Mountain

Indeed, the sun was shining so brightly. Weather predictions had me thinking of the gloom, cold and wet.

What a lot of bollocks! I parallel parked!! WuHoOoOooo.. I'm good enough to drive further next, or so my instructor informs me.. Woot!!

3 degrees in the morning... one of the coldest since 1960-something... Freezing.. but the sun came out eventually.

Mr.Perth decided to go to the Mountains, and we did! Fancy that!

Izakaya Chuji @ Lonsdale Street, Melbourne

Having dinner with Mr.Perth after a long day at the aquarium at one of my fave Jap places.. Izakaya Chuji... reasonable and delicious with authenthicity!!!

A day filled with looking at sea creatures and a night filled with feasting of the said sea creatures! YuMmmMmm

We HAD to have some sake.



A plate filled with King Fish, Tuna, Salmon, and Whiting Sashimi. Deliciousssss



Fresh oysters with Ponzu Sauce...slurp!



Deep fried river fish (pregnant and filled with eggs!) served with mayo.



Geso Karaage - Deep fried squid tentacles served with mayo.



Nasu Dengaku - Grilled eggplant served with Miso sauce.



Ebi Hasa Miage - Tempura fried shitake mushrooms stuffed with prawn paste



Is anyone hungry yet?!

Phew.. and there's more to come =)

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Keep Fishin'

Ahh... I could stare at the Penguins all day long. They are really graceful, and the smaller ones are just plain hilarious and entertaining. As it was, I stood and stared at penguins for a 3 quarters of an hour. Amazing... and only moved because Mr.Perth wanted to see other creatures... meh!

It has been a good couple of days. Great to be out of the house. Great to have a friend around from school that knows of people in a forgotten time and space.

It's times like these that I wish I was in KL more. With my friends and family. The loneliness really hits you in the face.

The only positivity from this, is that I make a good impression of Melbourne, and all these visitors want to move down here!! And the fact that flights are getting cheaper, so... everyone should come visit and spend time with me.

Here's to another day of touristy spotlights!!

More to come!

Obviously this post is backdated =P

Fifteen Melbourne Review @

Gastronomy delight!! And yes the song is a song by Taylor Swift! Meh!

Fifteen Melbourne has an alleyway entrance that leads to the basement of a rather classy looking establishment.

Food was good, but I wouldn't say it was exceptionally. Stand out dish for me, Burnt Butter and Sage with Butternut Pumpkin Ravioli... simply to die for.

We had the express lunch menu (everything on it), and it was a really satisfying lunch. The lunch which we were served included dishes that were not on their normal a la' carte menu. So that was a plus point. Hence I have no descriptions for the food pictures below, but all you need to know that it was good =)

Oh and Toby Puttock was there in the kitchen cooking. So I can officially say, Toby cooked for me!! MmMmMmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm










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It's a Nice Day to be Alive

So... another day begins... except today I get to play tourist guide again, and my tourist seems to be pleased... *pheeww*... but it's not that hard to impress a person from Perth!!

A trip to Mekong had us slipping down the trails of slurpilicious Pho... and a walk around the city had as hungering for our souffle and dark orange hot chocolate at Max Brenner...

More in store this week?... Heads up, foodie pictures will be coming.. YUMMmMMmMMM!!!!!

Home to dinner... and making curry puffs had the Boy happy and satisfied...

AhhHhh... the joys of stepping out of the house and risking the weather, which turned SUNNY after all..

You've got to love Melbourne...

The New Workout Plan

There is indeed a new workout plan. Albeit the exact opposite of Kanye's regime.

We start at approximately 11am (depending on the weather, sometimes +- 1.5 hours).

Have a cup of hot beverage (which can be either, green tea, black tea, english breakfast tea, hot coffee, Ipoh white coffee, Bavarian Coffee, Vienna Coffee, Kopi-O, or Milo).

Either:
A.) Wash Clothes
B.) Mop the Floor
C.) Vacuum
D.) Dust the house
E.) Lounge around restlessly

More often than not, we opt for option E. as that requires the least energy.

After that, we can lounge around somemore.

At 4pm (after many hours of lounging and surfing the internet, playing PC games, playing on Wii), then it's time to get ready our dinner.

At 5.30pm, we can start cooking so that when HRH, the Boy arrives home, his senses can be assaulted by the frangrant aromas' wafting out of the kitchen.

I will thus be greeted by his royal Grumpiness as he takes out on me the unfairness of working life, and how little I can contribute at the moment because I am, jobless and lazy.. as mentioned before.

After the little berating I get, dinner will commence and he goes and tinkers with his computer whilst I again, lounge restlessly and longing for a decent conversation apart from the ones I have with the walls and floor on occasion throughout the day.

At night, he pops off to bed, and I stare at the gloomy night, praying endlessly that tomorrow, this daily torment will come to an end.

And tomorrow is another day.

Ain't Nuttin But Music

Wuhoo!!! I am still on high from Mr. A-Z. as well as the driving in the rain I just completed.

On days like these, I miss you more than most. I ache for the good times, the joy, the laughter, the love I thought we shared. I dreamt of you the other night. It was a short intense bittersweet dream. Reminding me that I have yet to let you go, or at least my subconscious can not or will not let you go.

It's okay, let it go, let the good times roll.

*ding**dong*... OoOOohhh... another parcel delivery... the doorbell has been in active drive today...

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10-15 minutes later

*attacking the packaging in glee!!!!*

My Wii microphone and the Boy's Microsoft Office pack is here.... WuhOoOOoo!!!

Can the start of the weekend get any better?

Disappear

That is how it felt like buying Beyonce's I am... tickets. It just went like crazy. I couldn't get the seats I wanted, so.. bah!... Sucks... I really want to go for this concert !!! Damn Damn Damn!!!

Sun is out shining... a really weird odd day for a supposed "Autumn-Winter". It is so hot that my walks today actually had me thirsting for water from the heat.

Lunch with the Boy's Aunt was fun.

A friend mentioned that we are "most definitely" an old married couple. And that's just the way it should be. Nearly 8 years, I think we deserve an applaud for lasting longer than most marriages!!!

Self congratulatory to be inserted here. Standing ovation is optional. So are autographs. But feel free to take pictures...

I smile at flashing lights =)

Oh yes, and Happy Birthday Mummy dearest!!!

Live High

Amazing first acts. But maybe Lisa Mitchell still needs to work on her showmanship. She is still really shy, soft-spoken and mumbles... reminds me of her Idol days. But her songs were entertaining.

Eric Hutchinson was great! A new fan is born here!!

Mrazzed-Mattazzeddddd..... I love how awesomely coold and casual this concert was. It was a jam session in an old delipatated theatre, which just goes to show, you don't need a great set, lighting, sound system (I was next to the speakers.. literally.. my ear drums are still hurting today!!!!)

Dancing and cheering on the floor even though we had seats at the front is what made this concert exceptionally good.... and I think if Mraz couldn't make it as a singer (which is not possible), he could very well succeed as a comedian!! That goes for MR. Toga!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jealous Jason??? Jealous??!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Only Human

Scramble, scramble... Where is that bloody phone? Why is it ringing...

Pick up, pick up... oh my.. I totally forgot

Frantic, frantic... wash up and get ready!

Hurry, Hurry... what and idiot.. I really thought it was for tomorrow and yet the calender agrees with the phone call... it is today!!

Oh God, Oh Gosh!.. What if I crash from sleepiness...

I Need, I need... coffee

Time, No time.. no time at all... 10 minutes was all he gave me...

Do or Die, Ready or Not, Here I come...

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And that was just me realising that my Driving Instructor just gave me a wake up call, and that's in both senses, literally and not.

Thin Disguise

In a totally random conversation with the Boy... I was speaking absolute gibberish in a very posh English accent and we discovered... it's true! Nothing you can say, cursing, gibberish, nonsense, jargon, sounds that bad when you actually put on a False Posh English Accent. Put in a bit of pomp into it and you've mastered eccentricity of the aristocrat classes. Fantastic what that can do to you and for you. Endless hours of entertainment...

I had KFC last night... A whole 3 piece meal all by myself... GREED... is a good thing... threw a tantrum though when the Boy stole a piece of my deep fried crispy chicken skin... absolutely ravingly Furious...

On another off the topic note.. I dream I was running up and down the stairs with Hugh Jackman and his wife last night. I had to take lots of pictures with them too... I shouldn't watch the news before I sleep... Hugh Jackman absailing right before I went to sleep made me have a very tired night in dreamland...

Before I leave you for the weekend.. you should be honoured... I hardly post anything on the weekends... try it... Say a rap verse of the most foul language you have on your playlist in a Posh English Accent... for variety... put in Indian and Scottish accents... guaranteed entertainment!!

Can't Cry These Tears

So what happens now? Th sun is shining brightly, it's beautiful rays streaming down through the clouds up above.

Somehow, these past few weeks, my mood and my writings have closely been tied to the weather. No wonder it's been a weird time for me, based on the Melbourne weather, I never know what to expect.

Motivation. Where have you gone?

I feel like I'm a roller coaster ride... and at every peak I reach, the fall is much much greater.... without the exhilarating feeling... how depressing...

I use to have such dreams and ambition. Now I'd settle for a good book, a cup of hot beverage, tuck in under the covers and just dream...

The guilt attached to it however is greater than the positive feeling.

I'm looking for a new me. Any suggestions?

The Norwegian Ridgeback and a change of seasons

The truth hurts... and when you don't want to face the truth and rather live in denial that's all it does.. it hurts... from the inside.. like your chest is constricting and your heart has been ripped out...

Why don't clever people see that (or they are not that clever anyway)? No matter what I say, how many times I say it.. they eventually rather get hurt... it's like they refuse to take the lifeline and learn from dying.. however the come back worse... angrier...sadder...more hopeless..

Life gets you down , don't it?

People never take the advice no matter how good it is.. I find myself guilty in this matter as well.. why are humans so stubborn? Why do we feel the NEED to learn from our mistakes? That we are so sure weren't mistakes in the first place?

If life was as simple as running away and starting afresh somewhere safe.

Somehow it seems more like walking down an uncertain road and at the first sign of a friendly face, find love and hope, only to learn that the friendly face was a killer bandit, that will shoot you in the back eventually and take your things and leave you on the road to die.. not even on the side off the road.. right in the middle.. where they shot you in the first place...

Perhaps I'm only feeling melancholy as I'm counselling someone with problems.. and finished my Jennifer Fallon collection.. and I'm feeling a little out of place back in reality right now...

On a brighter note, there's always Richard and Kahlan (more like sour note)... and my new Dianne Wynne Jone's books... *bliss*

Crying over spiders.. now that IS a fear I can relate to. I am terrified of geckos'... bloody lizards...

Off to bed now.. the Boy has "requested" that I have an early night tonight as I am having a killer migraine...plus hormonal imbalance...

And he has promised that we have Pizza tomorrow... PIZZA!!

*bliss*

Holiday

A temporary hiatus of a week seems to have done me good. Blogger's block (which I initially spelt as Blooger's Blog *now that would have given me something to write about), had me wound up tightly and I ended up writing a short story, which was published here.

Easter came and went... much like how the days went when God *Supposedly* (and this is where the Christian's around the world will strike me dead) first created the Earth in 7 days. The cantor's singing still sticks in my head, playing like a broken gramophone: "Evening came and morning came, the first day. God saw that it was good. And so it was...."

Even the Vatican has acknowledge evolution...so what does that say about God?

Anyways, I shall not venture into theology, as that will probably get me all heated up in argument mode... Go watch some conspiracy theories that deal with religion... I can name one in particular, however this is religion and global issues... Watch... "Zeitgeist"

So I digress, as is generally the case with how I post.

1 week. So many things can happen in 1 week. You find out how precious life is. You realise how important family is. Hope and prayer (I may be sceptical on religion, but I still believe in God/Gods) and hopefully what has hit us, will eventually go away. Happy endings are deservedly his, as he has done nothing but made sacrifices for the family. A good man.

Where does that leave us? Sickness is a word that is taboo. Somehow, I am not that immune to it as I would like to believe. There is no way of escaping reality.

Darkside

This is the second part to the post from before...
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A flash of light and a low rumbling sound indicates that the night can only get worse for me if I don’t find any cover soon. Another flash and I stumble as I see an opening in the rocks.

I run towards the cave entrance. Afraid that I might be disturbing something worse inside, but having no other option, I gladly accept the shelter. To stay out would mean a certain death. Shivering, I argue with myself that at least, inside I will be dry.

The wind by now is howling and I am chilled to the bone. I need to keep warm, and if I do not, I might find myself dying from the cold instead. A much slower and possibly a welcome death compared to the alternative, but I find myself clinging on to life.

In the cave at last, there is a faint smell of some animal. Equine? I continue deeper in the cave and slide to the cave floor. By touch, I find a stack of hay next to me. By its smell, it is fresh as well. Gratefully I make myself comfortable and warm. Wondering to myself, how did the hay get into this cave?

Lulled by the sweet smelling hay and the sound of the thunderstorm outside, I find myself drifting into a deep sleep. The screeching has stopped by now. That would mean the rain has sent them off my tracks. Luck is on my side.

I close my eyes and hug myself closer to the cave walls. Again the handsome face from before. He is smiling at me, beckoning me to sit. Smiling, he takes my hands and puts it in his. I am lost in his honey coloured eyes. He looks like a magnificent marble statue come to life. If not for the twinkle of life in his eyes, I might just believe that he is a statue.

I realise that as his hand lifts my chin to look directly into my soul, that I have not been listening to him. He is laughing as he realises the effect he is having on me. Blushing furiously, I pull away. His face, more serious now from before, he solemnly says to me, “Estelle, it is time.”

Estelle. I have a name. The memory fades as loud thunder echoes around the cave. I scream in silent frustration.

Who is that man? What was it time for? Maybe I am just going insane and hallucinating.

I drift off to a more fitful sleep.

The World is Black

The cold night air.. frozen fingertips... dull ache in my weary bones...

Decaying hope... an inkwell of forgotten dreams... memories of faces unfamiliar, unbidden, forgotten come to mind.

This heavy cast of blackness unfurling its edges like a mother encasing her child with warmth and protection. A blanket of fear and hopelessness descends upon me. Unable to scream, a choked sob escapes my lips.

How did it become like this? When will this torment end? Will the light shine for me once again?

I have no answers to my desperate questions. I see no light and there is no end to this tunnel of doom.

Screeching above my head in the dark clouds above, unbidden images of black dragons flying. They are looking for prey. They are looking for a victim.

They are looking for me.

Run now, run. There's nowhere to hide. No trees, no cover... lost in a wide open space of swirling darkness. My fear is my only company.

The blackness, as much as I loath it, ironically, is keeping me alive for now. Why are they looking for me? I cannot remember.

I struggle to remember who I am. Only a brief flash of a face. A handsome pale face. Eyes, the colour of golden honey. Hair black as the darkness around me. Pale as a ghost. And then the face is gone.

It is so dark that I cannot even see my own hands. Powered by adrenaline and the need to survive and find some light and warmth, I run silently on.

Violet Hill

A weekend filled with joy and laughter. What more could one ask for?

From the classic, "Little creatures running around the house" to "I must I must I MUST increase my BUST", and the bomb "Not quite in-tangent, it's in tandem"!

Raindrops that fall from the sky only increase the chances of a good cuddle in bed. Warm and secure, for that short moment I was taken away from the harsh reality and encased in a cocoon of love and joy.

Meeting up to have some jasmine tea and some "char siew pau" and chouk... is as good as it gets.

Once again, a pleasurable weekend and I live to see the next one.. and I can assure you, it'd be a good one... Long Weekend love... here we come!!!

Rain

Ahh yes, "the rains are here Marge"! Ahh, McCain's, you've done it again!

Woke to the brilliant news that I am getting my $900 from the government after all... and THUNDERSTORMS.... I loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee THUNDERSTORMS....
The thunder has been going on for quite sometime now.. it's 12pm and yet it looks like 7pm in the evening or 6am in the morning... I absolutely love it..

The heavy rain always brings out a nostalgic side in me. It's the one time when I miss KL more than anything. I miss my mummy! Yeah I said it (Chris Rock's voice).

I can't believe it, but moping around the house, staying up til 3am most nights and waking at 11am takes more effort than I like. I never knew it was such a hard lifestyle to maintain, at least not during uni days...

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Ok. Thank goodness for surge protectors... I just turned my computer back on after it went off followed by a bright flash and a loud baritone rumbling.... Sometimes, it seems that there are Giants throwing rocks at each other... or that the Gods are simply rearranging their furniture... or being pursued by Paparazzi and punishing them by clapping thunder on their heads after all the flashing lights... =)

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As per usual, I get easily distracted and digress. Incidentally, the word Egress means Exit. Hah.. betcha didn't know that.

So anyway... this living the life of a uni student is really taking it's toll on me, I oversleep on a daily basis (I only started this experiment this week, on a Monday). Have breakfast at 12noon, Have lunch at 4pm, And then have dinner at 1am... it's amazing.... My body clock is all wrong and should fit in perfectly with the time back home (which is 3 hours behind).

So here ends my experiment. I long to have bedtime hours that start from 11pm-8am ( I once slept straight for 15 hours.. my mum thought I was really sick *)

*But I was just really sleepy, nothing she said or did could wake me up

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I want to go home so bad. Feeling just a tad homesick. Feeling just a tad useless stuck in this place where I enjoy escaping to my fantasy worlds.. but at the same time, I'm tired of escaping.

Feeling a bit gloomy to job prospects. Feeling a tad sad that I don't have many friends here. Feeling a tad depressed that my qualifications seem to just gather rejections.

*sigh*

On the brighter side. There's THUNDERSTORMS!