...congratulations...

SMUKIEZ CHOIR HAS JUST WON A SILVER DIPLOMA IN THE 1ST ASIAN CHOIR GAMES 2007!!

*claps furiously*

No words can describe just how PROUD I am of them all.
I miss singing with them. I miss having fun with them. I terribly miss being one of them.

Been listening to some old recordings of our past performances; those songs brought tears to my eyes as I sat and listened. Memories unwound, moments flashed back. Can't believe that treasured years have gone by so quickly.

Oh well.
Congratulations, guys!!
You know you deserve this achievement. Strive for greatness, and never stop fighting! Singing is a priceless gift; make the most out of it to please HIM solely.

Forever you guys are always the BEST!!!
*hugs*

...never leave me alone...

Just finished watching the clip of Spice Girls' brand new music video for their comeback single titled "Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)". It's weird, actually, realizing that it has been years since they parted ways and shocked the world with their sudden unanticipated farewell. Well I have never been a huge fan of them, yet I grew up in the 90's, so yeah. It was kinda unavoidable, really. *grins*



Err, honestly, I kinda like the song. A typical SpiceGirl-ish ballad, and the chorus is just simply catchy. The video itself is not much of an achievement, though, despite its supposedly high budget; looks like as though the girls are individually trying to make themselves stand out from the others, what with all those posing and show-offs and close-ups and stuff. Well not that I can complain anyway. They're GREAT as a group, no doubt about that. Yet after so many years apart their big egos can clash at times. Totally understandable.

And it's just unbelievable to see all five with their new looks. No longer sporting cheesy outfits and exhibiting the notorious "Girl Power" attitude, they're all grown-up women now. It suddenly feels like their reunion is just a chance to get together for one final time and reminisce about the good ol' days.

Will they be visiting Melbourne in their world tour? Guess not. *sighs*

In the meantime, if you guys wanna watch the video, please click here.

"...Let’s make the headlines, loud and true
I wanna tell the world I’m giving it all to you
Let’s make the headlines, loud and clear
The best things suddenly happen when you are here...
And if I lost my way you’d carry me home
Take me all the way to heaven, never leave me alone
And it’s just like everything matters when you are near..."


Oh no. I'm starting to get all nostalgic now.
Whatever. Happy weekend guys!! *winks*

...expectations...

Blackout-craze day five. Finally managed to get the three Japanese bonus tracks which pitifully didn't make it to the worldwide tracklisting of the album. *jumps around happily*

Was talking to MelMel about various accents and abroad-born Asians while waiting for the 703 bus at Clayton Road bus stop, and realized that I don't sound like I did anymore when speaking English. This is not the first time anybody makes an effort to point this out to me; Adeline once mentioned that I change tones when speaking with different people with different backgrounds and, of course, different accents. *shakes head*

Well, ever since I moved to Melbourne, I feel like I'm losing control of my otherwise-decent American accent.. Mainly because the locals here speak with a completely different tone and dialect, with different emphasis on vowels and sounds and what-have-you, and at some point I start to adapt and thus my verbal abilities are affected. *sighs*

Well yeah I still speak with my old comfy accent anyhow, but now I need to put some effort into being able to match and pronounce words correctly, sometimes resulting in me clumsily mixing up different accents and pronunciations all in one sentence due to confusion. And I am always prone to outside influences, so yeah. I guess that explains all.

Anyways. Backing off from my stream of random thoughts...
Should I start counting down the days towards going home?

Everybody else is now doing that in their MSN nicks, and being the unforgivably un-creative and peer-pressure-sensitive human being that I am, I am tempted to go with the flow and start my own count. *sighs*

Honestly, yes I am sooooooooooo looking forward to going back home. But I also believe that the more I incline myself to look forward to it and the more I anticipate by counting down the remaining days left till ta-dah! you're home, the more agitated I will be, and most probably that will then shift my focus. Instead of making the best use of my remaining 2007 moments here in Melbourne, I will probably slack off and waste my time in order to inevitably speed up the process and rush back to J-Town.

So, yeah.
After second thoughts, thanks but no thanks. I'll just let everything flow as they will and hopefully I can still go home in time happily, counting-free! *smiles*

I'm never best in numbers after all, so that shouldn't be much of a problem.

The dinner is ON tomorrow night! Gotta prepare early, I guess. Hahahaha. *winks*

All the best for you guys Uni ppl with your exams! Am crossing my fingers endlessly now, wishing the best of luck for y'all. *grins*

...i got my eye on you...

Blackout-craze day three. Omigosh I'm starting to feel brainwashed.

Was reading through the latest edition of Lot's Wife, the one-and-only internal student-run tabloid of Monash University Clayton. I always like reading stuff that's in the tabloid, partly because the articles are somewhat dim-witted yet crackingly funny, and those writers who contribute to the tabloid are all smart and witty in their own special ways. It's outspoken, often sarcastic, and free-spirited.

Yeah, I was skimming through the latest edition, cracking up every once in a while, feeling occasionally Aussie-ish while at one point recognizing the upcoming election this November, then suddenly I came to realization that the Lot's Wife edition I was reading actually was the supposedly LAST edition of the tabloid. Evident from the title, "THE LAST HURRAH". (Hurrah is the Oz slang for Hooray, if I'm not mistaken).

Well, censorship is always a major issue for every form of published media. Reminds me of those good ol' times part-timing as a journalist back in J-Town, when my boss constantly reminded me of ethics and censor-possible materials contained in my work. Yeah, Lot's Wife would be shut down temporarily because its funding is suspended by the MSA due to the presence of a supposedly-offensive material in its publication. Well, not gonna go into details here, but basically that's the issue.

Personally, I don't think this is fair. The whole idea of Lot's Wife being present is actually to provide Monash Uni Clayton students with some sort of a place to express their views and opinions about stuff that concerns all. And to be able to serve that function, it HAS to be honest. And frank. And liberal. And straightforward. Hell yeah it can be awfully biased sometimes, but aren't we all? *sighs*

Even in a country as free-willed and open-minded as Australia, minor opinionated issues like this can sometimes get in the way. Free press is the new groove, people. Might as well go back to the era of communism straight away. Well I have to add that I am not defending anyone here. I'm merely expressing my view.

So, yeah. I was kinda shocked to find out that the tabloid is now put on hold, at least temporarily. Even the last edition is independently-funded by contributors and friends.
*sighs*

Now I am so gonna miss Lot's Wife. Can no longer grab a free copy from that worn-out newsstand in front of Monash Radio on the way back to class from lunch.
But wait. Let's just hope that the suspension thingy is canceled or something. That way I won't feel so sad. Yeah I know I'm exaggerating here.

Anyways.
As I was mentioning to Ian and Jacelyn during this afternoon's Buyer Behavior tute, my brain doesn't seem to be willing to cooperate with my mood these days. It's like I really, REALLY want to start doing some work, but my brain doesn't seem wanting to boot up and get excited about that, AT ALL. I am super-slow in digesting information these days, common ones let alone academic-related lectures and what-have-you. Dunno why, but it feels like my senses are still set on that super-happy holiday-mood, and I don't know how to, well, reset the clock and get back to speed, metaphorically speaking.

Anyone knows how to boost up a lazy brain? *blinks*
Let's just hope this lemot-ness *in lack of a better word* doesn't linger for weeks. Otherwise I will as well be dead lagging on my work. *sighs*

Hugs 'n kisses people!!
Hahahahahahhaha. Lates. =D

...blackout-crazed...

Britney Spears's new album, "Blackout", has been released in Australia.
And, trust me, the album is UNBELIEVABLY GOOD!




Well I'm not going into details here. But yeah, it is good. Period. Despite the hideously TRASHY album cover art *sighs*. It's full of catchy songs, potential singles, contagious beats, and while her voice is still breathy and unbearably squeaky, she knows how to turn things around by choosing the right songs to sing. She amazingly still has this tantalizing aura of an amazing popstar with her and the songs in the album still proves that she's not just another trainwreck of a fading pop princess.

Okay. Let's just stop this rant before I start sounding like the crazy Britney-freak I once was at some point in my adolescent life. *grins*

Anyways.
This weekend was quite uneventful, to say the least. Besides the fact that daylight saving starts today and basically every clock in reach should be altered to match the new time zone.

Went to the city today with friends to attend the evening mass at St. Francis church. Had dinner at Chinatown. Laughed some. Sighed some. Smiled some. Met some old friends. Sang along the whole way back home. Felt a bit lightheaded. Felt a bit left-out. Felt a bit smitten. But in the end I am still grateful, realizing that sometimes The Big Guy Up There really does have a strange sense of humor. It feels like HE's playing around with my life and arranges things in such a way that surprises by surprises keep coming one after another. Sweet ones, shocking ones, even unexpected ones.

Gosh. I love HIM to death. *smiles* Thanks Lord!

Huff. So that's about it, I guess.
As usual, when moodswings kick in, you won't know just how far it can take you.
But yeah, as usual, the sugar-coated sweetness of a dazzling smile always stops me dead.

Omigosh. Now I sound freaky.
So how do I cope? *sighs*


"...Ooh, ooh baby
Touch me and i come alive
I can feel you on my lips
I can feel you deep inside
Ooh, ooh baby
In your arms I finally breathe
Wrap me up in all your love
That's the oxygen I need..."


Well sorry. But I can't help it.
Blackout-crazed I hereby confirm.

Let the guilty pleasure begin!!! *laughs*

...i'm singing in the rain...

God bless you mighty Melbourne! *winks*

It was raining so beautifully this morning. The rain started pouring by the time I finished my Macroeconomics lecture around 11 a.m, and I had to rush to the Campus Center afterwards, which is actually within a five-minute walking distance from Building 73, to grab my lunch and buy stuff. So I had to walk through the chilly morning shower with Yurike, shivering all the way.

Raindrops splattering on the 2nd floor edge window back in Smukie *sighs*

Well actually it wasn't that much of a proper rain that literally pours; they don't have those kinds of generous rainfalls too often in Australia. But yeah, the drizzle stayed for several hours, even when I was walking home it accompanied me all the way through. The sky is still gloomy grey outside as I'm typing away right now, and the air feels so comfortably chilly and cool on my skin. Quite perfect for a nice cuddly nap, if you ask me. *grins* But yeah. It was good.

Hell yeah I agree that the drizzle was cold and distracting. But at the same time it was also equally, if not more, fun, really. I've always enjoyed spending time under the rain, be it walking, singing, skipping happily, even dancing around like a nutcase. *laughs* I've always considered myself to be having this weird special connection with the rain, as if I was some sort of a creepy psychic melancholist who could actually feel the soothing spirit of the rain wash away all my pain and sorrow.

I know, sappy huh?

A rainy day seen from my old classroom window *I miss this view*

But honestly, I love the rain. The soft lingering scent of rainy days just drives me mad. It reminds me of home, of times when I used to sit by the windows of my workroom back home, leaving the balcony door half-open, sipping a cup of mild latte while listening to the raindrops splattering on the rooftops above. Now that's what I call a perfect quality moment. Times when a private, silent conversation is divinely made between the rain and my hollow, longing conscience.

A foggy, rainy morning viewed from my Taman Anggrek Condominium during the 2007 Great Jakarta Flood

Oh well. Those pictures are just too memorable. I'm totally lost for words now.
I can't believe that the rain brings back a lot of precious memories.

Yet still, too bad Melbourne rain is far too subtle and vague, compared to those dense tropical rainfalls that J-Town has during this time of year. *sighs*

Hey Jamie Cullum I wanna join your singing-in-the-rain parade!!
Hahahahahahahaha. =D

Takecare peeps! *hugs*