Psalm 13

How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and every day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?

Look on me and answer, O Lord my God.
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;
my enemy will say, " I have overcome him,"
and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

But I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
I will sing to the Lord,
for he has been good to me.

Lately..

Haven't had anything of note to blog about lately..Its the beginning of the finals this week,and for me, it'll all end on the 10th next month. After that I'd be hoping to start working. But getting a job isn't as simple as back home. Most require relevant experience plus referees. The first I have, but it comes to nothing here, cos all my previous experiences were in Msia. Sigh.. references I have none here. Others require food handling certs or coffee-making skills. Again, zilch. =( Actually shouldn't be thinking abt jobs now..

Yesterday's weather was absolutely awful. Thank goodness I didn't have any papers to sit for, allowing me the opp to lay in bed and marvel at the bad weather. There were gale-force winds, and pouring rain from the previous night all till afternoon. For the first time, it felt as if I was back in KL. Think thunderstorm, but without the thunder. So far over here I've only heard thunder twice. The other day, my housemate and I were getting a little excited over that crack of thunder. Proves you don't miss stuff till its gone, not that I really miss thunder or lightning. But sometimes, its only when things are not there, or opportunities gone by, that we start appreciating/valuing its worth.

Pensive I am, in the middle of the night. In less than 2 hours, it'll be the break of dawn. And here am I rambling about meaningless stuff. Yes, I know my thoughts are just meandering around the place. And there are better things to do with my time, all 24 hours of it a day. Like reading corporations law. And listening to nice music like 飞的理由.

oops got phone call.

end of post::

Some things about Melbourne..

1. So far I haven't seen any lizards around, as in those slithery creatures so commonly found back home.
2. The longkangs here all seem to be covered/hidden. Can't seem to spot any in open view. They don't have monsoons here, so its understandable why.
3. Garbage collection at my place is in the wee hours of the morning - 4 plus am usually. And its automatically collected via a truck (driven by someone obviously). You won't see a man clambering up and down the truck though. The council provides each property with bins, and occupants have to put it onto the edge of the road and remove it by a certain time (for aesthetic purposes) else they get fined.
4. Bus drivers here. An interesting bunch of people. They say a nice hello how're you when you get on, and actually thank you when you get off at your destination (almost all that I meet). Unlike those back in KL, they don't act as if the world owes them a living. They actually seem happy with their job..and the buses (mostly) are really punctual. When the schedule states 2.55pm it really arrives then. I know, there are no traffic jams here.

p/s - to anyone living in Melb now, I'm looking for a job for the summer. Any news of openings, pls let me know. thankQ!

What makes happiness?
Very simple.
1. Choose a warm, sunny day.
2. Take any tram heading to St Kilda Rd.
3. Get off at Domain Interchange.
4. Cross the road, clamber across the big lawn and pass the Shrine of Remembrance.
5. Royal Botanic Gardens. Voila! the beginnings of a happy moment.
6. Remember to grab a map of the gardens from the info booth (the garden's large). Make your way to the 2nd (bigger) lake.
7. Look for a bench facing the lake, near the tea rooms. (the best is the one beside the big ol' tree providing plenty of nice shade)
8. Enjoy an afternoon of gazing mindlessly at beautiful swans, ducks, seagulls etc plus lots of green stuff. Best enjoyed if you come prepared (with lunch/books to occupy yourself). I went armed with "Aus Financial Accounting" and really, it looks much more interesting in these surroundings.
9. A tip: go alone.

...

I read.
I think.
I sleep.
I watch.
Mundane-ness (if there's such a word) sigh...

In the middle of the night..

I start thinking.
Blogs are so self-centred. After all, most blogs begin life as an outlet of expression. Aka online journals, some people describe their daily going-ons in meticulous detail. Others express what they cannot voice out. Many more simply die a slow death from neglect and become abandoned and wrinkly (thats just me being dramatic with use of words le). A minority have become favourites with faithful followers, such as Screenshots (nuff said bout the recent controversy). But being online has its benefits. Readers are free to make choices as to what they want to view.

A simple look at PetalingStreet (composite of Msian blogs) will show any stranger that Malaysians are generally very serious about food. VERY indeed. Esp Msians overseas seem to be always craving for roti canai (plus about another 100 types of other roti!) and nasi lemak etc etc etc. So far in Melb I have thus resisted roti (there's one place at Swanston St just for your info) and really, I supposed Melburnians are considered fortunate since Msian food is readily available. I've actually tasted laksa (tastes fine, meaning fairly authentic) at Victoria Mkt, of all places..

There is the realization these days that my life here is what I make of it. There's a lot of joy to be found simply by "rayau-rayau" the streets of Melbourne. I'm so used to the freedom of having a car, but now am forced to rely on public transport to get around. The routes are convenient, but rather its the timing/ the people I meet on public transports which I dislike. In a short 3 months plus, I've encountered drunk people at all hours of the day, an "almost-fight" on a tram and other assorted abusive people (but not towards me luckily).

Last weekend, when I was about to return from the city, passed by Starbucks on Swanston (in front of Westin). There was a band getting ready to play just at the little space infront. So ended up we stayed for a short while and got to experience some good music. They started off with a jazz piece and moved on to some old classics. That, coupled with good weather and nice environment & company made for an enjoyable night. Plus, its free! heard that the band performs there on Fri and Sat during the early summer months..

Also had the opportunity to visit the RoyalBotanicGardens last weekend. Was planning on an idyllic day out of picnicking in the sun, but detour-ed into the Shrine of Remembrance just next door. Amazingly my sis had never visited either places before. So I played tour guide and official photographer. Any more trips there and I'm really going to qualify as one of their volunteer guides. =) But really, it is a grand, dignified building. Worth visiting.

I did get the chance to bum around the Gardens. Brought a book with me, but didn't really have time to read it. Strawberries! yumm... and coffee at the gardens! mmm... next time I'll go buy a picnic rug, so envious of those who came well prepared. Thing is, many people I know aren't even interested in spending time at places like these.. My opinion is, well its certainly safer here than back in PJ. Previously back home, when a few of us wanted to have a bbq, there were so many security considerations (ie whats the chances of getting robbed at a public beach/park/garden..i'm serious)

These days I have 2 large piles of readings at home.
1st pile goes: The New Asian House, The Villas of Palladio, Anthony Robbin's Unleash the Power Within, The Enigmas of Anger: Essays on a Sometimes Deadly Sin, Twentieth-Century Architecture, and my 3/4 completed "The DaVinci Code".........

2nd pile: Corporations Law, Corporations Law, Corporations Law (hey its not my fault the authors' all chose the same title for their books), Aus Financial Accounting, Law in Commerce, Company Reporting, Financial Institutions etc............

By far I prefer the first pile. But now is time to make some sacrifices and FOCUS! which actually explains my rambling post now, cos I am currently "out-of-focus" (?)

I love reading, I really do. But I love dabbling (as in interest in) so many other things ie photography, art, politics, current affairs. I read somewhere, that by dabbling in so many different things, one ends up not knowing much about anything, which is true.

The more I know, the more I realise I don't know.

To do, or not to?

People always have the belief that one is only one, and our actions are too small, incapable of changing anything. Below is what Mahatma Ghandi had to say:

You have to do the right thing. It may not be in your power;
maybe not in your time, that there'll be any fruit.
But that doesn't mean you stop doing the right thing.
You may never know what results come from your action.
But if you do nothing, there will be no result...

Happy me!

Found genmaicha tea leaves today. Hmm but it tastes a lil' different though..?

跌倒了

我跌倒了。。
工好多哦。。
时间可不多了。。

Surreal

"Ave Maria" at a chinese restaurant.
A bemused me.