My apologies

Candle-lit faces, Candle-lit gazes

Last night was AUSMAT 21's grand dinner. I went and that is to be considered an achievement (yeah, boo-hoo I'm a loser). I mean, I paid RM80 and all. I believe, it's the first time I ever went to any social gathering (of such scale) quite so willingly. I really wanted to see everybody all dressed up and happy and stuff.

It was nice. I don't know. I wimped out when everybody started singing at the end of the dinner. I left. It was dark so people didn't really notice.

It was dark because the committee planned a surprise gift thingy for the lecturers. They gave twenty of us one of those small perfumed candles and had another twenty carrying roses and a small gift follow us in the dark to where the lecturers sat. The candle bearers stood in a circle around the lecturers' table, the gift bearers handed their gifts, then the lecturers blew each of the candles out. Pagan much? Hahah. Naww, it was nice. Some of the lecturers actually cried and that probably worthed much more than RM80 I'd say.

It was after the candle-gift event that the singing started. It was still dark while I made my getaway. Pretty darn rude of me to sneak off like that and not tell my classmates. They looked nice in the diffused light and I want to remember them like that. I only bid farewell to Alia (fellow victim of Otago's mass interview slaughter session. Egh, I'm just sore. Ignore me). She insisted that I at least say goodbye to the others but I just gave her hand another squeeze, an apologetic smile and left.

I bet she cried when the singing ended. She's such a nice person and she always cries when things gets a bit, uh, 'feely' and I don't want to see her cry. Saw her cry plenty of times already. After the interview, after the interview results came out, at the class party... so none of that for me.

Blame my conspicuous avoidant nature but really I just don't want to say goodbye and that's that. Hopefully, I won't ever have to say goodbye to any of them at any point in the near or not-so-near future. Let everything stay as if we'll all just meet up in class tomorrow (though thank god NOT! Haha).

Thus the end of the College phase. What's next remains to be seen.

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P.S:

I've finished reading 3 of my Big Bad Wolf purchases. One was crappy (Exurbia by Molly McGrann), the other two were absolutely brilliant (The Reminder by Rune Michaels & Beat The Reaper by Josh Bazell). Also, Beat The Reaper has this 'medical/mobster' game at its website. If you have nothing to do, then do click.

Exurbia was an unplanned purchase anyway. *sigh* Never judge 'Young Adult' books by their covers. Never. Not that Exurbia's cover is particularly attractive anyway though.

Big Bad Wolf

My preciousssss

Total: RM162

Number of books: 22

Quite a bargain indeed. Housies Alice & Linda (she spent RM230!) tagged along in my trusty taxi cab Atos. Good thing mom was kind enough to show me the way the first time I went with Alice. Yeap, we went twice. Alice slept over at my house and all.

Alice and I got to go on the Media preview day because we won the Big Bad Wolf BFF photo contest heheh, which is a good thing. Otherwise, on the first day itself...gosh. The crowd is just plain brutal. Bibliophiles ravished the book piles with hungered gleams in their eyes, I kid you not. It was so crowded I felt pretty darn nauseated.

Also, got to meet an old friend from high school. Grapes, I mean, Grace. Heh. She's working as one of the 80 staff on hand. If you go over to the sci-fi section, she's the girl with the orangey bob haircut :)

Lovely days ahead of me. Just me, my books, my cats & Adi in my room. Still, I'm kinda hung up that I didn't get these titles. I want these SO bad. Like, real bad.

(Especially this The Periodic Table by Primo Levi. Somebody, do get it for me from Kino)

(BBW had practically every other book Roth ever wrote EXCEPT this one. Oh, the INJUSTICE of it all!)

My Loot

I, have been keeping myself busy. Well, 'busy' as in, I've been doing enough stuff so as to not let my brain cells rot due to sheer boredom. Yeap. I hang out with friends and cousins, bought some books, read them, play the piano alot, watch movies, drive around :) The usual. Just, living.

Speaking of books, this is my loot. From the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale in Amcorp Mall. Went twice. With Mai mai & Adi then with Mom and auntie on the last day because all the books go at RM5 on the last day hehe.

My Loot:

1. Bright Shiny Morning (James Frey) - RM8

2. The Gone-Away World (Nick Harkaway) - RM8

3. Two Little Boys (Duncan Sarkies) - RM8

4. Penguins Stopped Play (Harry Thompson) - RM8

5. Fairyland (Paul J. McAuley) - RM5

6. Silverhorse (Lene Kaaberbol) - RM 5

7. The Raw Shark Texts (Steven Hall) - RM5

TOTAL = RM47.00

Of the 7 books, I'm done with Two Little Boys by Duncan Sarkies which I picked up from the 'Children's Section'. Clearly, the staff judged the book by its cover and deemed it to be a Kid's books. That book is ANYTHING, BUT, suitable for kids. Uhuh. Yeah. I'll describe it in four words: CRASS, TWISTED, PSYCHOTIC, FUNNY. It's funny alright, in a dark, obscene (plenty of this =_= 'F' word all over the space) kind of way. I've never really liked dark humour but I get the stuff in Two Little Boys. Duncan Sarkies the author, is definitely mental I think :-/ But still, I shall keep an eye on his future books.

Two Little Boys...gosh, I can't put the plot into words. Egh, anyway, it's about uh, two guys, a dead Norwegian backpaker, a Maori dude, an absolutely SCREWED up friendship, and New Zealand. Haha yeah. The story is set in New Zealand. Specifically in Otago, Dunedin in NZ. Which is also EXACTLY the place I'm heading to early 2011 (University Of Otago, insya'Allah). So, it creeped me out A LOT the book. EGhhh.

Enough of that.

I've also read a bit of Bright Shiny Morning by James Frey. It's like...well, so far, I deem it a books without a beginning or an ending (perhaps). Just the relentless drumbeat of multiple lives of the people in metropolitan L.A. Their, hopes, dreams & fears. It's like a painting in words. This book is also thick as heck, so I'll treat it like an old friend. You know, the kind of book you can read, then just leave it a while. Once you start reading it again, the story can still be grasped, the kind of book that greets you with open arms. No complex, twisty yada yada plot.

At the moment though, I'm reading The Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall. So far, I find it very intersting indeed. Quoting Mark Haddon (He wrote 'The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Time'), "Very entertaining. The bastard love-child of The Matrix, Jaws and The Da Vinci Code." Get the picture? Haha. Oh yea, this book will be turned into a Motion Picture soon, I think. Well, it says so on the last page. Just noticed that. :-/

Hm, I feel like mentioning this. You know, when I read a particular book that I kinda can relate to, or I think is awesome, I'd write a letter to the author. Yes, I do. And I never post it or e-mail it or whatever. Lame huh? I don't know. Somehow, by the time I'm done writing what's on my mind, they end up being, kinda personal. *sigh*

Anyway, what else?

Nyee, I don't know. Life is pleasant in general. I'm happy :) and I'd like to keep thoughts of 4th of January 2010 far far away from my mind. Yeah, I've still got 5 weeks of holiday and I can already feel the blues skirting at the edges of my mind. It's annoying.

One more thing, my little brother Adi got circumcised today haha. He's a real 'boy' now.

Big Bad Wolf

Need I say more?

MWHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAHA.

I'm going tomorrow.

Update:

I had an awesome Aidiladha in Terap, Kedah over at my grand parents' (Mom side of the family). Went to Penang Island and did some shopping at the Pasar Malam in Gurney Drive with my 'suku sakat'. Hehe. Will upload some pics later, Abang :)