The Fairy Princess

Had such a good time at Butter Factory tonight!
From what started off as a rather slow crowd and empty dance floor, quickly evolved into a fantastic crowd, and i do mean crowd (albeit short and a bit young)!
And as if that weren't enough to satiate us (ahem! free drinks and cover too), the night was perfected by a very chivalrous male nurse and gorgeous male model!

Truly a good night.

Love you Jia!

So as it turns out, the Manila trip is going to be more interesting than i thought.
Patrick (from 2 years ago) is coming, and as if that's not awkward enough...get this...we're rooming together! Omg.
Not only that, the woman that has an enormous crush on him (old and married as she is), is also coming.

Geez.

Things just keep getting better! lol

Going to the Philippines next week! Yays.

Oh god, do people really talk like this?

"lol... saw twice u at Rail mall...hahas..u go shop shop ar or movies?hahas.. you like rounding too? btw i had 6 cars..next time can chio u lo, cos i also hobby in cars, enjoy & relax life...hahas...let me name you, evos9,honda integra DC5 Type R, S15,BMW M3,Toyota wish & Lambo gallado...yeah,sorry i din update my pics in here...hm..do you wana chat in msn? so that we can talk more about it..."
Um, hi. Let me just point out a couple of things.

1. How could this person see me at Rail mall when i'm not even in the country?
2. What's up with the "lol" as an introduction?
3. What the hell is "rounding"?
4. And what's up with the naming of random cars?

This is very puzzling. Do guys really get girls this way?

Creepy neighbor has left. He was evicted.
I feel bad for the guy as who knows what's going to happen to him now.
But at the same time i'm relieved.

Lea Salonga was incredible. INCREDIBLE.
Seeing her in concert just reaffirms that the 5'2" powerhouse is and has always been my favorite Broadway star for good reason.
Sigh...still blown away.

I have a very suspicious neighbor that has recently taken an interest in becoming very friendly with me.
What's bizarre is that i've been living here for a looong time and only recently has he started approaching me.

A few weeks back, i had just gotten home and was getting out of the car when he came out of his house and right up to my car to talk stalk to me and then physically stood in the middle of the road and watched as i went to my apartment. Very creepy.
There have been a few more incidences (one involving jelly beans) and it's just weirding me out!
It's at the point where i'm not sure if he's doing this with malicious intent or if he just has some sort of social disorder.

I mean, there's a line between friendly neighbor and neighborhood felon!
I have 911 on speedial and mace on me, so he better not be the latter.

I'm going to see the legendary Lea Salonga.
She's one of my all-time favorite opera singers. Originally from the Philippines, she made it big playing Eponine in Les Miserables and Kim in Miss Saigon. Among many many many other roles, she was also the singing voice of Disney's Mulan, Princess Jasmine and Pocahontas.

Had dinner with the girls the other night. We went to this great little place in the U-district, called Agua Verde.
It's a kayak club and a mexican restaurant in-one. Really interesting.
They are best known for their tacos, i believe.

I had the coconut beer batter bacalao tacos.
Bacalao is a portuguese dish of cod that is preserved in salt until it is ready to be cooked.
They then soak it in water for a few days to purge the salt out of the fish and it is ready to be eaten.
Funnily enough, it's not the least bit salty when you eat it.
Definitely a must try if you like fish!

Spoke to my 2 favorite besties today.
It was so good to hear their voices and to reconnect after what seems like forever.
I can't wait to see them this summer! Yay...home sweet home.

I'm excited to go restaurant hopping with Jia.
Seems like i'm missing out on a bevy of new and fabulous places to dine.
Glad to hear SG is expanding it's typical downtown eateries to more rustic (but not really) places like the abandoned army camps at Dempsey Rd. It's nice to know that i can get more than just antiques and Persian rugs from there now.
Also excited to hit the buffets and high tea parlours! Besides the hawker food, high tea buffets are my absolute fave places to eat in Singapore.
I hear the Shangri-La has a fantastic spread at The Line, which i'm dying to try, and Goodwood Park Hotel's continental high tea is always a hit.

So the whole U.S. fam is coming down with me on this trip, which should be interesting.
As usual, it's always a huge affair when my sister visits as she rarely travels back home, but what with having the 2 kids and husband in tow, i think we all need to prepare ourselves for many a family gathering and eating out.
Better start working off those calories now if i want to break even by the end of the trip! (Oh god...the horror!)

Nevertheless, i'm absolutely PSYCHED!!

I'm making Kugel. mmm....
It's essentially a savory noodle pie. It can also be made as a sweet dessert or side dish, but i like the savory version better.

Someone from the past just resurfaced...
We haven't seen each other in like, 2 years and suddenly he writes me a poem saying he wants to reconnect.

It's sweet, but kinda bordering on creepy...i dunno what to think. Or do.

More from Val's shoot...



( Read more )

Ever wake up one morning and just feel blah about your life?
Or maybe just a certain event or person or something in your life?

I do.

So many decisions to make...

Well well well...we are witness to history in making.
America has it's first black president, Barack Obama.

Very cool.

Halloween was rather family oriented this year.
Instead of the outrageous parties i usually go to, i promised to take my nephew trick or treating and pumpkin carving.
WOW....i have never eaten so much candy in one sitting before! hahahaha
I love America! They gave us full-size candy bars! Woooooot. :D
2 hours of trolling neighborhoods and some blistered feet later, the count was 57 pieces of candy. Mmmm....Mars Bars heaven!

I love it that people in the U.S. go all out when it comes to Halloween. Some even have their entire house decked out in goulish gear, smoke machines, and creepy sounds. I was most impressed with this one house we visited, where the man who opened the door was on stilts and looked like Lurch (from the Addam's Family). He greeted us with a very convincing UUUURGH and sent the kids into hysterics. Top notch!
We never get to do this in Singapore - the extent of trick or treating is going around the neighborhood only to find people staring at you like you're mad, and shooing you away. Or if you're lucky, you might get the occasional person who gives you money. I kid you not!! lol
It's just not in our culture! What a pity.

So anyway, as you can see, i was Mrs. Smith.
I think i'm especially proud of achieving the Angelina Jolie pout. hehe


( Trick or Treat )

So i'm back in Seattle.
After 2 and a half fantastic months in hot sticky Singapore (and Thailand, Kuala Lumpur, and Bintan!), i return to the cold cold Northwest.
Over the summer, i've been trying to rekindle old friendships. Something happened to make me realize that perhaps i haven't been doing my part in maintaining my friends. I've always assumed these friendships have been "low maintenance".
Apparently, i was alone in thinking that as the other party slipped through my fingers without me even realizing it. And when i found out that i was no longer regarded as highly as before, it was like an ice cold slap to the face. I still feel the sting today.
Partially because i felt like i was dumped by one of my best friends, and partially because it hurt to feel that they didn't think i was worth fighting for, that they didn't kick my ass before the dynamics had changed.
Well, i've promised to do a better job now.
I just wanna emphasize that it takes two hands to clap, so i hope the other party knows this and does their part too because i feel like i'm the only one waving my hand around right now.

School officially starts tomorrow.
I'm nervous but i'll pull through. I've been attending orientation since i got back, so i feel like i know the campus decently.
It's weird going to this new place after 2.5 years at my old college. I feel like i'm a small fish in such a big pond. Doesn't help that there are zero asians/international students  (yes, count it. Zero.) in my course, so once again i will be subject to novelty.
Not that it's that big of a deal, but it'd be nice to have kawan kawan after 3 years of being here.

Sometimes i'm jealous that other schools have things like "Singapore Club" or "SE Asia Club".
I wish i had it so easy at times; that there were more than just me from my little dot of an island.
But then again, it's nice to feel like i'm pioneering a position in the school and playing embassador to my country.
Sounds dramatic you say? Well, i dare you to come have a look at the school and see for yourself.

Once again, summer is here.
Usually my favorite time of the year as i get to come home, travel, see my family and friends....and enjoy my tai tai Singapore lifestyle. lol
But it's different this year. The usual people i hang out with aren't here, and my Dad's on a crusade to control my life (surprise surprise!), so life's a bit shitty right now.

Chris is here on an exchange program till december, so that's a HUGE bonus to coming home.
But with my Dad making me come home at 9.30pm and not allowing me to go to Chris' (he's staying with my cousin, and dad doesn't want people to gossip if i am seen at his place) or him to come here, we can't fucking do a thing.
I mean, Orchard road holds it's charm for only so long!
If we're broke and bored one day, we can't even go home to watch a DVD.
I hate this. We live together in the U.S, and now i can't even be out past 9.30 with him.

I'm 22 years old. I've lived on my own for 3 years now. And i have a bloody curfew??!!!

In addition, Chris doesn't have a cell phone so we can't even communicate although we're merely a few miles apart. Unless both of us happen to be on MSN at night, we can't even chat.
God, all i am thinking of is how miserable this situation is right now, but it's only going to get worse when i leave. We'll have to long-distance for 3 months. Then he's going back to Hawaii, so another god knows how many months. Our entire relationship has been long-distance from the beginning, and it's getting bloody old now. I feel like i'm teetering on the edge of sanity and patience right now.

So in a nutshell, i'm angry, frustrated, lonely and bored.
Not the fabulous summer i was hoping for.
It's all fine and dandy to be self-sufficient, but i do that in Seattle all year, all i wanted was to have a good summer to refresh my spirits.
Guess not.

Sigh.

I passed my driving test today!
Watch out bitches, i'm on wheeeeels!!!