hmm.. i haven been updating my blog for a long long time.. my lappy is down and it's troublesome to blog in the computer labs in school.. but i will continue to upload my photos, if any, onto shutterfly.. so ya, if u wish, pls view my photobookhttp://tattyxin.shutterfly.com.. =)
been here for 3 months.. another 2 more months, i will be back in sg.. half of me wanna go back, cos i really really miss my family and friends.. and sg is like a wonderful comfort zone for me.. the other half of me wanna stay here.. there are so much more to be explored over here.. the climate is different.. the lifestyle is different.. there are so much for me to experience over here.. oh well.. what will be, will be..
.::.i'm smarter than u, linear algebra.. *bleh*.::.
oh great.. today was a total bad day.. it started out like s**t.. dumm.. i had a midterm today.. dumm linear algebra.. and u know what? i fell asleep last night before finishing my last chapter.. oh great, just great..
so i woke up at 7am, shocked to realise that it was already 7am.. dumm, the test started at 8am.. and i had like 100 more pages to go.. dumm.. this felt s***y.. ahhhhhh.. and so i washed up.. flipped, flipped the pages.. scanned through the numbers and letters and notation.. i knew nothing went into my head.. dumm.. and so i went for the test, totally unprepared.. it felt weird as i walked to class.. the road seemed so unfamiliar.. ah ha, that reminded me.. i had not been attending lectures since the last mid-term, which is like 5 weeks ago.. oh well.. great job, hx.. dumm.. but somewhat, somehow, i managed to find my way to the right class.. haha.. it was drizzling.. tat did not make things any better.. and so i sat down somewhere, stared at the lecturer and the gsi's, and then i dazed for a while before they started giving out the test scripts.. and so, i looked at the paper.. 4 questions, 25 marks each.. good job, i can't even score miniature marks here and there.. and i had no idea what the 4 questions were asking.. looked seemingly familiar yet not so.. so being smarter than linear algebra somehow, i managed to conjure up some images i had from the homework, the textbook & the review sessions held yesterday and the day before and chunk some rubbish down onto my test paper.. i'm so sure that i'm writing trash.. but what the.. it's better to hand in blank script.. and 35 mins before the paper ended (tat means 55 mins had gone by), i had already nothing more to write.. well, kinda expected, isn't it.. i dun haf photographic memory and it's useless writing more rubbish.. but i'm just too lousy to hand in the paper and leave early.. and so i sat there still, glanced through my paper again and again, making corrections here and there to make my answer look intelligent.. i did these as though the markers are idiots.. oh well.. dumm.. dumm linear algebra.. ahhhhhhhh.. just let me pass this paper.. i had nothing more to ask for than a pass.. ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.. =(
and so, i din have a good sleep last night, and i din have a good morning.. so for the rest of the classes, i was 80% sleepy and dozed off now and then.. bad girl.. boo.. =(
ok, tats all for tonight.. i had lots to do.. 1 midterm next week, 1 quiz, 3 homework, and i lab.. i'm a robot.. oh great.. ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..
my house juz had a house meeting about heating issues.. apparently, the heating system in my house works in this way: it will only turned on 2 times a day for a fixed number of hours.. in another word, it is on only during certain time-frames of a day.. so it was and had been on from 8pm to 11pm & 6.30am to 8am everyday.. and people are complaining that this isn't enough and the house is far too cold.. hmmm..
well, it's not always a problem for me cos my room warms up easily when the heater is on and is kept warm for a relatively sufficient time after the heater is off (i.e. residual heat).. and in any case, i usually have my comforter to keep me warm.. thanks to jonathan who told me to bring my comforter here.. hee..
ok, tat was kinda side-tracked.. anyway, someone suggested that the timing be changed because she doesn't wake up so early in the morning and it's bad to wake up in the cold.. hmmm.. *thinking* if one wakes up after 8am, i guessed that would be fairly warm already! why do u still want the heater on?!? hmmm.. oh well.. unless of cos it's a rainy day.. or hailing day? hee.. and someone suggested that the heater be on in the afternoon when most people study.. but hmmm.. that's hardly the case.. i hardly see people in the house in the afternoon? all hiding in the room studying? hmmm.. i have no idea.. it's kinda dumm to want the heater on in the afternoon cos that's the time u are most active (well, i assume) and u wun die of cold.. imagine the night without the heater.. u will die.. i still remember my first night in my house.. my room's heater was not on and i din noe about it and had no idea how to switch it on.. and know what? i slept in the cold for the whole night and woke up with 2 painful ears.. that was horrible.. my ears then hurt like they had frost bites.. ouch.. i would never want a night with no heating.. i will die..
anyway, the kinda short-term solution was to keep the heater on for an extended period of time - 7.30pm to 11pm & 6.30am to 9am.. well, i love this.. the more heat the better.. as long as it doesn't incur much on the house budget.. i dun want to pay extra..
oh well.. i never had cold weather in singapore before to want some heating.. people in singapore hardly survive without the air-con.. what a contradiction.. well, i guess it's a give and take.. like it or not, the weather here can be so good that you felt like u have the warmth of the sun and the coolness of the breeze.. that's the best time to sun-bathe in the memorial glade in cal.. but i'm allergic to grass, sickening.. maybe when the spring comes in full-bloom, i will bring one big towel, sit on it and indulge myself in the sun.. hee.. but i guess it's not that bad to have the sun all year round.. you will never feel like you are going to die in the cold.. hee.. and you can easily wear lesser to keep cool.. but here, when you are cold, u can hardly keep your whole body warm, no matter how much you wear.. it's just never enough..
ok, enough of all these crap.. i shall go and study a little before i panick about my sh**y linear algebra mid-term tmr..
i receive an email from the U.S. Postal Service regarding a parcel i sent to my cousin in singapore.. as i paid for a registered express mail, the parcel required signature confirmation.. and so when i receive this email, i tot i shd see a scanned picture of the signature or sth.. (fyi: the parcel had already reached my cousin last week)
U.S._Postal_Service_
to me
This is a post-only message. Please do not respond.
Label Number: EQ70 7234 446U S
Service Type:
Thank you for requesting a Proof of Delivery letter on your shipment.
Your Proof of Delivery letter is included in a PDF file attached to this email. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader software to view the PDF file. Download Adobe Acrobat Reader for free by going to http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html.
If you have additional questions on Track & Confirm services and features or if you have difficulties viewing the attached file, please visit the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) section of our Track and Confirm site at http://www.usps.com/shipping/trackandconfirmfaqs.htm for more information.
Attachment: Proof of Delivery letter (PDF)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Results provided by the U.S. Postal Service.
But i was wrong.. haha.. when i opened the attached document, this is what i get..
Date: 03/09/2006
huaysin ang:
In response to your request dated 02/24/2006, we regret to inform you that we were unable to locate any delivery information in our records regarding your item number EQ70 7234 446U S.
If you require additional assistance, please take this receipt to your local Post Office or postal representative.
Sincerely, United States Postal Service
haha.. so this is what was called the "proof of delivery letter"? i wasn't even informed of where is the delivered parcel now.. haha.. what a joke.. so much for paying US$29.50 to mail my parcel to singapore.. i laugh.. lucky the parcel was safely delivered to my cousin and was a great birthday surprise for her.. imagine if the parcel was lost (choy!), i wld be so mad and upset abt it.. hah..
ok, the weather was good this morning.. and a few of us happily set out to the ocean beach.. i had no idea what awaited me.. no anticipation, no excitement, whatsoever.. but everything that was to come after this was good.. and i love it.. =)
the muni train in SF.. looks like our mrt isn't it? haha..
but this muni train came from underground to aboveground and runs on the road.. mrt can never do this.. haha.. mrt runs underground or in the air.. haha..
when i see this ocean beach, i'm so dumbfounded.. for the first time, i'm seeing a beach so beautiful.. all thanks to charlene who brought us here.. hee, and u noe wat? this is the pacific ocean.. it's juz so cool.. pun intended.. heh..
my feet..
our feet..
our feet digging into the sand..
digging and digging, waiting and waiting..
woohoo.. here come the splash.. and gone were our feet.. haha..
my footprint.. =p
my shadow..erm, i look fat.. this does suggest something.. oh noooooooo..
my name..and lotsa my footprints.. haha..
me.. =)
writing my chinese name..
still writing.. ahh.. my chinese name is really tough to write.. haha..
yay, i'm done.. finally.. =p i always recall my "childhood torture" when i write my chinese name.. haha..
my favourite calligraphy.. =) immer..
welcome to.. oh no, we are leaving ocean beach already.. and i still haven had my shoes on.. ops.. =p
and so we left ocean beach and proceeded to go to golden gate park.. hee.. looked like it's a natural itinerary today huh? hee.. =p
welcome to golden gate park.. all of us @ this "giantic" rock - lars, charlene, wuyan, me, debiao & meichee..
shot 1.. @ ground level..
shot 2.. @ stone level..
shot 3.. @ rock level..
yay! @ sky level maybe? haha.. i finally stood up on this "giantic" rock!
and now, i have to think of how to come down.. ok, i know i looked silly.. dumm.. =p
ops, i slipped.. but safe.. hee.. mighty huixin.. haha..
my favourite plant in the park.. 3 heart-shaped leaflets.. since i stepped into this park, i've been busy snapping photos of plants (usually flowers).. can't bear to leave the plants behind without bringing back some lovely pictures of them..
mini-waterfall? haha.. someone told me it's a drainage system.. oh well.. who knows?
this pond was not very huge, but there were lotsa ducks in it..
hee.. let's feed them with my sandwich..
ahh.. they gobbled it up so fast.. dumm hungry ducks..
mega-waterfall? haha.. or a mega-drainage system? haha.. the water was quite dirty, i must admit..
and so we left the nature part of the park and reached the museum area.. we din enter any of the museum cos they were closing.. probably come back another time, or never.. haha..
anyway, this is me riding on a stone sphinx..
and it's tortoise-telling time..
apples.. i never really like apples.. but eversince i came to berkeley, apple is kinda like my weekly snack.. haha.. and here i am, with a giantic apple..
all of us in front of a greenhouse @ ggp..
cute doggies come in triplets..
i wish i have one too..
hee.. and we ended our day with a simple dinner @ some chinese restaurant @ SF chinatown.. not fantastic, but a cosy meal though.. ok.. shall update on the next week soon..
.::.hx8: cny @ helen's house & a trip to stanford.::.
on friday afternoon, meichee, helen & i took bart to helen's house.. and this was the beginning of a fruitful weekend @ sunnyvale.. =)
our host for the weekend - helen on the bart! it's a super comfortable bay area rapid transit! =)
a scenic view of other cities while on our "wrong way" to fremont.. haha..
the weird elevator tat shouted "call for elevator" when we pressed the elevatoe button! haha.. =p
ok, after this, helen's dad came to pick us up from the bart station.. and for the rest of the night, we talked and ate and called home but did not take any photos.. haha.. too bad not to haf any mouth-watering photos of auntie's good food for u.. haha..
2nd day afternoon, helen's mum, helen, meichee & i went to stanford.. these are photos we took from this "enemy" school.. haha.. stanford is forever in rivalry with cal..
stanford entrance..
this school is not big.. it's huge! lotsa giantic green pasture.. =p
some stanford building.. it's weird cos none of us know which building is which and we have no tour guide to bring us ard..
haha.. i looked so miniature in this building..
stanford building 2..
stanford building 3..
me, helen & meichee @ stanford building 3..
me in front of some stanford gate..
i tink this is the entrance to one of the main libraries.. cos it looks like doe library.. haha..
Herbert Hoover sundial..
Herbert Hoover sundial..
some memorial thingie on the ground..
yup, u can read wat this is..
inside the hoover tower..
Herbert Hoover Room..
Lou Henry Hoover Room..
1st panoramic view of stanford..
2nd panoramic view of stanford..
3rd panoramic view of stanford..
4th panoramic view of stanford..
@ the top floor of Hoover Tower..
the windows are full length which makes this whole place very bright and scenic.. very cool and windy.. a very beautiful view even though they are all red roofs below.. =p no wonder stanford's colour is RED.. haha..
the carillon of the tower..
about the carillon of the tower..
just outside the Hoover Tower (which was in front of me) and opposite the memorial auditorium (which is behind me)..
outside the memorial auditorium..
ok, tat was the last photo of stanford.. and we went to helen's church to make dumplings for the evening.. it's a pot-luck style dining.. and i had lotsa fun making the dumplings.. credits to helen's dad who took those pictures below..
dumpling making part 1.. =)
dumpling making part 2.. =)
dumpling making part 3.. =)
finally, ready to boil the dumplings.. =p
after we had our stomach full of dumplings, we went home.. and we were abt to leave to go to helen's parents' friend's house.. so we decided to pluck some tangerines to bai nian..
plucking some mini-tangerines to bai nian.. ops, caught in action.. haha..
ok, and when we were at helen's parents' friend's house, we played table tennis.. but no photos taken.. quite fun.. and then we watch the princess diaries 2 with a 10-yr-old kid.. haha.. helen's friend..
the next day morning, meichee & i went to church with the wu family..
juz outside helen's church @ sunnyvale.. the sky so blue.. the clouds so white.. and the mountains so far away..
then we came home for lunch and i ended up taking lotsa pictures of the house..
these are our wonderful hosts.. helen & her parents & her brother steven..
helen & i outside her house..
me & tangerines again.. but in bright sunlight..
helen's house's main door..
the living room..
the dining room..
auntie busy washing dishes in the kitchen..
meichee reading a book in the tv room..
the guest room, which is also the room in which meichee & i slept in..
this is the attached bathroom to the guest room..
helen's room.. the portrait on the wall is our 8-yr-old helen..
helen's study table in her room..
basketball net & a swing @ the backyard.. and a half-cut-off orange tree on the left..
and this is the orange tree @ helen's house..
bbq pit & beach table & chairs @ the backyard.. and see tat lemon tree?
so, this is me trying to bite the sour unripe home-grown lemon from tat tree..
ok, after tat we went back to berkeley.. it was a great weekend at helen's house.. thank you so much gal, for giving me such a great cny in US.. never thought that my cny can be so special.. grateful and thankful for all your kindness..
