Musicality of Life

Album Cover Art Revealed

2008-09-05T04:38:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone. Thought you might enjoy a sneaky look at the cover art for Perfect Symmetry. The basic pattern is a combination of ideas - namely the decidedly imperfect symmetry that's one of the main themes of the album, and the design concepts of the Bauhaus movement that we fell in love with while we were recording in Berlin. Looking through the gaps in the pattern you can see glimpses of sculptures of us specially made by the brilliant Korean artist Osang Gwon.

These sculptures are truly incredible works of art, and you'll be seeing a lot more of them in the next few months. We'll also be telling the story of how they were created - it's quite a process, quite an experience in fact. They're life-size (a bit bigger actually), spooky, stunning, hyperreal and funny all at the same time. The man is a genius.

Tim

Keane Shorlisted For Q Awards 2008

2008-09-01T23:05:00.000-07:00

from http://news.q4music.com/2008/09/coldplay_lead_the_field_in_q_a.html

Coldplay lead the field in Q Award shortlist

Coldplay have crowned their comeback by leading the field in the shortlist for this year’s Q Awards as the nominees were announced today.

Among their haul of four nominations in the annual celebration of the year’s greatest music is a chance of winning the title of Best Act In The World Today, a prize they last won in 2005 as they basked in the glory of X&Y. To land the trophy in 2008 they face competition from Oasis, Muse, Metallica and Kings of Leon.

Coldplay also compete in the prized Best Album category for their global chart-topping album Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends. The band’s fourth release lines up against self-titled albums by Fleet Foxes and Vampire Weekend as well as The Age Of The Understatement by The Last Shadow Puppets and Dig!!! Lazarus, Dig!!! by Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds.

The awards take place at the Grosvenor House Hotel, in Park Lane, London on October 6 and will, as always, draw an array of glittering names from the world of Q.

The full list of nominees for the Q Awards with Russian Standard Vodka is as follows:

:: BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST – Duffy; Adele; Santogold; Bon Iver; Gabriella Cilmi.

:: BEST NEW ACT - Fleet Foxes; Glasvegas; The Ting Tings; The Last Shadow Puppets; Vampire Weekend.

:: BEST TRACK - Keane – Spiralling; Duffy – Mercy; Coldplay - Violet Hill;
Katy Perry - I Kissed A Girl; The Ting Tings - That's Not My Name.

:: BEST VIDEO - Hot Chip - Ready To The Floor; Coldplay - Violet Hill; The Ting Tings - That's Not My Name; Vampire Weekend - A-Punk; Goldfrapp - Happiness

:: BEST LIVE ACT - Kaiser Chiefs; Kings Of Leon; Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds; The Verve; Rage Against The Machine.

:: BEST ALBUM (sponsored by Nixon) - Coldplay - Viva La Vida Or Death; And All His Friends; Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes; The Last Shadow Puppets - The Age Of The Understatement; Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend; Nick Cave And The Band Seeds - Dig!!! Lazarus, Dig!!!

:: BEST ACT IN THE WORLD TODAY (Sponsored by Russian Standard Vodka) – Coldplay; Oasis; Muse; Metallica; Kings Of Leon.

Secret Project Unveiling

2008-08-30T05:02:00.000-07:00

I was so determined to build a Keane fansite in Indonesian that I've been staying up until late at night for the past 4 days now. Finally after all the sweat and tears, my fansite is UP and RUNNING.

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you:

IndoKeane

Link: http://indokeane.tripod.com/

I'm Missing...

2008-08-28T09:23:00.000-07:00

...the old Keane board.

I want the old board back, kthxbai!

My 'life' there started on January 18th 2007. It ended, my last post be my witness, on August 21st 2008, as shown in the pic below:

I am missing all the CONVENIENCE that you can't get in the new board. We don't have to log in EACH DAY, replying messages are a lot easier, uploading avatars is a piece of cake and it was more stable. And the most important thing is: I MISS THE CUTE/CRAZY ASS/FUNNY emotes!!!

Seeing that the chances of us going back to the old board is pretty slim, one can only hope that they (the Keane people) can do something to make the new board better, i.e. easier to use.

Good bye, old board... Missing you already :'-(

My New Keane Forum Siggy

2008-08-27T10:30:00.000-07:00

*brag*
*brag*
*brag*
*brag*
*brag*
*brag*

Here is my new Keane board siggy:

Tell me what you think of it!

3 New Keane Tracks "Leaked" On Radio

2008-08-25T19:59:00.000-07:00

This is teaser to the max!!! The Lovers Are Losing, which is supposed to be released as the first 'proper' single of the album Perfect Symmetry was played on a British radio last Sunday. And the surprise doesn't stop there! Yesterday, at 5 PM GMT Steve Lamacq of BBC6 revealed ANOTHER new song, entitled Better Than This. And earlier that day, a Portuguese radio played Love Is The End BY MISTAKE (the radio DJ thought she was playing The Lovers Are Losing!).

You can listen to the songs by playing the 'videos' below. Give me your thoughts on the songs... Which one do you think is the best out of the 3 (or 4, Spiralling included).

IMO Better Than This is the best of 4. I can't get enough of it :)

The Lovers Are Losing

Love Is The End

Better Than This

Stuff - The Good And The Bad

2008-08-21T07:02:00.000-07:00

GOOD

1. My new Keane forum avatar, design inspired by "Spiralling" cover artwork -

2. Old songs I recently downloaded -

David Bowie - Let's Dance, Starman and Magic Dance
MJ - Beat It, Billie Jean, Thriller
Phil Collins - Strangers Like Me
Spandau Ballet - True
Madonna - Vogue
Aretha Franklin - Respect
Peter Gabriel - Solsbury Hills
Sting - Fields of Gold
The Jackson 5 - ABC, I Want You Back
Gladys Knight and the Pips - Midnight Train To Georgia

3. The new Keane board - I'm getting used to it! :)

BAD

The latest look of Windows Live Messenger. Hideous.

Free Song Download @ Coldplay.com

2008-08-19T21:07:00.000-07:00

Coldplay puts up another song for FREE download. No I'm not kidding, it's totally OFFICIAL, and it's absolutely F R E E. Come to think of it, many major (UK) bands are doing it right now... putting up songs for free download. A very generous gesture, and a clever marketing ploy. This is a feature that I think we should thank Radiohead for.

Withouth further ado, the link. And this time you don't have to go through all the trouble of opening your e-mail and copying+pasting the link (Remember the problem tonnes of people had with Violet Hill download link??? The problem that shouldn't have occured if those people had read the instructions carefully!), you can download the song on the spot.

The song is called Death Will Never Conquer. Ok what's this thing Coldplay has for life and death??? It's kinda creepy if you ask me! Although the song has a creepy ring into it, it actually sounds... joyful. And the weirder thing about it is... it sounds like a church song! Very un-Coldplay.

JUST DOWNLOAD IT FOR PETE'S SAKE. It won't hurt you to download anyway since it's effin' FREE OF CHARGE. XD.

Peace.

Everybody's Screaming For UPDATE!!!

2008-08-18T03:44:00.000-07:00

And an update you shall get!

So... I've been confined in this wretched place I call home, although technically I've never lived in this town, for a good 3 months now. It's been one helluva boring summer break but time seems to pass by so quickly.

The highlight of my holidays is probably me being accepted on to the Student Exchange Programme a.k.a. mobility scheme for A FULL YEAR!!! That means I'm gonna spend +- 10 months in the UK. WOOHOO. But it's not all fun and games. Preparing for my departure was hell. I had to apply for student visa (this on itself is enough to drive me off of my seat), book a flight, apply for accommodation, and rent out the 2 vacant rooms in my TTS house. Not only was I busy doing my own business, I also helped some of my friends on their visa application too! Luckily one of my friend helped booking the flight so I didn't worry much about it.

I got my visa and my flight is confirmed. Accommodation matters are pretty much settled save for the part where my dad has to sign a guarantee form or something. And I got 2 people to rent the 2 rooms in TTS for the first semester. I'll let the others do the worry for the second semester. Haha. I'm only joking, I'm not that evil :P

Keane's New Promotional Photograph
taken from Keane's official Facebook page

So what else is new? I'll tell you what's new... KEANE! My favourite band is back with a vengeance! They *finally* finished recording their 3rd album, entitled Perfect Symmetry, to be released on October 13th 2008. The 1st single, Spiralling, was made available for free download at their official website on August 4th for 1 week. Spiralling is a 'download-only' single, meaning that it won't be released in CD form.

"Cover" Artwork For Spiralling

Spiralling was described by Tim Rice-Oxley, the band's keyboardist/pianist/mastermind, as "an excessive 80's groove". The song is very different from their previous works, but nonetheless refreshing. I admit that I need to take a break from the Keane "signature sound". While Keane might have lost some of their old fans, they also gain new fans. But as Jo Whiley revealed in her "BBC Live Lounge" radio show, the new album will also feature the "old Keane sound" and some GUITARS! And not forgetting groovy bass lines by guess-bassist Jesse Quin.

Following the release of the single, the band announced the album's tracklisting, and the release of their 2nd single, The Lovers Are Losing, on October 20th. The single will also be the album's first full single release.

Album Tracklisting:

1. Spiralling
2. The Lovers Are Losing
3. Better Than This
4. You Haven't Told Me Anything
5. Perfect Symmetry
6. You Don't See Me
7. Again And Again
8. Playing Along
9. Pretend That You're Alone
10. Black Burning Heart
11. Love Is The End

Not long before the release of their single, Q magazine revealed that Keane will do an EXCLUSIVE GIG on September 29th in London. I'll already be in the UK by then so I hope I can get myself a ticket to watch my *1st* ever Keane gig! Wish me luck! :-)

Sewn, Helicopter and Colder

2008-04-29T22:06:00.000-07:00

Move over Tim Rice-Oxley, and make way for Fran Healy (and Chris Cron)!

Now, who is Fran Healy?
- He's the frontman of the band Travis (Yes it's the name of the band, not the frontman. The same goes to Keane. Savvy?)
- He's an adorable, and he's Scottish (Which makes him more adorable!)
- He's my new *celebrity* crush.

Francis "Fran" Healy
Photo from www.virginmedia.com

Another one of my *celebrity* crush is Chris Cron. He's the frontman of the *American* alternative rock/piano rock band Melee. This band is not as famous as Travis or Keane, yet. There are more to this band than "Built To Last" and "Can't Hold On" (although they are, I have to admit, probably the 2 best songs of the record), so people, keep your ears tuned!

Chris Cron
Photo from www.daylife.com

Lately I've been listening a lot to The Feeling's Sewn and Helicopter, and Travis's Colder (hence the title of this blog entry).

Sewn is The Feeling's first ever single, taken from their debut album Twelve Stops and Home. To date it remains the band's most successful single. The music is kind of mellow, heart breaking, and sentimental. From what I've gathered Dan Gillespie Sells (the frontman) wrote this song about himself, which can be seen from the first two lines of both verses:

First verse
Danny boy, don't be afraid to shake that ass, and misbehave
Danny boy, I know you got time, but what are you waiting for?

Second verse
Danny boy, don't be a fool, take upon to break the rule
Danny boy, you're looking so low, you're looking like the dead grown old

Helicopter is another song from the same album. The song is more upbeat yet the lyrics emit a gloomy aura. And... um... the words, they don't exactly fit together but they sound really really cool! It's not everyday you can find someone who can relate 'helicopter' and 'ocean liner' with 'unrequited love' (my guess). Just check out the quirky lyrics of the first verse:

My piano's out of use, I wish it wasn't
I wish that you were mine
I wish that my heart was stronger
My piano's out of use, I wish it wasn't
I wish we had more time
I wish that my world is softer
And I want a helicopter

Last but not least, Colder by Travis, from their fifth album The Boy With No Name. Quite upbeat, however not as upbeat as Selfish Jean, but mellow and sweet. Fran Healy sure knows how to work his charms on every single song with the combination of his pillow-soft voice and heart-touching lyrics. The chorus goes like this:

The sky is falling down
And there's an angel on the ground
It's getting colder
I'm standing looking down
But there's no sound around the town
It's getting colder

Also watch out for a harmonica solo at the end of the song!

2 Days To D-Day

2008-04-25T11:44:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's just a mere 2 days before my first paper! I have been unproductive this past 5 days. VERY unproductive. I don't really know what's gotten into me but the lazybug have bitten me so hard in my arse.

I AM SO DEAD

This sem was soooo hectic and I only had little time, or, should I say, I spared myself so little time, to catch up with my studies. I was so busy with Annual Dinner that I had to stay in uni from wee hours of the morning to late in the afternoon. I only came back home for dinner and to sleep. All the hard work and all the time sacrificed did pay off, though. The Annual Dinner was the highlight of the year. Yeah, I know that most people think that the Annual Dinner is just a huge cam-whore convention, but let me tell you it's more than that. People pay a little over RM100, you don't expect them to ignore everything that they've already paid for. Just wait until the event is over and THEN people will shower you with comments on the food lah, on the venue lah, this and that lah...

Luckily for me, and the rest of the committee, this year's Annual Dinner went smooth as satin! I even couldn't believe my eyes when I saw all the programmes running just the way we wanted them to be. Me and the others were like "If those people give us negative feedbacks, screw them... This is the best Annual Dinner ever!". And surprise surprise, we received almost none! Most of the students who went gave us positive remarks like "The food is not so great, but it's okay lah. Better than last year!" or "JASON LO ROCKS!!!". Well, to sum it up, they all agreed that this year's Annual Dinner's improved by A LOT.

After the Annual Dinner left us in awe, it's time to get back to reality.

OH SH*T... Reality struck me like a blazing thunder sent down by Zeus! I've got 2 courseworks due AND 1 test the following week! Thermo coursework went just fine, also me (and of course, my comrades) rushed until the very last minute because there had been a slight misunderstanding on one of the bleeping questions. Maths test, let's just say I screwed it. I did good, but not up to my standard. And my standard is high, for most people, to be honest. Lastly, my PEP report. I completely SCREWED it! One day prior the due date I almost didn't sleep at all! I was trying to get bits and pieces of the report together in such short period of time and I...uhm... managed to write some crap. Crappy crap, not the type of crap that usually gets me high marks. Ah hell the crapping parts only make up about 30% of the report anyways.

All the stress triggered an outbreak of pimples on both of my arms. Yes. Pimples on my arms. If you don't believe me you can Google down "body acnes".

And here I am now, 'preparing' for finals. I don't know HOW THE HELL am I going to cramp in all the 12 weeks worth of lectures (multiply them by 4 1/2). So I'm down on my knees, begging you to PRAY FOR ME so that I could save my own ass. I've got 3 things at stake: 1. my scholastic award grant (BIG money), 2. my uni 'scholarship', and 3. MY MOBILITY PROGRAMME APPLICATION. I emphasised on the latter because I want to go to UK reeeeeeeeeeeal bad!

It was nice having had a chance to catch up with you guys. It's time for some shut-eye. Ciao!

I Am Tagged...

2008-03-25T10:57:00.000-07:00

This is my first post in... uhm... more than a month now :P

Real name: Maria Stephanie

Nickname: steffi, tepot, tepi, stef, step, maria (i dislike this one very much thank you)

Married: not yet

Male/Female: female

High school: SMA Bopkri 2 Jogjakarta (Indonesia)

College: The University of Nottingham, Malaysia Campus (don't you just hate the last 2 bits?)

Short or long hair: SHORT HAIR RULES! period.

Are u a health freak: yes.

Height: 172cm/5'7"

Do u have a crush on someone?: Yes

Do u like yourself: More than anyone else

Piercings: Nil

Righty or lefty: Righty

First....

Surgery: When I was 3

Piercing: 4? 5? I completely forgot.

Person u see in the morning: Po Yoke.

Award: 1st Runner Up, STTB-LIA English Listening Comprehension Competition (what a competition!), when I was... 17?

Sport u join: Swimming

Pet: A dog

Vacation: Singapore and Bali, when i was 2

Concert: None yet

First crush: ANP, when I was in 4th grade

Currently...

Eating: Potato buns I was forced to buy because Trixie took three packs, while I asked for none!

Drinking: Water

I'm about to: Snooze

Your future...

Want kids: None, if possible. Our growing population is a serious threat to mother nature. And she needs a serious break. I dunno, I'd probably opt for adoption.

Want to get married: Like DUH

Careers in mind: Eco-warrior.

Which is better?

Lips or eyes?: Eyes

Hugs or kisses: Hugs

Shorter or taller?: Definitely TALLER. Given that I'm already tall, for Asian standards.

Romantic or spontaneous: Spontaneous

Sensitive or loud: Depends on the situation

Troublemaker or hesitant?: Something in between :P

Have u ever....

Kissed a stranger?: No

Drunk bubbles: No

Lost glasses/contacts: No, I'm not that stupid.

Ran away from home: Yes

liked someone younger: Kind of

liked someone older: Most of the time

Broke someone's heart: Yes

Been arrested: No

Cried when someone died: No

Do u believe in...

Yourself?: More than anyone else

Miracles: I'm a living proof

Heaven: Yes

Santa Claus: Once upon a time there's a jolly old fellow called St. Nicholas. And once upon a time later, someone twisted his life story to make it look as though he's a supernatural being with the ability to fly around the world in one night, from one house to another, to distribute presents to decent (read: nice) little kids. I'd like to belive him as a normal human being rather than a mythical creature.

Magic: Yes

Angels: I'm one :P *lame!*

Answer truthfully..

Is there someone u want to be with right now?: Yes. Badly.

Do u believe in God?: I believe in a higher power. That's about it.

Single Awareness Day

2008-02-14T07:28:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

Being single most of my lifetime means that Valentine's day is nothing special for me. I went through 1 Val's day with a guy, whom I dated for all the wrong reasons. That was the only time I 'celebrate' Val's day not alone.

Val's day is celebrated with roses, chocolates, romantic dinners, yadayadayada. Or so they say. I once used to give out chocolates to my close friends and my crushes for Val's day, but then I got tired of it. Well first, I think it's just a waste of money :P, second I just don't see the point in celebrating love only on this one day of the 365/366 days a year!

But this night, me and my friends did something a bit special. At first we wanted to watch Jumper. But then we figured that the cinema will be packed with people celebrating Val's day, so we put the idea behind. Just 2 days ago me and my classmates agreed to have a "singles only" dinner at my place.

The 6 of us singletons had a lovely steamboat dinner this evening. And I have to say this is the best Valentine's day I've ever experienced! Here's a pic of my friends doing the steamboat

Left to right - Roey, Dexter, Riccardo, Po Yoke and Trixie

Gong Xi Fa Chai

2008-02-05T02:11:00.001-08:00

Heya! It's been *quite a while* since the last entry! So how's everybody doing? Alright?

First and foremost, I'd like to greet you all (the ones who are celebrating, of course) a VERY HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!

GONG XI FA CHAIPicture © www.TravelaChina.com

So um, I'm in the middle of a week-long (1 week + 2 days actually) CNY break. I haven't done anything and haven't gone anywhere except for KLCC+Pavilion (last saturday, with fellow Indonesians Patricia and Bila), and Kajang. Yes. KAJANG. K-A-J-A-N-G. Why the hell did I go there, you may ask? Well yesterday I went there for a bit of grocery shopping in Tesco, and today I went looking for a dentist who can do crowning 'cause one of my molar teeth needs fixing up. And o yeah, forgot to mention! Mummy's here!!! *Yay*

So back to CNY. Half of me is Chinese, which I got from my mum (hell yeah, sing the song people! I got it from my mama! *ROFL!*). Despite being part Chinese, I (read: my family) don't really celebrate CNY like others do. Well anyways, my family isn't into any festivities at all... not even Christmas! But we try to keep up with the holiday hype when we need to :P

My mum used to give me ang pau when I was younger. But she stopped when I was still in junior high, if I'm not mistaken. It's kinda unfair, 'cause most of my Chinese friends still get ang pau from their parents and senior relatives! Hey, even one of my non-Chinese friend gets it, just because her dad's got loads of Chinese connections/business partners/yadayadayada.

One time, my auntie gave me an ang pau. When my mum found out about it, she was a bit angry, because we're not used to receiving things from other people, our own relatives even. My mum was like "Why did you accept it?". I couldn't say anything. And before you know it, my mum told me "Ok, here's what you gonna do. You're gonna save the money you get in your bank account." I was like WHAT??? T_T

I don't know how it's gonna be this year. But I really doubt that my mum will give me any ang pau for CNY. But hey, she's here... So if she doesn't give me ang pau, I won't mind... I can still take her for shopping anyways (read: she's the one paying!). And that's exactly what I'm gonna do tomorrow! Me and my mum are going to Pavilion tomorrow. Since she's never been there, and since I'm in the mood for shopping, it's the perfect place to go!

More to come! Ciao!

It's Ranting Time!

2008-01-25T09:31:00.000-08:00

Friendship is all about respect, trust, honesty and openness. But suddenly I feel like I'm not getting all those from this particular lot of people which one of them used to be my confidant. They are so fucked up right now. Almost all the Indonesian students here in my uni used to be so friendly to each other and we always go together as one whole group. But suddenly some people decided to make a group inside a group. Lately they've been going out together and have been very secretive about it.

WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON WITH YOU GUYS??? Since when you guys decided to behave like high-school students? Pre-teens even? Are you guys scared that we would get in your way? Grow up, people! You're supposed to act like adults by now!

And I guess it's safe to say now, that there's something horribly wrong with you guys. News flash: I'm not the only one who's pissed off with you guys. A whole bunch of people noticed that there has been a slight, no, a HUMONGOUS change of attitude from you guys. First you act like you don't know us, then you ditch us like we're a bag of scum. What did we do to deserve this? Have we ever treated you like fucking rubbish? Did we ever hurt your fucking feelings? Oh, wait. I just remember. You don't have any!

To 'H':

I am so fucking mad at you dude. I felt and still feel really disrespected by you. That day I told you nicely that we have a meeting TODAY at 5. You told me that you probably can't come since you've got replacement class. Hey. I'm not stupid okay. This is the fucking first week of school. Why the fuck should any lecturers replace any lectures, I bet the lecturers are too bored to lecture anyway. Ok, so maybe there is a fucking replacement class. But still, I am not that inferior. I know that replacement classes won't go up til late in the afternoon. And why the fuck did you try to stall like that? By asking "Who's coming to the meeting? What's the meeting about? Is it going to be long?" Don't try to sound like you're interested in the matter if you're not anyway! If you've got somewhere to go or something to do then just tell me! Instead when I told you to give a good reason for your absence you just said "Ummm, hehehehe."

And don't even try to deny what I’ve just written above. I've got the chat log still in my computer.

Yesterday I texted you about the meeting. And seconds after my text got delivered, you bumped oh so coincidentally into me in SA. You acted like nothing's happen.

And today. You've got the nerves for telling me that you're going to the airport. Just an hour before the meeting starts. That is so cowardly. You didn't just get me mad, brother. You've got someone else's blood boiling too. You gave us stupid excuses like "Oh we just decided to go to KLIA this afternoon" and in your text you wrote "... I've business finance replacement class on 2.30 to 4.30". And you had the fucking nerves to tell us that you want to fucking resign from your fucking post just like that. And what's the fucking deal with the English, dude? You are fucking Indonesian. And we are Indonesians too. Indonesians talk in Bahasa Indo to each other. Not some other foreign language. I know your English has fucking improved, don't you think I fucking know already?

Please do remember that you always return to us when you have problems. Remember that day we went to KLCC to buy Kiki's birthday present? You were having problems with that housemate of yours. Who were there to listen to your stories? Who were there to give you advice? Who were there to comfort you? To make you feel appreciated? Who were there to ask you to be strong?

I just want you to know, what I wrote on my text was and still is true. I'm still going to treat you as my friend and fellow committee. I don't care what you think about me and I don't care how you're going to treat me. I'm a bitch, face it. But at least I still have some respect for my friends. If I'm going to end up like your two former friends and that Korean guy, I'll take the risk. It’s not my fault to begin with anyway.

*Sorry for the excessive use of the F word.*

The Dawn Of A New Semester, Part II

2008-01-20T04:39:00.000-08:00

Hello again people! Tis time for me to continue my previous entry! Ok, so after Elvin got his haircut, the five of us waited outside the cinema 30 minutes before the movie starts. And, as always, we took MORE pictures. Our philosophy is the more pics, the better. So please don't be surprised to find that most Indonesians are cam-whores (ie.

Elvin and Widya

Elvin, me, Kiki and Widya

As I told you guys earlier, in the previous post that is, we agreed to watch Sweeney Todd. It must be one of the goriest and cruelest movie I've ever watched in my whole life! At the beginning, there were all these singing, dancing, and flashbacks. I kind of enjoyed them (the singing and blablabla), although the story itself is not a pleasant one. And when it got to the part where this Sweeney Todd character started killing people... OMG. I wished that I had not gone to see the movie! I don't want to give out the details about the movie because I know some of you haven't seen it yet. But this I can tell you: DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT WATCHING THE MOVIE IF YOU'RE HAEMOPHOBIC (Haemophobia - fear of blood).

Later in the evening, the whole bunch of us went to Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) to see Widya and Elvin (and some other business students) off. Before they depart, we had supper at McD's, and um... took some more pics :P

Me, Muchtar, Oliver, Widya, Elvin and Kiki

At 1 something AM, we said our goodbyes. When I hugged Widya I couldn't contain my sadness so... I cried a bit :P It didn't last long though, thankfully. And then, we all went back home. Going back home is another different story because we didn't go back the same way we came. In the car there were Kiki (the driver), Priscilla (the navigator), me (the hopeless passenger), and Oliver (just another passenger). Kiki is ROAD BLIND. At at that time, Priscilla was half asleep. But earlier she told us to just follow whichever way that leads to Kajang. So we did. But then we arrived to this fork that branches out into two directions, left and right. There was absolutely nothing there save for a signboard that has information on which direction to take if we want to go to Kajang. At first Pris told Kiki to go right. But it led us to this smaller road in this kampung. So we turned around and took the other direction instead. Thank heavens we did, because we were finally in the right direction!!!

Check this page for the Joint Birthday Celebration pictures. Jusco and KLIA pics will be coming soon.

And I've also uploaded a couple of pics to my deviantART account. You can check them out here.

The Dawn Of A New Semester

2008-01-17T21:23:00.000-08:00

To start off, on Thursday I bought a Creative Zen 8GB. What is a Creative Zen? It's a multimedia player that is... pretty much similar to iPod, but different in many ways (the price, for instance, is a huge difference!). Here's what the thing looks like:

Pretty nifty eh? It's the size of a credit card and boasts a vibrant 16.7 million TFT colour 2.5" screen. Pretty much like a small flat screen TV. The audio quality is superb, even if you're using average quality earphones/headphones. Overall, I need not make any negative remarks on this product. So if any of you guys are contemplating on buying a multimedia player, forget iPod. Buy Creative Zen. (I sound like a person doing one of those corny TV infomercials. LOL!).

I'll be posting my own review of Creative Zen in a bit. For the mean time, you can check this site. out for info.

SEMESTER 2 TIMETABLE
Yes the timetable is OUT everyone. Here's mine:

Monday

10-11am Separation Process Fundamentals (Dr. Gan Su Yin)
11am-1pm Engineering Math 2 (Dr. Rohaizan/Ms Grace Yap/Ms Lim Poay Hoon)

Tuesday

10am-12pm Separation Process Fundamentals (Dr. Gan Su Yin)
2-3pm Engineering Math 2 (Dr. Rohaizan/Ms Grace Yap/Ms Lim Poay Hoon)

Wednesday

11am-12pm Engineering Thermodynamics (Dr. Lee Lai Yee)
12-1pm Heat & Mass Transfer (Dr. Chong Mei Fong)
2-4pm Process Engineering Project (Mr Lim Siew Shee/Mrs Hind Bargash/Dr Chin Jit Kai)

Thursday

9-10am Modern Process Chemistry (Ms Lim Siew Shee/Dr Sivakumar Manickam)
11am-1pm Engineering Thermodynamics (Dr. Lee Lai Yee)

Friday

9-11 am Modern Process Chemistry (Ms Lim Siew Shee/Dr Sivakumar Manickam)
11am-1pm Heat & Mass Transfer (Dr. Chong Mei Fong)

Yes yes yes... bring on more Physics! I'm very concerned about Process Engineering Project (PEP), because I didn't do well on the prerequisite subject, Process Engineering Fundamentals (PEF). I learned that anything that has the words "Process" and "Fundamentals" in it spells trouble. So I don't know what to expect from Separation Process Fundamentals. Hope it won't turn out as difficult as PEF.

Ok enough of the timetable talk. Now it's time for FOOD TALK :P

Yesterday, Friday Jan 18 2008, me and another 5 January babies of the Indonesian Students at Nottingham Uni society hosted this grand birthday dinner for a group of 21 people (including us 6). In Indonesia we have this "unofficial" custom, whoever's having a birthday, he or she'll be the one who has to treat his/her friends/near and dear ones. Contrary to the Malaysian "custom" where the birthday boy/girl gets the birthday treat from his/her friends. This means that I have to spend big bucks for my birthday, each year! But all didn't go to waste. I still receive a birthday present or two.

This year's birthday dinner was held in Sushi King Metro Point Kajang. It was a lot of fun, plus the food is more than satisfying. And yes, since most of us are Indonesians, that also means that there were lots of picture taking going.

The dinner also doubled as an unofficial farewell party for my two schoolmates, Widya and Elvin. They're leaving to UK early tomorrow (like, 2am early!), to spend 1 semester in the Jubilee campus of The U of Nottingham on a Mobility programme (kinda like student exchange programme). I'm so gonna miss those two. *sobs* Especially Widya for being such a great housemate!!! She always takes the garbage out every few days (lol). Here's the pic of the 20 of us (one was taking the picture :P):

Top row, L-R: Chaturi, Hartono, Christy, Jack, Edy, Agha, Joseph, Oliver, Jane, Willam, Bila and Lydia
Bottom row, L-R: Kiki, Me, Elvin, Dini, Widya, Hasan, Hendro and Tyas
Not in the pic: Pouya

This afternoon me, Kiki, Widya, Elvin and Tse Tyng went out to watch a movie at Aeon Cheras Selatan. We were arguing on which movie to watch; Me and Kiki wanted Sweeney Todd, while Elvin and Widya wanted In The Name Of The King. Tse Tyng was like "I don't know. I'm neutral. You guys decide!". Lol. So we flipped a 20 cent coin, head for Sweeney Todd, and tail for In The Name Of The King. And hey, whaddaya know! HEAD!!! Seems like lady luck was on our side today! So we went to bought tickets. The movie's showing at 4.20 pm, and we bought the ticket at 1 something, so we had lots spare time to waste. First we headed to Secret Recipe for lunch (in my case, it's both breakfast and lunch). Always in a typical Indonesian fashion, we took some pictures while waiting for our food to come. *lol* After that, Elvin went to get a haircut, leaving us 4 girls to go out and about around the vicinity.

***break*** Oooh g2g. I'm going to see Elvin and Widya off to KLIA. I'll be back with part 2 =D

Near Death Experience #2

2008-01-15T06:34:00.000-08:00

Lesson number 1: appreciate life even though it sucks! You'll get to know how precious this life is when you're a fraction of an inch away from death!

After our last exam (and the most difficult one, to date), me and my friends went out to release our 2 weeks worth of tension. At last the exams are over! No more late night studying, no more waking up early in the morning for revisions, no more freaking out before and after exam. We thought the worse had come to an end.

So the 4 of us, me, Trixie, Po Yoke, and Francesca behind the wheel, were driving back from Jusco. We were just a few hundred meters away from my house, there was this truck coming from the other side of the road. The driver, I tell you, he was either drunk or sleepy, or both. Whatever the state he was in, he was an idiot. He was driving IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FRIGGIN ROAD! He saw us coming and he KEPT DRIVING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FRIGGIN ROAD. Francesca was already very near to the shoulder of the road, but the stupid driver KEPT ON DRIVING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD. Francesca hit the brake, and the stupid driver just KEPT ON DRIVING and did not even try to slow down... and... BAM.

Lucky Francesca hit the brake on time.

Lucky the exams are over.

Lucky I got buckled up.

Lucky we were in a Volvo.

Lucky we didn't get hurt.

Here's the result of the crash:

Musicality of 2007

2008-01-13T09:13:00.000-08:00

Time for a music review!

My taste of music is ever evolving. Lately I find myself delving into the depths of the indie/British rock, post-punk revival, folk, jazz, and some other indescribable music genres. For me Keane is still number one, and hopefully the album no. 3 that will be released in September '08 won't fail to retain my interest.

Here's a list of who and what has been playing on my iTunes lately.

1. Keane Like I said, they're still numero uno. Although I have to admit I've gotten bored of most of their songs, The Night Sky, and Under The Iron Sea classic Try Again are constant plays on my iTunes.

2. Mark Ronson Say hello to this genius DJ/Producer! DJ? House music/dance/electronica? Not quite. He tried a different approach, namely funk, for his new album Version. Key tracks: Oh My God (feat. Lily Allen), Valerie (feat. Amy Winehouse).

3. Arctic Monkeys You and I may now know what the vocalist bloke says, but I have to say, their music is AWESOME!!! No wonder their latest album, Favourite Worst Nightmare, received 5 star rating from The Rolling Stone magazine. Key tracks: Fluorescent Adolescent, D Is For Dangerous.

4. Maroon 5 They spent 5 years in contemplation and now they're back with a vengeance! It Won't Be Soon Before Long is 100000000x times so much better than it's predecessor, Songs About Jane. Prince should be proud of these guys! Love love love: If I Never See Your Face Again, Little Of Your Time.

5. Michael Buble Who doesn't love this heartbreaker boy with his dashing good looks and his sexy sultry voice? He makes old classics sound new again. And his originals are not that bad either! Call Me Irresponsible must listens: Comin' Home Baby (feat. Boyz II Men), Everything

6. Ghosts Never heard of em? They opened up for Keane in one of Keane's UTIS tour gig (somewhere in UK, I forgot where exactly). Their music is fresh and unique. Not a very big fan of electronica? So was I, but this band has converted me! Groovy tracks: The World Is Outside (also the title of their debut album), Stop.

7. KT Tunstall I wasn't a fan of folk music before I listen to her music. She has this raspy, rocky voice that'll get you going. I prefer her first album Eye To The Telescope, but her latest Drastic Fantastic is not bad at all. Catchy tunes: Hold On and I Don't Want You Now.

8. The Pigeon Detectives, Hard-Fi, Maximo Park Indie-rock attack!!! Hard-Fi and Maximo Park has been around for quite a while. The Pigeon Detectives are rookies, but that doesn't mean they are less interesting. Listen to Hard-Fi's Can't Get Along (Without You), Maximo Park's Girl Who Plays Guitar and The Pigeon Detectives' I Found Out.

9. Travis Their latest album maybe titled The Boy With No Name but this band's is no stranger to our ears (well, maybe to some of us it isn't). Ditch Coldplay, and make room for Travis. Fran Healy's voice is way better than Chris Martin's! Try listening to My Eyes and Under The Moonlight (feat. KT Tunstall!)

last but not least...

10. OST - Hairspray!!! Love the movie, love the music. Retro is in again! Hail newcomer Nikki Blonsky, with her sweet personality and spunk, plus her gorgeous voice. Good Morning Baltimore and The Nicest Kids In Town are my favourites.

Aiiiiii... all this music talk reminds me that tomorrow I'm getting a Creative Zen (http://www.creative.com/products/mp3/zen/)!!! *swoons*

To Love, Or Not To Love

2008-01-13T07:28:00.000-08:00

I fell in love.

But I tried not to tell anyone that I love the guy I fell in love with. I just told them that "I like him, and not try to love him". You know why? Deep inside I know that I do love him, but I'm just afraid of getting hurt again. I thought that would work. But it didn't. It don't.

I fell in love at the wrong time. I might have fallen in love with the wrong person too! Is he? Or is he not? Whenever he's near I feel everything is right, despite of all the things that I don't like about him. When I'm with him, I feel no inhibition and doubt, because he always makes me feel comfortable.

Apparently to him I'm just one of his close friends (am I even THAT close?), nothing less or more than that. I would've told him what I feel about him, but I decided not to.

I don't know what the future holds. I don't know what he really thinks about me. I don't know lots of things in this life.

All I know is that I still "like" him and that he won't be around to keep my fire alight anymore. I'll just let time do the healing. Eventhough 'time' is not a doctor or a healer.

And as I end this blog, Keane's Try Again is playing on iTunes. I hate that I love that song so much!!!

For Those Who Takes LIfe Too Seriously

2007-05-10T06:16:00.000-07:00

1. Save the whales. Collect the whole set

2. A day without sunshine is, like, night

3. On the other hand, you have different fingers.

4. I just got lost in thought. It was unfamiliar territory.

5. 42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot.

6. 99 percent of lawyers give the rest a bad name.

7. I feel like I'm diagonally parked in a parallel universe.

8. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say will be misquoted, then used against you.

9. I wonder how much deeper the ocean would be without sponges.

10. Honk if you love peace and quiet.

11. Remember half the people you know are below average.

12. Despite the cost of living, have you noticed how popular it remains?

13. Nothing is foolproof to a talented fool.

14. Atheism is a non-prophet organisation.

15. He who laughs last thinks slowest.

16. Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.

17. Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

18. The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

19. I drive way too fast to worry about cholesterol.

20. I intend to live forever - so far so good.

21. Borrow money from a pessimist - they don't expect it back.

22. If Barbie is so popular, why do you have to buy her friends?

24. Quantum mechanics: The dreams stuff is made of.25. The only substitute for good manners is fast reflexes.

26. Support bacteria - they're the only culture some people have.

27. When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane and going the wrong way.

28. If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.

29. A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking.

30. Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.

31. For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism.

32. Bills travel through the mail at twice the speed of checks

33. Never do card tricks for the group you play poker with.

34. No one is listening until you make a mistake.

35. Success always occurs in private and failure in full view.

37. The hardness of butter is directly proportional to the softness of the bread.

38. The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the ability to reach it.

39. To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research.

40. To succeed in politics, it is often necessary to rise above your principles.

41. Monday is an awful way to spend 1/7 of your life.

42. You never really learn to swear until you learn to drive.

43. Two wrongs are only the beginning.

44. The problem with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard.

45. The sooner you fall behind the more time you'll have to catch up.

46. A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.

47. Change is inevitable except from vending machines.

48. Get a new car for your spouse - it'll be a great trade!

49. Plan to be spontaneous - tomorrow.

50. Always try to be modest and be proud of it!

51. If you think nobody cares, try missing a couple of payments.

52. How many of you believe in telekinesis? Raise my hand...

53. Love may be blind but marriage is a real eye-opener.

54. If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving isn't for you.

(taken from http://www.wordworx.co.nz/seriously.html)

How Well Do You Know Me?

2007-05-03T06:33:00.000-07:00

10 people took the test (yeah, it's actually 10. Trixie took the test 3 times. CHEAT!!!). And the person who seems to know me the most is Trixie (yeah right, after some hints and pointers, she managed to get all right).

Let's go on the questions one by one, shall we?

1. Who is my all-time hero?
Answer: Michael Schumacher
other options: JK Rowling, Keane, Master Yoda (lol)

There are quite a number of people who opted for Keane (can't blame them, I'm being too obvious on my love for Keane). But a handful of people got the answer right. Kudos for them who know who my real hero is!

2. Which is my favourite Keane song?
Answer: Broken Toy
other options: Let It Slide, Is It Any Wonder? and Somewhere Only We Know

The last two are the most likely options for those of you who do not know what my favourite Keane song is. I don't really go around telling people my favourite Keane song though, but if you're observant enough, you'll know *wink*.

3. What do I do to release tension during exams?
Answer: Go to a mamak stall for supper
other options: Run around the uni like crazy, listen to some Keane songs and Sleep

Again with Keane (sorry but I'm obsessed lol). Now I've got to appologise on this one, because the only ones who know the answer to this question are my (close) friends here in UNMC. I, Trixie and Francesca (and occasionally Sarah) would go out for supper at Suren's almost every night during last sem's exams. Now it's becoming more of a ritual. Mamak is the best! Teh ais satu!!!

4. Which character of LOTR do I like the best?
Answer: Legolas
other options: Faramir, Pippin, Arwen

Some people answered Faramir and Pippin. I guess it's because Faramir (David Wenham) is such a hunk and Pippin (Billy Boyd) is Scottish. But no, I LUUUURVE Mr Pretty Elf, since the first movie came out. Not particularly keen on Orlando Bloom though, I just like him in LOTR (and POTC).

5. What accent do I think is the sexiest of all?
Answer: Scottish
other options: French, Spanish, Italian

I ADORE SCOTTISH ACCENT!!! No further explanation!

6. What's my favourite food?
Answer: Char Kway Teow, Lasagna, and My Mum's soto (all of the above)

Char Kway Teow is by far the best Chinese food ever! Lasagna... hmmm... cheesy, and it's so Garfield (I love Garfield). My mum makes the best tauto (Soto Pekalongan).

7. What is my dream job?
Answer: Archaeologist
other options: Work for Scuderia Ferrari, Entertainer, Slob

Thank God nobody picked the last option!!! Only 2 persons answered correctly. I thought most answered 'word for Scuderia Ferrari' because of my love for the team. And there's this once I told my friends that I wanna work for SF. But actually, I've always wanted to study Archaeology, but my mum didn't let me.

8. What's my favourite animal?
Answer: Tiger
other options: Dog, hamster and polar bear

This must be the toughest question, because NO ONE got it right. I guess I was being to mean to my friends lol. I almost never tell my friends that tigers are my favourite. They know I love dogs and hamsters, because I mention them very often. But I never said that those two are on the top of my list, no. I just said that they are among my favourites. You can blame me on this one. Lol.

And here is the scoreboard:

Create your own Friend Test here

Updates from Catalunya

2007-05-01T22:04:00.000-07:00

And the battle goes on: Updates from Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain.

Kimi Raikkonen set the fastest pace on wet track (yes... he's becoming more of a Rain Master now lol) on Tuesday 1/5/07 testing with 1 min 30 secs (10 seconds slower than the day before, on dry track). Meanwhile Fernando Alonso was stuck on 12th place, practically the last. However Felipe Massa and Lewis Hamilton, the other title contenders, were nowhere in sight.

Introducing the new-and-improved F2007
*new, slimmer sidepods everybody!!!*.

Looks like the new car's showing some slight improvement (it was already VERY GOOD to begin with).

"The Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport said the updated sidepods of the F2007 steered by Kimi Raikkonen was a 'more significant' update than the bridge-like element on the McLaren wing."
(The Prancing Horse.co.uk).

By the way, that bridge thing on the McLaren car is hideous. It might be good, aerodynamically speaking (as the team claimed it to be), but from the aesthetic point of view, it sucks. Not because I don't like the team and everything, but it just sucks.

GREAT news for Tifosis all over the globe!!! Mr Ross 'Big' Brawn is going to decide his future in F1 with Scuderia Ferrari this July. He has confirmed that Ferrari is on top of his priority list. This means he's not going to abandon Ferrari if he decides to continue his F1 career after the 1 year sabbatical. But he's not sure if he's going to take his old position or not. There's a possibility he will replace Jean Todt as the team principal, since Todt is at the moment rather busy with the road car division. That is my own analysis though, don't take it as an official statement. But I hope Todt still stays, he and Brawn make a very solid team. Too bad Rory Byrne n Herr Schumi left the house already. Ah well, Ferrari is still and always be the dream team. (Hamilton, I can assure you're up next! Join 'The Force'!).
For the complete news of Brawn's return, check this site and this site.

Study Law?

2007-05-01T10:30:00.000-07:00

Sigh. What a sad day. I've never felt so lonely since I first got here. After the Communication Technology exam yesterday, I felt kind of depressed, I don't really know why and how. I think it's because virtually all of my classmates went back home for the week, since our exams only starts next week. Well, there are my Indonesian friends. But then again, it doesn't feel the same. The relationship I have with my classmates and the one I have with my Indonesian friends are different. And for the first time in semester 3, I have to admit I miss going to classes. I miss having banging our lecturers (oops) and pulling pranks on my friends. Oh why do good things have to come to an end?

On the other hand, I had Pan Mee for lunch with Cesca today. And then we went to her house to study, which we didn't do (quite properly). Instead, we watched an episode of Mythbusters that features the Mentos + Diet Coke phenomenon. I've heard of the thing long ago but never really know what it's all about. Man, it turned out to be BRILLIANT! Me and Cesca planned to have our own experiment after we finish our exams. We want to try it on 3 different beverages: Diet Coke, Diet Pepsi and regular Coke.

Last but not least, Cesca sent me this hilarious joke:

UK Immigration Officer: Purpose of visit?

Visitor: I'm here to study law, sir.

Officer: You know, you must have a lot
of lawyers in Malaysia .

Visitor: Why do you say that?

Officer: Well, i've been here for a good
twenty years, and I'd say 80%
of Malaysians I see here say they're
here to read law.

Visitor: Oh, really? That's really
something i never knew. Hard to
believe in fact.

Officer: Just you watch, then. You just
stand here until the next Malaysian
comes along, and I'll bet he's here to
read law.

*Visitor waits for 5 mins, Ah Chong from
Malaysia comes to immigration
counter*

Officer: Mr. Ah Chong, purpose of visit?

Ah Chong: Study lorr...

ROFLMAO!!!

Quizzes are fun!!!

2007-05-01T06:22:00.000-07:00

I was bored to death last night, so I decided to "evaluate" my self and see who I really am. :P
(quizzes (c) Blogthings.com)

Your True Birth Month Is January

Loyal
Social
Logical
Easily jealous
Loves children
Rather reserved
Highly attentive
Likes to criticize
Needs close friends
Ambitious and serious
Smart, neat and organized
Hardworking and productive
Loves to teach and be taught
Quiet unless excited or tensed
Sensitive and has deep thoughts
Knows how to make others happy
Searches for the greatest romance
Resistant to illnesses but prone to colds
Romantic but has difficulties expressing love
Always looking at people's flaws and weaknesses

The Part of You That No One Sees

You are unique, witty, and even a little snobby.
You're quite proud of who you are, and nothing is going to change that.
You've paved your own way in life, and you've ended up where you want to be.

Underneath it all, you feel very isolated from the rest of the world.
It's hard to find people to relate to you on every level.
The mundane interests of your friends and family often bore or depress you.

You Are Pretty Logical

You're a bit of a wizard when it comes to logic
While you don't have perfect logic, you logic is pretty darn good
Keep at it - you've got a lot of natural talent in this area!

Your Personality Profile

You are elegant, withdrawn, and brilliant.
Your mind is a weapon, able to solve any puzzle.
You are also great at poking holes in arguments and common beliefs.

For you, comfort and calm are very important.
You tend to thrive on your own and shrug off most affection.
You prefer to protect your emotions and stay strong.

You Are 65% Left Brained, 35% Right Brained

The left side of your brain controls verbal ability, attention to detail, and reasoning.
Left brained people are good at communication and persuading others.
If you're left brained, you are likely good at math and logic.
Your left brain prefers dogs, reading, and quiet.

The right side of your brain is all about creativity and flexibility.
Daring and intuitive, right brained people see the world in their unique way.
If you're right brained, you likely have a talent for creative writing and art.
Your right brain prefers day dreaming, philosophy, and sports.

Boy these quizzes are DEAD ACCURATE.