine against the dark morning sky. I noticed it only after we passed by D.R. Park, on the flyover over to town. The image of the bright full moon above us as we ran up the flyover. Priceless.

This image does not even come close to the real thing of that lovely morning...

Allow me explain how a running group of friends is so very different. Runners share a passion that is very much different than, say, a passion for shopping or traveling, etc. This passion is one of struggle, of waking up at 4am to run in the wee hours of the morning, pounding away for hours at a time during our long runs. And when all you have is yourself, the sky above, and the road beneath your feet, it creates an eerie sort of feeling that is at the same time, euphoric. The forward movement, the forceful strides, the rhythmic breathing, and the psychological battle in your mind - how do you describe this to a non-runner? How do you describe this wondrous ability of the human body to run, but to a fellow runner?

How do I describe the strength, energy, determination, and team work of runners? Each individual is running for him and herself. But yet working together as a group, where the winner is each person against him and herself. ANd what about the satisfaction we feel, when we pass by the occasional reflective glass of a car shop? We see ourselves, with our individual running styles, like a pack of wild animals on the road giving off an energetic aura. We run, we perservere, and we inspire.

As Miles, my favorite Runners World's contributor always says, "Waddle on, folks!"

So much to do, so little time

2007-11-26T20:11:00.000-08:00

*Returned from Davis mid-August
*Sara returned the week after
*Started training with Ipoh Roadrunners late August
*Ran my first short-distance race in early september and placed 7th. RM50 + medal.
*Visited friends in KL in sept and oct
*Ran long runs of more than 10 miles every sunday morning with my kaki lari
*Started my new job at Ipoh's Veterinary Research Institute
*Hiked up kledang on saturdays with a friend
*Ran my second short-distance race in october and placed 8th. RM50 + medal. Again.
*Improved my pace from a 7min/km to a 5:30min/km within 3 months of training
*Experienced the worst ever food poisoning attack
*'Played' with H5N1 and Nipah viruses in a Level-3 Biohazard Lab.
*Had lots of fun at work.
*Lots of fun with my kaki lari.
*Biotechcorp Sdn Bhd's entrepreneurship training program offer pops up
*Had to pull out of KRI's 12K to attend Biotechcorp's induction. Darn. Could have gotten 3rd or 4th place.

Coming soon..
*Resign from VRI this Friday after only 5 weeks of work
*Run the Singapore marathon on Sunday
*Return to KL and hobble to class on Monday
*Start life in KL

I realized that..
*I do better in longer races (10k or more) than shorter ones (6k or less)
*I am actually capable of mingling with the 'business' crowd. Career change, anyone?
*I LOVE al-jazeera and all its pryful and controversial questions
*I could participate in Malakoff's Powerman 2008 even if i start training next August

Most of all..
*I've learnt that taking a year off after graduating to rethink and explore your life's passions and career goals will actually move you in the right direction to make well-informed decisions. Better to spend a year of solid searching rather than not for your entire life.

Why hurry when you've got everything it takes?

A run to the death

2007-11-07T22:22:00.000-08:00

"Almost four years had gone by and I’ve had my fair share of successes and disappointments during my professional career. Things were changing with Team Running USA. Many runners had come and gone. It takes a lot of sacrifice, dedication, and focus to leave friends, family, girlfriends, boyfriends, and the like, to live and train for months on end with a group of people you may or may not get along with. I have to admit that it was not difficult to get along with the athletes of Team Running USA. The chemistry on the team was like no other I’ve experienced. Everyone was always positive and supportive. The clashing of egos was never present. But, like I said, times were changing. Eventually I found myself training much on my own as members left the group. Some new people came, trained for a month or so, and then left. The only consistent members training in Mammoth after a while were Deena, Meb, and myself.

Now that I’ve been living and training with TRUSA for 5 months, I’ve come to know and respect my new teammates. We all have similar goals and want to help each other reach those goals. The chemistry of the team, with all the different personalities, has produced and environment conducive to enormous opportunities for each athlete. It is now up to each athlete to take full advantage of these opportunities in order to maximize his, or her, potential."

- Ryan Shay, Introductory Journal Entry, New York Road Runners

I am sure that the running communities all over know of the late Ryan Shay who ran to his death at the recent U.S. Olympic Trials traditionally held the day before the 2007 NYC Marathon. At only 5.5 miles before collapsing, he is probably one of the first elite runners to have collapsed and died mid-race.

It's not only sad, but also overwhelming to all who share the same passion that Ryan Shay had.

But unlike many of us who don't aim to 'win', but just love running and marathoning, Ryan Shay stood a high chance of qualifying, along with U.S.A elites like Ryan Hall, Dathan Ritzenhein, Brian Sell, Abdi Abdirahman, Meb Keflezighi, Alan Culpepper, and Khalid Khannouchi.

A sad day for many marathoners. A sad day indeed.

2007-11-04T04:02:00.000-08:00

When you're at your most tip-top condition, that's when you should be careful. Its not a matter of if anymore, its only a matter of when..

...when a pebble strikes and you get sick, of course!

Yes, yet another word of advice from my running mates today. Of the many words of wisdom we shared ever since my joining Roadrunners back in late August, this one struck home. And to no surprise of course, since I did fall sick last week.

But I'm glad, better now than later. Its less than a month to the marathon. And with many things at stake, I would rather get sick like I did last week rather than go under 2 weeks prior to the race.

And so..its recovery time. With recovery runs and a rearranged running schedule. Now, if only the darn rain would leave us alone!

Oh, and by the way. Work is sooo fun! My boss is super hilarious. Its gotten so so funny that my colleague and I will start smiling and stifle our laughs each time we see mr. boss. Not to mention our dear mr lab attendant who is such a sweet old man and our mr lab technician who always smiles and laughs. And our vet officer who keeps his cool but is also a humorous guy deep inside.

Oh, oh double ooh! My boss took me along to the P3 lab last Friday to infect the cells I was growing with *jeng jeng jeng* H5N1 (Avian flu virus)! Isnt that cool? uber cool we were in those space suit looking coats and face mask and goggles and double-taped our gloves, etc.. I felt like an astronaut...hehe.

And the P3 lab is actually a Biohazard Lab level 3, the highest you can get in Malaysia (Level 4 is the highest you get but we dont have one in Msia). And the one where I work is in fact the very first one established in Msia in 1997. So its about 10 years old now. Coolness yah..

Now, how long till I can achieve the title of Datuk?

I...can't..breathe...elp

2007-10-30T17:02:00.000-07:00

As much as I appreciate the two days leave from work..

IT SUCKS TO BE SICK!

And even though I know my interferons are doing their job, it feels really horrid to be subjected to muscle soreness, cough, dry eyes, sore throat, and just the feeling of being wasted..

And when the fever returns, popping Panadol only makes me break out in sweat half an hour later - and that's a yucky thing. Bleh.

Oh well. Better to be sick now than in November. Heck, its Oct 31 and I have only 1 more month to my marathon!

Gasp. Hurry up, gal! You need to GET WELL FAST!

It's all good

2007-10-27T02:42:00.000-07:00

Woohoo. Received this baby in the mail a couple of days back.

Yes, 'tis good to study in California..On top of the nice weather, nice people, nice places, you get Mr. Schwarzenegger's signature (or rather, autograph!) on your degree conferral.

Work has been nice the past week. Nice people, nice location, nice experiments, nice everything! I mean, like a 2k pay for living in Ipoh!? For an entry-level fresh grad with only a B.Sc in Bio and getting a first job that is 100% related to my degree? It's like, boy, this IS comfy. I even get to run as usual with my getting off on the dot at 5pm. And what better luck than to have work being only 2 minutes from Pologround?

BUT (ha, there is always a 'but') of course, there's always going to be something better, and lest I fall into the trap of getting "too comfortable", I'll be constantly reminding myself: You were made for more than just this.

Like saving up for a couple of years and moving overseas to work?

Like getting an M.B.A & opening a business on the side so I get to be my own boss while having a permanent job?

Like running at least one marathon in a different country every year?

Like helping the less fortunates of other SEA countries through charity runs and marathons?

Ha. Yes, I am capable and I can do it!

Because I am ME - the ultra runner. And everybody knows what runners are capable of!

If you can't get it right..

2007-10-10T23:59:00.000-07:00

..don't even bother.

The residents of Ipoh Gdn East would surely know what it is that I am refering to. Yes, the big promotional board for some new shops in Station 18. Basically, the fellas were trying to convey the information about the location of the shops, but in their attempts to explain "the shop lots facing Tesco", the blockheads seem to have it in their pants to smugly put "shops FRONTING Tesco" instead.

And yes, it IS a little annoying, each time I drive home from my evening runs. 'FRONTING' just stares right back at me, as if to mock me just so. If I were a vandal, I would have done something to correct the injustice from the moment I had laid my eyes on that sign. And no, I am not a self-righteous native English speaker who finds it her God-given duty to correct every single grammatical error that other people make. But isn't this too obvious not to notice?

Gah. Someone, hand me a can of spray paint! I can't take it anymore!

outrunning the guys...

2007-10-10T18:55:00.000-07:00

always feels great, when you're a girl.

*tee hee*

The feeling that someone's onto your heels. The constant crunching of gravel from behind. The wind that carries the sound of heavy breathing. And sure enough, from the corner of your eye, the guy appears. Smug as a bushy-tailed chipmunk thinking that he can outrun you. And of course, you keep your cool. You know you like to make it seem effortless. When you're actually gradually increasing your stride, just in case. And you were right. The guy just won't let it go. But you've already completed 4 rounds and this is the final round where you sprint. You duck and dodge and run around the ppl who are in your way, and he does the same. You make the run up the incline, causing the both of you to run side by side, keeping up with each other. But you keep going faster and faster - and he's slowing falling behind. Heck you don't even know the dude! Or rather, he doesn't even know you! What was he thinking? And you go all out to the end with sweet victory on your lips. Yes. Its good to outrun the boys. After all, you're only *a girl*.

*This is such an awesome video! Boys are such big bullies*

Run Talk

1. ASICS is the acronym for the Latin phrase: anima sano in corpore sano which means a 'sound mind in a sound body'.

2. Stamata Revithi was the first woman to run a marathon in the 1896 Olympic Games but her entry was considered unofficial. Kathrine Switzer was the first woman to run the Boston Marathon in 1967. Women were not officially allowed to compete until 1972 in the Boston Marathon while it was only until 1984 that they were allowed into the Olympic Games Marathon. Wow, that's actually not too long ago from where we are now..

3. Top world runners train at high altitudes. Like in the western rim of Kenya's Rift Valley, La Paz in Bolivia, Wenzhuan in Tibet, and the Rockys in North America.

mah temps

2007-10-02T00:33:00.000-07:00

These babies sure are living up to their name - for the time being. That is, until my Gel-Fortitudes arrive - the specific model is yet to be released in Malaysia but has been in US stores since a couple of months back. The model which took me desperate measures to attain - by purchasing it from good ol' trusty Fleet Feet Davis over the phone, after which Whit helped pick up from the store, and Adilla helped bring back on her flight. Boy those new shoes have certainly covered more distance than I have...and without me too, darn it!

Neways, my Gel-Foundations have been good since I got them last week. No pain or tightness whatsoever that you get from breaking into your trainers. And I even took them out on my 18km run last week only after one measley trial run. Couldn't really judge from my 10km run yesterday since I was still loopy from antibiotics and an annoying butt-ache. Yeah, I still wonder why I'm getting kickass aches in the rump after my stomach flu episode? Did my stomach muscles heave up too much force that it traveled down to my rear? Gosh.

*Asics Gel-Foundation*

But yea, as much as they seem to work, I doubt they would provide me the same comfort and endurance as the Gel-Fortitudes would in the marathon.

Oh well. Till I meet up with Adilla. Till my new shoes make it to my feet. Till I regain 6 pounds! Till then, keep on running folks!

Exactly one summer ago..

2007-09-30T21:31:00.000-07:00

From left: Whitney, Katrina, Moi, Insup, Chantelle, Rebekah, Grace, Alvin

Whoa. I hardly remember taking this photo when Kat tagged me on Facebook. Yep. Those were the good ol' days of summer.

Now everyone's everywhere. Grace's in Korea, Rebekah's in Pittsburgh, Chantelle's in Paraguay...woohoo..

And when we meet again, which I think will happen for sure, it will be one hecka swell reunion!

Till then, press on, folks!

woe is me..

2007-09-27T23:50:00.000-07:00

..and only the pompous twit would use "woe is I.."

Two of the biggest setbacks that a runner faces are injury and illness..

Injury is no stranger to the runner, for every form of running-related injury, whether it be plantar fascitis, achilles tendinitis, shinsplints, etc. has a remedy. And because most runners are well equipped with the knowledge (yes, runners are smart too, ya know?) of how to tend to these injuries, most will up and about on their trusty running feet within 2-4 weeks. Yours truly has had her own share of shinsplint attacks, plantar fascitis agony, and calf muscle pulls yet she emerges stronger and better for the next upcoming race.

However, when it comes to illness...

NO! Call the doc! I can't take it anymore! I need to find out how! WHY, WHY, Why MEee..!!!!??

Yep. Whether it be a fever, a cold, or worse, a STOMACH VIRUS!! The runner breaks down and starts contemplating her sad fate for the next few days when she can't run or do anything but lie in bed (or in my case, sit on the rocking chair) waiting for the hours and days to go by..

Yes, unlike injury, which affects only a specific area of the bod (limb, muscle, etc), an illness wreaks havoc on the entire bod! The immune system, digestive tract, and mental state, if you will, all go into their own state of catalysmic bonkus~!

So, why am I harping on about being sick? Everyone gets sick once a while, right? Beep! WRONG! Heck, I'm never ever gonna let myself get sick again (unless its being sick in the head, ah but that would need to be taken in an entirely different approach). Period.

Because, this once-in-a-lifetime stomach virus (or flu, as they call it)..cost me to

- throw up every single thing i try to eat/drink, including water, yes water.
- run to the toilet every hour (to throw up and throw down? hehe. how to say cirit nicely, ah?)
- lose 6 pounds over 2 days!!!!!!! grrr
- sleep downstairs for fear of throwing up in my room
- feel uncannily weak and light-headed
- stay in while its nice weather for running outside
- drag my giddy head out to walk the dog
- be unable to eat rice or drink soymilk/milo, etc
- refrain from eating for fear of throwing up
- develop an intense hatred for the cursed virus that causes gastroenteritis
- lose four training days

Now you know why even YOU should be aware and afraid. Unlike food poisoning, the stomach flu is contagious..repeat after me, contagious.......hoooo....

now, go wash your hands before you eat.

er, come again..?

2007-09-27T22:31:00.001-07:00

In my entire life, I have never had the pleasure of meeting anybody officially deemed "LCLY" (a cantonese abbreviation) before. Sure, i've heard friends calling other friends "LCLY", but being the linguistically-challenged person I am, I never really had an idea what it always meant.

I found out today though, that..

"LCLY is short for LANSILANYONG and it means to dictate someone as an arrogant, egotistical, snobby show-off. It is often used as a harsh term for someone who is very much disliked by many. It is normally applied to people who think they are super-smart enough to look down on others, or people who are stupid but trying to play smart" - some forum off the internet

And who better than elite runners who are super-good and talented to fit into the role of an LCLY person?

Well...

After my 18.6km training run this morning, I was approached by a runner whom I've always smiled to since joining KRI but never received a smile or even a nod back in return. Today, I finally found out why. Although one of Ipoh's top runners, he has a reputation of being a show-off, or rather, as we Malaysians call it, "Eksyen". Our short conversation left me stumped, as to how on earth can there be such a person who could be so condescending, who finds it so easy to wave off one's hard efforts, and who even has the balls to tell others to quit running just because they are not as fast as him (yes, he even goes to the extend of telling good runners that they are no good) while on the road. I'm glad we've never met on the road..Phew!

Wow. Holy Crap! He must think he's really something, to be saying things like these! Although I've never seen him perform (or how good he really is), at least I can bet that he will never be as good as the Kenyans or Russians who can run 2:04 marathons and the like.

LOL. He even went to the extent of assuming that I was going to run in Singapore just because the other KRI members invited me to. Heck, I registered for the marathon way back in May/June while I was still in the US. I didn't even know about the group till I came back home to Ipoh. If it weren't such a dangerous place for girls to be running around Ipoh alone without company, I'd gladly do it alone.

And that marathon running causes osteoperosis in women? (With a balanced diet and good calcium intake, running actually increases bone density and reduces risk of bone loss in women) And that a woman's menstruation interferes with a woman's ability to perform? (Estrogen is the wonder hormone that allows women to perform well even through their menstrual cycle. Read more at Run Planet) Well, if only he had more credibility in proving them. Any educated person (with a degree like me, at least), would be able to easily refute those unfounded statements. I just didn't because I didn't want to start an argument with a blockhead who doesn't even know what he's talking about.

Anyhow, I certainly think that running is for everyone to enjoy. As a purist runner (yeh, some test I did that identified what kind of runner I am), I'd be exhilarated to find a newbie interested in running. It brings more meaning into the sport. In the end, its the spirit of camaraderie and the joy of running together that makes running the fulfilling gift that it was meant to be for all.

Next: My new Asics Gel-Foundation!

shoes' best friend

2007-09-17T01:53:00.000-07:00

my asics gel-fortitude and its best friend, the nike+ chip
san francisco half marathon, check
california international marathon, check
davis stampede half marathon, check
san diego rock and roll marathon, check

but all good things come to an end eventually
babe, it was swell running with ya'
'twas good while it lasted

2007-09-16T22:04:00.001-07:00

2007-07-01T21:06:00.000-07:00

0h, for me?

2007-07-01T20:58:00.002-07:00

underneath everything...

The 2nd Full Marathon

2007-06-08T09:50:00.000-07:00

5:23:15

Google?

2007-04-28T02:37:00.001-07:00

Whoa. Now I need to sign into blogspot with my google account? Where have I been all this while?

Still no time to make entries here..

Boo.

no time to sleep..

2007-04-15T19:06:00.000-07:00

2007-04-01T09:25:00.000-07:00

yyaaarrrrggghh....

busy busy busy

no time no time no time!

2007-03-19T13:14:00.000-07:00

..so what happens next?

2007-03-18T12:26:00.000-07:00

omigosh. i've been so caught up with school/work/etc that i've neglected this page for so long.

but, no fear. xing ling is STILL here. muahahaha.

and there is still yet a long way to go...

funny, i feel like a real adult now, doing real adult things.

singing in the university chorus with the symphony orchestra la (and with all the makcik pakcik tua alumni),
flying to LA for an interview with the Dean of Biological Sciences from USM Penang la,
wearing a suit and black shoes and carrying a portfolio and handbag la,
engaging in short interview chats at the Winter career fair at UCD la,
planning another short trip to Boston for the BIO2007 International Convention la,
shortlisting the graduate schools to apply to la...

Life is obviously picking up its pace on me.

Speaking about pace, I'm now just right behind ol' Harold in our 100km challenge at Nike plus. Nyahahaha.

boom babeh!

2007-02-06T00:12:00.000-08:00

Ran my second half-marathon! Beat my old time by 4 minutes.

Davis Stampede 2007
13.1 miles
2:12:32 (but my watch says 2:12:24)

Bib number was 5284, translated into the US date: Feb 5th '84. A day before my birthdate. Cool or what?

Also, I turn 23 today! And if you flip the seconds in my race time, 32 becomes 23!

I was just telling my friend how February is sucha cool month 'cos it has all the cool things smushed into one month

Chinese New Year
Valentine's Day
President's Day (holidayyyyy for undeserving college students)
and...my Birthday! (the most important of all!) Hehehe.

Maybe to make February even better, I might just consider changing Sara's birthday to February too. Let's make it Feb 12. Yay. Now another reason to love February!

oh no...!

2007-01-26T00:31:00.000-08:00

now that i'm getting there...

...what do i do after i graduate?

what to do
what to do
what to do

Me? Busy? Naaahh!

2007-01-20T08:42:00.000-08:00

Greetings from da-da land

You won't believe what a blast I'm having in school this quarter. It awesome to be busy with the things I actually like doing. Out of the 5 classes I am taking, I actually enjoy 4 of them so much that I haven't been getting my usual itchiness to skip class!

Hebrew 022
Yes, am now in the Intermediate Hebrew class. Its now my second formal year of learning Hebrew, even though I actually started 3 years ago on my own. I love Hebrew so much even though I know the only place i'll ever be able to use it is in the US or Israel. Fat chances of me meeting any Israelis in Malaysia....

Arabic 002
Another Middle Eastern language I've always wanted to learn. It's now my second quarter in this class and I find it so darn HARD to master. Its like whenever I read a word, my brain takes its own sweet time commiting its sound to my short term memory, only after which I am able to write down the phonetics, translate it, and FINALLY understand what it means in English. Plah! Nvm, the goal is to read, not really speak. Oh oh. I bet I could read some Jawi here and there now. Why, last week I was able to read 'Kari Ayam' in Jawi on Adilla's Maggi Mee packet.

Music 144
Yes!! University Chorus! We've been having practices in the Music building twice a week since school started. Beethoven's 9th symphony, the one with the Ode to Joy song - in GERMAN! walala. Alle Meshen bin den veeder mas die mode Shtrengetailt! Ha, my favourite line in the piece. The performace will be this March 11 in UCD's reknowned Mondavi Theatre's Jackson Hall! Now i'll be able to have Kern our beloved maestro conducting in my frontal view. Ah what joy my eyes await...

PhyEd 006 - Women's Self Defense
Finally. A class that every gal should take before she returns home. The cool thing about this class is that we carry out the real thing, where someone is attacks another, allowing us to put what we learn to practice. Oh oh, here's the coolest part. The teacher is actually going to have REAL MEN! Real football player sized men come in at the end of the quarter to attack us!! We'd then have to carry out the defensive moves we acquired throughout the quarter.

Animal Genetics 111
My molecular genetics lab partner is...WIERD. I'm just happy that Iza and Adilla are in the same table as I am. The class and lab is going fine. Kinda like it, if that's what I'll have to end up doing in my career. Btw, our lab is right opposite Medrano's lab, the lab I interned in during my 3rd year at Davis. Oooh ooh now i get to set my eyes on Ricardo yang HENSEM and Rodrigo yang RUGGED! What a lab of South American hunks.

MASA Saturday Dance Practices in the ARC
What a blast we have each time we meet for practice. None of us have been formally trained in the art of dance, but we have managed to choreograph and execute a whole set of amazingly stunning moves! By replaying Asmaradana, some zapin videos, and the Puteri Gunung Ledang musical like a thousand times each, we managed pick up some moves to modify and use in our dance. Thanks to everyone's cooperation, it looks like we're actually starting to have something to show!!

Winter 2007 at Davis RAWKS, babeh!

You are now..

2007-01-02T20:48:00.000-08:00

..reading the blog of

*a newly admitted member of the UCDavis University Chorus (look for my name!!!)
*a Davis Stampede 2007 half-marathon participant
*a member of the MASA Puteri Gunung Ledang Dance Team
*a loving Sara-mommy who just made it through her first year of motherhood!
*a UCD Senior who has only 2 more quarters to scrape herself through
*a cashless student living off borrowed money and credit card(s)
*a living proof that dinosaurs once roamed the earth (yea, got that one off the Emp's New Groooooove..)

Here we goooo.....!! It's a brand new year with NO resolutions!

Are we there yet?

2007-01-01T22:05:00.000-08:00

Whoops!

We made it. Its 2007.

What's gonna happen in....?

2006-12-30T00:12:00.000-08:00

me running in yet another half-marathon ...NEXT YEAR! --The 25th anniversary of the annual Davis Stampede! 13.1 miles around Davis, CA! ..that would make it my..hm...4th official run as a 22-year old and my 1st official run in 2007! Yeh. Gonna make it my birthday run.

Also need spankin' new running shorts and pants. A girl's gotta look good, doesn't she? (And I don't mean 'make-up' kind of looking good. All you make-up addicts are gonna die beautiful but young from skin cancer! *that's just my take on the whole make-up business*)

Sartorius. That, I think, is the muscle/tendon/bone/whatever that got pulled during the marathon 3 weeks ago. See? Its somewhere in the gluteus region. Why am I even talking about this? Ha. Its just something of a concern to me. But I guess a one month to buck up for a half-marathon isn't pushing it too hard, is it?

me also gonna DANCE! with me lovely ladies and gentlemen from MASA UCD! WHere? At the South East Asian Night in February! My ever faithful performance team and I have been choreographing the dance moves to Puteri Gunung Ledang since ..hm...oh. 2 weeks ago. Gee, that felt like a long time. Anyhoo, to pry ourselves away from the mundane-ness of just planning, choreographing, and recording videos of the dance, we had a photoshoot session! ha. And what better place but the ARC Dance Studio to pose as dancers and give ballet teachers the fright of their lives!

see? we look lovely eh?
I've always wondered what kind of person I would have turned into if I had continued my ballet lessons. Yea. I think I was 6 or 7, when I was sent for lessons for about 6 months. I guess I chose piano over ballet in the end because I never really liked the people at the ballet center. They seemed...superficial. And too concerned about their looks and figure. Wow, come to think of it, I was a pretty observant kid back then.

so..running, dancing...i wonder what else's in store for me in 2007?

*ha* this is funny. Maybe i'll get a boyfriend and have him take care of Sara for me while I go to class, work, and run. yes. brilliant plan, my dear!

I 'heart' Malay

2006-12-29T02:51:00.000-08:00

Isn't it the most useful language to use outside negara tercinta?

Me loves it! Muaks!

2006-12-29T02:27:00.000-08:00

my thoughts are aplenty. i'm very... very full of crap. everything i wanna say is either sarcastic or witty.

but i don't do or say what i think. not here, not in real life. haha. that's the number one reason why this site is sucha boring site.

i'm boring too. yah? man, boring is sooo good. you know why? cos' you get to do whatever you want without having to avoid everyone getting their hands on you. ha. long live boring people. boring people also get a lot of time to themselves. if not, they wouldn't be boring.

boring people are also the worst when it comes to say, blogging, partying, studying (yes, boring people study at home rather than do the social studying library thing), and...exercising? the only partay-ing i do is in my own room with sara. thanks to trance and dance mix bitcomet torrents~ you don't think exercising is boring? you have no idea how many times people exclaim to me, how running is such a boring sport...

ha. boring people also try not to menjawab panggilan telefon bimbit. they also wait 5 minutes after the doorbell rings to answer the door.

boring people like me cook a lot, exercise a lot, watch dvds a lot, clean a lot, plan a lot, crap a lot, and do the bla bla bla thing..

a lot!

haha. boring people also love returning to the same, repetitive, mundane routines. heck. we don't even mind eating or drinking the same stuff everyday. change is unneccessary when you're a certified authentic boring person.

and when you're a boring person, you don't give a *tahi* about what goes on in kepala orang lain. who cares a load of tahi if somebody formulates theories about your inabilities and shortcomings. yah?

orang like that should just go find something more worthwhile to do rather than menyusahkan diri trying to figure out everything. kadang-kadang kan, kesemuanya tidaklah secomplicated yang difikir.

THINK SIMPLE! BE BORING! IT PAYS OFF!

Me loves me. and sara too. Have a good night/morning everyone!

2006-12-26T23:13:00.000-08:00

Somebody!! Tell me where I can get these! Download, torrent, compilation cd, whatever!! I just want 'em!

head over heels (alex gaudino remix) by blu lipstick
lucky (hot stuff mix short) by lucky twice
inside out (edit) by fab
number one in heaven (bronleewe and bose radio edit) by nemesis
sugar, sugar lovin' (josh harris club edit) by simone denny
your love sets me free (radio mix) by platinum project
like a star by cynthia
everybody dance now / rock this party (radio edit) by bob sinclar
stay (airscape radio edit) by wendy phillips
Let's get down (vocal radio mix) by hernandez vs DJ Tyo
hush boy (soul seekerz edit) by basement jaxx
i believe (josh harris radio mix) by georgeie porgie

haha. why? cos' they're on ABF's playlist! :|

Selamat Hari Natal semua!!!

2006-12-25T14:01:00.000-08:00

Thank you all, for the wonderful year shared.

Mengejar HadirMu

2006-12-25T11:53:00.000-08:00

Dekat padaMu itu rinduku
Setiap kataku, Kaupun menunggu
Tak kusangka kutemukan satu kasih yang abadi
Kini kudatang dan kubawa hidupku

Memandang wajahMu
Mengikuti kebaikkanMu
Mengejar hadirMu
dalam hidupku

Membawa sembahku
Menyatakan kebesaranMu
Mengejar hadirMu
dalam hidupku

**If you have eardrums of iron, you can click here to listen to me play Mengejar HadirMu!**

Hey! Dlm bhs melayu!

2006-12-24T11:47:00.000-08:00

"Jadikan semua bangsa murid-Ku dan baptislah mereka dalam nama Bapa, Anak Dan Roh Kudus"
Matius 28:19

"Dan ajarkanlah mereka melakukan segala sesuatu yang telah Ku perintahkan kepadamu. Dan ketahuilah, Aku menyertai kamu senantiasa sampai kepada akhir zaman."
MATIUS 28:20

aduhai

2006-12-24T04:35:00.000-08:00

aduhai. tak fahamlah, orang yang buang rasa geram kat orang yang tak bersalah. dahlah tak cakap apa sebabnya, apa punca masalahnya. nih terus lempar rasa geram kat kawan yang tak tahu apa-apa.

gile rasa tak adil. tak boleh ke, at least, cuba sabar sikit. bayangkan apa rasa hatinya orang yang kena. sedih tau. bile cuba hulurkan bantuan tapi tidak dibalas dengan apa-apa response.

nasib baik boleh fikir tentang sara, teman serumah, sahabat baik, dan sebagainya. tidak usah pikirkan orang yang tak tahu mengawal emosi.

dan alangkah baiknya dapat berbahasa melayu bile meluahkan perasaan di sini. bile tahu orang tu akan melawat laman tapi tak reti baca dan paham!

PUAS!!!!

letih. lesu. tapi suka! :P

2006-12-19T14:25:00.000-08:00

AAAAhhhh...letihnye..

Fall quarter - check
Finals - check
Half-marathon - check
Marathon - check

No wonder i'm tired.

Friday was a good day. The day finals was over for me.

Saturday was a good day. We gave Gabriel a farewell makan.
But it was also a bad day. The day I learned about Joy and Eng's 13 dogs.
And it was the day I ran and discovered that my thigh inner muscle (S something is the name of that muscle) is still not fully healed. :(

Sunday was a good day. Church and sushi and (high) tea with my girls and Whit
But it was still a bad day because nobody seemed to care about Joy and Eng's 13 dogs even though I posted updates on my blog and Friendster. An old friend even had the nerve to ask, "Since when did you become a dog activist?" (Let's hope he does not have access to this blog)

Excuse me! Notifying others and spreading the news DOES NOT MEAN I AM A FRIGGIN' DOG ACTIVIST! Activists are people who go around shoving their beliefs into people's faces. There is, mind you, a big difference between spreading word and shoving your ideals into the face of others.

At least I have the guts to care about something many that many people just turn a blind eye or ear to.

Monday was a good day. Movie and pizza with my girls and Whit, Spruce, and Chantelle. It was also good because Rebekah my ex-roomie visited from Pittsburgh!!
But it was slightly bad because I had low energy levels. That of which I am not able to figure out why.

Tuesday is a good day. Sent Adilla off to Vegas at SMF.
..and would be an even better one if only my boy hurries up so I can see him!

My boy looks so good, that I feel like looking at photos of myself. During when I used to have long hair.

It was so long, that I can't believe now, how long it was!

But thanks to Adilla's Pete-the-ultra-cool-hairstylist, something had to be done to give my hair more bounce and less ...em..yea, split ends.

And if that wasn't enough, the Pityriasis Rosea virus that attacked me last summer finished up the job. So I declared war and retaliated by coloring it red! *zzz i looked hungry and jet-lagged at Harvard*

Ha, well that's not the real reason. I wanted funkier hair, that's why. :P

ah! Nak potong rambut lagi lah! *iza, iza......*

Joy is recovering

2006-12-17T08:24:00.000-08:00

Isn't Joy the sweetest looking dog ever? He looks just like Sara.

http://remembersheena.blogspot.com/

And to think that just a couple of weeks ago, he was in this sad condition
http://remembersheena.blogspot.com/

Please do visit http://www.care2.com/news/member/957884325/248029 or the above blog for more information. You feedback and help in spreading his piece of news would count towards getting a response from the higher authorities in Malaysia.

"On December 6, 2006, RSC wrote to Dr. Subramaniam, Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting, the Minister of Housing and Local Government, Tan Seri Datuk Seri Panglima Bernard Dompok, Minister in charge of the Public Complaints Bureau, and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi."

"So far Sin Chew Jit Poh did a great story on Joy and Malaysiakini also carried the story. We are still working to get the news out. We are even getting some reaction from the Malaysian government, which we shall notify you all of later."

Especially to those of you who are Malaysians studying overseas who think there is nothing that you can do. There is. Spread the word. Get your friends who are not Malaysian to know about it. Only by getting others to know about this can help with pulling out a response from our government.

RED ALERT!!

2006-12-15T23:19:00.000-08:00

This had just happened within the past couple of weeks.

http://remembersheena.blogspot.com/

"The lower jaw of the dog was dangling and its tongue was hanging out. Two eye-witnesses who pleaded with Sabrina to help the dog, said they had seen it being beaten by Indonesian foreign workers who kept calling the dog “haram” as it was attacked."

For the full story, please visit go to http://remembersheena.blogspot.com/

I am utterly speechless. How could they do such a thing?! Did God really create dogs so that they can be 'dirty' and 'unclean' just so that people can justify their acts of cruelty?

I just can't tolerate this any longer. This didn't even come up in the main local newspapers like NST nor Star nor Berita Harian. Only in the Sin Chew Jit Poh. What does this say about Malaysians and their ignorance?

To help spread the news, as other bloggers have been doing, I have permission from the owner of these pictures to post them up. If you feel compelled to do the same, I urge you to do it. It's the most you can do as a person who does not endorse animal cruelty.

And if you have nothing else to do, it would not take much of your time to go to this website to learn of another piece of news --> http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/947146655

If you would please excuse me, *I need to hug and sit with Sara for a while...*

June 3, 2007

2006-12-15T08:45:00.000-08:00

This one's next..

and I only have two options..

to finish it within 4:30..

or finish it within 4:30..

LOL

but,

even if it means not running with my pals?

finals, please be over soon! I need to start training!

For the Nadia we all love...

2006-12-11T23:10:00.000-08:00

it's 11pm on the 11th of December now in Davis, CA.... (but 12/12/06 in Malaysia!) But i guess I can never be too early.. to wish...

Yay. It's time to start jumping through 'em clouds, big gal!

2006-12-11T21:49:00.000-08:00

nooooo.. *pulls a sad face*

*hu hu hu*

i'm having my finals and i need to study...

but we just had to go and sing karaoke to the songs from taiyou no uta and konayuki in adilla's room...

then i saw my *boy* again

arrggghhh....now i can't concentrate!!!

you know why? cos' he's sucha HEARTHROB. even when he's sitting sideways

badan 'katang' or 'pendek' or whatever other ppl call it..tapi saya masih suke
(tee hee dengan nada malu-malu kucing)

OF COURSE LA! With a smile like that, mana bole tak suke??????

aiyo. tolong aku....

NPB..NPB..NPB...

wazza?

2006-12-10T16:32:00.000-08:00

dead bodies..haha..just kidding. they're actually bags belonging to participants of the california international marathon. these were transported from Folsom Dam (the starting line for the marathon) to the Capitol Plaza in Sacramento (where the finish line is). spot the aluminium sarong on that guy?

look! hsing ling found hers! isn't my sarong pretty?

sadly,there were no good pictures from the marathon. seriously. the website wouldn't allow me to copy the images in full size. this is from Adilla's camera, at the finish line. (look, another aluminium shawl in the background)

*to find out more about the aluminium cool wear, contact hsing ling at hsingln@gmail.com*

lovely running images

2006-12-09T14:04:00.000-08:00

i got bored looking at my NPB notes....

aren't these pretty? makes me love running even more.

pretty surreal and grey. maybe that's how your surrounding would look like when the fatigue finally kicks in!

oh yea. been there, done that. i did the 120' hill climb run toward the golden gate bridge. its always a nice surprise when you do not know what you're doing and then you find out later what you did. (120' is the steepest hill climb in sf to get to the golden gate bridge, those who've done it should know what i'm talking about..)

funny. this looks like the garage door where i was waiting for my roomies after the half-marathon in san francisco last month...

this one's random. no one runs in the snow looking like a million dollars with a husky.

if she takes strides like this every single time during her marathon, she's in for an injury!

fine. fine. i'll upload the pics from CIM.. when i get them from adilla, that is.

Run CIM 2006

2006-12-03T17:56:00.000-08:00

Yay. We did it! We finished the *FULL* Marathon.

California International Marathon (CIM) 2006
*That's 26.2 miles, or 41.9 km*
December 3, 2006 (Sunday)
7:00 am - 1:00pm
Folsom Dam to the California State Capitol, Sacramento

Our results
5:42:51 for the timing chip time (from the time we actually crossed the start line)
5:45:03 for the start time (from the time when the horn blares the signal the start)

yes. We ran them dang 5 hours 42 minutes. That includes all our hobbling, potty stops, water stops, and stretching during the race.

I am pretty bummed for Whit though, cos' we realized that he lost his timing chip at mile 7. Oh no. But we still have a time for him, with my chip. So we finished together!!

It was all through God's grace that we were able to do it. Whit had a bad knee and strained ankles, while I had 2 bad ankles with knots in my left thigh. We both were not optimally prepared for the run due to school and lack of prep time. The longest we ever trained for this run was 14.3 miles.

Truly, when all is taken away, when you find that there is nothing else left for you, only Jesus can be there. Our prayers were answered one by one each time the pain flared up in our ankles/knees.

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" Matthew 11:28

And He does give us rest. Try Him. He's the coolest thing that could ever happen to you!

2006-11-20T21:01:00.000-08:00

Walau. Hari minggu yang amat menyeronokkan bagiku dan teman-temanku di Crossroads Conference 2007 yang lepas di Anaheim, LA.

Walau. Tulisan dalam bahasa MELAYU! Nampaknya setengah-setengah orang akan menghadapi kesukaran untuk memahami posting ini.

Yang paling tak dapatku lupakan adalah apabila aku menukarkan ringtone Whitney menjadi ringtone kucing mengiau! ahhaha. Pada hari kedua, di tengah-tengah ceramah yang amat gripping, telefon bimbit whit pun berngiau-lah. Kelakar gile. Sampai orang di penjuru dewan boleh dengar. Dan pompuan row depan kitorang terkejut, "Ya Tuhanku, ada kucing!!!!"

Apalagi yah kami buat? kami banyak mempermaidanikan seorang rakan yang kesian. hahah. tak henti-henti, asyik mainkan dieee je.

Inilah conference paling best pernah ku alami. Bukan saja kerana teman-temannya, tetapi kerana Tuhan telah membuktikan lagi bahawa tiada apa yang lebih penting dalam hidup di dunia ini daripada menjalankan tanggungjawab sebagai anakNya. Aku bersyukur kerana, walaupun aku hampir putus asa untuk membuat Missions di Middle East dan Israel suatu hari nanti, aku percaya, bahawa aku masih ada masa dan banyak peluang untuk menunaikan hajat (will?) Nya dalam hidupku.

Maaf, kekurangan sel otak untuk mentranslasikan point-point penting ini:

-How does my life fit into God's will? (AND IT IS NOT "What is God's will for my life?")
-Non-believers give their lives for ungodly causes, but believers make excuses to give their lives for a Godly cause.
-No one is going to be there with you when it all ends, except Jesus.

I don't know about you, but it's been a 'comatosing' day for me.

*bersambung....*

keep on playing

2006-11-16T01:31:00.000-08:00

Jauh Mimpiku

Pernahku simpan jauh rasa ini Berdua jalani cerita Kau ciptakan mimpiku Jujurku hanya sesalkan diriku

Kau.. tinggalkan mimpiku Namun ku hanya sesalkan diriku Kuharus lepaskanmu Melupakan senyummu

Semua...tentangmu...tentangku... Hanya harap Jauh...kujauh mimpiku Dengan inginku

2006-11-12T20:19:00.000-08:00

Seperti aku
Seperti jiwaku
Menyusuri telaga waktu
Seperti langkahku

Sejenak berhenti
Kau dapat berdiri
Lalu kau bersiap berlari
Menapaki bumi

Jangan berhenti
Tetaplah berdiri
Lalu kau bersiap berlari
Berada di bumi

Hatiku s'lalu tetap begitu
Tetaplah di belakangku
Hingga hari berhentinya waktu
Tetap iringi langkahku

Suaraku tak lagi bertahan
Tapi kau selalu membawaku

~aku~ peterpan

US Half PHOTOS! Finally!

2006-11-10T15:35:00.000-08:00

Yay. Brightroom from the USHalf.com finally put up the photos of runners taken during the race. And there are four of meeeeeeeeeee!

But as vain as I am, of course, I will only put up the decent-looking ones. I know, I know. But how can one expect to look good while running la, right? All the huffing and sweating and awkward 'in-the-air' positions..

Yep. That's part of the Golden Gate Bridge in the background. I think this was after we ran over it to and fro. This is actually the first time I am able to see how I look when I run. I should prolly ditch the Gap cap next time. I have a super nice white Adidas one, but I left it in Malaysia!!! Booo!

And I believe this was when I was just approaching the finish line. Look at me strides! And me chin up! Definitely bodily adjustments for speeding up close to finish! (wa the guy behind me looks so *happy*)

Just in case you were wondering, here is the route that we ran for the half. You can click on it for the bigger version. :)

Long overdue sights from Davis

2006-11-09T22:47:00.000-08:00

This will be a very random entry. Don't I deserve one since I hardly ever write here anymore? Must be frustrating to drop by khashiva.blogspot.com only to find the same old dusty stuff again and again. Anyhoo, if you know me well enough, you know how HARD it is for me to share what goes on around me. My memory works like how its supposed to benefit me - HIGHLY SELECTIVE!

Meaning that whoever I date next time will have to bear with my unwillingness (or ignorance) to remember important events with him/her. Gosh, it'd be so funny if I even forget we were dating! LOL.

An old photo from last summer i just received! Zoolanderers @ the Museum of Natural History, NY
An awesome one from Niagara that I also did not get till recently..

Oh y'know what, I tried to donate blood yesterday. Last time, I made it as far as the blood test checkpoint - when the lady told me that I had to wait another year at least since I was in malaysia during the summer.

Yesterday, I made it as far as to sitting on the blood donation chair, ready with my arms extended for needle cucuking. However, the nurse couldn't find my veins - on both arms! So she had to call some other nurse - who also couldn't locate them. By then i was already wondering if I was really alive and kicking since they could detect no veins. Apparently my veins are smaller than the size of their needles, according to them.

Apa jadi then? Got sent home lor. Told to drink more water and come back next time.

I remember, last time back in malaysia, the nurses also had trouble locating my veins. Kena cucuk on one arm, then the other arm, until finally, they found them veins. And even after that, it took me a while to fill up the bag of blood.

One wonders then, how can this gal run marathons if she has such low blood pressure and invisible veins? I pun tak tahu la. At least if a vampire wants to come eat me it wouldn't be able to do so fast enough. Ha.

And the randomness extends to our apartment kitchen..

We found mushroomies under our kitchen sink!!

And just two days after...Who ever thought that mushroomies could have babies too?

Speaking of babies, here's Sara with her very own babies (toys). Wonder where she gets her maternal instincts from? She's not even a mommy yet.

The other black furrling in our house is Taylor, who can sit like Apek Cina @ a coffee shop but on a shoe. I think I actually miss the sight and sounds of cina apeks in a coffee shop in malaysia. They bring a certain sense of carefree-ness into heart when I find myself getting too far ahead and caught up with daily routine.

Malaysia is never too far away in my thoughts. Our little DeepaRaya celebration @ Davis went so well. It's been 4 years already, since I last had a Hari Raya celebration in Malaysia.

Last but not least, those who are dear to me. Working for the Lord is always a challenge, but a worthwhile one. Our Bridges Fall Retreat with our very own great commissioners from Scotland, Phillipines, Ukraine, Malaysia, Korea, and Canada!!

It's already getting colder this Fall. Winter is coming and I so wanna meet some cute guy who will keep me warm and answer to my every beck and call. He shall be my slave and be summoned to my door whenever I want. Muahaha. My dominant nature shall ensure the my survival this year!

Mind over matter

2006-11-07T05:32:00.000-08:00

2:16:30!!! Between a 10:00 and 10:30 minute mile pace.

72nd out of 148 in the Females 20-24 category. (Even though when I counted the names one by one it was 74th. But ah well, yours truly just can't do math. Yes, counting is math.)

And in case you didn't know, a Half is only 13.1miles (equivalent to about 21km. So don't think I ran a whole 26.2 miles in 2:16. That'll be the day I'm crazy. )

Not bad. Considering that I had a strained calf in the healing and a cold. Having the willpower to hold off the symptoms was fun. Until your voice gets taken away from you, that is.

It felt like I was flying over the Golden Gate Bridge. Second best to riding a bike over the Gate. The last 3.1 miles, we were met with this insane sandy beach route! Whose smart idea was it to run on sand? Shouldn't the route planners know that running on sand is soooooooo bad for your leg muscles? And if its not enough, right after the sand we were met with the hatefully steep hill which we had ran down on in the beginning of the route (that stupid hill was STEEEEEEP). Aparah!!! Running on sand and hills at the retreat was what strained my calf last month! But I guess they wanted to make the last 3.1 miles challenging to filter out the really good runners from the rest.

Did wish that my friends were at the finishing line to cheer me on when I hit it. But ah well, the crowds cheering was good enough. And after all, they did cheer me on from the hotel room we stayed in.

I read from the results that some dude from Davis broke the record this year with 1 hour 9 minutes!!! Yay. Glory to Davis. And the gal who broke the record did it in 1 hour 21 minutes! Crazy people (I mean it in praise when I say that).

Anyhoo, this December 3rd: RUN CIM (California International Marathon) with Whitney!!!! You dang whole 26.2 miles, here we come to POTONG your SAYURRR!!!

2006-11-04T08:15:00.000-08:00

The US Half Marathon is tomorrow!!! See you in San Francisco!!!!

13.1 miles here I come!!!

2006-10-28T12:58:00.000-07:00

...don't be jealous 'cause I'm so busy...

UCD Class '07

2006-10-16T22:52:00.000-07:00

It's our senior year at Davis.
Finally. It's all coming to an end.
ANd it will arrive, soon enough.

*Fling wide these gates. Let's see His kingdom come. And all the peoples come*

Aki

2006-10-09T00:46:00.000-07:00

Its Fall again. Aki. This time 2006.

New York City was okay. Overrated I must say. There's not really much after all. I can't help but wonder how people can live with the noise, dirt, and the fast pace of that city. Seems to me like it was so hard to feel (or even find) peace there. Can they even feel God there? I know I couldn't.

New Jersey and Boston were much better. Glad that I found out what I really am made for after all this years. Quiet and sleepy towns. Yep, yep. I mean like, even Cambridge was too busy for me!

*I may return someday to you Charles River, when I qualify for the Boston Marathon!** I did get to run along the New Jersey's Hoboken Waterfront (though I would have prefered the Charles River). There's NYC over on the other side. See how polluted the air is? (I'm biased against NYC, mind you)*

Niagara was excellante. Funny, I used to think that Niagara Falls was in Africa when i was a kid.

I am still that kid. *smiling like a kid*

*drench zone ahead!*

Ran 10 miles last Saturday and 12 miles today. Still finding this hard to believe. Hope to stay in shape for Nov 5th's San Francisco Half Marathon. After that, who knows..A full marathon in December?

Went to Applehill with Bridges yesterday. Glad that I could be the coordinator for rides from Davis. It seemed like 4 years ago just went by so fast, when I was new in Davis on this Applehill trip. I remember when I was the one being arranged for a ride, and now I am the one arranging the rides!

Bridges is so cool. I am definitely gonna miss this fellowship of bros and sis's when i return home.

Speaking of cool, Arabic is one of the best things i ever did in my life - well, next to Hebrew. Everyone thinks I am silly for wanting to learn these languages. But to them I shall say, it matters to those who matter. I love the Israelis and the Arabs. And learning their language is what I love doing. "AT MEVIN??!?!?"

it came pretty handy when i was in new york as there were many Israelis touring the city. i had the wonderful chance to have 4 conversations in hebrew with them. Wearing my hebrew T-shirt from Brandeis really was a good conversation opener.

*Atem me Israel?*

"When will Malaysia ever open up its doors to Israel again?"

Overall, things are going well. i feel at peace. and that's good enough.

hm actually, i do feel like i'm missing something. someone. whom i think might or not be missing me too! haha. he never reads my page, cos he's always busy at work! That old man! hahaha.

But i have sara. and yamada. and roomies. and bridges. and Jesus.

So

all is good in Davis, even though it's not so good in the rest of the world.

2006-09-12T21:17:00.000-07:00

Yamada is so cute. I wanna be Kaoru. *sighs*

And i have my physics final tomorrow.
Whitney's worried about Alvina who's getting feminized day by day
Ran ~8.5 miles today
Bridges activities
New York trip

i have so many things to do!! No...

BURNOUT!

short hair ooo...

2006-09-02T19:24:00.000-07:00

Finally huh?

Everyone has been requesting for a picture of me with my short hair, but due to my refusal and stubborness of taking own snapshots (where you pose with a cute sweet doe-eyed look and snap your own photo with your own camera facing your face), i waited for the chance to get natural snapshots taken.

Yep - Summer Graduation at the Extension Center, where I work part-time as a language lab assistant. Where students from all over the world, at least 40 different countries, come together to learn English as exchange students.

Since I only had the time and opportunity to get to know a select few students during the 4 week program (on top of my killer 6 unit biochem lab class and 5 unit physics lab class at school + 12 hours work/week + taking care of sara + training for Nov marathon), here are only the photos taken with the few guys I made friends during my free time.

Yuta and I

His name was hard to remember, so I just call him guy from Kinki Uni..

Taka and I

They are such cool guys, the students from Japan. I will definitely miss them. Everyone comes and go that it's hard to accept sometimes. So far, its been already 4 waves of arriving/leaving students from Japan, Taiwan, and Korea for me..

They were telling me that they wished to stay longer, even forever if possible. How i wish so too.

suki des..

2006-08-28T23:19:00.000-07:00

Xing Ling sudah jatuh cinta...
MADLY!!! neh...kawaii..
WHy do you have to be Japanese??!!!
SUKI dess!!!! HONTO HONTO SUKI Yamada-san!!
I miss him so..
**so much**

`Pipe Dream'

2006-08-26T08:40:00.000-07:00

Bloomberg.net
August 17, 2006 15:21 EDT

......The disarming of Hezbollah is a ``pipe dream,'' said Timor Goksel, who was Unifil spokesman for 20 years until 2003 and now teaches at the American University of Beirut. ``The Lebanese army is going south to defend Lebanon, not Israel.''

Malaysia said today that it wants to send peacekeepers to Lebanon even as Israel says it might oppose the inclusion of countries with which it does not have diplomatic ties, Reuters reported, citing Malaysian Defense Minister Najib Razak.

``There is no reason whatsoever to stop us from sending our men there,'' Razak told reporters, Reuters said.

Predominantly Muslim Malaysia and Indonesia have each offered to send 1,000 troops to the UN force and neither has diplomatic relations with Israel, the news service reported.

Iranian Congratulations

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei congratulated Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on his organization's fight with Israel, the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported. Khamenei said Hezbollah scored a victory for Islam and demonstrated vulnerabilities in the Israeli military.

Hezbollah, whose name means Party of God and is sponsored by Iran and Syria, has been linked to scores of terrorist attacks on Israelis and Americans, including rocket assaults on Israeli towns, bombings in Beirut in 1983 that killed 241 U.S. servicemen and 58 French soldiers, and the 1994 attack that killed 85 people at a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires.

Full article can be found at: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ayHgCAF9i.cA&refer=home

Now, my points of view on this whole mess..

In the first place, why were these Islamic parties like Hezbollah and Hamas formed? Are they revealing the true intentions and reason for Islam?

Not every gory bloody picture you see in the news can be accurately associated with the print that comes along with it. Has anyone ever wondered if those pictures are actually associated with the right incident at the right time and the right place. Propaganda. That's what both sides want to create to make the world join their side.

Israeli troops harming and kiling women and children. Did it never occur to anyone that ANY MILITARY FORCE does its own share of harming people - including women and children? War is war, and the killing happens. So now everyone wants to send troops to stop Israel from killing women and children, when your own bombing does in fact kill anyone including women and children? Stop labeling Israel as women and children murderers! THink about every other military force of any country. You're no better off than you think you are.

"I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you
I will make your name great
and you will be a blessing
I will bless those who bless you
and whoever curses you I will curse
and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you"

Genesis 12:2-3

Ever wondered why the surrounding countries like Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, etc are all in turmoil? The blessing went somewhere else, I guess. You figure that out for yourselves.

baruch ata adonai, eloheinu melech ha-olam, rokei ha-aretz al ha-mayim

americans

2006-08-25T18:05:00.000-07:00

It just amazes me sometimes, how ethnocentric and prideful Americans are. Whether they be Asian, South Asian, Caucasian, or African Americans.

I get asked a lot lately, what are my plans after next year, when I graduate. And part and parcel of that comes the question of where I will be going. Will I stay in the US? Will I go home? Do I want to come back to the US?

Just the other day, before lab

Friend: So, do you plan to stay here when you're done?
Me: Oh, no. I'm going to go home. (*smiling and cheery grin*)
Friend: Like back to your country?
Me: Yeah!
Friend: YOu mean you don't want to stay? (*that tone*)
Me: Oh, why would I? Here?
Friend: Yeah, everybody wants to stay here. They don't wanna go back. (*"This is AMERICA" why don't you wanna stay??-tone like voice*)
Me: Errr...(*rolled eye tone*), I love my country?
Me:And I wanna go back cos right now I don't think any other place is better than my own
country? It's peaceful and beautiful there. WHy wouldn't I wanna go bacK?
Friend: Oh..Well, I just thought that, you know..America is where everyone wants to be. You know XX? She wants to stay, even though her family is not here.
Me: (*THANK YOU!!!*)

So...Americans think every freaking international student that comes to study wants to be a citizen or resident of their freaking country? Who do they think they are? Please lar, open up your mind sikit la. If your country is so good, then why isn't the whole world on their knees begging to be let into your country?

Why so ethnocentric lar...Can't accept the fact that at least 1 in a few people don't plan to continue living on your land? Not that your country is so bad la..but please, do respect other people who have a sense of belonging to their own country. People who may have a better sense of culture and identity more than you do.

Your land is beautiful, but you have no right to make people of other lands love your land.

Fine. This post is sure going to get me fired at in due time.

The Great Divorce

2006-08-16T20:12:00.000-07:00

When Anodos looked back through the door of the Timeless, he brought no message back. But you can get some likeness of it if you say that both good and evil, when they are full grown, become retrospective. Not only this valley but all this earthly past will have been Heaven to those who are saved. Not only the twilight in that town, but all their life on earth too, will then be seen by the damned to have been Hell. That is what mortals misunderstand. They say of some temporal suffering, "No future bliss can make up for it", not knowing that Heaven, once attained, will work backwards and turn even that agony into glory. And of some sinful pleasure they say "Let me but have this and I'll take the consequences"; little dreaming how damnation will spread back and back into their past and contaminate the pleasure of sin. The good man's past begins to change so that his forgiven sins and remembered sorrows take on the quality of Heaven; the bad man's past already conforms to his badness and is filled only with dreariness. And that is why, at the end of all things, when the sun rises here and the twilight turns to blackness down there, the Blessed will say, "We have never lived anywhere except in Heaven", and the Lost, "We were always in Hell". And both will speak truly".

...We have never lived anywhere except in Heaven..

-C.S.Lewis, The Great Divorce

*Wow, if only I could explain it as clear as how Lewis did. I need to GanBatte!!!*

Kona yuki - Remioromen

2006-08-06T02:16:00.000-07:00

whoa. who would've thought that a series based on the life of a real dying 15 year old girl would make one cry so much. iza's trashcan is full of tissues. mine's not, ha i reuse the same tissue over and over (i like to save trees).

even the song. what a perfect way to put unused tears to use. ichi litre no namida.

*ha i like this guy's eyes. he could make even guys fall for him. ho ho*

We always pass by one another in the season where the powdered snow flutters
Even though I slip away into the crowd, we're looking up at the same sky
We're freezing, as though we were blown on by the same wind

I probably don't know everything about you
Yet out of one hundred million people, I found you
I have no basis for this, but it really is what I think

Powdered snow, you, in a way that is too fragile
Turn eternity into a stain on the rough asphalt up ahead

Powdered snow, my unreliable heart wavers
And yet, I want to keep protecting you

Powdered snow, when you colored us white, all the the way to my heart
You envelop our loneliness, and return it back to the sky

~from 1 Litre of Tears (2005)

2006-08-05T17:42:00.000-07:00

oooo my hair is short, ooooo
its too hotttt..ooo..
that's why my hair is hot, ek! i mean short!!

My baby's 4

2006-08-02T23:44:00.000-07:00

It's Sara's birthday today!

You're 4 years old, baby woobee joobee jooo!!!

Pityriasis Rosea

2006-07-31T19:39:00.000-07:00

So, I finally found out today. Dr Andrews told me that what I have been having is actually Pityriasis Rosea, a skin rash caused by viral infection. The virus is one of the herpes viruses..

Ah, but don't worry. It's not contagious nor is it life-threatening.

I just have to live with these horrible visible rashes for 3-6 weeks! WHere are they? EVERYWHERE!

It was so funny, when Dr Andrews asked, "So..um..if you don't mind me asking, since we need to properly diagnose this, are you sexually active?"

*Straight face - do i look like i sleep around?*

.
.
.
.

*Ha, maybe hor*

OF COURSE NOT! what the the the the the..

"Oh?", said I with a sweet smile. "I've never had sex before." Sweet smile again.

"Ah, that's that then. Looks like we don't need to worry about that"

Yep, so now i'm going to be a red-spotted bumpy lumpy yucky looking girl in lab and at work. Aiieee, dashed are my hopes of ever meeting a 'guy-who-may-be-the-one'. Oh the kesakitan, oh the kemaluan! <-- as it translates from English to Malay, dears.

But nevermind, Xing Ling can overcome this dreaded weeks ahead of her life as a spotted rashy person.

Because she just got her iPoD nano and she has her yummy Naohito-san (Naohito-san is Suga-san) whom she swears she will look for and marry the guy that acts and looks like him. Even better, if she and Naohito-san himself were the last people and earth!

(ok we take that back, yah? We don't want to curse our love lives do we?)

I'll be fine. Just takes time..

time..
time..
time..
.
.
.

Agh, fine. NO! It does not take time! I still cannot accept the fact that I'll be looking horrid this coming weeks. Its easier to accept the fact that I'm vain. OH I'm so vain so vain so vain so vain.

Vain la-la-la.

*You are my feast, Naohito, till I get over my depressed-over-how-i-look-because-of-stupid-rashes..*

2006-07-30T19:24:00.001-07:00

I got this off from Rizwan's . The video is pretty cool. Yoong felt pretty connected to the message too I must say. Hehe. (Yes, Adilla, I am such a sucker for it, I mean him..)

Forgetfulness by Billy Collins, US Poet

The name of the author is the first to go. followed obediently by the title, the plot, the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel. which suddenly becomes one you have never read,never even heard of, as if, one by one, the memories you used to harbor. decided to retire to the southern hemisphere of the brain, to a little fishing village where there are no phones.

Long ago you kissed the names of the nine Muses goodbye. and watched the quadratic equation pack its bag,
and even now as you memorize the order of the planets, something else is slipping away, a state flower perhaps,
the address of an uncle, the capital of Paraguay.

Whatever it is you are struggling to remember, it is not poised on the tip of your tongue, not even lurking in some obscure corner of your spleen. It has floated away down a dark mythological river. whose name begins with an L as far as you can recall, well on your own way to oblivion where you will join those. who have even forgotten how to swim and how to ride a bicycle.

No wonder you rise in the middle of the night. to look up the date of a famous battle in a book on war. No wonder the moon in the window seems to have drifted. out of a love poem that you used to know by heart.

Sheeba and Sara

2006-07-27T16:31:00.000-07:00

At SPCA Ampang, Selangor, at this very moment, there is a dog named Sheeba who looks almost exactly (EXACTLY la, to me) like Sara!!!

"Home > Dogs > 15/06/06 - Medium size dogs for adoption"

Along with Sheeba's picture frame, says 'Sheeba (F) Cross collie 1 yr - friendly & gentle - kennel E'

Sheeba! I want to find you and see you someday.
If anyone ever adopts but ends up abusing you
I will look for you and rescue you!!

But Sara, I guess, being the 'Americanized' gal, is fatter.

..for the Present is the point at which time touches Eternity

2006-07-27T00:55:00.000-07:00

Yes, of course
It was always like this
All horrors have followed the same course,
getting worse and worse and
forcing you into a bottle-neck till
at the very moment you thought you must be crushed,
behold! you were out of the narrows and are suddenly well

~~~ 4 minutes ago
Hezbollah fighthers kill 9 Israeli troops

The extraction hurt more and more
and then the tooth was out
The dream became a nightmare
and then you wake
you die and die and then you are beyond death

~~~ 4 minutes ago
Explosions kill 24, wound 46 in Baghdad

How could we ever have doubted it?

~~~June 26th, 2oo6
Side talks may be key to Uganda peace plan

We were all born for it
Pains we may still have to encounter
but we embrace those pains

- The Screwtape Letters, C.S Lewis

The Silk Harmony Factory

2006-07-13T22:13:00.000-07:00

I fell in love with a book
actually
i think its actually the place in the story
that i fell in love with, again

or maybe for the first time
i realized how beautiful my tanah tumpah darah is
not that i have never before
malaysia has always been my first love

its where exactly on the map of my beloved
that i have come to realize the riches it holds
hidden and closed

my town
my Valley
my Kinta
my Ipoh

Deflated

2006-07-04T10:18:00.000-07:00

I was once a happy balloon full of air bouncing around
now i am a deflated balloon with no more air...:(

I AM SO MTFTWMRSF(you guess what that means) BUSY
B.U.S.Y
So B that i hate it!

Not that I don't have a life (oregon trip, bbq parties, movies, fun stuff at davis)
I have too much of a life that I'm tired of it
Friends everywhere who wanna do something every single chance that I am "free"
That the "free" time I am supposed to have is no longer free for me

Was looking forward to this Summer initially
false hopes that I wouldn't be as busy as I was the previous school year
and what do i get?

monday & wednesday labs 12-6pm
tuesday & thursday work 9-3pm
tuesday and friday activities with bridges
and the rest of those times filled with friends who wanna meet up and do stuff

i am so tired of doing stuff
and i hate it when ppl call me when i am resting
that i get no rest in the end, ending up having to go out yet again just right after i step into my house.
i am actually thinking of turning off my cellphone everytime i reach home
(but am i too 'nice' to do that?)

and poor sara
she gets less attention from me now that i'm always out

and my laptop backlight inverter tube thingy is ...dead
boo hoo..
now i can't do my homework at home
wait. oh maybe i can. use yoong's (nyeheheh evil plan)

oh what a rant-full piece of post this is
its happening! yours truly is turning into a cranky old woman
who hides the crankiness behind a mask of pleasantness and smiles

*bah humbug*

2006-06-18T01:44:00.000-07:00

pfft..

i know this seems really unimportant..
i hate myself for doing this..
but..

I GOT MY FIRST Abercrombie&Fitch and FCUK tees!!!!!

(because i was poor before this and couldn't afford them)

i ni memang wat-tat la.
ppl round the world suffering from earthquakes and HIV
and here i am being excited about clothes.

see? now you know why i said i hated myself

Found it!

2006-06-14T07:14:00.000-07:00

Davis. June 10th, 11pm? Outside Safeway

Adilla: Hey look, there's a Sports Bar over there!
Fei Yian: Sports bar? Sports bra you mean?
Hsing Ling: Dum de dum dum..
Adilla: No, Sports Bar!
Hsing Ling: Is it a shop? Or a bar?
Adilla: *tiptoes and looks over, squinting*
Fei Yian: I think she means sports bar like a shop selling sports stuff
Adilla: Oh, its a bar. Man, maybe I can watch World Cup over there.
Hsing Ling: If its a shop.....(pause).... HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!
Fei Yian: HUh?
ADilla: World CUP man! World CUP!
Fei Yian: Ei....(pauses longer) HAHAHAHAHAHHAAHAHHAAHAHAHHA!
Hsing Ling: Memang man, world CUP man, in a sports bar!

World 'cup'

2006-06-12T13:22:00.000-07:00

Hahahah oh migod this one sure makes me laugh my ass off
as usual my ladies and i were doing grocery shopping at safeway at midnight with our glasses on and pj's
so we did the usual shop for anything on sale or buy 1 get 1 free or buy 2 for $X.XX
ended up with 8 packs of toilet tissue to stock up call us asian or what
we even imprinted our faces on our cashier's memory

jokes and crap aside
this was the most funny
when girls talk about boob and bra size
and associate them with soccer
World CUP comes to mind!

BUAWHAHAHAHAHHAA
i think i forgot the actual lines.
wait lemme go ask Adilla and then put it up

ve ulai (and perhaps)

2006-06-12T01:10:00.000-07:00

ואומרים לה לשמוח, רוצים שתאהב

רוצים שתצחק, שתחיה ועכשי

ואבל איך בחלום, היד מתרוממת

זה נראה אמיתי והנה היא שוב

משחקת איתם והם נחמדים

אוספים ממתקים ושומרים

שאולי במקרה יגמרו החיפושים

ואולי הוא יהיה הדבר שבשביל

והחזקת חיים

ויתורים גדולהזה לא האמיתי שמחפשים

זה רק הרגש שחוטף מכהדירה יפה בעיר קרה

רחוק מכאןכל כך רחוק עכשיו, רחוק מכאן

Medusaaaaaa

2006-06-10T23:39:00.000-07:00

My Friday before finals..
A Korean, Afghan, and Malaysian - aren't we a cute group?

Who feeeels like Bollywood tonight? HAnds UP!

Where's Chennai by the way? Is that were roti canai came from?

Dream guy come take me, sweep me off my feet

and sing Indian songs to me!

ואולי במקרה יגמרו החיפושים

ואולי הוא יהיה הדבר שבשביל

והחזקת חיים

And perhaps, coincidentally, the searches will end

and perhaps, he will be the thing for which

you held on to life.

Jewish Cemetery in Malaysia!

2006-05-27T17:23:00.000-07:00

Omigod omigod OMIGOD!!!!!

This proves the ignorance of Miss Xing.

A Jewish Cemetery right smack in the backyard of her OWN country!!!

Now I can't wait to return to Malaysia.

(does the *arm stretched out reaching in agony pose*)

Wallowing in her sorrrow.

yawnss

2006-05-26T17:52:00.000-07:00

nama saya hsing ling dan saya sudah 2 hali tadak tido lo..

apa mau bikin?

ini bukan saya

ini anjing saya

You won't believe this, even I don't!

2006-05-18T22:20:00.000-07:00

On Wednesdays, I have a discussion class right after VMD. So yesterday...Guess what? I walked Adilla home after VMD without even thinking? In other words, I forgot about class.

I took the dog out...WITHOUT the dog! I walked to the front door and was about to exit when it dawned upon me that all I was holding in my hand was Sara's leash.

I left my sunglasses in the classroom at Olson after the MASA meeting. I went in this morning and found them on the floor.

And on the way home
I left them in the bus
Again

-_-*

Some say it was the heat
Some say it was my lack of concentration
I say it was my period.

nyanyuuk man!..

just like this dog!

On another note, I was just thinking about the things I get to do when not in close proximity with parents, such as

*getting my hair dyed purple/any color I want
*sharing my bed with Sara
*buying music and books that I like, whenever I want
*going out whenever I want
*studying whenever I want (ha! winning statement of the year)
*eating/not eating whenever I want
*shopping for clothes whenever I want

Is it just me, or do others like me agree that we have it better without our parents around us?

my purple..

2006-05-15T03:53:00.000-07:00

what's new with miss rambut?

its true! i spent only $13 for purple ray dye by L'oreal!!!

**geram sungguh kerna frienster is not letting me upload my purple pictures**

You're da' MOM!

2006-05-14T12:00:00.000-07:00

Things I used to say to you...
"How come you so like that wan?
Dun like that, lah!
Haiyo, no need, lah.."

But today..(and hopefully from now on, hehe)...I have nicer things to say..

Dear Mama,

I love you and I need you, even though
I may at times have made you tear your hair!
I set myself apart, but even so
Your presence and your love are always there.

You are my jail cell and ten-ton door
That keeps me from just being who I am.
And so I pound the walls and go to war,
Ramming all the rules that I can ram.

Yet though I must rebel, all the while
I know your love's the ground on which I stand.
I wait upon the flash of your proud smile
And twist inside at every reprimand.

I'm sorry for the times I've caused you pain;
After these brief storms, love will remain.
HAPPY MOM's DAY!!

Whole Earth weekend

2006-05-14T10:19:00.000-07:00

I'm such a potato. I want to cover more about Whole Earth weekend but my laziness is not allowing me to upload as many photos as I would like to.

So what you see is what you get.

----------------------------------------------------------------

For those who know the story....

Happy Mother's Day to Me...

***

See? Told you i'm such a potato.

Bear River Camp - Grass Valley, CA

2006-05-12T21:46:00.000-07:00

Oh boy, all this in a day.. (sat afternoon-sunday afternoon) snow covered hills passed us by as we journeyed on the 80-E toward Nevada City/Reno..

potty, no i mean, stretch break for the party

isn't the view simply amazing? and we were not even THERE yet!

finally we reached the cabin! damn syiok man~!

our faithful ambassadors then set out to conquer the untouched, unexplored..sand dunes!

this fella got a damn good shot man..

while my camera person missed mine. BOO

then we proceeded to show how much we love one another by snowballing each other

but things went a little too far... (evil grin)

lots of other things happened during the retreat that i don't have photos of. i admit, i'm not a really good weblog writer. i leave out a great deal of chunk of my life. suffice to say, i update just to keep myself satisfied that at least, i share the good stuff with others through my weblog. at least the memories will remain, although not forever, for a while, in the minds of the others who went.

i wish i could end this entry with more flair.

but all i can think of are totipotent cells in embryological development and how they relate to homologous recombination (gene targeting) in cloning.

man i suck.

down the rabbit hole....

2006-05-12T14:26:00.000-07:00

oh boy...
am i tired!!

am still sore from Grass Valley sand-duning, or rather, sand DUNKING! hohoho!~
*i promise, i will tell you guys more about it..-later*

the midterm this morning blew my brains away
i don't think i can ever find it again
if you ever happen to pass by a wandering brain who seems lost
it most likely belongs to me
*catch it before your dog does!*

!!mak, ko babi! - as adilla latah-ed this morning on the bus

i seriously need to do something about my sleeping in VMD170
its getting worse
like...tidur kayu BALAK weihh...
why am i so ngantuk everytime in VMD??

my goals for this week
- don't do anything
- don't do anything
- don't do anything

Nah ambik kau*

huhuhuhu.

Life@UCD

2006-05-04T17:15:00.000-07:00

The past two months were a whirlwind. Besides the retarded transition from Winter --> Summer @ Davis, yours truly has been slaving away in the exam slaughterhouse. She also got a new roomate! Woohoo!

Not to mention all the campus events she has been getting herself into.

Israeli Culture week (May1-5)I got my free felafel! Because I know 3 facts about Israeli politics, culture, and social rights!

Asian Pacific Culture Week: DAT PHAN! (Apr 29)
Mr Phan from Last Comic Standing came to perform on the last day of the Asian Pacific Awareness Week.

1000 Wells Project (Apr22-May5)
I found out from Chelsea today that 1000 Wells Project is by Blood:Water Mission that was initiated by Jars of Clay! Of course i joined!

Picnic Day (Apr 22)

and we Malaysianies sold cekodok on that lovely day!

Yes, I agree, I don't tell much about my life here. Not because I don't want to, but because I simply don't have time. If I had all the time in the world, I would write about:

- how we observe 18 week chick embryos on a plate

- how many cute guys i meet/talk/hug in a day

- how many mat sallehs smile at sara then smile at me

- how dashing and handsome americanies are. asianies are too. everyonies!!

- how ricardo taps me on the head/shouder/other places (HAHAHAAHHAAH!!!)

- how adilla, iza, and yoong never fail to crack me up

- how sara always cracks me up (that fat dog)

- how si lendut (Taylor) is sick in the head

- how monstery we are at the dinner table (1 huge sack of rice lasts only 1 month in our house)

- how much fun it is to be in Davis!

Play hard..DIE hard, man.

who got the cat?

2006-04-18T18:33:00.000-07:00

taylor and sara are sure making good friends
taylor eats sara's food
taylor opened the can food
sara ate the can food
taylor comes in every night
sara sniffs him every night
my room is overcrowded!!!!!!!

Analogy
adilla and i were talking about the overload of spicy stuff we've been having the past week
man, morning business such is a PAIN in the ASS --> literally weii..
so i proposed for study of anal biology
which we then realized...
analogy...

ROTFL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

bla-di-dahHH

2006-04-15T18:01:00.000-07:00

please tell everyone how awesome this movie is! *Lost in Translation*

my new roommate is Rebekah
my new doggie friends are Channelle, Chocolate, and Rhambo!!!!
my new hair color is fading
my new 'old' cellphone works great
my new work schedule is awesome
my new classes are fun

its great to be me!
me me me!

bad things may happen
but you always got your old trusty back
two sturdy legs
and strong hands
to rely on the God who gives you a little tap and kick here and there

Hope everyone's Good Friday was nice!

2006-04-02T13:11:00.000-07:00

Keeping up-to-date with events and putting them up on this page really reflects my laziness when it comes to weblogging..
Instead, I read friends's online diaries like Yusuke's - whose sister makes me very curious as to what Yusuke has been telling her about me...
Not to mention that my being Malaysian seems to connote a very interesting impression Japanese people have of me
*What! I'm just trying to be funny! You like me funny, right? Kawaii des?*

Bringing the picture back to Davis..
The household has a new cat named Taylor
who hissses and spits at Sara
who ignores her, i mean, him, completely
who recently developed a hot spot on her back
causing yours truly to fall into frantic panic
who thinks it might be life-treatening
who needs to calm down and observe it for a few days
who is getting more confused
as to who refers to now.

*who dat?*

2006-03-27T16:19:00.000-08:00

Someone wasn't satisfied.....

yusuke said...
For a while, I didn't realized that you were talking about the party which I was concerned... > good food within reach 24/7I think you should have written the sentence more precisely. For exapmle, 'The plate as well as Anko, Japanese Soybean Jam, was so delicious that I ....ed it.'Anyway, I had a lot of fun, and it was worth my last day in the U.S.
3:54 PM

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAAHHAHAHAHAH!
Gotcha, Yusuke!

*JA-NE*

2006-03-24T18:59:00.000-08:00

*dum deedle-dee doo*

ever since finals..it's been party party party!
well, of course, if you know me..the good parties...
where you cook good food like sushi and curry together,
eat together,
play with the dogs
play with each other..ehem, *games* with each other
and the loser gets to french kiss the Boxer
where you stay up all night
snuggled on couches watching a movie while teasing one another
with Sara at my feet
and good food within reach 24/7
Aaaahhhh.....the sigh of contentment

why get drunk when you can get high the good ol' goodie way?

Sara gadolah veruach meod

2006-02-28T06:02:00.000-08:00

After my morning shower today, as i walked into my room...

I found Sara on my bed sitting Pretty!!!!

I rushed to cuddle her..

But then she jumped right down. :(

2006-02-20T17:26:00.000-08:00

Mungkinkah bila kubertanya
Pada bintang-bintang
Dan bila ku mulai merasa
Bahasa kesunyian

Sadarkah aku yang berjalan
Dalam kehampaan
Terdiam, terpana, terbata
Semua dalam keraguan

Aku dan semua
yang terluka
Karena kita.

Aku kan menghilang
dalam gelap malam
Lepas ku melayang
Biarlah kubertanya
pada bintang-bintang
Tentang arti kita
dalam mimpi yang sempurna

Aku dan semua yang terluka
Karena kita.

HOT stuff

2006-02-18T19:24:00.000-08:00

The smileys smile-smile-smile with the snap-snap-snap of the cam-cam-camera!

Menorah from dear housemates. Coolness!

Saturday fun @ the Dog park!

BB lunch at Plutos with Lab Crew! Ricardo is not photogenic, boo :(
BB dinner at Pasta? with the Italian guy that conspired with my housemates and the one that Ricardo insists on giving my number to. *I shy lah!* (too bad, this is the only picture taken at the dinner)
*It snowed in Davis this evening*

fulamak!

Oh no...

2006-02-15T23:37:00.000-08:00

...i rejected a puppy looking for a home on Valentine's day

Now i feel bad.

Puppy needed a home and i just walked away..

*I'm Sorry, Puppy*

Sun-filled Weekend

2006-02-12T17:13:00.000-08:00

My saturday was fun! Davis is fun! Sara is fun! Life is FUN!

I wonder why I always look *evil* when I'm super-duper-uber happy....

...either that, or that I never fail to make myself look super-duper *dumb*

Sweet Birthday Messages..

2006-02-06T21:22:00.000-08:00

Bye bye, 21 (*oh no!!!)

Hello, 22 (*uh-oh*)

Lookie what my sister made me. Hugs to mumsie-doo!

http://www.eve1ine.blogspot.com/

And another by gal pal Nadia!

http://www.xanga.com/nadzism/

Caedmon's Call

2006-02-05T15:00:00.000-08:00

My second favorite band next to Jars of Clay. And yes, they came to Davis! Yay!

Remember Sarala? For those who don't know, that's Sara's full name. It was Caedmon's Call's song Sarala that gave Sara her name.

So they actually played Sarala! I was so happy!

Stray dogs at the airport bark

Tail curled up like a question mark

Oh, the people scattered,

rats in the gutter, scared Sarala...

Ta-ta lei lei..ta ta lei lei!