Baubles and Bubbles

So Christmas was over yesterday! It didn't feel very Christmas-sy to me though, even though I went for a Christmas party at Jess' awesome house on Christmas Eve and went for my church's Christmas play on Christmas Day.

I'd love to have a white Christmas elsewhere (it's really impossible for it to snow in S'pore here even though it snowed in Thailand and Vietnam), with family and friends in a lovely wooden lodgehouse sitting by the fireplace with a brightly lit Christmas tree (Haven't had one since primary school) and all sorts of lovely Christmas food.

That's the classic, and way way way better than spending every Christmas either staying home alone watching the movies or waiting to be asked out by friends. So this year was slightly better because I went to a party (I can't even remember how I spent last Christmas)

 

Dawn, Wenli, Lynn and I went to Jess' house for her party and I loved the ambience and atmosphere there! Jess and her family are really great hosts and I felt really comfortable! Plus the food was awesome - there was ham, turkey, angel-hair pasta, vegetable salad, oxtail stew (didn't dare to try it haha), potato salad and a lot more.

 

"In this household, you're not allowed to be shy - just eat okay?" Jess' mom wagged her finger at the dinner table after Jess' introduced Dawn and myself.

"Yeah, at least 5 rounds okay!" her dad chimed in. Haha I really like her folks :)

 

Jess' mom offered me a glass of white wine which was really nice of her. I was supposed to share it with Dawn but Dawn didn't like it so I finished it and turned quite red - I didn't know I was red until Boston commented about it and fetched me a cup of water to cool myself down (such a gentleman LOL) Trust me I wasn't drunk and it isn't the first time I drank alcohol - it's just that I turn red really easily.

 

I chatted with Boston and Wen Rui (made a new acquaintance!) about family and animals - we were laughing about Boston having owned a mini aquarium before with a pufferfish, eels, soft-shelled turtles and arowanas, and how Skippy caused the deaths of my hamsters and terrapins before. Then the five of us A15 girls played a few rounds of bridge with Baileys' before Dawn and I left since we live in the north/northwest.

 

My sister Stacey's boyfriend just returned from London (work) to spend Christmas and New Year's, and he got Christmas presents for my family! (plus point for future brother-in-law) I love what he got for me - a pair of brown shoes:

 

 

He got it a few sizes too big though - it's a size 41 and I'm a size 39 so I've to wear some really thick socks and tie the laces tight. But thanks Justin!!:D

 

My dad just got me a new phone (both my sisters agreed to pay some for me haha) and a new plan!!! Haha it's a white iPhone 5c :DDD Stacey was grumbling why I didn't get another colour since the 5c line is kinda popular for it's colours. But they only had white, blue and green left. I would've gotten yellow if they had it. With this I DON'T FEEL SO AWKWARD ANYMORE haha my iPhone 3 was really slow and laggy, and it's really inconvenient without a data plan, so thanks a lot :D

 

Sigh New Year's coming really soon and then THE STRESSFUL J2 YEAR! -cries- pls let me survive through to this time next year!

 

Here's ending with a song that's been stuck in my head - Gravity by Sara Bareilles covered by Alex and Sierra who won the X Factor!:D

 

To Let Go

 

 

Letting go is such a hard thing to do even though it means to release some of the load on our hands.

We've been so accustomed to the weight that letting go leaves a void in us. We hate to lose. It doesn't get any better after we let go too.

 

We only appreciate something after it's gone. Light when it's burning low, sun when it starts to snow, know we've been feeling high when we're feeling low, hate the road when we're missing home.

 

But if we choose not to focus on what we've lost, and still be thankful for what we still have, it doesn't feel all that bad after all.

 

Easier said than done.

 

I'm starting to let go more and more of my past. I'm not going back. Not ever. Things I've started and been through and ended I will not touch again, and even things I've always lacked the courage to start I will push off and move on. I will go where the currents take me and hopefully it will carry my body back to shore.

 

I will miss the good times, reminiscing. I will walk on bravely and try my best not to wonder what it would've been if I had been braver, or to be sad knowing the corridors I will pass won't be the same again even if it's the same place.

 

If I drop more and more, I can't imagine how light and carefree I'd be. Maybe that would be freedom. It is absurd how so many people crave freedom when their idea of freedom is escape from a fate they dislike and to a fate they want to share with the people they want to be with. How can that be called freedom when you are still bound by ties? You can't run away to pure freedom. Trying to run away only means you're still bound.

 

 

Freedom comes when you let go. Maybe it isn't freedom gained for you, but it's freedom given to others. Release that tight grip, and send it off on its way.

 





Say Something

Say Something

by A Great Big World feat. Christina Aguilera

 

Say something, I'm giving up on you
I'll be the one, if you want me to
Anywhere, I would've followed you
Say something, I'm giving up on you

And I am feeling so small
It was over my head
I know nothing at all

And I will stumble and fall
I'm still learning to love
Just starting to crawl

Say something, I'm giving up on you
I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you
Anywhere, I would've followed you
Say something, I'm giving up on you

And I will swallow my pride
You're the one that I love
And I'm saying goodbye

Say something, I'm giving up on you
And I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you
And anywhere, I would've followed you

Say something, I'm giving up on you

Say something, I'm giving up on you
Say something

Meh! Days

 

Here's showing you how very boringly bizarre my life is now (time for some photo art appreciation and commentary -_-):

 

This picture has sepia tones to it, so that the whole image exudes a sense of dreariness, or to put it in the Singaporean Singlish way, "very sian ah". However the picture isn't ordinary at all - it shows the Eiffel Tower sprouting metallic extensions from its pinnacle that goes in all directions, warping and twisting this way and that, up and down, far and wide - almost uncontrollably. Feelings of chaos leave you confused and somehow amazed.

 

YUP THIS IS HOW IT IS NOW.

 

Really, after coming back from Korea I feel so meh. I really wanna go back to that fairytale land. BRING ME BACK THEREEEEE.

 

For the remainder of the hols I've to study for next year, especially Econs since I've to take the Reassessment paper (dammit!).

 

So aside from reading notes these days I've also been playing Sims 3, which is pretty fun! It would've been better if it didn't hang or lag so frequently (but i can't complain cos' Stacey my sis downloaded it for me in PC so it isn't original I guess.)

 

My taobao bags have also arrived! This time I ordered them through the Taobao SG website and I must say even though the service is great, it cost more. I got myself a new school bag:

 



Lol I'm too lazy to snap an actual photo of my bag. And I got a bag for Dawn as a birthday + Christmas present. I realise almost every year I change my school bag hahahaha

Speaking of Christmas, I HAVE STUFF THAT I WANNA BUY OR GET (yes, some kind soul get it for me please :D)

In Korea, during the short shopping duration we were given at Myeongdong in Seoul, some of my pals and I stopped by a shop called 'Too Cool For School' the last 2 mins before we were to dash back to the meeting point and board our bus. I fell in love with the brand in just that short while.

Before running off I sprayed a cute cyan tester perfume on my wrist, and got attached to the smell when I settled on the bus and sniffed my wrist again. BUT I DIDN'T GET TO BUY IT -cries-.

 

ISN'T IT CUTE. I like the smell because it smells different, pretty ambiguous and quirky. Apparently there's one Too Cool For School shop in Singapore at Far East Plaza, but it sells for 70 bucks for 50ml (Yeap I went there ytd sobs) Mom says I should wait for Stacey's friend to go to Korea this month and help me buy it if the price is indeed cheaper there (I'm pretty sure it is). Yup Mom and I are bargain hunters, so 70 bucks for 50ml must be deliberated on heheh.

 

 

Lately also one of my secondary school classmates from sec 1 and 2 smsed asking how I was, which is a surprise cos' we haven't communicated since we first got into our respective JCs. After some catching up, we agreed to go study together some time next week and do some more catching up! I feel kinda happy that I've friends who still think of me now and then and who bother asking how I am, because in the past I wasn't very nice to this guy. Oh wells it's all in the past and I should look forward :)

 



Also on Facebook, I saw pictures of my seniors' prom night. Somewhere this time next year I'll be having my own prom too, but not after I complete my A Levels WHICH I AM FREAKING SCARED OF. My seniors all look awesome, and I'll miss them so - I'll be a senior myself next year, which I'm not really looking forward to ): I'm afraid of being a horrible senior.

Anws, ending off with some random gif I found on Stumbleupon.com (Try it it's really cool)

Korea - A Fairytale Land

So I just got back home in Singapore at 6.00AM this morning from South Korea!

IT. WAS. AWESOME.

 

During my 8D7N stay in S. Korea, I felt so at home with my surroundings, and everything was almost perfect - even the public toilets!

 

I set off for Korea with aims to capture everything in my lil camera, but my fast-dying battery limited me, and every now and then I put my camera away to really turn my full attention to the beauty of the landscape, absorbing every bit of the splendid surroundings.

 

Since I didn't really get pics of all the places we went, I figured I might not upload the pics on Facebook - besides, Dhiraj (one of the two only boys on the trip) had almost everything taken on his super-kickass camera. I'll just be posting a few beautiful pics (touched-up with little edits on the exposure settings here and there) here. Don't judge my photo-taking skills too much! :)

 

Nicole! My A15 buddy and roomie hahaha

 

The Noryangjin Fish Market -I wish we had one of these here in SG. Everything looks so fresh - I'd totally go shopping at the market everyday.

 



The countryside!

 



 

Had bibimbap and it was YUMMAYEEE

 



Found a lonely smiling snowman someone else made at the Alpensia Intercontinental ski resort.

 



Love this whole lodgehouse in the snow feeling!

 



Taking a drive along the blue sea on a clear blue day.

 



The view from my hotel window at the second ski resort we stayed (High1 Ski Resort).

 



Autumn colours at the Sunbi Folk Village where we stayed in traditional houses.

 



Oh, the melancholic feels of looking at bare branches with a few solitary flowers here and there :')

 



Watching the sun setting on a little river from a little bridge in Sunbi Folk Village.

 



More traditional houses in the village decorated with these red flowers :))

 



The autumn colour explosion!

 



A Buddhist temple - calm and relaxing, perfect for mulling over thoughts.

 



The wishes and hopes of the many who've come to stack rocks and pray for miracles at the temple of the Goddess of Mercy.

 



Every wish matters.

 



 

Shadows of barer trees cast on high walls.

Bustling streets of Seoul.

 



The lovely road leading to Gyeongbok Palace and the Presidential Blue House.

 



The pavilion where the King (not sure which) rested whenever he was stressed out. I can see why he likes it there - it's so quiet and calming.

 



 

I love the colourful and elaborate designs on the roofs!:)

 

A flock of birds flying free in the blue skies near the DMZ.

 



 

At Dorasan Train Station (DMZ) leading to Pyeongyang (we didn't go there tho haha).

 

I'll definitely come back to Korea, maybe even live there because I love it there. The food, the people and the sights and sounds are just so welcoming that I had no problem adjusting, so much so it felt like I was a part of it rather than just a visiting tourist.

 

The places I've been to look like images I'd google and ogle at longingly, and I can't believe I was there seeing it with my own eyes.

 

It was like a fairytale.



Winter!

Okay the place i'm going tmr DOESN'T LOOK LIKE THIS but gosh I wanna be there right now X]
So tmr morning i'm gonna be flying off to South Korea for the Humanities trip AND WHOPPEEEE I HOPE TO REALLY FEEL WINTER.

GIMME ALL YOU'VE GOT. GIVE ME YOUR ICIEST AND COLDEST WINDS AND HIT ME IN THE GUT, WINTER C'MON! hahaha i'm gonna be regretting what I said cos I don't do so well in the cold.

Sigh I wanna grow up old enough to earn moola enough for me to travel to places and see stuff like these:

I love this last picture it's so arty-farty :P

Watching movies at midnight on my laptop make me wanna travel even more!I've been watching a lot of movies and I highly recommend these (to people who probably share the same tastes in slice-of-life movies? no horror movies here tho I adore them):

1.Letters to Juliet

 

I love this so much cos Italy is such a beautiful place and this is a really beautiful, relaxing and cute movie that made me go all mush inside haha.

An aspiring writer, Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), goes to Verona, Italy, on a honeymoon with her fiancé, but ends up feeling miserable as her fiancé spends their time obsessed with finding suppliers for his new Italian restaurant. She explores on her own, and winds up on an adventure with Claire and Claire's grandson Charlie to locate Claire's true love Lorenzo Bartolini from 50 years ago when she ran away because of her parents' disapproval of Lorenzo. Sophie and Charlie clash at first but slowly fall in love, holding back their feelings because of Sophie's engagement.

 

2. Silver Linings Playbook

 

 

This movie was so bizarre at first but so captivating :)

 

The movie follows Pat Solitano Jr. who is released from a mental facility (he ended up there because of a bipolar disorder and an assault against his wife Nikki's lover whom he catches cheating together on him in his house with his wedding song on the radio) and goes to live with his parents, going through difficulty as he obsesses over trying to get back with Nikki and the idea of 'Excelsior' (there would be a silver lining in every bad situation if you try hard). He meets Tiffany (recently widowed) at a dinner at his friend's house and is intrigued by her but pushes back his romantic feelings for her by obsessing with Nikki. He and Tiffany embark on a journey where they clash frequently, and prepare for a dance competition with aims of showing Nikki that he has overcome his disorder while not realising that Tiffany likes him.

 

The others are:

 

3. Big Fish

4. Moulin Rouge!

5. Dear John

 

Anw here's ending off with a nice song 'Never Gonna Leave You' by US, video parody by Wassabi Productions (you gotta love Ronda and Richard SO ADORBS)

 

 

Never Gonna Leave You

 

There's a million other guys who would leave ya
And when you say that you're in love they won't believe ya
When you're gone and outta town, they'll deceive ya
Girl you must examine how they treat ya

Pre-chorus:
I'm the kinda guy who wants to show you why
Love can conquer all
Don't be worried, Don't be scared
Just know that I'll be there

Chorus:
I'm never gonna leave you
I'm never gonna break your heart again
I'm never gonna leave you
Searching far and wide for your loving man
You don't have to look far, you don't have to look around
My love's inside of you and that heart that pounds
I'm never gonna leave, never gonna leave you

You (x4)

There's a million other guys who would date ya
Just to turn around and replace ya
And in their double life they never educate ya
Cause down in their heart they're just a playa

Pre-chorus
Chorus

You (x2) Woahhhh

Bridge:
You're the only one I wanna hold, Yea.
Don't be worried don't be scared
Just know that I'll be there

Down Chorus:
I'm never gonna leave you
I'm never gonna turn my back and run
I'm never gonna leave you
Cause with you, I've already won

You don't have to look far, you don't have to around
My love's inside of you and that heart that pounds
I'm never gonna leave, never gonna leave

You (x8)

 

 



 



Hols' n Curls'

It's almost the end of the first week of the hols and shit I haven't done much studying!

What I did was watch Disney movies (see the last post) and then this really old Korean drama called Autumn in My Heart. It's the show where that really easy tragic-romantic sounding classical guitar tune came from. I cried so much the first few episodes but it got really boring when the characters grew up. The only thing that kept me going I guess was Won Bin (HE'S GOT THESE SUPER MAGNETIC EYES).

Yesterday Mom and I went to Funan Digilife Mall. Not to shop for gadgets-and-gizmos-a-plenty (from the lyrics of Part Of Your World from The Little Mermaid), but to do our hair. HAHA apparently the Kimage Academy was there - that's where the hairstylists train and learn how to...do hair? Sounds wrong haha.

We could've just gone to the Kimage outlet at Lot 1 but mom said the services at the academy was cheaper since it'd done by students (mentored by experienced teachers on hand of course). Any unsatisfactory result will be waived by the cheaper costs!

I wanted to do a digital perm which would look something like this :

 

But when we got there they said they didn't have the chemicals needed in stock, so we opted (not much of an option really haha) for body perm! It's cheaper though it won't look as natural as a digital perm.

 

So here's a before/after:

 

 

It's a terrible pic for the second one but I just couldn't get a proper shot plus i'm too lazy to take a good pic haha. Now my hair feels poofier and I feel like Merida from Disney movie Brave:

 

 





HAHA not that bad actually but i'm getting used to the poofiness cos' my usual hair was so flat.

Mom did some highlights to her hair:

 

Not very obvious but you can just admire how boyish her hairstyle is :) i wanna be able to cut my hair that short and still look okay sigh. But i'm not gonna cut my hair cos the last time I cut it boy-short I looked kinda weird. So it took me about 2 years to grow it back to the length I have now!

Anyway ending off with 2NE1's newest song "Missing You":

Living Disney

I've been watching the old Disney movies these days, one movie after another, and i'm in the whole Disney mood now!! Been listening to all the songs too and sighhhh i'm all swept away by them :)

People say stuff like how these stories are kinda warped, with Cinderella staying out till midnight etc etc. IT'S JUST A HARMLESS FAIRYTALE. Besides you don't commonly see lovestruck girls marrying their real life princes in less than a week after meeting them (happens in most of the Disney princess shows if you've noticed).

I'm more swayed by the songs than the actual storylines actually - some of them are stuck in my head, like I Won't Say I'm In Love from Hercules, Just Around The Riverbend and Colours of the Wind from Pocahontas, You'll Be In My Heart from Tarzan, On My Way from Brother Bear etc etc.

 

I like this song cos it's pretty true some girls (not excluding myself) keep denying they're in love sometimes thinking it's all too cliché and they'd probably make a wrong judgement, but in the end, as the last stanza of the song is, "at least out loud, I won't say I'm in love." :)

 

But life is definitely not a Disney film, because not all of us are as lucky as those main characters are, blessed with good looks, good intentions, fairy godmothers or genies, chances to meet "princes" and all.

 

We can only imagine it and keep those spirits in our heart, warm like a fireplace. It won't guarantee us the Happily Forever After we wish for, but it would probably make living a lot easier.

 

Thank you, Walt Disney :)

 



Identity Seekers

Are we who we are because of what we are perceived as?

Humans are funny creatures, not wanting to be labelled and grouped, but always seeking to fit into a family of so-called like-minded individuals, or searching for an identity.

They get all defensive when people tell them "You are this, you are that." yet they are always getting scared and asking "Who am I?"

We seem to always look like experts on others, saying they are this and that, judging behind backs.

"She's such a slut all she wants is to get close to guys."
"He's freaking irritating he's doing all that nonsense on purpose."

In the end we say all that because we are afraid of the unknown. We like to put a name or a label on everything, like in the picture. Everyone of us are cowards. We just want to feel safe.

Words are the most dangerous things ever. If I could be mute and deaf, I would probably be much happier, considering that the rubbish going through my ears exceeds the beautiful things like music and encouragement.

We make promises and oaths. "Gender equality", "Fairness" and all the other things uttered through false mouths. We refuse to face reality that there is never going to be things like that.

But who actually cares? These are all things we like to hear. And that's all that matters isn't it.

Nobody listens to the truth. Ugly ugly truths. Tell them the truth and await the offense and defense.

 

Who are you? Who are we? Who am I?

 

I am who i am. I am never who i was in the past. I may not be who i will be in the future. But you will never know me as myself because all you stubbornly remember is your perception of me.

 

I'm also at fault here, because i don't know you that well too.

 

So don't be afraid if you don't know who you are, because if you already know everything about yourself, then you're probably not that complex and special after all.

 

Don't let others tell you who you are. That's who they think you are. We're all just people picking up clues on the way. If someone tells you "I think you're this, i think you're that,", just smile, and if you know it is true whether it is a pleasant fact or not, accept it - don't reject yourself.

 

The outcome is still beautiful somehow.

 

The Heirs

 

So recently i've gone back to watching K-Dramas, and this new one, The Heirs, IS AWESOME SHIT.

 

I mean yeah it has typical plots like rich guy meets poor girl falls in love with her both go through shit and all cos' of their differences, two guys liking the same girl, jealous fiancées, etc etc.

 

But I like this cos the actors and actresses are pretty awesome here, plus the two guys that like the main girl are both "bad" guys!! Like there isn't the typical bad main guy and too-good-to-be-true-princelike other male suitor kind of thing. If you know what I mean. 

 

THEY ARE HOT TOO. There's Woo Bin and Lee Minho, and although Lee Minho is the one Park Shinhye's character ultimately ends up with (spoiler alert) plus he's more pops among viewers, I find myself liking Woo Bin more. I mean HOW CAN I NOT. JUST LOOK AT HIM.

 

 

 



haha this post will have a bunch of GIFs cos I saved a few when i was on Google images searching for pics of cute Korean actors. XP

 

Then there's Lee Minho too:

 

 

DO YOU SEE MY POINT. i can only dream about two rich good looking guys going after me (I mean it DOESN'T MAKE SENSE THAT THE FEMALE LEAD DOESN'T LIKE THAT)

 

There's a whole bunch of other cute actors like:

 

Kim Bum, who's currently dating my favourite and absolutely adorbs actress Moon Geun Young

 

 

Jung Yonghwa from C.N Blue

 

 

Kang Minhyuk from C.N Blue, who's acting in The Heirs as the female lead's best friend (A CUTE GUY INSTEAD OF A GIRL this doesn't make sense but it's a drama so)

 

And Choi Minho from SHINee!

 



 

 

Haha i'm like blinded by all these gifs now. But my current fav still remains Woo Bin!!!

 

So besides The Heirs i'm also rewatching the old anime Fruit Basket, aka Furuba.

 

 



It's such a classic! It's about members of a certain Sohma household who have the curse of the Zodiac on them, so some of the members are cursed with a zodiac sign, and if they are hugged by the opposite gender or become weak, they turn into their zodiac animals! HOW COOL IS THAT. lol at least it was cool when I first watched it in primary school:)

 

haha OP's on Tuesday and i'm still slacking like this, but i'm not particularly worried cos I think i'll do fine. I tend to emulate what I see, so after watching so much Korean variety I've picked up some emcee skills that's pretty useful, though i'm not exactly emcee material but at least I have enough confidence to speak.

 

BACK TO WATCHING ANIME NAO :DDDD