Holiday..... NOT!!

It's public holiday today (Prophet Muhamad's birthday).Time for me to take a break from my studies and relax. NO WAIT! I still need to work on my assignments as 2 assignments need to be submitted next week. And I HAVEN'T started doing them. Oh no! Better start doing and completing them ASAP as I have other things to do as well.

No classes today since it's public holiday. And CBGC 3-day Mission Camp begins today. Only a few are going this time while the rest unable to make it cos busy with their assignments. At first, I thought of joining this camp but due to the fact that I need to make preparation for 2 presentations right after the camp, I gave up the chance.

Now one presentation (MMS) postponed as the lecturer won't be around next week. As for the other, I'm not so sure cos this presentation (HoEL) does not contribute any marks in our coursework, unlike the MMS one. But most probably, I won't be wasting my time on something which doesn't worth my efforts.

Campus Connect has its CNY celebration on Monday and lots of ppl turned up. It's good to have fellowship with one another again after everyone's away for one week. Discipleship training resumes next week. Also CF resumes with BIble study this week. Next week, something special's on--BGR (Boy-Girl Relationship) & PDA (Personal Display of Affection) workshop.

Just submitted my Language Teaching Assignment 1 yesterday and another assignment came in. We're given 2 weeks to complete the 2nd assignment. Discussion on the Language Learning Theory assignment going on during lecture and tutorial (though I didn't go for the lecture cos need to rush my LT asgnmt). Boy, my group seriously need to catch up with other groups as we're quite left behind. Others have done their questionnaires while we're still scratching our heads to think about the questions. Gotta speed up our progress!

Okay, that's all I wanna share abt happenings of this week.

Campus CNY Celebration

What an wonderful CNY celebration indeed! Great time we had there celebrating CNY @ Campus Connect 2 night ago. There's food, games, testimony... the event was indeed a great success. Well done to the organisers - Alex, Jialing, Richard & Patty.

Before the celebration began, it's raining heavily outside. I guess the Lord is showering us with blessings from above. Alex was the chairperson for the night and he welcomed everyone who was present. Then, Richard & Jessie stepped in for games and songs respectively. We were divided into 4 groups and played two games. Then Jessie led everyone to singing two common CNY songs before going into the worship session. Then, sharing of testimony by Mun Yee and Alex himself. Then PC shared a short message based on the theme of the night -- man (which means full or abundance). Then refreshment time. There's a variety of food there.... cookies, dried meat (bak gua). Some members even took part in tossing the yee sang.

F3 CNY Gathering

On Feb 17, F3 gang had another Gathering, just one month after the New Year 2010 Gathering. This time around, we planned to meet at Michelangelo's Pizzeria, a restaurant located behind PC Depot near Tesco Ipoh. When I got there, I met up with some of my classmates in front of the pizza restaurant. But we had to switch venue cos according to my friend, the restaurant only allowed us to be in there for 45 minutes only. So no choice but to change to Station One Cafe (opposite Yeolde English).

We reached there, ordered our food and started chatting while waiting for the food and drinks to arrive. And while waiting, I met Grace (my EL coursemate) who was leaving the place with her friends after having fellowship. We chatted for a while before she made a move. Then, more and more F3 members turned up. Sin Fei and Chee Yen brought their girlfriends, Jennifer and Chooi Yee, along to join us. Our food came and we enjoyed dining there. Before we left the place, a brief group photo sesssion took place. My brother came to pick me up while the rest went to Peggy's house for further fellowship.

Gathering at Station One Cafe

Sitting (from left): Poh Onn, me, Wee Siong, Yik Keong, Jia Zun, Chooi Heng

Standing (from left): Juan Yih, Peggy, Millie, Chooi Yee, Chee Yen, Sin Fei, Jennifer, Eu JIn, Kok Weng, Sophia, Alan

Gathering at Peggy's house

Back (L-R): Kai Fei, Jia Zun, Simon, lihjiun, Joey Lai, Kok Hong, Chee Yen

Centre (L-R): Gerald, Millie, Poh Onn, yelin, Evon, Chooi Yee

Front (L-R): Chooi Heng, Sophia, Alan, Wee Siong, Peggy

Till we meet again!

Dual celebration

Today marks a very special day as both Lunar New Year and Valentine's Day fall on the same day. This doesn't occur every year as Valentine's Day is fixed on Feb 14 whereas Chinese New Year falls on different dates between January and February, depending on the lunar year. The last time these dual festivities happened was in the year 1953.

Every year, the Chinese community celebrate the Lunar New Year by gathering for reunion dinner on the eve, visiting relatives and friends, decorating houses with lanterns and other decorative items. Children would be happy and excited to receive ang pows (or red packets). Lion dances and dragon dances can also be seen during this time.

Love blossoms on this day as well as couples would spend their valuable time together. And as for the Chinese couples, it's double celebration for them. Some couples register their marriage while some tie the knot today. Some couples may have to think whether to celebrate CNY or Valentine first or both today. No matter what, love is all that matters.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices within the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.

~1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (NIV)

Here, I would wish all my readers again a blessed and prosperous Chinese New Year and Happy Valentine's Day! May the Year of Tiger would be a blissful year to everyone!

Back in Ipoh

Wow... another week just breezed past! And I'm back in my hometown to celebrate Chinese New Year with my family and friends!

Yesterday night, my parents & brother came to pick me up at night after my MMS lecture. We had dinner before leaving Kampar and reached home around 10pm. On the same night, my relatives from KL were on their way visiting us. But due to some delay, they only arrived after midnight.

Today is the eve of CNY where families gather together to have reunion meal (lunch/dinner). In Chinese, this day is known as 除夕. So my cousin's & my families went over to the house of another relative of ours to have reunion lnecheon. We had fellowship with one another during and after the lunch. After that, my relatives from KL had to make a move to Sitiawan as my uncle's hometown is there. Then we parted our own way and went home.

CF had a joint CNY + Valentine celebration on Tuesday as both occasions fall on the same day that is tomorrow. All those were present enjoyed themselves very much (refer to my previous post for the highlights). And CF's off next week as everyone's having one-week CNY break. As for the rest of the week, nothing much happened though, just that everyone start heading back to their respective hometown as the week apporaches towards the end.

It's time to take a break from studies and enjoy celebrating the festive period with our loved ones. So here I would like to wish all my readers a blessed Chinese New Year & Happy Valentine's Day! May the Year of Tiger would bring joy, love, peace & happiness to each and every one of us! 恭喜发财! 万事如意! 新年蒙福!

CF CNY + Valentine celebration

A great time to celebrate both occasions at the same time indeed.... though the actual day of both Chinese New Year & Valentine's Day fall on this coming Sunday.

About 30 ppl attended this week's CF special meeting and I can say everyone enjoyed every single moment of the whole meeting. The foundation students were not present as they have just finished their final exams and have returned to their respective hometowns. I arrived at Wesley Church around 8pm and not many ppl were there yet. The worship team was rehearsing when I entered the meeting room. Jensen was the leader with Daniel (guitar), Calvin (drums) & Renjie (keyboard) made up the music team.

The meeting started around 8.30pm. Ah Derk, as the chairperson, welcomed everyone and started with a prayer before Jensen & team took over. He led the members to three Christian hymns before handing over to Guan Heng for the famous CNY song, Gong Xi Gong Xi Gong Xi Ni. The 1st verse and the chorus were exactly the same lyrics but only the next verses were being modified.

The night continued with Renjie bossing the members around (this is her 2nd time after the Leadership Workshop last year). First, she asked us to proceed to the ground floor to look for Shu Ern and get a mandarin orange from her. Then, after receiving the orange, we have to write our contact number on it. Everyone gathered in a circle and with eyes closed, they have to pass the orange around. While the pass was going on, the committee members interrupted the process by swapping the oranges. The passing eventually stopped after some time and the next thing to do was to find the owner of the number written on the orange in hand. The search began and everyone started going around, asking whose number it is. Some managed to locate the owner of the number while some failed. I managed to find out that the number on the mandarin orange I'm holding belonged to my EL senior Crystal.

Everyone gathered in a circle again to be divided into 4 groups. After having done that, now they're waiting for further instructions from Renjie and Shu Ern. Then every group has to send two representatives for the next activity: stuffing oranges. Oh my goodness! I was one of the chosen two from my group. Here's how the game goes: the other members have to stuff certain slices of (peeled) mandarin oranges into the mouths of the 2 chosen persons where they have to say certain words after the oranges were inserted. Several rounds were played. At first, I didn't experience any difficulties but as the slices increased and at the final round, my mouth isn't big enough to fit in all the oranges. Later, everyone feasted on the oranges.

The next activity was quite interesting and fun as well. Every group has to come up with a clan name (or surname of the family) and appoint a head of the family. Each group received a red-coloured paper (usually used for calligraphy), some ink and few pieces of small love-shaped cards. Then the head of the family (grandfather in this case) has to decide their 3-tier family tree. The next step was that everyone in the family has to write CNY & Valentine wishes to their younger generation i.e grandpa to grandma, grandma to children, husband to wife, wife to her children etc. The grandchildren however have to address their wishes to their elders. After this was done, now the families have to write their greetings to another family on the red paper and later present to the family. The purpose of this activity was to enhance family love and relationships.

This is one of the greetings presented to the Siao family. It means "smile always".

Rev Yong took over the pulpit after all the members have returned to the meeting room after the fun-filled activities. She shared about CNY, Valentine's Day, love and family relationships. Then, Eric Ong made some announcements. 1st, CF off next week as everyone won't be around during CNY. 2nd, Bible study resumes on Week 6. 3rd, Boy-Girl Relationship & Personal Display of Affection workshop on Week 7. Last but not least, the current CF committee are passing the baton at the end of this trimester. In other words, some committee members are stepping down. That means there will be new faces in the committee list in the next trimester.

Eric then closed the meeting with a word of prayer and the members proceeded to the 1st floor for some refreshment. Everyone had time interacting and fellowshipping with one another during that time. Some ppl even went yum cha.

Winna's birthday dinner

What a wonderful dinner we had together yesterday night! We should dine together much more often.

Yesterday night around 7pm, 14 of us went to have dinner together at Restaurant Hong Hwai in New Town. Supposed we should be there around 6.30pm but a heavy rain held us back. Anyway, when I reached there, some coursemates were already there, including the birthday girl Winna. Her birthday was two days ago (but sorry no birthday cake, just a simple dinner). They've already placed their order and wanna add 1 or 2 dishes. After that, we started chit-chatting.

Then, the dishes came one by one. They looked and tasted delicious. Without delay, everyone started eating as they were hungry. Later, we had a brief photo-taking session and everyone started parting their ways after clearing the bill. The rest were heading home while Winna, Eugene & I went to church.

A simple dinner to bind our relationship even more closer.

End of Week 3

11 more weeks to go!!

For this week, 1st CF meeting back in Wesley after away from the place for 2 weeks. It's Bible study session and this time we're studying the book of James. The material we got was sufficient for the whole year. And for next week, something special is on. It's CNY + Valentine celebration, wonder how the CF gonna celebrate the 2 festivals.

Also at Campus Connect, there's a talk given by Dr Daniel Tan on party drugs. Only a few ppl attended the talk though. And those who were there gained some information about different types of party drugs (only few were mentioned). CC is having its CNY celebration as well, on 22 Feb. Also there's a mission camp at the end of this month from 26-28Feb. Not sure whether to go yet.

There's something frustrating happened though to me (and my groupmates). I teamed up with 2 girls for HoEL presentation and we're supposed to do our presentation next week. And we have to get the materials from our lecturer Mr Mahalingam but we failed to do so. Hannah, Helena & I went to look for him separately a few times but he's not available every time they or I went there (he isn't around even when I went to consult him for academic advice--he's my academic advisor). I'm not sure whether he will backfire at us, saying that we didn't look for him throughout the week. Sadly, we didn't ask him even during his classes on Mon & Tue. And yesterday, his replacement classes were supposed to be on but he himself has gone to Penang. We got to know this only after Eugene gave him a call. Having not able to get the materials, the girls and I dunno what to do next. Even if we manage to get it on Mon, it would be insufficient time for us to prepare and present the next day. As quoted from Helena, "he is such a bad lecturer". But anyway, like the MLE presentations the previous trimester, this presentation doesn't carry any marks in our coursework. Not sure this is a boon or a bane. Other than that, nothing special happened throughout the week. Gotta go, bye!

Party drugs hazard talk

I went for a talk on party drugs @ Campus Connect just now and gained knowledge from the talk conducted by Dr Daniel Tan. Whoa... it's indeed an eye-opener.

The crowd isn't big, just about 15 ppl. Still the show must go on. Dr Daniel explained about different types of party drugs and effects. Only a few were highlighted though, namely ecstasy pills, crystal meth ('Ice'), syabu, ketamine and rohypnol (the latter two can be used as date-rape drugs). Also, Dr Daniel provided some solutions to this problems. Then, Q & A session. Many questions were raised and Dr Daniel answered them well, allowing members of the floor to gain extra information from the talk.

Later, there's a birthday celebration for twins Shuyi & Shumin, who turned 21 today. A cake was bought from JusToEat for this celebration. It was exactly the same cake that Renjie had when the CF had a joint birthday celebration for Shirley Kwong & her last year. Besides them, my brother David's and my EL junior Daryl's birthday fall on the same day as well. Happy blessed birthday to the 4 of u! All the best to everyone esp Shuyi who's having her final exam at the moment.

We Are Family - Chipmunks & Chipettes

We are family

Oh whoa whoa oa oa oa oa oh yeah yeah

We are family

Oh whoa oh yeah yeah yeah

Verse 1

(Oh) Everyone can see we're together

As we walk on by

(Yeah) And we fly just like birds of a feather

I won't tell no lie (oh oh)

(All) All of the people around us they say

Can we be that close (oh oh oh)

Just let me state for the record

(We're giving love)

We're giving love in a family dose

Chorus 1

We are family (Yeh yeh yeh)

I got all my sisters with me (Whoa-oh-oh)

We are family (Yeah yeeah)

Get up everybody and sing (Now sing it to me baby)

We are family (Yes we are)

I got all my brothers with me (I got my brothers with me)

We are family (Oh oh oh oh oh oh)

Get up everybody and sing (Sing it to me)

Verse 2

Living life is fun and we've just begun

To get our share of this world's delight

(High) High hopes we have

For the future

And our goal's in sight

(Ooooooooooh)

No we don't get depressed

Here's what we call our golden rule

Have faith in you and the things you do

You won't go wrong

This is our family jewel

Chorus 2

We are family (Yeh yeh yeh)

I got all my sisters with me (Whoa-oh-oh)

We are family (Yes we are)

Get up everybody and sing (I want you to sing it to me)

We are family (We be a family)

I got all my brothers with me (Got my brothers with me yeah)

We are family (Ooh but you don't know)

Get up everybody and sing (Sing sing baby now sing)

Bridge

We are family (x4)

Chorus 3

We are family (We be a family)

I got all my sisters with me (Whoa-oh-oh yeh yeh yeh)

We are family (Aaah oh)

Get up everybody and sing (Get up get up get up and sing)

(Whooooooooooa)

We are family (Oh we are a family)

I got all my brothers with me

(Got my brothers with me don't you know)

We are family (Aaah oh)

Get up everybody and sing (Get up get up baby baby sing)

Oh yeah, yeah yeah, ooooh

Legend

Pink - Brittany

Yellow - Jeanette & Eleanor

Purple - Chipettes (Brittany, Jeanette & Eleanor)

Red - Alvin

Orange - Simon & Theodore

Blue - Chipmunks (Alvin, Simon & Theodore)

Green - All (Chipettes & Chipmunks)