My Fair Lady

Went to see My Fair Lady at the Royal Theatre in Syd with a colleague and her bf on Wed. It was sooo good. The script kinda reminded me of my phonetics assignment because it's based upon the UK English lang. Hee! But the actors were really good, especially the linguistics professor. He had so much charisma and character. Worth a watch really!

Also, what a strange place to meet, but I bumped into one of my old guy friends from OCF. He was with his wife - they were honeymooning in Syd, but will be returning to Msia on Monday. I was like "What a place to honeymoon? And Syd??" But then again, she may have never been to Aust. And maybe because he studied in Melb all this while, he didn't want to honeymoon there. Hmm... Hadn't actually seen him in ages, so we had a good short catch-up during the interval.

It was a rather long day actually... because before the play, I had a uni workshop and even before that, woke up at about 8am to rush a dreaded assignment. My colleague was actually sick on the day of the play but really wanted to see it. I think I'd be happy if it was postponed, so that I could concentrate more on my assignments. But the play ends this weekend and when my colleague called to change it to this weekend, the box office said they don't refund or swap play days... Pretty fair I guess.

Well towards the evening, I started to feel like I was coming down with something. Could be the flu bug from my colleague, but didn't think it'd travel that fast! And today, am really sick... Down with the cold and a slight fever. Was supposed to be working today, but called in sick. Feeling quite lousy... Worked yesterday and the colleague I was working with said I sounded really bad with the sniffles. Felt really bad calling sick... but I guess I just needed more rest and need to build that immune system back up again. Vitamin C - my new found friend!! Haha!

Back to the play topic - we couldn't really take pics inside, but here are some outside ones... You may notice how tired my colleague and I both were. Her tired-ness is due to sickness and mine that day was just waking really early and using lots of brain power for that struggling phonology assignment. Hee! But here are the pics to enjoy:

Three of us with the tix. Her bf didn't want to be in the pic... Said he hates seeing himself in pics. Haha!









This is the Royal Theatre. It links to a shopping mall, but you can hear the train rumbling from inside. It's quite pretty - the architecture, but there were lots of people and I didn't explore that much for fear of getting lost...

Me and my colleague just outside the door entrance to the theatre.










Me! I found a poster just outside the theatre itself... It's sooo pink... Hee hee!

Added Stress...

My computer's graphcs card died a few days ago and my motherboard needed replacing, so I had to get further extensions on my assignments. Fortunately the tech guy came today really early in the morn, and managed to fix it up. It's back to assignment and study mode. And back to work this week! Grrrr!!

Visiting Syd

TY, Mary and Dave all visited me in Syd last week and bunked over my place. Mary and Dave arrived later, because their flight was delayed... Jetstar... Hmmm... But anywayz, TY and myself went to get some supper nearby. We couldn't really find this place we wanted to go to, so we went to Macs instead. The Syd Airport isn't quite near anything...

Oh, when TY came down, he gave me this little cute guy to express his feelings... (Sorry if it's too mushy for you guys... Hee...)

















It was good having them down in Syd even though it was a busy period with the assignments piling up from post-op, but it was so much fun! We went to the Blue Mountains, but because of post op, I couldn't trek, so instead I brought along my assignments to do, while Mary and Dave went for a little exploration walk. Wasn't very productive, but I did read a few lecture notes. TY kept me company and didn't mind at all - he had his handy iPod with movies to keep him entertained. But it was such a lovely day and I wanted to trek, but of course, was incapable of doing so. One thing I shouldn't have done was drive there. I felt ok, but towards the end of the day, pain and soreness kicked in. I think I strained myself a little much...

We could have explored the Blue Mountains more, but I cooked French toast and scrambled eggs in the morn and that took a while.

On the way back, we dropped by this town near the Blue Mountains and had Belgian waffles. They were sooo yummy! The guy said to look out for him if he heads to Melb. We all reckon he should open a cafe there. It's really really good! And next time that Mary and Dave are here, they said they'd want to stay over at the Blue Mountains. That'd be fun!!

Everyone actually wanted to have an "old people sort of holiday" thingy, but we actually did a fair bit within 4 days. Still, it wasn't enough time to do a lot. We met up with Mary and Dave's friend, S, and we hung out at the Fish Market. Tried the yum cha place up in the restaurant on Level 1. Haven't been there, but it was sooo good. There was even a special offer - if you spend $25 or more, you get 2 hours free parking. We couldn't really decide if we wanted yum cha or wanted to eat the sashimi and oyster stuff. SO we ended up having both! Hee! We just made sure we would spend slightly over $25 at the yum cha place and then leave our stomach rooms for sashimi and oysters. After the Fish Market, we drove into the city - found parking on York St for $2.20 per hour. This was the weekend though, and pretty easy to find a park... not sure about weekdays. Then we visited this really cool architecture building (the Dymocks building) on George St... We wanted to go there because Mary was in the hunt for wedding shoes. Everytime she mentions white shoes, I keep thinking of BATA and velcro. Hee hee! Anywayz, the entire building was like bridal galore. It was quite overwhelming.

We also went to Tiffany's & Co. Mary and Dave wanted to check out wedding bands. It was quite fun seeing what size fingers we all had. Haha! By then, our carpark was running out, but at least TY got to catch quick glimpses of his Omega shop next door. Then we went to check out Balmoral Beach. Haven't actually been there... but had a lot of positive views from people. And it was like those people recommended - the weather, the scenery, etc... It was a really pretty beach with a little park and pier. Reminded me a little of Perth. We even went into one of the cafes to snack cause we were hungry. After that, we went to Red Oak for din with a whole bunch... The beer was great! Unfortunately a lot of the pics were taken on TY's cam, so don't have the candid moments. They'll prob be on FB soon!

Was a bit sad when Mary, Dave and TY all had to leave on Sun. Yeah, I miss them and miss Melb!! By the way, they gave my housemate and I this thank you gift for the stayover:






















Thanks guys!!
And the sweetest thing - TY got me these (my fav flowers)... =)

Feeling So-So 10 Days Post-Op

Received an email from the Stats coordinator who said that I don't have to sit the Stats class test this week because of what happened. Instead, she said that there will be more weighting on the exam (70% instead of 60%). Initially I told her that I wish to attempt the Stats class test, but in fact, I don't think I'm prepared for it, or will be able to prepare for it this week, so I've just emailed her that I don't think I'll be able to do the Stats class test and am fine with having more weighting on the exam. I guess I could have sat the class test tomorrow, spend some time on it today, but then there won't be any time for my other assignments... So in a way, I'm hoping it's a good thing to miss out on the class test and it's the right decision...

Today was my first day driving. It was pretty easy driving straight, but tough putting on the seatbelt and also doing a 3-point turn.

My follow-up with the doc is on Wed... have a few concerning issues with the surgery, but hopefully nothing to worry about. Still tough reaching/stretching/lifting things... oh yeah, can't lift things for at least 4 weeks and can't vacuum for 6 weeks... I think what's straining me at the moment right now though is sleep deprivation (can't seem to sleep properly... the first few days were okay cause I had really strong meds, but now, been sleeping past 12am which prob isn't so good, but can't help it - been staying up to do assignments... and the strange thing is, I'm still waking about 9am which is not even 9-10 hours sleep during recovery. Doc said to try and rest and sleep a lot to recuperate, but somehow, I think I just have too much on my mind right now. Like the feelings these few days have been pretty manic, or happy-moody type... Also straining me - sinuses, emotions and movements... every time I sneeze, I ache. Every time I laugh, cry, etc... I ache. Movements (certain ones quite obviously), I ache... But holding on and being strong as always.

The Recovery Process

Kinda needed some cheering up today (just had lots going on)... and what more could I have asked for than a surprise package waiting at my doorstep?

Ta da!!

This is what Mary and Dave kindly bought and shipped to me... Check out the adorable shoes!!

That wasn't all... they also got me...

Got to have the temptation goodies!... Thanks Mary and Dave - you guys are awesomeness and so sweet!

Did I also mention J has been terrific while I stayed over at her place for about 6 days? She was so supportive and made sure I took all my pills at the specific time stated on the prescription labels and also made sure all my meals were looked after. And when she wasn't home, Funny the cat kept me company... Yes, its name is Funny. It belongs to J's housemates. And compared to Kara, TY's little girl cat, Funny isn't as curious. She's pretty obedient actually and strangely, doesn't have a lot of toys to play with... Like most of the room doors could be left open and she's trained to not even go in there. But I have heard from J that she's fallen off the balcony twice... It's pretty high too... the last story of that building... so maybe about 4-5 floors? But she's survived it all... Apparently they went looking for her and she meowed from downstairs. Then they looked down the balcony and there she was looking up to them. I guess she kinda lifts up to her name... Hee hee!

Here's Funny...

This is Stress!!

Been acting up on sinuses this morn, and every time I sneeze or cough, my chest hurts or my rib nerves... so I learnt to hold onto my chest/stomach when I do. Wish I had more hands to cover me... haha... But getting better day by day. Can't wait to feel normal... Apparently 6-8 weeks...

Woke up really early today - even before my alarm - it said 7.10am. What the? Then I went back to sleep. Woke up again and it said 8.15am. Again, what the? So I forced myself to bed one more time and when I got up, it was about 10 something... That was better. Well... considering I didn't end up going to bed till half past 12 last night and am post-surgery. Doc said to get enough sleep... so just obeying doc's orders.

And the reason I was up till half past 12 (wanted to have an early sleep at about 10:30pm) but my GeForce graphics card on my laptop crashed! It was like having all these black squares on my desktop and there was this thing copying all my desktop files across my desktop, I couldn't even shut them down. And yes, I rebooted my comp like six times. It really scared me cause I wanted to write at least a paragraph before bed time, but also wanted a bit of a laugh and clicked on the Superhero movie, then that happened. Anywayz, called my technie bf who told me to uninstall and then go to the website and reinstall, so I did. All good now, but it's working on my standard graphics card at the moment. Somehow, I downloaded the GeForce graphics card again, but the system would only run it halfway and there's an error. But at least I can still do stuff. Will just wait for TY to head down next weekend and see what he can do.

Anywayz, this morn, my standard graphics card died. So anywayz, I reinstalled it somehow, with the NVIDIA website. That really freaked me out cause I rely so much on this comp to do all that I have to do for Mon. Well, after that was fixed and dealing with what I have, just been reading up all over my assignment notes again. I thought I had all the thoughts and ideas compiled yesterday, and today, I can just start writing the whole thing free-flow, you know. But instead, I had a mental blank. Was starring at a blank Word doc for at least 40 mins... Called my classmate to see what her thoughts were on some of the hypotheses and she helped a bit, but when I went back to that Word doc, I still couldn't type out more than two words - "the hypothesis..."

So I started watching Made of Honor which was awesome! It's one of those chick flicks that I'd love to watch again. But I have to admit I cried... It was so touching. Definitely recommended. After that, ate my cooked green beans from last night. And then, the amazing thing - I started writing at least a page. I'm supposed to explain 15 hypotheses... only have 4 at the moment. But I am hoping - by some miracle - to pull this off sometime tonight, so that I can get cracking for the studying of my Stats test which I'm totally dreading.

My housemate's gone out to her aunt's place today to have a little exercise (swim and gym stuff) and have dinner. So tonight, am gonna try to get out of my sandwich-eating habits and try some actual cooking. Gonna cook now and then hopefully by 8pm, the brain will do its job. 8pm is the time I'm gonna continue the writing process... just in case you guys were wondering...

7-day Post-Op Update

After surg, my biological clock has gone a bit funny. I've been waking pretty early and heading to sleep fairly early, which might be a good thing for the long run. But I actually feel like I'm turning into a pig. The past week, it's been eat, sleep, eat, sleep.

The doc said that I can start driving from Mon onwards, but should take it easy. Will perhaps drop by the post, and then have to drive to uni for the class test. I'll be having my post-op follow-up session on Wed too - more updates on that in another blog post.

Whammy!!

Applied for an extension for one of my assignments - my S-p-e-e-c-h A-c-o-u-s-t-i-c-s assignment due Friday (today), which was granted, but instead, I found out that the extension extends only till Monday, which is the same day as my Stats class test. So right now, I'm going arrghhghhgh! But I'm going to apply for Special Consideration. Didn't realise there were sooo many forms...

It'll be a busy weekend as you guys can see, with the uni work... Might try to finish up this assignment tonight and tomorrow morn and then start studying for my Stats class test in the arvo and on Sun.

Then after Mon, going to start on another assignment which is due the Mon after M, D and T leave. Don't you just hate Mondays? But will try to get that assignment done the day before they come. *crossing fingers and hoping*

Then once M, D and T leave, I'll be revising my cover letter and applications for my course next year. And of course, once that's finished, it's exam study time. That's the plan...

Heading Home Today...

Heading home today - finally! I think I've been at my friend's too long, occupying her space and using all her stuff... I know she doesn't totally mind, because I'm sleeping most of the time, but I feel bad. Have to head home anywayz, cause most of my uni files are there. Got this assignment due Monday... Also got a Stats class test on Monday. For the Stats class test, my lecturer placed a sample test on the student online board. I had a look and it seemed tough. But I'm not that worried, cause it's only 10%. So I'm not going to do any study till the last min for it, even though there's sooo much stuff to do for the unit. I'm just hoping to do better in the exam.

It'll be a bit tricky heading home. First, got all these stuff... like heavy cleaning solution for my wound, my big bag, laptop - and I can't actually carry heavy stuff for at least 4 weeks. Doc said I can't vacuum for 6 weeks, which would be quite disgusting if I didn't have a flatmate. Anywayz, J (the friend who's been looking after me at her place) is going to come back after her uni and help me load my stuff in the cab. Then when I get home, my housemate is going to come downstairs and bring all my stuff up. So it's all good.

Once I get home, I think it'll be down to assignment business. Hopefully I finish it by tomorrow or Sat. Then on the weekend, will study Stats. That's the plan for now...

6th day post-op...

It's going to take me a while to heal. But today, am completely off my prescribed meds. Feeling really achy and this morning, the pain just escalated cause I wasn't on any more meds. I can take my panadol or panedeine though. Might take panedeine since it's stronger... By the way, my sinuses, sniffling symptoms are back! Pretty tough sneezing, cause every time I sneeze, my chest hurts. I was having muscle spasms, backaches and neck aches and just pain, so decided to sign up to a surgery message board to feel better. I know... last resort! Never been on one, but I was feeling low... And the people on it, having gone through similar procedures, have been sooo awesome. Of course, we all have nicknames so everyone is kinda anonymous. But the good feeling is, they are like your little support group.

Post-Op

The first three days after surgery, I think the doc gave me some really strong pills, cause I was sleeping practically every day, for almost every hour. It was pretty rough at first, because I couldn't lift anything, comb or tie up my hair, or dress up properly (still having a bit of trouble, but just slowly doing it bit by bit). I really feel like a disabled person. I think if I fractured a limb, at least I'll still manage more by being able to make use of the non-disabled side. But in this case, my injury's connected to my upper torso which means it's tough to even manoevre and scratch your back or turn around. You have to just move like a robot. And I feel weird sleeping on my back, cause for all these years, I've never done that. Definitely something I've been trying to get used to. I was sleeping sooo much for the first three days, that the only movie I watched from my comp with my friend was 21, which was really good I have to say. Not really about gambling... kinda like counting... hee hee!

At the moment, staying at my friend's and she's been sooo sweet and such a great carer who I think will make an awesome mum and nurse. Hee!! She wakes earlier just for me and makes my breakfast every day before she heads off for uni. She also puts aside the pills I need to take, makes sure my ice packs are cold enough and I've got the essential blankets, etc... I feel sooo bad for the way she's taking care of me that I'm gonna treat her to a really awesome dinner after this. But of course, it'll have to be after exams - we have exams around the same time... Another friend of mine, M, also helped pre-surgery by reassuring me, helping me to get my pills from the pharmacy, etc... so I'll be giving her that dinner too. I just thank God for such awesome friends!! I really never expected that they'd actually do all this, especially since I've only known them since Jan this year.

Sleeping patterns - on Mon, can't believe how much I slept. I woke up at 7:30am wanting my pain killers and I think J must have heard my difficulty getting up, because she got up to get them for me. Did I already say she's been awesome? Then I went back to bed and woke at about 10:30am to have my other pills. Started watching Forgetting Sarah Marshall which was really nice. Love those girly type flicks, but not too girly of course, if you know what I mean. At about 12 something after the movie, had a bit of lunch - couldn't find anything to eat cause J was at uni and she thought I'd wake at about 12... but woke really early and had already finished my food for breakfast... so anywayz, I just had plain bread and my pills. Then I went to bed and didn't get up until about 9pm when J was already home with din. She cooked fried rice for me. It's a strange thing... after eating a lot of crackers, sandwiches and biscuits, all of a sudden, fried rice tastes like Wow! And yeah, I know... It'll have to be many big dinners for J. Hee!!

On Tues, I didn't sleep a lot... woke early, but not that early - just a bit after 9am... did the usual - breakfast and pills. Managed to watch Aquamarine which was a really girly girly type flick, but something light for the brain... And also watched the Water Horse which was soooo sad, I have to admit it made me cry. Then there was a power failure in J's place... My comp was on the entire day and I only had about an hour and a half on my batt left. So I did one of my Stat pract quizzes. Also read up on my a-c-o-u-s-t-i-c-s assignment. Finished all that... so yeah, it felt quite productive. Later in the evening, the power came back on and I just surfed the Net and it was to bed.

The hardest things about post-op is getting up and lying down on the bed when waking and going to bed (it hurts whenever I get up/lie down), but also showering and changing... It takes me so long to shower and change cause I have all these ointments for cleaning the wound.

The things I miss - combing and tying up my hair, plus driving. I can't drive for at least 12 days... and the doc advices me not to take public transport as people will bump me around... so I have to resort to cabs here which are efficient but really really expensive!

Today, will sleep for a bit... can't believe I woke at about 8:30am... just had my pills and going back to bed now. It's cold today, so it'll be nice to sleep. Might wake a little later, have lunch and continue with my assignment. By the way, I managed to get an extension for the assignment till Mon...

I'll be OK...

Chest pains today are less than yesterday. My pain threshold was probably about 8 out of 10 yesterday still, but today, it's gone down to about 6.5, which is good. I need to see the doc at the moment. Been watching shows... like yesterday, watched 21 and today watched Forgetting Sarah Marshall. They were both really good movies. In fact, Forgetting Sarah Marshall was pretty funny, it was hard not to laugh, but I had to laugh... and then it just hurt all over again.
Took some meds after some crackers and I seem to be feeling rather drowsy...

Tomorrow off to the doc. Will have to go by myself cause J's got uni... but she's heading back during lunch time to assist me with a few things. Signing off for now, but stay tuned...

Freak Accident...

This is my freak accident story.... which could probably happen to anyone... and perhaps the lesson is to slow down and take it easy and not do too much at once.

As all of you know, been working to the bone ever since I returned from Melb. It's been hectic and crazy.

Then one morn, went to help J fix a light bulb at her place cause she was moving rooms... It was in the kitchen and it was slippery because the cleaners came. But their light bulb needed fixing and I said I'll do it. So I used J's stool - a bad decision, because as I installed the light bulb, and slipped (which rotated the stool about 360 degrees) and I hit it and then the floor. I couldn't really get up and J's housemate had to carry me into his car. He rushed me to emergency at about 7.30am, told the hospital staff that I was in a lot of pain. They then stretchered me from the car into the emergency ward where my blood pressure, X-rays, etc, were all taken. They also gave me a minor pain-killer because they wanted me to be alert enough to let them know what I was allergic to. I actually waited for quite a while as they were sorting out theatres and beds. After my X-ray results were released, the doc said I had a severe rib fracture and needed immediate surgery as it was touching my nerve. He also said it's a good thing I didn't have a full break or I'd be looking at about 6-8 weeks off everything. It was a day surgery from 12pm and I was discharged at about 6pm in the evening... TY rang me at about 5pm and I was still in recovery at that point.

It was quite a strange experience because I've never been in surgery or under general anesthetic before. Before the anesthetic kicked in, I recalled my last words about Perth, how I did high school there, and how the weather in Sydney was better than Perth. They asked me something else after, but I think I just totally knocked out. Couldn't remember anything after that. But I woke to the nurse calling my name. The anesthetist prescribed me all this medication - got like about 7 pills to take... I think I'll buy that weekly pill box...

Got to see the doc again on Mon to remove my bandages. Stitches are dissolvable. J's got class on Mon, but hopefully I'll be better to take a cab on my own to the medical centre.

J and M, two of my really good friends who I met in Summer School at Syd Uni, are looking after me right now. But I feel so helpless... Like J had to tie my hair today and button up my pants... They had to grab all my bags, had to get my meals, had to lift me up from bed... I am definitely going to treat them to a really nice dinner after I'm fully well.

Of course when this happened, pre-surgery, I only told my work colleagues and TY. J and M already knew because they were there when that happened.

Post-surgery, I didn't feel nauseous at all, just dizzy and in a daze. But the girl next to me who had a rib reconstruction done, puked all over her blankets after taking the same pills that I did...

This morning, the nurse called me to check up on me and I just woke up. But I had strong chest pains. She said it's common, because the meds would have worn out by then. So she suggested I eat breakfast first and then have my meds. I did and it's all good. I actually tried to carry J's bag just now, but I could feel something pulling and then I realised yes, definitely, I can't carry anything.

All in all, I'm okay... The doc gave me about 2 weeks off work and then M and D and T arrive. Hopefully I'll be okay by then to venture places with them, but for now, trying to rest up. The doc said I'll be myself fully in 6 weeks. And at least for the 2 weeks, I can concentrate on my assignments and study for the exams. There's also shows and TV series to watch, but you can't watch them all the time. In fact, I'm already bored and it's one-and-a-half days post-surgery...

Exams Unleashed!

The draft exam dates are out! And those dates will probably stay as it is... My first exam is on the 20 Nov. What a way to kick off with Stats... And the last exam is 1 Dec. Having said that, I have about 10 assignments, all due in between that exam period and up to that week of the first exam. My brain is going whoosh at the moment, trying to keep up with every single thing that jumps at me. So far so good this sem, cause I haven't once applied for an extension. Hopefully not in the near future... But I can't believe the semester has gone by so quickly.

I'll also need to submit my applications for next year's MA a-u-d-i-o-l-o-g-y course... And I'd better get cracking on those assignments before M and D and T come over! It's going to be an intensive two months...

Lots To Do

Ever since I headed back to Syd, I seem to have lots to do. Got a p-h-o-n-e-t-i-c-s and p-h-o-n-o-l-o-g-y assignment due on Monday which I just started today. Heading to a good friend's place Sunday afternoon to get some help on it... If I do really well, I ought to treat her for sure.

Then I have to finish up 4 little Stats online tests. Hopefully they don't take too long. I just completed one so all I have to do is key in the answers for it.

On Thursday, I'm going for this a-u-d-i-o-l-o-g-y info session in the evening. As you all know, I have to repply for my course next year. I'm also going to apply to Melb Uni just to weigh options. I would like to stay at Macq Uni though cause the teaching seems to be better and the syllabus too. Also, I just received an email from the course selection officer saying that I can reuse my previous cover letter. But I think I'll probably change it a little bit, especially since I've gone to observe a few a-u-d-i-o-l-o-g-y clinics. So I'll mention that in my follow-up cover letter.

The week after that, more assignments due and a Stats class test... Don't forget work shifts too. But hopefully I'll be able to catch up with uni stuff. Only a month and a bit before exams and then sem 2 is over!! It's pretty scary. So yeah, I'll have to really up the anti with uni workload soon! Been writing up weekly schedules to help me organise time.

And a busy month this one, because friends are heading down...

After the exam month, I'll have to plan my trip to Spore and Malaysia in March next year. I'll also have to get all my vaccinations done. Busy busy... Prayers needed for strength! Thanks guys!

Dying Phone Saved

I'm so glad I got my phone charger back! It's weird having a dying phone. I left it in Melb and TY was sooo sweet to courier it to me to Syd. It arrived just before noon. Good thing that TY had that option of sending it to me via express courier, cause if I didn't get my phone charger back by then, my phone would have been completely dead.

Melb Melb!

Just returned to Syd from Melb!!

Melbourne was sooo much fun! It was so enjoyable and definitely missed by me. Made me really miss the people. The trip was good, but I brought down an assignment hoping I'll finish it there - and um... didn't do any of it. At least I read the notes though... So at least I didn't feel all that guilty. It's actually due this coming Mon and I'm going Argghghhh at the moment. Working tomorrow from 2:30pm, but am expecting a few early mornings and maybe late nights.

Anywayz, my little trip to Melb was worth it. What I did dislike a lot was the weather... It was sunny and looked pretty nice most days I was there. But the sun, as some of you know, is quite deceiving - and it ended up to be cold, cold days. It was really dry too, and my face was drying up and peeling - even the moisturisers weren't doing the bestest of jobs.

My adventure in Melb:
The day I arrived in Melb - Arrived on Sat midnight and it was supposed to be sunny (as the forecast said), but it rained. Can't predict Melb's weather. Poor TY's car got really filthy and dusty. So after we went home and unloaded my stuff at his place, TY had to go back down to the carpark to wipe off all the excess dirt and water off his car to make it shiny again.

Day 1 - It was church day, and TY and I woke early and grabbed a quick breakfast at QV before going to church. Bumped into a few people... After church, a few of us gathered for lunch at this Jap Ramen place. It was pretty good. Then after, we just hung around for more. It was still early so we ended up watching Wall-E. The movie was sweet. And the animation was awesome. Didn't think the story line was gonna be that good, but it was. Especially if you're a green kind of person I think. After the movie, we gathered to have dinner and to watch the Singapore F1 outing at W's place. There were quite a few of us... Well, we got Chinese takeaway and then headed over to W's. It was still early for the Singapore F1, so we switched on Idol. Some of the others just played comp games. I have to say the Singapore F1 was amazing. Ch 10 had a really cool opening promo for it. I guess because it's the first ever broadcast in Singapore. At least they made it look like Singapore wasn't all China-town like. I saw a documentary before on Singapore and they never showed Singapore with its modernised city. Instead, the documentary showed Chinatown and Little India - the towns that don't look so great. And in fact, it's not where the new generation of cool kids hang out. And it might be shocking to some of us, but many people here in Aust actually don't know that English is our first language - perhaps because we have different syntax. They are usually quite surprised when I tell them that that's the case. It is quite sad that people don't really know that... Anyway, the F1 race was pretty exciting. I'm quite glad that Alonso won, because Hamilton - even though he's spunky, he seems to have this sense of pride and chauvinistic outlook about him that I don't really like.

Day 2 - TY had work, so I slept in. And when I woke, just started reading my assignment notes for a bit and surfed emails. Then met up with a few really close friends for lunch. There were 6 of us all together and we had great Malay-type food. Unfortunately I'm not a chilli person so couldn't eat a lot of the spice... But the dishes weren't very hot anywayz and very yummy. I think the rest just had sympathy on me, so they ordered all the not-so-spicy dishes... Hee! Thanks guys! M gave me a really nice surprise by not telling me that D, her fiance, took the day off and would join us for lunch! But they were the first ones to leave cause they had to run wedding errands. WH had to go to work so he couldn't stay long either... The rest of us just hung around chatting and talking about everything. It was good catch-up. I was actually planning to head back to finish off my assignment, and the rest were also wanting to finish off their assignments. But by the time we all planned to leave, it was already 4 something in the afternoon. And to think we were there from 12:30pm talking nonstop. As I headed back, TY finished work, so then we just met up there and then. We started making our way to M's place to have dinner with her, D and her housemates. They brought us to this Chinese seafood restaurant and it was actually pretty good. The restaurant had automatic doors. That was quite cool. Haha! I mean, usually I don't see that everyday. Then after that, we headed back to their place, chatted and chilled mainly... until it was pretty late.

Day 3 - TY took the day off! He organised this outing to go to Werribee Open Range and invited a few others. But in the end, it was only 4 of us. Everyone got a lift in TY's car. Then we went for breakfast at this really nice place near Vic Mart. When we went to Werribee, we decided to take the Safari bus, but when we took it, there wasn't a lot we saw. Like the zoo was actually having a few construction bits to put in new enclosures for primates, dingoes, etc... We got to see a few wildlife, such as the girraffes, rhinos and zebras, but was a little disappointed because I wanted to see the big cats really up close. At least we saw camels though, and one with a deformed lip. Hee! The walking trail was much better though. Pics going on Facebook soon! So stay tuned. After the trip, we sent S home and caught up with this other friend, L, and together, we all went to watch Eagle Eye. It was pretty good. Nice little action film, but very similar story line to iRobot. Then after the movie - I can't believe we did this - but we sneaked in to watch another movie - for free of course. We watched Journey to the Centre of the Earth. It actually wasn't too bad. People were saying it's quite bad - the acting and all. But it was actually pretty good - loved the visualeffects. I didn't mind it at all.

Day 4 - TY took the day off again. This time, it was only us - our little date. Hee! We didn't really do much... It was a quiet one - but good quiet. We wanted to look for a place that had baby animals, like a farm, wildlife santuary, etc... but couldn't find anything. The only place that would have been worth seeing was at the Melbourne Show, but it was already over... =( Next time I guess... Anyway, TY brought me to this Malaysian restaurant somewhere in Doncaster for lunch. It's called Straits Cafe. Really excellent, cheap food. I finished the whole plate and would have loved to try other stuff there. Probably when I'm next in Melb. After lunch, we headed to Westfield Doncaster to see its new refurbishment. Most of the shops were already opened in there except for a few. But what we saw - it was really, really good - they had almost everything there. Definitely better than the old Westfield. And at least it's not like Chadstone which is too big still. It's bigger, but at least it's not too tiring and confusing just by walking around the shops. We explored for a bit and then headed home and started watching Heroes. Man, it's soooo good that we watched three episodes straight (including the preview episode for this season). I can't wait for the next few episodes!! TY also burned me a few other movies and TV shows. Yes, I've got quite a lot to get through... And I'll need a bigger hard-drive soon, because the one I've got is running out of mem quickly. I guess once the hols are near... or when I have that free time... After the shows, TY brought me to the airport. In fact, I wasn't at all late. The flight was delayed and apparently it got delayed about four times. After my flight eventually departed and landed in Sydney, the captain apologised and he said that the previous flight had a technical fault which caused delays. At least 6 flights were delayed all over Australia from Sydney when I boarded. In fact, Virgin Blue was so much better to fly with compared to Qantas. I was surprised... but the Virgin Blue staff (at the help desk and also in the plane) were friendly (they are probably more light-hearted, but also professional) and the flight landing was really smooth. The Qantas staff weren't very friendly at the help desk and the flight wasn't very comforting... The pilot kept pressing on the accelerator and you could hear it. Somehow, the Qantas flight I was on had really noisy engines and motors... It didn't feel very comforting. The Virgin Blue plane on the other hand was excellent even though it was delayed by an hour. But am back now and that's all that matters. It was a safe blessed journey. =)

For the next few days, I'll probably need to do some real planning - my timetable's gone out of whack a bit. The first plan is working on my assignment tomorrow morning and then work. It'll be like that for a few days... unti the assignment is due on Mon. But then I'll still need to work on other assignments before M, D and TY head over to Syd for a few days.