To Wait, To Know, Perchance To Dream

Someday, I will learn the significance of International Woman's Day.

2010-03-09T13:31:28Z

So I kinda turned 18 yesterday. The actual day was pretty uneventful. I had already celebrated it on Saturday with Che Hui at this utterly divine Japanese place I know and on Sunday, the whole family had a dinner of steamboat with tons of pork slices and udon. Mom made my favourite sweet and sour pork for dinner on the actual day so that was pretty awesome. Plus it snowed today which made the week thus far pretty fab.

Only Che got me a present but hey, it's not like I am a giver of gifts anyway. It's this really sweet golden pouch that is sitting in my drawer right now because I can't bear to dirty it. I also got a dozen or so Facebook 'Happy Birthday' wishes so that was awesome too.

Strangely enough, I don't feel any different, not especially mature or knowledgeable or anything. I'm still me. In fact, I acted downright childish today due to sleep deprivation. I was fooling around with this bendable pole meant for propping up posters the whole day, pretending they were nunchucks one second and paddling in an imaginary canoe the next. Ah well, I suppose I'm just the kind of person who remains young at heart?

BTW, if anyone feels like expanding their music collection, give Blue Cafe a whirl. They're this Polish musical group with jazz, soul and Latin influences, who sing in Polish and English and their songs have been looping in my iTunes for days now. I'm particularly fond of 'Girl in Red' at the moment. Download their latest album here if you'd like.

The Internet Has Something Against Me

2010-02-13T08:55:22Z

I find it dead ironic that the only place I can surf LJ properly anymore is school. For some reason the LJ pages load at a rate of a page every two minutes at home. It's driving me nuts! Haven't had a proper surf in a month now but thanks to this proxy (vtunnel.com, very handy) it loads much faster.

Nothing much has changed since the New Year. Still in school, still struggling with Chemistry, still dead worried about my final grades.

Oh, but at least I've sent off most of my applications for the various Universities I was thinking about going to. I've got conditional offers to University of Edinbrugh for two courses - International Relations as well as Sociology and Psychology, both of which are masters I think - and University of Manchester, the Social Sciences course. It's kind of thrilling, the thought of going of to the UK for uni. Thrilling and terrifying.

Anyway, back to the main reason why I came onto LJ. Just wanted to wish you all a:

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!

To Manda and Lexy, have fun at the 'no-clique' clique reunion dinner! I hope to meet up with you guys for one of them someday!

To everyone who celebrates CNY, hope you guys have tons of fun and get loads of hongbaos!

And to those who don't, dudes, you are missing out on a ton of fun.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

2009-12-27T15:34:05Z

When it gets unusually cold, snowy, and/or rainy, do you prefer to remain indoors? If there's a long stretch of bad weather, do you tend to get depressed and/or stir crazy? If so, how do you cope?

View 754 Answers

Dudes.

Dudes.

It frikin' snowed today! I was so incoherent with joy I just stood there in the biting wind for a few minutes and giggled like an idiot every time a snowflake hit my nose. The snow fell for most of the afternoon and at one point the flakes got as big as my thumbnail! Snow is just so fascinating and I adore the way it swirls with the wind and melts the moment you breathe on it.

I know snow can be a nuisance but considering the fact that I've loved on a tropic island for most my life, it's still a wicked enchanting experience. I wish it snowed heavily enough to make snowballs! Snowy days should be spent outside playing!

Holidays!

2009-12-18T13:30:59Z

Whew! School's out for the year! I can't believe that it's going to be 2010 soon... I feel old...

Been so insanely busy the past few weeks I haven't been able to be on LJ much so I've missed a lot of Hetalia stuff. Am catching up on the episodes now and squeeing over all the FrUK! And since I'm going off to HK tomorrow, I may also be able to access Facebook and finally see photos of my niece!

See Ting came to Shanghai recently but I was just too busy to meet her since I was spending night after night typing out Chemistry reports, Economics Internal Assessments, Math reports, English essays and preparing for a Chinese debate. And on top of that, I was also freaking out about University applications.

I've got universities from 4 countries in mind, UK, Singapore, HK and Australia. For the UK I'm aiming for really tough ones like LSE and University of Manchester. I'll need at least 36 out of 45 and all 6's in Higher Level subjects (in my case, English, Economics and Physics) to get in. It sucks that my first round of predicted grades showed a 5 for economics...

But UK always was an unrealistically optimistic aim anyway. NUS is a more likely ending for me though I hope that even if I'm not good enough for the UK I'll be good enough for HKU. When we go to HK we'll be going to HKU to see the campus and all that jazz. I wonder what it'll be like?

Well, I shan't be able to worry much for the next few days. Mom has the trip all planned out and I fear that we may have to shop till we drop. I hope I survive this! Wish me luck!

Early Well-Wishes

2009-12-07T12:12:54Z

In 2009, picseanenigma resolves to...

Eat more mel brooks.
Be nicer to faith_winged.
Give up singing.
Give some musicals to charity.
Apply for a new winter.
Become a better slash.

This is an example of resolutions that I'll never make becse I can give up on anything but singing! Plus, I'm already am nice to you, aren't I Mandada? The rest are just plain silly. Why'd I want to eat Mel Brooks?

--

Went back to school today after missing Thursday and Friday and had a ton of things spring on me.

- Had to analyse and presnt The Divine Image by William Blake in front of the class after 40 mins of prep.
- Then I discovered that the fourth Economics Internal Assessment was due last Friday.
- And then I had my last practice Individual Oral Commentary squeezed in during lunch. At least I got to do it on Othello which is the only Shakespearean play I am fond of.

I ended up skipping most of Chemistry which was after lunch since I was so overwhelmed. Watched Char play Plants versus Zombies to kill time and spent the rest of the school day, which was double Chinese, fooling around since we were preparing for a debate and I'm just the host.

It surprises me to say this but right now, the only subject I am reasonably confident in is Chinese. I bet everyone who knew me before I came to SH will be sniggering in surprise. Yes Manda, I'm looking at you!

--

I see a load of Christmas gift-giving going on on LJ even though it's still mighty early. It's lovely how people are giving thngs to people they might have never even met face-to-face before, just cuz they are friends online. I don't even give gifts to people I know IRL, though that may be because my family is just not very westernized in that sense.

Still, you peeps who have all that gift giving and good cheer and tinselly jazz going on for you? Know that you are incredibly lucky and that I'm so insanely jealous of what you have.

Anyway, to my F-list, even if we never really talk because I fail at commenting on your entries, know that I do read them all and that I'm so glad to know each and everyone of you!

Big ♥ to you all! Merry Christmas!

Today is kinda Awesome

2009-12-06T05:56:29Z

So right now, I'm sitting in an Apple shop in Shanghai and typing out this entire entry on my shiny new iTouch. Technology is pretty amazing isn't it?

It's hard to think straight with a headache

2009-12-03T08:00:37Z

So I found out today there is someone called Prussian on DeviantArt. I was so amused when I saw what her gallery was full of. Could it be anymore canon?

--

I'm so sick right now it's not funny. Last night my head felt as though it was on fire but I was shivering. Ended up crashing into bed immediately after dinner. Mom woke me up a little bit later to drink some fungus-soup-thing that was supposed to make me get better. Still spent the night tossing and turning and ran a fever of 38.5 degrees this morning. I'd rather go to school than stay home because I'm this sick.

And I wish that classmates with the flu would stay home and not get the rest of us sick!

The most horrid thing about being ill? My mom made chocolate chip cupcakes today and I can't taste a thing! D:

--

Am going off to HK over the Christmas break. Kind of a downer since I'd rather go home, but hey, at least I'll get to eat proper dimsum!

Oh yea, my dad also mentioned that my laptop should be alright in a few days time so yay! I can finally catch up on all those Hetalia episodes I've missed!

Top 10 OTP + When life's a bitch, she really goes all out.

2009-11-11T12:54:29Z

I think I'm going into withdrawal. Its been eons since Ivan broke down and Dad's being evil and not sending my laptop in for repairs since he's busy. I have been itching to add new songs to my iPod but can't because this comp has no iTunes...

It does not help that according to everyone's squealing the past two episodes of Hetalia have been more than epic and I CANNOT WATCH THEM!! *insert long stream of cuss words here* I would totally DL the required software to watch avi files if this comp didn't corrupt every file I try to DL. Geez, I don't know how much longer I can stand it! I want to see baby!America and Belarus so bad!

On the upside though, I've finally done the first draft of my Extended Essay after 3 whole days! I am toast when I go to Uni since 4000 word essays are common there aren't they? D:

And speaking of school, seems like there's a bout of hand, foot, mouth disease going around. I should be safe since I'm above ten years old but I do hope my kids in pre-school are gonna be okay! I haven't gone to see them for almost a week since lunchtime is now reserved for homework doing/revising. I'm so screwed for Economics its not funny.

-

1. Pick up to 10 OTPs.
2. Describe them in less than 15 words.
3. Have your f-list guess the OTP.
4. ???
5. PROFIT.

Hint: There is one non-Hetalia OTP (whoever guesses it gets a massive e-cookie!) and one of them is an OT3.

1) I owe you how much?!

2) My harmonica is cooler than your googles.

3) Frogs and snails, and puppy dogs tails.

4) C'n ya t'll your troll t' let go o' me? (Norway/Sweden, guessed by jali_jali)

5) Nothing goes nicer with Chopin than a sausage sandwich. (Prussia/Austria/Germany, guessed by jali_jali)

6) Would you like some 'milk' in your tea, boy? (England/Hong Kong, guessed by jali_jali)

7) Don't talk to me on the 4th of July. (England/America, guessed by jali_jali)

8) It's our turn to paint this world bright red. (China/Russia, guessed by jali_jali)

9) Two words: Deck Brush.

10) Frugality is the highest of virtues.

I was totally gonna add Switzerland/Gun but how do you describe that?! ~~Other than insanely hot.~~

I Love China

2009-11-07T05:38:33Z

I just had a pretty scrummy lunch of Macanese food with my parents. The sets were real cheap, going for just 38 yuan (about S$8) and included a main course, a drink and a buffet-style selection of salads and soup. I'm not much of a salad person but since I'm trying to eat healthier I ate some and I must say, salads aren't half bad actually, plus the potato cubes were just divine~ The main course was okay, I had fried rice with minced pork and beans while my mom had duck leg in mushroom sause but dad's pork chop was perfect! So having that the next time I go.

After that, we stopped by a road-side cart full of books and I picked up Malcolm Gladwell's 'Outliers', Joseph Heller's 'Catch-22' and Freud's 'The Interpretation of Dreams'. Can you believe that I got them all for under 80 yuan, which is about S$16? According to Dad, the man only set the price according to how thick the book was, not for the content. Makes you think doesn't it?

Anywho, I'm finally starting on my Extended Essay (four-freakin'-thousand words!) today so wish me luck!

Turn, turn, turn, turn for hot...

2009-11-02T14:20:06Z

It's so cold right now it's not funny! Just last week I was whining about having to wear skirts to school because of the afternoon sun and today I had to wear school pants, a vest and thermals! I think it was like 10 degrees C today? Whereas it was 20 over last week. Insane this weather change...

I'm wearing a jacket even in the house since the Parents insist on natural ventilation. I intend to sleep with the windows open tonight, just for the heck of it! Mom insists I wear socks to bed. I hope I won't get frosted lashes tomorrow mornin'.

~
I went by to hetalia_rate to get myself rated and I've got 6 votes so far (which is good since I didn't want to get rated on the basis of reaching the 2 weeks deadline) but the results are confusing to say the least.

Out of the 6, two say I'm Greece, two say I'm Romano with one vote each for Japan and Chibitalia. I'm rather amused, trying to imagine myself as the amalgamation of all these characters. Anywho, vote for me if you can!

~

Especially the underlined bits.

[Hurt] by Johnny Cash

I hurt myself today
To see if I still feel
I focus on the pain
The only thing that's real
The needle tears a hole
The old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything

[Chorus:]
What have I become
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

I wear this crown of thorns
Upon my liar's chair
Full of broken thoughts
I cannot repair
Beneath the stains of time
The feelings disappear
You are someone else
I am still right here

[Chorus:]
What have I become
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

If I could start again
A million miles away
I would keep myself
I would find a way

Candles

2009-10-30T13:03:38Z

I'm so fantastically late but Happy Birthday metallic_sweet! Hope you had a lovely day filled with fun and presents~!

And since I'll be out the most of tomorrow:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY IN ADVANCE MANDADA!
As Wei Jie used to say, smile always! May you always be happy, healthy and high! Stay fabulous my favourite God-loving, camera-happy princess! :D

Beware of STC (Sudden Topic Change)

2009-10-04T14:06:14Z

My mom got gingerbeer from Marks and Spencers today. Now I think I understand why the Famous Five liked it so much!

Going off to some obscure-ish part of China tommorrow since it's the Golden week holidays right now. There goes 5 days that my teachers had meant for me to spend doing homework because they are sick, twisted bastards like that.

I just recently put up a flag counter on my writing journal (Amanda dear, it may be best if you don't click this link. Trust me.) and it's so freaky to see how far reaching the internet truly is. In one day, after linking out two of my stories, I've gotten visitors from 19 different countries and 100 over pageviews!

It's so weird to think that someone in Maldives has read what you've written. Mind-boggling really...

Oops, is my Fangirl showing?

2009-09-23T10:59:29Z

Yes, yes, yes! Episode 35 was made of as much win as Episode 34! I didn't even have to watch it subbed to giggle like a fool!

I gleed so much when I heard Russia mention China. (Yea, I know how to say China in Japanese now, how educational is Hetalia?) I'm such a die hard fan of those two. I blame metallic_sweet.

I can't believe that America and Canada have the same VA but it fits in an odd way. He's pretty awesome, I must admit. I've had this wish to be a voice actress for a while now but it's such a silly little dream isn't it?

Anyway, the bit with Greece and France was v. lulzy. Top marks Himaruya for such a wicked sense of humour! And the little hint of France/England I saw made me glee harder. (Again, I blame metallic_sweet. She's a the major force that shaped my perception of Hetalia.)

I'm so glad the anime is getting better and better! I just let some of my brother's classmates watch Hetalia, guys included, and they enjoyed it! Hopefully they get hooked. Twas lonely being the only fangirl in school.

-
Che's birthday is coming up soon and I'm a rubbish present buyer. I personally reckon everyone should just give each other money. We're going out this Saturday for Shanghai's best laksa, according to Che who is a total foodie, so I've got to finish my homework as soon as possible. Busy, busy, busy! Holidays next week so the teachers are piling on the workload.

I maintain my stand that Holiday Homework is an oxymoron!

I Like the Way You Say My Name - Stop It

2009-09-14T13:50:39Z

Oh help, I cannot stop squealing over Episode 34 of Hetalia! So much to love, so little time! This is by far my favourite five minutes of the whole anime thus far! Never stop rocking my socks China~ ♥ (I'm in love with the way he says Ai-yah!)

I went to the Preschool section during lunch again and this time I was armed with my handy-dandy camera phone. It was an excellent way to finally coax conversation out of my beloved Chisato. She actually spoke to me! She even smiled! Gah, I could feel my heart melting right there and then.

I was chatting with Justin about the age of his siblings when she suddenly said that she was five years old. So I asked her to teach me how to count to five in Japanese and by the gods, her speaking Japanese is the cutest thing I've heard in ages!

And when I joined them in the bathroom for teeth-brushing time, I sat on the bench by the sinks and was instantly swarmed. Yiu gave his cheeky little low chuckle and automatically plopped himself down on my lap. I wanted to take a picture of him but he commandeered my phone and snapped a few pics of his friend Ryoka and of his governess. That boy give me cavities, I swear.

I shall attempt to snap a picture of him on Thursday when I visit again. Trying not to go too often for fear of disturbing them (I won't go with Che Hui on Tuesdays because then I'll have to share! :P) In the mean time, have a gander at current favourite.

~

hover over for cute-addled descriptions

but I love you too Reiya. ♥

... cuz the face ain't listening.

I'm gonna try and take more pictures of life in Shanghai because it's going to end before I know it.

Writer's Block: Top of the Charts

2009-09-06T08:04:32Z

What's the most-played song in your music library?

View 2073 Answers

It's funny how the most played song on my iPod and iTunes turns out to be in French considering the fact that I know next to nothing on both the country and the language. It has the loveliest lyrics though.

~

S’il fallait le faire, j’arrêterais la terre
J’éteindrais la lumière, que tu restes endormi
S’il fallait pour te plaire lever des vents contraires
Dans un désert sans vie, je trouverais la mer

Et s’il fallait le faire, j’arrêterais la pluie
Elle fera demi-tour le reste de nos vies
S’il fallait pour te plaire t’écouter chaque nuit
Quand tu parles d’amour, j’en parlerais aussi

Que tu regardes encore dans le fond de mes yeux
Que tu y vois encore le plus grand des grands feux
Et que ta main se colle sur ma peau, où elle veut
Un jour si tu t’envoles, je suivrais, si je peux

Et s’il fallait le faire, je repousserais l’hiver
A grands coups de printemps et de longs matins clairs
S’il fallait pour te plaire, j’arrêterais le temps
Que tous tes mots d’hier restent à moi maintenant

Que je regarde encore dans le bleu de tes yeux
Que tes deux mains encore se perdent dans mes cheveux
Je ferai tout plus grand et si c’est trop ou peu
J’aurais tort tout le temps, si c’est ça que tu veux

Je veux bien tout donner, si seul’ment tu y crois
Mon cœur veut bien saigner, si seul’ment tu le vois
Jusqu’à n’être plus rien que l’ombre de tes nuits
Jusqu’à n’être plus rien qu’une ombre qui te suit

Et s’il fallait le faire

English Translation
And If It Had To Be Done

If it had to be done, I would stop the earth
I would turn off the light so that you stay asleep
If it had to be done to please you, raising opposite winds
In a desert without life, I would find the sea

And if it had to be done, I would stop the rain
It will turn around the rest of our lives
If it had to be done to please you, listening to you every night
When you speak of love, I would speak of it too

So you still look into the depth of my eyes
So you still see in there the biggest of the big fires
And so your hand clings to my skin where it wants to
If you fly away one day, I would follow if I could

And if it had to be done, I would repel the winter
With hard blows of springtime and long clear mornings
If it had to be done to please you, I would stop the time
So all your words of yesterday stay with me now

So I still look into the blue of your eyes
So your two hands still get lost in my hair
I will make everything bigger and if it’s too much or too little
I would be wrong all the time, if that’s what you want

I do want to give everything, if only you believe in it
My heart does want to bleed, if only you see it
Until being nothing more but the shadow of your nights
Until being nothing more but a shadow that follows you

And if it had to be done

~

I feel like a dork for admitting it but this is one of the few songs that can make me cry when I'm feeling a bit off. I wonder if Rosemary would like it too.

Anyway, just got back from this camp thing that the school counseller organised. It was nice, in a being tormented in the sun kind of way. I'm a groovy shade of chocolate right now though just on my forearms and face since I covered up everything else (damn mozzies). Still aching all over and refusing to leave my bed but there is homework to be done.

Surprisingly, I'm getting better at completing homework on time. Am also getting very fond of Chinese lessons and Math though less so about the sciences. Hopefully I can rev up and get decent projected marks for application to Uni. Stil haven't decided where to go and what to do though. D:

Things That Will Never Change....

2009-07-08T14:35:16Z

- The fact that people will always let you down.

- The horrendous beauty of Singlish.

- My addiction to seafood hor fun and chicken rice.

- How much I love my Dunman High friends. (You guys rock so hard. <3)

And in other news:
I'm back in S'pore! After 6 grueling months, I'm home! Everything is so much more vivid here. The sky is so blue, the trees are so green and the everything is so clear! It's like I've been walking around with a layer of dust on my specs for ages and finally wiped them clean. Gods, I love this place. I don't care if bubble gum is banned and that I have to get used to saying excuse me again, it's a relief to be back with people who are genuinely glad to see me. (The mosquito bites I could do without though. I've got one on my right arm and two on my legs already.)

Been catching up on everything since I got back on Saturday night. Dental appointments, eating sprees, visits to the Kwan Yin Temple, you name it, I've done it. After we went to the temple to pray, Mum left me and Victor to wander around OG's toy section as she went shopping. It was interesting to look at toys that kids play nowadays and how the others have changed/evolved. Polly Pocket is no longer as small as my thumbnail, she's now longer than my thumb! Barbie's face is different from what I remember and she's even got removable tattoos now. Even the boardgames have changed!

Which reminds me, don't forget to ask for Cluedo and maybe Risk before we go back to Shanghai. I want to get this book on the oligopoly of the oil industry in Russia too but I can only go book shopping when the National Day discounts start up. Ho hum.

Going to Cosfest with Ying Zhi on Saturday and I'm mega excited! This is going to be my first convention type event and I do hope it'll be awesome. I'm so jealous of the peeps who attend such events on a constant basis. Will try to take as many pics as possible for memories sake since I've got a memory like a sieve! *glees*

Firefly

2009-06-03T06:50:24Z

I only have 4 more days to revise for my exams. On the plus side, I've almost finished catching up on my HL Econs notes after about 2 days of frantic highlighting. On the down side, I still have to revise the Standard level part of the course which is going to be a right pain in the bum. On top of that I have yet to begin revision for Physics and Chemistry.

I wish this school didn't disallow the combination of Physics and Biology. I'm not fond of Chemistry but it was either Physics+Chem or Biology+Chem and I couldn't not do Physics. It's always been the science I was ~~told I was~~ good at, even if I don't plan on doing any engineering in university. Grah, just thinking of Uni gives me brain pain since I have no idea what to do at all. Anything to do with the sciences and Math doesn't interest me. I'm pretty fond of Econs though and the only thing I seem to do consistently well in is English so... yea, brain pain.

Speaking of English, I'm seriously thankful for the lack of revision needed for the languages. For English I'll just have to memorise a few Sylvia Plath and Stevie Smith poems and I'm set. Chinese is pretty much a dive-in subject. Nothing much I can do but remember the format for writing letters. And since the Math exam is on a Monday I'll have a weekend of revise for it so less pressure there. Still, to revise for two sciences in under a week...

Seems like I better get my arse off LJ from today onwards or I'll definitely fail my exams which is something I can't do. I've got to prove to that damned HOD that switching from HL Math to HL Econs was not a mistake.

Sorry if I can't reply to all your comments just yet youkofujima! I know we've got at least 8 ongoing threads right now but two weeks from now I shall be more than ready (and glad!) to do so!