Explosions In The Sky...spreading the blast!

I've been listening to Explosions In The Sky for almost a week now...(thanks to Tung) and seriously, the music is generally contemplative. It can make you reflect on what has happened and feel shallow at the same time. It's the product of an unpredictable life, one that has its ups and downs more than anyone of us could handle.

Recommended albums:

The Rescue (2005)
















This album, in general, is calming to the senses and soothing to the ears. I would especially recommend Day 1, Day 2, Day 5, Day 6 & Day 7 as the music is more harmonised in those tracks. The drum beats aren't as jarring as the ones in metal and hard rock...in fact, it blends very well with the music.
A good download!

The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place (2003)
















The cover of this record does not appeal to most, especially the choice of colours. But what astounds me is the meaning behind the cover...the almost endless repetition of the phrase 'The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place' in black with the artiste's name in RED. This explains the contrast of colours, hence the name of this album.

All songs, except the last track are interrelated as one track continues from the previous. It sort of explains a story within another.
The music here is more intense, too, as EiTS tries to capture the storyline within the tracks.
A good album for those who would like something out of the ordinary. ;)

You can download the tracks here....although not all tracks from The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place can be obtained there. Just click on Albums and select the album you like! ;)

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I could only provide a general review of this so as not to interfere with my friend's, and I think I'd better run before I get sued....:P

Status Change

From this post onwards, I will only post general raves and opinions here.

This is because Blogger is a bit too transparent and prone to vulnerabilities...I could even find my blog in Google search!
Heck...

I would post more personal stuff in LJ.

I'm not going to make it friends only now, so you can read all posts until I'm evil enough to restrict access to them. ;)

Whee!

Being appreciated...for once!

~Here!~

P.S.: I miss you, too....teehee! ;)

Seriously, I didn't know Malaysian Studies can be very dramatic... (insert sarcasm here)

Well, there has been a misunderstanding going on during the Merdeka project...and there's a link for it.

(Click HERE !)

Loneliness can really drive you crazy.

This is really true, especially if you're one of the top ranked seniors or you're really intelligent person. Or it's just because you like to be alone.

Mine's in Case 3.

Although everyone likes to be on their own at times, but if they don't have someone to speak to for some time, they will end up being called...'weird'. As in the literal meaning.
And they'll end up speaking alone...to themselves. Oh me.

I'm getting into that level already...

Someone stop me before I go reiterating myself again!!

P.S.: Something about self-image & personality...check this out!

Progress test was...horror. And what can I do with it? ;)

Here's what I felt about it (it's a bit personal.. if it hurts you, DON'T READ ON. You are forewarned.)

P3 - 6/8/2006
OMG..this is reiteration of the past.
Not being able to finish all questions..and lost 9 marks for leaving out one portion out of 1 question. And that's the easiest question of all!

Man..it's Prinsip Akaun all over again.

p4 - 7/8/2006
This one isn't as bad as I thought it would be...I thought I would fail, not reading it until a few days before exam.
Actually, I felt RELIEVED after the paper has been done.
I'll just see how results will be.

P5 - 8/8/2006 (just now)
Alamak...this is the worst of all papers.
7 marks confirmed gone...and I had to write a serious lot. It was about 10 pages, all in all.
And my hands were numb right after time's up.

My paper's a lot of rubbish too.

See? It isn't that good, right? ;)

Which Pocky flavour are you?

what flavor pocky are you?

[c] sugardew

Haha...too random to be true!

Of all things...

Okay, heck, I haven't recovered from last night. What a day...

My father and I were watching TV last night near my grandma's home...the TV was blaring loud (blame the plasma TV for that). Grandma went upstairs to rest..but then she heard a loud, glass-splintering noise. But then she thought it was just some normal stuff and it belonged to others, so she let it off.

Around 1/2 hour later, as we were starting to drive home, I was shocked to see Dad's car window smashed to pieces (the rear left window, passenger seat). And there were pieces of glass everywhere: at the pavements and the whole back seat. Dad decided to drive home..as we thought Mom will be at home by then. During the whole journey, the glass kept breaking...splattered across the road and in the car...and I was scared, panicky and stuff (not as exaggerated, but yeah). Dad's computer bag (with the laptop and main working files) was gone, my two bags containing college stuff and music theory books were gone too. I assume they took every single bag available...haihz. But then the EPF and SOCSO documents were saved..phew.

Then Dad decided to drive back to Grandma's and as all hell broke loose, we reached there in reasonable time. Called Grandma to look for the bags at the playground opposite...but to no avail. Grandma called the guards and told them of the incident and asked them to find my two bags...as they know the computer bag will definitely be gone. I knew they would not find mine, too...as there were files in them. Important ones.

Well, as expected, when the guards came back a while later, they said that they couldn't find the two bags. Fine. We asked the guards to hand it to Grandma once they had found the bags.

We went home to tell Mom about the whole incident. As usual, the shell-shocked Mom was jerked awake when we told her about it. Luckily I survived with my purse and handphone intact, lol.

Moral of the story:
Don't even expose your bags and precious belongings...even the thieves would check at the bottom of your car! Place it at the car boot or something...at least somewhere protected and cannot be obviously seen by the public.

EDIT: I can't use my comp for a few days...Dad's using it for temporary storage of his work. I can only get online in college...or anywhere else that has an Internet connection. Haha.

Haha...C&C!!

Tracklist:
01. This Is Love
02. Keep Tryin'
03. BLUE
04. 日曜の朝 (Nichiyo no Asa)
05. Making Love
06. 誰かの願いが叶うころ (Dareka no Negai ga Kanaukoro)
07. COLORS
08. One Night Magic feat. Yamada Masashi
09. 海路 (Kairo)
10. WINGS
11. Be My Last
12. Eclipse (Interlude)
13. Passion

(Credits to chemun from CPop for image and tracklist)

Haha...wanted to upload this for some time, so here it goes...

Utada Hikaru (more affectionately known as Hikki) has made big waves in Japan...with hits sucs as 'First Love', 'Travelling', 'Sakura Drops' and 'Tokyo Nights'. She has also released an English album, 'Exodus', which had one of its songs topping up the charts ('Devil Inside').

After a long hiatus, she has finally released the album that all her fans have been waiting for: Ultra Blue!

C&C: (Take your opinion on this, this is just from my perspective)

This Is Love - This song is, by far, the best of all the new songs in this album. The repetitive beats of this song gives it some attraction, but mainly the singing style of Hikki just blends with the music very well. Enough said.

BLUE - As the main theme of the album, this song lives up to its billing. The beginning of the song has the feel matching to the title...but very contemplative at the end.

Nichiyo no Asa (日曜の朝) - This song is groovy on its own, and soothing in a way (as the high pitches aren't that high)....and the lyrics are quite narrative (well, this is only at a glance..so I can't really say much). One word: pleasant.

Making Love - Not bad...voices aren't bad, and matches with the song. Not much to say about this song, btw...

One Night Magic feat. Yamada Masashi - This is the only song that I won't be satisfied with...other then the line 'oto, oto oto o...', the whole song was a bit of a drab. This pairing isn't as good as it gets, I guess...

海路 (Kairo) - Not bad, I guess...can't say much. It has the same style as 'Passion', just a little more laid back.

WINGS - This is another song that I particularly liked from the album...especially in the first 20 seconds of it. The mood is a little inspirational, too.

Eclipse (Interlude) - This tune is considered okay just to pass the time...not bad, actually!

There are some songs that were released before this album...the meaningful 'Keep Trying', the melodious 'COLORS', 'Dareka no Negai ga Kanaukoro', the contemplative 'Be My Last' and 'Passion', the theme song for Kingdom Hearts II. Check out the English version of 'Passion', 'Sanctuary' too...and feel the differences.

Overall, although some songs weren't as good as it is, it's worth the download or purchase. Get it from the nearest record shop to you...or, to be more precise, any record shop that sells this album. :P

Rating: 7.5 / 1o

Satisfaction and Happiness....not in my dictionary.

It's sad, right?
For a person like me, being intelligent, you would be thinking that I had a good school life, have best friends and such...but first impressions will always give you the opposite of who a person actually is.

For 11 years (plus this year too), I haven't been connected fully with another person..from the same school and tuition class. It feels like you're distant from everyone else...you feel lonely among a sea of so-called friends. Living far from them doesn't help much either.

And some of the 'friends' gave me a false meaning of friendship...well, it seems that they'll be nice when they meet you but will stab behind your back. I'm always aware of it...I've been into that trap many times.

But for some reason, you can't help it...in the process of making friends, you would to be in the crowd, without changing your own personality and life. You want to be a part of them.

I just came back from Anugerah Cemerlang in my school...and it re-ignited my saddest days. I was mainly there to catch up with friends whom I haven't met for quite some time...not to mention almost plunging into trouble again! Most of all, even though I caught up with Deborah, I just couldn't find that connection...the connection that makes you feel secure, happy and satisfied.

And I need to get back to the office after a few days...to collect my certificate! It seems that my class was typed wrongly...even the teachers thought I was in 5 Alpha! Haihz...

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On another note, I received a plaque and a book voucher worth RM25.00...for getting the best subject award. I decided to hand the voucher to Mom, it's more to her needs than mine...;)

Call me heartless. Call me bitch. Or anything else you want.

Wait 'til you hear the reason for this...

If you're curious enough, welcome. If not, seriously, BACK OFF!

"It was an early Saturday morning ....as usual, attending lessons...crappy ones. It came from:

1. Piano practical: Scales - not enough, pieces - not passable. Great. That's what you get for doing things at the eleventh hour.

2. After piano: Thought we were heading for Bangsar...but then "she" decided to head home."

Okay, that was fine....until this:

3. At home: Washing machine's gone bonkers. Dad was busy attending to clients on the phone...the 'machine' (as it was not functioning as it should) just stopped. Only 27 minutes remaining. "she" lectured at him...resulting in a tantrum between both people. Then, heck, "she" went screaming at him...until the whole house went off the hook (chak nguk). To make it even worse, the clothes weren't spinning, just water flowing out...it made Dad very angry and just gave up. In the end, I helped to look after it and gave an idea to solve the problem...but Mom just won't accept. (Great - "she"'s making all the decisions in the house.) In fact, the machine's gone rosak since about a year ago...and it has not been sent for repairs. Tension 1.

4. Tension 2: At BSC (Bangsar Shopping Centre) - I was going for facial treatment (yeah, it's been TOO long since I've done something good to it) at LD...it was the second treatment in a 7 week progamme. Just when we were about to go up, I wanted to get a book up (yup, I'm extremely bored without it) but "she" just doesn't want. Even though I seriously pleaded and coaxed and obliged her for a few more times (I needed to catch up on my reading, actually), "she" just simply said "NO, otherwise you don't go!" I was fuming mad...until I don't even want to care. "She" even asked me about where was the place...and "she" has been there just last week. Damn "her". So I didn't care and told "her", "Well, if you can, just follow me...it's at the other side of the centre." I walked as brisk as possible with the intention of "her" not being able to follow me. I didn't even want to talk to her. A bit later, I tried to get the situation not as tense...but it's still as it is. DKDC.

5. At home: It was night time...and "she", oh well, the usual. It wasn't so bad until "she" suddenly switched off the TV when we were enjoying a World Cup match (it was Germany vs Sweden that time). Not only that, "she" even pulled off the plug despite Dad's pleas to watch the second half of the match. And "she" even dared to call me to sleep when I was happily being online.

Hello?

World Cup's only being held once in every four years...it's a massive tournament, not to mention watching GREAT football. Just allow us to have at least one whole match every night, can you?

Well, I'm defying "her" orders...just have to.

The "she" and "her" refers to the same person...Mom. I really hate her, until to the state of loathing...not only she controls everything from head to toe, she expects everyone to tend to her tender mercies...thus earning the nickname "Empress of The House". Dad & I can't withstand her, really, as she spends money like running water...sometimes makes me think whether I should trust her when it comes to saving money...as she promised at the beginning of the year.

I'm not a control freak, btw, I just need some breathing space and a chance to voice out my opinions. In fact, she's the main reason for the stress that I have...everything's jolly when she isn't here. But then again, since she has made so much for the house, I still have to go with the flow, lol.

I just hope there is light at the end of the tunnel.

The house just needs CHANGE.

BGM: Jolin Tsai - Wu Niang

Mnemonics.

STRICT DISCIPLINE

Sleeping while on duty

Threatening co-workers

Refusing to perform assigned duties

Intoxication

Conviction of criminal offence

Tarnishing of company image


Disobedience

Infraction of company policies

Safety procedures ignored

Carrying out illegal / immoral activities in company premises

Irregular attendance

Poor performance

Lying

Improper behaviour

Negative attitude

Embezzlement

Nip it from the textbooks. ;)

Boredom starts...now.

Have the chance to see friends again...it's during the Hari Anugerah Cemerlang PTK (Kasturi) for SPM 2005 scorers. I don't know, it's been some time..and I'm just too lonely to be true :( Too bad it's in the middle of June!

Oh yeah, I've forgotten to mention what CBE was..it's the Computer Based Examinations. ACCA is one of the very few providers who offer this.. it's actually doing exams through the computer. Luckily my questions were all in MCQs, so it's easier to answer.
However, it's a bit scary, doing it on a platform where you usually relax...

Results are already out, btw...

P1: 96% (one of the Group 6 people got 100%..:( )
P2: 82%

Comments:
P1 was okay, it was like reiterating Datin Khoo's stuff all the time..except VAT. But in whole, I'm satisfied. :)
P2..haihz, lower than I expected. The theory portion was okay, some I.T. and management & cost accounting questions... but the thing that made me sad was the calculations. They were quite difficult..everyone said it was tough. One of my questions was finding ROI (return on investment) when asset turnover and net profit margin is given. And they tested me on ratios..capacity, activity and efficiency ratios. Only had the time to check once. NOT GOOD.

Feeling like a wreck now...hate the outbreaks on my face. :( And some other stuff too.

NOTE: student accountant is the BEST magazine ever. Seriously.

'If you haven't experienced success in your mind, you're unlikely to experience it in reality.'

Heck.

I had my nightmare coming true yesterday.
It seems like history is repeating itself all over again.

During class, seeing Pui Ling stuck (erm, sorry, I couldn't explain it better than this) to one of my (considered) great friends made me disturbed. Mentally. My head just blew up all of a sudden..and I waited until about break time before I could have some space. By then, it went like a blubber and luckily managed to calm down.
When they came back, well, they were still to each other again and I was the one left behind. That had my tears falling.
What's worse, they didn't invite me to join them during their lunch break! :(

This incident reminded me of my school days (yes, primary and secondary school times that I mostly wanted to forget). My friends ostracized (is this right?) me during those times..just because they felt I'm a little queer. Hey, even weird people have a heart, mind and soul, OKAY?

Wye Ee's started coll yesterday, and I wonder how my best friends are coping with theirs right now...

And I can only get an outing after May 27...

-shen-

Of logic bombs, lucky accidents and...

Okay, let's just get real.

My body just ticked off a logic bomb this morning. Once anyone talks about my piano class this week, my body just heats up madly fast and I'll just go flat. With a high fever. I needed a mantra and some good rest to get out of this...so for now, don't talk about my piano class..maybe until tomorrow.

On the way to college, my father and I were stuck in a traffic crawl near the LDP PJ toll plaza. As we were nearing the toll, my father bumped onto the car in front and suffered a huge impact. It was so loud, I thought it would be a major accident or something..but then my father treated it like normal. We then approached the car in front after the toll..realised that the lady's car isn't affected, thank goodness! And dad's car just went a little bit 'kemek' at the front, so no worries! My dad needed to hurry for Port Klang, btw..:P

Hmm, there's an article that I went through..and found the heading quite interesting:

You Sank My Tourist Attraction!

But then, this is mostly about U.S. stuff..(EDIT: This is only available to WSJ subscribers, so sorry if you can't get through!)

If you wanna get something nearer to home, maybe this would work:

Teachers in a blog spot

Who said students can't flame teachers? :P

-shen-

Updates!!

Well, as you can see, a new look! ;)
Realised the old one took too long...and was getting bored with it..so, haha!

PT2's postponed to next week, thank God..more time to revise and practise, practise, practise!! :P
But then Mock Exam's coming too soon..it's the week after that..
Plus actual exam's only in less than a month!!
ARGH!!

Just received the letter from my matrix college..and realised that wasn't the place for me. Hostels, the rules...and experiences from others told me so.
But I've decided, so no fuss already!! ;)

Gonna check out results on Monday..wish me luck!

See ya soon! Will come back for more!! :)

-shen-

Care for...

..a heavy mayday?

My brain's wrecking havoc on me. Progress test results not that outstanding...give me a reality check...or a gin? :P

P1: Haihz. Have more mistakes than I expect, and that's just one too many. 7 mistakes, considered very bad in accuracy :( Highest: 3 mistakes. Argh...:P

P2: Ms. Yu told us that this was quite a difficult paper, so I didn't mind. What had me surprised..and shocked, too... was the fact that I had 2 careless, avoidable mistakes that I shouldn't have done. WTF.. but then I've settled quite satisfactory. ;)

School library comp lab had some problems in accessing unusual URLs. And the speed is not fast enough. Sigh.

Done the CBEs, gave me a hard time...:(

Update more later!!

-shen-

Tired. And Lost.

I don't know what has happened to me. Again.

I felt lost, nobody to chat with, and I have a feeling that I'm about to drown soon. BTW, it goes like this:

- Up in a total miscommunication, I was given the wrong info about the Parents-Lecturers' Meeting. It was supposed to be for January intake people only. Ugh.

- Lost between two movies; The Best Game Ever Played and Just Like Heaven. Haihz..I didn't get to watch the whole of both of them!

- I feel distant between myself and my friends. Those that I chatted with today seemed to be away almost all the time.. maybe catch up next time. Haihz. And the others are not online when I need them!

- And I have to blog in secret today. Parents do not allow me here, actually...:(

On a brighter note, I will get to know my scholarship results next week. OMG..WHAT TO DO??!!

Oh me, oh my, NOT AGAIN!!

There's a change of classrooms again.
First, it's Room 3.7, then Room 3.3..and now? Room 402.
How many times do we have to change?

On the other hand, I've just received a call from Student Services Department for an interview for one of the scholarships I applied: the NST-MAPCU Scholarship. It's on this Thursday, at 3.30 p.m.
I'm looking forward to it, but I've just dented my real chance of getting it..by speaking rudely (on my standards) on the phone when they called. I hope they don't mind that..

Somebody just whack me. Seriously.

EDIT: Changed a bit for accuracy purposes..I'm a wee bit unconscious, am I? :P

Wobble, Wobble Merry-go-round

Imagine yourself in a pathway where the corridors are covered in mud, walls made of grass and tree-climbers and the sky is pitch black. You are in the middle of a fork, not knowing which path leads to which way. Wondering whether you'll return safe and sound or move on to you-know-where and never come back, you keep walking aimlessly. You feel like quitting after many attempts, dejected and such; but then you've reached the light at the end of pathway before you realised it.

That's how I felt in the middle of the day.

Mei Xian miss-called me to look for her, but when I replied, she said she was eating. She then asked me to look for her at the financial counter, but then I couldn't see her. Met another friend along the way, asking for directions, but instead being my victim by joining me in a mad rush. Feeling VERY guilty for that :( Called Mei Xian again, told her I was waiting at the foyer..and after a while, I saw her walking towards it. Ima..

She then showed me that the financial counter was up at the stairs near the entrance of Monash...being where I was just now. Eep. Mei Xian helped me to ask for PTPTN (well, it's a study loan...the one highlighted in the mass media a few years ago), but the people asked us to head for the Student Admin Department. Okay...so, ran along the corridors with a few minutes to spare to the first floor..only to be told the officer-in-charge was on leave. Sigh..

With my friend and Mei Xian tagging along, we went finding Room 402 at the Sunway block. Heck, running up the staircase wasn't enough; we had to scurry under the hot, sweltering sun..at almost the whole floor!! Asking the cleaner wasn't of much help too!! When we were there, I knocked on the door...only to find another group of students with their teacher there.

"You're late for class!!"
"CAT's at Room 3.7, Monash Block!!"

Argh...so we ran again, this time to the library. (Mei Xian has left by now.) The receptionist allowed us in with our bags, showing us the shortcut to Monash Block. Again, ran to the Discussion Area, found an emergency exit...locked.

Yup, yup, one disappointment after another...

So..ran out from the library, gave thanks to the receptionist...and ran all the way down to the first floor, and to the other block. Fortunately, we didn't have to wait long for the elevator..when it came, we went in with some others..and crammed ourselves up to the 3rd. floor.

Over there, we could only see rooms 3.1 and 3.2....made us even more worried and panicky..and even got stuck whether to head left or right. Halfway through, we realised we were at the wrong side of the block...and ran again. This time, we discovered a glass door, the entrance to most classrooms...and found it in the flick of an eye + a few steps.

The lecturer wasn't there yet..so we weren't late!! Yay!!

Just had a brawl with my parents...it's my constant nagging and pining again...but everything's cooled down (for now).

Now what??

There's a photo session tomorrow, and I don't know what to wear...

-shen-

BGM: 5566 - Easy Come, Easy Go