下一站, 幸福

下一站, 幸福

赞!赞!赞!
刚看完ep13, 下一集好像越来越精彩了!
好久都没看过那么好的偶像剧.
这部戏还真的有点不一样, 少了偶像剧的夸张, 多了好多的浪漫与感动!
真的得在这推荐推荐!

ya, it seems like i spent most of my time watching drama, 我变宅女了!
it's true! But, can't help all 3 dramas being aired now are so good... 有爆笑的"海派甜心", 感人肺腑的"下一站,幸福", 还有浪漫可爱的(帅哥云聚的)"桃花小妹" All 3 of them will last until January and February. I'm so going to spend most of my spring semester following the dramas :D

yesterday, I went for ice skating. It was my first time skating. At first, I thought I was going to spend most of the time holding on to the rim. Luckily, my friend was so nice and patient in teaching me. I could skate a little bit after a while without holding the side! YEAH!!! Of course, I did fall down a lot. Now, I'm literally 遍体磷伤. I have bruises on my knees, legs and butts :P But, it all worth it coz ice skating was so F.U.N!! I wanna do it again!!!

Today, I went to the City. Peggy graduated this semester, she's going back to Taiwan in three days. So, we decided to hang out a lil bit. We had nice tofu soup for lunch as Korean Way. Then, we headed to Chinatown for karaoke!! It was my first time singing k :) There were only the three of us -- Peggy, Vivian (the future singer;D), and me --- and we spent three hours in the room. So, guess how many songs we sang! :D The day was dark when we came out from the shop. We had some nice yummy bubble tea from Tian Ren before we went home. It's really fun and nice hanging out in the City. Really don't know when we can gather again... Good luck to Peggy. See you in S'pores or Taiwan :)

Well, this is my holiday so far. I still haven't touched my research paper yet. Shit!! Still many important stuffs to do.... But, haih, I think I'll just do it tomorrow??

桃花小妹

这几天都在熬夜. 不是念书, 而是追看偶像剧.
最近迷上了桃花小妹!!
觉得超好看! 昨天一口气看了五集! 好久没追戏, 感觉满过瘾的!
飞轮海里边, 本来不太喜欢汪东城的, 可是jiro在这剧真是帅毙了!!
喜欢看这戏, 可能是因为有点"恶作剧之吻"的fu, 而且桃花的四个哥哥也太好笑了(也很帅)!
总之, 就好好看!!
反正, 八度空间有在播, 大家一起来看吧!

还有, 片尾曲--- "很安静"by fahrenheit 超好听的! sweet :)

2nd snow 下雪记

今年冬天第二场雪.
昨日, 考完期末考. 心情总算可以轻松轻松一下了.
虽然还有一张paper要写, 但今天打算放自己一天假, 在家里听听梁静茹的歌, 欣赏窗外的飘雪, 享受着轻松的下午 :)

离阳光假期还有3个星期.
说真的, 漫漫长假, 到底该干嘛呢?
纽约,去了好多遍, 有点腻了.
但, 说真的, 不去纽约, 还真的不知道有什么地方可以混....

唉,阳光假期, 你快快来吧!!

the L.A.S.T day

It's 'the' day of the semester again. The L.A.S.T of class! so freaking fast!!!!

7 courses. 19.5 credit hours. and, I DID it! No sweat :P

What is the better way to end the semester than getting drunk??
I didn't really get drunk. But, my last class of the semester was happened to be my Wine Insight extra credit class. And, the theme of the day was Champagne, the drink of celebration!!! Huhu!!
12 wines were served. I started feeling dizzy after finishing 6 of them XD Professor served 2 ~$180 champagnes just now, but Kai Li and I decided that the $22 Banfi was much better! It is so gonna be my drink for graduation :) So, that is about my last class, hopefully, I didn't need to use the extra credits.

Many things happened for the past 16 weeks, both happy and sad.

The semester started out very well with my satisfying GRE score. But then, I began to doubt whether graduate school was the right path for me and proscrastinated my applications.

Kendo was treating me good at the beginning. But, now, I am wondering shall I continue next semester.

I bought a brand new 3rd generation Ipod touch on September, only to lose it on October :'(

I thought I was gonna be with him, it turned out that we're not meant to be together.

I got really sick after going for a short trip in Ithaca, and missed quite a few classes and works that week.

The progress of my research project is so slooooow.

That's it for the bad things.

I took 10 tennis lesson this semester. I think I like it, and I'll continue next sem if I have time.

I got a "little brother" in my fraternity, and she is so cute XD

I registered for 7 courses and thought I was going to die, but I think I'm doing good so far.

I went to New York City more than 5 times this semester (whenever I have nothing to do on Sunday) and enjoyed my life very well :)

I volunteered a lot these few weeks, and this made me very happy!

My friend bought me out for lunch almost every week. Thanks, Anu.

I cooked less than 10 times this semester. I seriously hate to cook when I have something better to do.

I blogged less this semester :)

Karen visited me during thanksgiving, and we visited the City and watched a nice broadway show.

I had 2 thanksgiving dinners (2 turkeys) this year. 1 by Eileen and 1 by Kai Li and others.

A friend got really sick, but he is getting better now :)

I think that's for now. need to sleep now. have to wake up at 7am tomorrow for the BIG CHILL 5K run!

Get well soon!

自私

Family, friends, careers? Which is the most important?
The answer might seem so straightforward. Yet, sadly, while one is so busy pursuing his careers, it is so easy to misplace the priority.

How long you haven't talked with your family and friends? When is the last time you called them but not having their calling you? Did you remember to wish them happy birthday? Did you call them only when you're depressed?

Time. It seems you have a life time. But, sometimes today might not have a tomorrow. Life is so delicate. L.I.V.E now not tomorrow. Call your loved one now and tell them you love them.

Forever is never forever.

wah, so fast!

Went over my exam schedule yesterday. My last exams are on Dec 18th! Actually, I only have 2 final, and both of them on the same day (sui!). Dec 18th final exam, Dec 11th reading day. Yeah, study for 7 days!! Ya, right, 1 chapter per day or maybe 2 :P Never had such a loooooooooong reading day. That also means only left 2 weeks of class..That's it. Half of my senior year just passes like that. So fast, so fast...

I'm taking 7 courses now ~ the highest credit hours I have taken so far. But, most of the classes
are quite fun and easy. So, this is one of the easier sems or the easiest sem I ever had. That are not many exams besides for the General Physics and Methods of Recombinant DNA. So, I managed to broke my records for going to the City for more than 5 times this semester.. I went there whenever I didn't have exams... pretty crazy XD I remember for the first two years, I never dared to go anywhere far on the weekends because I always scared I didn't have time to finish homework.. Haha, now is my payback time~!! Payback for what? I dunno...

Anyway, this sem is gonna end in 2-week time. Next sem will be my last sem in Rutgers.. Huh, so fast!! Not going take 7 courses, really need to spend sometimes working on my project. Maybe I should work on it during the winter break since my break start on Dec 19th (my half-birthday!!!), and it'll be 3 full weeks before going off for the all tropical trip... Shit! 3 full weeks of boredness!

O ya, I just finished my thanksgiving break. Karen was here for the past few days! Went to Kai Li's place twice for yummy thankgiving dinner and Bak Kut Teh. Also went to Black Friday Midnite Sale for the first time. Went to Macy's Parade again... Watched a Broadway show by Cirque du Soleil - Wintuk was the theme. Did some homework. Not much. Haven't started writing my proposal. Still procastinating on my food processing presentation...

Alright enough rambling for my abandoned blog... Good nite!

vid

fellow researchers,

check this out :)
http://www.nature.com/video/lindau2009/index.html

来不及

来不及了! 来不及了!
还有两个chapter还没念....
明天就要考了... 我完蛋了... 救命啊!!!

我讨厌考试/// 饶了我吧. 拜托!

-o-

It's not even 6pm but it's as dark as 9pm
I seriously hate winter!

Sick :'(

So sick... Felt so sick after coming from the short trip. Maybe had too much oily food and chips, and the body is protesting now.

Bought a bottle cough medicine from pharmacy this evening. Had the urge to drink the whole bottle so that I can get ride of the sore throat faster and do well in the presentation tomorrow. But, luckily I am a scientist. And, since the label states that acetaminophen will kill my liver, I passed the idea. But, keep my fingers crossed that I will survive the 20-min presentation tomorrow. Worse come to worst, I will just come home tomorrow after the food lab class, and skip biotech lab. After all, the professor might freak out if I show up in sicky condition and scare to the hell that I might be a H1N1 carrier. She did it once to another student few weeks ago :P

I think the last time I ever got sick was like 11 months ago, back at home, when I totally lost my voice. But, that was holiday so it was OK. Really hate to be sick. It just brings me down and makes me so less productive. Felt like I am complete loser for not being able to take good care of myself....

被雨淋过的秋天

被雨淋过的秋天, 好冰, 好寒冷.
上礼拜, 雨一直下, 从一到日, 不断的下..
外头好灰, 好冷, 因为他, 心里更灰, 更冷.

可是, 今天看到从室友窗户透进屋里的那道曙光, 忽然又从新感觉希望与生气了
早上上第一堂课时, Dr. Takhistov shortened the 120-minute class to only 12 minutes only to inform us that there will be no 8.30am class on Wednesday so that we can use that period to work on our group project. Ya right, as if we are gonna wake up at 8.30am to do our project.

In the afternoon, I had my last first midterm exam which was Methods of Recombinant DNA. Seriously, the exam was hard. First, the exam was really complicated. Second, I only browsed through the study materials because I was too sad to study last week. So, so be it. I really don't mind getting a B (nothing lower) for this class. I'm not really going to pursue any study in this field :P So, like Amir in "Jake and Amir" said, "Whateva!"

The only thing that makes me happy is that Dr. Zilinskas announced that this week's lab would be canceled. So, no lab on Wednesday. 2 classes are canceled on Wednesday. HOOORAY!

Tonite, I met him. I knew I should stop seeing him like what my housemate said. But then, I realized once I have given up, there is really no need to avoid him. Now that I changed my mind, I figure out that I am much much better for him :)

被雨淋过的秋天, 还是会有晴天的 :)

Where is the answer?

Whenever I am sad, depressed, and demotivated, I like to cook nice food.
Today is pasta night. I made deep fried calamari and pasta with lotz of ham, zucchini, mushroom, and red sauce.

I wonder why some questions in life is not as straightforward as 1+1=2 and or at least come with a correct answer? Some of them are even worse --> answers are unknown. I had been plagued by this one problem for a long long time. Try very hard to get myself out of it but it seems that it just won't leave. The truth is there. But, somehow, it's just so hard for me to let go. I'm giving myself a false hope, and therefore, digging myself a bigger hole whenever I saw chances. I'm wasting my time and energy for this. The usual me won't waste anytime doing something useless, pointless. And the fact that this is so not me really made me sad. I'm gradually losing my dignity by immersing myself in this mess...

And no, the food didn't make me happy.

huh!

It's 2am. Just finished my lab report that is due tomorrow. This is the first time I did my report last minutes. Usually, I got my things done 1 day or 2 before the submission date. But, I didn't start writing this until 5 hours ago. It's all because of the Physics exam.

Sunday exam began to haunt me again after 1 year. Like other general courses, Physics has Sunday exam. So, I could not do anything else except studying for it. My weekend was basically wasted for Physics. But, it's alright coz Irerally have nothing to do on weekend besides writing a few lab reports and walking around New York City :P The exam went quite well. 18 questions. Straight-forwards. No tricky questions and answers. I think I'll be fine if I didn't do careless or stupid mistakes.

The end of Physics exam means the end of my semi-hell week. I had 3 exams, 1major presentation and 1 major experiment last week. Everything was so far so good. Next exam will be on next Monday. So, I guess I have a semi vacation week this week. Will try to find some time to practice tennis and swim or do something that made me happy :)

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This week was actually homecoming weekend. So, after powergym with Kendo Club on Friday, I went to watch fireworks at the Park. Fireworks was pretty and amazed me again and again :) I just like the explotion and burst of hue and color!

After the display, I went to Noodle Gourment to fix some dinner. There, I met Sensei and 2 other Kendo ppl. Sensei said it was quite surprising to her that I actually went to watch fireworks alone coz girls usually like to do this and that together, like shopping, eating, going to bathrooms... But, I would say this is a survival skill I learned in Rutgers. Sometimes, it's just so hard to find ppl to do things with you. Everyone was so busy with his/her stuffs. Like the fireworks, I actually asked more than 5ppl to go with me, but none of them was interested. So, why should I waste such a good show just because no one accompnay me? Thus, I chose to go alone. Sounds pathetic? Maybe. But, I know I enjoyed the fireworks display with or without an companion! :)
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Yesterday, I mentioned about a restaurant to a friend who wanna go out with her bf. It's a restaurant I am planning to go, and someone said someone might be/interested in going with me... Now, I'm confused.
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the end

I'm done with my presentation for biotech seminar this evening. I practiced twice before I went the class, and I almost late to the class because I forgot to check out the time when I was practicing. I ran like hell from my house to Lipman Hall when I realized that I had less than 10 minutes before the class. Luckily I made it :)

Kind of nervous in the beginning but then I managed to pace myself during the presentation, and things went pretty smoothly in the end. During the Q&A session, I managed to respond confidently eventhough I am not really sure of the answers.. I knew I shouldn't answer the questions if I am not sure whether it is correct answer. But, the presentation was graded, so... no choice -.-"

Something in my mind I have decided to put aside. Not going to think or dream of it anymore. I figured out I didn't have much time left and I shouldn't trouble myself with this matter anymore. Good bye, k!

I realized that I do like the pizza sold by Gerlanda's Pizza, a Pizzaria in the Student Center. I can eat it on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. By 3 days, I meant lunch and dinner :) They are so good! Tasty! Yummy! and I don't have to cook! :P

Alright, presentation was done. 2 more exams and 1 lab report to go. A busy senior I am. Yet, happy and contended to be busy. It kept me from thinking nonsense :)

hungry

studying for DNA sequencing analysis now. exam tomorrow. 6 pages to go. Kind of hungry. Feel like getting milo. but, lazy to walk downstairs to kitchen in 1st flour. how r?
banyak lapar..... (<-- quote from fahzan, he said that every time working in lab -.-")

saturday, there is 1 makan-makan in GC NY again. but, have presentation on Tuesday n exam Thursday.... But, is my last raya here... to go o not to? that's a tough question...

:)

Life has been pretty food these few days.
Everyday, go to class, eat, watch tv. The best part is I have no/minimal homework and reading, except for my physics :)

Today, after my class, I decided not to go to lab but went home instead to cook curry :)
So, went home at 12.30pm, finished cooking my curry by 1pm, indulge in my delicious meal while watching tv til 2pm. Then, I took a nap until 4.30pm~~~ I never had such a carefree day before during school year! I'm loving this semester!

Tonight, we had the first wine tasting session for my Wine Insights Class. We tasted 2 white and 6 red white. Since the theme is Famous Wine from Famous places, the instructors prepared many famous wines such as Bordeaux from France, Germany Riesling, and some other new famous wines from US, Australia. Though they are good wines, I found them quite hard to drink, maybe I am not that used to the tannins flavor in the wines.... Need more practice :P Out of the 8 wines, I like Riesling the most maybe it's a sweet white wine. I have sweet tooth :) The end of the tasting session, the instructor poured us our birth year wine, which is 1988 Bordeaux (fyi, 1988 is a good vintage year!) The 1988 Bordeaux was kind of different, tasted little like previous wine but contained more aged flavors.. That's all about my 1st wine tasting. Learned a lot today, and hopefully I can sharpen my wine tasting sense at the end of semester :)

crossroad of life

alright, i know 2 of our friends wrote this already....
but, what they're thinking is also what i've been pondering about for these few days.

yeah, i was certain that i wanna further my studies. Yet, these few days, I've been thinking a lot... Studies I shall further, yet, the question is now or later.

The heart is telling me to take a year off, go home, sit down and think thoroughly what I wanna do in the future. Then, only I should apply for grad schools. If this option is my choice, there is a high probability that I won't even bother to go to grad school after 1 yr of working.

The mind, only the other hand, says I should get it done asap, try to get my degree in 5 yrs, then go home for good, find a job and then, ..... If this is chosen, I might not pick the right path for my future...

Which shall be the road not taken?

bad *-*

从来都不觉得我是这种人....
可是我可能错了
本来约好要和学长和他女朋友吃饭的,
7pm,学长已经在楼外等我
可是就在最后一分钟知道另一班朋友也要去吃晚饭,
而他们正是去我最爱的sushi buffet,
而刚好他也会去,
就这样, 我爽约了...
我是疯了吗?

Argh!!!

Seriuosly, I hate school.... It's taking my life away from me. Assignments, quizzes, lab reports, presentations, papers... They are never ending!
It's Sunday night. But still, I haven't done all my works. Still haven't found any paper for the discussions tomorrow, haven't written report for my food processing class yet, and haven't finished reading the senseless physics text for the quiz tomorrow! Ah, what the heck!! I want my weekend back!!!
I figured out that I won't have any free time until Wednesday... But then, I'll have an assignment due on Friday :'( .... I wonder when I can spend my quality time with the ever handsome and cool Blue蓝正龙!
In conclusion, I hate school. And luckily, there are only 2 semesters left....

Adulthood

A junior's dad passed away 2 days ago. I was talking with my friends yesterday. We had no idea on how to console our friend who have lost her father... My friend said that back home, it's our parents who dealt with this issues, like giving condolences, donating money.... We're so inexperienced in doing all that, and it's kind of scary to deal with this...

Yet, what happened again proved a point --> we're adults now. There are people around us who get married, have babies, and sadly, their parents might have passed away. We're going into the world that our parents live in and there is no way to escape it.. So, it's time to grow up and need to learn how to deal with this "life" problems... (kinda scary but still....)

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Have been listening to song by 丁噹 recently, especially like her 猜不透 coz I think that I have a characteristic similar to the guy....

*mad*

Angry, I'm angry, I'm angry with myself. Arghhhhhhhhhhh!

Sometimes, I wonder why is it so hard for me to control my temper. I almost got in fight with somebody for something that was not even their faults. Maybe, it's the feeling of not being valued, respected and the fact that I can so easily being replaced. But, luckily, I managed to get out of the room before I exploded. Of else, I would have put myself into a really really bad situation. But, I do hate myself for getting mad at the first place. It is just not a right attitude I should have. Now that I am 21, I should really grow up and stop acting like a kid...

So, I shall always remind myself of what happened today and not to do that same mistakes again.

REMEMBER!REMEMBER!REMEMBER!!
CONTROL! CONTROL! CONTROL!!

Though some might not appreciate my work and skill, I can still find a better world for myself somewhere! Malaysia boleh! Saya boleh!

猜不透

时而豪放,时而文静;
时而热情,时而冷漠;
时而乐观,时而悲观;
时而冲动,时而稳重;
时而积极,时而懒散;

双子座的双重病越来越严重了...
有时还真的搞不懂自己到底是怎么了.
为什么好好的友情我要把它推入悬崖?
是因为狂欢后需要的孤单?
是本来就该一个人呢?
还是我太保护自己了?

不懂是对是错...
可是我决定我还是暂时保持这样的距离吧
这样我才能好好的过我习惯的生活

暂时再见! :)

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Yesterday, when I chilled out with friends, one of them said that I love to visit and not a stay-at-home girl. I think what he said is so true. I like outings no matter how far it is as long I'm out of my small cubical room. Especially now that I have limited time here in the States, I figured out that I had better spent my valuable time seeing and exploring the country. Who knows I might leave soon, so soon... Even if I was in Malaysia, I think I would do the same things. There are still many things that I have never gotten a chance to do in Malaysia, like going for a road trip with friends and families, clubbing in the city, shopping in the malls like I did here, and many more... Maybe, I'm not a stay-at-home girl after all!

p/s: Super excited for my end of year trip! ARE YOU, GIRLS???

labor day :)

So, it was a long Labor Day weekend, an awfully/awesomely long one....
Awful coz school just started 4 days ago and that is basically no homework or reading to do...
So, on Friday nite and the whole Saturday, what I did was listening to music and more music...

On the Saturday nite, JPA paid us a visit. We had nice food and small discussion sessions with 2 officers. The gathering was prolonged from 9pm till 10pm so I was unable to go anywhere after that (I was planning to go the City that nite)... I went home and spent the rest of the nite watching "Talledega Nigght". Actually, I just watched last winter at my auntie's place with my handsome cousin (you know who I mean :) It was fun to watch for the 1st time but not repeatedly... So, I cut the nite short and went to back before 12am....

The next day, woke up at 10.30am (quite early :) and catched 11.30am train to New York City. Went to Chinatown and had my hair cut. So, are you ready to see my new look??

JIANG! JIANG! JIANG....



Do you like it?? COZ I LOVE IT :D
I haven't had short hair since like I was in middle school. Really wanna try something different for my final year in Rutgers. Hopefully, my hair will stay straight and this hairstyle can be maintained :)

After the haircut, we walked around Chinatown. I bought a box of Durian flavored mooncakes. Mooncake festival is Oct 4th! Then, we went to the apartment to put our stuffs and then walked to 33rd to buy a baggage at Macy's and had tofu stew in the Korean Way. And then, the nites didn't end there.

So, today, woke up at 7.30am, catched 9am bus to New Brunswick. Went to friends' house for club meeting. I met an old senpai, whom I haven't met for a year. We did a lot of cleaning on the equipment and fooling around. It was a long day and I didn't come home until 9pm tonite. But, I do love to hang out with them so I also had lots of fun. Hopefully, we'll be able to do that again next time :)

Dancing Fountain @ Bellagio

Since I have times and I'm super bored...
Enjoy this clip I took in Las Vegas :)

X(

Boring! Boring! Boring!
Weekend in NB is boring! boring! boring!
Moreover, it's a 3-day weekend, super looooong weekend.
TV program is too bland and boring, and I am sick of Food Channel and Jon&Kate.
What I can do is to stalk someone in Facebook. But now that I have stalked enough, I really don't know what I should do....

Start to miss my weekend in Wooster, Ohio coz my supervisor would always bring me to somewhere... Especially miss the party nites where ppl basically danced their stress and butt off... I wanna dance! I wanna party! I wanna dance! I wanna party! I wanna be out of NB!

It's a super boring Friday nite....

I WANNA DANCE!!!!!!!

First week of my senior year

Huh! Yeah, I'm a senior now!! Hu! Hu! *Clap hand*

I took my GRE on the 1st day, which turned out pretty well. Satisfy with my score and not retaking it.
So, I hope it's an augury that I'll have a smooth senior year :)

But, all the Senior Year Syndrome manifested on the first week.
The syndrome includes lazy to get up from bed for morning classes, late for classes, lethargic and lack of concentration in classes, not motivated to study class materials... In short, just lazy.

Maybe because I just took the test, so felt like giving myself a break. Yet, the break won't be very long coz the prof will definitely get us moving quick with all those assignments and exams...

Before my break was cut short, I think I should enjoy it when I still can. So, New York, here I come!! I haven't gotten a chance to go there since I came back from Ohio. Need to go there to have my hair cut, do some shopping, eat some yummy chinese/korean food and visit a friend :)

Okie, gtg, have to sleep now so that I won't be late to class tomorrow morning.

p/s: In cloud nine these few days, partly of the exam, partly of someone who makes my day :)
Hope the happiness lasts forever!

Sweet :)

Received something sweet in my mailbox :)







Taken during the WDC Tzu Ching Camp.
Who are we? We're the Team Leaders and Camp Leaders!
Background : Capitol, in case you don't know :P



gtg, tomorrow is my D-date! Jia you! Jia you! Jia you!

D-date

One more day to go...

Add oil! Add oil! Add oil! Gambateh :)

...

So, 2 more days, school will start. Kinda weird, coz in study mood though still in break.
maybe decision to the test right on the first day of class might not wise. But, too lazy I am to revise it earlier that I can only take it on the first day of class. Will still study hard for the next 2 days for the sake of my so-called future, which myself still ambiguous about it. Life is still full of question marks ????

was so close yet so far. was right there yet there was no way to grab hold of it. maybe is a sign to let go and regain for freedom. Never like to be tied, and will fly for sure :) A better sky is for the one who aims for it.

is hard to read this post because all subjects are removed :P

back to work. bye bye!

End and beginning

Finally, I've settled down for real since I came back from Ohio. August have been quite a hectic, fun-filled and lighting fast month. Everything happened in a flash that it's already 27th, almost 28th, now.

I spent the first 9 days at my last few days in Dr. Finer's lab. Moved in my new place on the same day I flew back to New Jersey. Stayed at home for 3 days, trying to study. Then, I left again. This time to Washington DC for Tzu Ching camp. It was my first Tzu Ching that I've ever attended. The whole camp was very relaxing and full of laughters. Met a lot of new friends there, which is a boon :) And, I was asked to become a team leader few weeks before the camp began. Kind of nervous in the beginning, but team members were really good and friendly, no issues occured, except for the two little teenage boys that rarely spoke... Ah, that phase! I totally can understand that :) After four days in the nice and cozy camp, I went back to New Jersey, not for long...

After staying a day there, I left again, this time for my short and kinda spontaneous (not really... but I wasn't that ready for it) trip to Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, and San Franscisco. Las Vegas...The best description I could find for it is --- Adult Disneyland.. It kinda like a fantasy land. You could find building replicas from all over the world from Venice, Rome, France, NY, Sahara... Everything was so not real there... but, it does no harm to escape from reality once in a while, right? So, 4 days was spent in LV, with 1 day for Grand Canyon Tour. Took lotz of pictures in Grand Canyon though we only made 2 stops for sightseeing :'( Hopefully can do a camping trip there next time! On the other 3 days, we went shopping in the LV Premium Outlet and walked down the Strip --> the most happening place at LV. At the Outlet, I was so tempted to buy $100 Coach Purse. I'm glad that I managed to get out from the store without buying it coz I knew I would definitely regret if I did ... Luckily, I'm still conscious, also thanks to my shopping buddy, Eileen :) For the last 2 days, we took many pictures on the Strip, watched some free shows, and I went to Cirque du Soleil "O" show in Bellagio. That cost me a fortune but totally worth it coz it's the only place on Earth (as for now) that I could watch it! So, that is a brief account of my Las Vegas trip.

On the 4th day, we took an hour (40minutes??) flight to San Franscisco. It was so cold when we exited the airport.Eileen and I was expecting warm weather. But, the truth is San Frans has a Mediterrannean weather, which stays around 64F or 15C throughout the year -.-" So, we basically flew from 113F (48C) to 64F (15C) in less than an hour! It's freezing cold!

First night in SF, we had some Thai food in a downtown restaurant. Tasted yummy, sorta like eating "tuo pan" but slightly sour (tou pan in Jawa mee sauce?). Downtown was very happening that night coz it's Friday. People was drinking and clubbing at the bar right below our hotel. But, we're too tired for those... So, we went to bed right after the supper.. zzzzzzzzz

The next morning, we went shopping for clothes in H&M and Forever 21. Eileen needed it since she only bought sleeveless shirt and shorts (cold....). Spent 2 hrs there while waiting for another friend to join us. Then, the rest of the afternoon was complete chaos as we tried to find the place to claim our Visitor Cards. It's all the car's fault. Shoudn't have rent it at the first place. Right after I got our cards, we went straight to Sonoma County for some wine tasting.... bought a bottle of white wine with lychee flavor. yes, I can buy legally now! After the short session, we went back to San Francisco to get some yummy fresh seafood. Did I say that we pass by Golden Gate Bridge on the way to Sonoma County and back? Yes, we did :) I tried to take pictures... but they weren't that good... So, at the Crab Stands, we had seafood for dinner. Eileen and I shared a plate of Crabs, prawns, raw clams, and raw mussels. I tried raw mussels for the first time and it tasted quite nice :) But, I decided not to try raw clams coz Eillen said it's kinda smelly.. ewww.... After the hearty meal, we went to the Crookedest Street and Japan Center. Took plenty of pictures there... Another observation --> there are manu Asians in SF, even more than NY! Also my Eurasian babies :P So, that was the 2nd nite in SF.....

2nd day, I decided to do some biking. Though the idea did not appeal to Eileen and her friends, I decided to do anyway... on my own. So, I boarded the F bus to Fisherman's Wharf (took the wrong one to Castro's "Rainbow Town" and had to retake another F bus), claimed my ticket for my cruise, took my 1-hr sightseeing cruise, rent a bike, and started my journey toward the Golden Gate Bridge at 1.30pm. I managed to get on the Bridge at 2pm ish, strolling on the Bright Orange bridge, took more pictures, spots a few sea lion playing in the sea water :) ... At 3.30pm, I finally made it to the end of the 2-mile (?) long bridge and headed to Sausalito, another beautiful town, to take the ferry back to SF. Though I spent 2 and a half hour, the bike shopkeeper said that could actually be done in 1 and a half hour and it totally worth it! So, what did I do in Sausalito? Something totally unwise --> wine tasting, since it's already included in my Visitor Pass... I felt terribly drizzy when I was at my third glass. Luckily, I took a ferry back or else I'll definitely bumped on somebosy, which definitely not a good situation.... I slept for half an hour in the ferrt and chatted with an lady from Philedalphia. She was trying to capture the Alcaltraz Prison and sent it to her husband back home. How sweet...

Once I'm back to SF, I biked around the Embarcadero and returned the bike at 8pm. Then, I took the Historical Cable Car back to where I lived. I was quite lucky that day because the line for Cable Car was so short that I only have to wait for around 10minutes. Maybe, it was dinner time and not many was interested in riding the car :) During other times of the day, you might have to wait for more than 1hr... Lucky! Lucky!

3rd day was a short, checked out at 11am, we headed to Castro. Had the most fabulous, delicious breakfast there called Crab Florentine.. SO GOOD! Then, more sightseeing there before we went to Fisherman's Whaft again because Eileen and friends were boarding the sighseeing cruise. I, on the othe hand, hop on a downtown sightseeing tour. It was a very informative and insightful tour that told you untold story of the neighborhood.. Very neat indeed. After that, I went to Chinatown to take some pictures and have dinner.... And the dinner was the end of my 7-day trip in Las Vegas and San Francisco...

Now, I'm back to reality. GRE in 4 days, and schools will start in 4 days.....
加油!加油!

hiatus

will be out of town for 10 days :)

: - )

Never expected to meet on the very second day I came back, but somehow we bumped into each other on the street. Is it so called serendipity?

now, I'm in cloud nine :-)

:( ---> (:

So, I came back to New Brunswick finally...

Yesterday was my last day in "farm-filled" Wooster. We made the second attempt to Berlin, an Amish towns. It was our second visit because we went there 2 Sunday ago, overlooking the fact that Amishs go to church on Sundays. So, we basically arrived to a died town that time with all the shops closed. My supervisor, Carlos, kind of felt bad for that because I personally requested him to bring me there. So, he decided to bring there again (Now, I felt bad). The streets were much more lively yesterday compared to the last visit. We actually saw Amish people. They were selling fresh produces, grilled chicken, crafts, etc etc... We went in and out many store, and I ended up buying some neat crafts. After that, we went to a Amish cheese factory. I tasted many kinds of yummy cheese, like cheddar, white (swiss?) , jalapenos cheese, cheese with bacon, pungent garlic cheese, chocolate cheese, blueberry cheese, goat cheese (eww!), and lotzz more. Also bought some yummy cheese back home :) I love cheese! After the flavorful trip to the cheese factory, we went to a small ranch to see some farm animals. Carlos and Brenda were not coming with us because they just went there at the beginning of the summer. I felt kind of bad for having them waiting for us for an hour.... But, farm animals were cute and, we got to feed time :) So, we went at 5pm though we expected to be home at 2pm. Everyone was starving by that time, and we grilled some chicken and vege at Carlos house for the dinner, my last dinner in Wooster and with Carlos and his family....

So, today, woke up super early, as early as 6am, did some packing, and off I was to the airport. It was Carlos who sent me. In the hour journey, we chatted a lot, esp about professors in OARDC and graduate schools. The whole trip was full of laughter. And at 8am, we reached Cleveland Airport. I checked in my big luggage and found out that it was overweight -.-'' S***, for the extra 13 Ibs, I have to pay additional $50, but, nothing could be done.... So, after the fuss, it's time to bid farewell to Carlos, my dearest mentor for the past 10-weeks. I gave him a nice big firm good-bye hug and promised that we would keep in touch in the future. Then, I walked toward to the Gate 10, not daring to look back at all... So, Good Bye Ohio, the land of aviation!

The 1 and a half hour journey from Cleveland to Philadelphia was going well. The day was sunny in Cleveland, but it turned cloudy at the City of Brotherly Love. The trip from Philly to New Brunswick was only 1hours by car. But due to the cheap ticket I bought, I have to wait another 2 hours before boarding the next flight. The gate was open at 1.15pm, and every passenger settled down at his/her seat at 1.30pm. Just when all of us thought we're about to taxi, the pilot announced that the airport in Newark has 'low ceiling'. I overheard from the lady next to me that it means the air pressure was too high for the plane to fly. So, all of us were stuck in the super small propeller plane that didn't even have a lavatory for another bloody hour, which was then shortened to half an hour. The stewardess tried to appease us with ice cold water, which caused a huge problem to me later on. Why? As I said that is not toilet in that tiny plane, and unwisely, the hungry and thirstily me glutted down the whole glass of water before the plane left the Philly Airport. So, what I thought the whole journey was, "bathroom, bathroom, and bathroom....". And, you can never imagine how fast I rush to the airport once we're freed from the propeller!
So, that's my journey back to Rutgers that was protracted from 5 to 7 hours... And because of that, I finally finished "The Harmony Silk Factory", which I've abandoned for 2 weeks. It was a really nice book to read, will talk about it in my next post :)

And now, I'm in my new place, blogging. I no longer stayed in my old place, but officially moved into this bigger double-storey apartment today. It belongs to a Church group, and so, it was rented at a lower than market-price. The room was not as bad as I first saw it 10 weeks ago. I ranted a lot about this room because I was supposed to get the biggest master room in the house, which I didn't get it because of my hesitant. But, everything turned out well. The wall was repainted wall, the floor was redone, and the molds in the bathroom was exterminated. In fact, I even have fan in my room, a luxury in US room. In overall, it was a better house if compared to my previous tiny cubicle in Suydam St, except that it's further away from bus stop and student center. But, I think I can do with it once I get my third bike in US :P

离别总是伤心的

So, here it came, my last day as an intern in Finer's Lab. Never expect it to be so soon. Kinda of sad for leaving the lab... In fact, I'm very sad. The thought of not seeing the people I've been working with in the past 10 weeks anymore makes me nauseous. Now, only time and busy coursework can ease me from the sad feeling of separation...

Recently, have been pondering a lot about my future. What I did in the past three years have been specially planned and executed so that I could get into grad school (including the internship I'm doing now)... But, now, I really don't know what I want.. Going home? Staying for another few years to further studies? If latter was chosen, what kind of studies I'm going to pursue? The vast courses offered in the many universities simply daunted me. Even though there are few particular courses that I'm interested, the requirements are simply too high that I doubted I can secure a seat with my terrible GRE preparation.

How I wish I could find my old self who never wished for the star in the sky, who was simply satisfied when she got accepted in Rutgers University.............

Tuesday

Here comes Tuesday...
Four more days working in the lab.
I really don't feel like leaving and hope I that can stay in the Finer's lab longer.
Actually, it's never been my first choice to do my internship here. I was hoping to do get a position in a more prestigious university, but somehow I was not qualified enough to be accepted. So, since I have no where to go, and I didn't wanna stay in Rutgers again this summer, and was desperately in need of an internship, I decided to come here, just for the sake of leaving Rutgers.

At the beginning, I imagined this place will be another boring lab where I would be stuck with PCR, gel, DNA, soybeans for 10 weeks. I came here with little notions what were coming up for me and completely unprepared for my project (I didn't even read the papers sent to me before I flew here :P). But, after a mere 10 weeks, I've gained more than I could ever imagine.

Now, I'm more confident in operating the devices like PCR machine, running gels, and performing other lab techniques, which I never got a chance to learn in my food science lab. The second thing I cherish is the people I met during the internship. Everyone in the lab is so nice. Carlos has been very helpful. A good mentor, he definitely is. Dr. Finer is so friendly. I've never met such a amicable professor. Not even Dr. Schaffner, whom I've worked with for 3 years can change the fact. It was so fun to work with funny, talkative Clay, who is my partner in my project, and Cristian, who invites me to party every weekend. Besides people in the lab, I also had a chance to meet people from other departments through the social events. There were people from all around the world and of different backgrounds. Hopefully, we can keep in touch after I leave.

Another person whom I'll never forget is Chun Xue, my housemate in ATI. Ever since I moved here, we cook and eat dinner together almost everyday. It's fun and comforting to actually have somebody eat with you. I wonder whether I can still do that once I go back to Rutgers... I'll also never forget the hours we spent together watching many many TVB, Taiwanese, and Korean dramas until way pass midnight. In these brief 7 weeks we stayed together, we have watched 2 HK, 4 Korean and 1 Taiwanese dramas. Huh! There were also evenings when we unwind at the swings in the playground nearby, talking about our past, our dreams (dream guys to be exact), and her love story. And also, the weekend when both of us turned into a complete shopaholic in the uptown after weeks of abstinence from shopping. Lastly, I'll always remember the 1-hour walk we take just to get the best pizza in Wooster (or the world)!! It's really sad of leaving.... coz I really have no idea when I'll come here again or if there are any chances I'll come back here at all and meet with them.... :'(

So, I came here with nothing and expecting nothing. But after these 10 weeks, I'm bringing home with research experience, $2K, a bag full of fond memories with wonderful people and place, and also a possibility of published paper.... It's really a rewardful experience that I'll never erase from my memories

p/s: I also bring home some deep regret for not studying enough for GRE .... which makes me really sad....

End of summer ...

Like what Shin Hwei said 暑假就快结束了, next week will be the last week of my 10-week internship in Finer's Lab. Then, I'll be flying back to NJ and moving into the new house with new roommate.

It'll be another 3 weeks before school starts. Before that, I'll be taking the GRE, which I am totally not prepared for. In fact, I'm going for a short vacation 1 week before the test. I'm totally out of my mind. Even before my vacation, I'm going to a camp for 4 days. In conclusion, the whole vacation and camp will attenuate my study days to around 15 days in the August. And now, it's already August the 1st. I'm totally pushing myself off the cliff.... The situation is so dejecting yet I'm still not motivated to study hard. Maybe, I have long forgotten how to study for this kind of standarized test after 3 years of college....

Fall term will start on the 1st. I'm taking 7 courses next semester in order to squeeze all my major requirement. 2 of the courses give only 1 credit but I know 7 courses in 1 semester is a really really bad idea. But, what can I do? I screwed up in my junior year... I'll keep my finger crossed and hope that I'll be fine.................

But, since it'll be my last fall term in Rutgers, I think I should try my best to enjoy it to my best coz we will only be university students for once in a life time. So, to every "senior citizens" out there and me, do your best but also remember to enjoy yourselves! There are no points of having stressful university life for 4 years. It's just not worth your life :)

Cristian's Farewall Party

Today is Cristian's last day in the lab. He's going to start his graduate study in Michigan State this Fall. So, all his friends held a farewell party for him today since he will be flying to Ecuador tomorrow morning. We had the good-bye dinner in Buffalo Wings, a renowned sport bar in Ohio that specializes in buffalo wings, which happens to my favorite American food. Buffalo wings is not the wings of buffalo as buffaloes on the Earth never have wings except buffaloes in the heaven. It's actually chicken wings dipped in 'hot' sauces that was made famous in Buffalo, New York. Although the sauce was supposed to be hot, it's never spicy enough for me :)

So, Cristian is/was the technician in the Finer's Lab. A young man from Ecuador. Likes to party, always persuades people to drink and dance in party. Though my work requires little interaction with him, we always chat in the morning or during free time coz his bench was next to mine. While everyone in the lab is working with soybeans, he did research on sunflowers, which is my favorite flower (I even asked him to give me some when I saw him collecting the flowers from the greenhouse :p). I never expected that he would leave the lab before we, the interns, did. So, it's kind of shocking when he told me last week that he's leaving. It's indeed quite rush for him, Dr. Finer and the lab. But, it couldn't be helped; he has to get all the documents done before going to grad school. So, tomorrow will be his leaving date.

We had dinner in the Buffalo Wings at 7pm. The Tuesday special menu is buy six wings get six for free.. I ordered my wings with 'Caribbean Jerk' hot sauce, which was supposed to give a sizzling feeling but it definitely did not happen... What a disappointment~~ I should have called the 'Mango Habanero" that is named third from the last on the spiciness line. Six wings was what I ordered, and I ended up with twelve. Usually, I can only eat 6 wings at one meal when we used to have wings for dining hall take out. Luckily, I managed to finish up all 12 wings (but the deliciousness has somehow transformed into disgust at the end :S)

Also, Tuesday is the Karaoke night at the restaurant. People, good or bad in singing, started to inundate us with their voice at 9pm. Food was finished, and some friends were leaving at the time. Only few of us stayed to listen to the singing, watch sport channels that were broadcasting several baseball leagues (Red Sox, Indians....), and drink beer as another Tuesday special is a pitch of beer for $6. So, without much words and chatting, we quietly enjoyed the night until we're done with 3rd pitches of beer and left at 11pm.

So, it was my another special and eventful day in Wooster, the day when Cristian left, the day I went to all-American sport bar, the day I drink beer legally in the public space, and the day not to be forgotten. Thanks Carlos for inviting me, and Good Luck to Cristian.

(p/s: It's also the first time I got a lil, just a lil, drunk.... Believe me, I still can blog :)

(Left) Cheri and Cristian (both from Finer's Lab

(Right) Limbania, Carlos (my supervisor/mentor), Nancy and me





<---- People on the left, who are you from LA?

:)

It's weekend again. Another weekend with lotzz of shoppings, outings and sleeps ZZZZ..

Before talking 'bout the weekend, I must write about my Friday that was full of surprise.
I walked at 8.45am that day, thinking I won't make it to work at 9am. I was too tired to wake up eventhough the alarm clock has been going off for umpteen times. Hastily, I showered and had a quick breakfast. When I was about the twist the door knob of the front door, I heard a door opening sound coming from 2nd floor. It was weird... Usually, my housemate went to work before 9am. So, it's kind of abnormal for her to wake up at 9am. So, I greeted a with a Good Morning, and asked why she woke up that late today. Then, she said, "No, it's only 8am.". Me said, "No, it's already 9am!" She ran to her alrm clock to double check. I was wrong. It's only 8am. DUH!! I woke up an hour earlier and only to realize it I was all prepared to leave the house. If she didn't wake up at the moment I'm about to leave, I think I'll going to an empty and locked lab.... Hahaha! So, one hour to go. What to do? Of course, for sure, I went back to my bed and dozed off a moment later. When I woke from my weird dream, it's already 9.20am. This time I'm late for sure. My labmate was asking where I was when I reached lab...Luckily, my supervisor didn't get in until 12pm these few days :P But, my professor, Dr. Finer, was already in his office. He was early that day, but I didn't think he knew I was late to work as I walked in the lab surreptitiously. Lucky!! But, I didn't it mattered the fact that I was late to work. Nobody cared since we just gave our exit presentation the day before. We're done with our internship project basically :)

Friday was a short day. We finished with our experiment on 2pm, and spent the rest of the day in front of the computer. Clay, my project partner, left at 4pm so that her could play video game with Dr. Finer's son. Then, Dr. Finer left a few minutes later so that her could prepare diner for that night. He's invited us to his house for a dinner earlier this morning. He's going to make homemade pizzas. Since there were only my supervisor, Carlos, and me in the lab, Carlos said I can leave. So, for the first time, I came at 4pm from work.... But, it's kind of bored at home. So I slept again...

On that night, I went over to Dr. Finer's house for dinner. He has a really nice house. The backyard is so properly tended and planted with colorful flowers. The neeatness and beauty of the garden can simply outshine the university's garden. Also, he has a wood behind his house, with a small creek running through it. He made a wooden stairs and planted it into the soil to make a small trail to the small river. In the river, there were small black fishes swimming in it, which Dr. Finer claimed as "his fishes" though there are actually native to the river. It's kind of hard to believe taht all the things that I saw were actually located at the back of one's house. Breathtaking, calming, natural, they were.

That night, we had John's homemade pizzas, wine, and beers. We also played a game --> cornholes. In the game, you throw the bags full of corn kernels into holes made in a wooden board. Something you might have played in elementary schools. Also, we chatted a lotz during the whole evening, making fun of people in the lab who weren't present. At 9.30pm, Clay, Ben, and their girlfriends left for a movie. So, there were only me, John, and Kim (John's wife) left sitting near the fireplaces. We chatted for another hour. At first, I thought it'll be a grueling and awful experience since I never used to chat with people older than me, and in this case, my professor and his wife.... Cut, luckily, John and Kim were very affable and talkative. We chatted on my things like family, travelling, and also what I want to do after graduation.... Finally, conversation ended as the fire died off. And, I was driven back to my apartment in Dr. Finer's BMW 3-series :D So, this is all about my Friday full of surprise.

On Saturday, my housemate and I went shopping in uptown again since the last time we went there was 3 weeks ago. I bought few, like 4, clothes since there were so cheap. One Mickey shirt costed only $4, and a Snoopy shirt only $10. So darn cheap! I found a cheap luggage in one of the store. I needed one since my old one was broken down during my flight to Ohio :'( After 3 hours of shopping, we felt very tired. Maybe because we spent too much at JC Penny, we felt bad and restrained to buy anything in other shops. So, after we had lunch in McDonalds' and bought some grocery in Walmart, we headed home directly. It's raining profusely on the way back, and the summer shower made day cold and cozy. What a nice day for a nap :) So, my housemate and I slept again that evening, only to woke up at 8pm for dinner :P

Alright, need to cook for dinner now... Will update on my Sunday later.
Registered for GRE on Friday, like Sue Yen said, it's happening now. But, where is my motivation???

Shitty

Seriously, it really smells like shit here. It's been two days because the atmosphere is still saturated with the shitty smell. Did someone just use manure for enrichment in the farms? It smells like SHIT in the lab. It smells like SHIT in my apartment. It smells like shit in the laundry room. I felt like I'm living in toilets and surrounded by poop! It's disgusting!!! Get me out of here! Shit is everywhere!

Life has been shitty for these past weeks. No progress has been done for GRE because of the shitty exit presentation that we have to give for the internship. I'm all worked-up for the presentation and GRE. You know how much I'm afraid of them. They're basically consuming me alive ;'(

Wish me luck.. I'm so nervous....

Coffee Prince :D

Just finished watching a Korean Drama ---> "Coffee Prince"
not a new drama, but really like the story lines
thought of watching the series after stumbled on a similar - kind of - production by Malaysia --> "A Cup of Love"...

"Coffee Prince" is very different from conventional Korean Drama..
There is not so much of triangle (or 4-angle) love story.
The 1st main w/ 1st main
The 2nd w/ 2nd. Everything is just nice
Besides that, the whole story flows so well.
Everything, every scene is just nice and prefect, just like drinking a cup of nice coffee -- not too sweet, not too bitter :)
Especially like the atmosphere portrayed in the coffee house. Everyone is so playful and funny.
Like the silliness of the big guy (Ming Ye?), like the humorous of the small guy (Ming ?), and totally attracted by the coolness of the Japanese guy :P
But, what I love the most is the supporting actor, the cousin of the main character. He definitely has one of the 'sunny' smile.... Also, fall in love with the way they show the relationship between him and You Zhu :)
And, no villains exist in the show, which is the most atypical part of Korean drama. Everyone is so nice, which is why I like the drama so much! The story is just light, it's pretty fun to watch!

If you haven't watched, I 100% recommend you watching it. My roomie and I laughed a lot because of the drama. It's certainly a great relief from life and pressure!

"Coffee Prince" A ZA! A ZA!

Now, we're done with our 2nd Korean Drama Project, what else do you recommend?

It's monday again

6th week. The second half of internship is finally here. The project we're working on almost reached the end. Today, we set up the camera-robot that will be used to take pictures of Green Fluorescent Soybean. The pictures taken will give us final results for the project. For the week, we will be preparing powerpoint slides for our exit presentation.. Nervous -.-".....

I just realized that the camera-robot thingy is one and the only one that could be found in the States. It was made to order for our lab, and the software program used to manipulate the robot was designed by a computer science grad student hired by Dr. Finer few years back.... Seriously, I never thought that high-tech equipment was specially made for our lab... Suddenly, I felt proud for working there :p

When I was walking home this evening, I was greeted by a grad student from China because she thought I was my roommate, the new grad student in her department. We chatted as we're heading towards our apartments. She didn't realize that I'm not from China until I told her I'm Malaysian. She said I can speak a very good Chinese, even better than Taiwanese. I felt really proud at the moment :P Finally, I can speak slightly proper Chinese. Honestly, I didn't really like the way we speak Chinese back at home because it sounds so lazy and "pasar". It's kind of embarrassing not to be able to pronounce some words properly even though we have been speaking the language for more than 10 years. Because, I hold my pride highly as a Chinese native speaker, and to be able to speak properly is always my wish. Hope you feel the same as well :)

``` Why $2000 now and $2000 3 years back are never the same? -.-?

little update =.=

Last week was the Fourth of July weekend. Besides watching the beautiful, breathtaking, unforgettable fireworks, I had done several other fun activities. It was a fun-filled weekend :-)

The weekend started with a birthday party for Carlos, my supervisor in OARDC. He just celebrated his 30th birthday on Wednesday. It was the first Latino party I had ever attended. I must say that the Latin people are really innate dancers. They can really shake their butts off :P And, they are also very good in "warming up" the atmosphere and making everyone dance, including the shy students from China! Good jobs! One thing I learnt about Latino party is that the party won't end until the last person stops dancing. The whole celebration, which started on 9pm, ended at 6am the next morning. You know what did that mean? Someone has been dancing from 9-6, NINE hours straight! Holy COW! It's not a lie that Latinos are great dancers! :P

The day after the party was Friday. I went to the lab do some PCR screening, and then, my housemate and I walked around downtown. We had some yummy ice cream, and took some pictures. Then, we tried to find the most delicious pizza in Wooster (or US!), but to no avail.... We didn't look up its address. FAIL! So, we had to resort to Arby's ;'( After the lunch+dinner, we walked around Downtown again, visiting the craft and gift shops, but we didn't buy anythings coz the works by artisans are never cheap :S

So, on Saturday, we went to Mohican State Park for picnicking. After having some light lunch, we walked in the wood in search of the waterfall. After 30-minute walk, we reached the destination only to find out that the waterfall has dried out in the hot summer :S Only few drops of water was visible....What a "Waterdropfall"! On the way back, we decided to take another route just for fun. Carlos, the tour guide, did not follow us because the road was too steep for his pregnant wife.
The journey back to the picnic site was supposed to take only 30 mins. However, after 2-3 hours, we still haven't found our road back. And, all 6 of us knew that we're lost in the woods!! However, we still kept our faith and strength and followed the man-made path closely. Finally, we reached a main road and found 2 park rangers. From the rangers, we figured out that we're more 1 mile away from the picnic site. It will take another 1 hr if we're going to walk back! O-O But, we're so tired that we asked the ranger to drive us back.... So, the ride in the patrol car ended our "missing in woods" chapter of the day.....

You must think that my activities of the day ended there. But, it's not coz Carlos and his friends have planned to do canoeing in the Park.. So, there we went, another hardcore outdoor activities ---2 and a half hours of canoieng. But, I really like canoe. The weather was just nice, and the scenery along the river was really nice. And, since it's 4th of July, many people took the opportunity of the long weekend to unwind. There were many RV parked along the bank of the rivers. People were BBQing, swimming, tubing, singing, listening to music or just simply sitting on the bank and relaxing. Americans definitely know how to enjoy life. This is something I must learn from them! :) Too bad, I didn't bring my camera along.... so no pictures of my canoeing...
On that night, we went for fireworks viewing. You can look at the fireworks on mylast post ;)

And, Sunday was shopping day. We walked around Uptown and shopped in few euporium. I bought avery cheap Jansport bag for only $8 and a nice sundress, which I like it very much :)
Then, we went to Walomart to do grocery for the next week... Huh, I really burned a whole in my pockets after all the shopping. But... I'm happy :D

Here is the end of my weekend. And, another wekkend just started today ....

O - O

http://twitter.com/NajibRazak

Najib has twitter!?
WTH! -.-

Why I like fireworks...

烟花.
是漂亮的, 耀眼的, 却是短暂的
可是, 烟花般的爱情却是我响往的 :)

Happy Fourth of July!

Weekend :)

Saturday is July 4th, US Independence Day. So, we get a day off for Friday, and the weekend has basically started today. But, I'm still thinking of what should I do for the long weekend...

This week, we have been doing DNA+vectors ligation and cell transformation, making genetically modified organisms basically. Sounds scary? Haha :D
Today, we just received the DNA data that we sent for sequencing 2 days ago. We get a few, sadly not all, accurately transformed plasmid vectors. But, that also means efforts we put on for the past few weeks were paid off :) Now, with the ready-to-use plasmids, we are ready to make genetic modified soy beans. Soy beans with a lot, yeah A LOT, of hairs! Huhu :P ~~

I found that my professor is really funny/weird in some ways that I have to share it here. What come to your mind when you think of the word "professor"? Old, lotz of grey hairs, serious, strict.... But, none of the words fits Dr. Finer, the PI of my lab.

In the lab, sometimes we have to do image alignments as part of our projects. The images were pictures of soy bean parts taken under UV lights to capture green fluorescence. Since the camera-robots could never take the pictures precisely, we have to use photoshop to edit them so that we can make a continuous video/movie based on the images. Back to Dr. Finer.... Today, he spent 8 hours doing image aligments on the computer. That was from the time we stepped into the lab until after we left. Actually, he already started the alignments yesterday. Seriously, can you imagine your boss doing photoshop in the lab the whole day, instead of writing grant proposal, reports or attending meetings? I felt like laughing whenever I saw him doing the photoshop, so serious yet very funny. And, by the way, there are only 2 computers in the lab. Since he was working with one of them, we had to take turn using the other one XD... and the other two interns didn't dare to play video game during the free time :P Dr Finer said that he just likes to do the mindless stuffs that require no thinking whatsoever -.-'' I just thinks that he is just funny. He totally earned "The Coolest Professor" Award!!

That's for now :) See ya!

:I

Hi, finally, I have access to the internet connection after moving to OSU for a week.
Life is insanely bored without internet and tv.... But, everything is back to normal now :)
Youtube, facebook, emails, I'm back!!

Last week, I kind of pissed my landlord off for sending back my housing contract late and for forgetting to include another document with the contract. I can tell by the email that he's really mad... He actually "scolded" me in the mail. It's sad and frustrating to have someone thinks that I'm irresponsible, but I can do nothing about it. After all, it's my fault. I thought that he will only process the documents after we move in, like what my previous landlady did. But, it's not the case here. Nothing can be done to change his impression about me. So, life moves on... sadly.

Internship has come to the fifth week. We're still working on the 10 original samples because something weird appeared on the results that we needed to repeat some of the procedures. I've came to like the lab work during the learning period. But, I knew I'll have to leave after 5 more weeks. So, I'll try my best to enjoy the remaining time in the lab :)

As usual, I'm still worried about grad schools. It's never an easy road. I really need to think about it before deciding on pursuing the path. Even though I finally decided on going with it, there is still a big obstacle in front of me --> that evilly difficult test. Because of it, sometimes, I felt that I should just work after I graduate. I don't know why I'm spending all the time thinking of this. I still had one more year to go after all....

For the past weekend, my supervisor invited me to watch rodeo and visit the Cleveland Zoo. Since I had nothing else to do (no internet, no tv), I decided to tag along. It was the first time I watch a rodeo match. At first, it's exciting to watch the bull rider trying to ride on the angry bull. It was so hard to control the bull that the cowboys usually fell off in less than 30 secs. We're very nervous everytime it happened because you never knew whether the cowboys hurted themselves. It's one dangerous and grueling sport, I must say. After several games, thing started to get bored because only 2 out of 20++ cowboys manage to stay on the angry bull for more than 30 secs. So, it's not as interesting as we saw in news afterall :P

It's all for now. Till then :)

21 and 100

YES, 100th post for my 21st birthday!

Yeah, I turned 21 yesterday :) I'm legally an adult now... but still felt like a teenager mentally -.-

Anyhow, nothing much going on as for celebration. I've planned to go Atlantic City to celebrate since last year. But, too bad, I'm here in Ohio, which is thousands miles away from NJ.

As usual, I went to lab on my birthday, but lightheartedly because Dr. Finer was bringing us to Columbus!! Huhu! 2nd road trip [also the last :'(]. We visited COSI (Columbus Center for Science and Industry? ), a science center basically, because Dr. Finer was giving a presentation on molecular biology there.

So, we left the lab at 10am and reached there 12pm. Of course, we didn't waste the 2hrs sleeping or bs'ng in the car. We had a "lab meeting" in the car, discussing our soybean project while Dr Finer went over our lab notebooks. I got an "A" for my notebook! Yeah! But, that is not important, I didn't really need a grade for the SURE program... From the discussion, I found that Dr. Finer is very familiar with lab procedures of our project. Usually, a professor, who has taught for 20 years, spent most of their time writing papers and applying grants. So, it's surprised that Dr. Finer actually involves himself in the projects, not just throwing the whole thing to graduate students or lab technicians. Interesting!

While John was giving his presentation, the two big kids (Chris,Clay) and I explored around the Science Center... Basically, I was just following the big kids.... The 2 21-year-olds was so excited with the machines and games in the Science Center like a six-year-old -.-lll
We're just in time to try the high wire unicycle right after John finished his work. He was just in time to take pictures of us doing the cycle thingie. Yeah! I'll upload it if the pictures come out good...

After that, we went to the North Market to have lunch. North Market is basically a wet market like in Malaysia, but of course much cleaner :P It is a very historical place, built in the late 1800s. Actually, it's the first time I went to a wet market in the States. Fresh produces and meats were sold there. Of course, there were many food stands too. You can find many kinds of food there, from American to Italian to Japanese, Chinese and also Indian! And, lunch was a treat from Dr. Finer! Yeah, free food! :D

After we're done with lunch, we headed back to Wooster, resuming our lab meeting on the way back... We reached our lab at 5pm, just in time to call it a day! Nice :)

As for 21st birthday celebration, I only had a bottle of beer at Chris' friend's party. Well, 21 is the legal age to drink in the States. So, why not... Besides that, nothing much was done.

I used to think that birthday is a very important day for everyone who has birthday (what dumb statement..). But now, I came to realize that it's just another normal day if your beloved family and friends ain't with you... So, you know what? I'm gonna save this birthday and celebrate it next year back at home :) REMEMBER, I totally still want BIG KEY birthday cake :p Something like in Ace of Cake will be terrific!

=)

Smile!
Life is short!
Cheer! :D

??

好迷惑.
太多的未知数令人烦恼.
书念完了, 该做什么?
如果不想再念了,该往那儿去?
为什么选的路那么难走?

: 原来现实和梦想不是平行线....

下午, 有那么一刻
突然觉得如果我是活在现在的人就好了
开开心心地享受现在这一秒
可惜, 我好象办不到
时时刻刻都会想着未来, 可是却没法想出所以然

送个自己和大家的一句话:

"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is mystery, today is a gift, and that's why it's present"

既然无破解这未来的谜题,
唯有好好地, 加倍地珍惜现在所拥有的一切 II

晚安了.

lei....

the third week of my internship...

much progresses were done in the past weeks
techniques were learned, mistakes were done and, of course, remembered
both positive and negative results were obtained

it was the first time i'm so involved in a project, from the near beginning to the end
the project was related to soybean genetics, promoters
(i'll spare the details here to avoid from being to scientific)
it was also the first time i felt that i'm a scientist in training :)
ya, i'm being trained as a researcher
kind of different from others, but, it's my future career..... or maybe?

still struggling with my study
i'm unsure whether i can accomplish what i want
considering the fact that i spent 5 months preparing for SAT, i seriously doubt i would be able take the test with mere 3 months of preparation...
i'll try... but, i just don't know...
this is just not like any other course final exams that you study and you'll do fine...

friday, we will be, or might be, going to Columbus (OSU main campus) again with Dr Finer.
Kinda looking forward for that, hopefully, they let us go. Keep my fingers crossing!
and ya, everyone in the lab is very friendly, helpful and playful! just like ppl in my good old food science lab :)

Ah, so tired and sleepy (already 12.45am!)...
ttyl
Bye :)

-.-

Hi there, how are you fellow reader?

As usual, nothing much happened for the past few days. I spent lotzzzzzzz of time watching tv. I'll sit on the couch right after I came back from work until I went to bed. After being separated from tv for a year (we didn't subscribe the cable last year), I finally get a chance watch all my favourite shows, such as CSI: Miami, Jon and Kate Plus 8, Good Eat, Unwrapped, Throwdown by Bobby Flay, Dinner Impossible, and of course lotz of movies..... Ya, I do love my cooking shows :)

I did not make much progress in my study though I should have started it last week. But, I kept procrastinating... Not a good thing.. But, sometimes, I felt so lazy by just thinking about it.. Let see what happen by the end of my stay here :<

Yesterday, I felt like exploring downtown Wooster. So, after grabbing my dinner at Wendy's, I walked to the downtown. It took me 30minutes there. That part of the city is kind of historical. There are a couple of buildings that were at 1870's. There are really old but beautiful! I had some pictures in my camera, but still haven't uploaded them to my PC. Will upload them to later. I arrived at the downtown at 6pm. Sadly, most of the stores, like gift shops and antique shops were closed at 5pm. So, the town was basically "dead" when I were there. So, I just walked around and took more pictures. I found a movie theater at the far end of the town. It was a very traditional theater. It seemed like a family-owned cinema, something like Cathay in SP, but even more rundown. It was showing "Kung Fu Panda" after the blockbuster was released a year ago... But, it's a cinema in the downtown, just can't expect that much :]

I took a different route on my way back. I saw a few unique American house along the road. There were different in size, shape, color and design. None of them was same. I was thinking of my dream home that has a little of this and that :p

So, it was my little exploration on the Wooster Downtown. Definitely will go back again soon as it will be a Farmer's Market on Saturdays. Til then :)

Ohio~

hi everyone, finally I got internet connection after 4 days... huh!

Ya, I am in Wooster, Ohio now, just started my internship few days ago. The weather in Wooster is not as good as in New Brunswick. It has been raining for the past three days. The local said it usually rains a lot because the place was quite near to one of the biggest lake in the world -- Lake Erie of Lake Ontario. Ya, Ontario as in Ontario in Canada. So, it is very close to Canada.

I flew here early Monday and arrived at Cleveland International Airport, which is located near the US-Canada border (separated by the big lake though). The flight was short --> 45 minutes to Philly and ~1 hour to Cleveland. However, my baggage couldn't stand the short journey and was broken apart. Luckily, only the shell was injured and the linen in it was still intact, so, nothing sneaked out from the bag. Still, it's very sad because it was the second time I flew with it. The first and the only time I used it was when I flew from Malaysia 3 years ago. It was one of the 2 luggage I brought with me when I first came here ... :'( So sad.... But, nothing could be done about it. Really felt sorry to my little blue bag...... But, this thing happened. And, I'm just the unlucky one.

At the airport, two of the undergraduates, Clay and Chris who work in my lab picked me up. Both of them are born and raised in Wooster, and one of them was in the same SURE program as me. They are quite helpful and friendly. Before I checked into the dorm, they brought me to the Walmart to buy some grocery for a week. So, I'm really grateful for their hospitality. After checking in, we went to the lab. Since it is only an research extension of OSU, the whole place was very small, with only few classroom buildings and research facility. Till now, I still didn't have any chance to explore the campus. I'll definitely find time for it during the course of my internship.

I'm staying in the College of Wooster for 3 weeks before I can move into ATI Housing in OSU. Out of my expectation, the dorm was not at all close to the research facility. Luckily, Chris stays very near to the college. So, I get a ride from him everyday. I couldn't imagine how I'm going to work if he didn't work there. Huh....

Another thing I must mention is the architecture of the College of Wooster. Since it was established in 1866, most of the buildings was very classic and antique. It even had a big castle (I sneaked in the castle yesterday :P and found out that the classrooms in it have modern and nice equipments....kind of unexpected)! Every building there was well preserved and maintained. It is very much like universities that always appear in the movie. It has always been my dream to study in such beautiful campus. Since Rutgers does not have many historical buildings, I'm glad that I can stay here for a short period and partially fulfill my dream ... And also, there are McD, KFC, Domino's Pizza, and Arby's just 5-minute walk away! Yes, finally, I can eat McD and KFC! Haven't had KFC for years!

Ok lah. Will post pictures of the beautiful campus in the next post or in fb... :)

p/S: I was kind of sad today coz I just lost the room I planned on renting.. But, I guessed I will just do with my second choice...Hopefully, everything will work out fine. I guess it will since I just pay a big sum of deposit....

X(

The truth is I hate the new look....

revert back.

:-D

Hey ya! How do you like the new look?
Hope you like it! I'm still trying :)

Today is Wednesday, May 27th.
Happy Birthday, Sis!! Hope you have a great celebration dinner with your buddies yesterday :D

Wednesday ---> Broadway Day!
I have wanted to watch another show since the previous one.
But, I woke up pretty late today, at 11am, and didn't get to the City until 1pm.
And, Wednesday show usually, if not always, starts at 2pm. Plus, I'm having a little hard time locating the "Phantom of the Opera" theater. When I actually got there at 1.40pm, they did have the $26.50, but it's a standing ticket. Yeah, I do love to watch it. But, standing for 2 hours? Not a good idea! I'll do it next time, maybe August, when I get back from work. Hopefully.

What should I do then? Red Mango Frozen Yogurt might be a good way to start my day. I had a green tea yogurt with 3 toppings (cost me a fortune...) By the way, I only realized that there is a Red Mango in Times Sq when I was walking down the street. Yeah, there is no need to go to the Koreantown if I'm carving for one next time! I started planning my trip then.... Actually, I made a to-go-list yesterday as Plan B just in case I didn't watch a Broadway show. Some places that are on my list was Greenwich Village and SoHo --> the Bohemian districts that were highly recommended by my Art-History-major ex-roommate. The Forbes Gallery that kept a collection of Toy Boats, Toy Soldiers etc was situated in the area. It is kind of interesting. BUT, too bad, I left my list in my room... I was too tired to put it in my purse yesterday... Aiyo!

So, Plan C. Brooklyn Bridge. I kind of remember where it's located when I browsed through the website yesterday. And, I guessed the Green Train would bring me there. Since I had no place to go, I might as well try my luck. After all, I planned to walk on the bridge last time. Alright, I would just do it..

As I was walking towards the subway station, a guy accidentally knocked me on my arm. The impact was so great that I let go of my unfinished yogurt. Damn, there go my 7 bucks! The part that annoyed me the most was that he didn't even notice what he had done, and so, didn't even utter a sorry! %^&*! Was that an antic of a busy New Yorker? Hate you!

There was no point crying over a spilled milk, or yogurt. I should enjoy my outing with a happy heart. I took a subway at 41st St, changed 3 subways on my way to the Brooklyn Bridge coz I didn't really know how to get there until I saw a map in the subway (it's foc to change the subway so it's not a big deal! ;) Finally, I found a way to get to the Green 6 subway (the same train to the Japanese st.) The Bridge was at the final stop.

The moment I walked out from the underground station, I saw the City Hall with a big "Manhattan" carved on the top of the building. I saw the building on the net yesterday. Wait a minute... the place seemed familiar. I've been the place before! With Mellisa, during CNY last year! Duh, I didn't even realize that the building was City Hall by then :S ...

Ok, Brooklyn Bridge.. Where was it? I'll save from elaborating on how I got there. Took me some time coz I didn't dare to ask the police officer (they didn't look that friendly...) I'm glad that I found it before I gave up. Many people were walking on the Bridge. Some were visitors. Some were normal people. The Bridge was concrete at the beginning and wooden in the middle. It's kind of scary walking on it because there were so many cars passing by your side. It does have a special lane for cyclists and pedestrians. But, the "Druuum, druuuumm" sound just made me feel uneasy (one of the reason I'm afraid of driving...) I took a bunch a picture on the Bridge. I walked until the middle of Bridge. It took me around half an hour coz I stopped frequently for pictures.


Finis Coronat Opus
[Ibrahim's motto :) ] Taken by a stranger from Ipoh ~ what a coincident encounter!



Cars; 4 cruises; blue Manhattan Bridge clearly visible

After the small stroll, I went back to the City Hall place. From there, I walked to Chinatown. It's around 7-8 blocks north.... I didn't feel tired during the walk coz it's interesting to see buildings along the street (but now while writing this, I do feel the muscle sore...) Finally, I was there after 30 minutes. I stopped by a book store (or gift shop?) and bought few cards while trying to find a graduation gift for Silvia, the graduate student in my lab. But, no luck. Nothing was interesting there. I went to a accessories store by the Columbus Park. Everything was 50% off! WoW!

I walked around Chinatown. Ate some yam cake and tong shui, Yummy! I was trying to find the Nyonya restaurant, but to no avail... Bad memory :( So, I had dinner at a random place... and go home after that, I was too tired for walking all day....

This will be my last to trip to NYC before leaving NJ! Til then!

3am

凌晨3点钟. 明明累了却不想睡.
可能是下午SB的mocha在作怪, 也有可能是因为昨天凌晨5点才睡...
听着粱静茹的歌, 满有感觉的. 发现越喜欢她的歌了.尤其是收录在"败犬女王"的...
本来明天该去会所的, 可是没收到通知,就假装没这回事:P
还有一个礼拜就要搬了,可是我却还没整理. 堆积如山的物件实在让我不知从何收起...
再说, 还没找到箱子..烦啦!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

时间多了真的爱胡思乱想.
不知到为什么,一想就想到讨厌鬼!
快快离开我的世界. 不喜欢你们. 不喜欢!不喜欢!
真的. 可是, 避不掉.
算了. 听上人的话, 放过自己. 不再想了.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3个礼拜的假期就快完结了.
不久,就要提起背包去远处了.
其实还满幸运的, 来得及捉住机会的尾巴 :)
这次是真的一个人了, 希望一切安好....

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

这个周末蛮想再看一场百老匯.
可是,车票戏票不便宜. 更何况这星期花了不少....
其实,在这最后的暑假还想逛很多地方的
远的有三藩市啦, Grand Canyon啦...
近的有林肯中心的舞台剧啦, 纽约的意大利餐庭啦, 现代美术馆啦, 还有自由女神的王冠等等...
太多了, 看来该写个list, 以免成为毕生遗憾..
明年计划来逛的, 你们也要写哦 :)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

其实这个时候还蛮想家的.
离家五个月了,想家的感觉没刚回来的时候强烈(那时还真的想买飞机票的说),可是还是是....

好了, 3.33am了, 该试试睡了.
养足精神, 明天打包去!