i remember

over the course of two nights, i have finally clear my iPhone/iCloud of the thousand of pics i had in it! and by clearing it means, downloading them into my Mac, per hundreds at a time, and then retransferring them to a thumb drive for safekeeping.

quite a number of steps to do it but it’s worth it. satisfaction!

i get to arrange them in folders accordingly and along the way, going through them one by one, reminisce here and there, had a smile and appreciating the moments before tucking them away for the next few months…or rather… the many intents on wanting to print them out and put in some physical album traditional way.

for a person who claimed that i don’t take many pictures because i prefer to lock the memories in my brain and feel the moment of that particular time, i do have a lot to remember.

alhamdulillah for a good life.

i think i can do this yearly, took photos and do a ‘review’ end year rearrange the photos into albums. and clear some space in my phone for new captured moments. nodding to myself. like opening a new door and be surprised by the breathtakingly beautiful view on the other side. its quite a therapeutic exercise. probably the decluttering phase people always have start of the year.

ps: the title this post came up because a song with the same title came up from my iTunes (as always on shuffle, and some genius good song comes up just at the right time, bewitched i think). i like the song because of…. guessed it… our boy Park Seo Joon. 😛

live on

sometimes all you need is to let yourself cry it all out, cry as hard as you can.

and then looked up, faced the world.

its true, what i learnt from nlp. there are emotions you need to let out and then you are renewed. there was that timeline therapy but i had never really tried it out because i was scared of what i will encounter.

but then i realised, these hard times that i had been facing, i saw the sequence of feelings and emotions i had.

first was anger. so much anger and hatred at everything. i wrote them all down. all the things that is making me angry. in life, in work, in relationships. i wrote them all down until i find myself choked up and surprised at how much strain and hardness i put on myself. writing it all down and looking at them, i was disappointed too. but it made me clearer. i was angry, the anger was valid, i acknowledged them. and then i allow my self to be healed from this anger. i found this in silence. in contemplation. in His mercy.  in letting go.

when you realise that, you can almost feel the hard burden slipping away, letting out of strangled breath, looking at your self slide away from the darkness. and then there is so much light and let the tears flow. everyone is allowed to cry. it’s strength. it’s when we keep it bottled up, it makes us weak.  scared. alone.

i hope to be given the strength and faith to go through these hardships, as the Lord has always given me. and may i find meaning and in the future, understood why i have to go through these. i always forget. but He never. He has never abandoned me. i fell into an abyss of self indolence, and still, now and again, He knocks me gently, in the heart, on the head, a whisper to the soul. so why would i disappoint me?

live on.

2019. be nice.

i have been sitting at this very exact pose for a few hours now. contemplating on whether to catch up on work, or do a blogpost, or simply watch another of park seo joon’s series….. the latter of the three won over and i am watching, or rather re-watching She Was Pretty for the …hmmm… i lost count. my only rationale was i had been watching it through Viu, but then it suddenly became available in Netflix, so why not increase some view rates through Netflix as well, huh?

please do not judge, i woke up early today (to my own perception of early). had breakfast with hubbylove, and did a bundle of chores to start the new year! it feels good, i think i missed doing some chores nowadays, because i had a tremendous amount of blaséness these days and some inexplicable form of what i perceived as pseudo-anxiety.

i know in the back of my mind the long list of tasks i need to do work wise, but i feel stuck and was not sure where to start, what to complete first. ended up, i ‘reasoned’ out to myself that i do not need to do anything at the moment, it can wait, nothing too urgent, but deep in my heart, that flutter of ‘God! i need to complete this now!’ is always there. and then i cower again, and slip into weariness. sigh, when is this teenage angst going to end??!  or gasp!  is it middle age crisis already?! i keep telling myself it is ok to slow down at this moment, because you can foresee there’s no slowing down in 2019. for about a few seconds, the self agrees before guilt strikes.

i want to move away from doing any bestnine2018 or resolution post 2019 on a new year’s day, I’m going to be indie and take my time doing it, or not do at all, or semi-do it. i am also putting an IG-detox on myself for the next two days maybe. that has been somewhat a self imposed tradition for the past 6 years or so. well, i have issues, forgive me. and i don’t want to hurt myself, or others, by scrolling through photos i don’t want to know. the photos or updates will still be there when next i recover from the detox. so no harm not being up-to-date or live-updated. I’m happier this way. this excludes my girlfriends though. but they usually share in wa groups and then we’ll squeal and scream emoji style! while i still be zoned out in my workspace.

welcome 2019. be nice.

ps: when did my blog keeps on featuring seo joon’s face already?! what are you? 15?!

pps: promised myself to start blogging p.r.o.p.e.r.l.y soon. wait, is that a resolution?

and with that….

and with that… life with seo joon-a pauses until the next drama and/or movie….

cannot everyday look at him or he will lose his charms and handsomeness.

my wish is to see him play with elijah lee again.

and that is how my year of entertainment ends in 2018, because i doubt i will have much time in 2019 to indulge. of course, this is all worldly pleasure.

i have a feeling 2019 is going to be something special.

 

chronicles of evil

nothing important. you can skip this post coz it’s not worth reading unless you’re ok with me unbecomingly babbling about a korean movie.

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goodness me!

what is this shocker?! our boy plays a villain?! and good at it?!

i have been searching for chronicles of evil and having a hard time finding it, when alas, found it in an online streaming which annoyingly always stops at random moments to allow for meaningless pop ups. my gosh, this site really test your patience!

its this seo joon-a obsession i have and was determined to watch every drama or movie he acted in. so when my sil (nonetheless!) recommended this website, i decided to catch up on youn’s kitchen 2 and two old dramas he played in (which were not available in Viu/Netflix) before moving on to Chronicles. this was, perhaps since two months ago.

and today, after finally finishing through a painstakingly dreading drama One Warm Word and just skipping on scenes just to get to Seo Joon’s parts, and worthfully looking handsome and fashionable in his winter coats and that uniform. and that hairstyle. sighhh….

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fully knowing the pain and frustration of this site’s annoying pop-ups and rewinds, i brace through the best for last. a 2 hour movie became 3 hours of sorts because it jammed on me a few times!

what do i know? only korean movies can have these twisted plots without anyone guessing in the first place!! it was a ‘WHAT??!!’ moment for me when it was finally revealed who he really was towards the end. and then i go HOW COOL IS THAT?!

quite a cool detective story, but simple plot actually. a bit of mental twist that doesn’t even look like it’s supposed to be psycho, leaving us guessing what is happening all the time. just when you thought you get the answer or the culprit, you can almost hear the director says, nope, we’re not done yet…we’re just revealing the name now, there’s more to come! the heck! and just when the camera zooms in to seo joon’s dong jae’s true self reveal, my heart skips a bit. like how can a villain looks so handsome and innocent (and gay, that’s the impression though).

ok. no spoilers. i like it that he plays in this movie, and acted with long time actors who had a string of movies to their name like train of busan’s Ma Dong Seok and Son Hyun Joo. the next movie star in the making – Seo Joon.

i’m excited for his Saja/The Divine Fury.

and with that… life with seo joon pauses until the next drama and/or movie.

book review: the desire for elsewhere

The Desire for ElsewhereThe Desire for Elsewhere by Agnes Chew

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

i love the essays, the flow of writing, the thoughts provoking readers to wonder and reflect. the snippets of experiences, although short but speak volumes of the feelings and meaningful interactions the writer has during her travels. if i could write, i want to write like Agnes. and i feel like everyone should read this refreshing collection of short stories. i would buy copies and give them out as gifts to friends who love to read.

i don’t mind rereading it to delve deeper into the meanings behind her stories.

View all my reviews

seo joon-a

please keep an open mind. laugh if you will. i prefer that.

i feel like a 15 year old (was that 20 years ago??). but this is my current silly obsession.

and it’s his birthday today. and like his thousands of fans. i want to wish him a good birthday, health and happiness and hope for many successful years. already i am rooting for his next movie. until then, i will keep on repeat mode his past dramas and movies.

please don’t get married yet. 😛

or maybe marry anyone else. not pmy please.

book review: sweet bean paste

Sweet Bean PasteSweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukegawa

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

A nice read.

of a man’s struggle to live by after going back to society after imprisonment. of an elderly woman who suffered leprosy, sickly but wise and strong in her own way. how they bonded over sweet adzuki beans paste.

it gives you that good feeling that every one has a chance at living. that no matter who we are or in what circumstances we find ourselves in, we all have a purpose in this world.

“we were born in order to see and listen to the world” i like the concept of listening to the world. to the trees and every living things. as humans, we often forget that. to stop and listen to the world. it could just give us some answers.

View all my reviews

if you like uplifting reads, a bit of confectionary making, and get teary a bit at the end of the story, this could be a good read. especially if you’re into japanese authors

super ladies

i rarely take selfies, and not always the first to take photos of myself. someone else always initiates a group photo. never me. but there are few instances where i feel like i need to capture a person or moment i want to remember. and when i offer myself and i actually want to take a photo with a person, it is usually to remember the feelings or thoughts i had at that moment.

like today, for instance. i was in the same room with two ladies i was always in awe of. we were attending a meeting and the two ladies seated in the front row, as leaders. and i kept telling myself, the two of them at the same place and time, i need to take a photo with them. need. yes. an opportunity as this dont always come by.

at the end of the meeting, i took up enough courage to get a friend to help me out. and i was happy.

one was my principal. well, she was my principal during my school years. i don’t remember having nice memories of her actually, well, simply because she was a strict principal, her loud voice and gave stern face was all she need to do to make any of us girls trembled in fear. i remembered though, mornings i had to be early to clean her office. i was a shy and quiet student. i don’t start conversations but i think, we thrived in those silent mornings. i was clearly not a great student, i scraped by, i survived just by trying to do and be my best in school.

but somehow, i looked up to her and respected her. i think she is an epitome of a strong lady who had to face head on all the, i am sure, difficult challenges of being the only female principal in a pre-dominantly leadership role usually occupied by men. but she never faltered, the way i see it. she was the principal and she was also teaching the upper classes. getting an A in her GP class was rare but having gotten one for an essay, gosh, that truly felt like a trophy and i treasured that essay. funnily though, that essay was based on my teen obsession towards Roswell (the drama series) and a short span interest on aliens. i don’t even remember why i thought aliens are relevant then. but perhaps that essay was full of passion and vigor, i nailed it. so anyway, when many of my classmates had a bit of resentment towards her, which i do not understand why, i have nothing but respect.

the other lady, was someone i met in my career life. i attended her trainings, and was intrigued by the NLP she introduced to us. i followed her classes then. i can say she inspired me in many ways, although i can never be like her. too much energy and optimism, lol. but still, she taught us many useful things in the course of my work and she ignited us with her passion and positivity. i have not met her for quite a while now. and as God has it, she is now the current principal of my alma mater. the turn of events, they say. such a small world.

now that i think about it, these two power ladies shaped me into who i am today. may it be small or big influence, and i still looked up to them for inspiration, for a glimpse of motivation to keep moving on. wasn’t easy, this.

i looked up to many ladies, as role models. these are my mentors. there are others i felt i owed them my success. they do. they have different personalities and ways of doing their work, i picked up these pieces of inspiration and hoped that i can be as successful as them, if not better.

how far can i go, then?

of Kechik & down time

i have to thank my little companion for this downtime i am having.

we sent our little one for sterilization, and being the three busy working adults at home, one of us has to stay and care for her for the next few days. i volunteered. she is my little one after all. i will take that responsibility with much eagerness and a reason to stay out of work. a reason i yearned for the longest time, since, well, first Jan. exaggerate much.

but really, january had been such a challenging month. i had headaches almost daily after work. i worked 6 days a week for, oh yeah, the whole of January. i don’t think we all had a good start this month. not me anyway.

so thank you little one for giving me this reason to lay down and be quiet. for the busy mind to loosen some knots and just, be quiet. for these shoulder pains ive been having to feel less strain. you know how they say, you need to take care of yourself first before taking care of others. it’s true right, we rarely do that. i think i owe myself this a lot.

anyway, taking care of this little one, feels just like taking care of a child, except there’s no cries and diapers to take care of, haha.

we sent her to the vet on monday morning at 10am, without food since 10pm on sunday, she’s a bit playful biting my toes in the morning, trying to tell me im hungry mommy feed me. but i cant baby. (haha, crazy mommycat convos in the head). but we played along, played some hide and seek to distract her, let her sit by the gate listening to the neighbourhood noises outside and waiting for some birds to fly by, she get excited by those, little nose and ears twitching. she’s happy both mommy and daddy is home to play with her on a monday.

prepped her with lots of small talks since last week though. so when we put her in her bag, she kinda seem nervous but still fine, because hey, we’re on for a short road trip.

in the car, as always, she wanted to be out of the bag and move around in the car. i let her out she’s excited looking out the window. but she knows she’s in for trouble.

reached the clinic, let her roam around a bit and she is obviously nervous. running to find some place to hide and hear this, actually mewing! she even went inside her bag willingly, because i think that is her security spot at this unfamiliar place. she settled under my chair but when a couple came in with their cat, she quickly hid behind her bag which was on the chair beside me. we comforted her, stroked her and she kept quiet waiting patiently for her ‘fluffy’ name to be called in.

finally, the moment came, brought her in and she was purring nervously. my heart breaks seeing her nervous like that. both me and hubby were reluctant to leave when the vet says, ‘ok you can go now, we will take care of her.’ But we were like ‘are you sure? do you need help putting her in the bag? do you need us to calm her down?’ haha. as if, the docs needed help?!

gave her a hug and some kisses. she gave us this ‘mommy/daddy don’t leave me’ kind of look, and trying to wriggle out of the nurse’s embrace. oh gosh. i finally know what it meant by searation anxiety, i think. haha. coz my heart was beating nervously as we walked out of the clinic. but bearing in the comfort that the experts will take care of our little one. my heart really breaks. so it was only 5.30pm onwards are we allowed to fetch her.

so after, 6 months of having the little one always home to be taken care of, i can say, i had a rare monday of what it used to be. i could do anything i want, free of responsibility. but it felt different. i was like…oh no, no Kechik around to play with. no Kechik to feed or sleep with…and then i’ll be like, come on Seri, like few more hours, jangan mengada. haha.. (but apparently i had to go back to work for a short urgent meeting, so there goes my ‘free’ monday)

it was a relief when the clinic called to inform that the surgery is done and Kechik is fine and she’s awake. i was like…awww my baby is ok and awake. and what do you mean she’s awake? she’s not sleeping? the kind nurse replied, yup she’s awake after the surgery. but come after 5.30pm to fetch her.

6pm and we’re on our way. the nurse told us again she’s fine and good to go. she’s been awake and just sitting down staring looking at the people around. now that i think about, i think she’s been awake, probably a bit stoned and unaware of the situation, but probably just sulking and waiting for mommy and daddy.

i think she’s just anxiously waiting for us to fetch her.

in the car, immediately she wanted to be out of the bag. i thought she would look drowsy or something, but she did look pretty awake and aware. let her out again, she smelled around and decided this is the car she knows and then slept on the seat. only then we can see she’s still pretty much weak. she just wanted to be assured that she will be back with her family before finally feeling relief and then she can sleep properly. i was like, feeling, heartwrenching lah baby ni.

let her sleep at home. drank a bit but she still don’t want to eat yet. let her sleep on the floor at her fave spot near our closet. but here’s another heartwarming moment.

we didnt want her to have to jump up and down the bed so we let her sleep on the floor. but sometime in the middle of the night, she woke and went to my side of the bed (which is like a lot of drowsy steps from where she was sleeping), i heard a little mew and she was peeking up at me. im like awww… you want to sleep with mommy daddy? ok come up. bring her up and let her sleep soundly with caresses, beside me throughout the rest of the night. haisssh Kechik ni. kalau dah manja, manja betul.

but my Kechik is strong. third day now. and she’s healing fast. eating ok, we applauded when she finally pooped haha. she wanted to be out of that uncomfortable collar, in fact, managed to squeeze her head out few times to lick herself. her naughty self back again.

she’s now stubbornly sleeping in SIL’s bedroom toilet. yes its clean. ive stopped worrying about that. whichever is comfortable for Kechik. sleeping with that cone on. kesian. give her 2-3 more days and we’re taking that out permanently haha.

get well soon baby and we can play hide and seek again.