Glow 2008

Going back in time. To before I sat for MCAT...
July 19, 2008. I went to this contemporary art exhibition in Santa Monica called Glow. Glow 2008 was a dusk-to-dawn event of effervescent sights and enchanting sounds in the three dimensions of space and time, allowing each and everyone who was there to explore and experience with all their senses. I wasn't planning on going because V and Jess couldn't make it, so I thought oh well I should just stay at home and study. But in the end, Vu wanted to check it out with me, so him, one of his friends and I went there at about midnight. :) Below are the pictures taken.

So. Talking about senses. What better way to appreciate art than to heighten your senses with the liquid with high contents of -OH groups in it? :P (well, some may argue that tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) - its common name is 'ganja' in Malay, in case you're wondering - works wayyy better... but that's subject to personal preference, eh? ;P)

The beach was so full of people you'd be surprised!
This picture doesn't do it enough justice though. This was probably only one fifth of the crowd.


This was supposed to be an octopus. see it even had a monitor to show its eyes! how cute! :)

looked like another octopus to me. why were there so many octopuses, i never quite figured out.

but i guess when you're buzzed and maybe an octave higher than usual, it didn't really matter. XD *ahem*
I MEAN, i guess when the art itself was so different and unique given that it was made from recycled plastics, it should be praised, and not questioned. :P

Another 8-legged-opus.

This thing is cool. Water sprinkled into the air and the illumination projected
on to the man-made water showers. Kinda like the musical fountain show in Disneyland.

I saw many colors and shapes. :) and i assure you, it's not the alcohol. :)

(mind you, not THC either!!)

There's something about night events that stretch out from p.m. to a.m. -- they excite people, regardless if it's in US of A or Malaysia or anywhere else in the world. at 3-ish a.m. everyone was still up and about, jumping ropes and laughing so merrily.

this guy could jump really high, and he had quite a nice bod. you'll see later. ;)

this guy is gay... everything about him is. i bet you can tell just from looking at this pic! :)

aiks. i thought i took a pic of the nice bod guy but i didn't. here's one of him with his leather jacket on. and omg haha this asian guy!!!! Vu loved that poor dude's spontaneity--when told he had to take off his shirt in order to jump the ropes, he didn't hesitate for a second and took off his shirt immediately! hhaha omg me and Vu still laugh bout it till this day! you know how when you were young, there's always a guy who's a bit of a social outcast but not really and he would try really hard to fit in and people just generally disregard him like he's nobody, and in some ways it's even worse than being the outcast that people shun away from, because it's almost as if he's not even important enough to be brushed aside! this dude was kinda like that... he didn't even get to jump once... Brushed aside as if he was a speck of dust. as if he didn't exist.. :/

fun times :)

that's Vu's friend and moi.

in attempts to catch the bubbles, that will teleport me to the north pole where magic exists :) and i have to do it quick before global warming destroys every bit of the magic...

still trying... :))))
[ suddenly i can almost hear my friend isaim say, "joannn you're sucha girlllll"...! i miss him. ]

this is Vu, my friend. he's funny... if you talk to him long enough you'll realize in all the conversations with him he'll always revert back to the same topic (not telling you WHAT, but here's a hint--it's not hard to guess and every guy talks bout it :P). and he likes to think that all Chinese are horny and they love travelling that's why they leave their seeds in every part of the world. :D

see he even took a picture of a pair of sexy legs. XD

some guy who was showing off his artsy work. yeah that guy in the orange shirt.

Vu claimed that his work looked like a guy's penis. *tsk tsk* that's all he thinks about.. :P

i made Vu stand near the cops cuz i've always wanted to take a picture of the cops in short pants. this picture is not as cool though.. there's only one in khakis. i've seen a bunch of them all in short pants.. the kind that doesn't even reach the knees! isn't it funny looking. i thought so... :P

the art exhibit was alright.. i didn't get to see what i went there for cuz the queue was too long and i didn't wanna stand and wait. so we walked around and talked about all the things under the orange californian sky. anyway, that's bout it. i'd go again next year, and when i do i'll make sure i get to see all the exhibits.. and not just a few octopuses. :)

lalala

And.... I'm back again! :)

it could be the grueling 5 hours test that depressed me quite a bit, or perhaps it's the personal statement that i've been working on that's keeping me away from blogging; either way, i just didn't feel like blogging for the past two weeks.

but it's time to get over it and move on, so now i'm back in the blogosphere again and i'll be busy with application and then looking for a job. does anyone know of anyone who'd offer me a biotech related job? sigh, the worries/excitement of a college graduate..

oooh this has nothing to do with my personal life, but i listened to Hillary Clinton's speech at the democratic national convention, omg it's soooo good, so real and touching, and the way she uses words to get her points across! it gets me so excited bout the presidential race i wish i had more time to follow up on all the news bout it. (and at the back of my mind i wish i could ask for her help with my ps..) :/

uhhh i have nothing exciting to tell you now, but you guys should all check out the convention!! it's interesting! and it'll be even more interesting next week to see how McCain fights back!

p.s. anyone who likes to help me review my personal statement, email me or leave me a comment pls! then i'll email it to you so that you can help me proofread! thankssss~

Nearing of D-Day

they said, just do your best. nothing to be afraid of.
yah i'm sure.

if i do well, that's great. if i don't, then. too bad. life goes on.
if there's any consolation, it's that i don't have anything to lose.

but who am i kidding. i wish i could say that.
truth is, i have everything to lose. everything.

only god knows, that if and when things don't turn out well, i'd have to go back to square one, and figure out the reason to live. again. goddamnit, how many times do i have to go through this. maybe this time i should make things simpler, and live for chocolates. and cookies, and maybe ice cream. and ooooh cheesecakes. and all the asam laksa in the world. heee :P

on a lighter note, i wanna thank all my friends, who gave me all the support i need (and snacks - wendy and vu). i wanna thank everyone who truly believed in me, even though i don't have the tiniest ounce of confidence right now. :) but if i don't do well, i hope they wont shun away from me. :P

The Things A Girl Do

So 2 days ago, after jogging, i took a detour to the nearby boba place for a cuppa coffee, thinking i could treat myself a little, you know, after burning off some calories. :P afterall, i intend to stay up late, so i don't have to worry about the sleeping problem. (not that i ever did - i can usually sleep right after. caffeine does nothing to moi :/) but on my way there, i saw the pharmacy so i thought i'd stop by to get some multivitamins supplements since i've been eating unhealthily & not getting enough rest; also someone suggested i should get some for my eye-twitching (could be due to lack of vitamins?!). thus off i go for my vitamins shopping. :)

but! who would've thought there's an aisle just for chocolates hohoho! i mean, well, i do know that, but it never came across my mind when i decided to make a pit stop at the pharmacy. guess what the girl did. mentally kicking herself for not being able to withstand the temptations, she stood there for a long 15-20 minutes trying to decide which one to get. -__- and that wasn't even her intention in the first place. talk about digression! *tsk tsk*

and THEN... she came across the hallmark cards aisle. this girl has the tendency to buy cards and keep them, thinking they will come in handy (someday)... whenever her friends' birthdays are just around the corner and there's no time to get a card for them. and she prefers snail-mails anytime, to all the e-cards or facebook-wall birthday wishes.

so this is what she got: 2 bars of Ghiradelli chocolates (for her coworkers) and 2 birthday cards for 2 friends' upcoming birthday. :))) the other card is my 'old' collection which i thought i'd show you guys. and the Lindt's were gotten some time ago and i haven't finished them yet. see the thing about me is that i don't love to eat them as much as i love to shop for them. makes sense? :D

Digression. Sigh (the satisfied kind :P). thank god i didn't forget to get my multivits. :)))

this is some studying snacks my friend got me :)))

don't you think the packaging is so darn cute?

Be My Friend?

Will you be my friend, if I share with you my M&M's? :)

one of the things that make me extremely sad and cringe in pain is to see old people injured/hurt yet be so helpless. (actually just seeing them grow old, senile and increasingly dependent on others to take care of them is enough to make me sad, but that's another story by itself).

in certain towns of South Ossetia, where Russian military miscalculated and dropped bombs on civilians' apartments instead of the initial target - the Georgian military camps, many people were hurt/killed. what a way to say 'ooops'. good job russia. some people just want to live in peace and enjoy their simple lives without worrying if their homes will be blasted into pieces the next second. that's not so hard to understand or relate to, is it?

in the simplest words, one country wants to reclaim a state that has unofficially claimed its independence thus starts the land invasion into South Ossetia. it's basically a conflict between the separatists of S.O. and Georgia. then Russia decides it can't sit on the sideline and watch, so it sends forces to S.O. to help the separatists get rid of the Georgian forces - or so it seems. but you see, the strange part is that, Russia doesn't even really want the secession of a region of a sovereign state to happen, so why is it so adamantly involved in its neighbour's domestic problems, even though it was Georgia who started it first? (ok i know there's more to it, but let's just keep it simple for now). so in the end, it's the innocent civilians who faced the gory consequences, without ever fully comprehending why they were the ones who are being punished.

i felt like the little girl who's helpless amongst a crowd of adults in the midst of a foodfight. at that instance, the little girl wished she could grow up faster so that she'll be an adult and do something to stop the horror. but when she did grow up she realized there's only so much she could do and the helplessness never really went away. so she began to wish she didn't have to grow up. because in a world of innocent and naive children, m&m's can work its magic and solve all conflicts. ain't that a beautiful thing. if only the presidents of russia and georgia can exchange chocolates and enjoy the simple pleasures together instead of bombing each other. what a big if. *snorts*

tzzzzchumawakaboompshhh

uhm. that's the sound of my brain exploding.

that's right. like a bomb that just went off, counting down to the last few seconds... 3, 2, 1, *insert the explosion sound here - however gruesome you imagine it to be*

the gooey brain stuff is somewhat unpleasant. messy, even. i don't recommend this type of suicide, people. :/ i was gonna write about Beijing Olympics and the respect that all the sportsmen/women yearn to earn for their countries, the national pride of the Chinese; the controversies and the negative publicities what with the bombings in Xinjiang, and the Tibet issues, and the limitations of press freedom. and on the other side of the world, some pretty serious unrest is going on between Georgia and Russia. :(

i was gonna write bout those stuff, but i can't think straight because of the upcoming exam i have to sit for, and i feel like i'm not gonna do well and if i really didn't do well i wouldn't know how to face everyone. especially those who had high expectations. i can't talk to anyone right now because i can't bear to hear another 'you'll do well' or 'you'll be fine' because what if i wont?. those words that are meant to be encouragements will sound like pressure to me right now.

not that i'm absolutely depressed, or that i've lost hope. i'll do my best and leave the rest to God.

in the meantime, let me share some funny conversations at work:

me: so uhm, if you could be anything in the sea, what would you be?
Dee: i'll be... a puffer fish (or did she say clown fish? i forgot)...
Lis: starfish.. i'll be the biggest one, the ones that's so huge it can even eat other starfishes. -.-
Wen: (i totally forgot her answer.. gotta ask her again)
Tony: i'll be a shipwreck...
me: wow.. shipwreck is the coolest answer ever. (so from that day on, every time i see tony i have a picture of a shipwreck in my head hahaha)
(after a very long time)
Dee: i change my mind. i wanna be the water.. the sea water. so that i can be everywhere in the world at the same time...
Tony: eeew... but then everyone's gonna pee and poop in you, that's disgusting! and the oil leaks and whatnot. eeww!! HAHAHAA...

Suz: what kinda animal would you be?
(and then my boss walked into the lab)
Boss: what? what did i miss?
(Suz repeated her question)
Boss: oh i'll be a fusarium. you know, the fungi?!
(Suz and me had a quizzical look on our face)
Suz: uh yeah we know what fusarium is. but whyyyy?
Boss: because it's a fungi. "fungi" -- "fun guy"?? geddit???
Suz and me: -_____-||

Ant: Susannnn! you see these roots? (he's wearing a t-shirt with roots coming down from the round collar.)
Suz: yeah why.
Ant: if these are the roots, then this right here (referring to his face) must be the most beautiful tree of all...
Suz: -_____-

i love working with these peeps. they are the funniest bunch they crack me up all the time. :) there's a lot more funny/nerdy/cold jokes... i just can't remember all right now. till the next time! :))))