2007-07-22

The Journey Commences

So...the last Harry Potter book was 'released' yesterday at 9am AEST.
Having planned to wake up earlier and go down to Borders bookstore to line up for the book...things didnt happen as such naturally.

Had a relatively late night the night before at the final house party at Sehej's place.
So I ended up waking at 9am thinking "CRAP".
Went down within 15mins and found a line so long it ended at Satay Club.

O_O

Was totally annoyed la...so I ended up going for breakkie at KF, having some cravings since the night before.
Finished at around 9.45 and found the line just a little shorter: at Pane e Vino.

But it didnt stop there.
One of the staff from Borders came over and informed us that we were in the "Pickup" line and that we had to go finalise our orders.
WTF??!?!
So I rushed to the front of the shop, lined up at another queue which took forever to move, paid, went back to the long line (which by now fortunately had shrunk to where Night Owl was. And after a terrible 1hr of queueing, I finally walked out of Borders with my own copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Rushed home and started reading...only to realise I needed to stop after 100pages that I needed to get ready for the Singclub meeting in the afternoon. UGH!
Stopped...did some work on the laptop, Justin arrived to pick me AC and Aunt Doris, had the meeting, dinner to celebrate Anthea's husband's birthday, and finally back home. Which was about 9.30 already I think.

Continued reading but eventually had to give up after another 300pages.

So finally at around 4.30am, at page 400, I gave in and went to bed.

This morning, I woke up around 11am but felt absolutely tired and sleepy. Dragged myself out of bed, packed my book in a pouch, and went off to church. (Such a journey indeed). Had lunch with Lindsay and Joel, went to Jeremy's, ordered a Chai and continuted with the book.

The 2 of them came and kept me company after they went for groceries but eventually left as well. Finally around 5.15pm, seeing that Jeremy's was about to close for the day, I packed up, and went home. Around page 525.
I was going nuts already.

Rushed back, got comfortable, jumped onto my bed and continued reading. The slowest 1.5hrs proceeded I slowed down my pace to fully absorb the last scenes described. And around 7pm, almost 36hrs (well...more like 32hrs but that doesnt sound dramatic) after I got the book in my hand, I finally closed the book in front of me, with my semi-sweaty fingers, Satisfied, Happy, Closure.

Finished!!!

Finished!!!
Finally Finished!!!
After almost 36hrs since I got the book, after being interrupted by so many things happening inbetween...I finished reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows!!!
I am so tired now...but in a weird way...very very satisfied.
Just cooked dinner and will go eat...will write about my journey after dinner.

2007-07-20

Memorable Quote

God:
Let me ask you something.
If someone prays for patience, you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient?
If he prayed for courage, does God give him courage, or does he give him opportunities to be courageous?
If someone prayed for the family to be closer, do you think God zaps them with warm fuzzy feelings, or does he give them opportunities to love each other?


Thought provoking?

In-house Recording Studio

Hehe...all my equipment has arrived.
I can now do studio recordings in my own room!!!
Not to mention podcasting IF I really wanted to.
Hehe...too me forever to get it all working together.
Not to mention the lack of a serial number for the software that came with the sound interface for the computer.
UGH.
But its all good now...just need to clear my table up for the devices to be laid out nicely.
Wonder when that'll happen.
:P
Cannot log onto MSN from work anymore. Stupid proxy server.
Might need to find alternatives soon.

2007-07-15

A (Fruit)ful Birthday

So I am finally 27...oh bother!
Closer to my expiry date? Hahaha.

So on my birthday I made plans to meet this really hot lady that I got to know recently and spent a beautiful day in each other's arms in front of a warm fire sipping champagne and nibbling on cheese and crackers.

RIIIIIIIGHT...like THAT really happened...ROFL




Here's what really happened:
Took the day off and spent the first half of it relaxing at home, waking up late and adhering only to my own schedule...BEST.

When I finally decided to get out of the apartment to get food, I met Andy on the street and had a short chat with him and parted only after making coffee plans with him for later in the day.

After that, I tried to get some food but all the lunch places were full and the Kebab store didnt have the chicken curry I love. So I ended up going back home to cook instant noodles topped with sardines...haha...not gourmet or anything but it was a good meal.

So I slacked around for a couple of hrs and went to meet Andy; met Alan on the street and asked him to join us as well. After that...I was so tired from the absolute boredom of the day that I took a 1hr nap. HAHAHA...so sad right?

And finally came the time for the planned dinner. Well...it was planned by Nadia of course. A surprise dinner. But I has sussed out parts of info from different involved parties that I already knew what was happening...hahahaha...I had more to say about the planning but the thought was greatly appreciated.

We went to Pier9 at Riverside for dinner; SEAFOOD :S
Had the in-house specialty Fish 'n' Chips. Very interesting with an oriental touch.
The food was good but I'd prefer Cha^3 but they were fully booked. So I still havent gone to Cha^3 yet...hehehe.

The cake that Mervyn brought was a Mango mousse cake. And he also got some smaller chocolate and strawberry variations from that french patisserie that he knows. On top of that...there were these luxurious chocolate eclairs that had chocolate filling as well....WAAAAAHHHHH!!!!

To finish off the day, we proceeded to 3 Monkeys for coffee and a chat.

Nothing exceptionally special but spending it with friends and loved ones made it great. Fruitful? I dunno...but it was fun...yeah...it was...wasnt it? :)

2007-07-10

The Legendary Mic (Well...not really)

HEHEHEH!!!!
My RODE NT3 has arrived!!!
Now I just need the cables....mwahahahahaha!
:P

A New Post Indeed

Oh dear!
I must have set off some weird form of following...people are hounding me to write an update. HAHA
But the thing is...thinking back...nothing THAT interesting has happened me thinks.
Lets see....

Nadia's House Party
A couple of weeks back, Nadia, Damien and Joel decided to have a house party on a Friday evening. Something about filling up their sink with ice and bottles of beer. ROFL...But we did have fun that night. I polished off 1/2 a bottle of wine plus an assortment of spirits(shots of tequilas) and cocktails(all made by Nadia); not to mention a glass of champagne.

MAN! was I totally out of touch with alcohol?! A couple of years back and that'll just be the starter drinks. That night I walked home feeling light-headed(but not drunk yet of course).
Point to note though...do not have too many snacks AFTER you had finished a large amount of alcohol. It makes you sick.

It had been a while since there was any parties or gatherings it was a great night to catchup. And it seems it'll be the last time we'll party there anyways. They are moving soon(Charlotte Towers issit?) cos the owner switched to short term leasing(which Lindsay reckons is a bad choice). Can't wait for the next party...I might even finish off a full bottle of wine.

Recording an Album
One idea that had been throw around for months before finally came to life when we(Justin and I) finally started on some recording for an album. The original idea was to just record a normal 8-12 track CD with a set of songs from different genres. But that has changed because I felt it might be a more fun endeavor to have it as a joint effort with others so it can be a fun project for everybody.

For now...the CD is due for release in Christmas...so all you guys...expect this to be your Christmas Pressies...lol...and don't think it is a cheap gift ok! Lotsa time and investment will have gone into it by then.

So at this point in time, we have recorded 3 songs in full. And Justin will have to showcase his talents in post production mastering to make me sound like a professional; even though I find my voice wanting. Hopefully we'll be able to rope in some people for duets and even boyband-ish stuff...ROFL.

Just a little pet project to keep us away from drugs, alcohol and all those bad habits in the midst of overwhelming boredom.

The New Work Year
July started a little over 1 week ago and I finally have to get into gear with life. Got a list of things I need to get done:

  1. Get private health cover (just done this afternoon ;) )
  2. Upgrade my phone (Which will arrive at my workplace tomorrow)
  3. Get Income Protection (Already submitted a quote request online)
  4. Taxes (Oh dear me...this one will kill me)
  5. Consider superannuation contributions to reduce taxable income (at first I thought that I can get some co-contribution from the govt as well but apparently, I earn too much to qualify...so it'll just be to reduce taxable income and retirement planning)
  6. Start driving lessons properly
  7. Get a cheap 1st car(or an expensive one to last me for a long time)
  8. Sign up for those dietary meal plans (which might not happen cos Lite'n'Easy only delivers on Tuesday and I am not at home...stupid)

I wonder whether I missed out anything in this list...

But anyways...esp with the tax issue...UGH!
I did a basic run through of my taxes and I realised that I will be digging into my savings to pay for this year's taxes. A little too slack with my planning this whole year. Might even need to hire a tax agent this year.
SIIIIGH!

Got myself a cool new recording microphone, a desk stand and soon, the cables to run it into my computer...my Podcasting might actually go ahead finally...haha. So lookout for that!

Well...at least I am getting some parts of my life together.
Still feeling crappy in general of course...its like a background feeling already...always there but never hits hard enough to kill but not soft enough to ignore. Maybe there'll be some miracle that might happen soon?