Mid-Semester Break OVER and GONE

Well well well... what's up people? I haven't got the time really nowadays to drop by for a post because guess what? My mid-semester break is officially over and I'm back in uni for classes, tutorials and lectures now.

I'm back here for a short post because I'm currently suffering from a writer's block from writing an essay for my English Language & Linguistics class (yeah... so everybody knows that I'm taking this module... for now). How I wish there's like some magic pen or maybe with a clap, my essay would magically be written, ready to be submitted already. But then, who am I fooling right?! All university students go through this phase I suppose.

I love attending my lectures and classes (really!!! well, maybe not all of them but most! :D) but when there's like so many assignments dumped on you, or in my case, when I get many assignments and project,  I get kind of demotivated to even do them. Like, I lost all my willpower or something. I get really cranky and easily irritated when I'm doing my assignments. (So, don't come near me when I'm doing my work or I'll bite! Just Kidding~~)

And with my writer's block, I decided to come in for a little while and post something on the blog. Hoping that I'd maybe get some inspiration somewhere, somehow to continue my essay.

This reminds me of a picture, titled "Don't Give Up!".

I know I'm not digging for diamonds but you get the meaning of what I'm trying to relay here. I'm trying to give myself a pep talk here like "Giving up is for losers!!" or "Don't be a chicken!".

So yeah, that's what I'm currently experiencing, right here, right now. I guess it's hard for now but I believe that hard work pays off. That's how the saying goes right?

Other than that, I finished most of my assignments except for a couple of my essays and a small part of a video project that I'm working on with a group of friends. My Korean video is done and submitted!! Hopefully, it fulfills my teacher's requirements and get a good grade for it. I find the Korean video that 3 of my friends and I made very funny!! Okay, maybe VERY FUNNY TO US only... but I can never watch on because it's SO EMBARRASSING! *fingers crossed that my Korean teacher won't show it to the rest of the class*

Oh and before I end for this post, I came over a pretty cute cartoon. It's "OCTOBEAR" now! Hahaha!! Get it?! Get it?! "OCTOBEAR" = "OCTOBER"??!! Oh okay.. not funny.

Lame, I know... Well, I've got to get going now. Have a great week ahead errrrbody!!

Gonna go finish up my essay now, toodles!

Hannah

p.s. Was supposed to publish this post at around 11pm but then there was an electricity outage in the house. Took up about 40 minutes to fix it. So here it is! :)

Mother's Day 2013

It has come to this time of the year again. MOTHER'S DAY!! Even though everyday should be a day where you honour your parents but today is more special especially to all the mothers. I want to wish all the mums all around the world and especially my mummy a very Blessed Mother's Day!!

I'm so thankful that I have a mum (and dad too! But today, I'm dedicating this to mummy) who works so hard to provide for the family so that all of us in the family can lead a comfortable and a fortunate life. [My family has a dual parent income and I hail from a middle-class family for those of you who are curious. It's just enough for us to lead a nice and comfy life.]

Thank you mummy for all the sacrifices that you've made so that we can have the best. Thank you for being there, being our chauffeur driving us around when we need it and for buying us yummy snacks and foods which dad sometimes disapprove of :P Thank you for providing me with such a blessed lifestyle. Just thank you for everything.

I know that I may not be the best daughter ever, nor the most obedient and submissive kid, but I just want to thank you for being so patient with me and tolerating me and all my nonsense and my silly, idiotic antics. :)

Hehe... I know I'm not a person who regularly profess my feelings but today I just want to say that - Thank you so much mummy and I love you! <3

Not only to my own mum but to all the women - the many aunties in my life whom have been like a mother-like figure to me. Even though some of you are not mothers but to me, you're just like my mama. :)

Just to name a few whom I'm very grateful to like:- 

• My 2 grandmas and my god-grandma, 
• my mum's 2 sisters - Auntie Pheng and Auntie Shim, 
• my dad's 7 sisters - Da Gu, Er Gu, Fun Gugu, Phyllis Gugu, Ha Gugu, Fei Gugu and Ling Gugu especially to Fei Gugu and Fun Gugu for taking such good care of me when I had my long vacation back in KK and also to Phyllis Gugu for taking care of me when my parents are not around and all,
• and also to Auntie Rosemary, Auntie Rachel, Auntie Jeanne, Auntie A.Wah and many, many more!!

All of you have been such an encouragement and an inspiration to me. I just can't fully proclaim how grateful and thankful I have to have my mum and all these aunties all around to look after me. You guys are the bomb!! :D

Enjoy this wonderful day and enjoy your glorious moments fit for a queen :)

Many love and hugs to all of you,

Hannah

Last day of 2012

After me being missing in action for this past half-month, I'm back!! :D Well, I've been back in Brunei a week ago and things have been great. I missed posting on Christmas, so even though it's a little late (better late than never right?), I just want to wish everybody a MERRY CHRISTMAS!! :)

I came back the day before Christmas eve to spend my Christmas back here in Brunei with family and friends. I had a wonderful Christmas dinner at Uncle Alex's and Auntie Jo's residence on Christmas eve with a few other families. You know, just to catch up with one another and to have fellowship. I, as well as all the others I'm sure, are all very well fed that night with all the delicious food that Auntie Jo prepared. Turkey, salmon, lasagna, salad, sushi, cakes... a delicious spread. :) 

I had a nice Christmas day as well. Had a Christmas service and I saw many of my friends being back in Brunei from their studies, winter break or just a nice short holiday. My family and I even went for a movie outing that Christmas night. We went to watch "Ah Boys to Men". Another Jack Neo's masterpiece. I love how the movie is hilarious, heartwarming and educating at the same time. I briefly tweeted after the movie and tagged Irene Ang (an actress from the movie whom I like since the Phua Chu Kang days), and never would I have expected, Irene Ang tweeted me back!! What a nice lady she is. Anyway, it's a really good movie to watch. My family and I love it a lot! It's almost a week since we last saw the movie... and we're still talking about it. Can't wait for the Part 2 of "Ah Boys to Men" to be out next February of 2013.

I've been spending my days back in Brunei well. Had many family moments and even went out to catch up with a couple of close friends. Little did I realise that THE LAST DAY OF THE YEAR IS TODAY!! Can you believe it?!?! I'm not sure if I'm ignorant or rather, living my days a little too well, that I didn't catch on soon enough that today is NEW YEAR'S EVE!! It wasn't that long ago since the last new year's eve right?? 

WOW!! What a year!! For the past 365 days (well, there's 366 days this year since it's a leap year :P), I've been on what-others-might-call-it, a roller coaster ride. I'm pretty sure that I'm not the only one experiencing it this year. There have been many ups as well as the many downs that I've faced. Trials and challenges, happiness and blessings, I've seen a lot this year. But, I'm very grateful to have come to where I am now. There has been many times where I would feel like giving up, especially this year for me, I've been having exams for THE PAST 11 MONTHS!! Yeah, you read it. 11 months of school based exams and public exams. Thank goodness it's over and done with.

I'm never one who has always excelled in my studies but I do try my best in whatever that I was doing. It was hard but thankfully, through prayers and support from many of my friends and family, I finished what I had to. It was really a challenging path. Oh boy... I can still remember doing maths until the wee hours of the night, crying so much because the maths was so hard and I couldn't do them. Haha.. what an embarassing moment to share but it's now a memory. Hopefully, my results would be satisfying so that I wouldn't need to retake my exams. *prayingeverydayforsatisfyingresults*

Anyway, there's just a BIG part in me that's just SO RELIEVED that this year is finally over!! 2012 has been a challenging year, I have no idea what 2013 holds for me. I'm praying and hoping that 2013 would be a year full of blessings and thanksgiving for me and everyone else. 23 hours more to the new year. So, just enjoy the rest of the day, have fun, raise your glass and ring in the new year! HAPPY NEW YEAR 2013 EVERYONE!! :)

Big love,

Hannah

Exam Fever

And so... the exam fever has finally hit me (and all the other people who are preparing for their exams). Panic, anxiety, stress, lack of sleep, worries.. what more to add to my list? I really do pray and hope that all will be well for me this exam. No anxiety attacks and all during my exams and all. These days, I'm starting to feel the stress of the exam which is kind of good as it pushed me to study even harder.

I'll still be updating this little blog of mine if I have the time in the midst of exam. I wish all the exam students the very best for their exam! Study hard and study smart. ;)

Good luck!

Hannah

10 things about me

I just wanted to share 10 things that MOST people don't know about me.

1) I am an introvert. Many of my friends would question this fact but it's the truth. I'm only talkative and more active around the people whom I know for a long time already. If not, you'll be finding me trying to camouflage myself in the surroundings. Not wanting any extra attention than what I'm given already.

2) I'm an awkward person.. or rather I feel awkward many a times. Due to me being an introvert, I don't really fit well in many social functions. I get really awkward and embarrassed altogether sometimes and will hope that everything will end soon before things get worse.

3) I'm a bathroom singer (not literally in the bathroom, but just a term where I don't sing out in public). I love to sing.. when nobody's watching me. Which means I sing while I shower or in my bedroom. My not wanting any extra attention would be one of the reason of me being a bathroom singer. Not that I sing well anyway, I sing just for fun. :)

4) I love to read. Some might be like, what?! Seriously?! You're such a bookworm! Yup, I love reading during my free time. I have many books of different genre. I don't have a particular genre that I like best but I don't like reading science-fiction, unless it's really, really, really good. One of these days, perhaps after my exams, I would like to have a day where I can sleep in through the day, waking up with a cup of warm tea and a good book in hand. That would be bliss for me. :D

5) I like learning languages. It's on my bucket-list. Learn as many languages as possible in my lifetime. I might not be very good at it but at least I know some basics of it. So far, I can speak fluent English, fluent Mandarin (Chinese dialect), average Standard Malay, average Hokkien (Chinese dialect), manageable Cantonese (Chinese dialect), basic Korean (enough to maybe strike a short conversation) and also Hakka (Chinese dialect) which I can only listen and understand but not speak. I'm a half-Hakka and half-Hokkien, so shame on me. Other than these languages, I can say the basic greetings like, Hello, Bye, Thank You, in German, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Thai and Tagalog. There's more I would like to learn if time permits.

6) I hate mint. I cannot tolerate mint in any of my food and drinks. If I taste any mint flavours in my food or drinks, I would gag. This is a problem since I was very young. It took me a really long time to change from kiddie non-mint toothpaste to the normal mint-flavoured toothpaste which I used only when I was 7 years old. Even know, if I'm brushing my teeth and the toothpaste gets too far in, I would totally regurgitate it all out. If I were at the dental clinic , I would usually request for my dentist to give me plain water for mouth washing after the dentist is done with my teeth because they usually provide mint water. ><

7) I don't really like eating sweets except for chocolate candies. I love chocolate! I like gummy bears too. I can eat them candies but just not too much in liking them. Weird, I am. Haha! Usually when friends or somebody offers me candies, I would usually politely reject them but I do accept them sometimes. :)

8) I like to cook.. but I'm too lazy to clean up after my own mess. Which means, I don't cook a lot due to my laziness. I would cook if the situation really needs me to, otherwise it would always be dad who's cooking for the family. I like baking too, but I don't have a working oven. I do cook sometimes, like pasta or making sushi or something else, but only if I "feel" like it. So, yeah, it explains why I don't normally cook or bake. :P

9) I'm more of a city girl who's used to concrete jungles than a nature girl. I can be in the nature jungle, exploring and such but I wouldn't be feeling comfortable. Maybe it's a bad thing but I do still go out there some times. It's just that I prefer to be living in the city or the suburbs at most. Maybe I will go to the country for a vacation but not for long-term living.

10) I don't make new friends easily due to my awkward and introvert nature. However, I do have a nice set of friends around me. I made some new friends in my current school but it took me more than a year to actually talk and make friends with them. So, don't be afraid to chat me up because I will normally shy away when somebody approaches me. It will take a longer time to get to know each other when compared to normal people. Bad habit.

So, that's 10 things about me. Just felt like doing one.. Maybe I'll do another one next time. All these re just random facts about myself. Whatever that pops into my head while writing this post goes here. That's all for now ;)

It's all about me!

Hannah

The London Olympic Games 2012

This post is a really late post. I've been wanting to write up a post but I just couldn't find the time. This week has been an eventful week.. the ups and the downs. The ups should definitely be remembered, whereas the downs should probably best be forgotten? I will write up a post about my week a little later, but for now, I want to write a little about the MOST HAPPENING EVENT now!

The quadrennial event is finally back again after the last one in Beijing, the 2008 Olympics. This current Olympic Games is currently held in London, Great Britain with it being the first ever city to host the Games for the 3rd time in history. I'm very excited for this Olympic Games because from what I can most remember, this 2012 London Olympics is the 2nd Olympics that I'm watching with the Beijing Olympics the 1st of course. The memory of me "actually" watching the 2004 Olympic Games in Athen is rather vague, hence, it's not counted. :P

With the Olympics being held in London this year, it disadvantages me because of the time difference. We definitely got the perks in 2008 by being in the same time zone as Beijing. The Games actually started on Friday, the 27th July but in my time, it was already Saturday, the 28th. I woke up at 3am, the earliest in my family just to watch the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games. Like, how can I even miss such a historic event right?! My parents came half and hour after me. The event only started at 3.50am however I didn't regret waking up that early because I wasn't that groggy anymore.

Oh, did I mention that I had school that day? In Brunei, most of the school runs from Monday to Thursday and Saturday being the last day of school for the week. I only had less than 3 hours of sleep. I was pretty hyper for the rest of the day mostly due to my lack of sleep. Back to the story, the opening ceremony was amazing! I quite like it. The performances were brilliant and I loved how the event was graced by many big shots especially how the royal family are in attendance. I love royal watching! Oh, the Queen also acted in a short skit with Daniel Craig. Rowan Atkinson made it back with Mr.Bean and also, JK Rowling was there too! Arctic Monkeys and Paul McCartney sang to close the opening ceremony. WOW! It was nice because I actually understood most of the whole thing, all thanks to my sociology lessons. While it was easy for me to take it all in, some found it hard because it's totally not our culture.

Of course, this opening ceremony was compared to it's predecessor, the Beijing 2008 Olympics. Some says the Beijing one was better and some says this London one is better. To me, they're both really good. I mean, a country has got to put in a lot of effort, sweat and blood in order to successfully pull off the entire thing. So, we've got to appreciate all these, that's in store and prepared for us. I enjoy the whole show, though I has to leave for school at 7am and did not really catch the ending but I caught the rerun and it was great! I love the lighting of the cauldron and how it was lighted by 7 youths. It was pretty innovative to come up with the 205 fire stands that come together as one. :)

I caught a lot of the events on television. How I wished that I was actually there and then to witness the competitions. This year, Brunei even sent over 3 athletes to participate in the Games, Anderson for swimming, Maziah and Hafiy for the tracks. It's all for the experience for them. I find it overwhelming when I see the champions get all teary when they see their country's flag being hoist up and hear their national anthem play. What a proud moment for them and their respective countries. :')

There's still more to come and I'm watching some of the events when I have the time. I'm rooting for many countries and for many athletes. They're all so good so I can't choose. :P  I'm anticipating a glorious closing ceremony. Hopefully, all will go smoothly for the Games despite some scandals that has already made its way. All the best to the athletes!! :D

May the best man(woman) win,

Hannah

p.s. I love the music being played during the opening ceremony. Hehe.. Here's some to entertain you.

Eia : Brunei's very own talent

How's your Friday so far? Mine has been great so far. I really just want to thank God for blessing me with the good days that I've been experiencing so far. It just really calms me down and help me get through all these chaos with ease. It's just wonderful! 

For today, I won't really blog much about my day or any other thing. I just want to give a special post for a special someone. Someone who's really dear to me, my friend and my sister, who's there for me when I needed help or advice no matter how far our distance may be. Here's to Eia. :)

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About

Hi! I'm Eia. I'm a singer-songwriter from the majestic country of Brunei, and I believe in chasing your dreams and never giving up. click on 'ABOUT' for more info :) ★ http://www.myspace.com/eiamusic - my first single, 'Hello World'! :)

Biography

It’s not everyday that you come across a national athlete who’s also an amazing singer-songwriter. Bubbly and outgoing, Maria Grace Koh – known as Eia – is a 19-year-old singer-songwriter from the majestic country of Brunei. Born on October the 25th 1992, she started singing, dancing and playing the piano from the age of four. Since then she has performed in a wide variety of concerts and charity events, including a Showcase fronting her High School Orchestra for a visit from the British Royal Family!

One of Eia’s early dreams was to become an Olympic Athlete… Due to hard work, a unique talent and strong determination, she was honored to be a selected athlete to represent her country for Swimming at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. However, due to unfortunate events, the team did not proceed on and her dreams were crushed. Devastated, Eia turned to music – channeling her heartbreak and emotions into lyrics and melodies… And this is how her first song, “Hello World” was born.

Shortly after this, Eia discovered a passion for song writing – she started to write more and more music – innocent and emotionally very raw, the music portrays a young girl’s perspective on life, love, hopes and dreams. Her music has been likened to that of Sara Barielles and Taylor Swift, with a touch of Christina Perri and maybe even some traits of Adele – who have all influenced Eia alongside Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys and Michael Jackson. Most of her songs are born from the piano, so they naturally have a soothing and ballad-y feel to them.

Her vision has always been, and always will be, ‘to touch the hearts of people around the world with her music’. Writing is very much a therapeutic and healing process for herself, but Eia’s message is quickly reaching out to others who may be going through tough times, too – just knowing they’re not alone can make a huge difference.

Eia continues to grow and develop as an artist at LASALLE College of the Arts in Singapore, where she met one of her amazing Producers, Joseph Curiale – who has worked with legends such as Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Santana, and Quincy Jones. This led her to recording some of her songs at the prestigious Karma Sound Studios, where she then met renown Producer, Artist Manager, and most recently the General Manager and Senior Vice President of the International Division of Sony BMG Masterworks, Chris Craker, with whom she is currently working on developing her music career. 

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The above is taken from Eia's Facebook Fan Page. So be sure to go check out her Facebook Page if you haven't done so. Go "LIKE" her Fan Page. Also, just share Eia's page on your Facebook too. Let your family and friends know about this new, up and rising singer. 

Go to her MySpace Fan Page to get a sneak preview of her FIRST SINGLE, Hello World. I think it's a really nice song for the lyrics is very meaningful + Eia has an AMAZING voice!

Eia's Facebook Fan Page link: http://www.facebook.com/eia.music

Eia's MySpace Fan Page link : http://www.myspace.com/eiamusic

I think that she's really great! She has worked so hard to be where she is today. She deserve it! Her FULL SINGLE is going to be out on iTunes soon, so be sure to buy the song on iTunes and support her. :D

Eia 

Sharing the love,

Hannah

ANNOUNCEMENT

My blog will be undergoing some changes in order to make the blog itself look nicer and also for the comfort of the readers. So, please don't mind those glitches too much. Hopefully, everything will be in tip-top order soon. Stay tune! :)

Many thanks,

Hannah