31.03.2009

i prepared myself and went for the Sacrament of Penitential..and, am glad that i'm given the chance to be renewed again and again.

how beautiful God is, that He will always forgive me, no matter what i do, and give me chance to stand up again, though i have fallen to the deepest and darkest pit.. that's His promise!
how great is God, that He will not remember those days, when i was the loser of all losers, the unclean, the biggest liar of truth..
how wonderful is God, that He accept me as who i am and love me, in regardless of what i've done.

HE is amazing!

28.03.2009

i purposely when down town, at around 8:45pm, just to see who supported the campaign. a few buildings were dark,

1. wawasan plaza- parkson grand
2. waterfront
3. sacred heart cathedral
4. le meredien hotel
5. masjid likas (it was so dark, that i cant even see the masjid)
6. bangunan persekutuan, putrajaya
7. UMS
8. yayasan sabah
9. jesselton point
10. a few small restaurants

i'm not sure if the less carbon dioxide is release during that one hour period, because by lighting candle (as they suggested on 'things to do' list), more carbon dioxide will be produced. somehow, i believe, this campaign had managed to create awareness among the public of the climate change caused by the global warming, and something can be done to save the world. =)

27.03.2009

i tried a few times, whereby the first attempt i managed to type 44 words per minute. then, when i try again and again (hehe..), i got this result twice..hmm..so i guess, in average, this might show the most real one. ;p

42 words

Speedtest

would you like to try too? click here

it's addictive and you will want to try again and again and again until you're satisfied with your speed..dont say i didnt warn you.. ok, maybe it's only me, hehe..

24.03.2009

i've been restraining myself from meat (chicken, beef and pork) for almost a month, starting from Ash Wed. and i thank God that i'm able to go this far. i'm planning to fast for the whole 46 days, and i'm still praying for strength.

to be honest, it is not easy to sacrifice, for saying no to meat..for i'm a meat-lover.. hehe.
i've attended birthday dinner with eating only fried rice and vege where they served black pepper beef, thai chicken, chicken curry, etc..and, another, my cousin's birthday party had only mee goreng and fruit salad where my aunt cooked soto ayam, curry beef, curry chicken, chicken wings, satay, etc.. vege dinners where they had hong-bak, fried chicken, ayam masak kicap, ayam masak merah, char siu, fried vege with pork, sweet and sour pork, etc etc.. which sometimes i feel like giving in to those temptations..

but, i thank God, i'm still holding on my promise to Him, that i'm willing to sacrifice..i know it is Him who strengthens me..

20.03.2009

finally, i have my own car =) and this means, with the small-and-cukup-makan income i got, i have loan to pay every month. fuel tank to fill. i no longer can spend on anything i want. i have to manage my finance properly..and be responsible..but, i will surely allocate some to pamper myself and to make me happy..

see..my fuel is almost empty..

mom, who will always buys the groceries and remind us of what to do or anything, is now busy in Membakut; dad is busy managing both kiosks; roddy is busy going out-stations and meetings, seldom at home; ben is in Membakut helping mom.. so, milia and i have to take care of the house..

i'm starting to feel the life of an adult..where i have to work to pay my loan, to pay for my insurance, to make sure there's enough food stock in the house, etc..

many things to think about..a lot..
this is LIFE and this is what i call RESPONSIBILITY..

17.03.2009

Last Saturday, was a big day of the temple in Weston. it was the birthday of the god (Sin Kong Sin) in Weston temple. and all the representative from KK area, as far as Keningau came, to bring their god to pay their respect to Sin Kong Sin. it was a very good experience..


After the event, we planned to go back to KK at around 4pm. the sky was so dark. and actually we heard a lot of people complaining that they cannot pass through the road (if they come from KK/ Menumbok/Kuala Penyu) because of the flood. only big vehicles such as lorries and buses can go through.


somehow, we still try to go back. and if we really cant go through, we will turn back home. we have 3 cars wanting to go back to KK. one is Deche’s Honda CRV, one is Henry’s Toyota Vios and another one is Milia’s Suzuki Swift. Deche was in front and and he went through but he called and advised us not to go because with his car, which is slightly higher, the water level was half of its door..so, we have to go back Weston and decided, only to go to KK, early in the morning the next day..


We woke up early on Monday morning, but we got news from orang kampung that the water had rise until the waist level. and, that’s impossible for any ordinary car to go through, as it will destroy the car engine. so, I have to call to the office telling that I will have to take emergency leave. later in the evening, around 7pm, we asked the orang kampung again..they said the water has started to lowered, and we hope it will continue to lower until the next day. I have to get another emergency leave for our journey back to KK and luckily the company granted me compassionate leave, and considers it as natural disaster. =)


It was a real experience..and I’m so glad I got the chance to experience it..though I actually had headache, thinking of how we can go to KK. we even planned to go to Sipitang and take speedboat to Labuan..then, from Labuan, we take ferry back to KK. or another option is to drive from Weston-Tenom-Keningau-Tambunan-KK. somehow, the water level was not as high as the previous day and we saw Kelisa went through the water. every driver that managed to pass through had a proud smile on their faces as if they are the hero of the day. =)


after waiting for at least an hour, we got the news that Ko Tiew will be going to Beaufort too. so, we waited for him to arrive to pull us over to the other side, as his car is bigger and tougher. His 4WD will pull Henry’s Vios and Milia’s Swift. They are to on but not start the engine when they are in the water..this is to avoid the water going in to engine. and, once they arrive on the dry (no flood) land, they have to start the engine, so that they can hit the brake. Ah meng, Tuaci and I were at the back of Ko Tiew's 4WD. It was so adventurous. Heh. *proud*


Thank God, everything went well and smooth..when we reached Beaufort, we had our breakfast, then continue our journey back to KK. we arrive KK at around 10:40am and we still managed to enter the office for the 2nd half of the day.

12.03.2009

geof & me

i have been waiting for that day for almost a week..huh, not so long after all.,.hehe..but, i've not been seeing geof for almost 1.5 years..we went for dinner in Warisan Square. Clare and i arrived there at around 6pm and waited for geof in Centre Point..then, it was 7:30pm, we walked to Warisan Square, geof was not there yet. We went to the Times and read books, and he's still not there..Grr..he arrived at around 8pm (because of the rain and traffic jams), but we still had a great dinner.

clare & geof

because geof was late, his punishment was to choose the place to eat. somehow, he thought it's the hardest decision to make because he dont know the other person might not like it. and in the end, we sit at Fish & Co (again..hehe) because that the only restaurant in front of our eyes. ;p

this is mine: new york fish & chips

it was a great reunion of 3. back then, in UKM, we (Clare, geof and i) always had our meals (breakfast/teatime/dinner/supper) together because we were staying in the same college, until me and Clare moved to Hentian Kajang..but, geof still visit us, especially on Fidays, where they have the best Nasi Lemak Ayam Berempah and we get to choose the biggest chicken parts.. =)
there was once, we had KFC for our lunch in Hentian Kajang (KFC was the luxury meal, back then) and we almost finished the whole bottle of Thai Chilli sauce. Ahh~ those were the days..

me & clare

05.03.2009

25 random facts about myself.
I was tagged by Roddy in Facebook where I have to write 25 random facts about myself. I don’t know what should I write but I will try my best ya. and i would like to share with you.

1. I have BINTI in my name..and some people find it strange. =)

2. And I used to hate my name because of the binti..

3. but I learn to accept it as part of me, and I’m loving it !!

4. My full name is SANDRA BINTI TIONG LAI.

5. and MARIA THERESA is also my name ..haha..too many names?? ;p

6. I like take pictures of my baked products..and feel good about them.

7. I love long distance journey and despite of the bad experience I had from lahad datu to KK which took us 16-hours to reach home..

8. My passion for baking started after i got myself a set of measuring cup from Ikea during my company trip to KL for annual dinner..and it cost only RM3.90..

9. I have nose stud..some of my friends cant believe I have it!

10. I don’t like to keep long nail and I don’t like to polish my fingernails..it feels like, as if they cant breathe.

11. I love to buy books, adding to my collection..but sometimes, I cant find time to read them.

12. I can play guitar ;p *perasan!* not so well, but can lah…

13. And I never expect that I can play in front of people..i played once, for the opening songs for RCIA-BM..

14. I stayed for 4 days 3 nights in kampung orang asli in Labu, Seremban in Tok Batin’s house..and that was the time I am most grateful with little things that I have..and for the many pillows that I can have on my bed every night..for the blanket that I owned..for the food that i can eat..ok, I can go on, and on and on..but most of all, I’m thankful for all the blessings.

15. I baked my best friend’s wedding cake! ;p

16. I cried for days (but not 24/7 lah ;p) when the responsibility as the President of CSSUKM was given to me..but I’m grateful for all the experience that I had in those days.

17. When I was in my 2nd year in university, whereby we had our Coffee Morning (breakfast sale to raise fund), we volunteered to cook 150packets of fried mihun (the main ingredient we put in was LOVE). i slept only for an hour and I have to drive all the way from Kajang to PJ..and then, had to help with the selling..gosh, that was very very tiring!

18. I was in the caroling group for KLCC (Kuala Lumpur Coordinating Council) where we had to sing from house to house in KL area, and ate a whole packet of baby carrots (they say carrot is good for your voice, I dunno how far the truth is, but I enjoy eating carrots, haha!) and in the end of the day, we manage to collect more than RM1K. yeay!

19. Me and my friends cooked (fried mihun, egg and sardine sandwiches) for the kids in Rumah Keluarga Kami in Kajang as our penance during Christmas..and the smiles on their faces just make me happy!

20. I used to be able to shop/ window shopping from morning till night (that was during my student life)..my best record was from 10am till 11pm (UKM-Sungei Wang-Low Yat-Times Square-Mid Valley-UKM), non-stop..but now, the most is only 5-6 hours..

21. During my 1st year of university, when I join CSSUKM, they (the seniors) wanted to have design to print on the shirts..and my design was chosen..as the reward, I got the shirt for free..weeee~ the design was a dove..

22. I have a few friends whom are the God-sent angels..and I thank God for them!

23. In my whole life (up to this moment lah..) I had been drunk 3 times..one, is during Suzy’s wedding and second was during new year 2008, and the third one was during Ben's birthday in Labuan where they forced me to drink..hmmph..

24. I love chilies..and I found out the spiciness of ginger, black pepper and chili are different..i don’t know how to explain, but maybe you can try yourself.. ;p

25. i give tuition classes (for almost 2 years already), and i'm happy to see my students excel in their studies and happier when they are better than their friends..hehe.

p/s: Clare, maybe you should do this..we want to know 25 random facts about you.. =)

02.03.2009

i was 1 minute late to blog this out..hence, the date is 2nd..1st of March is her day..

May there always be work for your hands to do.

May your purse always hold a coin or two.

May the sun always shine on your windowpane.

May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain.

May the hand of a friend always be near you.

May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MY DEAR FRIEND BUNIE!