Why I don't want to be famous

f/9, 1/320s

My reasons are out there at the moment, obvious for the world to see. The moment you have a true bite of fame, you'll never be out of sight even if you want to, even if you've died. Privacy doesn't exist in a famous man/woman's dictionary. Well, it does. But it doesn't in the paparazzi who's chasing after you. You live with no privacy, you die with no privacy. Posthumously, you still have no privacy as secrets (true or not) are digged up from the past - by people who finally dare to speak up without your existence to stop them.

Being famous is such a scary thing. Even if I stop making money out of my own fame, others will ironically be making money off me. When I'm in debt and need money, the money is rolling into someone else's pockets, not mine.

Like people usually said, when the high gets really high, you should only expect the low to be really low as well. For someone to be ridiculously famous, his downfall is only just as big.

Candice told me the media always milks it for all it's worth - and from what I see - even more than what it's worth. But people lap it all up anyway. Money isn't the root of all evil, it's the underlying greed of people that is the root of all evil.

It's not just people who are "celebrating" Michael Jackson's life that is making money off him. It's people who "hate" his every existence that is making money off him, writing books, or even writing hate articles about him. The traffic to their sites, the money earned from curious minds. It's a hell lot of money to be made while emotions are high. So, why the hell not?

And this is a dead man we're talking about. So he can't fight back. Throw some ridiculous statement about how he used to bed me when I was 13 and I'd get a high price for exclusive interviews. It's not like anyone's going to rightfully "sue" me for 'tarnishing my reputation'. His records are still selling - faster, I may add. His management's just milking it off, (hopefully paying his debt off posthumously). Bad publicity or good publicity is all great publicity to them now.

My personal stand though? Enough is enough. The man's dead. To be honest, even if he was a paedophile or a confused man, or whatever is used to describe him (Only he knows what he's truly done), it doesn't affect my views from this point onwards because a dead man cannot do anything more. All his great deeds were overshadowed by his big 'obsession'. If I had a kid who was molested, all I'd ever want is for the man to have a terrible life and for him to die. And he did have a terrible hated life and he did die. So isn't that the end of the story?

Not for a famous man.

The King of Pop has died

The child star of Jackson 5 and famous as... the man himself, Michael Jackson, who needs no introduction.

I grew up listening to his music, man. I'm pretty sure many people did. He was the Elvis Presley of our time or maybe more - definitely more. Seeing he managed to release far more albums during his time and he became an international household name - from New Zealand to Singapore, to Korea, to Turkey, Morocco, Europe, and the USA. Heck he even visited the non restricted partsof Saudi Arabia! His were probably the earliest albums I'd ever owned - well, shared with my elder brother. Cassettes bought for us as gifts by Dad, his live shows were taped. We owned all his albums...even up till his latest one. Though his "oldies" were probably the best. My dad and elder brother caught front row seats to catch him while he was in Singapore when I was a teeny kid. I remember bawling over not being able to attend because I was "too young".

He led one of the most controversial lifestyles ever but he was definitely unique in his showmanship and music. And probably the only celebrity I'd ever really feel screwed up about, upon hearing confirmations of his death. What a timing as well - he was to embark on his 50-day European tour in 1 and half weeks or thereabouts.

It's honestly, quite upsetting. Farrah Fawcett (someone I don't really know but was big in the previous generation) passed away this morning. MJ's death completely overshadowed hers though but death is always sad. Celebrities just get more attention so... RIP.

[4am L.A. Time]

Ne pas touche!

I dreamt I had a full conversation with my boyfriend in French, with no interruptions and dilution in language.

R: est-ce que je peux le manger?
N: ne pas touche!
R: pourquoi?
N: aucun pourquoi.
-insert more giggles and long french conversations about random things which I've completely forgotten by now-

I have no idea if any of it even made sense to a French person. It just happened to make a lot of sense to me, in my little dreaming head. But it felt really good, having the language at the tip of your tongue. It's like a wake up call or something telling me I haven't spoken any other language aside from English ever since I got here. Not Malay, not Chinese, certainly not German nor French. It starts being quite a bore, really. I'm looking forward to when Ron comes down - even a little Singlish might be refreshing. And Germany. Or maybe even a Gaeltacht area in Cork? Or get Milena to speak to me in all the languages she ever knows aside from English. Hahahaha. Well, I shall not drag anyone else into this self-started problem of my own. Uhhuh. Enough of this.

So I reached Ireland at 12am Wednesday due to flight delays in Edinburgh, no thanks to the sudden fog and mist that came in just as we're about to depart. By the time we got home, it was about 1am. Riyan had to get up at 4am to be in time for work at 6am. Obviously, he got home looking wrecked and plopped right into bed and slept from 1.30pm all the way till uh, the next morning, which is today, at 6am. It's amazing how one can sleep so much.

Right now, I have no rice at home, no bread. So it's pasta time. (edit: I got lazy and made salad)

And I forgot what else I wanted to write. Ok bye world.

Back from Scotland!

Photos are up on Facebook. Friends only though, for now.
Direct link here.

The Scots definitely managed to impress me in terms of service and hospitality. Aside from all that, the culture and landscape did remind me a lot of Ireland. I don't know how they did it but, even though they have one of the highest unemployment rates in Europe, you hardly see any homeless people nor junkies on the streets. I didn't even manage to catch uncouth, badly-dressed teenagers with terrible hairstyles. Everyone seemed pleasant enough.

Those people sure do have a way of avoiding the financial district.

The citycentre's structural planning is pretty good as well. You'll be greeted by very scenic views of the castle on one side and tall towering statues of local historical figures on the other. It's very easy to get around in the citycentre, seeing they have very distinctive landmarks. I managed to get around without feeling lost while I was there for the 4 days.

The town itself looks amazing. Everything seemed to be in sync. The buildings remain consistent in style, structure and shades of copper, brown and black. The designs never seemed to clash. The modern area is in one place, the historical buildings are in another. Even if there was a mix of modern and olden styled architecture, they seem to blend in well and not look all over the place.

We managed to catch the Edinburgh Film Festival while we were there. It was really enjoyable being able to watch the first public screenings of some films, and meeting the directors and casts of these great movies. My particular favourite was Moon (trailer below). They had a very low budget and they managed to complete pre-prod, prod, and post-prod in 1 year. Media students, you should know how amazing that is for a sci-fi indie film this good. Furthermore, it wasn't just a sci-fi film but tackled more on the emotional aspects of humans ourselves. As complicated as the film may sound, the plot is simple. No man should and could survive all alone. It's a very moving picture, nothing too showy at all.

There were also a couple of big gigs happening which we didn't really get into. And there's the Annual Fringe Comedy festival happening soon. There's always something to be excited about in calm Edinburgh, somehow. Calm, because throughout the 4 days there, even over the weekend, the city was surprisingly not busy. So you can just have a cuppa, enjoying the comfortable weather outdoors at the quaint little cafes.

As you can tell, I really enjoyed it. Of course, there were the downsides. My hairdryer was not working. The toilet door to my supposed 4-star hotel (got it on a deal via aerlingus) seemed to be broken, the shower doors got stuck. But even that didn't put me off too much - The jovial service of the staffs and warm hospitality of the locals transcend the little discomforts.

I'd definitely like to go back for more festivals if I have the chance to. :)

Here's a little panorama before I go:

BRB

I'll be heading to Edinburgh, Scotland early tomorrow morning and will only be back next Wednesday midnight. Hoping the weather will be kind to me.

So I got to meet Milena yesterday. Yes, she's still the same Milena I loved and adored, thank god. ;) We caught a french film, Pour Elle (English title: Anything for her). I'm glad I caught it. It's got quite a unique, amoral standpoint on prison breaks, for once. I know it isn't as highly reviewed as many other European films released around the same time, but it was definitely worth the watch. Well, that's an understatement for me personally. I thought the movie provided lots of after-thoughts. Thought-provoking, engaging, engrossing.

Okay, here's hoping for a beautiful long weekend for everyone! :)

Riyan

At the bus station where Milena has another hour before her bus arrives
Me: I guess we'll go now...Eh wait! Pictures first before we forget!
-after attracting lots of attention to ourselves-
Me: Hmm, I guess we'll head off now. And err, leave you to deal with the awkwardness of having to blend back in with the crowd.
Riyan: Yeh, after all the commotion we've created with taking photos and the noise and all.
Me & Riyan: Okay bye, Milena!

News talking about some man complaining about something (I didn't pay much attention obviously)
Riyan: *while booking flights online* Wha-? Fock you, you know what I mean? He most likely didn't even have to pay for that focking thing.
Me: Wow, your Irish accent comes out so much more when you cuss like that.
Riyan: Sorry, I'm just irate.
Me: *chuckles at the thought of someone actually using 'irate' in daily conversation*
Riyan: What?
Me: Nothing, you're just so cute.
Riyan: -grins- I knooow.

No you don't. And it's so easy to get his mind off important matters by flattering him. Terrible.

While crossing a road with oncoming cars from left
Riyan: *leisurely crosses while looking to the right*
Me: -dragging him across exasperatedly- Do you EVER look out for cars before you cross the road?
Riyan: Um, but but but, if you don't look at them, you don't see them, they don't exiiissst!!!

Map

I love watching A Place In The Sun. It makes me daydream about all the dream homes that actually exist. I saw this home in a sea-side town in Italy that was too beautiful to resist talking about. Of all the episodes, that one was my favourite. It was a stone house up a hill, full of classic charm on the outside, yet with a relatively oriental design indoors. There were steps leading down the back which revealed a long private pool, overlooking the vast blue ocean. The venue is also appealing in itself. A short drive to where the main stores are, with a really old chapel in the area - very culturally rich area.

I'd totally understand why someone would want to retire there. Especially when the huge house with the great view and a private pool only cost £50,000 - which is about €59,200, or S$119,700. It's suddenly so ridiculous the price we're paying for our apartments back home. It's such an affordable dream home. Perhaps one day we might move to a place like that, far from home, if we managed to outlive most of our friends. Ahem, because there's no way I'm able to live away from my family and friends for most of my life.

So I was catching up with Shera yesterday and we were both looking at the same map. I started explaining to her how the world was broken up - not literally, with huge machineries, but in the political sense. We were discussing about how the Middle Eastern countries were considered to still be in "Asia" but people would hardly call them Asians would they? The western world might want to rethink their "classification" of Asians. Then, we talked about how amazing it is to have a country so huge like Russia halved into the Asian continent and another in Europe, just like Turkey. The distance between the most western part of Russia to the most Eastern is almost the same, if not more, than the distance between Singapore and Ireland.

Shera told me she felt much closer to me, looking at the map. We were only a few centimetres away from each other for once. Ahh. There's just so much you can talk about and learn from just looking at maps. The Baltic nations, Scandinavia, Eastern and Western Europe. Australia or Australasia? All these different terms used in different nations. The apparent proximity between one nation to the next that you never noticed before. It's like a map of truth laid out bare before you, a chance to feed your curious mind and scrutinise it any way you like. It's quite enjoyable, really.

A crack

"But, has she ever done the same to ___?"

He let out a light chuckle and with an appending frown, said "Actually, she did. She's always did. She's just generally a very bitchy person."

"What?"

"She's just a bitchy person. I think most girls are" -pause-

"I'm not"

"Well, you're not half as bad."

"I'm not."

"Okay."

"I mean, I confront a good friend if she or he really messes up. I may turn aggressive when people start being offensive. Which again, is started by the other party. And I approach the person I care for, not their mother, not their partner. I approach them, and I never resort to name-calling, I never talk down to them. I still tend to be extremely diplomatic. Even my friends aren't 'bitchy'. They talk sense. I only 'bitch' - if you insist, when I have the facts, when I did my 'proper research'. Generally, I side people who seem right. I don't 'go with the flow'. Sure, there's bias when it's my friends. But I don't just side them and discard the fact the other party may be right. We tend to always scrutinise the scenario and be diplomatic. I don't try to hurt people or ruin their lives. I calculate the pros and cons of a confrontation or an expression of how I feel towards a situation and towards someone. I don't recklessly spout things that may be personal or sensitive. I generally - mind my own business. Fair enough if it's someone I'm really close to. My best friends or my brothers. But from experience, I see that as long as they turn out happy, I swallow my thoughts and let them be and be happy. If there was anything wrong, you don't wait 3 years to say it."

Waiting out in the cold for our bus, he turned to face me, making sure his gaze is fixed on mine. With his hands gently holding me, he said "I love you, you do know that right?"

I nodded, and that affirmative seemed enough.

The worst kind of people

...are people who don't realise how flawed they are, and feed off others' lives. Who turn the positive into negative, who don't even know how much an effect their actions or words may have on others.

I haven't blogged for awhile now. The past few days were spent battling against losing my composure. Perceptions exist everywhere, you either prove it to be true, or you keep silent about it because when we act on a "stereotype", on a "prejudice", what else can the outcome be?

Don't start something, you're not ready to finish. On the contrary, I did, read everything over and over before I reacted. The more I understood the underlying messages, the deeper the hurt, the more permanent a reminder for the future of whom I should be wary of.

I've learnt that using "blood-family" as a "right" to speak whatever you want about someone else's life, is no longer a valid excuse. To me, that right probably belongs to someone who knows the particular person well enough to know what he wants, what would make him happy. It could be his best friend, or a sibling who is -actually- close to him. I don't think it's right for someone who has said nothing, spoke nothing to him, to suddenly cut in and say the rudest things to his partner. I just, don't think it's right.

I placed myself in her shoes, thinking about my two brothers. I may have been unhappy with several decisions my brother made but "his options" and "his choices" would inevitably mean he wants them, that he wants the outcome of those things more than the other scenarios. If he wants something, I will never speak over my head and be selfish in my subjective views to stop him from any "subjectively wrong" decisions he may make.

To me, a right decision, is a decision that makes you happy. And in this case, it is not your decision to make. You have your own family now, give him a chance to make his own. It is not his obligation to live out his life under your expectation.

Some people, never listen though. They never succeed in grasping the concepts relayed by the other parties. They read, and acting off their selfish views, seem to interpret messages through a skewed perspective - in the end, serving the message futile.

Yes, I was upset, I was sad, I was angry. Angry that we had to stand for any of that, angry that everybody understood what I was talking about except the one person who should. I was angry that she never seemed to still explicitly speak what in the world was her true intention, what in the world did she expect to happen when she said those things, and what in the world did she want to happen? And what made her assume the worst of me and the relationship?

And at the final moment of apology, she still, did not realise to keep her words in check. Sacrifices? Let me explain to you what a sacrifice mean. It means to be acting against one's willingness for the better future. That is not how he sees it. He WANTS everything he's ever talked about. He's more excited about all of it than anyone else is. And that makes me happy because he's happy. Because after all he's done, all I want him to be, is happy. Which someone who "cares" for him has failed the past few days to understand, and to support him through.

And whoever gave an uninvolved the right to measure who sacrificed what in a relationship? Were you there when my beloved grandmother passed away unexpectedly in Singapore while I was here because he had school and couldn't make the visit instead? Do you know I have to constantly risk my reputation with people back home, whenever I come over to visit him on my own as a girl from a traditional Asian family? Were you there when I had to defend my guts out for him all the time? No, you weren't. You never were. And there is so much more that is much too personal for me to put here that you never knew.

Were you expecting such a bad start to end off with a beautiful ending? Did you expect me to feel some baseless guilt and leave him? Do you think that would make him happier?

I tried to dig into everything and find something positive out of it, but I failed. I failed to find any nuances of positivity. Zilch!

Fermat's Room

I watched La habitación de Fermat (Fermat's Room) yesterday at the IFI and it was definitely a very engrossing film. I often found myself getting too comfortable in the seat, as though it was home, stretching my legs out and so on, and quickly trying to gain composure - Nobody seemed to notice though, probably just as engrossed in the film as I was ;)

Something like the movie "Cube", but with a more wholesome, logical ending.

-
I've grown to realise that it's not things here that affect (well, maybe a little). For the most part, it's events at home that trigger all these emotions. I worry about home, little snippets I get from home have the ability to make me smile or make me frown.

And it's amazing to see people start meeting up again, how everyone's planning the biggest of plans - all only after I've left, when I used to face so much difficulty trying to meet everyone. It makes me smile knowing everyone's coping well, at the same time, a tinge of... what do you call that? Sadness? Helplessness? It's like a silent voice that's constantly hush-ed up.

On a random note, it'd be nice to see Hanna again. & I can't wait for Ron to come down. A familiar face could make a great deal of difference. :)

Elections

Some of the several promotional posters of the electoral candidates. Riyan said Pereppadan Baby was going to be one of his top votes simply because he loved the name. He was joking, of course. Though I don't know who his top choices were in the end. Pereppadan Baby looked a lot like my lecturer back in CMM though. My coursemates would probably know who I'm talking about. :)

The elections here seem so different from back home. For one, nobody seems to be bothered as much. You don't hear people walking around discussing about the new political party in power or indulging in deeper discussions about who has the most relevant ideas for today's Ireland and so on. However, they do have more choices, and everyone gets to vote over a new TD (Teachta Dála, a term for the local Members of Parliament-MPs). At the same time, they're also voting for their own local TDs into the MEP seats (Member of European Parliament).

In Singapore, you only have your local elections to worry about and more often than not, certain "strong" areas would hardly be contested and you end up not having to vote. And we definitely have no say in who gets into ASEAN. Though people back home do create a much bigger fuss about local elections, with people having heated discussions about "the future of Singapore". Also, it's only "optional" for people here to vote instead of "compulsory" as in back home. The ages differ as well. Irish citizens start voting at the age of 18, while Singaporeans start at the age of 21.

Both political systems seem to differ so much but it probably "worked" to achieve different goals in different countries. Singapore may not have a "western democracy" but we have our own style which has worked well for the country. To each his own, it seems. Different leadership with different goals to achieve.

Home sweet home

"Can you do me a favour?"
"What is it now?"
"Can you fly back home now? You're missed :("

:( Like I told a friend yesterday, it's more likely that I'm missing everyone so much more than anyone's missing me. Simply because, I'm very much all alone here. Even Milena and the rest of Riyan's family members aren't exactly very near to me. Back home, I can just call up Timothy, Candice and Izyan, walk over to their homes or hang out in our neighbourhood, find things to do together or just bask in one anothers' company, with comfortable silences, comfortable doing nothing nor seeing anything at all. Three friends living in such close proximity to me - such a luxury.

Looking beyond my neighbourhood, even the 'neighbouring' neighbourhoods are close enough. Slacking at Natasha's place, or Jerald's place. Meeting like-minded, restless insomniacs like Jai. Haha. Seeing Deepan on his bike, bunking at Sanjay and Navin's neighbourhood. Meeting Kadri on a whim, going jamming. Such luxury.

Mark told me "People here (UK) don't exactly socialise much, they're happy with a bottle of beer and whoever they happen to come across at work or home, or even just alone. Which is why I miss my visits to Singapore too. You'll always end up making friends. Somehow I think it's the weather as well. It's only the summers where we get to go out and be happy, the other seasons are a tad more depressing."

I don't know how far true is that. Everyone seems pretty happy the way they are here. I don't see people whinging about their lives. Haha. For me, I think it's just the way of life you're used to. I'm used to having fun the way I do, I'm used to the sort of people I'm exposed to, I'm used to the warm weather more than the cold, I'm used to Singlish. Which is why travelling once in awhile is supposed to always be fun. You're away from the familiarities of home, and you learn more about how others live their life. It's always something new. When the novelty of it all wears off, you pine for home or something else newer. Or you adapt bit by bit.

At the end of the day though, home is home. It's what shaped us into who we are. It's beautiful everywhere but nowhere's much more beautiful than where you spent most of your life in, where most of the people you care about are. And it happens to be Singapore for me. :)

Baked chicken

Yesterday felt like a housewife training camp. I woke up at 5.30am, made his morning coffee, made him breakfast, seen him off, couldn't go back to sleep because the sun was too bright. So, I...

• Ate leftover breakfast (creamed rice)
  
• Cleared the dishwasher, handwashed a couple more dishes (I don't really trust dishwashers)
• Watched Plus Belle la Vie
• Chatted with a few night owls from Singapore
• Cleared my email
• Placed the towels in the washing machine
• Made vegetable soup to eat with toast, for light lunch
• Watched Discovery channel, and some Pyschic channel (lol)
• Dried towels
• Brine the chicken, refrigerate
• Watched more TV
• Stuff the chicken etc etc, baked it
• Waited for him to come home while uploading photos

I'm so bored. :[

Expenses expenses

I just realised this might be a very expensive time for Riyan. Because his kitchen needs serious revamping. Bachelors being bachelors (I admit I'm stereotyping here) cares very little or knows very little about what is worth buying for the kitchen and what is not. The least surprising part is that it doesn't bother them at all.

But tell me, how do I cook with rusty pots and pans? Nothing. I've been living off the microwave for the little time I've been here and I don't think I can depend on it any longer than the week. And I've been wondering why he's been eating out or being brought food by his parents while I was away.

I also am planning to get some bakeware for the underused oven. And make full use of the rice cooker and steamer soon, after I get the ingredients. Then it will finally feel like a kitchen again.

Right now, I'm looking at last minute travel deals around the region because Riyan told me to. They look really cheap though maybe still not as cheap as travelling from Singapore to the other parts of that region. :( I'm so used to dividing the money by two and thinking "Wow, that's really cheap", that I occasionally do it here. Only to realise, it IS already in Euros and that's the end result - I should actually be multiplying by two.

So we were in town yesterday - ate Banoffi at this quaint little cafe snuggled up in a corner, ran by Eastern European boys who were dressed like Mafias. Complete with the black coat in the summer, unbuttoned shirts, and lit cigarettes with a bunch of brothers, sitting out in the sun. I jokingly told Riyan that they were "nice to look at, but probably bad in bed." I'm most likely wrong, of course. I was just basing it on the various mafia films with Eastern European men being all patriachal and 'traditional' lovers, who hang out with "the bros" and treat women like accessories.

So after the chicken mushroom spinach mozarrella crepe lunch, we watched L'empreinte de l'ange (Mark of an angel) at the IFI, ate the earlier mentioned banoffi, and headed to Bray by the DART (the local train service) on a whim. Just because I'd earlier asked where is the nearest beach - I know Dublin is right on the East coast in the map of Ireland but somehow I've never been to the East coast. I've only seen Galway and Kerry (both on the West coast) but never Dublin. So we boarded the train all the way down to Bray. It was beautiful, actually seeing people utilising the beach, lazing around, enjoying the sun. The water was extremely cold though. Even Riyan said it was cold and his feet were numb so I'm sure it wasn't just because I was used to the Asian warmer waters. But it was still nice to see the beach with people in it - the beaches are always nearly empty during the colder seasons, for obvious reasons.

It's Riyan's first day at work today. It's just under an hour left till he knocks off. I just heard a little kid playing outside and he sounded so much like my little brother. :( I wonder how the whole family is doing. I hope they get to really enjoy themselves in Bangkok this month. It'll be my mum and little brother's first plane ride. :) I hope the rare trip will put their minds off all the stress back home.

I just checked the weather forecast - It's going to get cooler (or colder, for my case), tomorrow onwards. It's going to rain on Friday and Saturday. :( Let's hope it gets warmer again after.

Summer

The immigration official I got this time was surprisingly pleasant. He reminded me of Father Ted. Lol. He offered to put me on the system if I already wasn't, so it'd be easier for future travel but I think we misunderstood his offer and declined. Big ugh on Riyan's and my part. Hopefully when I return from Germany, the offer still stands... Right.

It's tough getting used to things here, to be honest. Having my cycle begin on the first day I reached Europe, is not helping at all. I'm possibly much more emotional than I would be if I wasn't. It's great meeting the kids again - Little Alex now talks. The new dog, Buddy, is a nicer breed (bigger, less angsty) than the old one, albeit much more hyperactive. He was literally jumping all over us, licking my boots and happily greeting us at the door. I love him already. Though Riyan's dad called him another irish terrorist because he destroyed all the pots of flowers in the backyard - his persian flowers.

Anyway, the past 2 weeks had been wonderful. It was great really getting to know his parents better. They remind me so much of my own - the hilarious banter between father and mother.

The send off was quite rushed though. I thought I had an awful lot more time, I guess I was wrong. Kadri was actually rushing down to send me off and he called Jai to pass the phone to me so I got to talk to him just before I got in. We didn't get to meet in the end. I also managed to talk to Navin in a rush through Sanjay's phone. In case you were wondering what I was muttering to Riyan just before we passed the gates in tears, it was "I don't want to go in", which was, really, the words I usually say when I'm at a different gate - the gate from Dublin. It's probably going to happen again. Leaving is never easy. I guess it's just going to be quite an adventure being away from home this long. Actually living and cooking for myself for 3 months. We'll see.

The summer here looks great though. It's actually warm enough to go out in my dress with sandals, without a jacket. Imagine that. It's one of the best summers they've seen. I'm not complaining. 27 degrees is way comfortable temperature for me. That's the warmest though, it might get cooler. I'm not putting my hopes too high at the moment but it's beautiful. Summer is beautiful. But all the girls seem to go on a madrush to wear nothing. Like bikini and mini skirts sort of nothing. "Oh my lord, it's actually warm here! Knock yourself out, ladies!" Haha good summers must mean great times for pervy boys ;)

So yeah, the moment I touched down to Ireland, I received all the sweetest texts which made me smile. The flight back was really memorable. It started with me being separated from Riyan, and then having to request a not-so-pleasant to switch seats with me. He decided to switch in the end because the kids next to me were too noisy for him. :) I slept most of the way though. It was a 12 hour flight, I watched Watchmen and then slept and ate and realised I only had 2 hours left. So technically I slept for about 6 hours or less, which is long enough on a plane. But sadly I couldn't go crazy watching all the other movies I'd planned to watch.

Riyan's mum lost her big case though. Hopefully she's gotten it back by now. I received a really sweet text from Sanjay when I got through Ireland. "Nura, miss you already lah. Take the next flight home can?" I miss our silly banter and 'quarrels' but, no. He's going into NS in a few days anyway, no way am I going to get tricked coming back only to be sending him off to Tekong. Not that I was even considering it. I just reached Ireland!

I'm going to take things slow this time. Hopefully my terrible cramps will be over soon. Oh - one thing I'm going to have to get used to - The sun sets at 10-11pm and rises at 5am. Which explains why I'm feeling restless at 6.30am.