I love the blue sky

Saturday, February 28, 2009
Beautiful Babes On A Delicious Dinner Date

Dinner at VivoCity on Wednesday with my favourite girls was really fun. We had Japanese cuisine at I-can't-remember-the-name-of-the-restaurant. They served really fantastic grilled meat dishes. I had a bowl of garlic rice too. Needless to say, I ate until I could eat no more. Haha. Thankfully, I don't eat like that every night!

We were so hungry that I forgot to snap pictures of our food before we started eating. Anyway, here are some shots which I managed to capture before everything was gone. ;p

The desserts came and were quickly devoured before I could whip out my camera! So, no pictures of the red bean, green tea and sesame ice-creams we ordered. My favourite was the sesame flavoured one. It was simply divine and more than made up for my craving for a chocolate ice-cream.

Here are two pictures of beautiful us!

Mel will be flying off tomorrow night - to a new life, a new family. I'm going to miss her, our DVD marathons at her place, our dine-outs, our chill-outs, our heart-to-heart talks, attending worship service together and all the other girly stuffs crazy girl friends do together. Although she was away in France for 3 years before, it didn't feel like goodbye forever back then. Now, I feel like a part of me will be gone. Although I'm sure we'll still be in touch (via Facebook and email) and she'll come back to visit, we won't get to meet up as often.

Anyway, I wish her all the best and may our Heavenly Father continue to watch out for her, work miracles in her life, and bless her marriage and new family.

One day soon, I hope to visit her in Belgium. :)

jOyZ blogged at 10:23 PM

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Tuesday, February 24, 2009
My 'New' Dress

I received quite a few compliments at work today about my 'new' dress. It caught me by surprise because I didn't realise I hadn't worn it to work before. Not that it was anything fantastic - just a simple black dress which I'd bought a couple of CNYs ago at Promod. Well, it felt good anyway to hear all the nice words. :D

Ironically, a couple of weeks back, M commented that she seldom saw me wearing dresses and my reply to her was, "Whenever you see me in a dress, it means I'm feeling too lazy to choose my clothes to mix and match." It wasn't my intention to dress up today, or whenever I'm in a dress for that matter. Haha.

Looks like I really should be buying more dresses to hear more of such compliments! ;D

More Korean music from 그들이 사는 세상 (The World They Live In), a K-drama soundtrack. It's my favourite at the moment.

jOyZ blogged at 9:26 PM

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Sunday, February 22, 2009
Zza Zza La!!

Some time back, I blogged a brief one about 연애결혼 or Love Marriage.

This afternoon, I went through the whole list of Korean songs in my laptop. When I heard this again, I was reminded of the crazy romantic comedy. It's a really catchy song. :)

jOyZ blogged at 6:11 PM

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A Lost Love

Recently, I realised that I'd lost passion in something I used to love so much.

For the longest period of time, many years ago, I enjoyed writing - so much so that I thought I'd become a journalist or a writer, and become disgustingly famous that I would only need to write a book every 5 years (to allow for meticulous research) until death would do us part.

Yes, I had this very dramatic dream that I'd write to my very last breath, mustering every ounce of energy in my dying body through my sheer love for writing, and collapsing only upon completing the final sentence of my last book. Haha. Admittedly, I had a dramatic imagination even as a secondary school pupil.

My love for writing was very much inspired by the many wonderful books I'd read while growing up. This is another love story altogether, which I may blog about someday. To cut the long story a little shorter (I have a feeling this is going to be a lengthy entry), basically, I read a lot and absorbed a lot of ideas and 'new' words from the writers.

At the same time, when I was in lower primary, my dad drilled me in grammar. Oh, I remember all those gruelling weekends when he'd make me go over my Tenses (from the simple tenses to the complicated perfect tenses) and Active and Passive Voiced sentences. It was AGONY but his efforts and mine were were paid off years later when I found it easy to score in English compositions while most of my peers struggled to secure a pass back in secondary school. For this, I'm truly thankful to my dad (though during those years, I really hated him for torturing me).

I remember a particular writing lesson I had when I was in lower secondary which made me realise how much I'd enjoyed writing. Our English teacher had divided the class into groups of four and we had to write a narrative story. Because HB (whom I'd lost contact with over the years) and I shared a frenzied craze over Nancy Drew series (back then, it was all in the rage with the girls), we decided to write a mystery about a missing girl. Oh, how we brainstormed for ideas and kept changing our plot so as to build our story up to an impressive climax. The other two girls on our team kept complaining about our fickle-mindedness and were so cross with us at one point that they refused to contribute anymore! HB and I didn't care and we continued fine-tuning our story. The other two relented when they saw the product of our tireless discussions and were all ready to submit the essay.

But, no, HB and I were still dissatisfied. This was the part where we started restructuring our sentences and replacing common words with more flowery, bombastic ones. Oh, how I enjoyed the entire process! HB's vocabulary was the most impressive in our team while I was good with sentence-construction, so we worked really well together. Very soon, our supposedly final draft was so filled with cancellations and untidy scrawls that the other two members got fed-up with us again. If it weren't for the fact that we had a deadline to meet, I think HB and I would have gone on editing our story. So, we copied everything out neatly in our final draft for submission. Needless to say, we scored very well, earning much praise from our English teacher which sent the rest of the class scrambling to read our essay. From then on, HB and I helped each other in our English. We'd read, give feedback and edit each other's essays - even when we went different classes in upper secondary. (We were crazy over Mathematics, too, but that's again another story altogether.)

In JC, my year-two GP tutor always gave very constructive feedback to my essays which helped me improve further. Then, in NUS, a tutor from a writing module taught us the importance of having a focus in writing, and how we could make our writing more readable and interesting. Suffice to say, writing is not about impressing people with your language abilities but more so the ideas you wish to convey. Lengthy sentences peppered with bombastic words are emphatically discouraged. These should be used with wisdom - that is, appropriately - to achieve the maximum impact.

After graduating, I stopped writing altogether and only picked it up again through blogging in 2003. Still, blogging is very different from essay-writing. I blog to record and/or reflect my daily routine and thoughts, or for no particular reason sometimes, while when I write, I become very aware of the technicalities involved. I have no idea when these technicalities became tiresome to me. Perhaps it's because I'd stopped writing when I barely got started, thus disallowing what I'd learnt at university to be put into good practice.

Now I say writing is a lost love because I dread typing out reports like class analysis and marker's report (a far cry from NUS days when I enjoyed researching and writing essays so much). I was supposed to have completed a SHORT write-up due for submission in January, but it's almost the end of February now and the piece of crap is only half-completed. :(

C is right, I suppose. I should make use of this to get started on writing again. -_-

jOyZ blogged at 11:48 AM

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Saturday, February 21, 2009
A Fusion Marriage Of The East And West

L'amour n'est que le roman du coeur, c'est le plaisir qui en est l'histoire ~ Beaumarchais

It was my first time attending a cocktail wedding reception. Mel had mentioned that they'd only invited about 30 people, so it was a really private affair. Everything was very tastefully done. The theme was Fusion of the Traditional and of the Modern and our beautiful bride was all radiant in a dark red modern cheongsam. The finger food was good; I gobbled much! Hah! And because the champagne was fizzy and had a fruity tinge, I downed more than usual.

Best of all, it was a great occasion to get together! It's always so difficult to arrange for meals together so I was really glad most of us turned up to congratulate and celebrate with Mel on her big day. Vivien, already 5-month pregnant, came too. (It's been a few years since we last saw her. I think she and Alex returned to Singapore last year or so after staying in USA for 2 years. It's really good to see that everything is going well for her.) Mag even rushed down from an EL camp at her school with Zhiwei. Unfortunately, Joce couldn't make it due to work. Hopefully, we could meet up with Mel one last time before she flies off to Belgium for good this coming week.

We had a great time talking, catching up with what's been and will be going on in our lives; then laughing at Gina's crazy jokes before latching more jokes on them and guffawing even more. Mel came by occasionally to talk and laugh with us before she was whiffed away to entertain her other friends. Her pretty sisters, both in modern cheongsam tops and sleek pants, came to take pictures with and of us too. (At one point, I caught up with Imelisa for a while and found out that she and Imelia might be going Sydney for further studies.)

Speaking of which, I'd forgotten to bring along my camera for the umpteenth time, so I'm hoping to snitch some nice ones from them soon. ;P Well, this should explain the lack of photographs in this entry, except for the one (at the start) of a beautiful little souvenir I received at the wedding reception. :)

Although I won't be able to attend their church wedding this September in Europe, I wish Mel and Seb a beautiful marriage and may God bless them with a wonderful family in time to come. :D

jOyZ blogged at 9:58 AM

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Saturday, February 14, 2009
God vs. Science

Every time I receive the following via email, I smile upon reading it. Heh.

Einstein - a Student in the Classroom

'Let me explain the problem science has with religion.' The atheist professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks one of his new students to stand.

'You're a Christian, aren't you, son?'

'Yes sir,' the student says.

'So you believe in God?'

'Absolutely.

'Is God good?'

'Sure! God's good.'

'Is God all-powerful? Can God do anything?'

'Yes'

'Are you good or evil?'

'The Bible says I'm evil.'

The professor grins knowingly. 'Aha! The Bible!' He considers for a moment. 'Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you can cure him. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try?'

'Yes sir, I would.'

'So you're good...!'

'I wouldn't say that.'

'But why not say that? You'd help a sick and maimed person if you could. Most of us would if we could. But God doesn't.'

The student does not answer, so the professor continues. 'He doesn't, does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer, even though he prayed to Jesus to heal him. How is this Jesus good? Hmmm? Can you answer that one?'

The student remains silent.

'No, you can't, can you?' the professor says. He takes a sip of water from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax.

'Let's start again, young fella. Is God good?'

'Er..yes,' the student says.

"is Satan good?'

The student doesn't hesitate on this one. 'No.'

'Then where does Satan come from?'

The student falters. 'From God'

'That's right. God made Satan, didn't he? Tell me, son. Is there evil in this world?'

'Yes, sir.'

'Evil's everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything correct??'

'Yes'

'So who created evil?' The professor continued, 'If God created everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to the principle that our works define who we are, then God is evil.'

Again, the student has no answer. 'Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things, do they exist in this world?'

The student squirms on his feet. 'Yes.'

'So who created them?'

The student does not answer again, so the professor repeats his question. 'Who created them?' There is still no answer. Suddenly the lecturer breaks away to pace in front of the classroom. The class is mesmerized. 'Tell me,' he continues onto another student.

'Do you believe in Jesus Christ, son?'

The student's voice betrays him and cracks. 'Yes, professor, I do.'

The old man stops pacing.. 'Science says you have five senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen Jesus?'

'No sir. I've never seen Him.'

'Then tell us if you've ever heard your Jesus?'

'No, sir, I have not.'

'Have you ever felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or smelled your Jesus? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Jesus Christ, or God for that matter?'

'No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't.'

'Yet you still believe in him?'

'Yes'

'According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your God doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?'

'Nothing,' the student replies. 'I only have my faith.'

'Yes, faith,' the professor repeats. 'And that is the problem science has with God. There is no evidence, only faith.'

The student stands quietly for a moment, before asking a question of his own. 'Professor, is there such thing as heat?'

'Yes.'

'And is there such a thing as cold?'

'Yes, son, there's cold too.'

'No sir, there isn't.'

The professor turns to face the student, obviously interested.

The room suddenly becomes very quiet. The student begins to explain.

'You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat, mega-heat, unlimited heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat, but we don't have anything called 'cold'. We can hit up to 458 degrees below zero, which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold; otherwise we would be able to go colder than the lowest -458 degrees.'

'Every body or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-458 F) is the total absence of heat. You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.'

Silence across the room. A pen drops somewhere in the classroom, sounding like a hammer.

'What about darkness, professor. Is there such a thing as darkness?'

'Yes,' the professor replies without hesitation. 'What is night if it isn't darkness?'

'You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something; it is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light, but if you have no light constantly you have nothing and it's called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to define the word.

'In reality, da rkness isn't. If it were, you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?'

The professor begins to smile at the student in front of him. This will be a good semester. 'So what point are you making, young man?'

'Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to start with, and so your conclusion must also be flawed.'

The professor's face cannot hide his surprise this time. 'Flawed? Can you explain how?'

'You are working on the premise of duality,' the student explains.. 'You argue that there is life and then there's death; a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a thought.

'It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it. 'Now tell me, professor. Do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?'

'If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man, yes, of course I do.'

'Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?'

The professor begins to shake his head, still smiling, as he realizes where the argument is going. A very good semester, indeed.

'Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a preacher?'

The class is in uproar. The student remains silent until the commotion has subsided.

'To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student, let me give you an example of what I mean.'

The student looks around the room. 'Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the professor's brain?' The class breaks out into laughter.

'Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor's brain, felt the professor's brain, touched or smelled the professor's brain? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have no brain, with all due respect, sir.'

'So if science says you have no brain, how can we trust your lectures, sir?'

Now the room is silent. The professor just stares at the student, his face unreadable.

Finally, after what seems an eternity, the old man answers. 'I guess you'll have to take them on faith.'

'Now, you accept that there is faith, and, in fact, faith exists with life,' the student continues. 'Now, sir, is there such a thing as evil?'

Now uncertain, the professor responds, 'Of course, there is. We see it everyday It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil.'

To this the student replied, 'Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there is no light.'

The professor sat down.

The student was Albert Einstein. Albert Einstein did write a book titled God vs. Science in 1921...

For we walk by faith, not by sight.
(2 Corinthians 5:7)

jOyZ blogged at 9:27 AM

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Wednesday, February 11, 2009
What's New?

Work this week has been pretty much alright so far. Of course there were certain frustrations and obstacles, but things don't go right all the time, do they? We just do what we have to do.

So, what's new?

I left work early yesterday and today. So early that it felt surreal. Ha. The feeling was good, nonetheless. I had the opportunity to meet XR for some recreation and we had dinner at a Japanese restaurant. I ate till my stomach hurt. HAHA. Honestly, we didn't order that much. We each had a bowl of noodles and shared a plate of soft shelled crabs. Then again, the bowl of noodles was really huge. It was nice chatting with her after so long; we didn't really finish catching up during reunion dinner on CNY Eve.

Today, I knocked off early to rest at home. I didn't feel very good. For one, I was having sneezing fits and, halfway through a lesson today, I could feel my throat giving way. So, yes, I'm losing my voice again - for the third time this year. I seem to have the tendency to lose my voice every 2 weeks. =\

Well, I'll be knocking off at my usual time (which is considered late in my profession) the next two days. Choir practices always end after 6 pm on Thursdays and I'm going to try to finish all my work for this week on Friday - before an all-girls' night out and, the following day, an overdue CNY visitation and a salsa class.

Hm, I must not forget the terribly overdue write-up too. That will be my primary task for Sunday - a good time to sit down, reflect and write.

Right now, though, I'm going to bed. It's going to be a long day tomorrow. Good night, world!

jOyZ blogged at 10:23 PM

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Tuesday, February 03, 2009
Nothing Much

It's been a little over a week since my last entry but nothing much happened.

The CNY break went a little better than expected, though it was rather tiring due to a full day of visiting. I wonder if I should be around for next year's CNY. :P I'll have to think about it next year. Hah.

I ate more than usual this CNY. Somehow, I couldn't stop stuffing myself with the goodies. Maybe it was because of recent weight loss. Unfortunately, I didn't get to eat a good piece of pineapple tart until I went C's new place with HL on Friday. We were supposed to have dinner together, but we ended up chatting and chomping on the CNY tidbits before the meal. HAHA. They were very addictive. Thank goodness I declined C's generosity to bring home some of the tidbits! ;p

After the long CNY weekend, the week at work that followed was rather short, so time seems to have flown by in a flash. It's already almost the end of the 9th day of CNY.

Speaking of which, I heard that 1B actually prepared a little surprise for me today during EL lesson. However, because I had to attend a dialogue session at CCAB, I missed their little surprise. I was told that they were disappointed when I didn't turn up for class. :O Ah well, it's a pity. But I still appreciate their efforts and kind thoughts. :)

Right, this is one of those days when I have much on my mind but can't seem to type out my thoughts. I'm probably tired. Well, till the next time I blog again then.

jOyZ blogged at 10:46 PM

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