A year and a half later...

I miss documenting things. I feel like I've been missing out on so many unforgettable opportunities but I have never had the urge to blog about them anymore. Some of them are going to be left forgotten just like that later in the future.

This is just a rant. Nothing more than that. My (not-so) regrets in life. But hey, there's more to life than just documenting them in the form of writing. I still have still pictures for me to remember them by, no?

Word of Mouth: Diary

There’s always a first for everything.

My first new experience for the year 2017 is attending a poetry night event: Word of Mouth.

I have never imagined that one night, I would be sitting on the floor, listening to an amazing bunch of poet and poetess. Never crossed my mind at all. Never thought that I’d like it, let alone love it.

But I did!

I enjoyed the pieces and some touched my heart. Especially because the theme is sooo personal: diary. If only I had put enough effort to feel the feelings that they were trying to deliver, I would have cried! (I almost did but I didn’t. Close enough.) I have yet to reach that level of emotional expression, obviously.

I did laugh though.

Excuse me for stereotyping but I thought poems are supposed to be deep, emotional and dark. I never thought that it would be humorous. Boy, was I wrong. These people expressed themselves well enough that the showcase was super entertaining for me. I enjoyed it so much, I would recommend everyone to come at least once to experience it themselves.

I was blown away that night. Too bad I didn’t get to stay for the whole thing. Next time, I’ll stay longer so that I can be swept off my feet by more awesome strangers.

Thank you to my friend for giving me a reason to check this thing out. I love your emotional piece that I can resonate well with. I wish I have the talent and courage to bare my soul to the public like you did. You did great and I am so proud of you! #minishoutout

Now, where’s my creative juice? Or to be more precise, where are my emotions?

Check this page out for similar upcoming events!

Happy New Year (Finally!)

Ummm. Happy…New Year!? Hehe better late than never!

This post is probably more suited for the coming Chinese New Year but whatever, I can start a new year whenever I want because WHY NOT.

Like every other year, I wish to write more. Just so you know, I have a somewhat similar post in the draft folder since three weeks ago but I never managed to click on the publish button because I was too distracted by other things that I had in mind at the time. Attention span level: goldfish.

BUT THIS IS HAPPENING. I AM FINALLY PUBLISHING THIS.

So, what are my plans and goals for the blog this year?

1. To finish posting all those travel logs that I started but never finish – simply sharing the photos should be acceptable (I’m keeping the expectation and amount of work low here, people).
2. To post the things that I have crossed off from this list.
3. To post about my new experiences and life milestones/achievements.
4. To bug my friends to write more so that I have things to read and that will pressure me to write more too.

And phew! That’s a lot. And they should be enough and hard to keep for this year.

Let’s pray and hope that I have consistent determination to maintain this blog better.

Cheers to a colourful 2017!

Update

Abandoned for ten (eventful) months.

Such a waste of opportunity (and stories)! But, it's never too late to do anything about it, yes, no?

So, here I go!

Okay...where do I start?

...

Maybe, later.

Every. Single. Time.

Summer Trip Travelog: Getting to Amsterdam

Our tour with Kelana Convoy started at Park Lane, London.

All participants were required to gather at this place by 7:30 a.m because the coach would depart at 8 a.m. sharp. We weren’t the earliest to arrive. In fact, we were probably one of the latest (not late though!). The bus was almost full when we went up to the upper deck to take our seats.

Our first destination was Amsterdam and to get there, we had to pass through France and Belgium. Based on the itinerary provided, the options to get to France was either by taking a ferry or traveling under the sea via Channel Tunnel (I know, sounds interesting, right?!).

The first pit stop was at Folkestone which meant we were going to use the Eurotunnel!

We had plenty of time before our ‘boarding time’ and thus, we were allowed to roam around the tax and duty-free mall. The crews also allocated some time to show the campers on how to set up a tent. This was crucial information for first timers like me and my friends, so, we took videos...

 

 

The journey to France through the Eurotunnel was only 35 minutes. You didn’t even notice the difference once you’re inside. The most interesting part for me was probably getting the vehicles in and out of the shuttle. #mudahterhibur

 

Europe has strict rules on drivers to ensure safe driving. A driver can only work 9 hours per day and a break of at least 45 minutes after no more than 4 hours and 30 minutes of driving is required. Therefore, to adhere to these rules, we had another pit stop: the chocolate factory outlet. (I personally think these rules are cool - it helps to reduce the risk of accidents and cares for the drivers' rights.)

 

At the chocolate factory, everyone went crazy with the free samples. The word free and Malaysians are a lethal combination. Given that this was the first pit stop, I didn’t go too crazy on chocolate shopping – budget and space-constraints. But I did buy four boxes of chocolates…and had a lot of free samples. :P

Later that evening, we arrived at our campsite: Het Amsterdamse Bos. We picked a spot by the small stream and set up our tent for the night there. Such a cool first camping experience, no? 

 

Photo credits: Uncle Mustaffa

A disgrace

Hello virtual world. It has been a while, eh?

My effort to keep the blog alive through posting snippets of my life has been proven to be unsuccessful. Let’s be honest, it was a halfhearted thing from the start anyway…

So, I reverted all of them back to draft to save myself from some form of disgrace.

I wish I’d write more. Really, I do. But I have so many excuses not to write or to finish writing. I have gazillion drafts everywhere: in my phone, in Word, in the draft box. The blogger (CHEH) in me, had ideas popping out here and there, whenever the urge to write came up. I just never found the time to sit and type a proper post because I AM PLAIN LAZY.

When lah all of my travel posts would be published? I ask myself the same thing.

Cottage Getaway

Over my last fall break, my friends and I rented a cottage in Gatineau, Quebec through AirBnB for fun.

We spent two days and two nights there. We made and had fancy meals, and played all sorts of puzzles and games till early morning...while also managing to study in between. #nerds

It never occurred to me that having a house in the middle of nowhere would be somewhat useful. Then, came this house and I fell in love with the idea. Just look at it, it's beautiful!

A beach house was the dream before but now, I want a house on top of some hill, overlooking the view from up high. Of course, the idea was wonderful for countries like Canada and the States because the forest is pretty (to me) and there’s no spooky and mystic stories (which Malaysia is rich with) and all that thingamajig.

We even saw a wild deer at one point. Excuse my low quality picture. Trust me, it's a real deer, not a painting...

Oh, just how lovely would it be to own a place like this, which is just a drive away, for a short getaway?

 *dreams away*

What I've Been Reading 006

1. Infinite Sky, C.J. Flood

When you want things to change, you have to do something different.

Some people can’t fit the mould that’s made for them…They get squashed in. And it’s hard for them to leave, but it’s harder for them to stay. They have to find other ways to be.

I can definitely say that the book was not exactly my cup of tea. I am not much of a deep-thinker when it comes to reading books. I usually take things at their face value (I really should work on this). Therefore, the book was a tad too heavy for me because it discussed discrimination and prejudice. How do I move on from light reads?!

2. Love Letters to the Dead, Ava Dellaira

I loved the feeling of being alone together in the car, like we could go anywhere we wanted. Just us.

I think a lot of people want to be someone, but we are scared that if we try, we won’t be as good as everyone imagines we could be.

It might have been more meaningful and interesting if I knew half of the people she was writing to (I don’t exactly know celebrities and their significant life stories well okay). I also might not have been able to comprehend the reason for May’s actions…

3. Lullabies, Lang Leav

If a boy ever says, you remind me of someone -- don't fall in love with him. You will never be anything more than second best. - Forewarned

I read poetry books like this because of the hype it has on the internet. I think I like Love & Misadventure more. The collections of poems in this book are very…plain? Disclaimer: the quote above was not something I really believed in.

4. All the Bright Places, Jennifer Niven

“Just be careful” implies that there’s an end to it all, maybe in an hour, maybe in three years, but an end just the same.

I love Finch for so many reasons and thus I was disappointed with the book. He’s definitely weird but he seemed like a fun person to hang out with. When I finished reading this book, I noticed the repeating theme of my recent book reads: secrets and suicides. So dark, I know.

5. I’ll Give You the Sun, Jandy Nelson

Your eyes are so ethereal, your whole face is. I stared at pictures of you for hours last night. You give me chills. And you give me global warming!

And some thoughts once thought are very hard to unthink.

This was one of my favourite reads. It was a tad odd at first because I have never read a book from the perspective of a homosexual person before. So, that was new. Other than that, I just loved the mini quirky things from the grandma’s bible (I’m pretty sure it’s not the real biblical excerpts, just a guide books of sorts). I wished the graphics were real though and not just mere descriptions.

Summer Trip Travelog: Tour Package

The most crucial part of traveling is the planning.

There are so many things to take into account: accommodation, transportation, attractions to visit, food, peoples’ preferences and budget. The amount of time you have to invest for research alone is endless when you have no clue where to start.

I was busy with school when the idea came up and therefore, I did not have much time to spend on searching for the best deals available on the net. Because my roommate was very excited about it, she did most of the hard work. She ended up choosing a tour package with Kelana Convoy that covered a lot of places in such a short amount of time AND most importantly, within our budget.

The best thing? We did not have to worry about finding our own accommodation, transportation and meals. All the bare minimum of those were included in the package. I mentioned bare minimum because the basics were: tent accommodations, transportation from each country to another (which was the tour bus) and most breakfast and dinners.

Extra money would be needed to cover cabin accommodations, sleeping bags, attractions’ entrance fees, local public transportation, meals that weren’t provided (lunch mostly), hot shower (yes, you have to pay for hot water at some places), flight arrangements and also pocket money. Other than those, you’re paying £485 which was around RM 2637 ONLY per person to cover 5 European countries within 9 days. Pretty much a steal, eh?

The next few summer trip posts will cover most of the places I visited with Kelana Convoy and also, my overall experiences. Check ‘em out if you’re interested in budget traveling (but I am not going to be reviewing the tour package per se because that’s not my focus).

Photo credit: Sylwia

Summer Trip Travelog: Thoughts on Northern Ireland

Our main goal in Northern Ireland was to visit as many attractions as possible, hence the tour and the limited time available for exploring Belfast city itself.

Based on our bus rides (and adventures while getting lost) around the city, I found the city to be really beautiful and unique: there are mixtures of modern and old building here and there. (I am very tempted to add some comments about the architectural values of them but I am not going to humiliate myself because, I know none.)

It was such a waste that we did not allocate more time to wander around. We could’ve gone to visit the place where Titanic was built‼ I did not even know that such thing existed there. I only found out about it when we were buying fridge magnet as souvenirs...I really lack general knowledge, don’t I?

Anyways, in that short amount of time (before and after the Giant Causeway tour), we did manage to experience a bit of the ‘local culture’. It was a pleasant surprise to find out that the locals were really nice to tourists like us. Every single time we seemed to be a bit lost, someone would always offer to show us the way to get to our destination without even having to ask for help!

Once, we were somewhere in the city, trying to find our way back to the bus stop. One lady saw us holding maps upside down and all and genuinely asked if she could help, which we gladly accepted. People like them really made the process of getting around so much easier, and less scary!

I would definitely recommend to visit Northern Ireland for those who get excited seeing grasses, trees and rocks. The landscape views were breath-taking and I would say they’re one of my favourites that I’ve seen so far. If not, just come and visit it to say hi to the extremely nice locals! :D

Last day of school

Today is officially the last day of school for Winter Term 2015.

My last day was yesterday. It still feels surreal. I do not want this to end just yet…

My final year was more than great, it was awesome. I got along really well with my course mates. I actually had real conversations with them and not just the mere ‘hello, how are you doing?’ stuff. I talked, I made jokes, made people laugh, annoyed people, learnt from people, taught people… you know, the things normal people do.

I never thought that I would feel so attached and boy, was I wrong. When I thought of doing grad school, I thought I would be glad to do it somewhere else, not Carleton. But now, it just feels so hard to do, to leave.

I guess it’s because I spent so much time in school in my final year compared to the last three years of schooling. Usually, me going to school only meant going to class. For the past two semesters, I went to school even on weekends, stayed beyond schooling hours.

Overall, I would say that I had a great ending to my school year, alhamdulillah. The passion took forever to kick in but I never felt any more productive than I have ever been this semester. Next, the finals, I hope I would end it with a bang on my transcript too. Pray for me, inshaAllah!

PS: Bear with me as I have withdrawal symptoms for the next few days, weeks, months, years even!

2.75-Year Goals

I am that person who keeps random list of things. I keep them in my phone, in my book, on post its, everywhere! List of things include books to read, things to buy, movies to watch and so many more.

Recently, I found a blog that has a post titled ‘101 in 1001 days’ and of course, I fell in love with the idea. It is essentially a challenge for myself kind of thing and since I am soon to be a graduate slash jobless person, why not do something productive or meaningful to kill some time? #wishfulthinking

I came up with a list of things that I think is achievable in a period of 2.75 years and it should appear here. I might not follow-through with all of them because my source of motivation is inconsistent and some things are just hard (not impossible) to achieve. BUT I will try my best to cross off every single one!

All I need is that push and strong will to keep going so that I have something to look back and be proud of. :P

Now, bring it on!

What I've Been Reading 005

I have got to keep this list up-to-date before I forgot about everything...

1. The Distance Between Us, Kasie West

But knowing about someone doesn't equate to knowing them.

You have as many options as you give yourself.

I enjoy this book mostly because of Caymen. She was portrayed as a girl with dry humor but I really thought she was funny. Maybe I was just in the #mudahterhibur team... The story was pretty cliché but cute nonetheless.

2. The Summer I Turned Pretty, Jenny Han

Moments, when lost, can't be found again. They're just gone.

For me there was -- is -- nothing better than walking on the beach late at night. It feels like you could walk forever, like the whole night is yours and so is the ocean. When you walk on the beach at night, you can say things you can't say in real life. In the dark you can feel really close to a person. You can say whatever you want.

I felt it a week before we left, every time. And then of course, when the time came, I was never ready to leave. I wanted to stay forever.

I read this book because I really liked To All the Boys I've Loved Before and I have seen this book in Chapters for so long. I was a tad disappointed that it wasn't exactly up to par...Belly was just annoying to me. However, I liked the last quote very much because it hit very close to home.

3. Pivot Point, Kasie West

"Wait, are you saying a love interest has to annoy you?"

And that reaction - my inability to react - scared me more than anything.

I expected this book to be as funny as The Distance between Us but of course it was not. The book was about a girl who can see situation in the parallel world if there was two different choices available to her. It was interesting but a bit confusing.

4. It's Not Summer Without You, Jenny Han

It wasn't the thought that counted. It was the actual execution that mattered, the showing up for somebody. The intent behind it wasn't enough.

Well, because I've read the first book, I should read the second one, right? Conrad was confusing as ever and Belly was still annoying...heh. The quote was an argument against the phrase 'it's the thought that counts'. The phrase couldn't quite be applied to all kind of situations, could it? Sometimes, actions speak louder than words (or thoughts).

5. We'll Always Have Summer, Jenny Han

A fight is like a fire. You think you have it under control, you think you can stop it whenever you want, but before you know it, it's living, breathing thing and there's no controlling it and you were a fool to think you could.

Girls with boyfriends, she'd said, limit themselves to a certain kind of college experience.

Belly was in college and she was still immature. The decisions she made were almost always impulsive and senseless and I have no other words to describe how childish she was. I liked the last quote because it rings true at some point. :P

Saving money

I just finished keying-in my record of expenses for the last 11 months. Yes, 11 MONTHS.

Obviously, I have been procrastinating and neglecting my personal finance for so long and of course, I have been in denial…

The satisfaction of being able to see the breakdown of my own expenses is indescribable. I like knowing where all my money went because it gives me a sense of control (albeit too late but there's still hope for future expenses). Sometimes, I try to reason with myself to justify my own spending. It’s not exactly convincing but hey, I deserve those sushi dates! And those bags of popcorns!

To be honest, I am not exactly a person that stays on budget every single time. I don’t even make a specific budget because I am very lenient with myself. To be able to stick to a budget would be an achievement to me. I used to have specific amount of savings that I would set aside every time I receive my allowance, but not since the past year.

I would blame that on my landlord’s son. (Obviously this is an excuse and I should be able to work around it if I really wanted to.) Ever since I moved to my current apartment, I always have to make sure that I have ~extra~ money in my chequing account because he couldn’t be consistent with depositing my cheques. Therefore, I am always left with the perception that I have saved enough money when in reality, I have not.

However, I would really give myself a pat on the back for resisting temptations. I have managed to kinda save money to satisfy my financial goals (travel adventures and whatnots) by:

1. Cutting down on junk food. Seriously, a bag of chips here is equivalent to the price of at least five apples. I’d eat my fruits thank you. But whenever they are on sale, sometimes, I’d sneak in a bag or two. :P
2. Packing lunch for long school days. The downside of it is you have to make an effort to cook. The upside of it, you get to improve your cooking skills. Sometimes, when I’m just plain lazy, rice and omelette it is! Comfort food is the best.
3. Avoid eating out or ordering in. I only would give in to this option whenever I got an invitation. Everyone is always busy so whenever someone invites me out, I would try to make time for it because your friends are important too! And it’s okay to splurge once in a while to eat nice food that is not prepared by yourself. :3
4. Find alternatives to entertainment. I enjoy reading and books are relatively cheap here. $2 for a hardcover book is a steal okay. But I only read my books once and after I am done reading, I stash them away in the bookshelves to collect dust. Therefore, I have moved on to reading books on my phone because I can download books for free. Library works too but that requires so much effort for a homebody like me.
5. Resist impulse purchase. However, I am rarely out and at times, I feel obliged to buy something just because. Therefore, the only time you would see me out and about in shopping malls is whenever I have goals to achieve or things in mind that I wanted to purchase beforehand. This includes grocery shopping too.

All of the above are mostly about resisting and avoiding purchase but it works well with me. I am not a big spender in the first place so I’d like to believe that I have the ability to control my wants. I don’t believe in over-controlling but I believe in being smart with your money. It’s important to have a sense of balance between security and leisure.

Money is not everything but hey, it does make your life easier!

I put a ring on it!

No, it is not an engagement ring nor a promise ring, guys!

It’s a wedding ring.

I am married to engineering…

Canadian has The Ritual of the Calling of an Engineer where future engineering graduates that have fulfilled all the requirements, receive an Iron ring as a symbol of obligation to the profession. It was a special, private ceremony and it was definitely an honour to be part of it. The ceremony procedures are not to be disclosed as it is a ‘secret’ and limited to the knowledge of participating engineers only. Therefore, I cannot share the details. :P

However, I can say that I am one step closer to graduating! InshaAllah :3

Skating Experience

Rideau Canal is the largest skating rink in the world.

This year, Rideau Canal broke its past record of the longest consecutive days open. It was Day 57 yesterday and I took it as a sign that I should go skating on it at least once before I return for good.

And so I did‼ I didn’t skate all the way (it’s 7.8 km long) but 3.3 km was good enough for me. *pats self*

It was obvious that we were newbies that sometimes, locals said hi to us and asked how we were doing and feeling. They also gave us compliments and words of encouragement along the way: “Good job, girls!”, “You’re doing good!”, “You can do it!”. At one point, a Canadian man stopped to show us a ‘quick lesson’ on how to skate. :')

Ah, I’m gonna miss these nice people.

At the end of the day, a maple taffy was well-deserved. :3