My sleeping cycle is all messed up

It is one of those rare, wonderful and frequently anticipated rainy nights where I should be deep in slumberland, yet here I am sitting in front of my computer nonetheless.

Day 2 of my semester break:

Woke to a nightmare featuring a killer whale that wanted to make a meal of me and my boyfriend at Sea World. It kept leaping out of the pool snapping its massive jaws, and we ALMOST GOT KILLED. Ran out of Sea World into a shopping mall, only to discover that said killer whale has the ability to transform into human form and track us down on foot. Got so disturbed trying to escape from the killer whale man in my dream that I woke in shock and dared not go back to sleep. I blame this disturbing dream on Vector's pet shark in Despicable Me. I watched that movie before sleeping, and look how it turned out. Yeah, only people like me can get nightmares from watching cartoons. *facepalm*

Had ambitious plans to wash my car after it went for routine servicing -- only to discover that dad got it cleaned at an RM8 car wash. Not too happy with the quality of the wash as I discovered many questionable marks on the roof (most likely to be bird poop), but decided to let it slide due to the amount of work I would have to go through to get it cleaned up (i.e. get the bucket, soap and sponge from upstairs, fill it up, spray the car, clean up the poop, rinse the soap suds, bring the washing equipment back up and clean them -- yeah very troublesome indeed.

So I decided instead to do a round of spring cleaning in my room since well, it has been awhile. I have chanced upon a number of happily settled spiders in several dark corners of my room during the past year. Or longer. Waiting around for nature to take its course wasn't really the best idea, I suppose. Armed with my new buddy, the vacuum cleaner, I think I managed to exterminate the spider population in its entirety. Felt quite pleased with myself until the dust attack that left my eyes and nose watering. Decided to call it a day then. Proceeded to humour myself for the remainder of the afternoon downloading new apps on the iTunes store and updating myself on geek news.

And a few hours ago, I entertained myself watching The Hunger Games. Deeply impressed by Jennifer Lawrence's performance in the film and am hooked to the plot and story. Spent an hour or so soaking it all up. Feeling rather satisfied albeit sleepy at this moment.


Realization #1: I need to do something with my life.

Realization #2: I am probably going to get nightmares again.

Mobili Workshop

HELLO WORLD I AM FREE!

AT LONG LAST !!!

Over and done with my second year, next up on my agenda is a one month break :D

Happy giler! *war dances in glee*

Today I went for the Mobili workshop and it was super fun. I was TOTALLY dreading the group project making session because I didn't know anyone there, pulled a horribly exhausting all-nighter and felt super shitty this morning. But as it turns out, I couldn't be more wrong!!! And I am soooo happy to be in the wrong for once!

My group mates are such nice people. Everyone was so agreeable and amicable that it was an absolute pleasure working together. And even though we didn't get any placing or anything for our attempt I am still so happy because I enjoyed the process so much.

All other groups each produced a very complete and comprehensive furniture mockup (yes they even came out with material selections and discussed jointing and manufacturing issues, super impressive!) whilst we created a conceptual model of a playground because we think that 6 people working on one furniture piece is just too mainstream. Kidding lah we just took a different approach to design -- do first and figure it out later ;)

My group and our playground masterpiece!

Here's a closer look~

It is damn cool. We even have a crawling machine (!!!) 

(That's the paper-fold inspired device on the left side of the bottom photo)

Our project was VERY creatively stimulating! Just look at the development possibilities there! For me it totally exudes elements of playfulness and fun. Gosh I love these hands on just-for-fun-no-stressing projects like this. Forget about insufferable criteria like exceedingly fine workmanship standards. Leave aside the mountains of research, precedent studies and difficult questions that are meant to break your spirit and discourage you. Equipped with just our minds and hands, it is amazing to see ideas form and take shape.

Disclaimer: I am not saying that workmanship, research and practicality aren't important. But it sure feels damn good to not let those things get in the way of your creative process.

You know, throughout the semester I got more and more frustrated and mind blocked about my design. Nothing seemed to turn out the way I wanted. Everything existed purely within the confines of my brain, but nothing could materialize. Today's workshop helped me rediscover my passion for it, resuscitate and reignite the thoughts and ideas deep inside my head that clamour to get out, but for most of the time remain trapped inside. Gosh this feels like unleashing the titans -- to taste the surge of power that was suppressed for a long time. Yup that just about sums it up.

Why am I waxing poetic all of a sudden? Chop chop let's move on.

So, today ALSO marks the end of my second year! Definitely worth commemorating! I submitted my FFFE (last pending assignment) today and I felt like a load was lifted off my shoulders. Oh god this feeling is damn awesome. I almost wanted to tear in joy because my struggle for this semester had came to an end.

My excellent mood resulted in me singing in the car at the top of my voice (accompanied with some sassy moves too *wiggles eyebrows*) as I wove my way home through the never ending stream of vehicles AND succeeding in avoiding traffic jams altogether! My day just couldn't get any better. 

I feel so contented.

This is bliss :)

Read of the day

The waterworks turned right on for me. A tale of family, injustice, sibling rivalry, dashed hopes, True Colors is a poignant yet remarkable story. Kristin Hannah, you've done a fantastic job! I'm officially a fan. I purchased this book for only RM8 at the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale last year. What an absolute steal! A full day of entertainment and five star read. You won't be disappointed -- I certainly wasn't! However, be prepared to weep your eyes out. I think I dried out my tear glands.

Silent conversation

I had a queer dream last night.

My distaste is written on my face when something or someone bothers me. It may seem rude, but I find that after expressing it -- albeit at times rather viciously, I will let the matter pass like water under a bridge. But many little things can somehow manage to get to me. It is convenient to blame it on my mild OCD tendencies, but at times I myself know better.


So this is how it began.

I tutted in annoyance when this lady stood in front of this beautiful fountain sculpture I was about to snap a photo of, partially blocking it. Many people were trying to capture a photo of it too, but I supposed that none of them were really bothered by her. In retrospect, a simple "excuse me" would have sufficed to make her move. But that was not on my mind at that moment.

She overhead me tutting and glanced sharply in my way but made haste to move away so that she wouldn't be in the frame. Me, finally getting the photo I waited for made my way back quickly. I did not look forward to an encounter with this lady. And so, I quickened my steps.

But to my dismay, she was right behind me. She tapped my shoulder and indicated that she wished for me to stop. A note was pressed into my hand, and she did not speak. The hurriedly scribbled note read of regret and apology, and her eyes were soft and pleading. I began wondering if I had mistaken the look in her at the fountain. Nonetheless, I nodded in acquiescence. She held my hands with both of hers for a brief moment before turning around. I watched her walk away; a flood of emotions surging inside, some of them identifiable.


Remorse. Shame. Guilt.


It was odd and rather disturbing that I felt so much after this encounter that took place in my head.

Happy Valentine's ♥

So this marks our third Valentine together. This year was a simple affair -- nothing elaborate, yet it was very, very sweet. Just an easy night out, no bookings or advanced reservations this year as we made our way to Sushi Zanmai at Paradigm Mall (and were very early, mind you). This is us before our meal! I shan't post any post-meal photos as I look utterly horrendous (let's not get started on my bloated tummy).

I absolutely adore my bouquet of pink roses. How very thoughtful he was to have gotten flowers in my favourite colour! And I noticed a pattern -- the number of roses seem to be increasing each year *evil grin*

Anyway just to tempt you out there (because I can and because I am evil this way), this is what we had for dinner! 

Spider roll topped with creamy mayonnaise and deliciously crisp soft shell crab tucked snugly within. You probably won't notice it but it is missing one piece here because I popped it into my mouth before I realised I had to snap a photo. 

Smoked salmon sushi. It's much more expensive now than before, at a staggering RM6.80 for this plate.

Okay, admittedly this pot of Seafood Nabe came in a much larger portion, but it was so very yummy and mouth-watering that we polished off half of it before I had the sense to snap a photo.

 My favourite salmon sashimi! This is pure heaven. I won't even attempt to describe it -- words really do fail me at this point.

California hand rolls

So that was my Valentines, and what a pleasant one it was! I donned my new red dress and applied makeup especially for the occasion :3 Just for the occasion! ;)

I am so immensely happy that I am still floating about. Thank you Codemasters for the timely one-week break -- you sure treat your employees well! Work resumes next Wednesday for me. I am well into my 2nd month at this job, and my term is ending soon. Which means that my next semester is coming very very soon! Oh dear.

Latest tech drools

I've been coveting the HTC Butterfly for quite some time now. Black and red is a super sexy combo! Why lah must it be so huge. This monster sized phone is not at all pocketable! Now if it were to come with a 4.5" screen with a thickness of around 8mm and also a battery size of around 2500 mAh or more, I'd snap it up in a jiffy.

Next up, the Sony Xperia Z. I really like the way it looks, and it comes in a stylish purple hue! But I'm not gonna pick up a phone that is a fingerprint magnet. I don't fancy the design of the on/off button -- it looks much too out of place! But I do like that it is water and dust resistant. It would be perfect for a person as clumsy as I am. Still very monstrous (and pricey).

The ZL is not coming to Malaysia, but I'm not minding it a bit. At almost 1cm thick, it is a fat phone for me. Its front facing camera positioned at the bottom does not exactly appeal to me either. Though I must say that I like it's size (width and height).

The Blackberry Z10 kind of fits the bill for me in terms of hardware design. My main gripe, however, is the OS. Having suffered at the hands of Windows Phone 7.5 for a sorry period of 1.5 years, my next phone purchase shall have an established OS. Either Android or iOS would be good. I have long since given up on Windows phones. And no matter how people rave over Windows Phone 8, I am a convert. GIVE ME MORE APPS. Enough said. And the camera of the Z10 fails to impress me. Another thing (other than the camera) that I've never liked about Blackberry is its asking price. I'll pass.

LG, Micromax and Nokia have failed to impress me with their designs. I was never a fan of the Optimus series. Or the Lumia for that matter, but I do like the camera with its floating lens technology and the wireless charging capability. But it's a brick of a phone. Sturdy it may be, I don't want such a huge phone. Girls have small pockets ok! My criteria goes this way: looks first, functionality second. I don't like fat phones -- anything above 9mm in depth is fat.

Nexus 4 is okay I suppose -- I do quite like the "disco ball" back (not surprising since I like glittery things), but it's form is outdated and much too reminiscent of the Samsung manufactured Nexus. Moreover, it would be nice to have an expandable storage at that price point. In reference to this article, I beg to differ. I'd much rather have the expandable storage and get confused any day. In fact, I'm feeling rather appalled at what Google thinks of its users. Man, thanks a lot for the confidence boost.



So, it boils down to both these 2 phones. The Note 2, whilst being everything I want, is too big for me to palm it. I really like the USB OTG capability on the S3, it is a super big plus point. And also the 3x4 on screen keyboard. I MISSED THOSE LIKE CRAZY. 3x4 keyboards should make a comeback! Paired with text input prediction, you can get your messages typed so quickly! I look back fondly at those days where I could text without looking at my phone. Days long past us now, sadly.

I like that Samsung had the foresight to equip last year's flagship with NFC. In this sense it makes it more future proof than the dual core iPhone 5. I find that the pop up play and multi view capabilities are really handy too. However I don't like the colour rendering of the screen, nor am I a fan of the screen. Despite the numbers and scores, it fails to win me over. Too dim, and very desaturated. The S2 was saturated to the point of being rather inaccurate. Samsung is just not getting it right.

On the other hand, the iPhone 5 wins in terms of design (pocketability!), hardware and camera. If iTunes weren't needed to transfer files, photos and music, that would be a major score for Apple too. Too bad its battery is so teeny. No doubt LTE would decapitate it, and I'm a sucker for mobile web browsing. So I need the juice! Love the screen on the iPhone though. They have got the recipe down pat.


All in all, I would feel like I'm getting more bang for buck with the Samsung. Can't wait for the La Fleur edition to hit Malaysian shores! It could be the ultimate deciding factor for me. But how I wish the S3 had Note 2 capabilities and specs. 2GB ram! S Pen!


Torn between choices.



P.S.
I am not really looking forward to the phones coming out this year as they are all likely to be gigantic monsters. A rumoured 5" 1080p screen for the S4. That's really likely seeing what its competitors have up their sleeves. But it is too big -- they are all too big for me :(

Give me a harder one

My favourite is still Tchaikovsky. Yes, even after so many years.

This meme makes me feel rather nostalgic.