In a sea of dogs

Birthday shoutouts: 14O511 - Kelly's 19th ; 15O511 - Shirley L.'s 19th; 22O511 - Titan's 19th; Peter D.'s 20th.

Last Sunday, Karen and I volunteered for the Million Paws Walk event. Karen was the one who informed me about the event. Unfortunately, there was track work that morning, so we took the bus to Lidcombe station at 6:20AM in the morning =___='. It was freezing cold!!! I wore 3 - 4 layers of clothing, a scarf, mittens, and 2 pairs of socks and I was STILL cold =____=. Yep, winter's definitely coming. We then took the train from Lidcombe station to Olympic Park station, where the event was held. We signed in and waited for our leaders to take us to our booths. Karen was doing cupcakes while I was doing competitions. We waited for 15 - 20 minutes but still no one showed up so we decided to look for the booths ourselves. After we found where our booths were located, we went to our separate activities. I honestly didn't help much. 

 Competition booth.

Karen and I.

There wasn't much that we could do at our booth besides waiting for customers. I helped stick up photos, but that's about it. I guess the cold weather was draining my excitement away. But then it came back as more and more cute looking dogs came to the competition booth. They were all just so damn adorable! When I saw one of my team members taking photos, I couldn't help myself and started taking photos too. There was a particularly cute puppy that I saw. It was a brown poodle and it was only 3 - 4 months old. The owner said that it cost her $800 O_O pure breed I'm assuming. We encouraged them to enter it, but they didn't. What a shame =(. It would've won, without a doubt. I swear, it looked like a bear plushie, it didn't even sound like a dog when it was crying. IT WAS SO CUTE xD !!!!!!!! I just wanted to steal it and run away with it xO !!! Afterward, I just went around taking photos of dogs and encourage them to enter their dogs in the competitions. I had quite an exercise taking photos of the dogs seeing that most of the time they're too excited to sit still.

The adorable 3 - 4 months old poodle puppy =).

The weather got warmer as it reached the afternoon. To warm myself up even more, I went to get a cup of hot chocolate. While I was waiting in line, there were these HUMONGOUS dogs I've ever seen, well... beside the greyhounds. But these are dogs I've never seen before. Well, there were a lot of dogs I haven't seen before, but at least I know what they are from photos. These dogs, I had no idea what breed it was (something that ends with burger... I swear it did, that' why I remembered it). The owner said that it's a rare breed or something like that. It looked kind of like a German Shepherd, but a bigger and fluffier version. Well, anyways, I was scratching the bigger one on the side and I guess it liked the way I was scratching it, so it sat down (on my foot...) and sandwiched me between itself and the cafe counter ... It was quite hard to turn around seeing my back was against the counter and all. I know I'm not that tall to begin with, but it's like 1/2 - 3/4 my height or something O_o.

The huge dog! To other 'normal' people, it's up to their waist; to me, it's up to my chest...

I went to visit Karen when the walk began at around 10/11AM and then went back to taking more photos =). There was a particularly adorable chihuahua that got attached to me. It was so cute and scared of the other dogs, it crawled onto my lap and stayed there AWWW I wish I could keep it, but I had to put it down =/. After the walk, it was the competitions. There were 3 competitions: a) cutest pet; b) owner look-alike; and c) best dressed. I felt bad for the judging of the cutest pet because it was quite short. All the judging for the competitions were short =/. Some people even missed out because they were late. I also felt bad for them too but then again, they should've been there at the start. Though, some people were late because of the walk. Anyways, out of all the judges, all I remember was Dr. Katrina. She had adopted a dog for herself too (not from the event though, it was from before) and she was judging the cutest pet. The judges chose the best 5 and the audience chooses the winner. I don't remember who won the cutest pet nor do I think I have a photo of the dog. However, I DO know that for the owner look-alike, it was the superman Labrador and a boy who won (I wanted the clown dog and the girl to win though. Both the superman dog and the clown dog were wearing matching costume as the owners) and I think it was because he was child compared to the girl; and for the best dressed, it was the 2 dogs who dressed up as policemen. 

The chihuahua that got attached to me =). It's actually sitting on my lap in that photo.

Dr. Katrina.

 Best dressed winners.

Pet look-alike. It looked more like best dressed to me...

Since the competitions ended early, the competition booth packed up early too. I went to Karen's booth and waited for her to finish. I ate some cupcakes while I was at it. I also bought some doggie treats for Toby and watched how they wash the dogs and what the heck they were doing to make the poor things scream in despair. Turns out that the dog(s) just really hate water. The one I was watching hated it so much that it was crying and clawing and biting into the mat. It was an interesting sight to behold. I also went to the adoption area and saw the dogs up for adoption. I even saw a poster of a chihuahua of 5 months old for adoption. What kind of person or mother would abandon such a young puppy?! But I guess it will be bought quickly since people prefer young dogs than old ones. Most of the dogs were 1 or 2 years old. There was even one that was 5 years old. There was also a rooster who was up for adoption too O_o. There was this particular adoption dog that was quite friendly towards me. It was very energetic and it makes me smile when I look at it =). I wish I could keep it, but I already have Toby =/. I hope they all find good homes. Mum said I should've brought Toby along. I thought I couldn't since I was volunteering. Maybe I will next year =).

 Cupcakes =). I was going to take them home, but I waited too long for Karen that I ate them all there on the stop anyways, as lunch =P.

Afterward, Karen and I just went home with our free bags and movie voucher as a reward for helping out with the event. There were also other things in the bag too like caps, sunscreen, pen and wet wipes =). My assignment was due the next day and I was extremely tired but I had fun. I had no regrets =). Also, I've never seen so many dogs in my life xD.

PS. because I kept missing up the genders of the dogs, I decided to call them 'it' in my blog post instead.
PSS. There were these 2 girls who had rats for pets. That's the only other type of animal that I've seen at the event, besides dogs. I was amazed =D!
PSSS. Throughout the day, we had these duo singing and playing the guitar on stage for us. They had pretty good taste in music, according to my team members anyways =). 

The duo performers/singers and the judge (on the left).

ANZAC Day Movie Marathon

23O411 - Minhky's 19th Birthday.

Happy ANZAC DAY Everyone=).

Let us remember those who have fought bravely in the war; let us respect the soldiers who made use of their courage to help their country; let us think fondly of those who kept the country safe. May they rest in peace.

To celebrate ANZAC Day, Thanh decided to hold a BBQ and movie marathon at his house. Since Mimi offered to drive me there, I was one of the people who arrived later to the house. Not wanting to be useless, I helped out with the preparations of the food. It wasn't much, but I tried. I still don't understand why we needed so many onions for ... I don't think we finished it =.= So much for slaving away at the stove to fry it for like 10 - 15 minutes =.='. Anyways, the food was great: the smash potato salad, with ham and herbs, was delicious, the brownies were yummy and the meat was juicy (even though half the time it was burnt pitch black ...). 

 Washing the dishes was a mess... Well, actually I was the cause of it ^_^'. I wasn't used to the lack of space because my own sink was slightly bigger and I kept forgetting not to plug the drain *sigh*. My apologies to Kelvin, Maxine and Shirley. Shirley ended up cleaning the rest of the dishes while I went to blow dry my jumper and socks. Thanks Thanh, for letting me borrow your hair dryer =). The people who were waiting ended up playing pinball on the computer hahaha.

We ended up watching the movies inside the house, rather than outside against his neighbor's wall, because it got a bit too chilly. It got a bit crowded but it was warm =). We had Mimi's box of Favourites (chocolate variety), popcorn and some brownies. It was a shame that the jelly didn't set fast enough =(. 

The first movie we watched was Gnomeo and Juliet, directed by Kelly Asbury, with James McAvoy as Gnomeo and Emily Blunt as Juliet. The movie was your typical fairytale story; a parody of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Though, even though it's predictable, it still brought a smile upon my face; I'd choose a sappy, happy ending over a dramatic, sad ending any day =). I think I'd rate it a 7 out of 10 =).

The next one was The Notebook, directed by Nick Cassavetes, with Ryan Gosling as Noah and Rachel McAdams as Allie. It's a sweet and romantic movie, but if you add the guys' commentary to the mix, you get innuendos, hilarity and romance scenes becoming a joke. One word: ROFLMAOS !!! For example, during the scene where they taking their clothes off and were about to make love, the guys mentioned how disappointed the girl looked ROFLS! I knew what they were implying but I don't think that was what they were trying to act out. Even so, it was hilarious xD. Maxine, Mimi and I couldn't finish the movie off because of Mimi's brother's time restriction but I've watched the movie before. I remembered it was a sad movie but I didn't remember if I cried or not. Speaking of crying, Stephanie did end up crying a bit awww =). I think I'd rate this movie an 8 out of 10 =). 

For the rest of the ride home, we some how changed the topic from romance to ghosts. How that happened, I don't really know - oh wait, it was because we passed a 'ghost house' on the way home. Apparently, a truck drove into a house and killed a girl, and she was now haunting the house, but then a new family came in and they were suppressing her because they were people who dealt with voodoos and supernatural related issues. Or so they say anyways. But rather than feeling scared, I felt comfortable and okay with talking about it. We ended up laughing as well =). I think it was Nathan C.'s influence =). He believes in ghosts too but he managed to make me believe that not all ghosts are vengeful ones; they can be just nice, harmless ghosts with regret and that they may be observing people rather than planning to harm them. I'm quite grateful towards Nathan because if it wasn't for him, I'd still believe that all ghosts hold grudges. Watching Ghost Whisperer also helped me with my fear of ghosts =). Anyways, I also mentioned about my incidents when I was home alone; about My Linh's dream and me waking up in my dark house with the radio playing a ghost story. Anyways, many thanks to Andrew for driving me home and I hope they don't have nightmares tonight LOL!

Diary Entry #5: HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR =D !!!

Dear Diary,


It was finally Chinese New Year. I celebrated, at home, with my 2nd uncle's family. We had a vegetarian meal for breakfast. Vegetarian food makers sure were good with making their food taste like meat. 


We continued celebrating at Grandma's house (she's actually living with 4th uncle, and his family, and eldest aunt and her husband). Majority of the family was already there; it was a huge family O_O! Apparently, it was tradition to 'jum cha' to people that were older than you (I don't really know how to explain it in English; give drinks to?) It was also tradition for those that are married to provide the youngsters red pockets =D. Speaking of drinks, because I wasn't feeling so well, my 4th aunt gave me this mysterious herbal drink. Apparently, depending on what taste and how strong a taste it is, you can identity what part of you is unhealthy. When I drank it, it was really bitter; they said that it was my stomach or something =S I don't completely remember. I thought it was a pretty interesting drink though. While at Grandma's, most of the time I was upstairs, in Yong Xian's room, with cousin Yong Xian, Mun hong and Jai Huey. 

Jia Huey.

Jo Kenn.

After half an hour, 2nd uncle and his family took me to 2nd auntie's brother's house. We had a light dinner before having some fun with dressing up. Actually, it was more like my aunt and cousins chose clothes for me to try and I pick out the ones that I liked. Aunt's brother's wife sold Korean and Japanese styled clothings. The clothes were quite pretty but I guess I wasn't to used to wearing such stylish clothes. Since we were family, she gave us a discount YAY! I even though a dress for mum but I'm not sure if she'll wear it =/ she usually wears pants and t-shirts after all... kind of like me =P. Oh wells, guess she needs a change as well =D. For the other half of the visit, I spent my time playing with their son (Zhi Loon). We played with legos, Jenga, Uno and Counter Strike; with Counter Strike, I just watched him play. 

Later on, we went to 4th auntie's restaurant for CNY dinner with the entire family. Had an extravagant dinner with Loh Sang (a traditional CNY dish with a combination of various side dishes; we would all mix it together saying lucky things for the CNY) and shark-fin soup, but I spent more time taking photos with family members than eating; it's a very big family after all. Ah, it's understandable, I haven't seen them in ~10 years or so. Zhi Loon came along with us to dinner but he didn't eat much. Maybe he felt awkward =S. I think I should've worn tights or skinny jeans or something, but then again, I didn't bring any. Malaysia's really hot after all. Still, I looked like I wasn't wearing anything under my shirt since it's so long. Apparently, cousin Mun Hong and San San were collecting money from my relatives to buy me a new camera. I felt really touch =) it's very nice of them since it's not their fault that my camera broke. I offered to pay half but they said they've collected enough already. I should treat them to dinner before I leave =). 

Loh Sang =).

Grandma and I =).

 All my cousins, my Grandma and I =).

At home, prepared some lychee jelly for the next day. Zhi Loon was sleeping over, but before that, he wanted to play games. I offered to play with him. We played PS2 and and a bit of fireworks. I was defeated, repeatedly, over a Naruto dueling game. Knowing me, I pretty much button bash for any type of fighting game, so I obviously lost over and over again; I knew none of the special moves *sigh*. HAHAHA Zhi Loon is kind of a sore loser; when he loses too much in a game, he decides to play a different game. But he was a nice boy, he actually lets me have a go rather than hogging the entire game to himself =). By 1AM we went to sleep. Another day gone.

 

Roasting nuts and some sort of Vietnamese dry fish.

Home made lychee jelly =D !

 The red food containers in the middle plays the CNY song =D !

Adieu,
FiONA =). 


PS. All these Chinese names that I'm spelling in my posts, I'm pretty sure that they're not quite precise, but it's the best I could do LOL!
PSS. Thanks cousin Mun Hong for the photos =).

R.I.P Mr. Duong

Mr. Duong's funeral was held from the 24th to the 27th of January. For the first days, relatives and close friends were there to listen to the prays and blessings of the Buddhist monks. I tried not to cry, to stay strong for Linh and her family but I couldn't help it when I saw the family's tears of sorrow and grief. I stayed there until they were closing the funeral place for the day. I was driven back home by Anthony; I was very grateful. The next couple of days, I didn't manage to go because of certain inconveniences. 

On the last day, Thursday, it was the day of Mr. Duong's cremation. The day started at 9:30AM, at the Fairfield funeral place. The monks said their blessings and prays; a close relative made a speech in Vietnamese while Linh and My Linh made a speech in English. Linh did all the talking since My Linh seemed as though she couldn't stop crying. By the end of it all, we lined up outside and waited for them to carry the coffin into the car. It was heartbreaking to watch the mother. I felt so sorry for her. Tears fell. The day was sunny; I thought it was very fitting for Mr. Duong's personality. It's as though he's saying, 'don't be sad that he's gone; smile, because it's a beautiful day.' I miss him. Throughout the whole event, I kept replaying all the little, special moments I shared with him. 

Anthony was generous enough to drive me to the cremation place, at Camden Valley, Leppington; but we passed by Linh's house before that. I guess it was tradition. It was also tradition to turn our headlights on throughout the whole trip. Jack and Elin did a good job guiding the cars there. At the cremation place, more prays were said by the monks. Flowers were given to everyone to place it on Mr. Duong's coffins. Respectful bows repeated again. Then he was gone. Hugs, kisses, comfort and tissues were given to the family while vegetarian pork rolls and water bottles were handed out to everyone. After 10 - 20 minutes of waiting, our next destination was the temple. 

Funnily enough, all the friends of My Linh and Linh went to the wrong temple. Made sense, since we were all following one another. Then calling Linh for directions, we went to another temple. Wrong one again... We were all laughing and shouting in annoyed mood. Then finally, third time lucky, we made it to the temple. It was the one across the Bonnirigg Plaza. We paid our respects and made one final bow of respect at Mr. Duong's photo and left. After a couple of minutes of chit chats and eating outside the temple, everyone went their separate ways. Most of Linh's friends decided to go back to her house. I asked Anthony to drop me off at Cabramatta so that I could buy my travel insurance. He was generous enough to take me back to Linh's house as well. 

I was a bit surprised to see the family handling so well and moving on so fast. But I guess Anthony was right; they want to move on, they want to be happy and continue living. I'm sure it's what Mr. Duong wanted. They're just following his way of life. I'm glad that I've met such a family. Majority of us have changed out of clothes, either because they had spare clothes packed in their trunk or they went home, changed and came back to Linh's house. Before we headed out to dinner, we played card games and watched tennis. We were all having fun and joking around; it felt like it was just another normal day. I guess we were all trying to not bring up anything sad, and be happy for the family's sake. 

It wasn't until around 7PM that we left for Canley Heights for dinner. It was funny how we had dinner at one restaurant and then desserts in the restaurant next to it. It was even more embarrassing to come out and see the boss of the previous restaurant standing outside LOL. For once, I actually took away my dinner to save it for the next day. Seeing that I'm currently living by myself for a couple of days, it wouldn't hurt to grab as much food outside as possible =P then I wouldn't have to cook or wash the dishes. Initially, I thought I wouldn't be able to finish the dessert on my own, so I thought of just having half, and give the rest away. But I end up eating it all anyways. I guess you really always do have room for desserts =D. Sorry  Kenny, I ate all the dessert even though I said I'd give it to you lol. We all went home after that. Many thanks to Anthony for driving me all around the place =). I hope Linh and her family wont be sad for too long.      

R.I.P 22O111 Mr. Duong.

You welcome everyone with arms open and a bright smile on your face. I couldn't help but feel comfortable with you as you try to converse with me in Cantonese. I hope you rest in peace and continue watching your family and friends up there. You'll not be forgotten because you'll always be loved by those who care about you.

Strawberry Sponge Cake with a Christmas Touch

1OO111 - Sohpie's 18th & Vicky's 19th Birthday ; Happy Birthday Sophie & Vicky =D.

I know Christmas is already over but there's no harm in preparing for this year's Christmas is there? At first, I was looking for the recipe for strawberry gateau but I couldn't find an image or the recipe that I like, so I decided to post a strawberry sponge cake making video recipe instead =). I took the recipe from a youtube user, 'cookingwithdog,' which focused mostly on Japanese food; so if you're interested in learning how to make Japanese dishes, check out this site.

Watching that video makes my mouth water =P. The video provide the instructions while the 'more information' box provide the required ingredients for the strawberry sponge cake.

Currently, I'm craving for strawberry gateau but honestly, when I look at a strawberry gateau, strawberry shortcake and a strawberry sponge cake ... I can't really tell the difference in appearance =S I'm sure they all taste differently. Then again, I've never had a strawberry shortcake or a strawberry sponge cake before, not that I remember anyways. Anyways, I hope you'll be able to learn how to make this delicious looking sponge cake and spread the happiness from eating and/or making sweet desserts toward your friends and family =). 

PS. Since I can't give Vicky or Sophie a birthday present, this can be her virtual birthday present from me =) it's delicious looking AND it doesn't give you the calories ;D.

for once, family comes first

O6O111 - Zak's 21st Birthday.

It's been years since I last celebrated something at my aunt's house. Yes, there were special occasions where we'd have special dinners at the city. Yes, there were a couple of times where I hanged out with my cousins. But eating a home-made dinner with the family at my aunt's house has been rare as we all got older. To be honest, nothing particularly exciting or crazy happened; just a small get together with the family, including Marina's boyfriend and family friend, Andrew. 

For that night's dinner, it was cousin William who became the chef and she sure whipped up a scrumptious citrus and chicken salad =). Everyone all loved it. We also had cooked salmon, fresh oysters, raw salmon and Japanese seaweed for dinner. It was a mixture of American and Japanese cuisine =). because there wasn't enough chairs around the dining table, cousin Marina and Andrew went to eat in the living room. Conversations during dinner mostly consisted of food, my studies, food, my face looking better, food, Chinese things and oh, did I mention food? I know we were eating but the topic about food became a bit mundane as it repeated continuously throughout dinner lol oh wells.

 Jaffa =).

 Hector =).

After dinner, we watched a bit of TVB drama 'War and Beauty' before playing a game of $1000 minute. It was a board game of trivia. To be honest, I'm not a huge fan of trivia board games because I suck. I utterly and completely suck. You know why? Because I live under a rock; my knowledge about the world around me is quite minimum. So little that, it all honesty, it's pathetic. I admit, I really do need to be more aware of the world around me. Anyways, I practically saw the results of the game already - me in last place. And I was. We played until 12AM to watch the fireworks. 

Honestly, I didn't feel as excited and happy as I was last year when I was watching the fireworks with my friends. Maybe it was because of the atmosphere ... My cousins and Andrew were too busy sending out NYE messages to pay much attention to the fireworks. if I had credit, I might've done the same thing, but I didn't. Or, I don't know, maybe they could've sent it earlier or something so that we can all watch the fireworks in peace. I mean, they all didn't succeed in sending it to all their friends anyways, with all those errors they kept receiving =S.

After the fireworks, we just talked a bit before I decided to go home. The only thing I wish I did was taken a photo with my cousins because it's been years since we last had a family photo of some sort. Unfortunately, they didn't want to take photos because they weren't dressed up and all. Oh wells, maybe next time. 

New Year's Resolutions for 2O11

HAPPY NEW YEAR AND ALL THE BEST, HAPPINESS AND SUCCESS TO ALL MY DEAREST FRIENDS AND FAMILY AND TO THEIR FRIENDS AND FAMILY =) !!!

To all my dearest friends and family, I thank my lucky stars for having you in my life and I hope that we will grow old and share our happy, and sad, times together because I want us to grow closer and closer as the years pass by. I sincerely thank you all for being there for me when I needed it the most. I understand I can be an insufferable fool at times (or most) and I apologise for that. I deeply appreciate your friendship, and your existence in general =). My experiences with you all have gradually changed me into the person I am today. In the past, I may have done some regrettable things to those close to me, either intentionally or unintentionally (at the moment, it's the latter since I can't think of anything so far that I've done to intentionally hurt someone, or I hope I didn't anyways) and I'm sincerely sorry about that, but the past can't be changed. Hence, I aim to achieve a happier future with my close ones by making sure I minimize my regrets in the present. This may sound selfish, but I hope you will all continue to join me on the path to a happier future =). I LOVE EACH AND EVERYONE ONE OF YOU and I truly mean it when I say that I wish for your happiness =). You're all irreplaceable and original, and I hope you all know that =). 

This is my new year's resolutions for 2O11 (in no particular order of importance):

1. Be 45+ Kgs.
2. Listen to people more.
3. Do better in my studies.
4. Get my Ps.
5. Learn to cook more food.
6. Interact with my family more.
7. Sleep at the appropriate time.
8. Find a job.

So far, I have 8 resolutions. Hopefully, I can achieve them all by the end of the year =). I hope everyone can achieve their own resolutions as well =). All in all, I welcome you 2O11 =).  

Mr. Claus is a Miss ?!!!

Just kidding =).

Linh and her family held a Christmas party on Christmas eve and she invited her friends over, including me. It was a BBQ Christmas party in her backyard; friends were separated on a different table to family. I guess not everyone was too hungry because after a half an hour of eating, the kids, Linh and friends decided to go to the park to play some football. It was pretty fun but I must apologise to Alan and Bonny for scratching them. It was unintentional of course! I also felt sorry for Jack because he did most of the running while the rest of just stayed back LOL. It was cute to see the kids run around though =) one of the little boys even tried to take me down; he was so cute =D. After an hour or so, when we were playing stuck-in-the-mud, Anthony and friend met up with us. Surprisingly, Anthony's friend was Long. When we saw each other, we were quite surprised because we didn't expect to see each other at ALL. It's bee a couple of years since I last saw him.

I had to leave them at around 8:30PM to get my hair cut. I must say, I now understand how people feel when they miss their long hair after cutting it off. I MISS MY HAIR T_T WHY DID I CUT IT FOR T_T. Actually, I just wanted to cut my fringe shorter and my hair shorter, but the hairdresser cut it too short T_T!!! *sigh* I'll just have to wait for it to grow again =(. 

I got back to Linh's house an hour later. We were watching some Christmas shows on television before everyone got hungry again. By then, Linh's relatives have left so we had the backyard and BBQ all to ourselves =). So for the next couple of hours, we ate, drank and talked. Cool weather, bright Christmas decoration lights and good company; it was a great night to be out. Hearing fireworks in the neighborhood made me wish to have sparklers of our own. Oh wells. 

For the rest of the night, we played Bloody Mary, drank cruisers, ate chocolate, sang karaoke and took photos. There were some things that I realised by then: guys really suck at playing Bloody Mary - and I mean REALLY; don't drink too much cruisers of the same colour because it'll just stain your lips; and some guys just don't like following the notes while singing. We played until midnight because Linda didn't want to open the presents until Christmas Day. Tradition is that you're suppose to open presents on Boxing Day, but whatever. Our hostess, generous Linh, have bought all her friends that she invited gifts for Christmas =). Isn't she sweet? For 30 minutes, on Christmas morning, she was Santa Claus =) just without the beard and all. Mind you, although she didn't have flying reindeers, she transformed her car into a reindeer =D. I received a leather handbag and a box of Rose chocolates. Don't worry, Linh also received her own fair share of presents too, just at different times of the week =p. 

Linh, you're a sweet, generous and considerate girl. I wish you all the happiness of the world because you deserve it =). I thank my lucky stars for having someone like you as friend. Merry Christmas and thank you for your generosity and hospitality. Good things will happen to good people =). 

Linh's Reindeer Jazz Car =P.

PS. Thanks Long for driving me home =).
PSS. Thanks My Linh for the photos =).

My Grown Up Christmas List

My Grown Up Christmas List by Amy Grant

Do you remember me?
I sat upon your knee
I wrote to you
With childhood fantasies.

Well, I'm all grown-up now,
And still need help somehow (can you still help somehow)
I'm not a child,
But my heart still can dream.

So here's my lifelong wish,
My grown-up Christmas list.
Not for myself,
But for a world in need.

No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start (and wars would never start)
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.

As children we believed
The grandest sight to see
Was something lovely
Wrapped beneath our tree (wrapped beneath the tree)

Well heaven surely knows
That packages and bows
Can never heal
A hurting human soul.

No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start,
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.

What is this illusion called the innocence of youth?
Maybe only in our blind belief can we ever find the truth.
(there'd be)

No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start,
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end, oh.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.

This is my grown-up Christmas list.

Merry Christmas everyone =). I know it's a day late, but that's okay =). I hope that you're enjoying the celebratory season with happiness, laughter and loved ones. I hope that no one is lonely during this time and that miracles will occur =). I know it happens every year, like birthdays, but every year Christmas will always be a special time for family and friends. Whether it's snowing or not, I hope every one is smiling during this time of the year =).

This is the Kelly Clarkson version of the song: 

eating your worth

Last Sunday was my birthday dinner at TK Something BBQ, located at Canley Vale. Big thanks to Kelly, Sarina, Edim, Eric, Thanh, Jessica, Ian, Shirley L., Mark, Susan, Linh, Minhky, Joes and Danny for coming and indulging themselves with me. 

To be honest, $26.50 for a Korean BBQ buffet is a tad expensive, but hey, the food wasn't so bad and the desserts were really good too. Well, amateur food critics, like myself, wouldn't know the difference between good food and bad food, but according to Shirley, she said that the desserts wasn't the best. Well, she'd know best since she's tried a lot of desserts before. But that's okay; since I'm not a food critic, as long as it's edible, I don't mind eating it =). It was also a shame that we couldn't move all the tables together. Somehow, I have the tendency to choose restaurants which separates people *sigh*. It wasn't that the table can't be moved, but the ventilation machines above the tables that couldn't be moved. We were given 3 tables, where the 1st table had 6 people, 2nd table had 5, and the last table had 4. Although the table I was sitting at had 6 people, and although Eric was ordering quite a lot of food, compared to the table of boys next to us, it was nothing. Apparently, they at least ordered 4x plates of each type of meat/seafood. You'd think it's impossible, but 1. they're boys, and 2. if you knew them as well as I did, you will know it's definitely possible.

So a couple of things happened that I thought was intriguing: 

1. Eric likes ordering a lot of food, then again, all guys do.
2. Kelly really likes putting food on the grill even if there's no space left.
3. Although Eric and I were making Edim eat a lot, he still beat me and finished eating before me, which was a first.

Edim said he was eating on behalf of Derek as well lol. Well, I was quite proud of him to eat so much and managed to finish before me as well. Honestly, I wish I finished eating the desserts as well but I need to leave space for the cake. Unfortunately, it wasn't mango because mangoes aren't in season during Winter, and if I was to order a mango cake, it would've been expensive. Speaking of cakes, Thanh and I had a short and funny conversation during dinner. 

Thanh: Is your cake the shape of a meme?

Fiona: How can you get a cake shaped into a meme?

Thanh: It's meme.

Fiona: I said meme.

Thanh: Ah, well there's all sorts of memes.

Fiona: What's an example of a shape of a meme?

Thanh: You.

Fiona: Ah. It's too expensive.

Thanh: So you're calling yourself cheap?

Fiona first had a confused look on her face, then started laughing a couple of seconds later.

Fiona: Yeah, I'm cheap.

I think the most interesting and memorable thing about the dinner was when we were lighting up my cake. What happened was that I wanted to light up my own candles, but Eric also wanted to light then up too. I blew out his match sticks, and he blew out mine. The process repeated a couple of times. Then the others, like Kelly and Minhky, joined in in blowing out my matchsticks before I could even light up the candles. Shirley tried to help me light it up, but it didn't really work. There was one time when I tried to protect the candles from being blown out  by covering it from the others, as I lift up my hands, it created a small breeze which blew out the candles *sigh* lol. After a couple of minutes of futile attempts in lighting up the candles, the others finally stopped hindering and allowed me to light it up, make my wish and blow out the candles. The situation was pretty funny. I felt helpless, but I couldn't help laugh along with everyone else =).

It was unfortunately that a couple of people couldn't make it, but many thanks to those who did. I especially want to thank Jessica, for baking me mango-flavoured cupcakes, penguin shaped lollies and card; Susan, for baking me home-made vegan chocolate cookies and the drawing of me; Cindy, for coming to see me although she couldn't make it to the dinner, for the bouquet of flowers and the card; Sarina, for the adorable plushie which she said reminded her of me; Thanh, for coming even though he was sick; and Linh for driving me home and letting me put my presents into her car. I would also like to thank Mum for buying me the cake.

I had a great time eating and spending time with everyone. I hope everyone enjoyed  themselves as well =). Once again, THANK YOU FOR COMING!

PS. I would like to thank Paz and MG for their birthday presents. They got me gifts even though they couldn't make it to dinner.

Dear Australia :

ANZAC DAY - LEST WE FORGET AND FOREVER COMMEMORATE THOSE WHO DIED AT WAR FOR AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

a toast to Hanhnie Hong

Dearest Hanh Hong Nguyen, 

I hope you enjoyed your surprise today =). We all will miss you dearly when you move to Melbourne for dentistry. I wish you luck, happiness and success with your career, and your life in general. I also hope you'll be able to manage through the hardships of your course. Where ever your path will take you, I hope to see you again in the future =). You never know, you might become my family dentist ;). Anyways, if you ever need help, or just someone to talk to, you know your friends will always be here for you =). Enjoy and take care of yourself! I know this is not our last good bye, so I'll just say see you.

Sincerely yours,

Fiona Woo =).

So begins the next chapter of Hanh's life. Unfortunately, it's not in Sydney; it's in Melbourne =(. Hence, Christina organized a surprise dinner for Hanhat My Thuan restaurant, at Cabramatta, which was very sweet and thoughtful of her =). Although there were a lot of people at the dinner, it was sincere of Hanh to take her time to walk up to and talk to us individually =) aww how sweet of her =D. For some reason, the dinner seemed extra warm and fun today, even though there were a lot of people. Maybe it was just the weather >.> ... Anyways, THEY SERVE FREE-RANGED CHICKEN! I was extremely happy because I haven't had chicken in a long while =D. Also, the fact that Vicky couldn't poor a glass of water without pouring the ice onto the table was a funny sight to behold. Other things like Jennifer's smiley face stamp becoming Eric's weapon, toasts for trivial things, various assassinations of the bothersome flies and the plastic cups made the night quite eventful =). An extremely funny incident happened between Vicky and Edim =D. The thing was that Eric teased Vicky, so she chucked something at him, and in the process accidentally bumped her glass of water over. The water got onto Edim and then it went something like this:

Edim: Vicky, can you pass me some tissue because you made me wet.

Vicky: Oh... thank you, I didn't know you felt that way about me.

One word: LOL!!! We also played Chinese whispers and the process and outcome was quite amusing =). During the game, it kind of skipped Eric and I because we had a trivial dispute, and by the time it went back to Rebecka, who started it, it obviously didn't sound the same. Rebecka started with 'I have the hots for Hong' and it ended with David's 'alkjfajf jelly alkjd;f and prawns.' I'd tell you what the sentence was but I forgot; all i could remember was jelly and prawns. I guess it does sound similar: Hong... Prawns... =P. i asked Vicky what happened and apparently the whole sentenced changed to 'make it up' LOL! Yes, it's amusing how it started with the original, completely modified in the middle, then back to a similar sentence and the end.

Groupie.

After a couple of group photos and some more chit chat, I left home with Mimi because I still had things to do at home and I wasn't sure what else we were going to do. Thanks Mimi's brother, Andrew, for driving me home =). 

PS. Thanks Hanh for the photos =)!

stomach full of memories

3OO11O - Elton's 19th Birthday.

Our semi-formal farewell dinner for Derek was held at Dooley's, Lidcombe, for everyone's convenience. It was also a congratulatory dinner for Derek's cadetship =) It'll just be a shame that his social life will disappear for the next few years *sigh*. Anyways, I'm happy to say that the food was satisfying and fulfilling =D. The dinner was mostly for catching up with one another, and discussing our future plans in regards to university. Of course it wouldn't be our usual dinner without the pranks ie. rohypnol pepper in the drinks, the stealing of food and the sniffing of pepper (Thanh) LOL! 

 Groupie : FAREWELL DEREK xO !!!

The girls.

It also wouldn't be a celebration without the sparkle bomb =). Although it was OVER 500, it wasn't as epic as Wendy's birthday sparkle bomb =/. Apparently, people assumed that it was because the fuse broke, the whole at the top was too large, it was because it was too deep into the ground or it passed it's maximum point of epic-ness ... *coughvickycough*. I would like to thank Derek and Wendy for funding the drinks and sparkles, Derek for driving us home, Cindy for the photos, Wendy for the hospitality and Thanh for carrying me back to Wendy's house because I couldn't last any longer in my heels xO. Good food + great company : unforgettable night =).

 So how's it like to run from the end of John St., with long, cargo pants and a black shirt, all the way to Cabramatta station on an empty stomach (unless you count half a cup of water food) and with only a couple of minutes to spare before your train comes? Not good. But to be called a champion, I'll let it slide =D. So we had lunch today at Maxine's mansion-looking house, prepared by Maxine herself! One was pasta and the other one was fried grated potatoes with vegetables =). The grated potatoes one had an interesting taste to it; tasty =).

We pretty much hanged around her house, waiting for her to cook for us hahaha and it was nice of Yvonne, Shirley, Wendy and Derek to bring their university student magazines and games over to play =D though we would've been satisfied with just the table tennis and the massage chair =D. I thought our discussion about animes was quite hilarious; I think we all agree that the minds of Japanese males are quite perverted xD. By the way, it was interesting to know that aloe vera can stop itchiness from mosquito bites, heal cuts, etc. while eating bananas would reduce the chance of being bitten due to the chemicals which is emitted from our skin after digesting it, because mosquitoes do not like that chemical. It was quite handy to know this because thanks to Yvonne and Maxine, my swollen and mosquito bite feet temporarily felt fine =). So you see, you don't need to go to school to learn something new every day =). Anyways, after some fun in the park, Maxine drove us home YAY! All in all, I enjoyed your company Maxine, and I hope you enjoyed ours as well =) THANK YOU FOR THE FOOD, HOSPITALITY AND FOR DRIVING US HOME MAXINE!!! WE LOVE YOU =) !!!

PS. CONGRATULATIONS KELLY for getting her red Ps =D  !!!
PSS. It was fun riding Eric's new scooter however, the sound of heels scraping against concrete indicates that I should learn how to brake... 
PSSS. It was also hilarious when Minhky's "HOLY FARRH!" became a meme LOL! Thanks to Cindy for capturing our attempt of Minhky's meme =).

patriotism all around

26O11O - Julie P.'s 18th Birthday & Australia Day.

For the first time in my life have I celebrated Australia Day, which was this year. Not that I don't care about my country, but my family never celebrated it, so I didn't either. Yesterday, we went to the city to experience city life on Australia Day. It seemed like a normal day, with a few things out of place, and extremely crowded in others, ie. Darling Harbour. We cruised around the city on a vintage bus, watched some live entertainment at the harbour side and watched the flamboyant fireworks =). I think we all agreed that it was much better than NYE but, maybe that's because we were closer this time. Either way, the fireworks was highlight of the day. Oh, I would like to thank Eric, Stephanie T. and Thanh for waiting in line for us at Pancakes on the Rocks, because it was extremely crowded. Lucky people and their double pay rate for that day =.=. Before we went home, Thanh and Michael had a Mr. 32 cm ice cream race, and Michael won xD. One word: karma. LOL!

Thank God I said to go there earlier, or else I would've been late and hence, would've taken longer to finish my enrollment. Yes everyone, I've enrolled into USYD today, thanks to Eric and Thanh. If they weren't there, I'll most likely be lost. The enrollment took longer than I expect O_O so I couldn't visit the Maritime Museum and MCA today *sigh*. There's always next time >=). It was strange how I met so many people today ie. Cathy N., Rowena, Fiona V., Jessica T., Rebecca C., Anne N., John and Mimi. I don't usually meet people and when I do, it's usually 1 or 2, not 8+ lol =P. But it was nice seeing them all =D. We ate at Poporo before we went home. I took Eric's recommendation of the 'Terimayo Hamburg' and it was DELICIOUS xD. Beef with mayonnaise on top, cooked vegetables and rice =D. Thinking about it is making my mouth water xD I think I shall eat there again next time =D. I'm glad it's all over now; I just need to wait til O-week, and receive my timetable, and then I'm good to go for uni =). Once again, I would like to sincerely thank Eric and Thanh for accompanying, helping, and shouting me food today =).

PS. I DROVE IN THE RAIN TODAY FOR THE FIRST TIME =D !!! From Cabramatta to home, approx. 5 minutes, but it was better than nothing =D. Mum said it was a practice run so she told me not to write it into the log book =/ Oh wells, practice makes perfect =).

Christmas Cheer

 MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

This year's Christmas was somewhat different from my other Christmases because this year my group of friends and I celebrated it in a non-Asian way. It was especially special because for every one of us, it was our first time having a Christmas dinner with friends =D. I was able to spend my Christmas with Kelly, Minhky, Vicky, Joes, Maxine, Michael and Danny. Unfortunately, Eric, Sarina and Vincent L. couldn't make it due to certain circumstances =/. There's always next year =D!

We spent about half the day making the food, which consisted of salad, mash potatoes with corn and sultanas, pasta, tea, coke, boiled carrots and a stuffed turkey =D! The turkey turned out to be quite a big deal =D. When everything was placed on the table, the turkey was last to come out and when it did, we were all cheering and clapping (on Kelly's command) YAY! To be honest, turkey tastes like chicken. Then again, lots of things taste like chicken... We each made a toast for our Christmas dinner and undoubtedly, Danny made the best toast out of all of us: This is my Christmas dinner with you guys. How sweet was that xD? I wished I helped more with the cooking instead of just taking photos xO but it was quite fun playing with Maxine's and Michael's camera, seeing that I dont possess one ... *sigh*. For pictures, please visit Maxine's blog for a view =).

We played uno for a while, but it was a shame that Maxine and Michael had to leave early =/ awww! But hopefully, we'll be seeing them for the NYE outing =). After they left, Danny and Kelly gave us some musical tutorings on the guitar and piano =D! After a while, we just rotated between youtube and the musical instruments hahaha. Unfortunately, I stupidly sat on Kelly's glass table and broke it T___T I'M SO SORRY KELLY!!! What's worse was the fact that it was passed on to them from a deceased relative T_____T! I'm the worse! Kelly was so nice to forgive me, and was actually more worried about my safety than the table AARGH! Why am I so clumsy?! I thought my night would stay like that, depressing and rueful, but thanks to Joes, it cheered me up. Apparently, Joes bought us girls some gifts; Kelly and Vicky sunglasses, while me a box of ferrero rocher =D. We almost finished the box in one day! Again, thanks Joes, for the present, Kelly, for the hospitality, and everyone for celebrating Christmas with me =D.

The next day, Boxing Day, I spent it at Minhky's house with Kelly, Vicky, Eric and Joes. Nothing much actually happened though; we just talked, played uno junga, DDR'ed on PS2 and went to buy pizza at Canley Vale. We said hi to a few friends there because they were working there. Lucky bums xO I want to work! Anyways, I think I had the most fun during the uno junga game ROFLMAOS! It was just EPIC! Since it got boring after the first few rounds, we made it more interesting by making each other laugh by saying random things; the first one to laugh had to pull 2 uno stacks out and if it tumbles, they get slapped. Initially, it was hard, especially for Vicky and I, because we kept on laughing, but the sentences became more ridiculous, and now I think we're all immune to funny things... for the meantime anyways LOL (whales can't swim, squirrels, dragon, colours - HAHAHA, etc). I think we all got tired from laughing, because I sure did. But, as they say, laughter is the best medicine. I would like to thank Eric for the Yoshie plushie present, and Vicky's parents for driving me home =). That's it for now, MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone and enjoy your holidays! Ciao!

I call him Boshi because he's blue =).

PS. Mimi sure got bigger. Oh so CUTE xD!