Meeting ups

went to find Lenny after she called me to interrupt my watching for the Oscar academy live on Monday morning...

reached my old office (the new building actually, more accurate to said my ex company) around 1230pm, we chit chatted for awhile and she helps me to scan my police report to let me send the copy to my HR department in Singapore. How nice... after that, we called Annie and decided to go for lunch around 1pm... we ate very yummilicious bah kut teh at Desa Aman Puri, with very fresh steam fish head n huang jiu ji... really yummy!!! and we talked non-stop while eating there... haha!! just like last time...

after the very yummilicious lunch we had, we headed back to their office and continue the chit chat session with lenny and until the end of the day, then we went down to annie's office for the photo session...

and right after the photography session, annie n i went to jusco nearby my place to shop for something and we had our dinner at uncle john's kopitiam...

what a good day that i gotta spend with the 2 ladies whom are always doted me and pampered me with their love n cares... i appreciate it very much and hope to have another gathering before i go back to work in Singapore.... Thank you and i love you!!!

Passport Status Updates

called to the immigration office yesterday to check on my passport status, mana tau, kena scold by the officer... i quoted my file no to the officer and he was so surprise and asked me, "what? no. 618, that's very new, only one week, you have to call back only after one month, now we have nothing for you!" O.o well... as expected actually, but still i need to call up to check, hoping for a miracle from the immigration, that they have it done earlier.. but, miracle just not happened always... so, i better work harder, to get it done earlier... i will call them again next Friday... wish me luck!!!

Progress

i have went to immigration office on Friday (yesterday, 15th February 2008) for my passport case...

i was in fact should do it earlier, but i do not have my birth cert with me, so i have to wait for my sister to post it to me by express mail, and i got it on Thursday afternoon, and also a copy my company letter about my employment there, also being delivered by John from Singapore, on Thursday afternoon... thanks to my dearest sister Lishan, thanks to uncle Chiang, miss Jennifer & also MCT HR department for the helping hand you gave for me...

but, unfortunately, the immigration officer told me that i have no choice but to wait for the result of their investigation for approximately one month, and if they will approve, i will need to go down there to wait for another 2 hours to get my passport, which only valid for 3 years instead of 5 years... and i will need to call them up to check with them about the progress... gosh...

i know that i can also apply for emergency passport which can only be used for one time, cost for RM50, but this cant be used to re-apply for my working permit at Singapore... i am so confused that i don't know what to do now... will call back to office on Monday to check with company if i need to do so...

God bless!!!

Happy Wedding for my Best Friend Forever!!!

Myspace Marriage Graphics

Here’s to KaiLi and SaiMun:
May they always love each other as much as they do today.
Now each of you has a best friend forever.
Each of you is a shelter for the other from life’s storms.
Each of you can share with each other life’s greatest pleasures.
This is a great beginning, but the best is yet to come.
Let today’s treasured memories turn into beautiful tomorrows
full of joy, fun, contentment and satisfaction.
The world always welcomes lovers,
and the whole wide world is opening up for you now
to share its treasures and delights.
May all your dreams come true, and may we get to share in them!

By Joanna Fuchs

The History of Valentine's Day

Every February, across the country, candy, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. But who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday? The history of Valentine's Day -- and its patron saint -- is shrouded in mystery. But we do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. So, who was Saint Valentine and how did he become associated with this ancient rite? Today, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred.

One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men -- his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.

Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.

According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl -- who may have been his jailor's daughter -- who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure. It's no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.

While some believe that Valentine's Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine's death or burial -- which probably occurred around 270 A.D -- others claim that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine's feast day in the middle of February in an effort to 'christianize' celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival. In ancient Rome, February was the official beginning of spring and was considered a time for purification. Houses were ritually cleansed by sweeping them out and then sprinkling salt and a type of wheat called spelt throughout their interiors. Lupercalia, which began at the ides of February, February 15, was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.

To begin the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at the sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would then sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification.

The boys then sliced the goat's hide into strips, dipped them in the sacrificial blood and took to the streets, gently slapping both women and fields of crops with the goathide strips. Far from being fearful, Roman women welcomed being touched with the hides because it was believed the strips would make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city's bachelors would then each choose a name out of the urn and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage. Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine's Day around 498 A.D. The Roman 'lottery' system for romantic pairing was deemed un-Christian and outlawed. Later, during the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of birds' mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of February -- Valentine's Day -- should be a day for romance. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. The greeting, which was written in 1415, is part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England. Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.

In Great Britain, Valentine's Day began to be popularly celebrated around the seventeenth century. By the middle of the eighteenth century, it was common for friends and lovers in all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes. By the end of the century, printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a time when direct expression of one's feelings was discouraged. Cheaper postage rates also contributed to an increase in the popularity of sending Valentine's Day greetings. Americans probably began exchanging hand-made valentines in the early 1700s. In the 1840s, Esther A. Howland began to sell the first mass-produced valentines in America.

According to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated one billion valentine cards are sent each year, making Valentine's Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year. (An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent for Christmas.)

Approximately 85 percent of all valentines are purchased by women. In addition to the United States, Valentine's Day is celebrated in Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France, and Australia.

Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages (written Valentine's didn't begin to appear until after 1400), and the oldest known Valentine card is on display at the British Museum. The first commercial Valentine's Day greeting cards produced in the U.S. were created in the 1840s by Esther A. Howland. Howland, known as the Mother of the Valentine, made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colorful pictures known as "scrap".

I lost my passport....

what a big disaster for me on this cny... i lost my passport while i was at pudu raya bus terminal with my dad...

went to make police report at kepong police station, the policewoman said since i didn't lost any other valuables, she will write my report as the passport missing... coz if it is steal, it will become criminal case and it will be very troublesome... and after checking with the immigration centre if i can do my passport at JB branch, i decided to go back to jb with John on Monday when he went back from Sitiawan with his family...

am now in Jb with John and trying my very best to get the passport done as soon as possible... it will take me about one month in order to get it back and according to the immigration officer, i can only get back a 3 years valid passport instead of 5 years... gosh.. i have just get it renew last november leh... :-( really bad luck ler...

to all my colleagues out there, i am sorry for what happened and whatever trouble might coz to you guys... i will try my best to get back to work as soon as i can...

to miss jennifer & uncle chiang, thank you for willing to wait for my return... i really do appreciate and touched... thank you so much....

Holiday~ing...

yes... it is so good to have a long holiday, a long vacation for myself... and am now having a real long vacation home... 10 days of vacations...

watching HK Drama series, , a very touching story about how the parents will give the best for their kids and how we should appreciate our old folks at home... chinese often said meaning old folks are precious for every family... we should really treasure our parents when we still have the chance...

recently, i often think of my parents... my parents might not be the best parents of the wolrd... but they are definitely the best for me... i see them now, getting older and older, i feel so sad that they still need to work... i am thinking to work harder, and gain more $, so that they wont need to work anymore, just stay at home to do whatever they like to do... maybe i should really go abroad to UK... but then, it is a long way to go... too many things around that i need to consider... and if i am going there, 2 years of working holiday permit might not help me to earn enough for the life that i want to have, maybe 5 years... okay... new year resolution -> to have a proper planning for my 2008 career...

tonight is cny eve, mum just went back to her hometown this morning... so, we had out cny gathering dinner with her in advance, which was last nite, we had a steamboat dinner at home... reunion dinner, meaning the whole family members reunion, maybe will need to wait for many years later, then only we can have a proper reunion, since laney is abroad with tom at uk... miss them so much...

okay, tonite will have reunion dinner with grandma and other relatives... GONG XI FA CAI everyone!!!

Chinese New Year

gong xi gong xi gong xi ni ya!

happy chinese new year!!!!! and as usual, i am back to KL for the very special celebration with my family & best friends over here... i really miss them a lotzzzzzz... every time i came back, i really have the feeling to come back here to work, so that i can spend more time with my parents... because, working in other country is really tough... everything you need to depend on yourself... daddy & mummy are not around, sisters are so far away, best friends also not here... not like last time, when kaili called me to go yum cha, we can just go.. regardless of the time n places, as long as we have the energy to wake up to work on the next day...

i am not saying that life in singapore is not good... its just not as good as if i will be at home... i am lucky coz i have my aunt there to stay together... at least if i have any problems, i have pressure at works or other personal problems, i have her to talk with... but still.. the feeling is different... sometimes, when i wanna cry, i am afraid to let her know that i am not happy and i need to hide myself in the room and make sure that nobody notice that i am going to cry, then only i can cry... sigh...

but, i know, in order to have a better quality of life in the future with my family, i will need to work hard in Singapore when i am still young and have the ability to work, so, i will add oil, i will work hard... and will be positive always... i will be strong, i will be good... i will be happy too... coz happy goes lucky!!!