Lost In Translation

Went out on Tuesday night with rene, mel & su (now tell me who's da man? lol).

sepet competition

Mel has been making a fuss about me never going out with the bunch of them and suvyn's been buying it. Airene on the other hand starts her nights off at about 11:30pm everyday so it just doesn't make any sense for me to be catching up with her at all as I have my early mornings at work. So when I finally got a day off to join the girls and miraculously, rene said it's okay to join for dinner (at the right time zone), we headed to delicious at Bangsar!

I know, I've just been there the Saturday before. But I couldn't help it. The location was convenient, the food was awesome, and the desserts are killers (quite literally, technically).
I can't remember what mel & suvs ordered, but airene had her seafood pasta thingy and I, once again - and only because I love me cream & salmons so so much - had the smoked salmon angelhair.

According to smelliepoo, the owner of the delicious chain is actually Ms. Read's son who studied in unimelb as well. He liked the cafe culture in Melbourne so much, he wanted to bring it back to Malaysia to give it a go, hence, delicious. Not bad a story, I must say. I love the place despite the steep price, especially sitting on the outside porch at the cushions. The whole atmosphere was definitely therapeutic and reminds me much of Melbourne.

Oh, and apparently, we were sitting next to an Amazing Race Asia contestant!
If I remember and recognise correctly, we were seated next to this girl called Zabrina.

the one on the left

At first, none of us knew who she was (cuz we don't watch tv?), until some family who was walking by stopped by her table, shook hands with her, saying stuff like "Oh... my kids, they really like the Amazing Race show, you know?" and "So you cannot reveal the results ar?"

Haha!

Nevertheless, it was quite interesting. Suvyn was amazed (no pun intended) at the fact that the contestant passed her a cushion when we first arrived.
Har har. We've rubbed shoulders with the famous now.

Anyways, after all that hoo-hah, we decided to order desserts!
As I said before, they literally kill. Cholesterol never came in a more solid form than the Choc Brownie served at delicious. But boy, do I not exaggerate when I say that it's one of the guiltiest pleasures one can enjoy around here.

And as if that wasn't enough, mel & suvs insisted in ordering the banoffee (some banana-toffee tart) thingy as well, which from its looks, obviously is less of a killer than the brownie (both in taste and health), but nevertheless, a treat still.

It was a delicious night indeed.
All I can say for now is that I hope Esther still loves me when I go back to Melbourne with an extra coupla kilos.
They made me do it!!

It took me a whole flippin' hour to blog the previous entry thanks to the slow internet!
I don't care! I will blog this another day!

Okay. So this is how it went down on Thursday night. We were supposed to meet up on Wednesday night to celebrate Iris' birthday because we couldn't on the day itself because she had dinner plans with her parents already, but Shayne couldn't make it. So Jezza thought we should push it to Thursday then, which was perfectly fine, so we had dinner on Thursday night to celebrate Iris' birthday. Not knowing where to makan, I suggested we head to Wong Kok (trust the Johor boy to pick a place to eat in KL) in SS2. It wasn't that bad a place I suppose, but I'd like to imagine that there's a better place I could've suggested.

But nevermind that. Apparently the colourful menus and whacky names the food there had amused Iris enough to consider the place alright. Fast forward to 2 hours into the dinner. It had been Jeremy's idea to head to the Ferris Wheel in Taman Tasek Titiwangsa, which I thought was brilliant, and so we did - despite the fact that it was about 10:00pm already and we had missed the fireworks display (which apparently happens every night?). So off we went, Jezza, Josh Chan, Chris Nemo, Iris & I, as Sze Lyn and Shayne (who were with us at dinner) had to go home.

For some reason, Josh (especially) and Iris were in a 'cute' phase


"I don't eat beef"

Model material, sial...

No picture of me.
Actually there are. But you gotta check Iris' to see my Chuck Norris-like face there.

The ferris wheel was cool. Very white. But too long a ride, in my opinion. 9 rounds counted, if I remember correctly. And oh, the music they played... I think it was the Visit Malaysia 07 theme song or something. They had it in both Malay and English, and they kept it on repeat. For 9 rounds. I was breaking the glass door to get out.
The cars on the wheel were nice. They were air-conditioned, stylish, and modern. Just a tad bit of a complain on the music, of course. The view was great, but because I was seated at a bad position and it was previously raining, I didn't manage to get any good pics from up there at all.

Nevertheless, it was quite the experience. And as I said before, the wheel itself was very pretty.

If only we had gone there when during the fireworks, and we were up in the wheel at that exact moment as well.
Whoa.
That would've been awesome!
But be warned, though. It isn't exactly a place to go pak-toh-ing. As the sign there says:

Dilarang berkelakuan sumbang!

I think I have some pretty erratic finger, leg, and toe hair.
No, I don't have chest hair. And my arms look rather 'clean'.
But for my fingers, legs and toes? I can't quite say the same.

There's no straight pattern to it. Unlike my subtle arm hair, they do not lay in chorus, synchronised. They're like in their own gerakan rawak (Brownian motion); each strand having a mind of their own.
Pretty cool eh?
Every strand is a rebel!

Anyways, the LCA+ has never been so close. A semi-green light has been lit by the parent.
Now, it's all about rationality and wisdom.
Keep your fingers crossed. Today, we find out.

Okay. So where do I start?
I guess I could say that life hasn't been the greatest for the past few weeks, to be honest.
Something that not many of you would know is that I actually failed a paper last semester.
No, it's not something I'm proud about.
My very first fail (finally).
And no, although I'd like to beg to differ, the truth is that I do not have any excuses to this. I did see it coming, and yet, I failed to take the precautionary steps to make sure I was disciplined and studied enough to ensure at least even a pass for the subject. It was a terrible semester in terms of uni. One I will regret for a very long time.

But what perfect timing though, that Ps. Mark (of CCKL) has been sharing about Starting Again these past few weeks.
Just this last Sunday, in his third and final sermon on the topic, he dealt with the issue of facing our giants in the heat of the battle. Getting up again upon falling down may be a good thing. In fact, it is a great thing. But the real battle is not just in getting up, but actually facing the previous problem again. Sure, I failed a subject in the previous semester, and yes, I am able to get up from that point and start over. But now I have to resit that subject. I have another semester ahead of me. The possibility of me tripping over myself in the coming semester is just as high as it was in the last.
So how do I do it?

There has to be a change in our outlook, he continues. The promises of God is 'yes' and 'amen', but without a new outlook, it's only before long when I'd start feeling crappy and negative again because I have to face the same giant of slacking during this coming semester.
And here's the cruncher.
We can't do it on our own.
There is no way, according to him, that we, relying on our own strength, can overcome these giants in our lives.
There has to be a certain divine strength to resist the old ways in order for us to overcome it that only God can provide. This divine strength is real, it is tangible, and it comes in the form of Grace.

Mark then explains that in the Bible, there are five different interpretations/definitions of the word 'grace'.
1) The unmerited favour/kindness of God
2) God's forgiving mercy
3) Distinguishing gospel from law
4) A Christian virtue
and finally, what we're gonna be talking about;
5) A Divine Enablement

Such a divine enablement is what is mentioned in 1 Corinthians 15: 9-10:
'For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.'

Paul was the last person on Earth anyone would expect to be one of the greatest men of God due to the fact that he was a great persecutor of the early Christians, putting many to death. And yet, upon his encounter with Jesus, he did, and became the author of 2/3rds of the New Testament that we read today. How?
"... the grace of God that was with me."

This divine enablement is real. It is something that God gives us to overcome everything!
It is a supernatural power that enables us to overcome, and no, by 'supernatural' I don't mean faster than a speeding bullet, able to leap tall buildings in a single bounce kinda thing, but God's presence and involvement that brings our natural world to a greater height.
This grace is still us. It's not something that really changes us, but as Mark illustrates, it's like a coat that we put on. It's still us, but with it, we can walk through the cold and be protected from the rain.
But in the exact same way like a coat, each and everyone of us need a different kind of grace. Different people have different 'fits', and with that, each person's grace as God had designed has a different measurement that's just perfect for us.

I need my grace.
My grace to face another year of ups and downs. My grace to love the people around me. My grace to be a good son, friend, and a boyfriend. My grace to serve the people around me. My grace to be a servant. My grace to be a leader. My grace to at least do well in this coming semester.

I need You.

And so, here's my SOAP of today. I've just started reading up on Joseph, the technicolour dreamer, and it's been quite an interesting ride.
I know it's been a while. But I think it's a good move.

Scripture:
Genesis 41:16 - "I cannot do it," Joseph replied to Pharaoh (upon the Pharaoh asking him to interpret his dream), "but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires."

Observation:
I noticed two things in this scripture.
Firstly, Joseph, who acknowledges that he is helpless. Only God has the answer, and it is through His grace that Joseph may help interpret the Pharaoh's dream. It was never his answer in the first place. Everything done (that of the previous chapters) was done by God.

Secondly (in reference to the previous chapter on how Joseph was still wronged and put in prison and treated unfairly even though he was innocent), despite being favoured by God, Joseph was allowed to go through all the injustice of being framed by an unfaithful wife, put in prison, and helping a man who later got out of prison and was still then forgotten. And yet, with all in God's time, His will was still done in Joseph, who was later set free and appointed the Prime Minister of Egypt.

Application:
I just received news that there's an error in my re-enrolment. Due to my one failed subject, two has been taken off my enrolment list and I have to settle the matter tomorrow. I hope all goes well and my course may proceed as planned. But even if it doesn't, I have to put my faith in God to understand His timing. He holds all the answers and however wrong it may seem to me, His will will still be done.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
You know my heart. You know how I want things to turn out for myself regarding this re-enrolment issue. If it is Your will too, please, Father, I pray this in Jesus' name - the name above every name that has power and authority - that it will be resolved and I can continue with my course the way it had been planned out post my fail. And with that, cover me with Your grace, O Lord, for without it, I am nothing.
But still, even if it doesn't turn out the way I'd like it, yet will I praise You, Lord. For You deserve the highest praise and so much more. I shall trust in Your timing and know that Your will be done for You are the Beginning and the End.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.

I bought the lca+.
I know. It was exhilarating. Right up to the point when I opened the box, that is, only to find the front part which holds the lens and flash loose.

doesn't it just look like a gem?


note the loose bit on top

I hope I can get it replaced at the shop tomorrow.

.............................................

On another note, there's something wrong with the commenting system of my blog. So as iris discovered, if you want to leave any comment, please hit the 'preview your comment' thingy first, then post it. I know it's ridiculous. So sorry about it.