Hope

Despite my general cynicism with the world, I must acknowledge;

The Colin Powells of the world,



and here's to hoping that man would be as chivalrous as before.

Five months into the first World War, troops along the Western front took a Christmas Eve break from fighting to sing carols to each other across the battlefield. The following morning, German soldiers emerged from the trenches and began to approach Allied troops while calling out "Merry Christmas" in English. Luckily, it wasn't a trick; dozens of British fighters came out to greet them and shake hands, some even exchanged cigarettes as gifts. Later dubbed "The Christmas Truce of 1914," it was one of the last examples of wartime chivalry.

Article and picture from time.com

Merry Christmas to all of you.

Unit 5

At the end of the first semester, I studied Dover Beach by Matthew Arnold.

It was a fairly simple poem, and regarded as the first poem of the 20th century.

It talks about the retreating of the sea of human faith in the world. What once covered the world in its entirety has now been taken over by land; which represented human misery. And it also talks about how love, regardless of how powerful it is, is not even a close substitute the power of faith.

Mr. Wise asked us to reply a poignant question of "What are your views of mankind as you read this poem?" in our journals. I said this;

It makes me very depressed to think that there is hardly any faith left in the world.

And I thought at first that I wrote it in a joking manner, and that I wasn't even taking the question seriously.

I realize now that I do. Very much.

What has now become so embedded in our lives that it is hardly even questioned anymore is,

What's with this apathy?

Politicians, who were so well respected in the 18th century as to being the voice of the people, have come to be regarded as untrustworthy. e.e. cummings himself wrote that "a politician is an arse upon which everyone has set except man"

Abraham Lincoln famously said that a democracy is "a government by the people, of the people, for the people".

Whatever happened to those ideals?
And what have we done to uphold that?
Our fathers fought two world wars. For what?
And have we learned any lessons from all that?
Is this really how we honour our dead?

I myself am guilty of having societal norms in me.

I can argue with you that the idea of a market structure which fixes itself is reasonable, and to a certain point, ideal.

But what I wouldn't tell you is that I do not necessarily believe that it is for the greater good.

It has been a struggle for every single generation growing up in the 20th century to feel helpless, powerless, even apathetic to a certain extent. That's why we had the hippies in the 60s, didn't we?

We're in the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. We have a redundant war that will not stop anytime soon. We are rewarding greed with the bailouts, simply because they are indispensable.We live in a society which idealizes the get-rich-quick schemes. We have untrustworthy leaders. We just had another suicide bombing attack in Mumbai by people claiming themselves to be Muslims, which is completely untrue. We have 1 billion people living under a dollar all around the world. I myself ignore the fact that hundreds of innocent lives die everyday in Sudan, in Iraq, in South Africa.

Because alone, I can't do anything about it.

Matthew Arnold was right. Human misery keeps growing every single day, taking up the space that human faith once had.

But despite all this, I am surrounded by a group of people so full of faith that life just feels overflowed with it. Their optimism is so infectious, and I am grateful to be in such great company.

Yet reality hits hard.

I'm sorry, I'm just gonna keep going around in circles with this one because;

I don't have a point. I don't have an answer as to what happened which made us lose so much.

It's neverending.

I wish that this was my reply instead of the weak one I gave him.

Prose I

The ceiling seems to move around in circles.

I stared at it curiously. The whirring of the fan alerted my five senses. The silence is deafening, and yes, I am fully aware of the paradoxical nature of that dead metaphor. Even in my head I analyze my usage of the English language.

A book lay beside me, with imaginary dust settling themselves on its blue-monochrome colored cover. I’ve paid a fair amount for it, and on the first day I excitedly tore off the plastic cover and skimmed through it slowly, like a kid savoring his first candy in weeks.

Now the novelty’s gone, and I couldn’t bring myself to flip through the pages any longer.

Something’s missing.

I hesitated, and looked beside it.

I was never a fan of this medium of transmission. Constant messages being sent through every single second… It scares me a little how fast information could travel across. It is unfortunate, I think, of how much we have come to depend on it.

Call me an old-fashioned romantic if you may, but every now and then I find myself wondering as to what it would be like to a be star-cross’d lover, patiently waiting for the postman to give me my salvation. There is a touch of fear in this slow, uncertain routine, and everyday I’ll be standing by the window until a letter arrives, addressed to me, in that familiar cursive writing I adore. Elaborate proses on daily fixations, deepened longing… It saddens me that such melancholic emotions hardly exist any longer.

I gave a small sigh and thought of the things I’m missing.

On second thought, I’d rather not.

The sounds of keys jangling, the image of a melting ice-cream cone, storeys of abandoned buildings, illusions of heavy, dusty books in dark corners, sitting down on escalators, long conversations on wooden benches… I shrugged my head as if it would clear me of this repetitive cycle of thoughts.

I don’t know why I keep going back to the ice rink.

I figured, even in this fast-paced information age;

I still channel the same old longing.

So!
Yasmin went down to Penang for three days.
What did Yasmin get?
A few history and culture lectures, and great conversations with friends.
Just what Yasmin missed =)
Yasmin is superlatively complacent =D

Alright third person's just strange.

Qistina, Lina, Atiqah, Liani, you guys make my day =)Thanks for making the time for me.

And HANA my gosh randomness, I am so glad I met you (albeit accidentally) WE HAVE TONS OF CATCHING UP TO DO.

I've missed Penang a whole lot. I know I've made a good life here in KL, since my college friends are rockin', but well...

Just the familiar sight of the Penang harbour made me realize that at the back of my mind, this is my place. It's a rich city full of culture and soul, and it has a certain chicness to it. The old buildings restored, the vast sea... It's breathtaking.

=) I love Penang.

On another note;

I've realized that my music taste has started to regress. I'm going back to jazz and classics. Jamie Cullum, Stacey Kent, Nat King Cole and Edith Piaf appeal to me now. Oh, and Colbie Caillat too.

Lovely, lovely.

I'm beginning to enjoy my holidays now. Really reading a book, really listening to music, rather than just skipping over the tracks and skimming the pages. I love my little e.e. cummings book. And I'm starting on Sylvia Plath's autobiography now, should be an interesting read.

Hope all of you are enjoying your holidays too. =)

E E Cummings is my favorite poet.

This is why.

=====================

somewhere i have never travelled, gladly beyond
any experience,your eyes have their silence:
in your most frail gesture are things which enclose me,
or which i cannot touch because they are too near

your slightest look easily will unclose me
though i have closed myself as fingers,
you open always petal by petal myself as Spring opens
(touching skilfully,mysteriously)her first rose

or if your wish be to close me,i and
my life will shut very beautifully,suddenly,
as when the heart of this flower imagines
the snow carefully everywhere descending;

nothing which we are to perceive in this world equals
the power of your intense fragility:whose texture
compels me with the color of its countries,
rendering death and forever with each breathing

(i do not know what it is about you that closes
and opens;only something in me understands
the voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses)
nobody,not even the rain,has such small hands

=========================

It's indescribably beautiful.

"you open always petal by petal myself as Spring opens
(touching skilfully,mysteriously)her first rose"

Imagine how great it must feel to find someone who can open you up slowly, delicately, like how the first flower of spring blooms. The image of a rose's stalk opening to reveal its true beauty; that's how she (or he) opened the poet up. The subject slowly extracts the poet's self, and it's magical.

"as when the heart of this flower imagines
the snow carefully everywhere descending;"

I see the closing part as a means of calming the poet down from the initial passion; his confusion as to how such an unworldly phenomena can ever happen to him. It overwhelms him completely. The subject has immense power over him, has swept him off his feet, and yet she (or he) would never take advantage of this. In fact, she (or he) holds him closer, grasping his fragility; and would try her (or his) best not to hurt him. Cummings chose his words carefully the second line, as if you read it out you have to slow down your pace a little; and you can imagine pure white snow slowly descending on rooftops, covering all the dirt and grim. All one can see is a tranquil white blanket; and it gives a certain calmness inside. This is what the subject does to the poet; covers his flaws and fills him with a sense of serenity.

I love the last verse the most.

"(i do not know what it is about you that closes
and opens;only something in me understands
the voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses)
nobody,not even the rain,has such small hands"

Everything that is about the subject, be it her( or his) eyes, mouth, everything; it matters more to the poet than all the beautiful flowers in the world combined. She has touched his soul utterly; and to the poet it is the most amazing thing that's ever happened to him. The subject sees the poet as how he really is; and as it goes " to love is to see the person as God intended them to be".

She sees him.

They see each other.

They are in love.

Don't any of you wish you could write this well?

Break!

After 5 months of non-stop brainstorming!

Am I happy or what?

These past months have been taxing on my brain. I dug deep into my personal microchip to grasp the concept of this new learning method. I must say, I am more adapt to this than my eleven years of public education. the fact that I am allowed to speak out and have not been programmed has given my mind the chance to expand and take in more perspectives. I thought a lot, as I was allowed to have my own reasoning on things.

I am honored to have learned from such great individuals.

Miss Rowena Valberg, the ever hyper and happy teacher, thank you for giving me such undeserving high marks for Accounts. And I hardly think I'm such a great student in your class, though you may say so.

Mr. Moaz, who taught me Economics in a subjective manner, I appreciate the trouble you take for each one of your students. Your dedication is undoubtable. Taylor's is losing a great asset next year. Cheers to you, Mr. M.

Mr Jawad, you taught Advanced Functions in a different light. Appreciate the effort, thanks.

And lastly, Mr. Wise. The impact your classes have made for me will be everlasting. It's true what you say, "English is the most important thing that you will ever learn; for it shows you how it is to be human." I agree completely. This is the subject I am most passionate for, and you extracted so many ideas in me that I never even knew existed. I understand better now, thanks to you. I still have a long way to go, and I am hoping that, with your teaching in mind, I will go far. I have always wanted to be a writer. My flair for writing was ignited with your forcing of writing assignments. I would have gladly done more. You've pushed me harder, and I like the challenge. I am honored to have been an alumni of your class. Thank you, for being a teacher.

My friends; you guys are one of a kind. I love our lively debates; and the laughter. Thank you for making the semester extremely enjoyable. I am grateful to have been given the chance to meet all of you. See you next year, I cannot wait.

Onto my holidays;

I'm gonna sleep in and relax. Breathe in and out. Feel the sunlight, smell the rain, and stare at the beautiful lights of this sleepless city.

Caroline, I can't wait to spend time with you when you come over!

and;

I might be visiting a beautiful island on the north side sometime this month. ;)

Will update y'all soon.

Wrote this post like a year back, but I feel like it resonates better now; I embed it much more now that I've grown up (just a lil bit!). College has taught me so much. I enjoy life now; I am happy with the people I hang out with, you guys are just fantastic. Thank you for accepting me into your lives.

To my family, I miss you every minute of the day. I'm swamped with work these days, I feel terrible that I can't come back more often. Regardless, I will try to keep tabs with all your lives, and I cannot wait for the holidays so I can go back home again and spend time with all of you. I love you and I miss you all very much.

Thanks to both parties for making my birthday so memorable! Great gifts, great celebrations. I couldn't ask for more.

So here goes;

---------------------------------

Lao-tzu says;
"Fame or integrity: which is more important? Money or happiness: which is more valuable? Success or failure: which is more destructive? If you look to others for fulfillment, you will never truly be fulfilled. If your happiness depends on money, you will never be happy with yourself. Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you."

Live and let be.

I could never quite get what the quote above meant till lately. Slowly, I’m getting complacent with how I am, who I am, where I am, and where I am going.In fact, I’m not even thinking of where I am going. I have vague ideas, vague dreams.I’ve done my part, and will keep on doing my part; and now I’m just living and letting it be.

I don’t think I know myself just yet; but I’m getting there. I am accepting howI am. I am accepting responsibility for my actions; because they are mine and I made a choice to carry them out. I don’t try to take the easy way out; blame my past or blame someone else for all the mistakes I have done. No more of those"because you didn’t love me enough" or "because I saw him/her do it", which I know I have done in the past. They are my own. And I’m prepared to say that in the future I might make more mistakes. They are mine. And I’ll try my best not to blame it on others.

For those I have wronged, I am truly sorry. There are no excuses for my actions. For those who have wronged me, I am truly sorry as well. I can be forgiving, but I can’t forgive someone who won’t admit their wrongs.

I don’t think I’m right at any given time; not even most ofthe time. That’s just selfish and slightly arrogant. You can learn nothing from being right. What we have are choices, what we have are opinions, and it’s our obligation to respect other people’s way of life. I won’t force my way into someone else’s life. In fact I won’t force anything. I’ll just live and let be.
I might be too young and stupid to make my own choices, but I hope one day I’ll be given the opportunity to do so.

I’m not sure if I’ve made anyone proud of knowing me, of being a part of my life. I don’t care much about that either. I don’t let myself into someone’s life in order to get something in return. I’ve done a lot of stuff people can consider as achievements. I’ve done a lot of stuff I consider as mistakes. I don’t think I’m proud of any of them. As for my achievements, I do it because I can. I’m not trying to prove anything to anyone. Not to impress, not to have someone tell me things to soothe my ego, not to make anyone proud of me.

I live with the satisfaction of knowing that I did a job well done, and that I’ve done my part to the fullest. That I’ve done it sincerely and honestly. That I didn’t wrong anyone whilst I was doing it. That alone makes me happy.

I don’t feel as if I’ve changed, but if I did, it’s probably for the better. I allow change to happen because it is a part of life. To progress, we must evolve. I think I’m still me (even though I’m not sure who I am), with some added changes.

I am young, I am learning. I’ll make a few mistakes, andI’ll allow myself too, because I am human. Perfection is something I do not want to achieve. I’m being realistic. At the moment, I’m surrounded by positive people. People who make me happy. I’m glad they’re in my life. My family, friends… it’s all good at the moment.

Yasmin binti Abdullah

For the record;
I loathe writing sonnets.

This has got to be the craziest assignment that I've ever had.
It just doesn't flow properly, and being the writing perfectionist that I am
it is just extremely dissatisfying.
Oh well, I'll figure it out somehow.

So so,



For those of you who were unfortunate enough to miss one of the best speeches of our time, here ya go.

Hope perseveres. With a little bit of wariness admittedly. Let us have faith in him, and wish him well. He has the potential to be the man who embodies the words of Martin Luther King, John F. Kennedy, and Abraham Lincoln.

All three were shot for their beliefs. Pray that this will not happen to him.

Change, we need. He says, "Yes, we can." Let us also hope that he keeps to his words, because yes, American can once again, awe the world with the joys of freedom, unity, and prosperity, and create a ripple effect of solidarity between nations.

He has won and created history. Now, we wait for change.

Just found out that my college mates have somehow found their way to my blog.
Oh well, now you people can see clearly; I am a poor writer.

Moving on;

I realize that even though I'm studying Economics, and I don't exactly dislike it, or am failing it in, but English is clearly more my forte. I'd probably do a better job at teaching literature, or writing, rather than fixing government policies.

Money never mattered. Words do. I've always been fascinated with the power of words, how it influences people. I get soaked into books; listening to great speeches. I find beauty in speeches, in proses. "Let freedom reign" said Martin Luther King; "An eye for an eye makes the world go blind" cried Mahatma Gandhi; their words are seeped into my consciousness. Shakespeare wrote "Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds"; Murakami wrote "Death exists; not as an opposite but a part of life" and Lao Tzu wrote "Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you." How can anyone not find all these awe-inspiring?

So what stopped me from going into writing?

Truth is, I was afraid. Writing, or more specifically journalism, was something I've always wanted to delve into, but I never had the courage to pursue it. I read great Pulitzer pieces, beautifully intricate materials by Nobel Prize winners, and I thought, "never in a million years would I be able to do that."

Sure, I wrote some pieces a few years back. Bits of poems, proses... None of it was satisfactory. I was too analytical, too much of a perfectionist, and it came out too refined. It never flowed properly, never the way I wanted it to be, the way I pictured it in my head. Too many awkward verses, grammatical errors, too much paraphrasing, stuff like that.

But lately I'm starting to get my writer's drive back. I've been scoring pretty well for my writing assignments at school, and hell are there a lot of those. Takes me ages to write something. But it's good practice, I realized how much I missed words.

I've picked up three books this weekend. I've read all of them, just needed to scan it through once more. The books are:

i. The Picture of Dorian Gray
ii. Norwegian Wood
iii. Atonement

These are the books that have recently influenced my writings. Norwegian Wood would be the book I single out as my biggest inspiration, as Murakami writes so flawlessly in such a simple way. It should be noted that two of the books are about love. I wouldn't call myself a hopeless romantic, but I find it amazing that people can put indescribable emotions into words. I'm hoping that by re-reading all this, I'll be able to write a good; no, a fantastic sonnet for Mr. Wise.

And I thank Mr. Wise profusely for giving me confidence in my writing, and for being a great, great teacher. Even though what you said could be entirely untrue, I appreciate the gesture. I really hope I'll be in your class next year.

Have any of you ever driven down Jalan Kia Peng before?

It's a beautiful road; a haven of green lush landscape smack dab in the middle of this metropolis we like to call Kuala Lumpur. Old trees are lined up at the side of the road, the houses are living heritages.

I used to stop by and look at one particular house. It was situated opposite Top Hat, and to its left was the KL Convention Center. It was a gorgeous house; a colonial British style, complete with a garden, courtyard, huge veranda and a stream running across the front gate. The environment was lush, full of big ol' trees and beautiful flowers. I used to joke that one day I would buy that house, as I thought it wonderful that there was this spectacular piece of greenery in the middle of a concrete jungle.

Imagine my shock when I passed by it this morning and saw that it was completely demolished. The house was leveled; the trees were gone, and all that's left is an empty plot of soil.

I've been questioning capitalism for a while now, and this hits home. Badly. The Jalan Kia Peng area is slowly being turned into a money making address. There are condominiums being built on the left, right and front side of my house. I keep thinking, what for?

I've never been a big fan of pure capitalism. One of the questions I keep pondering on and on is at what cost should capitalism be? We've lost our heritage, environment, and ultimately, our soul. What is up with this neverending quest for greed? It's costing us more than it's profiting.

I applaud Penang for keeping its heritage. Penang to me, should be taken as example by every other state. This vibrant city is full of people with conscience. Take a drive around the island and you can see many heritage places being reserved; and Penang's culture is so distinct and infectious that you cannot help but be drawn to it. I've met so many awe-inspiring people in Penang, history lovers, people who appreciate the finer things in life. And by finer things I don't mean those pieces of paper you keep in your wallet. There was where I began to develop my civic consciousness, an awareness that I never really thought of as important before.

Living in this capitalistic environment, where everything follows the Theory of the Firm, has taken its toll on me. KL has lost its essence; its zest. People couldn't care less as to what cost it is for them to be able to get what they want. I don't envy these people who have the latest phones, go to the latest clubs and buy the latest fashion. I pity them. They've lost sight of what's important. This individualistic society, where no one gives a shit about each other, could be blamed on having such a capitalistic view on things.

I find it ironic that the friends I look up to, who are teaching me ethics and make me question my own self, all lived outside KL. Maybe it's because they lived outside this society that they developed such a good outlook on life. I respect them completely. Never in a million years would I thought I'd get inspired by an amazing group of friends, who are ethical and strong in their convictions. I'm glad I met them just before I go overseas.

I don't shun capitalism purely; yes people should be able to gain what they earned. You work hard, you get more money. Everyone needs their worth to be recognize; it's the only way someone can grow. But at what cost? A great example would be Hong Kong. Once famous for its waterfront, they have now built so much high rises in front of it that one can't see the waterfront anymore. They've lost the one thing that have made them unique.

Pure capitalism has failed. Want proof? Take one look at America's economy. Enough said.

I've been delaying this post for two months now.

On August 7th, 2008, I lost my grandfather. Unfortunately, I never really had the chance to get to know him well. He had two strokes while I was still in primary school. So I've always remembered him to be sickly. And it's only recently that I'm staying in KL permanently; before this I moved around.

There are few things that I do know about him; smoking was probably the only thing that kept him going. And my grandmother. Boy did he love her. I remember this one time when my grandmother came over to Penang and he called about five times every single day, asking her to come back. =) I wonder if my grandmother misses those phone calls now.

He taught me how to play cards. Yeah, he was good at that. Before he fell sick, he used to finish up the crossword puzzle everyday.

Every single day he used to ask for the date. He was always waiting for the 21st of every month, as that's the day that his pension money was banked in. Then when the day comes, the first thing he'll ask is for my grandma to buy a pack of cigarettes. =/ Haha it was funny though, how he'd wait for that day eagerly.

This year my parents decided to visit the place he grew up in. No one knows a thing of his past; all we know is that he studied in MCKK (Malay College Kuala Kangsar) and took his bachelors at Otago University, New Zealand. He's from Rembau; his dad was a headmaster (I think). All that's left of his family now are his three sisters; his brothers have all passed away. And they're all buried at the same graveyard too.

Another thing about my grandfather; he always asks "How are you?" even when he's sick. As though other people's well being mattered more than him being sick. I am glad I got the chance to take care of him when he was in the hospital. I was complacent with him passing; it wasn't unexpected and I think all of us can say that we did our part in making it easier for him. It's not like we weren't sad, don't get me wrong. It's just that we didn't have any regrets with him.


That's how he usually looks like, with a stony face. Haha. This picture was taken in 2006. The guy wearing white, my cousin Danial, he's the closest cucu(grandchild) to him. Used to take him to the mosque for Friday prayers without fail. People remember him for it. Needless to say, my grandfather's passing hits him hard.


That's his expression whenever he hears a joke (sometimes he gets amused even with the lamest ones). It's rare, and adorable. =)

Suffice to say, it's strange not having him around for Raya. We used to make him do silly poses during Raya, and we'd try our best to make him smile for the camera.

One thing good that came out of his passing was that it brought everyone closer together. The six older cousins you see in the first picture are close like no one's business now; we stay over at our grandma's house every weekend. And my mom sees her sisters and brother all the time.

Strange, I had to mark my last Raya before going to Canada (InsyaAllah) without my grandfather around. But it was a good one. But that's for another time.

Sedekah Al-Fatihah kepada Tok Di; Allahyarham Abdul Rahim bin Abdul Jalal. Semoga rohnya dicucuri rahmat Allah.

The family misses your presence every single day.

Yasmin knows how to play Poker now! =D

And has ginrummy buddies! =DD

Liking it, liking it

Senang ada kawan2 suka berjudi ni

Haha

Had three tests this week;

and I'm pretty disappointed

I haven't been doing so well

and I think I'm stressing out way too much

which affects my performance

I should chill out sket, like before

My accounts marks fell

Dunno bout Math
Bombed my English

Arse.

Actually I tak bomb english la
got two marks off for my essay je
tapi objective taktau lagila
InsyaAllah, okay kot

Eh I am obsessed with Diane's aunt's cookies
it is like one of the nicest cookies I've ever tasted

Smalam went to play poker and chor tai ti!
won against Naiz in poker and once chor tai ti with RuiRui
(Although I suspect Naiz ada trick.)
tapi I'm chilling now, it's awesome =)
terima kaseh kawan2ku.

You know what I dislike?
When it's the topic of conservation, and how bad the environment has become
people just go
"oh it's gonna be the end of the world."
and that's that.

Yes, that might be true but
a little constructive opinions might help
after all
would Allah like it if we left His world
the way it is now?

Iylia slept over last night!
Loads of fun
Went out to Mydin for dinner
I think she and I were high or something
Cos we mistook Sasi for a guy promoter
and we were both like "okay, let's not make eye contact with the promoter."
then we realized it was Sasi.
What the effff

Life's been pretty hectic these days
loads of work to do; college is such a chore
but a fun chore
I'm laughing all the time now, I've got great friends

oh marks marks!
if I average everything out, it's about 87.25
so I need just a lil bit more push to get to the standard I want
which is over 90
Insya-Allah I'll be able to get it, hopefully.

To all my Penang friends
bila nak gather ramai2 ni?
rindu la jugak kan
=)

Period 5

Today in class
Diane and I were singing,
"ALL MY LOVINNN, I WILL SEND TO YOU"

and sweet Mr. Stephen Wise
took the trouble to Youtube The Beatles' old live performance of that song
and played it to the whole class.
(He actually went for The Beatles' gigs!)

Made me smile the whole day, like, this wide! =DDDD

Oh well, what to do kan?

Compelling phrases!
Diane likes the line "drag your legs la kan?"
haha

I am completely burnt out.
had two presentations and one quiz today, like whooaaaa
ICPU is not really as easy as one would think tau.

But college is fun these days
a huge amount of people to lepak with; they're awesome
people are really fun here, and I don't think anyone would disagree

My English teacher rocks!
Mr. Wise. Woah his name damn chun kan?
and my Accounts and Econs teacher too
they explain like way too effin well

I don't think I'll kick my journalistic dreams to the curb just yet;
Mr. Wise will help me out. A lot.
we're gonna start 'Lord of the Rings' next week.
I mean
Lord of the Flies
(personal joke)

I don't really know why I'm writing in this format
it's kinda strange but it works

Missing a lot of people right now. A lot.

Oh yeah I did a study on Galbraith.
At first I was totally in awe with him
then suddenly realized that his theories don't stand in today's world.
so apa dia kan?

Anyway, gonna catch up on some relaxing time now
while I have it
yeaaay

Of New Beginnings

How’s it hanging people?

(I’m assuming I do have readers; but I guess in reality no one ever does really.)

Quote of the week:

“Maybe you buy like, branded stuff and tell people that you buy fake ones.”

HAHA what the eff. You’re hilarious man, I can tell you that.

So what’s happened in the past week?

I’ve switched from over-using the word weird to strange. Yeah I know big deal yeah?

Hmmm let’s see.

Oh yeah I got into college. Like whoaaaa

My apartment’s pretty tiny, but it’s totally livable. My housemates are awesome. But I shudder to think if, and that’s a big if, the lift ever breaks down. I’d have to walk up like, 11 floors of stairs. Whoaaaa.

School’s great; my teachers are waaaaaaaaaaaay better than when I was in school. Save the odd awesome ones in school. I’m using the word awesome way too much.

Well-known, yet hard to believe fact: Students are poor. Nope, we can't have too much fun. Can't afford to. Unless of course you're rich to begin with.

My English and Econs teachers are way over the cool factor. Mr. M and Mr. Wise yeah. I think I’m gonna learn way a lot here. English is about the Nature of Evil. Dear me, the darkness of it all. My classes are all on the fourth floor, and my books are about 20 kgs. Yeah. I’ma get arm muscles man! And leg ones too, when I think about it.

Met a friend, Diane. Watched the sunrise together on the top floor of our college. It was wiiiicked.

My earphones are busted (again, what is this, like the 5^th time?) .Tsk. I need my music.

Well a lot of things've happened and I was laughing the whole week. Assignments haven’t been piling up yet so I’m just chillin’ at the moment.

Oh yeah I think my grammar’s pretty bad. Gotta work on that.

Turning Point

Blog-hopping;

cos Friendster blog just doesn't cut it anymore.

My old blog was here.

__________________________________

As of tomorrow, I will be moving out for the year. It seems strange. There was a point when I was like 14 or so (not too long ago I suppose), when I wanted to be all independent and crap and I thought I could handle it. You’d think I’d be ecstatic staying on my own. But now I’m really not sure. I’ll just take it as it is I suppose. I didn’t force it to happen or anything, it just did. And I feel lucky and I’m grateful for the opportunity. Although there are a few things I’ll miss like;

Blasting music way out loud
Playing the guitar and reading at the veranda outside my house
Home-cooked food
My lovely IKEA bed (oh man, it’s the most awesome bed ever)
The internet connection (although I’m not sure if I’ll miss it that much. Oh wait I would, I need to download new songs)
Just chilling (this house is so awesomely relaxing)
not having to buy my own groceries

And of course well, long talks with my sisters, and just the bonding I get with my family. Since moving I’ve started connecting with them even more, so it’s all good, at least I’ll get to see them every weekend. Now is like a transition period before I go to Canada I suppose.

So I’ve got some new shirts, a trench coat (I know, wtf, my mom wanted me to get it), a big arse leather handbag which I adore (I’ll be able to fit A4 sized files), a new wallet, and some bed sheets and stuff. Funnily enough, I was more excited choosing bed sheets rather than clothes. Hmmm. That a good or bad thing eh.

I dig Brad Walsh at the moment. And The Rolling Stones. And Wolfmother.

Anyhow, yeah, I have a strange thing when it comes to numbers.

My birth date is 11.11 and my 21^st birthday will be on 11.11.11 (Sadly enough, I will not be in Malaysia when I turn legal). So it’s like 901111.
PMR number; 099
SPM number; 222
Medical check up number: 333
Stamp duty number: 1300

And a few others that I can’t remember.

Well yeah they’re all random, but it’s all nicely done yeah? I find it strange. My sister goes, NO WAY YASMIN NO F’KIN WAY. All the time.

They’re probably just coincidences. I think they’re pretty cool though.

Oh yeah Wanted is awesome. This is exactly why McAvoy is my favourite actor; always delivering the unexpected.

Anywho, got a ‘lil more packing and preps to be done. Signing off with Mick Jagger’s wise words; you can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometime, you just might find, you get what you need.

Oh wait, just a thought before I sign off;

As youths, the last thing we should ever lose is hope. What can you do if your basic human rights are taken away from you? The power to choose. For the betterment of society. I know cynicism is easy; but there will be justice. Soon. Just don’t lose hope, and be patient; we are the new generation, the new voices.

Believe me, picketing is not the only way.

Just think, what can we do?

Have a good one y’all.