Dilemma!

Hmmm.... what do I spend my first paycheque on???? BIG dilemma!! hahahhaha

I'm going to Orchard today!

Psalm 5

¹¹ But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

¹² For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous;
you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

* Pumpkin from the Lion City

Saying Goodbye

It's been a good 2.5 years with the airline (excl my sabbatical year) and I will miss the team. People have come and gone but the current team has great camaraderie and is wonderful to work with. I'll miss you guys (and the cheap flights too ;)) !! All the very best for 2009!

Short-lived happiness

The euphoria lasts
But a mere second in time
How disappointing

Haiku & CNY

Here's me taking a stab at writing Haiku:

Golden oranges
Pink cherry blossoms in bloom
A new year is here

Reminiscing Zagreb

Sept 2008

A new day...

A new day has come. Today America has a new leader, one who brings hope in the midst of economic gloom and financial turmoil. May God grant him much wisdom, strength and grace to make the right decisions - decisions that will have far-reaching consequences that will affect an entire generation and those to come.

It is indeed time for change. May the spirit of hope and virtue, honesty and hardwork live on.

Random thoughts

God has been good. Some decisions are hard to make. I need wisdom.

New look

Somehow I still like this template best.... altho it's the same as pumpkingoestoskool!! Oh, no matter.

Letting go

I think I'm learning to let go. Slowly but surely. :)

I'm looking forward to the move. It'll be an adventure, an opportunity to try new things, make new friends, widen my social circle, take on more responsibility. "The day you decide not to take on challenges is the day you stop growing."

Today has been a day of quotes:

The highest reward for a man's toil is not what he gets for it but what he becomes by it.--John Ruskin

No guts no glory.--Unknown

Prayer for the New Year

Thank God for small miracles. :)

*******

Almighty God,
by whose mercy my life has been
yet prolonged to another year,
grant that thy mercy may not be in vain.
Let not my years be multiplied to increase my guilt,
but as age advances,
let me become more pure in my thoughts, more regular in my desires, and more obedient to thy laws.
Let not the cares of the world distract me, nor the evils of age overwhelm me. But continue and increase thy loving kindness towards me,
and when thou shalt call me hence,
receive me to everlasting happiness,
for the sake of Jesus Christ,
our Lord.

Samuel Johnson: 1709–1794

Regret

Yesterday I did something that I will regret forevermore. Caused by poor judgement, lack of self-control and selfishness. I can only hope with all my heart that my foolishness did not cause irreversible damage.

I am more sorry than I have ever been. With all my heart, I hope that you will yet again forgive me. Please.

I'm here!

I've finally arrived in London - yay! It's Day 6 and things have just been a whirlwind around me. My folks have headed of to a swissoland and I've been attending one induction after another, doing the usual school and banking admin and working out the quickest route to school.

LSE has a whole host of public lectures... Alan Greenspan was here 2 nights ago for a lecture... I didn't know!

Last night I went with SY and CL to their CG meeting which is held at a barge beside Canary Wharf... how cool is that! Haha. It's London's first floating church wor... ;) Anyways, it's been fun apart from the wet and gloomy weather and the need to walk, walk, walk. I miss my car.

From now on, I'll be blogging about my Chevening year at pumpkingoestoskool.blogspot.com

Super Dad saves the day!

Yet again!

What would I do without my Dad? My car tyre burst in the mall yesterday evening and thankfully, I was still able to drive out of the underground parking and wait for Dad by the main road outside Tesco. Thank God for my handyman Dad... :)

My car looks rather spastic with it's spare wheel. The normal wheel is too large for the boot and had to be placed in the passenger seat... hahhaha. Photos to follow.

Counting down...

5 weeks and counting.... yippeeeee!!!!!

Here's a teaser.... ;)

A lovely affair

It was one of the loveliest weddings I have ever been too. Loads of people, young and old (proportionately more young), squeezed into what I'd imagine is a hall meant for 250 at most. ;) Celebration was in the air and the crowd cheered as soon as the bride walked through the sliding door. T'was definately a first for me! ;)

The ceremony was beautiful and meaningful with personal exhortations and blessings meant for the couple. All in all, lovely! I was moved to tears.. hehe.

What I've learnt:

1) Testimonies from the couple's marriage counsellors lend a personal touch to the proceedings.

2) Choice of speaker is VERY important. All speakers should end with blessings for the couple.

3) A smaller hall creates a cosier atmosphere.

4) The element of friendship in a marriage must be nurtured and not forgotten.

And a whole host of other poignant things.. hehe. Congrats D & B!

O my

The strangest thing ever. People talk about 6 degrees of separation. It's actually only 3 degrees... and it extends all the way to the UK!

"We are going to crash into the clouds"

Our tour guide, Tadashi, kept saying that when we were about to board the Ropeway at Hakone's Mt Komagatake - the second highest volcano in Hakone. Haha. He's a really cute old man who was waving a little red Mickey Mouse flag about to ensure we didn't get lost.

The day started far to early for my liking :P ... had to drag myself out of bed at about 6am and trudge along towards Royal Park Hotel for the Hato Bus pick-up. By 9.30am, we were on the way to Mt Fuji and I was nodding away towards the "little" Spanish boy who happened to be sitting next to me. He actually filled more than his seat and more into mine. :P

Nevertheless, the tour guide was entertaining with stories of Japan's past and the Shogun. He even gave us a dose of his viewpoint about the previous and current Prime Minister. Apparently, they both strive to be obedient to the American President, for trade reasons. He also taught us to make an erupting Mt Fuji so we would have our own "personal" Mt Fuji's. Hahahaha. Ask me and I might just teach you. ;) He also left us with some instructions on how to make a Shogun's helmet. Kewl. I'm gonna try with newspaper when I get back. Apparently, it's just the right size for a normal sized head. :P

Mt Fuji was glorious today, albeit for a short period of time. According to Tadashi, Mt Fuji is a shy mountain. So much for that. Anyways, I have been inspired to climb it. R's climbed it. I just need to find kaki to go with. I reckon that'll be harder than it sounds. Sigh.

The day ended with a ride on the Shinkansen (Bullet Train)... I actually thought it was going to be so fast that everything outside would be a blur... hahaa. Not. But it was a restful ride nevertheless.

Anyways, it was a lovely day and we're off to Yokohama tomorrow. Here're some pics from yesterday and today.

People are so considerate. Those with flu/cough don face masks so they don't pass on their germs to others. I took the shot because I noticed the word "pumpkin" on the advert, since I couldn't read anything else! Haha.

This little girl was trying to clean her mouth with her tougue while her daddy was rummaging thru his bag for a tissue. She's doing a pretty good job I reckon.

Falling asleep in Asakusa.

Everyone's always on the go. People don't even sit down at eating outlets when there are chairs. They prefer to stand. Here's an old man having a Red Bull. Btw, I've been told that everything can be bought from vending machines.... thus far, I've only spotted drinks and ciggies. Urban legend ler!

So... desuka!

I've finally realised where all the old people in Tokyo are... they are in Asakusa! It's a lovely part of the city slightly up north which gives one a feeling of being in an older part of Tokyo. There were loads of older folks here.. hehhehe. I'm learning more and more about life here:

1) Different people hangout in different parts of the city. One would hardly see youngsters from Harajuku or Shibuya or Shinjuku around the Ginza area.

2) Most women wear REALLY high heels and walk super fast. Hence their feet are a little deformed and they tend to walk bow-legged.

3) Shopping in Ameyoko is amazing! Bought a cool red Adidas tennis skirt among other things for only RM 15! Loads of food everywhere.

4) One can buy anything and everything from the 100 Yen shop. It's exactly like the One Pound Shops in UK.

5) Everyone's really well dressed either made up or in suits.

An "early" start to Day 3

It's 10.20am... and we've only just woken up.. hahhha. This is what I'd call a REAL holiday!

Mori said there are 3 types of young people in Japan:

"Normal" young people - Kids who've been to university and have "regular" jobs.

"Freeters" - Those who work in restaurants, bars and other places part-time just to earn enough for a living or to travel

"Needs" - Those who live off their parents..... hahhaa. Society is so harsh!

Ok, I need to go get ready now.... it's supposed to be rainy today. :P See ya later alligator.