Mama and Papa are actually real good bowlers, with scores that usually reach the hundreds at the final frame. Lu, Jie and I, on the other hand, try to keep up with them. Sometimes we manage to beat them, if we added up all three of our scores against the two of theirs, which says a lot.
But, over the years, we've managed to pick up a few tips and tricks from the OGs.
After we finished our game, the bowling alley closed for a competition between the youth from Qatar and Sunway MegaLanes Junior. Some of the kids' were so small that their entire torsos were as big as their bowling balls!
But, man, we were so impressed by their games that we stayed on to watch them finish a few rounds against each other.
2 Jul
Georgia
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| Just an old sweet song keeps Georgia on my mind. |
Meet Georgia - Marc's family dog.
I knelt down to say hi to her as I normally would when I walk into their house.
Placing my hand behind her ears, I gave her a good scratch and said "hello" in the typical baby-talk voice that we humans always use when speaking to animals. She then put her paw on my forearm and secured me right there.
She didn't move for a long while, so much so that I was able to whip out my phone and snap this photo as she happily enjoyed her massage.
MK Snack Food @ Old Town
As commandant for this year's NextGen Campus camp, Marc needed to run some errands by buying a ton of snacks for the campers and the camp committee. I went along with him.
This is not the first time I've been here, but every time I step foot inside this place, I feel like a kid. Rows and rows of shelves filled from bottom to top with every kind of snack I've ever eaten in my childhood, boxes and boxes of sweets and candy that I've never tried before...
So, if you're looking for a place to stock up your favourite snack or candy, or if you need a whole bunch of food for your upcoming events, MK Snack Food is the place to go.
Location:
MK Snack Food Sdn Bhd
66, Jalan 1/12,
Seksyen 1,
46000 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor
https://g.co/kgs/8Mpynu
4 Jul
Postcards
Thanks Sam for the thoughtful gesture of sending this postcard and for the handwritten message! You'll always be part of the Qingcus famiri and we're proud of you and are always, always excited to have you back: you and your farts.
crazy
It's been too long a while since I've last saw them, but nothing much has really changed. The crazy still lives in each and everyone of us.
"Just wing it - life, eyeliner, everything."
Also, I managed to put on my eyeliner perfectly in just one try that night. And it was even.
This will be an achievement I will always and forever relish in. As I longingly wait for the day or night when I perfectly wing out my eyeliner again, I will look back and have this photo to remember that feeling by.
6 - 8 Jul
TRUTH18 @ Refreshing Springs Resort
It was NextGen Campus' very first time having our camp here. There was little to no signal and because of that, it helped make my camp experience a lot more different than all the other camps.
This is because I usually run the Instagram stories for NextGen, so having no data coverage over these past few days meant that I had nothing to update the account with. This helped me to, as cliche as it sounds, be present in the moment and to enjoy camp as a normal camper.
Here are some of my moments at TRUTH18!
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| Hotspring. |
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| Dorms. |
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| I woke up like this. |
You know when you wake up and mentally feel like you're excited and ready for the day to start, but your body says no? This was me on the morning of day two.
Not sure why I woke up feeling super tired, or why I look so unwilling to get out of bed in this photo, but I really was excited for camp! Don't take this face for it.
One of the best parts about camp will always be games.
Not only because I was gamemaster for one of the stations with Elizabeth this time round, which included having the campers transport water from one point to another using only black trash-bags that have holes in them, but also because I got to wear these tights Hannah and I bought for ourselves at a recent Mitsui visit.
Also, a durian fell from one of the trees around our stations! Jun Jin managed to open it and so the gamemasters had a durian feast right before the campers started running to us.
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| Last night. |
As always, the last night of camp entails hours of boardgames, card games, heart-to-heart conversations and lots of mosquito bites.
This was also the night when Pris discovered her hidden talent of that-finger-wiggling-thing that no one else can do. It's very hard to describe what it is, but here's a photo of EW16 trying to do it (even though it's not HUJI-fied, I had to show it).
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| I'm pretty sure you can zoom into each of our faces and make them into memes. |
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| Clingy. |
Location:
Refreshing Springs Resort
Refreshing Springs Resort
PT 4049,
Mukim Sungai Gumut,
Kampung Gumut Tambahan,
44100 Kerling,
Selangor.
https://g.co/kgs/RpRj64
Website: https://www.refreshingspringsresort.com/
Mukim Sungai Gumut,
Kampung Gumut Tambahan,
44100 Kerling,
Selangor.
https://g.co/kgs/RpRj64
Website: https://www.refreshingspringsresort.com/
9 Jul
Tables of Joy @ Uptown
Papa was on leave from work! So I dated him in the afternoon for a good, hearty lunch at Tables of Joy.
We really like this place because it's quiet and comfortable, and they serve real good home-cooked dishes that are prepared by Joyce's (the owner) grandma!
My personal favourite is the pork curry nasi lemak and Papa alternates between the chicken chop and the nasi lemak as well. Marc likes the chicken in a basket, where they serve a whole fried spring chicken with a side of fries.
It's located along the same rows of Texas Chicken and softsrve, with the shop being nearer to Texas. Go during lunch time for the set that comes with a drink!
Location:
Tables of Joy
13, Jalan SS 21/1a,
Damansara Utama,
47400 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor.
https://g.co/kgs/3QfDH8
10 Jul
Wine-dining
"Ah, let's have white wine tonight!"
There wasn't a specific occasion.
It wasn't like we were having a real fancy dinner at home either - just your normal Chinese, home-cooked dinner with rice and a few dishes, which included a yummy plate of fried chicken.
But that didn't stop Papa from going to the fridge and bringing out one of the bottles of white wine.
Ben 10
Of course, as it is already the middle of November, Ben has been back for awhile now since late July.
And because you complained about the photo I took the last time I called you, here's a few I took when you were telling me a story that I clearly remember, which you, on the other hand, may or may not.
11 Jul
I have a snail, I have an apple
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| Bam, apple snail (from Marc's fish tank). |
12 Jul
Cha cha real smoothie
Cha cha real smoothie
Mama has been buying lots and lots of avocados recently.
Sometimes, a little bit too much at a time. This means that it often feels like it's a race against time to finish up all the avocados before they turn too ripe.
So, I've been making lots of smoothies! This time, I combined ice cream, banana, avocados, blue berries, cherries and a little bit of milk.
13 Jul
Can you knot?
Can you knot?
After many failed attempts and a YouTube video, I finally learnt how to knot my t-shirt.
I feel like this is a basic skill that every girl learns as she grows up but somehow I was the only one who missed that tutorial.
Maybe it was the material of the t-shirts that I wear, or maybe it's just my lack of skill, but I've never managed to properly knot the ends of my t-shirt in a nice way. Either it looks bad or it fall off halfway through the day.
But thank you, YouTube, for helping me tie up loose ends in my life (...give me some credit for that pun please thanks).
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| Shoe-shopping with the boys - what's new? |
I cannot remember exactly how Joel, Kenji, Marc and I ended up here, but somehow we did. So, there's that.
Edit: Marc texted me to say that we were there because he wanted to try out the size of a pair of shoes he ordered online. Yes, the man bought the pair of shoes without knowing if he could fit it. And thankfully, it did.
14 Jul
Marshmallow and spaghetti towers
Marshmallow and spaghetti towers
GENese headed to Refuge for the Refugees (RFTR) that Saturday morning, with games and activities that were planned and conducted by the core team.
It was a real fun time building towers out of marshmallows and spaghetti and having three-legged races amidst other activities. I was also very proud of GENesis as each one of them stepped up and showed so much growth and maturity when interacting with the children and with each other.
I'm a proud mama.
(I Am Not) Suzie Wong
Funny story: Ashton saved my name as Suzie Wong in his contacts awhile ago as a joke (not sure if it's still there). And because he put my name as "Suzie Wong" in the Google Drive for GENesis, Owen asked me last week how come I don't tell people that I go by Suzie during celebration, which left all of us trying to hide our laughter.
And, for the record: no, I am not Suzie Wong.
15 Jul
Mamak World Cup
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| One of the cutest half-time shows I've seen. |
I think Marc and I went for every single of the matches that they were showed at the Hangar, along with all the mee siam, the fried chicken and the limau ais that were being sold.
But these photos were taken during the final between France and Croatia and the atmosphere was pretty electric, to say the least. Also, Marc and Shaun hosted the half-time show! The pundits on the TV were muted and our own two pundits went around asking trivia questions about the World Cup, giving out free vouchers to those who answer correctly.
It was too cute.
16 Jul
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| Excuse me sir, that's very bad for your back. |
17 Jul
Genting
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| Look at all of us in jeans/sweatpants and shoes...and then there's Terry. |
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| I match the floor tiles! |
Kenji, Joel, Lu-Zhong and I hopped into Terry's car and headed off for some fish head curry and some premium outlet look-see at Terry's favourite place to chill, as you would on a Tuesday morning.
We didn't buy anything in the end.
But we did have some good ol' Krispy Kreme's original glazed donuts and a few pieces of Wendy's fried chicken for snack time. Nothing better.
18 Jul
New hair, who we?
Pris has been wanting to do her hair for a long time now, so Sara and I, as the good friends that we are to her, decided to get our hair done with her as well. Yknow, for moral support. We bought the deals on fave for Salun Ratu at KD and made our appointments!
We spent a good half a day there. Well, the large part of the afternoon just waiting for Pris' hair to be done as Sara and I were finished ours in a couple of hours.
Embracing our identities as aunties, we talked to each other across the chairs, talking louder and louder than before so that we could hear ourselves over the whirring of the hairdryers, wondering if the hair stylists were listening to what we were saying.
Location:
Salun Ratu at KD
18G, Jalan PJU 5/20D,
The Strand,
Kota Damansara,
47810 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor.
20 Jul
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| Gig night with the angry looking guitarist. |
21-22 Jul
DUMC NextGen @ Bentong and Lipis
DUMC NextGen @ Bentong and Lipis
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| This building was playing a recording of bird noises to get the birds to build their nests here. How cool is that? |
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| Bentong Gallery. |
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| Ice cream to end the trip! So good that we bought some back home. |
8 of us from NextGen - Gabriel, Zander, Adrian, Nathanael, Natashya, Prisca, Sara and myself went to Kuala Lipis and Bentong over the weekend for a ministry trip.
Sara preached during the services while the team led worship. I was also privileged to be able to share a testimony that went along with the message!
Going to small(er) churches gave us new perspectives on big things, as most of us shared during the ride back to church. Despite the congregations in these churches being comparatively smaller than ours back at home, with between ten to forty members, all of us caught how God still works and how God is still faithful in the lives and the journeys of those who run and attend these churches.
This is one of the reasons why I will always encourage others to go on ministry trips, because then you'll realise that the church does not exist within the four walls of the building or the people who you see every other week, but that the body of Christ also includes those that you don't see every week at service and also those around the world!
And of course, who can forget the times when we praised God from Whom all blessings flow, praised Him all creatures here below, praised Him above ye heavenly host, praised Father, Son and Holy Ghost again and again and again during our car rides? Amen.
Heng Kee Bak Kut Teh @ Old Town
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| Then I came home for dinner with my family after that. |
23 Jul
Y2S2
And thus started Year 2 Semester 2 of my degree.
Writing this now in November, this felt like it happened such a long time ago when it really was just four months ago.
To motivate ourselves for getting up and going to class, Tammy, Fatyn and I had lunch at Fat Cat @ Sunway Geo Avenue before we headed for our first lecture of the semester.
Leanne and Deevya were missing though, which was sad. And even more sadly, this was what happened throughout the semester: not once did we manage to have a lunch with all of us together. But we finally did once, which I will talk about in one of next few MiMs!
25 Jul
Cheng Hao and Evonne
None of us probably expected this, but the three of us somehow got to know each other a lot better during our days in INTI Subang.
Though my days there were short and somewhat sweet, I'm glad that I had these two to hang out with. And that even after three years where they've been in the States finishing their ADP, these two still made time for me to just hangout and catch up on each other's lives while they were back here for a couple of weeks.
Y'all are cute.
26 Jul
Omgiri onigiri
Omgiri onigiri
"Ooh, should we get one?" I asked.
Pris and I went grocery shopping that day when we walked pass this rack of onigiri. We picked up one each for ourselves and proceeded to the counter. When the cashier scanned the barcode of a salmon onigiri I picked up, we looked at each other with mouths slightly parted.
You see the sign said that it was RM2.35, but the number on the cash register was less than that. We don't remember exactly how much more less it was, we've been trying to remember it the whole afternoon, but it was definitely less than RM2.35.
I mean, we were going to buy it for its original price anyways, but realising that it was being sold less made us super happy. I was also then tempted to buy another one, but my conscience said otherwise. It was as if I could hear my brain screaming at me, "This is all a marketing scheme, Qing!"
28 Jul
Funkatorie @ Alexis
"Hi, do you have a table for about 15 to 20 that's close to the stage?"
Enough said.
I love that our friends are super supportive of each other. And Marc always makes it a point to thank each of them for making it to his gigs, because he truly is grateful for their presence.
I also love the fact that all of us fangirl scream at him when he's being introduced on stage.
That is something I will never get tired of doing, especially when I get to do it with friends.
31 Jul
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| Another sunset photo to end off another MiM. |
Does it bother you that the roads are not parallel to each other in this photo?
Oops, I made you notice that it's not straight.
Well, does it bother you?
Because it really does bother me, so much so that I was this close to removing it from this post.
But as soon as I hovered my cursor to the "remove" option on the photo, immediately I realised, and I've mentioned this in January's MiM, that the whole purpose of me doing this photo diary was for me to look into the moments captured in the photo and pay more attention to that rather than bothering too much about the aesthetics of it.
Oops, I made you notice that it's not straight.
Well, does it bother you?
Because it really does bother me, so much so that I was this close to removing it from this post.
But as soon as I hovered my cursor to the "remove" option on the photo, immediately I realised, and I've mentioned this in January's MiM, that the whole purpose of me doing this photo diary was for me to look into the moments captured in the photo and pay more attention to that rather than bothering too much about the aesthetics of it.
Can't believe it's been six months since I've written that and I'm still making the same mistakes.
July down, August, September, October and soon November's post to go.
Let's do this.
July down, August, September, October and soon November's post to go.
Let's do this.
