MY ILLUMINATED LIFE;
Monday, January 29, 2007
fiRSt mOnth In US
i noe it has been a few days since i last updated my blog. i'll try to write something here today since so many of you guys are demanding that i update it. *blushes..
it has been a month since i arrived here in the US. two weeks since school had started. one month seemed to have passed quite quickly. expected that the start of school prob helped the process.
all i can say is so far so good. but i've been on my toes after the two screw-up incidents by sgh. the fees thing is still not yet settled. still WAITING for the uni's reply (they nv seem to learn dun they?) *zzz.. and until this issue has been settled i won't be at ease bcoz my classes are at risk of being dropped anytime. *sighz..
room-mates are ok. though a lil rowdy at times. cool and funny people who are helpful to me bcoz i was unfamiliar wif the school online system. helped me wif the registration of my classes online etc. go to wal-mart to shop together and get our groceries.
profs here are all very nice. they are willing to help wif ur doubts (at least they seem so..) and answer your questions. however, one teacher in particular juz puts me to sleep. he is my history lecturer. his lectures are boring and always spends the first one-third of his lect talking bout the cap on his head (which is supposedly related to our studies?) *zzz.. recently he dropped a bomb on us. he said his tests qns covers 80% of wat he says during lect and the remaining 20% is from the novels. i was like WTF?! he teaches nuts in class so wat he expects us to write? nuts? thk he's prob nuts lorz.. realli feel it's a waste of my time going to his class bcoz he juz blabbers on and on and worst of all no presentation slides. we dun even noe wat to copy! and he juz simply said that no 2 lect he gives are the same so there's no need for slides. WTF?! dunno wat to say bout him. i juz pray tt i won't do too badly on this. thankfully, my other profs for psychology, communications, biology, lab and stats are pretty much ok.
1 month down and 4 months to go. i'll be back before you know it. somehow it feels like army once again.. *sighz..
beneath the i-10 
sunset
on my way to sch on a foggy sat morning *brr..
a flock of birds on their way home
me waiting for my bus at crossroads
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/29/2007 09:41:00 AM
Monday, January 22, 2007
2Nd yEAr AnnIvErsARy
it has been 2 great years. lots of ups and downs, quarrels, cold wars, breaking up, misunderstandings, hurt, pain and sorrow, cooling off periods, joy, laughter, smilez, holding hands, warmth, hugs, kisses, words of encouragement, and most importantly being there for each other. but all this time is all worth it. as we saw our relatinship grew stronger day by day.
though we may be apart and far far away from one another but as long as our hearts beat as one.. that is enuff. guess wat? i even had a dream last nite bout us getting married. you were bugging me bout when will we get married and i sprang a surprise by bringing you to our church. imagine the shock on your face. i proposed to you there and then and we got married! *haha.. may sound very fairytale-like. but i muz agree that our relationship has indeed been a fairytale.. with a happy ending! *smilez..
remember wat you said? "we have excellent excellent excellent telepathy, it has been proven!" and i can't help but agree with you more..
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/22/2007 04:06:00 AM
Friday, January 19, 2007
nO schOOl !
this week is fantastic! i only need to go school for 2 days! *lol..
monday : martin luther king day
tuesday : utsa closed due to ice
wednesday : utsa closed to ice
thursday : school starts only at 11
i'm beginning to like school over here! *haha.. but i'm realli pissed off wif sgh. *sighz.. seems like they didn't do their admin stuffs then send me over le. first was the class. now is the financial side. they told me b4 i came here that utsa will bill them directly. then i went to the financial department today. found out that there is no such thing! guess wat? and i have to settle my bills of 12K b4 25th Jan if not they will drop my classes. guess my horror.. i realli dunno wat to say. if you were me, i think you guys will be equally pissed! i only have 6 more days to settle this bill if not i'm dead! *zzz.. it realli makes me doubt the credibility of sgh lorz. ask me where to go find 12k over here? *sighz..
today was the first day of school. supposed to have a bio class at 8 but since school started at 11., so i only had stats and history class. stats class was good but history class is boring and the class size is freaking BIG! think i've to do lots of self-study. *sighz.. school was closed for 2 days on tue and wed due to cold weather. major roads were closed and it was freezing! temp was below 0 degrees celsius. *brr.. everything was frozen. unfortunately there was no snow. *sighz.. i will leave you of some pics i took during these days.
the railings outside my room 
the opposite block
the trees in front of my block
frozen shrubs
frozen bushes
the shelters outside the cafe
even the dustbin was not spared
i think this is realli cool! the walkway..
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/19/2007 12:34:00 PM
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
dILEmma
*ARGH!
some background info for those less-informed. i'll only be studying at my present university (UTSA) for the next 2 years. purpose is to gain credits to enter another university (University of Texas Health Science Centre, San Antonio) where i'll complete my degree there. however, i realised a big problem yesterday. UTHSCSA only has one intake a year during the fall semester.
you may ask so wats the problem. the problem is that i've a list of texas core curriculum and professional prerequisites that i muz complete before i can be admitted. however, i need to complete 18 classes (if i didnt count wrongly) in 3 semesters! so that i can qualify for the 2008 intake. it mite be more than 18 and it can only be confirmed after those damn people get back to me! *zzz..
the biggest problem is that sgh specifies that they will only sponsor me for 4 years. after which any additional costs (if i stay longer..) will be beared upon myself. that is to say.. if i choose to take my time and go for the 2009 intake. i'll be staying here for another half year longer. *sighz..
i currently have 6 classes for this semester (which is considered way over-achieving over here). minimum is 4. but basic math will tell you that i have to take 6 classes each semester in order to complete all the prerequisites on time. and i dun even noe if i can cope. *sighz..
if the number is more than 18.. i'm so screwed. *zzz.. alternatively i can study during the summers. but that would mean i can't head home to see my loved ones. so pple.. tell me wat shld i do?
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/16/2007 03:02:00 AM
Monday, January 15, 2007
fiRSt nItE wIf mY rOOmIEs
i am so tired. *yawnz..
room mates juz came back today. duno whether to be happy or not. but i guess more good than evil. at least the place isnt so dead and quiet anymore. ironically, i can't sleep now.
fetched adrian back from the sa airport. headed out for supper. got turned down by a few places. finally went to ihop (international house of pancakes). waited too long. decided to blow the order and leave. *cool.. bet the waitress was dmbfounded when she saw us walking out.
finally decided to get some wings and juz cooked it back home. in the end, headed back hungry and very very cold! *brrr..
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/15/2007 04:47:00 PM
wAItEd, wAIt and StiLL wAItInG..
honestly, i think i am quite a patient and tolerant person (correct me if i am wrong..) but i feel that my patience and tolerance has been tested time and again ever since i came here.
the rate at which they work is realli getting on my nerves. everything is juz so freaking SLOW! in order to speak to someone, i muz always talk to an answering machine. i am beginning to hate the damn person who invented this stupid machine. if not, i talk to some person who takes a message. God knows when these people will ever get my message, let alone reply them. *zzz..
a perfect example is when i met up wif my academic adviser on fri. they old me that my adviser will be out in a few minutes. in the end, i waited like an idiot for almost an hour! till i got fed up and went to kao bei them. the lady somemore dare to ask me "where were you?" i was like "WTF?! i was sitting rite in front of you in case you are blind!" she said " hadn't the adviser seen you?" I replied " NO! i have been sitting there like an idiot for the past hour when you told me she will see me in a few minutes!" that was when she realised something wrong. she went to check and it turned out that there was some mistake! *zzz.. God damn these people man! dumb f**ks! was so freaking pissed. and all they can do is apologise apologise. *zzz.. in the end make my lil xiu wait for me. blame these stupid pokes larz.
so u see.. i go there personally oso got such a problem le. wat do you think if it's a transmitted message or a message from an answering machine? the worst thing is that i need these answers fast fast fast! *snaps finger.. i feel like i am already gonna die of hypertension here soon (no thanks to them..) God please help me!!! *argh..
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/15/2007 07:47:00 AM
Saturday, January 13, 2007
GrOcErY shOppIng wIf jAps..
scheduled to meet marie at 12. followed her ard to settle some her stuffs first. met up wif her fren, keiko. where we then went to meet another fren, alina (whom i didnt noe bout..) aniwae it doesnt hurt to have another person ard. juz tt i didnt understand japanese and it seems like they were taking their sweet time. *zzz..
turned out tt we were waiting for a cab, which drove us to the malls nearby. the gers had to shop for their daily necessities at target. felt like i was wasting my time bcoz they had to buy lots of stuffs. can't wait to head to H.E.B to do my grocery shopping!
finally the time came. so excited and bought quite a bit of stuffs. broccolli, carrots, ham, strawberries, cheese sauce, beef lagsane and soup. promised her not to eat microwave food le. so guess i gotta cook tonite. and i have just the perfect dish in mind.
marie and i headed back first. and i can't wait to start cooking my new dish, and esp so when i hadn't had any lunch *stomach growls.. aniwae the stage is set and these are the following ingredients u need. broccolli. carrots. olive oil. cheese sauce.
the ingredients..
presenting to you stir-fried broccolli and carrots in cheese! (with ham) =)
realised i didnt have salt. improvised and added some ham. stir-fried broccolli and carrots (and ham) in cheese! *smilez.. it tasted very better than i expected. juz that my vegetables were still a lil hard. but i felt i fared very well considering that this is my first attempt. *lol.. and am greatly encouraged to try whipping up other new and cheap dishes.
one more thing. wanna thank God for his grace and mercy. randomly picked 2 broccollis and weighed them to get the price tag. guess wat? the price was $1.44! i cldn't believe my eyes! but i guess that is wat makes him great! realised he has been wif me all this time. and that he had revealed to me time and again but i ignored it. muz repent and learn to rely on him. once again, he showed that He is here with me. *smilez..
price tag of my broccollis
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/13/2007 02:57:00 AM
Thursday, January 11, 2007
ApplEbEE
here are some photos that i had taken when my aunt jac and uncle howe yong brought me to applebee for lunch before i checked in last sat. concept wise like swensen's. food was not too bad. but i have to give special mention to their french onion soup and the desert, triple chocolate delight. it's fantastic. juz above the soup is a piece of bread. to top it all off is a thick layer of cheese! as for the desert.. it's a mudpie shaped in a cove wif melted chocolate in the middle. a scoop of vanilla ice cream lies right beside it and decorated wif strips of chocolate fudge. *drips saliva..
the logo on the serviette
one of the pictures being hung in the shop
notice wats wrong wif this pic?
caesars' salad
does it resemble the lighting in swensen's?
the fantastic french onion soup! (see the layer of cheese on top? *yummy!)
my main course : tilapia fish in parmesan cheese =)
presenting... *drum rolls.. the triple chocolate delight!
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/11/2007 01:27:00 AM
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
OrIEntAtIOn
i apologise for not posting these few days. quite tied up wif orientation and admin stuffs. but now things are more or less settled so i'll try to blog more (i can see some of you cheering away..) which is good. aniwae it's the second day of orientation, so i'll juz cover wat has been up during this orientation.
yesterday was the first day of the orientation for international students. went to the main building at 9 (as stated in the letter) saw a queue of pple all the way from the entrance of the auditorium to the stage. we were given a schedule of the activities for today and the next few days and an orientation pack (containing lots of papers wif lots of words! *zzz..)
sat down. filled up some forms. then a student volunteer, Enrique brought us to the health services centre to get our tb screening. everyone got jabbed. had lunch. had another round of talks by different department heads. met up wif this guy who schedules our appointment wif an academic adviser. apparently, i'm supposed to meet up wif one this fri. asked around and even made a trip down to the office today but no. they won't see me till fri bcoz all the academic advisers are very busy (supposedly..) and they go by appointment basis. *zzz.. in that case that leaves me wondering if i shld still head back down to Houston for those few days. i feel it's a total waste of my time bcoz i can leave on wed instead after my tb screening (provided everything goes fine..) but now, i've to waste 2 days here wondering why i'm still stuck here. *sighz..
aniwae, today i turned up for an orientation which i need not attend. today's one was for local students and we, international students just have to stick to the schedule given to us yest. so it turned out i woke up early for nothing. headed back. skyped uncle alan, aunt mabel, nai nai and ye ye. after which i headed over to the main hostel building to settle my payment and went over to get my bank account.
finally i managed to meet up wif monica of SACU (san antonio federal credit union). she was very helpful. much to my relief, my bank draft requires no extra charge. got a savings account and a cheque-in account. my debit card will be mailed to be in 8 business days. got some cheques and i was all ready to go.
reached home. called uncle howe yong to check how was aunt jac. turned out that the operation was a success! (which is extremely good news!) *yayz! had lunch then took a nap. alarm clock rang. overslept for the homecoming party for international students will my jap fren knocked on my door. was so shocked. quickly dressed up and rushed down to wellness and recreation centre for the function.
the food was good. salad, fruits, beef lagsane and CHEESECAKE! *muahaha.. we were entertained by a spanish trio who sang, strummed, blow good music (oh.. one was blowing the trumpet) v good spanish music. which i greatly appreciated. made friends wif a few RA's (resident assistants) and china students. the director of the international programs then came by and ate wif us.
an extremely entertaining magic show followed all those good food. below are some of the highlights of the show.
a mind reading card trick
a pigeon trick
the pigeon EXPLODED!
a black hollow cardboard box (in the middle) can transform the blocks into any combination u wish
a "Houdini" rope trick
the Guillotine! (which is not surprisingly the highlight of the evening!)
wif everything set in place.. we're ready to GO! *lol..
thk gers will find him cute..
i was so disappointed that the head did not roll.. *muahaha..
the mystery of the silver rings..
..is still yet to be revealed
this pigeon is so tame!
isn't she cute? *aww..
another view of this cute lil thing..
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/10/2007 09:23:00 AM
Monday, January 08, 2007
x-plOriNG thE cAmPUs
juz came back from exploring my campus. wanted to familiarise myself wif the surroundings b4 i go for orientation tom. then i got super pissed bcoz my white timberland shoes kana mud! *ARGH!
the tennis courts looked like a popular place to be. every court was occupied wif many onlookers. had to find the JPL (john peace library) and the main building. both were quite a distance from m hostel. *zzz..
my flu is slightly better. but the mucus is still bugging me. and i got a sore throat. *haiz.. i intend to explore the shops opposite later after lunch. btw today's weather is fantastic! good sunshine but strong winds. *lol.. muz wear jacket later.
a general posting bulletin board 
i was shocked when i saw this!
long flight of staircase
one of the cafeterias
i find this design quite cool
getting close to nature while studying
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/08/2007 02:48:00 AM
Sunday, January 07, 2007
mY hOstEl rOOm
finally the post that all of you have been waiting for. the post bout my hostel room over here. i'll give a score of 3/10 (which is pathetic!)
let me tell you why..
the whole place was in a mess when i stepped in! everything was juz lying ard. empty cornflake boxes were juz simply thrown above the cabinet (as if pple can't see!) choc stains littered the table top and the sink. crumbs (of God knows wat?) were all over the kitchen area. poker cards were scattered across the table. toilets were in a mess and one of them (lucky not mine! *heez..) had a smell! all in all.. i almost fainted when i realised this will be my apartment for the next 4 months!
the living room (the door in the middle is my bedroom) 
another view of the living room
the kitchen which was the messiest area!
a view of the messy fridge (which even had vanilla soy in the freezer!)
the other toilet (wif the smell) *lol..
the only undefiled place was my room! =) my room was much neater and tidier relative to the mess i saw outside. it had many drawers and a rather high bed. i tot that my room was not too bad (which is obviously where the 3 marks come from!)
my nice, cozy bedroom (after we had put the bedsheets on) *smilez..
after putting the stuffs in my room, cleaned up the place a lil and boiled some water, we headed to the nearby H.E.B (aka giant supermarket) to get some groceries and food for the next few days.
carried all the stuffs up myself whilst my aunt jac, uncle howe yong and joel headed home. sudd a sense of sadness overwhelmed me. but i told myself that it's time to grow up and that i shld be independent. so i shook the tot away and tried to be optimistic.
m down wif the stupid flu. got a mild sore throat. hope that i wont have a fever tom. intending to go explore the place ard the sch. prob walk ard and try to get across the highway to the shops on the opposite side and check it out. provided that i'm well again. meantime i only can pray that my room mates are nice friendly pple who cares about personal hygiene.
i'm all alone in this apartment now. my room is in a mess bcoz intending to change room on mon. so i guess we'll see how it goes. m now gg to take medication and be knocked out. and hopefully when i wake up tom morn.. my bad flu will be gone and everything will be much better! =)
mUttOns bLeAtEd at... 1/07/2007 11:35:00 AM
