.... and I Will Be Flying On a Broomstick

When I was back in my country, the weather was consistent. If it's summer, it's all sunshine and blue sky. If it's the monsoons, you can expect rain and clouds. But here, the weather is full of surprises. You never know what it's up to. Sneaky weather, I call it. One day, it's calm and warm with the sun shining oh so brightly. The next day, you wake up to rain pattering against your window and there's a thunderstorm warning. Like I said, sneaky. One of the habits I have picked up since I came here is checking tomorrow's weather regularly. I would like to be prepared if I were to get hit by lightning, you know. And then there's the fog. On certain rainy days, the fog would creep in softly, obscuring the trees and the mountains far away. I dubbed it the "fuzzy weather" since everything becomes blurred. My room looks out onto a track that runs behind the dormitory. There's two lamp-posts along it. In the evenings, the yellow light streami

Okay, so let's start from the wind. It's not always that bad. But when it's bad, it comes with a vengeance. The APU wind should come with a warning. That's all I have to say. Here are my survival tips: (1) If you are going against the wind, imagine you are a knife. Lean forward and push through the wind. Stab it with everything you have!  (2) But if you are going in the same direction as the wind, you are a plastic bag. (Remember the Katy Perry song? :P ) Don't try to resist it. Just let it carry you away. (Hopefully, not over the mountain.. keke) (3) Never try to use an umbrella when it's raining and the wind is particularly strong. Within five minutes, your umbrella will be transformed into a grotesquely twisted shape. Trust me. I have lost innumerable umbrellas to the wind. It's an umbrella-eater. It just gets stronger if you feed it with umbrellas. You will be better off with a raincoat. (4) Don't be alarmed by the noises it makes. It will

Have you seen the movie, "Now is Good"? It stars Dakota Fanning. Last time I saw her, she was just a little girl running for her life with Tom Cruise when all hell broke loose in "War of the Worlds". Now, in this movie, she's all grown up and has leukemia. And no, she didn't make it alive in the end like her previous movie. This is not a spoiler since the director makes it obvious from the very beginning that she was dying. This movie is about a teenager called Tess who's dying of leukemia. It breaks your heart little by little as it progresses. I may or may not have cried at the end. Anyway, it's one of those movies that reminds you about the brevity of life.  How would you feel if you knew you're dying and there's nothing you can do to stop it?  How do you find the strength to carry on when each passing day is just taking you closer to that inevitable moment?  How would you spend your last days on earth? Maybe, you'll r

(1) The hot weather My peeps suffering the heat back there would probably scoff at this . I hear that it's extremely hot now. I too thought I would never say this but up here in the mountain, it blows, it's cold, it rains and it's insane. So, I can't help but think about what it would be like at home now. The melting heat, the endless sweating, the burning roads, the scorching sun, the.... Oh, I think I'll just look forward to spring here.. :P (2) Padauk flowers Usually, around April, we'll get special rain showers. It's like a short reprieve from the heat. It's called "Thingyan-moe" which can be translated into "Thingyan-rain". (You'll know more about "Thingyan" later.) This rain heralds the blossoming of Padauk flowers. These flowers are pretty special because they bloom only once in the whole year. It rained here today and it made me think about how I would miss the Padauk tree in front of our house with

Sometimes, I’m in a court. There’s the jury who barely knows me. Standing in the witness box, I can see their cold judging looks. That’s when I feel like it’s me against the whole world. Sometimes, I’m on the running track. I am running with everything I have. My legs are burning. My lungs are ready to burst. Ahead of me, I can see those people. Those people with their stronger legs; they run so much faster than me. That’s when I feel like giving up because I doubt I will ever be able to catch them up. Sometimes, I’m in the big city. It’s so easy to get lost in the busy streets and the never-ending flow of traffic. I’m just another nameless face in the crowd. That’s when I feel so small and insignificant. Such times, I stand alone on my own and I place my hand on my heart. That’s when I feel my dreams, my hopes, my love, all beating away quietly. And that’s when I find that courage to carry on, despite the fears, the insecurities and the doubts.

Once, there was a man. During a walk, he "fell head over heels in love". Love was like a hole. At first, "falling in love" was scary. But it was also a rush. A thrill. He thought he could fall forever. But it came to a stop. Now, he realized that he was "helplessly in love". After some exploration, he found that the hole had several buttons he didn't even know were there. He pushed one accidentally and a trapdoor appeared. And that's how he "fell out of love". The END

Today's the day for the installation of new lights in our rooms at AP House. And you know what? New doesn't necessarily mean better. To my dismay, the ceiling lamp no longer have that string which you can pull down to change the light settings!!! Previously, I could just tug that string from my bed to turn off the lights before going to bed. It went like this: Tug once: 100% light twice: 80% light thrice: a glowing yellow light Tug for the last time, it goes off. It was a cool arrangement. I didn't have to go all the way to the lights button near the door. But alas, all good things must come to an end. Now, the lights can only be operated with that button from far-away land!! Not cool, man! Not cool!! :( Bring back the STRING!!! The STRING is the KING!!! No STRING! No STING!! (Ok, that didn't make any sense. It was hard to find a meaningful word that rhymed.) I am so sad today. I think I will just sit in the dark tonight in loving memory

Today, I finished a book called "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West" by Gregory Maguire.  It's set in the Land of Oz by L. Frank Baum. As a child, I had a children's book about the adventures of Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow, the Lion and Toto, the dog. I still remember the illustration of Dorothy in braids and her blue-and-white gingham dress on that book's cover. However this book is very much unlike the light and simplified version of my childhood. For starters, it is told from the side of the Wicked Witch of the West. Under Maguire's writing, the land of Oz is transformed into a magical world of complex politics and exceptional characters. As the blurb says, "we will never look at Oz the same way again". ( To put it simply, a blurb is the text at the back of the book that tells you it is awesome and you should read it. I had to google it. kekeke.. :P ) Besides, it also gives you a lot of things to think abou

I was watching a Japanese drama the other day and came across this interesting fact. A female ninja in Japanese is called kunoichi. Look at how it's formed below. Japanese language is fascinating, huh? :D

I woke up today with a very familiar feeling. A feeling that I have managed to elude for nearly a month now. It's that groggy feeling of not getting enough sleep. My brain is just whirling round and round and round and round and... I think you get the point. I have been sleeping so well during the holidays that I conveniently forgot that disturbing feeling of limited sleep. You might be wondering why I didn't get enough sleep. What, you're not? Oh well, either way, I'm going to tell you. :P I had my SA shift today. I am working as a Systems Assistant at my university. SAs help students and staff with computer problems. Usually we work in the MMR ( a computer room in the library ) and the Information Systems Office (where we have to deal with equipment lending and reservation). But that's not all. SAs have many other responsibilities, too. Like working as teaching assistants in programming classes, taking on projects assigned by the Academic Office or dealing wi

  It’s the city.  Sky-scrapers loom overhead, effectively blocking the sun. These giants spawned by human ingenuity and craft are everywhere, looking down at you from their vantage point in the clouds. Then, there are the billboards. Sirens in the sea of modern consumerism. Calling out to you and luring you in with their sweet words. Oh and the lights. Like someone trying too hard to prove something, they shine too brightly with forced enthusiasm. The big stores with their sliding doors, gobbling up people into their shiny showrooms. The powerful force behind the stream of traffic, pushing forward relentlessly. The city. It’s always in transition. The traffic lights, the trains, the trends. The city. It’s alive. Always hungry for more. Throbbing with the flow of people. The city. It’s where I am. Waving and drowning in the sea of a million other faces.

Youtube channels: http://www.youtube.com/user/Gimmeaflakeman http://www.youtube.com/user/japaneseformorons - These channels have some very interesting videos about Japanese culture as well as language lessons. Personally, I like the J-news videos where Victor (he's the sensei) gives English explanations and teaches you news vocabulary. I don't like every single one of the videos. But still, there are lots of his videos which I find very useful. On the "Japanese for morons" channel, I recommend the lessons with Tomoko (she's Japanese/ and assists Victor in teaching). http://www.youtube.com/user/japanesepod101 - If you are an intermediate learner, some of the videos here will be very easy. But you should definitely check out these playlists: Learn Japanese through culture Learn Japanese with a Japanese Drama - iLove Japanese word origins (which are very interesting!)  Free dramas and animes: http://www.dramacrazy.net/most-popular/

I've been trying to improve my Japanese (which sucks, by the way) these days. You know, so that I could suck better at it. When it comes to this language, I am not that bad at reading, writing or listening. During conversations with natives, I can catch most of what the other party is saying. My final exam scores for my Japanese class were also not bad  either. My Achille's heel is the speaking part. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I don't practice that much. Sure, I am living in Japan and studying at a Japanese University. But the thing is that my university is one in which around 50% of the student body are international students. So, I can always conveniently fall back to English.  I know that I should try to use Japanese every chance I get. But I must confess. I am scared. I am scared of making mistakes. I am scared of showing my weakness. I am scared to be in the wrong. All the while, I refused to acknowledge that I was making a very big mistake

Here I am. Having a two-month holiday before the next semester. We call it "Spring Break". Personally, it doesn't feel like spring at all though it sure is a nice break from school. Why doesn't it feel like spring? Because the weather at APU is chilly and windy as usual with a little bit of fog and rain thrown in for good measure. If the wind here were to have a personality, it could be described as biting, cold-hearted with an attitude and a deep-harbored resentment against humankind. Maybe, my judgment is clouded by the fact that it broke my umbrella two days ago. But anyway, I'll leave the weather topic for another time. I'm just saying hi with this first post. And erm, about the blog title... I wanted to give my blog some cool and awesome title. You know, the kind that would make people go "ooh" and "ah".. Keke.. But my creative juices seem to have dried up. So, I had to look for inspiration elsewhere. And bingo! The book I