A Fool For You

Drove to Taman Megah first thing in the morning, to stock up at the bake shop. I'm a regular customer at Chang Thung Sdn. Bhd. =] After a few more minor delays (like picking up milk and jam from my fridge), I finally parked in Naj's front porch and hauled my stuff in. Her smile wiped out my irritation of being late. =) Okay, cut it out. Ahahahah.

Aaaaanyway, first things first. She graciously cut me a slice of her latest bake (she's rather new to it still) - a slim-looking square iced in bright pink. A cake made without baking. *Oh wow, I've never had one of those...*
So I took a bite. It tasted pretty good.
And then she asked me to guess what type of cake it was.

Nicole : Err, gelatin cake?
(Since the icing was made of gelatin)


Najjua : No, cheese cake.


*Cake drops onto the plate*
*Silence ensues*


Her eyes searched my face and *click!* she suddenly remembered how much
I.don't.eat.cheesecake.

Probably her mind went like "Oh, crap. Now she's gonna spit it out."




But I didn't! I'd already eaten half the slice, anway. And I'm proud to announce that, after all these years of hating cheesecakes...
(the way they smell, taste and fEEl)
Today I ate one.
The whole one slice.
For you, babe.


Okay, not so drama la. Probably it was 'cause it didn't taste like cheesecake in the first place. Ahahaha.
So you can consider it a succesful failure!
Or a failed success. Whichever rocks your boat.
*Naj would rather throw rocks at my head*

Then we yakked. After saving her butt from being stained by cat pee on her bench, we settled down in her room. I think it's the best place to spend quality time in her house 'cause downstairs, her maid is always calling or something else happens. *Grunts*

When lunch was over, we discovered I'd forgotten to bring butter. So we readied ourselves to buy some from the shops. Just down the road, anyway.
There was a car blocking my car and I didn't feel like bothering it again. So, knowing me, I persuaded her to take a walk. (The first thing I should've said No to.)
And I also let her little brother come along with us. (The second thing I should've said No to.)

He traipsed ahead of us, fooling around with the umbrella we'd brought along; a little lad with a head as large as a boulder (and just as hard; he wouldn't need a helmet on a construction site), and long limbs like sticks, making him look like some queer, alien-ish cutie. For his features are indeed rather handsome. He's gonna grow up to be a playboy, this one.

Halfway down the road, the car that was previously blocking MINE, had the nerve to draw up and offer us a lift to the shops. The NERVE of you!! But of course we accepted. =P

There weren't any blocks of butter on sale. So we bought the one remaining pack of little packaged butter; the ones they serve with hot rolls in restaurants. Exxxpensive. Worse still, a shower was well underway when we exited.
The good news : I didn't say No to Naj bringing an umbrella.
Was that the only smart thing I did today? =S

So I folded my long pants up to my knees like a jakun and we crowded beneath the umbrella. With the way she held it, I think only my head stayed dry. Oh, and to make sure M.amad (the lil bro) didn't get run over by a car, she told him to "Hold Aunty Igor's hand. Aunty Igor, over there! *points at me* "

I still wonder how Kakak Nicole became Aunty Igor.

You watch out, Aunty Igor gonna launch a missile and cause mass destruction to your tiny lil new iPod. Oh wait, it's not even yours. You wish! Muahahaha.


The rain must change the way our neurones interact, because after crossing just one road, I looked down to check on my little Nephew M.amad. I should've thought to check on my hand as well, 'cause he'd brought it to his face and was smiling at it. Much too closely. As he looked up and I saw the flash of his dark eyes, I noticed the string of drool issuing from behind his white teeth. And the string joined to my hand. YucK?!! He'd been rubbing his teeth onto the back of my hand! Or something equally gross. But we quickly became intoxicated with laughter and I let the raindrops wash the slime away. Not that I had a choice. I'm telling you, only my head stayed dry. =P

Since we were walking up the wrong road and the wrong road happened to be Yann's road, we stopped by hoping for a ride home. (C'mon, it was only one street away!) But that evil woman only gave us two more umbrellas and a cheeky grin. - -'''
Two umbrellas, probably 'cause she was feeling kind.
And a cheeky grin, possibly 'cause she'd caught me in my moment of jakun-ness. Arghh, Yaaannnnnn!!


After that, our scones turned out pretty well for all that effort. And her father forgot to leave his carkeys behind for me to move it, so I couldn't leave 'cause his car was blocking. What is this; Block-My-Car Day? Ish. Got home at 7.30 p.m.. What a day.

You Want Bread? I'll GIVE You Bread!

Myyyy goodness. Right now I'm selecting the pictures I want printed out, and as I read them in my head, they're starting to sound like historical dates.

This picture... yes, definitely. (1564)

This one... no.

How bout this? Yup. (1419)

When I said there were thousands of pics taken, I wasn't lying. And now I'm paying for it, hahaha.

Today I baked chocolate pecan fingers. Bought the instant coffee powder for it yesterday at Giant. I was actually at a loss for buying coffe 'cause, well, I know nothing about it. I don't drink it, and there seemed to be countless types of coffee. Lucky I had Yann, huh. Uh huh.

Then my father called and I proudly announced my latest achievement. And all he said was

" *...* Make bread lah."

=O T.T

Fine. I'm getting to it, just be patient! I know he loves bread; and so do I. But I'm only less than 3 months old in the baking arena; 24 hours ago I didn't even know how to melt cooking chocolate!

*Mutter*
*Grumble*

You want bread?
I'll giVE you bread!


~Nic~

Taking Matters Into Your Own Hands

11 o'clock in the morning.
*Waiting, with bag neatly packed*

11.30 a.m.
*Still waiting*

12 noon minus 20 minutes.
*Honk honk!*

And I go, "Finally."

With Yann at the wheel, we set off on a quest for some answers to our queries concerning our ENTIRE FUTURE.

*Reality check*

Probably not the entire future, but close enough. Our first stop was the Mobil petrol station; where we only formed new questions, such as : "Why do some idiots like to park in front of the tyre pump?" Pfft.

And then it was off to Help college. Going there was fairly easy, but the parking in Pusat Bandar practically sucks. The levels are counted downwards; where it's dark, sometimes narrow, and the site of numerous rubbish dumps - some of those little rooms flooded with filthy water. The grossness is already worth a decided cross on the Ideal College Checklist. Oh, not to mention, a very hostile sweeper woman who barked at us when we just wanted to ask for directions. Must be the working environment down there, lol.

Yann and I took a walk round the main building, with walls frequently lined by display after display of clubs and organisations. Like it was back to school, only worse because at times those glass cases never seemed to end. The effect of the rippling pond beneath a flight of stairs was rather pretty, though. It was near there that we sat down with a counselor.

With a twinkle in his eye, he broke the ice pretty quickly for me. I thought that was good. But as our discussion progressed, I found him rather unhelpful in the way he kept asking "What is it that you want to do?" Dude, if I knew just what I wanted to do, I wouldn't be here to see you. And Yann said my face looked as though I wanted to sock him there and then. Hah. Admittedly, all that cutting-me-while-I-was-halfway-explaining was beginning to get on my nerves.
At least he cleared up some stuff about A-levels. That helped. Not a wasted journey, then.

We left, laughing silently 'cause he was one of those elderly men (old people, in general) who continued talking long after we thought the conversation had ended. "Next time, we don't do old-men-counselors." Deal. =P One thing I'd like about studying at Help; the bounty of stores and eateries at its doorstep. There's even a friggin' Giant supermarket there!

Then it was the search for lunch, 'cause I was really hungry. The Pie Shop seemed out of operation and Pizza Hut was fullhouse, so we drove over to Bangsar and settled on Cipolla, a rather sophisticated joint that served Ravioli for RM34 on average. *Drool* Only, it wasn't served to us lah, today. Maybe another time. =) We ordered two set lunches instead and I was taken with the snowy white appearance of their lemon ice-cream. So pristine, it resembled shaving cream. The sourness was just right, but it was a little tooo sweet.

After running back to the car in the rain and checking for no ticket *phew*, we made a beeline for The One Academy. And camped outside it for awhile, hoping the downpour would lessen enough for us to make a dash to safety. Fat hope. At least we grabbed a parking spot right in front of the shoplots (of which TOA is made of). Yann even made contact with the curb, "so that we're as close as possible to the shelter". Hahaha.

Over here, we had a pleasant young woman to brief us and take us on a tour of the academy. I must say, the programs on offer there seem satisfactory and well-organised. Sohsoh quite approves of Yannee enroling there. =] My favourite part was exploring the Exhibition Corridor, where my fingers were free to run over coloured artwork; the intricate drawings of bright artists. Some were witty, some a little plain, and some just took my breathe away. *Blink blink*

At 6 p.m., we headed to Giant Kota Damansara to do my grocery shopping. Roads were jammed, of course. I should try to keep track of my days and dates; now that school's out, they don't seem to matter anymore. Yann's a bonafide Shopping Partner by Default; her talent even works in a supermarket! That simply means that she's an asset to me for shopping, unlike certain people who claim the same title without the skills to back them up. In two words, tin kosong!

Reached home beat and tired. Sore throat from laughing too much and crapping to make the laughs snowball into hysterics. She and I, we're certified Crappers. XD



What's in it for me, at the end of the day?
A slight certainty that A-levels was my original choice for a reason, and that reason has remain unchanged. Now all that's left to decide on is : GCE or Cambridge?

Chapter One of NZ : Drunk In Sheer Brilliance

Well, this is the beginning of my mega post on my latest vacation to New Zealand.

Date and Time of Departure : 12th January 2009, 9.30 p.m.
Destination : Auckland



Sink with me into the depths of the sky.
Got a nice window seat on the edge of a wing.



Violet Haze
He actually used that as the title for his assignment.



My first glimpse of Auckland.
Later I came to know that, every 20 km or so, a friggin' beach would appear. It's so coastal, I was floored. 'Cause I was pining away for the seaside just the weekend before. Imagine my jubilation!
Mega-uber-wack-kau-happi la weii. =D



The fabled rolling hills! They're beautiful.



Bare farmland... being farmed.
It looks like streaks on a shirt.



It gave the impression of being orderly... I was already liking Auckland.
*OCD, Beckham's disorder speaking*



Touchdown!
Ooo yeah, I'm readyh for you
Are you ready for me, AUCKLAND si-tehhh?? XD



Actually, I disliked that the flight felt normal to me. Where was the excitement and anticipation?
Even packing didn't seem like a major affair; I just ended up zipping the suitcase on everything I needed without the usual buzz of picking what to bring.

And then there was him.
A real, live STOP-GO man using his real, not-so-live STOP-GO sign to let us across the road.
It was seeing him that gave me a jolt of realisation;
I was here, 10 hours away from home.
I'd endured motion sickness as a consequence of bad turbulence and now that I had my feet firmly planted on Kiwi soil, I was dang well gonna enjoy myself and soak it all in.
God bless him, ahah.



I was quite taken with this quirky signboard.
If you look closely, you'll see the names of major cities of the world, and how far they are from Auckland.
Photo taken from a moving car; sorry it couldn't be clearer.



Grazing cattle and sheep are a common sight in the pastures, as you whiz past.
I spotted a few clans of horses, too, looking very dignified under the shade of kauri trees.
Okay, I've never heard of a 'clan of horses' either, but for once I can't find the right word to use! Hahah.



We pulled up in front of a rather neat, non-descriptive stucco house. This was where I'd stay, with my uncle and aunt and their 3 kids, for the next 18 days.



Rubbish collection is seriously organised there. Citizens are expected to separate their waste for recycling and each house gets a huge recycling bin for that.



A real drive. Like, a straight, gravel-ly road lined with charming houses and blooming gardens. I know it doesn't show here, but the flowers there are reli pretty.


I think I was kinda fascinated by the road.
So unlike ours, uglified by paint and potholes.



Step 1 :
Fulfil a dream.

My 14-year-old cousin, Angeline, took me round the neighbourhood on bike. This is the one I rode, and yes, everyone wears helmets there. So for the first time in her life, Nicole puts on a helmet for cycling.



She took me to the playground.
Auckland is full of playgrounds and reserves. When we think of reserves, we picture vast, faraway green lungs like FRIM. But there, a reserve would be more likely to be sitting right next to your house.



And one thing about their playgrounds, they're all built pretty much the same way.
There is a wooden frame to contain the playground, and this frame is filled with wood chips; no soil whatsoever.



I found it an odd but lovely practice. The wood feels dry and chippy against your feet; doesn't hurt at all.



I admit, when I first saw Angeline (after about 4 years absence), I got a shock. I'd brought old clothes for a size L or M at least. But here she was, slimmer than even me! and every inch the hot chick.



At least, that was the very strong first impression I got. Hehe.



The first place of interest while cycling was the bike park.
The kind where people (like me) who happen to be riding pink bikes skulk round the edges, hoping the pros don't notice. Lol.

As for the dream fulfilled...
It's perfectly safe to slip off your bike and chuck it to one side, before running off on a whim.
Correction : Before running off on a whim, spending an hour or two wandering like a free spirit, and technically leaving your vehicle in no way locked.
And knowing you'll still find it where you left it.
*Big big smile*



Where we were at, was actually the base of a dormant volcano. In fact, the whole of Auckland is built on fertile, dormant-volcano land and is likely to be annihilated in a couple-a hundred years' time. A depressing thought, if you feel for your descendants.



At the base of Pigeon Mountain; the aforesaid dormant volcano.



They say the grass is always greener on the other side; and here is proof. =P



Lonely; and beautiful in its loneliness.



I wouldn't mind tripping over here, really. There's just so much GREEEEN to catch me! XD



Nothing much to see up the mountain...



Except her?
*Wink wink*



Voila! The peak; just a short walk from the base. It's really quite a tiny mountain.



Rugged, peeling bark.



No, I do NOT go around snapping the legs of girls in shorts. She must've taken it herself, while I was off exploring. Tsk tsk.



By the way, the Kiwis call slippers like those, 'jandals'. Odd, and rather cute of them.
And I wonder why some girls walk (or stand) with inverted feet. I heard it's a sign of some foot problem, lol.



How Nature weaves.



View from the top.



Descend.



Showstopper!
You're blocking traffic lah, girlll. XD


We continued walking wherever our feet led us.



Nestled in those emerald blades.



The carefree life.



I really like all the wood around. Makes everything more picturesque.



Little wooden stakes driven into the ground. I couldn't stop thinking about how attractive they looked; 'til my uncle told me they were there to stop cars from getting onto the grass. Owh. How prudent.
The practical minds of adults vs The romantic notions of an adult-to-be.
Oh, how we lose our youth through the years.



"Here we are at the reserve."
"Huh... what reserve?"

Obviously you can tell which one was me.



I pushed aside further questions, though, when I caught sight of this winding path. I'm always up for a long walk. =]



My first glimpse of a pukeko.



Almost the size of a peacock; just not as brilliantly coloured. It is an endangered species in New Zealand.



I forgot what sound they make... something soft and non-intrusive, I think.



The female pukeko(/pukekos). More drab-looking; perhaps they've never heard of gender equality?? XD



A fluke shot. Lol.




That's more like it!
A purple thistle... proudly had its presence known by nearly pricking my finger. Hmph.



Thorny on the outside; won't you come a little closer and find what's on the inside?



Angeline, 14.



A thoughtful scene.



I'm a sucker for these drooping creatures.



I like the way you move it~~



Exiting from the pukeko reserve, we came across a giant slide built on a grassy slope.



It's a long way up.



Not such a long way down, perhaps.



My turn! =D



After work, which is 5 p.m., Uncle Robert took us to Bucklands Beach; one of two shorelines near his house. Such lucky pigs!



My attention was immediately diverted by a large hawk-looking bird.
It circled, swooping nearer, but I never got real closeup of it.



Seagulls. They practically litter the place. =P



I got taken by a new word; it's
Ombre.



We left for the second beach; passing Musick Point on the way. Names like this always make me wonder why Malaysian ones have to be so kayu and unlyrical. Heheh.



Ladies and gentlemen, I give you... Eastern Beach.



I like that the background seems like the work of a paintbrush.



"Ooo..."
Little did I know that in just a few days, I'd own that piece of crap. It wouldn't stand up next to what I'd build. *Wink*



I go around snapping whatever grabs my fancy, and my uncle&aunt call those,
"artsy-fartsy shots". Lol.



Loving every minute of the sea and sand.

Oh, this was also where I cut my foot, sometimes during hopping onto those boulders. So I spent the next four days with a plaster on my foot, wishing I'd been as careful as I normally am.



Next stop; Half Moon Bay Marina, only a short drive away from home.
(Home = Uncle Robert's stucco house)
(Stucco = something you should look up in the dictionary) XD



There's a reason why Auckland is known as the City of Sails.
This marina is filled with yachts; a sign of affluence and luxury.



Suave?
Lol. Aunty May, Uncle Robert, Mummy.



Walk the line between solid truth and watery lies.



To make our first day extra tiring, they brought us to One Tree Hill.
I know; I was so thrilled just by the sound of it!
But no, it has nothing to do with the show and most of all, it was freaking cold and windy up there that evening.



I think we only managed a quick snap and walk around the monument (of whomever it honours).
The wind was biting, and the view was a lilting serenade.



The iconic Sky Tower of Auckland, in the distance.
Little did I know, I was to see a lot of it in my stay there.



Pumping on One Tree Hill.
#1 : He must be unafraid of heights.
#2 : He must be strong, 'cause those stone walls must've chafed his knuckles.



Standing before a pasture dotted with sheep.