09 09 09
It had been a year, a month and a day since 08 08 08, where gamblers and the like pooled resources in hoping for a windfall. Just like a year ago, where the date favors gamblers, today is an auspicious day that carries the meaning of longevity for couples to dive into the tomb of love. I thought bragging about how auspicious today seemed tasteless, but moving away from the conventional topic isn’t easy either.
Since today will be a special day for many to consider marriage, I suppose a marriage need some suspends and little secrets to keep the flame burning? Now, I have a question – What will you lie about, towards your partner?
Let’s be frank, even the holiest man on earth lies, thus I lied too!! Yes, no doubt lying is wrong, and whatever you have fabricated might come back and slap you twice as hard. Though this might be the case, lies still spurt freely from the mouth… In my opinion, women will most probably lie about their bank account while men, their whereabout.
I realized I will NEVER find out how much my girl-friends have in their bank accounts, neither would they ever find out about mine. Though it is quite common to hear us complaining about the serious drought in our accounts, we will still splurge when we come across nice shoes, bags, accessories etc… How ironic. I am not sure if any of them dig into their next pay check, but so long as they are happy, and don’t borrow from me, I’m fine with it.
As for my guy friends, I realized they are pretty hard to locate. Take for instance, my good friend, J. A typical scenario would be:
Me:
Where are you?
J:
Oh… coming…coming…
Me:
Ok, how long will you take?
J:
Reaching soon… on my way already. Give me 5 minutes.
5 minutes later
Me:
WHERE ARE YOU??
J:
Chill… don’t be angry. Coming soon…I just left my place.
Ok, perhaps I am stereotyping. Guys and girls lie equally much about their bank account and whereabout. Is that privacy?? LZ refused to tell me how much he’s earning, and each time I probe further, he will give me 4 random digits and suggest that I should rearrange them the way I want his salary to be like. -_- If I do a permutation, there will be 24 combinations and only 4% chance of getting it right. He surely knows how to play this game ya?? Either that, or he will shove me away with a number that seemed politically correct, but I doubt so. Is this the little secret awaiting to be discovered?? As for me, I can hardly lie about my whereabout because I am too predictable. The places I go are quite limited and I never bother to cover my traces.
So I guess having mutual trust and constant guessing games are ways to keep a marriage/relationship alive. If the lie isn’t going to hurt, it will make the bond between 2 people stronger. If it does hurt, say two timing, it isn’t hard to decide on a banana split down his pants!!!
What will you lie about, towards your partner??
Bye bye, cells
This week has been a jittery sort for me. I’ve been everywhere trying to sort out my work and it hasn’t gone anywhere. So I guess what happened yesterday should have come as a no-surprise. When I stepped into the cell culture lab in the morning, the carbon dioxide indicator on the incubator reads 9% instead of the usual 5. I shuddered. Now, the lab I was working at isn’t exactly new, so it was no big deal for equipments to go haywire. Anyway, the cells had been incubated over the weekend and I have to take them out since changing the medium and checking on them is a must. Happily, I got everything prepared and peeped under the microscope. To my horror, I see no sign of life or any sign of cell proliferation. Perfect. I stoned for a minute or two, thinking of what could have gone wrong over the weekend. When my mind clears, the word “incubator” popped up. Ahaa… Apparently my intuition is a spot-on. Seeing 9% carbon dioxide in the morning
meant trouble.
Now, I’m no expert. And I have no idea what excessive carbon dioxide can do to those delicate cells. So I took out my phone and texted the expert, waited for minutes before she came hurriedly. It was an agony. It felt like a drama - waiting outside the operation theatre for the doctor to announce the patient is dead. Ok, I am exaggerating but you get the gist of it right? Yes, the cells were half dead, not fully dead yet. I reported the fault and the earliest the vendors could get it fixed is today. And this morning, I checked. My cells are dead. There goes my effort. Anyway, sacrifices are necessary in cell work and no point blaming anyone because everyone’s experiment failed!! After the entire episode-of-the-day, I had a rolling good time at the welcome week. It was a total waste of time, but having free lunch and taking a stroll around school thereafter with some friends was refreshing. Before long, it was evening and my wonderful LZ was waiting to go home with me. Wow…I didn’t know it take so little to make my day!!
Another thing. I was drying some powder dissolved in toxic solvent and in a flurry, I slammed the oven door on my hand just now. Don’t ask me how.
I realized it’s only Tuesday, and it is already so eventful.
Diamonds
I realized age is finally catching up with me when fine crow-feet start appearing at the corner of my sparkling eyes. It no longer frightens me when kids came calling me auntie, because I had come to term with me being “no longer very young”. At the gathering recently with LZ’s friends, the topics brought on the table were indeed frightening – career, housing and marriage. I was like – I beg your pardon!?! Those were my parents’ conversational topics I never bothered to take part in. I should cherish every moment from now lest before I knew it, the next topic brought on the table would be retirement…
However, I totally enjoyed the debates between me and LZ on diamond rings when it comes to engagement. For the fact that my guy thinks buying a costly piece of stone is not worth the sincerity of love, is annoying. No, I am not getting hitch, but it started off with that sparkling diamond on the finger of one of his female friends.
LZ think diamonds are overrated, for the fact that he could buy more with the same amount than a piece of shiny accessory. That is true but diamond are expensive not without reasons. In my theory, diamond possesses an aura that is undeniable, to wand off potential predators on your territory. The bigger and brighter the diamond, the more secure is your territory. It’s like telling predators to fish off, even when you’re not by her side. Hahaha!!! I know I’m lame but it’s true.
Ok, be serious. From past experiences buying diamonds, I’ve learnt quite a bit from the jewelers. Basically, all women know that there are 4 Cs that make diamonds expensive. They are – carat, colour, clarity and cut.
If my memory didn’t fail me, carat refers to the size of the diamond. Obviously the bigger, the better, very straight forward.
Colour is no doubt - the colour. It ranges from colourless, grade D being the best and most expensive, to tinted yellow, the cheaper ones.
Clarity refers to the amount of impurities seen under the microscope. Flawless diamonds are the most expensive since it do not interfere with reflected light within the diamond.
Lastly, the cut. No matter how good a diamond is, it need the prefect cut to enable it to shine to its greatest potential. The prefect cut will reflect 100% light through the top after reflected from the bottom to give it a glittering shine. Jewelers call that
brilliance.
But of course, prices vary with the final design and brand. And yes, certification of diamond is important too. Do not try imitating a diamond using a swarovski crystal. It won’t work. You will not only lose your future spouse, but also her trust. The perfect proposal would be having the guy go down on one knee and propose with a diamond ring so bright that the girl has to wear shades in order to keep her composure.
Anyway, guys have nothing to loss when it comes to diamond because flowers will wilt and chocolates will melt. But diamonds are forever!!!
Suddenly, it feels so good to be a woman!!! Wahahahaha……
Back from the dead
I’m not dead to begin with and in fact, nothing close to dead in any way. But I have to admit that the long absence has made me quite rusty on the keyboard and blogging once a month had somehow become a habit. Though greasing the gears will be easy, making the engine run to its once optimum pace will be hard. The reasons for my absence are aplenty, some really trivial but exciting. So this blog of mine is as good as dead. I’ll try to revive it, to the best that I can.
I’m currently sitting in my office, sipping on my green water bottle while typing this. I had just finished writing the “Experimental” part of the paper, so here’s a short break. Thinking back, I’ve not had a proper break for the longest time. Life had never been as exciting/busy/enriching as compared to the last couple of months.
I’m hyperventilating!!! So happy with too many things!!! Forget about weekdays, those are days I’ll be committed to work and nothing else. But when it comes to weekend, I’ll be drained with activities. Be it shopping, gatherings, sports, or any other random activity, I just felt blessed. Am I crazy or what???
Last Saturday, I was in heels when I was out. It wasn’t high, not at all. Just 2.5 inch or so I thought. It was among my favourite pair among the 10 other odd pairs sitting on the shoe rack. Within hours, there was a burning sensation on the fourth toe on both legs!!! Blisters, damn it!!! My heels were not even new to start off with. I ended up taking off the back strap to allow more space for my toes and prevent exaggerating the already swollen toes. My feet were usually accustomed to flats, sandals or shoes on most occasions, but is there a way to wear heels without getting blisters?? Do I really need to tear my hair and wear heels till my skin is thick enough to counter all blisters, or are heels not worth the pain?? Even those silicon gels sold in pharmacies were not a bit helpful for my poor feet. =(
Some girls said heels can trim the calf, and good for exercising balancing skills. It’s crap!!! I think it is more like training leng zai’s back and arms. When my feet suffered, he offered to piggyback me home. Since I think I’m not very light, I was afraid I’ll break his back. I didn’t wish to become a liability, really. But I admit that I enjoyed the piggyback ride home. =)
Maybe I'll consider wearing heels again. *wink*
Happy Mummy's Day
I was browsing through Facebook when I realized how time had flied. Quite a number of friends are already happily married and had started their family at my age. Some are already parents for a few years now and another couple is on their way to parenthood. I am really amazed by how much they had grew over the years, from pampered youngsters to tomorrow’s parents.
Bringing up a child must be really tough, and I’m sure not many are up to it. Parenthood will change a person habit, attitude and social life. Not just the parents, the grandparents also have to make sacrifices. I was touched when I heard Leng Zai dad’s determination to quit smoking on account of his grandchildren. It meant giving up a habit he held for years to exchange for the better health of little lives. Awww… So sweet.
Mummy had given up working in the society ever since she got married. She chose to work from home so as to spend more time with me and my brother, and make sure we don’t mix with bad companion. She’s protective and make sure whoever bully us will lane up in deep shit. I remembered once where there was a guy who picked on me and pulled my hair. I went home crying and the very next day, mummy confronted him. She made him missed his school bus and that had left him stranded in school. Hahaha!!!!
In today’s society, not many married woman are willing to stay at home, especially when expenses are so high. However, they show their love in other ways. Hiring a maid, for instance, ensures that their kids are taken care of, but those mums also take safety precautions such as installing a CCTV to monitor the maid. As for me, I’m still very much a kid myself and wouldn’t be ready to take on the role as someone’s mum for many years to come.
To all the women who had dedicated their lives to their kids and family, Happy Mother’s Day!!!
An unexpected fling
What can be worst than sending a text message to unintended recipient?? And I mean sending a text message meant for a boyfriend to another guy!! Silly me did just that!! I left my friend dumbfounded for a second and laughing out loud for the next couple of hours…
I was lucky enough that he is my good friend and it’s impossible between us. That had saved me from a lot of embarrassment. Still, I need to clarify things with him and drag him down from cloud nine back to earth. He seemed overjoyed to realize I had a “crush” on him!! Wahahaha!!
Here are some screenshots to show you how evil my friend had been…
He laughed and laughed and laughed…
oops!!
If I said I love him or I miss him… I won’t know how to face him anymore!!!!
So he wants to threaten me with that message and refuse to delete it.
Anyway, he knows who should be the intended recipient so I guess it’s alright after all. =)
Hahahaha!!! But still... I think this is funny...
Smile
It has been quite the hiatus, but I'm back with a sprained right shoulder. To make matter worst, I had to load an 8kg mold set onto the lab press machine situated so high up all by myself!! This had gravely agitated the muscles on my shoulder and I can hardly move it now. The knocking of bones against each other disgust me!! I felt as though my arm is dislocated, but I’m pretty sure it is still intact and very much attached to my body.
Breaks are pretty much the best invention ever, thus I am taking a break from lab work today, sitting at my desk and typing away. Many thoughts crossed my mind but I cannot decide on which I should be penning down. To be honest, life is quite mundane and always revolving around work, work and more work.
Freak not, I’ve had enough of work and I wouldn’t use the space here today to update on the progress of my project. Suddenly, I don’t know what to write. It seemed like I’ve lost all inspiration within seconds as I’m staring hard at that smiling yellow cow on the table. Oh yes… Cows… Ever wonder why I started this blog and named it Tatty Cow a few years back??
Seriously, I can hardly remember now. All I know is that it tells a story, whether or not you hear it is another matter. I have been through a lot over the years, aged and had grown wiser. Sometimes, I feel older than my actual age, when my actions in dealing with certain situation stunned myself. In fact, this blog had taught me to believe that I have to respect myself before gaining the respect from others.
And yes, I know I’ve done it when I took the first step in walking out of the shadow that once tied down my self-esteem, realizing that I still love myself and happier than before. No, there is no secret to happiness. Why get affected by others who deemed I’m useless or not up-to-their-mark?? I live life once and I’m determined to make it colourful. I set the standards, I achieve them, and I feel proud of myself. That’s more than enough.
I looked into the mirror to welcome a different me.
I smile.
Starting Afresh and Moving On
Been a month since I wrote. My lappy had been exceptionally slow recently and that just killed my passion to blog. Thus, I have decided to revamp it and start afresh. But before that, I have to choose the important documents and save them into an external hard disk. To be frank, I don’t have many documents, besides my FYP, assignments, a chunk of journals and a hell lot of pictures!!!
Viewing the pictures was like walking down memory lane. I won’t deny that I am one who treasures memories, but I am not a hard disk. Ok, I sound weird… But I mean my memories are unlimited and that memories cannot be “overwrite”.
I don’t know about you, but personally, I feel that certain memories are best left at the bay. I was looking through a set of pictures that were taken months back, and wondering how things had turned so ugly. It wasn’t an amazing journey from the start, but the ride just stopped suddenly like a power failure, at least for me. Perhaps it is a blessing in disguise and a chance for the both of us again. I won’t delete the pictures; neither will I overwrite it. Instead, I will allow them to fade into the background. Who knows?? It might become part of my forgotten memories and when I dig it up a decade later, I will have a good laugh.
2008 was a marvellous year, all year round, and especially so towards the end. To round it up, my project had been proceeding well, my tuition kid was behaving and I was treated to a windfall from cupid. I am happy.
2009 is a brand new start. I am giving myself another chance, to impress my boss with my work, to teach well and pull my kid through PSLE, to foster closer bonds with my family and also to create “our memories” together.
LZ…Whatever happened in the past doesn’t really matter, you can choose to keep or discard. What’s important is the future, and I hope we’ll mould it well. =)
Let's move on!!!
Beautiful excuse
Amidst the jostling crowd,
You shone out against the gloom.
As I opened my smeared eyes in the sickly light of dawn,
All I thought of - was you.
A kiss on my cheek was a sweet surprise,
The card at my gate brought me alive.
Like fireworks that sparkled in the deepening twilight,
You enveloped me with everlasting joy.
Gone were the days, the happy times,
Where you sheltered me like an old oak tree.
You’ve turned into a sheer grey wall of ice,
When you casted me aside for your precious time.
The ocean was a little bigger that night,
Because of the tears you’ve made me cried.
I took a breathe, my heart had sank,
I knew it was never meant to be like that.
My mind was a whirlpool of chaos,
We were worlds apart, you were never mine.
You pleaded with me, with a beautiful excuse,
As tears sprang from my eye, I forgave you.
Time and again, you did it once more,
I took my final breath, my heart had died.
When silence grew like an insurmountable obstacle,
We knew it was time to say goodbye.
Months passed swiftly and then a year,
I hurled myself in my busy world.
Staying up late into moronic hours,
Wishing that life would be much simpler.
When my day became as dark as night,
You walked into my choppy life.
I knew I will be alright,
Where everything had turned out fine.
As lightning flash across the sky,
I was embraced by you with eternal joy.
Anxiety overcame me as seconds ticked by,
My heart has once again, come alive!!
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Just for laugh
(Click for larger view)Hahaha!!! What do you think??
Updates
Phew~ After slogging through 7 and a half hours of lessons without break yesterday, I have decided to sleep till noon and stay home today. I am still feeling drained since it had been a week filled with deadlines. Both the poster and online tests that were due yesterday had taken much of my energy. The poster presentation had turned out well, though I was smoking the teacher with information I didn’t even know existed. I guess presentation works on the basis of 3Cs. Convince, confuse and con. It always works!! Or it is money back guarantee.
That’s my partner – “Calcium” and me in front of our poster.
For the lecture, I was unprepared and could hardly understand the topic. Diffraction, reciprocal lattice, bright field, dark field…. Only 20% was absorbed, and the rest were filtered away. Actually, I start getting nervous when I hardly understand lectures these days, because they were just so hard and I do not have tutorials to fall back on. I think tutorials really help students understand the topic. =(
On a bright side, 14 October just passed and I’ve turned 23. I never fail to blog about my birthday each year so it won’t be an exception this year too. 23 had once seemed so old when I was a teenager, and I always wish that time will stop when I turn 21, but obviously my wish was not granted.
This year, I was singing myself a birthday song under the romantic moonlight while walking home alone when the clock struck 12. My last traumatizing encounter of age 22 was that I saw a bangala peeing along the roadside under the streetlight. Horrified, I squeak like a mouse and crossed over to the other side of the road immediately. Shortly after, well wishes came pouring in to dilute the gross sight. What a way to end the day…
My birthday this year is slightly different from the previous years, with the fact that I am now single. Well, let me just come clean and face it. I do not wish to bad mouth him and what had happened is solely between the two of us. The main reason why we had gone separate way was due to the fact that I was an agnostic polytheist while he is a monotheist. End of story.
Anyway, I do enjoy my birthday; especially the few celebrations with some friends whom I never thought will give a damn about me. People like yl and derrick were the two who had given me a shock but brighten up my day, while Mr Kennedy and Mr Pole never fails to put a smile back onto my gloomy face. Not to mention, some sec school and college friends I spent over the weekend had also given me a push in life.
That’s Mr Pole, who insisted that we ate a chicken with 4 legs.
That’s Mr Pole puking after eradicating the entire meat platter.
Zhen do not wish to be featured, so I’ll let her have a happy face. =)
I *heart* rus!!!
I *heart* manda too!!!
As I grow older, I feel that my birthday is just another day. But this year, amazing things just keep happening. I woke up in the morning with a beautiful sunflower blooming outside the window. Yes, my sunflower is finally blossoming after 3 months!!
Taken on my birthday, even before I brush my teeth!!
So to speak, I grew myself a birthday gift. However, my plant is a complete flop because it never grew straight and the flower is facing the floor. Isn’t it obvious from the picture?? Right, first attempt failed. I will try this out again soon.
My mum’s plant is growing straight up, why is mine like that?? *scratch head*
Birthday presents that I received this year is even more amazing. Don’t believe?? I’ll show.
A panda-cow with sunflower
A nice long belt
A gorgeous brown shoulder bag
Lots of snacks
And an aeroplane
How can I not be happy??
