Congratulations

 Prince William and Catherine Middleton walk down from the altar after signing the registry. In the background, Prince Harry and Pippa Middleton.

"Grow old with me, the best is yet to come"

THE day

This is a lovely black and white shot of William and Kate taken by Mario Testino taken for the wedding program. What a lovely idea!!The count down starts ......I shall be at work and will have to catch the rerun much later. Plus I am on call today which possibly means getting home after 8pm.

Good Bye Ms Kate Middleton and Hello HRH Princess William of Wales. ( which would be her official title unless the Queen decides  otherwise) Prince Andrew was given a dukedom on the morning of his wedding and has been known as the Duke of York since. Prince Edward was given the title Earl of Wessex on morning of his wedding day. Available dukedoms are ;Clarence, Cambridge, Sussex, Connaught, Cumberland, Albany and Windsor.....which will it be???

Journey to the unknown

A map for orientation 

 Seberang Prai is a nice quiet town. The buildings are built with great spaces around them giving you a sense of space which you will be hard pressed to find in the Klang Valley. The different scene makes for a nice change. We travelled from Penang Island to Seberang Prai to Kulim and to Kepala Batas. Despite the hot weather it wasn't as draining as it sounds.

Never far from work

Two thumbs up for Sunway Hotel Seberang Prai for the smiles as we arrived. The helpful man who came to my room to change the bulbs only to find ( much to my embarassment) that the switch was located near the head rest.  *duh* The free wi fi was brilliant. Available even at the lobby. Unlike the Renaissance hotel KB where I had to pay for my wifi...and that was limited to my room. I'm glad to be back home. Back to work this morning. And there's a bit of stuff to sort out in the next two working days. Busy busy! ( aren't we all?)

The Diana Years ( my version)

I was quite a Diana fan. Back in the old days ( don't you just hate it when folks say that) I would buy those coffee table books and read them and look at the pictures repeatedly. New Idea featured Diana and Charles' first visit to Oz along with baby William in a huge spread. I brought that issue to school and my friends and I ooh-ed and aah-ed over her lovely dresses and baby William. Then the obsession spilled over to Fergie when she got married. Around that time, interest in Diana dwindled. I cannot remember what that obsession was replaced with. A resurgence in royal interest was sparked later on by negative press thanks to Fergie and her toe-sucking incident. Her inevitable divorce wasn't so interesting. By the time Diana died, my interest had moved far away from the Royal Family and so I didn't mourn her lost as acutely as some.

William of Wales marrying Catherine Middleton is good for the Royal Family's image. If the most terrible thing her mother has done is called the washroom a loo and chew gum in public....then perhaps she is going to succeed in surviving life as a royal. You must either be royal and have been born into this fishbowl or want it bad enough. Middleton knows what she wants. She's waited long enough for this and I believe she would be able to put up with bad press with the grace and intelligence which perhaps Diana lacked at times. This comes from being a good ten years older than Diana when she got married.  She isn't a Diana replacement. And we shouldn't force her to be that. What she is, is a young lady who comes from a stable family and who is perhaps going to bring some fresh air ( and good genes) into the British Royal Family. Good luck Kate!

A Blessed Easter to everyone:)

Easter was lovely. After 3 whole years of violin playing, my mother agreed that I would not embarrass myself ( and her ) with my bad notes. She finally consented to my playing in church. A few bad notes which was thankfully masked by the singing.

A Blessed Easter and a holy year ahead to everyone:). I've changed the picture....

How to have a satisfying meal

Well for a start, don't be lured by interesting decor which the owner obviously paid a fat bit to achieve. Worry ..is this some form of compensation for the mediocre food we're going to eat. This is telur bistik which is brilliant.(I thought it was telur blistik ...named such because it looked like a blister which has just popped) Served at the local mamak. No fuss makan place. My only gripe is the smoke from the cigarette smokers.

Hands up those of you ...you have never heard of telur bistik....until now..!

Res-Q

I should not ask for sympathy for my sleep deprivation. It's self inflicted. Last night I slept on my pen. ( not a cheap one but one of those multiple coloured clicking pens going price 5:60 ringgit or something I forget now) It hurt a lot. And my leaky nose is fast becoming a huge part of my mornings. Allergic rhinitis? Possibly. Anyway the picture above is a product from Burts Bees. I love the packaging. But I wonder how this rescue ointment can help me:)

Jawa Night

10/10 for the set-up of the place. A big fat ZERO for food unfortunately. Service was slow. The girls lulled about and appeared bored with their job. No smiles...no small talk. Strictly glum faces and when we ate the food, we too developed a certain glum-ess in our facial expression. The owner was there. She appeared happy. Oblivious to the bad service her staff was providing. We were ( for most of the time ) the only customers there.

The entire set-up of the place is lovely really. A lot of thought went into designing the layout. The open air concept was okay in theory but the air was stale and smelt of recycled oil. We left the place reeking of it and with a strong promise NEVER to return.

Look what I got!

Full picture after Easter. 

Dad got me this. ( shopping from home is wonderful)

An aunt gave me this. Very Korean fashion like....

Am too tired to write. But I will say this, do NOT park your car at the side of the road along Solaris Dutamas. DBKL tolls cars away...yes even on a Monday night. Very lucrative chore I suspect

Guess where this is!

This picture would have been nicer minus the people

Walked pass this and almost missed seeing it completely. Love the ambience. I was in a rush, so I didn't look at the menu at all. But coffee at a place like this would be very nice indeed. Sure beats starbucks and coffee bean. ( sorry nothing against these two places)

I ate this just now

Some of us ( who will remain unamed) think I don't have any pictures of the red velvet cupcake. But ...I do and here it is.

What a Saturday:)

It rained:)

 It rained. And I got wet walking to violin class because as luck would have it I misplaced my umbrella. Rather than risk being late for class, I decided to brave the rain. It was big plops of water but one of those very Irish-like rain...fine weeny droplets you don't feel but it kind of makes your face moist without you realising it. Anyway I was moist and damp when I got there.

Too sweet. YUCK

 This was too sweet. So YUCK!

Good old ipad. Saves bring a book to read

 Currently reading my FREE Angela Brazil books downloaded from the gutenberg website. Lovely!

Herbal chicken soup noodle. YUM

And this...well this was simply lovely. Perfect for a wet and rather cold saturday:) I hope your Saturday was nice. Mine has been good so far:)

You want this!

Buy it!

This is brilliant! It's like inhaling vicks when you shower in hot water:) And the tingling sensation after your shower is an experience you wouldn't want to miss! Lathers well and is strangely relaxing. I would advice using it at the end of the day:)

Back to basics

Part of the beauty regime includes lathering this on the head! I would put a picture of the facial wash but I can't remember the name and can't be bothered to walk to the bathroom to peek:)

Off Label Ottoman

It's arrived. ( not today but over the weekend) I love it! And its current use is...to rest my legs whilst watching TV. And it serves as a coffee table too:)

Red velvet Monday surprise

What was left....

Somebody ate a red velvet cupcake and conveniently left this back in the box. But the story isn't about who left it there, but about the lovely lovely surprise gift we got early this morning. Red Velvet cupcakes in a lovely box. I haven't had time to eat my share. It's in the fridge and will be consumed early tomorrow morning. So nice, to be met with food when your arrive at work:) Thank you SZ and SA:)

Spring clean

I had "spring clean" for a drink just a moment ago. So I'm guessing the digestive tract is unclogged and I will sleep well tonight:)

Time for violin practice

Sunny Saturday in KL

Its nice and sunny this morning. I will
1. practice the violin. ( class at half 4 this afternoon)
2. Go to KLCC ( chores there...to buy some stuff )
3. Call for the ottoman to be delivered. Way behind...
4. Ironing ( BLEAH)
5. Pedicure ( yay)

Marking at Universiti Sains Malaysia (part II)

A smooth flight to KB via MAS airlines

 This year's marking of the part two theory papers was held in USM Khota Baru. We flew there on Wednesday evening and flew back on Thursday evening.

A spot of window shopping is inevitable when we're mostly women in the marking paper entourage

 Naturally a bit of window shopping is good for the mood. ( and for the students cos its nice to mark papers when you're in a good mood)

Lecturers from three different universities sit together and mark away !!!

And here we are....discussing...marking....re-marking....this is the OSCE group of examination papers being marked:) The other group appeared more efficient...we finished WAY ahead of these folks:)

Year three osce

Group 3 and 4 ..

Tis also the season for exams:) The professional year 5 exams, followed by the MMED theory exam and the last bit is the year 3 end of semester exam. This is the last day of the year 3 exams. Results are out officially on Monday. After we have the exam meeting and the marks are keyed in at the blok pendidikan.A special thank you to those of you who helped in the arrangement of the desks, chairs, orange arrows, questions, answer envelopes, time-keeper invigilator...etc. I hope my own batch of students did okay:)

Toosday

Out comes the non-existent mathemathical side of the brains 

 Tis the season where most folks start getting really aquainted with the SPSS, standard deviation, confidence interval, regression, variances, correlation, logistic or otherwise and there's a mad rush to get develop a close and intimate relationship with the pc. That's right,its the season for handing in the thesis proposal.

A quick meal before heading back to bed

I love this shot. Taken at the oldtown kopitiam at Solaris. The place is nice and quiet. ( that's important...I've grown over the last year or so...to develop this constant hate for crowds) Had a quick meal here before heading back home on Tuesday. I wish I were a whizz at statistics. Things to do in 2011 ( what's left of it) is to try and sign up for some biostat course.

Birthday!

We celebrated Dad's birthday last Sunday. Happy Birthday Daddy and God bless always! The chocolate cake was from bijoux! And the letterings are edible:) Only a single candle...no point risking the fire alarum going off when we blow the candle off. I admit, a rather girly cake...but the only other cake with blue icing had come off the trip from oven to shop with a bit of a smudge on the side.

Tutti Frutti Finally!

Gorgeous lively colours 

Today is a hot morning. And this is the perfect desert to ease the throat. Tucked on the first floor is this lovely bright place. The air condition was perfect. Walking in from the heat of the afternoon sun, you're greeted with bright colours like so.It's quiet. Which is a major plus point. Only one other couple there eating and attempting ( and failing ) to study.

Fresh cut fruits ...extras 

 The girls at the counter were friendly and we got to sample some before deciding what to have. Available flavours: natural, strawberry, death by chocolat, yam, apple and vanilla. And you're allowed to mix the flavours. I didn't feel terribly adventurous so I mixed vanilla and natural flavour. Yum!

Perfect for a HOT HOT SUnday morning

 And after making our choices and paying we sit and enjoy the cooling effect.

Self Service just don't go overboard and press the lever too long

Here are the machines where you head to get your own Tutti Frutti. I wonder whether the girls who work here pull the lever from time to time to have a little bit themselves.

Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra

I had a lovely Saturday evening. Alice Ott snapped a string on the piano but like the professional that she is, went on playing till the end. The conductor was precise and had a commanding way of waving his hands. ( And I met two new people this evening)

Dinner

Fresh Red Rose

Yummy gooey egg noodles with crunchy bits.

Water melon juice remnant

Nothing much else to say about this week except maybe that it's been a little bit more busy and I have been playing catch-up with some chores. ( And have cheerfully ignored some...and will suffer the consequence for sure for sure)