The Wedding: Friends, Family, Food, Alcohol and Many Many Photos!

Right... back in Melbourne where i skipped class for the first time this semester (was too tired and lazy) and slept for 4 hours in the afternoon. Gonna be a sleepless zombie tonight! Anyhoos, was going to start writing my essay but I thought I can't leave people in limbo with the wedding pictures, so here they are!

Flurry of activity at the Reg-o table. My 2nd bro helping out!

The two mothers-in-law (can you tell my mum's the one in blue and yellow?)
Me on stage! Speaking! Me Me Me! haha.. my moment in the spotlight. See... the pro photographer took a better picture)Taiko giving his mucho mushy speech. Many cringe-worthy moments. But i can't speak so much until I fall head over heels in love eh?
Cousin David and I listening intently (thought this shot looked cool)
The cake-cutting and ceremonial feeding each other. Yum yumPouring of the bubbly!
Yam Sing of the bubbly! My cousin said the thingo in Canto and I had to translate... interesting!The Canto toastmaster and my cousins
Most of the girls on my dad's side of the familyCousins Lim (and soon to be Mrs. Lim) and I. Good looking bunch!
My aunty and her gorgeous daughters! I really think they're beautiful... and still young! Also, bro and his gfAnd you wonder how I can drink? Haha.. Very powderful genes! (this is after all the other guests had left)
Such nice colour coordination. I think the pair on the left also will get married eventually, dating for 6+ years already!The Best Man and his fiance (to be married in January) and the newlyweds. Aaaww.. young love.
Maybe a picture of all the girls in the family next time? (dad was having drinks) Dunno man, poor 2nd bro kept getting asked when his wedding would be (in front of her!)
Mum and I posing... camwhores at heart. =)

So, my memories of the wedding:

• Playing driver for many many people
• Walking around pouring alcohol for people
  
• Helping with the toasting from table-to-table. I thought they were sounding a tad diminished after table 30 so came to contribute my voice (which shocked dad! he didn't know i could Yam Sing!)
• Talking to bros' friends who have not seen me for 10 years (and were surprised i could drive because obviously i didn't grow from the 8 year old brat!)
• Speaking on stage in front of 60 tables of people and relatives(!) and being told that the best line was my only unscripted impromptu 'i've always wanted to say this. I'm sorry, we are currently experiencing technical difficulties. Please bear with me and we'll be back shortly'. Darn it! obviously wasted too much time writing
• Translating a cantonese Yam Sing toast. For anyone interested in what they say, The First Toast is to celebrate the union of two people (as cousin put it: 2 become 1), the Second Toast is to hope that they grow old together (as cousin put it: White hair until old) and the Final Toast is to wish that they are blessed with children soon (as cousin put it: make baby ASAP!)
  
• Posing for many many pictures for the 'professional' photographer that was wearing what looked like a char kuay teow man shirt with cargo pants and chewing gum [his line being. Ok, look here. One, two, Gat! (wth?)]
• Receiving my first angpow from taiko and tai soh! (wah.. many more to come!)
• Going to a church wedding! (yeah aaron, you're right.. it's like.. *scratch head* if you're not from the church)
• Having crispy hard hair from so much hairspray! But i thought it looked pretty nice leh (albeit a bit ah lian)
• Playing the event organiser as my brother gave me his timeline and said, you can liaise with the Mandarin Oriental people and the band, and sort out the timing and things. Wah! Felt pretty responsible also. Have to keep the time and cue people and listen to "So, Miss Jeannie, when should we stop the food and have this event that event. (The Mandarin Oriental staff are really awesome tho! So efficient and polite and helpful)

Enough of memories, i think there will be lots more better photos in a month or so when the professional photographer gets his act together. But it was a pretty big, awesome, beautiful ceremony and the first one where I get to sit on the main table (with all the other big people. a bit out lah..) Rather enjoyable and have to make up for it by essay-writing though. Still, a career in event management? I reckon i could do it!

p.s: nah Damien.. for your viewing pleasure!

Coming Live From an Airport Near You - the Wedding Relived!

Hi hi! I'm posting from KLIA! RandomThots reaches new dimensions - it's an international airport bloog! (And one of the best international airports in the world, no less)
Anyhoos, my flight's been delayed an hour so I have utilised the magic of technology- with my one-earphone ipod session, free wi-fi for blogging and the instant SD card uploading - (and the faint smell of vomit lingering in the air - not me!) decided to bring you, the Mandarin Oriental Wedding Experience! Now in technicolour...
Have no pictures of the church wedding and tea ceremony because I saw the horde of cameras around and couldn't be bothered to bring my own. But here's the night time - what a beautiful ceremony! (worth all that stressing after all )

So... why not recount the tale of my emceeing? Was very relaxed about it, thought hey, can just make it up on the spot. Just welcoming people and introducing who's to talk. At 4.30 pm decide to come over for a mike test and stood there saying 'Good Evening...' and then was speechless. Oh Crap i thought. So, my 2 hour speech writing and I finished it at the reception table as guests were coming in. In the end, i had brilliant cheesy one-liners but they seemed to go a bit unappreciated by the crowd. However, i did get quite a few comments about how good my speaking was and managed to impress some people (maybe even some job offers on the table) Muahaha.. at least i impressed my aunties (who are the hardest to impress anyway)

Oops..
my flight's boarding. will continue later.. but just for the sake of posting in an airport! =) see the melbournites tomorrow!

The Beginning of a Long Run....

Woah... 1 open house and a few random cocktails later and I feel like the whole affair is in full swing.
There's no stopping now - wedding at 9.30 am, tea ceremony at 12 pm, rehearsal at 4 pm, dinner at 8 pm (where i am emcee no less!)
Lordy, did i mention I'm flying back to Melbourne 9.30 pm the next day? Okay, a bit of a break but still i reckon i'll be tired!
I thought I had no friends left in KL but it was good catching up with Abes, Rich, Jo Lim and Gigi tonight. Haha... regardless of how long an absence it's been, i can still talk ages with them (see.. some friendships are just low maintenance but no less lasting!) Thanks for coming abes ( i know you read my blog!)
Still, felt a bit anti-social with all the other relatives and friends, but chances are i'll be seeing them at dinner tomorrow anyway and finally it's time to spend some time for myself! Such a relief. I think i can soldier on for the next 2 days now.
I still have no idea what I'm saying tomorrow at the dinner. My brother said, (and i quote) 'Be Yourself'. Oh dear lord - dirty jokes and foot in mouth moments, i think he doesn't really know me quite well enough! Here's hoping that:
1) i can wake up to drive to the church in 7 hours
2) i behave myself and don't say anything too embarrassing
3) i don't get too smashed in the process (which shouldn't really be a problem - i'll be nervous!

Time to get excited about the wedding. (the first one i've been personally invited to!) Will see all you Melbournites soon enough (and i miss you lots and lots)
p.s: for the valedicts, the shirts arrived today! they're a bit loose but i think that's better than tight. and they look awesome! would take a picture but it IS 1 am and i can't be bothered.
Will prolly not blog til sunday or monday so enjoy the end bit of the hols!
(didn't take any pictures tonight - can you believe that! but the food from the caterers was yum yum!)

Ish... Not enough friends lah.

In the end, i'm just a spoilt brat.
It annoys the hell out of me knowing that all my friends are together in Melbourne and enjoying themselves. Even if they're not, i'm imagining it. So kiasu!
Is this what it will be like next year?

No, even the good food and cheap shopping is little compensation for the friendless nights.

how appropriately alone in the home nest this bird is

I think it's time I got a boyfriend (so at least there's someone who can be bored with me, right?)

New Music Corner

I'm so so shocked that MTV plays anything other than tits and arse.
In fact, they played music that I LIKE. And it's GOOD. very maroon 5 feel.
The song's been stuck in my head the whole day. Love it!
Jamie Scott and the Town - When Will I See Your Face Again?

Wow....

For those who don't know I'm going to Tasmania in December, I am!
And the Hobart Beer Fest will be on then.
Thought I'd better start training already. Here's something for me and Kai to learn.

Haha.. the Germans really perfected the art of skolling eh?

Cutest little fat kid ever!

While I was lunching in Ipoh, I couldn't help but notice this little boy next to me. He was so round and chubby and cute! And he seemed to be enjoying his food lots and lots! For about 15 minutes he had a continuous hand-to-mouth motion.
Yes, i did it. I video-ed him. Hahaha. But only for a little while. (still enough to make me voyeuristic?)



eeee... want to pinch his cheeks!

The Ipoh Pre-Wedding Dinner

Because I like to flatter myself thinking that people like to keep up with the goings-on in my life, I am going to put up photos of the last 2 days in Ipoh. A bit of a sore leg (from driving) and too many relatives whose names i have forgotten later, here they are! Photos from the Ipoh pre-wedding dinner!

They say when in Rome, do as the Romans... So, when in Ipoh do as the Ah Lians?

The function room in the afternoon before the whole affair
My brother... the alco. But seriously. A 2 litre bottle of Black Label... (o_o)

Before walking into the function room. (so sweet ya?) too bad my cousin walked through the doors to spoil the shot. haha

Aaaawww... so cute right got big cheesy picture outside?

Me and mummy - alcos too! i managed to end up serving brandy to people as my dad and brother went round toasting the guests. haha.. can't stop serving the alcohol!
Customary champagne-pouring time...
The new family - and my tablemates! (even including them i'm the youngest. Sigh....)
Better picture - her oldest sis, 2nd bro's gf, the bride, Moi and cousin Mike who's getting married next year! *sigh* all these marriageable/married people! i think i have a little while more to go.After dinner and shooing away guests, the leftover relatives head down to the bar (cos they packed up the place). haha.. drunk relatives are highly amusing. and the bar was aptly named 'emergency bar'

The whole affair was pretty good - happy drunk relatives, good food of which i ate very little walking around being a good semi-hostess and finally meeting the rest of the new family. Still dawning on me that we're stuck with them now. haha.. not in a necessarily bad way. But imagine you're away for a while and everything at home's going on like normal. And next thing you know your brother will not be coming home as often, there will be this extra person who's always part of his (and therefore your) life and there's suddenly new family members too! (or am i putting too much importance on the whole in-law relation?)
We shall see... a hectic week ahead what with more dinners, relatives and the wedding itself!
Onward ho with shoe shopping! (wish i had more time...)

A Vent for Marriage

It's the night before the big Ipoh dinner.
Considering I'm driving there I should really be asleep now. But i'm feeling worked up.
Most of the day's conversations were spent bitching about some relative or other, which leads me to conclude that blood is more fickle than water.
Is my brother consigned to being some other family's bitch? Are my parents forever going to complain about how they've lost a son, not gained a daughter?
Behind the happy bride and groom sits the newly-forged ties of in-lawdom.
Ha! There was a time when I believed that Love was just boy meets girl, they like each other and everything else is fine and dandy.
How cynical I've become since then!
Noone tells you that woven into those professions of undying adoration, that underlying the scent of perfumed roses and laced into the gowns of adulation are the invisible threads of family and upbringing and image and power. Like the Marxist I am - always power.
This is probably the disgruntled tirade of 2 am. Irate, tired and over-familied as i tend to be.
Here's wishing me continued sanity over the weekend and a great time faking smiles and manners.
Congratulations to us all.

All-round Achiever?

The oddest thoughts strike me when I am in the shower, and this time it was while pondering the many qualifications on my CV.
While I had busied myself with attaining scholarships, H1's, picked up various posts in the many organisations I join and squeezed in as much work experience as I possibly could, I thought about how much I had missed out in personal development - the string of failed relationships (well, i suppose it was development of a pick-yourself-up-and-you'll-be-stronger sort) and not as many drinking or mahjong sessions as the successful networking people are prone to.
But really... even though I am uni-smart, I think that other people deserve to put their own qualifications on CVs too..
Like if you are a really great boyfriend...

• excellent dispute management
• experienced driver, bodyguard, escort, guide
• presentation skills (especially to authority figures e.g. parents)
• time management
• financial planning
• dedication and patience

Maybe these are things that should be in the CVs of the future. You are selling yourself to the employer anyway, right? Why miss the important bits?
Oh well... i think i just have too much time on my hands. Random useless thought of the day!

Feels Like Home To Me.....

Corrine May once sang:

I feel like a little girl
Trying to conquer the whole wild world
Everybody wants a piece of me
And I just don't know where to run

I am truly lost in this world they call adulthood.
It's been just under 2 days that I've been in Malaysia and I am missing Melbourne terribly.
I don't understand it. Didn't I say I wouldn't mind living here? This is just a holiday, which is what makes it worse.
I should be enjoying the food, the shopping and the family, but I feel quite swamped and disillusioned by the whole culture in Malaysia.
I drive to get everywhere.
The sky is permanently hazy.
Everyone walks around in a zombie-like daze, shopping for god-knows-what in every shop that looks the same same same as you walk by.
When did Malaysia lose its character? Where is all the flavour, and life, and beauty that I held in my memory?
When did everything turn into a series of air-conditioned malls connected by an endless stream of rude drivers and traffic jams?
I fear that I really over-glorified Malaysia in my mind - that I thought I could live wherever and it wouldn't be a problem.
I miss my friends. I miss my freedom. I miss the little alleys and streets with their shops that exasperate me for closing at 5 pm, but remind me that there are better things to do with your time.
I miss the coffee culture, where people meet up just to have a chat.
I miss the bars, where you can walk around the city looking for a decent place to have a quiet beer - and not be afraid of walking home in the wee hours of the morning.
I miss the people around me - whom I can call to go to any of these cafes or bars, or just stay at home and talk or play games, or even cook to feed.

What happened to the Malaysia I knew? Why has Melbourne suddenly oozed all this charm?
As baffled as I ever could be... and really questioning my stubbornness in wanting to come home.

Where is home now?



*sigh*

The Fallacy of Democracy

Perhaps it's evidence of the three years in politics.
Perhaps I only really understand it all now when it plays out in front of me.
Eerily resembling Orwell's Animal Farm is the great Valedictory Democracy.
I realise that when given too much choice, people are, ultimately, petty.
I don't think I could sum up the whole thing because it's been a drawn out affair.
Let's just say voting is not always democratic, choice is not always freedom and greater effort doesn't always amount to better outcomes.
Should've taken a leaf out of the seniors' books. Dictatorships may not be that bad after all.
As always, I am timely in my reading, Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children explains:

'...in the upper reaches of my mind, another army was also destroyed by things - bickerings, prejudices, boredom, selfishness - which I had believed too small, too petty to have touched them. But optimism, like a lingering disease, refused to vanish; I continued to believe - I continue now - that what-we-had-in-common would finally have outweighed what-drove-us-apart. No, I will not accept the ultimate responsibility for the end of the Children's Conference'.

Rushdie, p. 342

For we are but children after all.

I Have Only Myself To Blame...

For being awake at 4 am, counting Bar money (for the 2nd last time!)
For having 2 big things to organise concurrently (Valedicts and Tassie)
For scheduling National Night this weekend
For having AGM the Sunday after
For leaving my handover documentation to 2 days ago
For not doing my readings even though I could have in the library
For having to wake up in 6 hours so that I can buy the alcohol I never got round to buying
For not getting enough sleep in the last few days
For still wanting to rant about it on my blog
For feeling that this week is going to be a hectic, tiring one (isn't it always though?)

Haha.. the harsh life of an involved student.
What will I do when I am unemployed and friendless?

I'm allowed to like my readings

In a rare moment when I appreciate being an arts student...
I like all this talk about identity. It reminds me of first learning sociology back in Taylors. It MUST'VE stuck to me because I still remember quotes from 4 years ago now. How come it doesn't seem as easy in uni?

Here's a recap. My favourite symbolic interactionist, Cooley, and his Looking-Glass theory:

I am not what I think I am
I am not what you think I am
I am what I think that you think I am.

Ever thought of it that way? You make yourself out to suit what others think. And you will never really know what others think, you'll just have a perception of what you think they are thinking. I think that is such a clever theory...

But anyway, I read newer things... like this article that talks about awareness:

Awareness creates potential change, and may actually induce change in and through itself. For instance, the question, 'Are you aware of your breathing right now?', at least when first posed, usually produces an instantaneous change.

(Giddens, 1991, p. 71)

Haha... how's your breathing right now? Suddenly conscious of it right? The first time i read the paragraph i was inhaling and exhaling deeply throughout the article. Haha.. Hate it when the books are right.

But here's the one that I really liked. It's gloriously long and I don't really expect anyone to have read right up to here (boy, you must be bored. Haha.. if i said whoever reads this gets me to cook for them, i wonder how many will take me up on that?)

People who fear the future attempt to 'secure' themselves - with money, property, health insurance, personal relationships, marriage contracts. Parents attempt to bind their children to them. Some fearful children are reluctant to leave the home nest... The harsh psychological truth is that there is no permanence in human relationships, any more than there is in the stock market, the weather, 'national security' and so on... this clutching at security can be very discouraging to interpersonal relationships, and will impede your own self-growth. The more each of us can learn to be truly in the present with our others, making no rules and erecting no fences for the future, the stronger we will be in ourselves and the closer and happier in our relationships.

(Giddens, 1991, p. 73)

*phew* what a mouthful. But i really believe it though. Delude myself into thinking that I am going back to Malaysia because I am confident enough in myself to not be tied down into the whole PR business.

Final quote to emphasise my point:

... the paradox is that until we give up all the feels secure, we can never really trust the friend, mate, or job that offers us something. True personal security does not come from without, it comes from within

(Giddens, 1991, p. 78)

Oh my, hasn't this post been a window into my non-commital self?
Betrays the questions that plague me as the future looms ahead.

Sleep Deprived and At Work

It seemed like a dream come true. An essay where the lecturer said to 'write in the style of a blog'?
Awesome!
NOT.
It's probably the worst i've ever done for an essay.
How does one write casually and include sociological perspectives?
I realise i ask a lot of questions when i write.
What the heck?
Anyway, it's only 30%. I'll live if i just pass it (15% not bad wat).
But it also makes me realise how differently i write for a research essay and for my darling blog.
And it also makes me realise how much goes into this blog without me realising.
Interesting. Identity formation, social relations and what not.
(But i've had enough of that for today)
Merdeka Countdown!! (my annual clubbing outing. haha..)

The Photography Corner

I'm proud of these shots. Need i have any other reason to put them up?
Still considering my career path. *sigh*
Wish i had the certainty i did when i wanted to be a copywriting tour guide photographer.
Haha.. any future in that you think?
Be honest, do any of these belong on a postcard/magazine?

Baby spiders in the Jungle Surfing place in Cape Tribulation, Cairns

Boy skipping stones at Little Fitzroy Island, Cairns
Rainbow creeper, Cape Tribulation, Cairns

Palm trees at Little Fitzroy Island, Cairns

Pond at Dragonfly Cafe, Cape Tribulation, Cairns

Kayaks on the beach, Little Fitzroy Island, Cairns

Some viewpoint along Great Ocean Road
Peeking through the trees, Little Fitzroy Island, Cairns
Sails at the port, Cairns
Fan Palms, Cape Tribulation, Cairns

Saggy Bubbies and a Handful of Girls

So... Now do you want to watch the musical?

The Goodbye Girl
Open Theatre @ the Arts Centre, Melbourne Uni
Friday (24th) at 7.30 pm
Saturday (25th) at 2.30 pm and 7.30 pm.
Union members: $10, Concession: $12, Adults: $15.

It's worth publicising this year!

Change of Plans Again?

This is funny and strange at the same time.
All this certainty that i want to go home.
That i don't mind not studying for a while.
That it's alright if most of my friends are staying in Australia.
That as much as i love Melbourne, it would be good to be home again.

Finally, the first thing to make me hesitate has arrived.
And how peculiar too.
It's the thought that I won't be able to bring guys home so long as I'm under my parents roof... (or spend nights over either...)
Not like it's a freedom I exercise a lot now.
But how peculiar.

Hhhmm... so maybe this deserves further contemplation...

Miles Halpern's "Contemplation" at Isadore Gallery

Down in the History... erm.. Boards

I forgot to gloat about my scholarship. Yes, i get to have my name in lights... or rather goldish paint... on the board in the JCR. I'm down in IH history! Well, at least for another 50 years 'cos i think you can fit about another 50 names on that board.

With that maniacal grin on my face....

... i point our my greatness

That is, until a fiendish Rahul covers it up to make me cry.. ( just thought that was an awesome crying face)
And yes Kee Win, you're there too. =)

~yay.... for people to make fun of in many years to come~

Vassi Practices Tai Chi...

Web Search Whoring....

*sigh*....
You fickle tool. Playing with my heart. Tempting it with multiple visitors and then taking it all back so you can move on to the next site like the trollop that you are!
And for a brief moment, i thought that people could share in RandomThots. That they would be seduced by the shark, and convinced by the site. Haha.. I'm apparently not so engaging.
Well, begone with you fame! I never needed you anyway! With my few loyal readers, and my own lonely self, I shall survive!

But what bites me the most (haha.. pun intended!) is that it's the same picture...

This is just once...

out of an endless many more times in my life
I will ask,
Is it worth it all?
And why?

The perils of wanting to do everything, yet not knowing what I want to do.

The Mystery of the Burgeoning Blog Numbers

Like the avid sleuth that I am, I could not let this mystery continue unanswered.
The sudden surge in blog visits and new visitors. What baffled me was why the world suddenly took interest in this random Malaysian girl based in Melbourne.
Perhaps they were taken by my charm?
My witty manner and sharp sarcasm?
My interesting take on life and engaging storytelling?
My gorgeous photography and, naturally, beautiful subject matter?
Surely it was one of these that caught the world's fancy. And perhaps, I was on my way to fame and fortune!

Motivated by this new-found acclaim, I armed myself with stat counters and 'linked from' statistics. Surely then I would find which post had the world so fascinated. Maybe it was my photography of South Africa.
Did people take solace in knowing that at least I shared in their trials and tribulations in the all-pervasive question of love?
Maybe those installations of Things They Don't Teach You in School struck a chord in readers after all.

Excited like a kid at a candy store, i was quickly brought down to earth when i found the source of all this activity.
A picture.
To be precise, a picture that I scammed off someone else on the net. To be precise, this picture:


But yeah... Take your glories when you can. Woohoo! I'm #1 in a Google search! For the Great Barrier Reef nonetheless!
Yes it's an image search. Yes it's not my image. But Woohoo!!! RandomThots makes it mark SOMEWHERE in cyberspace! (even if it's only for a little while)

And Time Rushes Again...

How many people have told me I'm too busy?
I concur. So in this space of 10 minutes between ironing office clothes and running off for the next musical practice, before I run off to dinner with relatives and a night at the fantabulous Crown hotel with my brother...
Perhaps a reminder of how excellent the Shins are. =)
Here are some photos and I wish I knew how to upload videos directly. (Youtubing seems such a bother)
Check out the awesome awesome background for the stage.


Don't really have many other pictures (that are different) but did record bits of the concert.
For another day... onward ho to the dancing! (musical....)
For those in Melbourne, come check it out Friday(24th) and Saturday(25th)
There's singing and dancing - what more do you want?

A Momentous Date

Not that I'm counting down or anything...
But in exactly 1 month, after all the bickering and pettiness of college politics,
I will officially be a retired Student Club member.
It's a love-hate thing.

Whatever will I do without my Bar?

Age and Wisdom?

I've decided that the two most difficult conversations are telling someone you like them...
and telling someone that you don't.


but i suppose that's how it goes.

i've had a surprising number of these conversations. It's progress from the days I ran away from people in Taylors I suppose. Abs will know what i mean.

What I've learned? It never gets easier.

Graham Norton

Reminiscing back to my England days, here's a talk show that I found absolutely hilarious when I was there.
So Graham Norton! Good to know it's still running...
=)

it's definitely worth watching for the bored ones.

This one is funnier - and has elijah wood and kim catrall!


And if you liked that, i think this is hilarious too. The plastic looking guy is Andrew Lloyd Webber and I assume they're talking about the broadway musical Jesus Christ Superstar.


Oh my lord... the downside of having Library quota and YouTube access..
This one is really funny and extremely sadistic towards the last 5 minutes.
I miss watching it in England now!
Be warned, it's definitely cringe-worthy.