... doggone it ...

With Lucky, he was one happy-go-lucky dog and often pestered his older half-brother Tiny to play with him. He was much more active and had more dog-like habits such as burying food that we gave him - even pieces of bread with kaya spread -_-; *me thinks half the treats we pass him have been buried in our garden somewhere* Perhaps that's why although he looks slightly larger (and taller) than Tiny, he is actually thinner *it's such a huge difference between when they're dry and when they're wet from a bath :p* and it was his mini-wolf-like appearance with long all-dark-brown *we've been told by many that it's a unique colour for dogs* fluffy-light-and-super-soft fur which made him look fearsome. During his teething stage, he even tried chewing the corners of furniture *we still have a square coffee table with 4 chewed corners which were cellophane-taped and disguised with black markers* and was not allowed in the house for sometime after that.

He would also take over from Tiny *who was perhaps too smart to bother* to do all the barking at strangers, often taking to climbing atop my mum's white Honda City *the first version, which is taller than the newer model* and standing there majestically so as to have a better view of things outside our gate. Despite our repeated scoldings and attempted training, he kept on doing so and we had to resort to finding thick covers to keep more scratches off the car. My mum would complain about him wanting to be Lion King, though I thought it was more like a lone wolf atop a cliff looking down at the plains :p

Lucky was one super athletic dog and could leap from the ground easily *sometimes using my mum's car again as a stepping stone* onto the near-shoulder-height wall dividing our house and our neighbour's despite his small stature *Tiny could jump over too, but only above the fence level*. That was partly the reason why our neighbours had to call us to 'catch' them back several times during that 'phase', though they stopped trespassing after a while. And he was apparently a natural swimmer - was told of a time when he somehow fell into the pond and paddled quite a bit before someone fished him out. Too bad I missed that...

Maybe because they were small, but they were both afraid of loud fireworks and the frequent thunder in a storm. They would press close to us then, forcing my sis and I to take one each in hand to keep them company. If we're out, they would find someplace to hide or sought to escape by finding higher ground, and we would come back to find them suddenly racing out to us from behind the house or under a bed in a dark room.

*aw*

When Lucky was about 3-4 years old *human terms*, he contracted a cold and passed away a few days later. From the time he came into our lives *when Tiny was approximately 3 years old* to the time he left us, he was a bundle of youth and joy :'(

And Tiny was alone once more.

... oversensitive ...

Maybe it's just me, maybe just unsure
maybe it's my perception or perhaps insecure
that often it seems as though those around
rarely give a care; a thought; a moment; a glance

friends they may seem, friends they are
best interests at heart, even when apart
unwavering support, given and taken
elusive, indifferent, avoided, forgotten

maybe it's nothing, maybe it's small
but minute splinters can undo all
though unknowingly done unintended harm
self-perceived wrong? self-inflicted scorn?

I try to forget, I try to let live
telling myself not to be oversensitive
distorted versions, hidden suspicions
parodies of the subsconscious, illusions of my mind

but maybe - just maybe - it isn't just me
isn't seeing and hearing things that weren't
hard to believe more often than not
those words, those actions - imagination?

didn't think of it, didn't mean that way
they always deserve the benefit of doubt
more readily in fact to distrust myself
misreading or drawing the meaning of nothing

am I wrong or I am at fault
overanalysed; overinferred; overdeducted; overreacted
though I don't keep silent when it affected others
but when it's just me, should I still say it?

that things can be different, from another's perspective
how often that they take others for granted
that sometimes their presumptions or their decisions
do not take others into consideration

be it duty or right, egoistic or selfish
or my arrogant belief in having my say
but they won't get it, would they understand
that sometimes it could be better, an alternative way?

often decided to showhand, settle once and for all
but maybe it can't be helped; maybe I can't be helped
still kept to myself - refusal in denial?
inadvertently hoping to dissipate with time

I longed to be open, to change the undercurrents
but I knew if I did, it'll just hurt others
I thought I had courage, to withstand the consequences
and despite that, still I held back

I chose to let go, and thought it was right
and yet I knew, it was cowardice inside
for it was me, and me only
who felt the pain, who understood it that way

over the years, again and again
I thought I had moved on, but it was the same
perhaps I was imagining, things were not as they seem
yet I fail to learn, still unduely concerned

I may be selfish, I may be cold
perhaps distancing myself, was the easier option out
but be it oversensitive or call it paranoid
I'll rather it be, the insensitive me

though my friends they appear not to be
for someone as undeserving as me
though I be inadequate and inconsiderate
their friend, I still am.


Note: This isn't current, just something I felt strongly about some time ago. Suddenly woke up this morning with that feeling inside me, and felt like blogging about it... only, these verses came out instead.

Post-note: Maybe it was the heavy rainy day / tired legs / the dream of a recurring theme I had last night / holiday mood... whatever.

Someplace Good

Eclectic Alternative - Robert Walt Vincent

Hope you're finally feeling better

Hope you're in a brighter space

Hope it wasn't hard to get there

You found peace and you feel safe

Good to know you finally made it

Out of the old neighbourhood

I know you love to travel

I know you love the stars

But did you just unravel

Half the way to Mars

I hope they're coming to your rescue

Like I said they always would

When they ask me, I let them take you

I hope they take you someplace good

Someplace good

Did you see this morning's paper?

Did you catch an early train?

Did you finally meet the maker?

Did you finally find loving?

Or did you simply end up

Exactly where you should

Sure hope this was your last stop

On the way to someplace good

Someplace good

First heard the melancholic opening tones in the original ending of To Catch The Uncatchable, the sadness of which was perfectly matched *the lyrics didn't though - perhaps the instrumental version would have fit better?* and it's been on my mind since re-watching the series. There's supposed to be an instrumental version on the same CD, and would love to hear what other songs are on it as well...
*can't seem to find it, does anyone know how? :(*


... rhythm 'n' keys.

... London walking ...

LS came down to town today, and wanted to visit the Tower Bridge. Met up at Bank tube station instead since District and Circle lines were closed. That was the beginning of our one-day-walkabout-London-tour... :) *pics are blurry as they were taken using my phone :(*

This was probably my first full day spent on going to the usual tourist sites since coming here. Started with the Bank of England and Mansion House, then walked down to Tower of London *bought a miniature cannon at the Tower Shop* and Tower Bridge. As there wasn't much after on that side of the river, we headed back up to St Paul's (passing Bank of England) and down again to look at the Tate Modern from afar, crossing the Thames at Blackfriars and following the riverside path from there.

...bank of england...

...cannons...

...quaint but expensive writing set...

...the smallest tea set I've ever seen (including those in the miniature shops)...

...st paul's...

There was a distinguished-looking gentleman playing the viola (or bass, not too sure) by himself at the riverside, and we sat down to enjoy the ambience *would have been perfect if there was a cup of hot chocolate / coffee in hand :p*. It was also the first time I see a street performer playing such atmosphericly apt music on an orchestral instrument rather than the usual guitars, the piece not being strictly classical but more from the romantic era. Think he enjoys playing there for the sake of the music and not for the money, as he maintained that practiced smile which often characterises a seasoned performer throughout *enough to be pleasant, but not putting undue strain on the facial muscles*.

...stormtroopers atop county hall...

...keiko look-alike...

*really want one of those! :(*

Sat down for a light/late lunch at the Filmcafe which was directly underneath the Waterloo Bridge (had lamb-n-mint sausages for the first time). Continued on along the riverside and passed the London Eye, seeing a lot of other street performers (more of the Covent Garden variety, but less pro :p) and even a colourful merry-go-round along the way *there was even a guy dressed up as Captain Jack Sparrow for people to take pictures with - rather convincingly with the mannerisms, I must say ^_^*. Incidentally, didn't know that the County Hall *having a Star Wars exhibition* and the London Aquarium *bought some dolphin figurines from the souvenir shop* were located on that side of the river. Crossed the Westminster Bridge to head over to Big Ben and the Parliament, and stopped by the Westminster Abbey *the souvenir shop was closed by then :(* before it started to get really dark.

...from across the thames...

...from the bridge...

Plodded on up along one side of St James' Park and through Trafalgar Square *bought 4 small prints of the London 'sights' at yet another souvenir shop* towards our final destination of the day - dinner at Chinatown. Didn't quite make it there as we decided on trying a chinese buffet and Mr Wu's at Leicester Square was the first one we came accross *sufficient to say even I can definitely cook better, though people don't go there for the taste*.

At the end of the day, I ended up buying more souvenirs than her :p though she was the supposed tourist - reason being that she needed to gauge her luggage allowance before buying more stuff. By the time I got back, my flat feet were threatening to buckle anytime after taking of my shoes *made the absolutely wrong decision of wearing heels >.<* and the little toe on my right had disowned me some hours earlier...

...'souvenirs'...

Yay, finally one productive day in my London *so-called* life ;)
*though I did spend more time in the shops than the actual buildings :p*



p/s: just had the news that my uncle passed away yesterday from a road accident. That makes 2 uncles gone since I've been here... :'(

... old friends ...

Met up with CY today who's in London for the weekend to visit her mom and sis. Haven't seen her in more than a year *I myself can't remember :p*, but I think she's taller ;) Could it be all that hardbread?

Come to think of it, this must be the month of seeing old school friends *is this a sign for not blogging about school days after being tagged earlier this month? -_-*. Already met up with 3 so far whom I haven't seen in ages... :) It's always nice to see them!
*oddly enough, I have a bag of wool in hand each time :s*

It's also getting colder - the onset of winter is hard to ignore when just washing a cup leaves your hands throbbing right after. Perhaps it's time to bring on the coats... overkill, no?

... selipnlg ...

Was first introduced to the concept back in school *though it wasn't part of the syllabus :p* by my chemistry teacher *Pn Chan! ;) *, and came across it again recently when someone forwarded me this...

The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid. Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

... interesting, no? :)

... woof ...

After Doggy,

then came Tiny

... but that's another story.

Introducing Jimmy 'n' Lucky!

...the greedy piglets...

Both Tiny's younger half-brothers, they were one half of a batch (my uncle's last batch) of 4 puppies consisting of 2 all-browns and 2 brown-n-whites. My sis chose a brown-n-white and named it Jimmy *think he was the second eldest and the best looking of the lot*. I chose an all-brown and named it Lucky *I know, I have no originality when coming up with names -_-; *.

They were newborns then, and were so tiny that we could bring them back home in a paper bag. And they were quite chubby, looking like minute cows-cum-piglets at times :p Jimmy appeared to be the smarter (and also noisier) of the two, and was the first to learn to 'sit' on a stool.

When they got bigger after a few weeks, we couldn't keep both as we already had Tiny and the general rule was that you can't have more than 2 dogs in a double-storey house. Though our dogs were small in size, we played it safe and Jimmy was given to our neighbour since they were looking for a dog too. Well, this way we can still see him...

But due to Jimmy's incessant yapping at night, our neighbour gave him to someone else in less than a week *if my memory serves me* and that person dropped Jimmy off at the SPCA soon thereafter :'( poor Jimmy!


p/s: Currently on my first long break (one week leave :p) since have to finish annual leave by end of the year and can't carry forward...

pp/s: They look bigger in the pic, but I could wrap my small hand around their bellies at that time...

... white shoes ...

Finally met up with DX today for lunch at Sakura ^_^

The food was quite good, and after that, we shopped around Oxford Street a bit. Perhaps I'm getting weaker, but I seem to be spending more these days though I'm not doing much. Bought a skirt *yes, can you believe it?* and worse, a pair of white shoes *how am I going to keep them clean?*... It was nice to be able to shop with a friend, and think it was her quoting her student discount which made me succumb so easily :p Now have to think of a way to actually wear them or buy more to match them...

Then again, if I only bought stuff which match my existing wardrobe, I'll never get anywhere -_-; well, at least they were on sale...

War of the Genders

Yes, I know >.<

I am super out.

This 100-half-an-hour-per-episode TVB series starring Carol "Dodo" Cheng and *aw* Dayo Wong Tze Wah was released back in 2000. It rose to great popularity *much deserved!* and I had always wanted to watch it since. What with my bad timing and worse luck - not having the chance to watch it when it premiered *since I wasn't (naturally) in Hong Kong :( *, my dad only renting video tapes released of period / costume dramas back then *apparently we can 'waste' 5 years or more to wait for the modern TVB ones to be shown on local everyday free tv :(( *, getting paid cable tv only after the show had made it's run on Astro *decades after everyone else had watched it :((( *, wrong time when it was finally shown on local tv * :(((( *, and even missing the re-runs on cable * :((((( *...

I finally watched it :p

It's amazing. Seriously, Dayo Wong is so talented and hilarious! His portrayal can make the most cheap character become extremely lovable, and even a cockcroach can be adorable *siu keong!*. He practically carried the entire show, though the supporting character of James deserves some mention as well. Now I finally understood what all the fuss and rave reviews were about back then. Very richly deserved, of course ;)

If the series was good, the stage drama was even better. Though the storyline wasn't comparable to the originality and wit of the series, the musical numbers and (more importantly) the comedy scenes do make up for it. Here's my favourite scene:

After watching Dayo here in War of the Genders *was sad when I found out he lost the best actor award to Bobby Au Yeung for that year* and in To Catch The Uncatchable *absolutely devastated when he didn't win the best actor award yet again, losing to Bowie from War and Beauty (of all people! of all shows! argh.... - at least, Bobby deserved his award)*, I certainly look forward to his shows and hope he acts in loads more!

Hm, that makes him third in my list of actors whose series I will definitely watch if there's so much of a mention of them in the credits :p

*come to think of it... MF, still can't come up with any actresses whose shows I'll definitely watch if they're in it - though Ada Choi comes close*

... prawns 'n' others ...

Had a few meals out yesterday - overspent so much...


Lunch was at this place called Miso Noodles Bar (or something similar) since we felt like having ramen. Ordered a bowl of seafood noodles with prawns, cuttlefish, mussels, and fishcakes, but there were no prawns when it came. So I asked a waitress if it was supposed to have prawns, she went to check with the kitchen, and came back to inform me that they (the prawns) are coming shortly. Later, a waiter placed a small bowl with nothing but 3 prawns on our table and that's it.

Without a word. Without a bit of soup for the prawns. Without even a mention of an apology throughout the entire thing.


Guess I won't be going back there anytime soon...


Dinner was at Thai Cuisine / Square to celebrate a friend's birthday and the food was great, with the exception of a papaya salad my friend ordered which didn't have anything that resembles papaya in it. Being me :p, I somehow always order spicy soup *my love affair with tom yam?* whenever I eat Thai food and this occasion was no exception. It was delicious (despite the fact I just had a huge pot of my very own attempt at tom yam soup which lasted me 3½ meals in the same week *yet I'm not tired of it*) and wasn't very spicy although it was labeled the hottest in the menu.

*sigh*


... can't afford to eat like this everyday :(

... puppy love ...

...Doggy...

The first truly family pet we had was Doggy *back then, we didn't know better and just accepted my mum's suggestion to name it Doggy as being 'original'*, an adorable black miniature pinscher puppy with really cute 'dog ears'. We bought it from my uncle who knew someone who breeds dogs. Though he was no pedigree, he was no mongrel either. Quite the active puppy indeed, and we used to play around with him a lot. We had just moved in to our house then and there were quite a few construction materials lying around. My sis and I would build a 4-walls cage-like structure for Doggy using leftover bricks, and Doggy would often insist on scattering the large pile of sand at the back of the garden. He was so small that we could carry him up and down easily, but we didn't do that often since we were unsure if it would hurt him. That was back when I was in primary 2.

Doggy had a few toys that used to be ours, which he liked to play with by running around the garden with the toys in his mouth. As his teeth grew, he would 'upgrade' by carrying a clog instead *one of those big heavy bright red wooden clogs* and running with it all around. It was quite a sight to see such a small dog happily running around with something twice his size and (probably) triple his weight in his tiny mouth.

But before long (when Doggy was 3 - 6 months old *the wide gap due to me remembering it was 3 months, my mum saying it was 6 months, my dad and sis can't remember -_-;*), we had to take him back to my uncle's for his jabs and he passed away within 3 days from something he contracted there.
:'(


Despite his brief time with us, Doggy was the most adorable dog we ever had as a family pet thus far.

*sigh*

... angkasawan ...

Malaysia's first man in space.

Another one for the patriotic spirit, the first Malaysian astronaut has set foot in the international space shuttle yesterday. At least, this project does warrant some merit - unlike most of the 'feats' in the Malaysian Book of Records *think biggest mooncake / sushi / yu sang /some-ridiculous-food-stuff-or-other / you-know-what-I-mean -_-;*. Though I personally do not see how this links back to oh beautiful motherland, it's still a great step / leap / zero-gravity-float for us. ^_^

And what were his first words?
"I feel good!" ... and in Russian, apparently. *-_-;;*


... still, Malaysia Boleh!

LOTR

The theatre production.


Just came back from my first ever musical in London. Though it's not one of the classics, it's worth watching for the set and costumes. Also, I am a huge fan of Tolkien's greatest work after all... ^_^

...the theatre...

...the tickets 'n' programme...

...the musical...

It was relatively ok, though a bit wasted potential. To avoid ranting too much here, I'll probably just list my points of the 3 best and 3 least favourite parts of the production in ranking order.

Best:

1. The stage/set *really cool, with adjustable multi-level sections!*
2. Gimli's song about the lost beauty of Moria
3. The scene where Gollum falls into the fires of Mount Doom in slow motion

.
.
.

Worst:

1. The degrading of Aragorn's character to a mere lover *even more than in the films :(*
2. Gandalf's irritatingly hasty speech
3. The cast ensemble's unsynchronised dancing/actions *so-so choreography*
   

Other than that, the costumes were commendable, particularly the orcs'. There were quite a few interactive parts such as the Shire folk taking up our seats when we went in before the start of the show *apparently in search of food* and the orcs' paying a surprise visit to the audience during the brief break between Act II and III *one woman even screamed so much at an orc that another orc came to join the first one which only made her scream more, for at least 5 minutes - it made a good laugh for the rest of us*. Supposed it was unavoidable that the roles of Arwen and Galadriel were build up since there are few female roles in the show, and those chosen could sing fairly well. I must say, was tricked by buying the programme - nearly the entire booklet was taken up by advertisements and non-LOTR related stuff except for a couple of centrefold pages - it's even less value for money than those sold at the international productions back home. There were more bits and pieces taken from the books in the musical - which was good - though those scenes were played too fast for the significance to settle in.

Overall, the Lord of the Rings trilogy films directed by Peter Jackson was better than the musical - it's one of those rare cases where films based on books were made well. But for me, the best will always be the original books by J.R.R Tolkien :) *even the name 'Tolkien' sounds fantasy-like*

... doggys ...

If I'm ever asked whether I'm a dog-person or a cat-person, guess what my answer would be? ^_^


Probably anyone who knows me is wondering how long will it be before I start blogging about dogs :p Back when I started this, I myself thought my only entries would be along the lines of:

long illogical rambling thoughts -> food -> random dog sightings -> long illogical rambling thoughts -> food -> random dog sightings -> ...

Quite surprised that it took me this long before any mention of even a tail :) Well, this is a start then...


It started with my dad - before I was born, he already had dogs for pets. Apparently, all were named 'doggy's *my dad doesn't talk much - my source's me mum, and she calls any dog 'doggy' -_-;*

Well, the first dog I possibly knew as a pet was Doggy, an all-white mid-sized fluffy-haired mongrel which was supposedly very smart. Too bad I was a newborn then and couldn't really get to know it. Think my dad had it since before I was born. According to sources, the dog was one really smart one. That time my parents were still living with my dad's-relatives and the house was situated near the dead-end of a narrow lane which starts from the middle of a market square. Even with the bustling people at the market, that dog would always know when my dad was coming back. It would start jumping and whining at the gate even before my dad turn the far corner, whether he was walking or driving the car. It was a good 10 minutes-before alert which let my mum know that my dad's on the way. And though my dad's family was large and all living under one roof, the dog was his.

*aw*

Probably the second pet dog I ever met was Doggy, yet another all-white slightly larger than the average mid-sized fluffy-haired mongrel. This one was a female. I remembered it used to always put both paws up on the grill which separates the indoors from out, wanting to play with the 2-3 years old toddler that was me back then. It left the impression of a tall white wolf, towering above me as I look at him through the grill. Looking back, I often wonder how it never gave me nightmares. My mum says I was scared into tears sometimes, but was quite happy otherwise. It was later given away to my dad's friend as there were too many male dogs of the neighbourhood hanging around the front gate.

*aw*

... my cuppa ...

Speaking of coffee...

Maybe it's just me, but coffee tends to have adverse-like effects on me. Yes, it is a good cure for my morning-after-night-of-not-enough-sleep or reading-too-much-too-long-too-dim headaches. Yes, it works well as a Monday morning caffeine fix. Yes, it tastes great (if brewed right).

But for some reason, I always feel sleepy and yawn frequently in the hours after a good strong cup of coffee. Really sleepy.

Approximately 5-6 hours after, my mind will be wide awake for about the next few hours *guess me kinda slow reaction :p*

It proved true again after yesterday's cup of mocha at 6pm- was yawning right after that and was thinking I can finally have a good night's sleep. But my landlord had visitors who arrived at 12pm *I mean, what kind of people visits other people at midnight?!*, so didn't get to fall asleep until about 3am. Hence this Mon morning was extra gloomy, and was tempted into having another cup of Starbucks (this time, latte) since I was teman-ing a friend. As a result, was really sleepy after that for the whole morning in class *it's not that the class was that boring - even harder to be sleepy when one's annoyed by one's tutor*. Even after a weighty lunch, I was super alert in the afternoon *though that can be mostly attributed to my annoyance for my tutor turning into official dislike >.<*

So, although I do like a good cup of strong coffee...

... I'm more of a TEA person :)
*it keeps me going longer too*

... cuts 'n' bleeds 2.0 ...

Yesterday noticed another 2 mini cuts, both less than 0.5mm apart in the middle of the middle finger. Yet again, no idea how they got there...

... that makes a total of 5 for last week alone :(

... starbucks ...

Met up with an old friend, LS, after a bit of shopping today *finally got out of my room :p*... She was in town, and we sat down for coffee and cake at Starbucks... Of course, chatted for a few hours at least ;) She's got her ACCA already and planning to apply for a job here. Do wish her the best of luck! Really hope she gets one *fingers crossed*

Speaking of Starbucks, I am not a frequent customer. They have this card scheme where you top up some money on the card and can supposedly use it at any Starbucks around the world. Wonder what happens if I top up in £ and try to spend it back home :p But since there's no real incentives or discounts, the card scheme doesn't sound very attractive *unless you're one of those people who gets all excited at having your own namecards and collect other such things*... They do have several designs and there was one which says 'London' with a picture of Big Ben and the Union Jack as background *the rest were quite boring in fact*...

...london starbucks...

Should make a good souvenir, no? :)

... cuts 'n' bleeds ...

3 new cuts on my hands for this week alone, 2 of which I only noticed when the blood's all dried up and which I have totally no idea how they came about. Though papercuts are high on my list of occupational hazards, none of the latest were...

Cut #1
0.5 cm deep cut on the right hand second knuckle, unknown origin
*unlikely to use my knuckles on paper?*
Cut #2
1.0 cm curved cut at the side of the left pinky, unknown origin
*it's curved - since when are papercuts curved?*
Cut #3
0.5 cm cut on the left index finger that looks like a papercut but is actually caused by a hole puncher
*one heavy duty puncher, I tell you*

Now, if I could only figure out when and where...


... careless me.