Hello 2019!
Time flies by too fast. I still have three more MiMs after this one left to end off the year, though I am very well aware that 2018 has already ended. And so, this is my formal request to ask for an extension until the middle of January to get all of them done. Will that be okay with you?
Apologies for any inconveniences caused. Your kind consideration is very much appreciated.
Thanks in advance,
Yun Qing.
Sounds like an email that some of us have written to our lecturers one too many times.
1 Sep
Food, friends and football
Time flies by too fast. I still have three more MiMs after this one left to end off the year, though I am very well aware that 2018 has already ended. And so, this is my formal request to ask for an extension until the middle of January to get all of them done. Will that be okay with you?
Apologies for any inconveniences caused. Your kind consideration is very much appreciated.
Thanks in advance,
Yun Qing.
Sounds like an email that some of us have written to our lecturers one too many times.
1 Sep
Food, friends and football
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| Leicester City 1 - 2 Liverpool. |
It was quite crazy trying to accommodate over 30 people for dinner at a Chinese restaurant. But we managed to take up four tables full of NextGenners for our usual after-service dinner that night.
After a super yummy round-table dinner, the boys watched the match on Joel's phone with Astro on-the-go. All of them huddled around one side of the table while I tried to finish up all the vegetables and tofu left on the plates.
I highly recommend the claypot vegetables! There were other dishes that were pretty good, too, but I cannot remember the names of the dishes for the life of me, and it's been quite impossible to search up their menu online. We'll make a visit back to the restaurant and I'll update then.
Location:
Restoran A. Suria
54, Jalan PJU 1/45,
Aman Suria,
47301 Petaling Jaya.
https://g.co/kgs/YzYLEa
2 Sep
The after-party
The after-party
"1.6 mou?"
Two words that were more than enough to get all of us at Lu-Zhong's birthday dinner to head to Blitzone for a few rounds of Counter-Strike 1.6.
Frantically logging on, changing our names, screaming at each other when we die, knifing each other at a sniper only match - there's nothing quite like it.
4 Sep
MRT
MRT
I headed to KL to have a special lunch date with Iza at Ali, Muthu and Ah Hock, Petaling Street.
This was also my first time taking the MRT, which was a rather pleasant experience! And lunch, though it was only about an hour or so, was also a pleasant experience made even better with the best of company.
5 Sep
Planning (way) ahead
Planning (way) ahead
"Eh, so cheap leh the AirAsia tickets!" he exclaimed.
And that was how Marc bought his tickets to come visit me in Melbourne November next year. Yeap, you read that right - next year. Of course, we made sure to check my schedule for my classes and my exams when I'm over there, so we've got it all covered.
Also, hit us up with all the places to visit and things to eat when in Aussieland! And if you're there during that time of the year, let me know so we can hang.
9 Sep
Sunday brunch @ Table & Apron
Sunday brunch @ Table & Apron
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| Pulled pork with apple sourdough and cilantro salsa. |
Back at it again with the fried chicken, but this time with my family!
We ordered a couple of other dishes as well - the pulled pork, charred eggplant and mushroom conchiglie. It may seem like a lot, but because their dishes are made for sharing, so it was just about right.
Location:
Table & Apron
23, Jalan SS 20/11,
Damansara Kim,
47400 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor.
https://g.co/kgs/UGxLR9
11 Sep
EW16 @ Science Centre
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| Marc and Shaun playing with the electromagnets. |
Pris and I have been talking about going somewhere with EW16 for far too long, and it finally happened!
We met up for brunch at a nearby mamak and headed to the National Science Centre that public holiday.
There was a special exhibition that they were having called Survive the Bunker that showcased phobias that you have to "face" in a maze. It was the one that caught our attention the most, as we thought that the other exhibitions would be too kiddy for us. But that exhibition turned out to be nothing much, and we found ourselves spending more time at the other ones instead.
One of these included the one where you have to transport a metal ball around a track using electromagnets, as pictured above. It's hard to explain but I have a 6-minute recording of us trying to get it to work. I plan to edit it as soon as possible, but as you all know, I'm backlogging like crazy for my videos (i.e. Taiwan part two that has been a year late). With that being said, I'll definitely work something out as soon as possible!
After the Science Centre, we headed to kind kones and roasted each other to the deaths with a few games of Psych, as you would as close friends.
Location:
National Science Centre
Persiaran Bukit Kiara,
Bukit Damansara,
50490 Kuala Lumpur,
Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur
https://g.co/kgs/tyxCAJ
12 Sep
(More) assignments
(More) assignments
Mama Yeoh was back! And she brought along with her her friends from the London School of Theology's (LST) choir. She also had two of them perform with her on stage for the gig at No Black Tie that night.
I tagged along for soundcheck and brought my laptop with me for all the unfinished assignments that were pending. I don't remember if I finished writing my essay at that table, but I remember having the best background music to work to that afternoon.
I was going to add on to say "talk about duties of a musician's girlfriend", but then I realised that it's much more than that.
The main reason as to why I follow Marc along for soundcheck is because when no one comes along with me to his gigs, he doesn't want me to have to find my own transport and come alone, and he makes sure to send me home every time after his gigs to get me home safe and sound. It's also for us to spend that little bit of extra time together, even if it's just a 30-minute drive back home.
And that is why I don't mind spending a couple of extra hours just being there for soundcheck, even if it means having to get ready way earlier than I normally do or having to finish a bit of work while I'm there.
14 Sep
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| Comfy. |
15 Sep
Sam
Sam
If I don't remember wrongly, Sam did something that night that turned into a running joke of how he was trying to flirt with me/steal me from Marc, or something along the lines of that.
This explains the video recording I have of him lip-syncing Pretty Young Thing to me in his car, sliding the sleeves of his sweater back and forth around his neck, which led to my first response being "Marc, Sam is...".
16 Sep
Surprise
Surprise
Pris and I walked to the front of Lat Tali Lat for our lunch date to find a sign to say that it was closed for a private function.
"Aw man," I sighed.
While thinking of all the other places we could go for lunch, she grabbed the door handle and opened it.
"Let's go in and see!"
And she went in.
I can't believe she just ignored the sign and intruded into someone's private function! I thought.
Then I realised that the private function was for me.
As always, me being me, I was too emotional and overwhelmed in the moment of what was happening so I didn't manage to HUJI cam anything. But Ariel was the designated photographer that day, so special thanks to her for the bunch of photos that I am about to show you! And because it was impossible to get a group photo with everyone in it, we took mini group photos instead.
EW16 - we love our bread, we love our butter, but most of all, we love to roast each other (in love, of course). To more competitive ice breakers, honest conversations and heartfelt prayers.
If I had to pick a favorite from Taman Sea, Marcus wins - hands down, no questions asked.
But since, Shaun Quek, you played a big part in making that happen, I'll rate you 5/10 for being an ok friend. Here's to you, for being average.
If this is not the most accurate presentation of how I feel about these boys, I don't know what is.
But then again, these are also their faces when they see me only setting and never potting in pool. To more Mayang sessions!
Sleepylah.
NextGen - which also includes former NextGen! Each of my relationships with you are different, but I am equally thankful for all of you. Thank you for doing life with me.
Kawans - words will never suffice. You know how much you mean to me, including those of you who are MIA.
The one who has my heart.
After lunch ended and everyone said their goodbyes, the boys then headed to Blitzone (...what's with us and cybercafés for after parties) while Marc and I sent Kai Xuen back home.
I was seated in the passenger seat, holding the cake box, talking about how I only had two bites of the cake that Aunt Jamie baked because it was completely gone by the time it went around. It was just that good!
"Eh, put the box down la," he said, after nodding and acknowledging my ramblings.
After three to four times of him pestering me to put the box down and me reasoning how it wasn't a problem for me to hold it in my lap, I eventually gave in and placed the box under my seat.
He then reached out from the back of the seat and placed a paper bag on my lap.
"Nah," he said, not out of exasperation, but because my stubbornness in wanting to hold the cake box in my lap almost made me miss out on something special.
Sounds like a lot of us when we go through life, huh?
I looked inside and saw a note amidst the crepe paper.
I read the note.
I pursed my lips together.
I started to tear up.
He looked at me.
"Aiyo."
He teared up.
We looked at each other.
Both of us teared up even more.
I finished reading the letter, went through the crepe paper and found a box.
I opened it.
I sighed.
I'm never one to ask for gifts. The most that I ask for for my birthday or for Christmas is probably lao sa pao - the salted egg yolk bun from Jing Xuan, which was exactly what I got last year.
"Why?" I asked.
He said it was because my watch was ugly.
Just kidding.
He told me that he wanted to get me something special and meaningful for my 21st birthday. And also, he didn't like the strap of the watch that I was wearing because it was very "aunty", which brings back the point of him saying that my watch was ugly.
But in all seriousness, as he wrote in the letter, he hoped that it would remind me of our time together - the times that we have spent with each other and the times that will come.
How to not cry, tell me?
We had to head to Fossil at 1U to fix the batteries of the watch and because I remembered Pris having to run some errands before she flew back to Manchester, we decided to pick her up along the way with both of us still a bit teary-eyed.
And as if it wasn't a funny enough moment for her to see the two us in that state, the parents offered us some mooncake to taste. So, we ended up staying there for a little while longer than planned.
The three of us laughed about it in the car afterwards.
It was pretty good mooncake, though, I have to say.
I don't deserve all the love and care that all of you have given me, but I humbly and gratefully accept every bit of it that comes my way.
As I exclaimed the moment I saw all of you that day, "Walao, I didn't wash my hair," it goes to show how each and everyone of you have seen me at my best and my worst, and yet still choose to love me just the same.
And as I mentioned during the "Speech, speech, speech!" moment of the party, this celebration is the least about me, more about all of you, and most about God.
So, thank you and thank You.
Location:
Lat Tali Lat Cafe
73, Jalan SS 20/11,
Damansara Kim,
47400 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor.
https://g.co/kgs/Bnd5rH
18 Sep
Midnights at Maulana
Midnights at Maulana
The LST choir was back from their trip in Penang and so Mel, Marc and myself decided to call them out for supper!
It was so nice getting to know them just that little bit more and to realise how amazing it is that we worship one God and how we belong to one Church at the end of the day. We had so much to talk about that we stayed on until Maulana was closing, which was close to three in the morning.
Location:
Restoran Maulana
No. 17, Jalan Aminuddin Baki,
Taman Tun Dr Ismail,
Wilayah Persekutuan,
60000 Kuala Lumpur.
https://g.co/mjJFtL
20 Sep
Surprise 2.0
Surprise 2.0
Acute angles have been my support system ever since I stepped foot into uni. Though I grew closer to each of them at very different points in the first two years of uni, I'm glad that all of us are able to click with one another about anything and everything. You girls make leaving a lot harder than it already is.
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| Lauzers and Kenji bought me a game of pool as a birthday gift. |
22 Sep
McD
McD
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| Chris, an old friend of ours, joined us for dinner that night and fitted right in. |
25 Sep
(Even more) assignments
(Even more) assignments
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| This is how Marc takes breaks in between assignments. |
26 Sep
TJC Concert
TJC Concert
For those of you who don't know, I helped out at Tadika Juara Cerdik for a couple of weeks in January and February before semester started earlier this year. I did the same last year, too!
Something about the kids and seeing how they learn and interact with one another, along with the lessons that they've unknowingly taught me as well, brings me back to them, time and time again.
So, when Natasha asked me to lend a hand for her class during the year-end concert, I couldn't say no!
And there was no better way to be welcomed back to TJC for just that little bit during full dress rehearsals than to have 6-year-olds gifting me their stickers on my hand while other 4-year-olds tried to take them away from me, along with a 4-year-old who I took care of last year, coming up to me to say, "Teacher, I'm missing you so much."
29 Sep
D-Day
D-Day
Fast forward three days and it was finally the day of the concert!
I don't have enough words to tell you how adorable they were in their costumes, singing and dancing their hearts out to their parents, grandparents and teachers in the auditorium.
30 Sep
Kayu @ Ativo, BSD
Kayu @ Ativo, BSD
Marc had a gig that night at Plaza Arkadia, Desa Park City so we called the BSD boys out for some seriously sinful late night sotong goreng.
Location:
Original Penang Kayu Nasi Kandar
A-G-6 Block A,
Ativo Plaza,
Bandar Sri Damansara,
52200 Kuala Lumpur.
https://g.co/kgs/KC8b3v
Location:
Original Penang Kayu Nasi Kandar
A-G-6 Block A,
Ativo Plaza,
Bandar Sri Damansara,
52200 Kuala Lumpur.
https://g.co/kgs/KC8b3v
We've only got October's, November's and December's MiMs left to go!
I know, I know, the year has ended already. But I made a promise and I will stick by it.
So, stick with me will you?
See you in a bit!
