Category: Life

I thought my cough would get better over the weekend. Instead it worsened. So I seized the opportunity to go MC for 2 days. Whole body felt weak after taking the medicine. But enough strength and concentration for me to sit on my chair and log on to FFXI for the rest of the two days. Now I’m back to work.

Still, I feel a bit of irritation down my throat. At least my condition is getting better.

I wonder if it’s because of the medicine, I get that lifeless feeling again. I could just sit on my chair, stare at a blank wall and not do a thing.

By the way, the first thing that greeted me in office was a horde of ants that invaded my coffeecup I left unwashed since last Friday. Killed them all with hot water, my favourite way of exterminating pests.

I didn’t realize I was going back Malaysia for the Qing Ming festival too.
From what I know, it’s a festival for ghosts. Sort of like Chinese New Year for
the departed. What those still alive do is pay a visit to the graves of their
ancestors, clean up if need, make food offerings and burn paper money and
stuff.

So I got dragged along but I didn’t mind it anyway. If memory serves me well,
this is the second time I’m visiting my mum’s grandparent’s and parent’s grave.
We left in the morning and finished around noon. I got sunburnt because I
refused to use the umbrella cos I wanted a bit of tan. Hell, people get sunburnt
at the beach but I get sunburnt at a cemetary. [X|]

Other than the festival, making my new Malaysian IC was a breeze. Just
collect my number ticket, photographer takes my digital photo, another takes my
digital thumbprints, confirm address, done.

Food is definitely more delicious in Malaysia. At my mum’s hometown (Lunas,
Kedah), we stopped by a small stall by the road for a plate of wanton noodles.
Mum says this stall is very famous and people come from far places just to eat
for their noodles are handmade. [XD]

A plate of wanton noodles here, slightly lesser than what you get in
Singapore, costs RM$2, which is slightly less than 1 Singapore dollar! Meh,
average tasting noodles at Maxwell food centre here costs S$3.00. [8|]

In Malaysia, I stayed with my mum’s sis at Sungai Petani, Kedah. There aren’t
much tall buildings here except for a few shopping malls. So it’s easy to get a
good glimpse of the sky.

Ever tried to grasp how huge and wide the sky is? I did and felt overwhelmed.
Things you see everyday are easily within your sight radius but not
the sky. It’s so huge it makes one feel helpless.

Going back to Malaysia next weekend for a few days. My purpose there is to renew my Malaysian Identification Card. Like I said before, I dread travelling out of Singapore. Having to go to places where there’s no internet connection or places I have difficulty moving around. Call me insecure but I’d prefer laziness. And without an internet connection, I’m as free as a bird without wings. (T-T )

Anyways, since it’s going back to my relative’s place, it won’t be as bad as going to Paris or Hong Kong for work. The only things I dread are the 7 hours long bus rides and the awkwardness of seeing playmates I haven’t met in years. But the latter shouldn’t be too much of a problem once the ice gets broken. [:|]

I could use this chance to enjoy some sun, taking afternoon walks and the crowded “Pasar Malam” (Night Market in Malay) at the field opposite my relative’s home. Every Saturday, people drive in in trucks and vans all carrying groceries and food. They set up their stalls on the open field. By 6pm, it’s bustling with lots of activity. It’s the only chance the people in the neighbourhood can shop for groceries without having to travel too far out.

Leaving on 31st March, be back on 4th April. I’ll be bringing along my Nintendo DS and a novel, Farenheit 451, which I never seem to have time to read. I’ve been playing FFXI all the way to 1am before I sleep, making me feel extra sleepy in the morning. [X|]

By the way, I bought one of Kokia’s album Trip Trip. All I can say is it’s good stuff, worth my S$19.90. And no copy-control crap! [>)]

I bought a few Jpop CDs to pop in on my second machine and listen to during my mining sessions in FFXI. My secondary machine, Chii, is connected to my speaker which accepts 2 inputs and plays them simultaneously.

And so out of the audio CDs I bought, 2 of them have cd copy protection. And to my great dismay and understanding, it involves tricking your computer into thinking it’s a data CD. It automatically launches an ugly looking player program from the CD and plays the tracks. What further annoys me is that program takes up 90+% of my CPU power. Very unacceptable. I guess I should have read the cd copy protection warning label closely.

Anyway, good job recording companies! Thanks to you, I now have to resort to digital alternatives downloadable via the internet.

The Chinese New Year falls on the 9th and 10th of February. Boss declared company off on 8th and 11th. I applied for leave on the 7th. The result is another long vacation from work. ^^

Last night, I had dinner at Edo Sushi at Thomson Plaza with a friend. The sushi we had were nice. I took 2 plates of salmon sashimi off the belt. I mixed too much wasabi with soya sauce. TOO MUCH WASABI. It felt like sniffing in tiny pieces of shattered glass and my eyes watered.

It was halfway through eating when I saw the price of the plates at the far back of the restaurant. $1.80 for colored plates, $5 for black plates. And the salmon sashimi I took were of black plates. [X(]

Anyway, the tempura ramen and beef noodle we ordered came. Both tasted very plain but at least it’s not unpleasant to the tongue. With all that sushi and the ramen, we were both very full.

me: “Ahh… I’m a happy man…”
friend, pointing at black plates with chopsticks “Five dollars.”
me: “fuck”

Considering the total bill was $44 for such “normal-taste” food and I don’t think I will be visiting Edo Sushi again.