postcrossing has always been my favourite hobby ever since lengshan introduced it to me. i've got so many beautiful postcards from all over the world, its certainly a collection i'm proud of.

i enjoy looking at the postcards themselves, but what really exhilarates me is the message from the sender. sometimes, they would tell me alittle about their lives, sometimes information of the landscape on the postcard, sometimes brief details about their country. i also love admiring the different unique stamps from their countries, so in a way, i'm collecting not only postcards, but stamps as well! :)

so, i'd probably share alittle of my collection each time i blog.

The Netherlands





stamp from The Netherlands

"Hi Theresa,

Greetings from Holland! Wooden shoes are not often used here, but some people still do! Happy postcrossing!

Nico"

China



Stamp from Taiwan



"Hello~ Ni Hao! Last year i went to China and bought the postcard in Tianjin City. Hope you like the view card. 2009 is the year of Ox. Happy Niu Year!

Beva"

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

i'm totally in love with the Be Heard in Chinese advertisements campaign. The little international kids could speak and articulate mandarin so well, so much better than me in fact! haha.

but the thing that makes me love it more is that they are really really ADORABLE! each time i watch the commercial, i cant help by squeak or squeal because i feel like hugging them and squeezing them. they are really really adorable please. REALLY REALLY adorable!









and last but not least, my favourite one, Noemie!



HAHAHAHA. so adorable! aaaahhh!

ohhk so anyway, snap out of it. i'm really entertained at work. by my dear friend jingwen, who's currently crazily obessessed over a certain something, that is capable of making her carry out strange acts such as laughing to herself! hahaha. as such, her poor colleague yiting, wants me to add that she's thoroughly irritated by it because jingwen's behaviour is out of the norm. hahaha.

scandalous darling!

meeting szeying on wed, i hope! miss you darling!

Earth Hour 2009 was fun, spending an hour with the absence of light, as our home was plunge into darkness! mom felt depressed though. haha. i'm glad we took part in this meaningful campaign! God bless us all :)

i've still yet to receive a call from the uni. rather nevous. HOW?! and anyway, i only applied for NUS. sigh!

by the way, i'll be going to Haikou or otherwise known as Haian Dao, from 6th April to i think 11th or 12th April, next week! just a simple holiday with my mom :) CANT WAIT!

Love,
turle 11.15pm

EARTH HOUR 2009

29th March 2009, Saturday, 830PM to 930PM local time, is the time for all of us to give our support to the Earth Hour 2009 campaign! simply flicked off all lights in your home for 60 minutes, which would be an effortless yet symbolic action!

Earth Hour is a global campaign to reach out to the world, so as to raise awareness and take action to fight climate change. The weather today, is more than erratic. Winter arrives later, and temperatures fluctuates in extremes.

Climate change, in particular global warming, is a very evident problem today, which results in implications and environmental problems.

Global Warming, to put it simply, refers to a general increase in the Earth's temperature, which is caused by enhanced greenhouse effect, and reduction in carbon sinks.

Here are some of the many consequences of global warming:

1)Changing Weather and Extream Weather



For example, hurricanes that are simulated under warmer and higher CO2 conditions are more intense. Worldwide, the proportion of hurricanes reaching categories 4 or 5 (with wind speeds above 56m/s) has risen from 20% in the 1970s to 35% in the 1990s.

2)Melting Glaciers and Ice Sheets



The escalation of ice melt from continents as well as from sea ice masses and glaciers is the most widespread effect of global warming. currently, mountain glacier retreat rates have been increasing in the Andes, Alps, Himalays, Rocky Mountains and North Cascades.

Effects:

-landslides

-flash floods

-glacial lake overflow

-serious threat to the future of local water resources because increased melting would cause greater flow for several decades, after which some areas of the most populated regions on Earth are likely to run out of water as glaciers sources are being depleted.

-increased in temperature which may disrupt the ecosystems

-increase bacterial activity in soil lead which causes them to become carbon sourcs instead of carbon sinks.

THAT IS, contibuting to the enhanced greenhouse effect, and thus global warming, instead of facilitating the removal of CO2 in the atmoshphere.


3)Sea Level Change



The first island destroyed by rising sea levels caused by global warming was Lohachara Island in the Sundarbans in the Bay of Bengal, which was home to 10,000 people.

Effects:

-coastal erosion

-coastal flooding

THEREFORE, lost of homes.

4)Acidification



CO2, in water, becomes a weak carbonic acid. Thus, increase in greenhouse gas would lower the average pH of seawater.

Effects:

-detrimental on coral reefs

-affect the growth and reproduction of fish, which is a mjor source of food supply for Man.

5)Effects on Ecosytems



Many of species ar risk are Artic and Antartic fauna such as polar bears. Forests in some regions, such as North America, potentially face an increased risk of fores fires.

6)Effects in World Food Supply and Changes in the Biosphere



It is projected that soil moisture will fall by 10% if global warming continues into the next 30 years. agriculture would therefore, be severely affected, and coupled with a global population boom and uneven distribution of food resources, the consequence culd be disatrous.

7)Spread of Disease



Global warming may also lead to an increase in malaria and dengue infected areas, especially in poorer countries.

8)Effects on Health



Extreame high temperatures increase the number of people who die on a given day for many reasons, for example, heat exhaustion.

In the lower atmosphere, ozone is a harmful pollutant which damages lung tissues, thus causing problems for people with asthma and other lung diseases.

PLUS more pollutants from smokers, negative effects of heath would definitely increase!

Earth Hour 2008 was a success, with millions of people in some of the world’s major capital cities, including Copenhagen, Toronto, Chicago, Melbourne, Brisbane, Tel Aviv and Manila, who took part and switch of their lights for 1 hour.

Why should i switch off the lighs then?

TO SAVE CARBON DIOXIDE!

"According to WWF Thailand, Bangkok decreased electricity usage by 73.34 megawatts, which, over one hour, is equivalent to 41.6 tonnes of carbon dioxide. The city of Christchurch of New Zealand reported a drop of 13% in electricity demand."

-from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_Hour

So, just 1 hour of your time could make a huge differenc for Mother Earth! Of course, it would be even better if all of us make it a habit to reduce our electricity usauge at home and at work, and NOT SMOKE. and bring our own plastic bags. and not ask for carriers. and reuse, reduce and recycle. and not sleep with the aircon on. and not drive our cars around always. and take public transport once in awhile IF you drive a car. and use environmentally friendly product. and buy solar powered car. and play more sports instead of computers and watching tv. and limit your time on the computer, or rather, switch off your computer when not in used, rather than putting it on standby mode as it still uses up electricity. and not have long baths. and not let the water run. and... so many more!

HAHA. all these, are what daddy, mommy and geography taught me! daddy is very excited about Earth Hour and he was the one who actually initiated to get involved with it :D So, my family would be taking part in this campaign by switching off the lights for 60 mins! my mommy reminds and encourages us to save electricity by pasting stickers on certain parts of our home, which shows us the amount of money we can save if we switch of the lights. and sis and i have an air con in our room which we hardly use now, because we feel guilty switching it on every night like we did in the past. this really helped to cut down on the electricity bills significantly! a fan will do just fine.

of course, we could do more in conserving the resources of Mother Earth such as reducing our water usauge, and cutting down our computer hours! haha. dont worry, we're working on that!

so, join in later this evening, from 830pn to 930pm, to do your part for the Earth we live in! :D it would be fun and exciting!

This year's slogan:

WHEN IN DOUBT, VOTE EARTH




---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

after work tml, i'll be attending a dentist forum with my parents at paragon! going for scaling and polishing two weeks back, the dentist Doctor Chan, a 71 year old strong and beautiful lady, told me that its best for me if i put on braces! though its a pity too. cause basically, my teeth are straight except for one of the front teeth.

yet, if i dont put on braces, it would get more crooked as time passes due to the pressure exerted by the other teeth. so, my parents are bringing me to the forum to learn more about braces and stuff, and hey, there's invisible braces too! never heard of them until then.

hmm, would i have problems lip locking with braces on? haha.

then shopping afterwards! :D

anyway, recently, i'm so entertained online by my darlings jingwen and yiting. everyday, work would be less mundane with them to chat with online, which would make me smile like a silly kuku infront of the computer! especially yiting, who shares with me her OFFICE SCANDALS.

speaking of office scandals, my daddy was sharing with me office scandals in his new workplace. i feel like sharing right now, but have to wake up for work tml so i'll share some other time!

Love,
turtle 12:00mn

so, i'm back to blogging again!

been having lots of fun with the girls, its really a pity we're no longer schooling. Jingwen was telling me how much she missed soccer and everything to do with it. cause it seems that the end products of our two years of JC life are memories of soccer and the bond so intricately formed. ohh yeahh and soccer souvenirs too. haha. cause most of us will live with old injuries, inflicted during training and matches!







"Don't you worry.
Sometimes you've just got to
let it ride.
The world is changin'
right before our eyes.
Now I've found you
there're no more emptiness inside...
if we're hungry,
love will keep us alive."
-Eagles


i cant wait to upload the Teen Games futsal match photos, where we emerged champion and first runner up, as well as the birthday potluck gathering.

to elaine who's crazy over the little boy: darling! i cant stop thinking of your ba ba (fats!) hahaha.

to theresa: i simply enjoy whispering nothingness into your ears, and acting like we're gossiping away. we should lock brenda in the storeroom the next time! haha.

to all march babies: thanks to you lovelies, I'M BROKE! hahaha. but everything's worth it because you guys are always there. i love you :) and thank God march is coming to pass. haha.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

my left eyelid has been twitching almost everyday at work recently, and sometimes at night too. it got me really really irritated, and rather anxious as well. the latter because i'm rather superstitious, and you know, we Chinese believes all sorts of things. and i'm always hearing stuff like when your left or right eyelid twitches, it means that something bad is going to happen. i mean, even though i try not to believe in such 'pan dan' stuff which have no evidence to back them up, i find myself thinking about it, and then worrying about it. like i mean, what if its true! and hey, the left eye lid is twitching almost everyday! it should mean something, shouldnt it?

and so, during work, when my eyelid began to twitch again (like muscles have an orgasm can?), i decided to check it out. i googled "left eyelid twitching", and here's something i've found!



"Eye Twitching, or Blepharospasm, is involuntary eyelid twitching. It is also referred to as an eye muscle spasm. The term blepharospasm really applies to any abnormal blinking or involuntary eye twitching of the eyelids caused by uncontrolled contractions of the muscles around the eyelids.


Sometimes people experience the twitching under the eye and others may experience the twitching in their right eye or twitching in their left eye. In simple terms it is a blinking disorder. One type of blepharospasm, Benign Essential Blepharospasm or BEB is a blinking disorder that is not life threatening and has an unknown causes."

-http://www.eyecaresource.com/conditions/eye-twitching/

such spasm (haha) may be caused by the dryness of eyes, so i attribute my problem to my contact lens which i wear almsot 24/7. in this case, i've got nothing to worry about eh! scientifically, that is. haha.

so, i proceeded to find on superstitions regarding the twitching of the left eye. and here's it!



11pm - 1am

Twitches or tics in the left eye means a noblemen will come to see you. If the right it means you will be invited to a party or feast.


1am - 3am

If in the left eye, this means that something will happen to worry you. If the right eye, then someone is thinking about you.


3am - 5am

If in the left eye, this means that a friend from afar will come and visit you. If the right eye, this means a happy event awaits you.


5am - 7am

In the left eye, this means that a special guest will come. If in the right eye, then everything will go well.


7am - 9am

In the left eye, this means a close friend will come from afar. If in the right eye, then expect a slight injury.


9am - 11am

In the left eye, this means you will go to a party or feast. If the right eye, you will have a quarrel or a disaster.


11am - 1pm

If the left eye, this means you will eat and drink heartily. If the right eye, beware or there will be a disaster.


1pm - 3pm

In the left eye, this means that you are safe and plans go well. In the right eye, it means that you will have a minor happy event.


3pm - 5pm

In the left eye, it means you will lose money. In the right eye, then you will be thinking of your loved one very much.


5pm - 7pm

In the left eye, this means a guest is coming. This is also true for the right eye, but from far away.


7pm -9pm

In the left eye, this means a guest is coming. In the right eye, it means you will go to a big gathering.


9pm - 11pm

In the left eye, it means that a friend is coming. In the right eye, beware of trouble in court.

wow, so it seems its not so bad that my left eyelid is twitching because it is a better omen than having your right eyelid twitching eh?

my left eyelid mostly twitches from 9am to 1pm, in the early hours of work, so: i will go to a party or a feast and eat and drink heartily! hahaha. so thats good isnt it! so far, i've been to our soccerettes birthday party and eaten heartily there. too much food, no? haha. and since my left eye is still twitching, i guess i can expect more feasts and parties to be coming my way!

so anyway, i've finally registered and paid for my university application, putting FASS as my 1st choice, and Law as my 2nd. i pray that whatever course i get into, its all in God's bigger plan!

off to watch the 9pm auntie housewives' series! :)

Love,
turtle 9:20pm

lame shit video. hahahaha. quite funny actually, especially if you're rotting in boredom. i've been kissing gerrard for god knows how many times. his pouted lips on the camera lens is my handphone wallpaper, thanks to Theresa. serious case of fantasy there. haha. anyway, i think vds is rather good looking! haha. and stupid lucas, looking quite ugly with the haircut. i cant seem to like him no matter how hard i try.

i will try to make my blog neater tomorrow, coupled with an update! :)

after work today, took bus home with my aunt as she wanted to meet mommy for dinner. my uncle drove my aunt to work today so she didnt came in her own beetle. however, my uncle was still working at 6, so we had to go back to my place by ourselves. my aunt suggested we take a cab down, but i thought it would be such a waste of money since we're working at batok and home is just like a 5 mins drive. so, i told my aunt to take the bus, and she immediately said yes! she was so excited cause its been 20 over years since she took the public bus! haha. have been driving for the past 20 years thats why. its really weird though, to see my aunt taking the bus haha. got her to tap the ezlink card and she was so unsure. so cute! haha. she made me so excited to take the bus too!

i wonder if in the near future, public transport would be foreign to me too. i mean, now that i really want to learn driving and have registered, i'm saving up for an old car. a really old one, probably 8 or 9 years old so that i can drive straight away once i get my license in a year's time. so, i'll be driving and driving and driving, but still, i cant see myself not taking the mrt or bus. weird, as public transport is part of my life now. haha.

for example, going out with benson took awhile to get use to as well, cause he drives a car. its just unfamiliar going out with a friend who has a car as us teenagers go everywhere by train or bus. haha. i really cannot imagine any of my peers owning a car. its like we've all grown up already.

haha. dont know why am i talking so random stuff suddenly.

so anyway, as most people should already have know, i've gotten back my A level results last friday! i could feel my legs shaking as i queued to take back my results from ms mardiana and mr hendri. when it was my turned, my hands shook rather badly and i couldnt really sign my name! haha. but when ms mardiana said, "congrats, congrats", i knew everything turned out well. so this is it:

H2

HISTORY: A

GEOGRAPHY: A

ECONOMICS: C

H1

GP: A

CHINESE: B

PROJECT WORK: B

AND

MATHEMATICS: S (hahaha! subpassed lar!)

i'm really really satisfied with my results because none of my grades dropped. improved for all except for maths. haha. cause never bother to study. absymal performance for this complicated, makes no sense subject haha. i'm really one who's more than unevenly balanced in the left and right brain. haha.

so now, headache for which courses to take in university. but i've settled in choosing to go to nus. so now, i'm not sure if i should apply for school of law or fass. there's pressure from mommy, and relatives as well, and sometimes you want to live up to people's expectations so you wouldnt feel like you've disappoint them. cause when you do, you'll get abit disappointed as well. so, i guess, i will go to their open house to poke around before deciding.

during this stressful and draining 2 years of education, i really want and need to thank my teachers: mr hendri, miss mardiana, miss tiong, miss lum, mr lim and miss hwang for making lessons so interesting and being such fabulous, patient teachers. must also thank miss lim for her encouragements and to coach, for more encouragements. haha. despite pushing us so hard for soccer, he would encourage us to study hard as well!

also want to thank all my friends, soccerettes and clique and kathy, for being such good influence (haha), and building a conducive environment for me to study smart in. and also, to all other friends sunh as Weizi and Marquez, for neverending morale support.

and most importantly, to God, for his unwavering faithfulness and favour :)

HELLO! i'm at the office now, having tea with my beautiful aunt :D

WORKING HERE IS FUN!

tomorrow's the day already.

to be honest, i'm quite at peace with it. i remembered clearly how fretful i was before i took my O level results. how i couldnt fall asleep, how the anxiety keeps building up, how i felt like i was going to barf anytime. haha.

rather similar to the start of every 100m dash, and pre match pep talks.

but this time, i'm feeling quite relaxed, and in fact, rather excited, to receive my results. i thought i would be fill with a great sense of dread, but no, i was wrong.

confident? no, of course not. considering how much time i spend playing soccer, and how much of the remaining time was devoted to studying. haha. but i guess, i've come to the point where i've realised, that it makes no sense worrying over something that have already be defined months ago. you cant change it anymore, can you?

also, i've talked to my parents and my aunt, and they were really encouraging about it. through these talks, i know that even though i may screw up for my As, it is not the end of everything. nor will it be the end of my education.

because i really enjoy learning. ohhk, not maths and science of course. those subjects are out of my radar haha. but i enjoy humanities, and even during my holidays, i do read up on some stuff, like history. also, working with my aunt have evoked in me a certain interest for business management. and i started to see a whole new different side of running a business (i.e you may be the boss, or not). the challenge of it all drives my curiousity to learn more about it.

thus, in the event of unsatisfactory results, i would definitely still continue my education. private uni, maybe? or night classes. there's always a solution to everything, as long as you want it, and never stop finding.

i'll certainly not let a piece of paper determine the kind of future i would have :)

but of course, if i do well, there's going to be headaches too. because, which course should i go! i want to take a double degree in history and geography, but i'm also interested in law and business administration. haha. something needs to click first. its like, my mind and heart are a jigsaw puzzle i'm almost done there. the picture's almost perfect. but there are still some missing pieces. i know what i want to do, but its a rather hazy vision. i need the mssing pieces. then, i'll be able to make the perfect decision.

ohh! i've finally registered for driving. will be taking my basic theory next month. this month's too packed already. jasmine's chalet, clash of the titans, two futsal compeition... no time to study. i cant wait to pass my basic theory, start practical, study for advanced, and get my license. then, i'll go for a bike license when my dad starts working overseas! haha. probably that would take about a year or so though.

i'm becoming more finacial savvy too! :D trying to plan my finances properly, getting alot of advice from my aunt. dad bought life insurance for sis and me, but i'm thinking of buying one endownment insurance for myself, which would be an important investment. but first, i need to find out more about all these suff.

my first test though, would be this very particular month! most of the girls are march babies (ohh well!). while i've already planned on what to get for them, keeing to the budget is another thing! haha.

alright, time to sleep :) i'm hoping that i'll dream of 4 As! the last time my dream came true, it was liverpool vs chelsea during first half of the season! i dreamt that we scored 1-0 and won, and we did! hahaha.

and by the way, hear this particular exhilarating news on the radio yesterday:

LIVERPOOL MAY COME TO SINGAPORE FOR A FRIENDLY WITH THE SPORE LIONS DURING JUNE OR JULY!

NOW TELL ME, HOW COOL IS THAT!

CHEERS :D

dad got so angry with me for playing guns n' roses songs. he said its crap music and its so noisy. woah, he must be alittle deaf then. hardcore music, with a hardcore guitarist!

VICTORY IS

ORGASMIC;

not fried mars bars. haha.

the rainbow that reminds us of God's promise (snapshots taken from aunt's car):













on Friday, we had soccer competition at Singapore Poly, organised by SP itself. i was desperately counting down the time to the end of work. couldnt wait to meet the girls after like 10000 years. surprised them with my bangs! haha.

was alittle disoriented though cause my colleague met with a serious accident during work, where thick canvas of dont know how many kilograms fell onto his head from the 2nd storey. Thank God he didnt die, or was not paralysed!

but anyway, the soccer competition was hell of a fun! being pampered soccer players as what coach always says, the REAL grass field made us all so itchy. the girls were scratching here and there and everywhere. haha. but i really enjoyed playing on the real field.

so anyway, it was half field, 7 aside, and WE WERE THE CHAMPIONS! it may not be A div, but it was close to winning the Champions' League! cant tell you how happy were we! The juniors were really great in supporting us off the pitch! and Jasmine darling scored the winning goal for us! :D

took lot of photos, despite being so dirty and smelly! and i felt like i was sucked back to year 2007 and 2008, where we girls went through thick and thin together during every training. it felt really good to be able to play together as a team again, against others.

BUT THEN, we were sort of cheated can! instead of trophies, which were definitely more significant, they gave us $10 vouchers and a certificate, which the organiser conveniently forgotten to get it signed. haha. so dumb. but anyway, what matters most was the time with the girls, and the adrenaline on the pitch!

and yeahh, my menses came during the competition. did not realised it at all until we washed up. and my shorts was white! Thank God, i wore tights beneath so it didnt stained.

Thanks Juniors, for the super unglam photos of us all, esp Jingwen's! haha.





we said "4 A1s"















and Elaine, thanks love, for the sweet Valentine :)

the next day, couldnt join the girls' for street again due to work! but we met for dinner in the evening, New York New York at JP to celebrate the feb babies birthday as well as Chris's. she was totally caught off guard!

took a cab from tampines all the way back home after work. costs me a fucking $20 (heart so pain)! but i had no choice, if not i would be super late for the dinner. but the taxi driver uncle was really really nice and sweet, and he is the kind of senior citizen i want to be in the future, still so alive and excited about everything :)

but then, we waited for like 2 hours plus until Chris finally came, and our food all turned cold already. Xianwen said that soccerettes should always bring a microwave along with us in the future! we've got a strange habit of tardiness and dily dalying. haha. at least my pasta wasnt so bad as jingwen's porkribs, which totally dried up and became rock hard!. haha.

Jasmine was totally drop dead gorgeous with her new hairstyle and dressing. totally guy mesmerising yo! and she said the fried mars bars were orgasmic and that snowballed into a conversation about sex and orgasm among jas, theresa, elaine and i. totally enriching! haha.

sweet cupcakes as birthday cakes for chailing, yiting, huiying and chris (in order of age haha), as the new york new york service crew surprised them with a Happy Birthday song. but chai said she expected it alr :( still, her face was tomato ketchup red lar. anyway, this waiter(who later asked for jingwen's number), gave us 3 plates of fresh whipped cream! and we smeared them across the birthday babies faces! woots! everybody in the restaurant was looking at us! spotlight yo! but then, we were so occupied in our fun, none of us really cared. Chai got the most of the cream, thanks to elaine! yiting and huiying mostly got a hair dye. haha.

later, some of the girls went home, while the rest of us chilled out at Starbucks. Elaine and i totally goggled over this hot, tall, tan and super well toned girl. lesbian tendencies alittle, no? haha. we chilled and gossiped (mainly), about this girl and that boy in our school. haha. typical females. haha. and the rain was pouring outside, and it felt so comfy inside with your friends around you. catched the last bus home, and the last bus home made me think of somebody. sigh.

will upload the photos as soon as possible!

anyway, saturday was a bomb except that liverpool fucking lost to middlesbrough. absymal performance again lar! really doing a big favour to man u can. yiting and i were so pek chek (x1000000000000000000) sigh. hopefully, they dont give away the champions' league title so easily. i'm still a little in disbelief. thanks to rafa benitez, the most erratic and unfathomable manager.

lucas leiva look rather weird in his short hair anyway. haha.

and congrats to Lixuan, Chai, Chris and Bren for winning the Carling Cup. Lixuan, i think, when man u won, first thing you did was to message us right. haha. 1down, 4 more titles to go then! haha.

procrastination is really running circles round my head. i've wanted to sign up for driving for like millions of years ago already, but i still havent gotten down to doing it! went today after work with dad, but you've got to wait for like what, 3 1/2hours! crazy or crazy? so, we're going back first thing tml early morning, as soon as the driving centre opens. abit kaisu, but it beats having to wait, which is a huge waste of time! Thanks Lixuan though, for lending me the basic theory book :)

RESULTS ARE

COMING OUT THIS

FRIDAY, 6TH

MARCH!

GOD, HAVE MERCY :)