It's Been a Long Time

That one statement will forever bring back one memory to me.

AFC Talent Show, one year ago.

A play on the stage.

A cowboy.

A lady.

A single spoken line.

"It's been a long time, missy."

That one, single line was delivered with such raunchiness, such perversity of tone, that it would forever be ingrained in my mind. Not to mention the look on the fellow's face, which, from where I was sitting, looked positively sleazy.

In any case, I digress.

It's been two months since my last post. Why? I'm not sure. Time, perhaps. Or, more likely, I just never got around to it. No matter. The past two months have been pretty... standard, I'd say. Sure, there were lots of assignments (late nights, procrastination, long college days staying back) but I guess it was bound to happen eventually. No more easy college work. Wait, that's not right, the work IS relatively easy, its just... well, as I said, procrastination. Wonderful thing eh?

Various things have occurred over the past two months. Due to unforseen circumstances, my sister and I had to spend a few days without power. Candlelight, stuffiness, mosquitos... makes you realize how precious such simple comforts like electrical lighting and fans are. Not to mention entertainment. Time was pretty at that point. And when the power came back on... It was... Amazing. Aside from the lack of power... well, nothing that notable happened. And you know me, I'm not going to tire you out with the day to day "today I went to college; for lunch had food x, went home, had food y for dinner" nonsense.

Time's a wasting, and it's time for me to go. Not much this time, I know, but expect more... eventually. No worries, I'll get around to posting. Nowadays I only go online when there's work to do, so no more somewhat daily postings like before. In any case, you all know I'm still alive and kicking.

Cheers.

Sleepless Night.

Went 36 hours without sleep yesterday. Advertising assignment in which I had to create three different posters. Now, the work itself, in a pure, solid chunk, only took at most 4 hours. The reason I had to go through Monday night without sleep was simple. Procrastination. Tuesday being the due day, I had to rush. The Adobe Creative suite DVD my friend passed to me wouldn't work on my laptop, and so I had to go to the cybercafe (thankfully its only 1.50 an hour), download the program, install it, then, since I was there, do it. They turned out well enough, and in fact, I was quite pleased with the second one.

In any case, the whole thing was done and finished in time, although printing was something of a rush. Went home at 9, took a bath, changed, then headed out again. Somehow I think this won't be the last occurance of late night grinds through assignments. The whole thing reminds me of my computer project back in Form 5... Had a long grace period of two weeks after the deadline to finish it. Me being me, I left it until the last day, then rushed through it the whole evening. My database didn't work as planned, and most of the stuff I typed was mindless drivel. All that being said, I got it done.

Imagine my surprise when the teacher passes it back and says: "Anand, I'm very disappointed." Got my project back, and bam, 38/50. For rushed, last minute work that doesn't function the way I wanted it too... 38/50 was a good grade. Heck, I got higher than the majority of the class. Like then, I'm reminded of the lesson I told myself I'd learn.

If I just do my work when its given, rather than at the last minute, I'm pretty sure it'll end up pretty damn good. At least, so I hope, considering that I've never given that a shot. I find that the only way I can work, and work efficiently, is under pressure. Hopefully that's not really the case, as, frankly, I'd hate to go another 36 plus hours without sleep.

Ah well. College.

Cheers.

Food. Good. Good Food. Unhealthy Food.

The dates on the calendar fly by. Numbers are altered, figures change, and my wallet gets smaller and smaller. And through it all, the weighing scale tells me that I'm gaining weight. Me, the bone-thin boy of old, finally getting a bit bulkier.

Fat?

No, no, nothing like that. It makes a nice change from having a visible rib cage, and a figure that looked like one could snap it in two. That being said, all the weight I'm gaining (admittedly, not that much; I've met my target weight) seems to go straight to my stomach. Now, my being heavier's not an issue, but having a pot-belly is. Then again, I COULD just start working out, instead of coming home and vegetating in front of the telly. But we'll see. What do I blame?

The food.

Malaysia (well, KL) is chock full of food and eating options. Whatever you want, there's a high chance you'll find it. Western, Eastern, Fusion... All the flavours of the wonderful world we live in. That's all well and good, but you know, when you're on a budget, the only steady option available is the mamak. Or standard Chinese food (of which I do not usually eat). Sure, going to the mamak and grabbing a meal and drink is a way of life here, but... You get sick of it after a while.

The food's good, make no mistake. But the amount of oil and whatever else they put in it can't be healthy. And there's not much I can do about it, because cash is a bit of an issue. Heck, if I had it my way, it'd be Starbucks for breakfast, Carl's Jr. for lunch, and Chili's for dinner everyday. Ah, such joy. Such luxury. Of course, that would probably be even more unhealthy, but hey. Besides, you know me. Never was one to bother about weight, just so long as its not overtly visible.

And all the coffee? The way they make it here, its 75% coffee, 25% condensed milk... Sweet, sweet goodness in a cup... And really quite sweet. Couple that with the roti bomb (sweet bread), its quite a ticket to diabetes. Bwahahaha. The sacrifices one makes for the sweet stuff. That being said, I really should cut down. We'll see how that goes.

Just another random rant... Been a while since the last one too.

Cheers.

Seventeen! Different? No!

Hello hello. Been a long time eh? Two, three weeks, perhaps? In any case, I turned 17 yesterday. Good food, new threads, another year older. I have to say I feel exactly the same. Nothing special. A thought hit me just the other day... I realized that when I finish the course, I'll be... 19? Now, 19, and (hopefully) working's no problem, but I'll still be considered underage for quite a lot of things. And I'll be the age of the majority of my batch mates now, which... is actually kinda cool. Seems like I'll be the youngest almost wherever I go, not that I'm complaining.

Anyways, to sum up the majority of my life since the last time I posted...

No more edu-lite. College finally got pretty busy. Double lectures for most of the day, assignments are starting to come in... It's nothing compared to most other people doing their higher education, but hey. The benefits of taking a communication-oriented course. Two new lecturers, all pretty good. Made the right choice coming to IACT. It's a good place. The whole batch of us get on well with one another, no conflicts or television-worthy dramas. At least, not yet. But at the rate things are going that shouldn't occur for quite some time. That being said, back in school, the dramas DID make it a heck of a lot more interesting...

In any case, that's all for now. There's a lot more, for sure, but my mind's too frazzled to word it out. So yes. Soon.

Cheers!

An Adventure in Kuala Lumpur

Its 12:11 in the morning. I'm at my sister's office. Annoyed. Aggravated. Ticked off.

Why?

The story starts with me meeting up with two old classmates: Sophia and Jun Jie after college (which ended at 6). Now, Sophia and I hadn't seen Jun Jie in ages, so the three of us had quite a lot of catching up to do. Which we did, until about 11. Now, the bus (82) heads to KL Sentral from where I was. Considering that the bus system here has so far seemed pretty dependable, I got on.

That was a mistake.

The bus driver took a convoluted route to locations I didn't recognise, then ended up at One Utama and proceeded to say that it was the last stop. Leaving me far from home with not enough cash to get home. Stranded, basically. Stranded and pissed off. My sister came up with the solution of taking a cab to her workplace (she's working OT), whereby she would pay. Hailed a cab (the only cab there) and took a 30 buck drive.

30 bucks.

So here I am at my sister's office. I'm just glad there's no (am lesson tomorrow. Bleargh! Now, other than this, the whole day was pretty good. Strangely though, good days have a curious way of messing up at the end. Like today. Well, in any case, I'm heading home now. What an utter waste of cash.

Cheers.

Routine Makes Most Things Bearable

Travelling. Lots and lots of travelling. Travelling an hour to go to college and have a single, three hour lecture. And then proceed to take a one and a half hour trip back. By the time I get back I'm bone tired. I'm surprised that standing in the bus-LRT-bus can be such a fatigue-inducing experience. College and the lectures themselves aren't that bad, and are actually quite enjoyable. Everyone's participating, and (unlike school) there's no hesitation to answering questions. Although that may stem from the fact that participation in class nets 10% of your total grade in a subject...

Anyways, there're 45 minute breaks midway through a lecture. Usually use this time to grab some coffee and a bite of food. Interludes such as these are always welcome, and they make the three hours spent on one topic a lot more bearable. Plus, after our return, the lecturer shows us videos of adverts. Good, bad, whatever. Personally, in my opinion, if you want whack, weird, strange ads... Search for some Japanese ones. And even a few Thai ones. If I ever go into advertising, I seriously hope that I won't one day get a client who wants ads like those. Can you imagine having to purposely do something campy and having your name stuck to it? Hmm.

I've come to the realization that once you settle down into a routine (i.e. travelling, college, getting up etc) everything becomes a lot more bearable. You get used to it. I'm pretty sure if the elevator died and I had to go up 12 flights of stairs just to get back, It'd be fine, given time. Perhaps its simply your brain and body doing the same things over and over again so many times its instinctive and doesn't require much thought. At least, not as much as before. So yes, I'm sure (well, hoping, really) that I'll get used to the travelling times and what not.

We'll see.

In any case, college has yet to turn out bad. Quite the opposite really. Of course, all that being said, this is still the first semester, so it's kinda too soon to come to any solid conclusions regarding the rest of my two and a half year course. Then again, life would be pretty boring if everything was certain and set in stone. Uncertainty adds a kind of excitement...

'Till next time.

Cheers.

Edu-Lite! The Very Best in Education!

Why Lite, you ask? Well, put it this way. In a five-day college week, I have 15 hours (17 on a fortnight) of education to undergo. Now, I'm not complaining. Far from it. After hearing alot of you speak of your A's and how much work you all have to do, I'm enjoying my Edu-Lite lifestyle (well, one lecture so far really) as much as I can. Its a free way to live. My lectures (barring Friday) start around 12. I plan to leave the house somewhere around 9, maybe 10. It takes me around an hour to get to college. This leaves me with time to sit down, have a nice cup of coffee (COFFEE!), relax and zone out a bit.

Great way to start the day.

Travelling gives me time to think, prepare... A tad bit tiring though. Especially going back. Put it this way, after orientation (which ended at 12) I only got home at 3. Blast the rather confusing public transport bus routes. That being said, once you've got them noted, travelling's much simpler. Unlike Brunei, here in KL, I can go where I want, more or less whenever I want. A free place.

Anyways.

I've got four papers this semester. Mass Communications, Advertising, Communication English and Research Methods/Presentaion Skills. As I said before, the hours are very manageable. No hassle, no tears. And my batch members seem like nice people. We all had to introduce ourselves today, so I got to know a few of them. In my current batch, I'm both the youngest, and the only foreigner. Not really that much of a surprise.

Today's lecture was VERY laid back. Quite enjoyable too. Asked around, and apparently all the lecturers here are good. As in, really good. So that's a plus. Am no longer feeling envious of canggih campuses and large facilities stocked with hordes of other people. Looking forward to going through the course. Sure, there'll be work, but hey, nothing good ever comes easy eh?

That's all for now. There's more, but I'm on a bit of a time limit. More to come!

Cheers.