Feeling so hungry studying nutrition

Had such a great time in Brisby~ Thank God the highest rainfall in 12 yrs, the storm, blackout and flood that happened in the area that i stayed at didnt really affect me much. The weather was great for the activities i was doing each day.

Spent so much $ though. Needa save up for Sydney trip next year already. Hillsongs Conference! And...... I so wanna go to Tetsuya's for a meal.. heh. :P It will cost me a BOMB. Anyone wanna donate to the 'well-deserved experience of a lifetime for mel fund'?

Nutrition exam tmr, and chem on tues!!!

Realised i'm not as confident as i usually am for exams cos' alot of the info i hid in my head flew away when i sat on the roller coasters in Movie World. Still can't believe i sat on roller coasters. I'm PETRIFIED of heights. Maybe cos J tricked me into sitting the humble looking Scooby Doo one. I was so wobbly after that. I actually only planned to sit just the kiddy road-runner roller coaster. But after that i felt more confident la. Went for more... :)

Managed to re-read all my notes this weekend, and do 4 practise quizzes. I'm ready to thrash my paper tmr! But i realised that i forgot to do 1 nutrition quiz during my brisby trip. Shucks. Lost 5%. Not sure if i can get my HD now... Oh well~ Just do my best, and enjoy my exam~ :)

Meanwhile, I REALLY misssss home... Really wanna fly home now. Some friends have already went home. Now i understand how my friends felt when i changed my exam dates last sem, and was the 1st to leave. This time, i'll be the last to leave cos of OCF Convention and AGM for all the different states' OCF centres... Better prepare for my centre report soon. But first, what all of us Sporeans make the world of.

EXAMS! WOOHOO~

Mid-Brisbane update!

I'm in Brisbane! 1st state i'm visiting in Aussie other than Adelaide!

Yes.. I know. My exams are next week and i should be mugging in my room, or with all my other stressed out friends. But who says you can't schedule your time such that you finish studying before everyone else, and take a relaxing (or tightly packed with activities) break so that your brain cells are not moaning from over-studying when you take the exams? And.. i cut it short such that it fits in just nicely between 2 OCF gatherings.

Have been to the city, Indropolli, and Westend since Sat. Much bigger city and chinatown here compared to Adelaide, but the variety of shops are about the same. But the 'Shao La' stall, BBQ food, and desserts are not bad! Westend Village is quite a sweet place. Lotsa concept shops.. Abit like Handorf, the German Town. So i manage to buy more pressies. The rest of today and tmr will be the 'End Times Seminar' conducted by the church J attends, Hope Brisbane. Really didnt intend to go for a seminar during a hol and venture abit more around the place... But oh well. He signed me up, and this season i've been reading revelations and am trying to understand so much more about the symbols used. So much hope in this book that's become my fav now. So i'm quite expectant as to what they're going to teach. Exciting church they have here. Very tightly bonded care grps and lots of spiritual training... Much more than just services. Loving it.

Would have liked to venture further out and see more attractions. But they're all so inaccessible by car.. I can't drive, he's not sure of the road rules, and his friends are not free. Oh well... If only i learnt driving before i came over... Shucks. (Too late to regret now. Perhaps i'll just take my basic theory when i return and start booking driving dates for the end of next yr) I'm thankful that at least his gal care grp mates have very accomodatingly put me up at their place for free and joined us in our journeys around Brisby! So much more fun to have friends together to tour the place. As much as possible, i'd always want to travel with friends who are locals at the country/state, cos i'd see the recommended places, and at the same time have shared memories... If not, places are just places. Never ending attractions to see in this world la... Without the people, it's meaningless.

Wed and thurs will be the more exciting Movie World and Seaworld! But i'm hoping we can exchange Seaworld for a sandboarding + snorkelling @ Morton Island trip if we can book a place. Everyone who has went there are so excited about it! Gd way to get a tan and do be immersed in nature. Then Fri it's time to fly back. Can't possibly see everything, so it's ok. I don't have so much cash anyway. Just really thankful to meet some very lovely new friends here, and a few of the best spots. God has been most gracious in providing even my wants.

WOOHOO. I'm loving the hol. Hoping all my stored up exam info won't disappear as i'm having fun. I still want my HDs. Then it'll be a win (hol) - win (OCF) - win (exams) - win (spiritual food) - win (more / deeper friendships) situation. GRINS.

Malcolm Lee!

To SHOW OFF! by Praising God for his amazing plans and providence.

My cousin is beginning his journey of a thousand miles to become a 3 star Michelin chef. :)

Passion for cooking wins him scholarship
(The Straits Times 9 Nov)


Coming from a household where the aroma of dishes like buah keluak, a local nut spiced with belachan chilli, was often in the air, the young Malcolm Lee grew up a cooking aficionado.

But it was not until he cooked for some friends in junior college that he realised his potential.

'That was the first time people told me they enjoyed my food,' said the final-year Singapore Management University (SMU) business management student.

Mr Lee, 24, went on to clinch the $23,000 Miele Guide-at-Sunrice scholarship two Saturdays ago.

The Miele Guide will publish a list of Asia's best restaurants yearly. Its inaugural 2008/2009 edition lists 300 of the best restaurants in Asia and is available at major bookstores.

At-Sunrice GlobalChef Academy, started seven years ago by Mrs Kwan Lui, now boasts students from 25 countries.

Upon finishing his final exams at SMU in December, Mr Lee will start his diploma in culinary craft and service excellence with the academy, at Fort Canning Centre.

When SMU had a student-run restaurant called the Treehouse, now no longer operating, Mr Lee was one of those running it. He saw to it that the food was of a high standard.

'My parents have seen what I've done and how cooking has developed me as a person, so they are very supportive,' he said.

His signature dish is tagliatelle, a pasta dish, with ragu sauce. The sauce alone takes him eight hours to make.

He has also cooked in Harry's Tap Room, in the American state of Virginia, for 21/2 months. There, he learnt that fresh produce makes all the difference.

He hopes to own a restaurant one day.

He plans to travel once his 15-month course at the academy is over.

'I want to learn from chefs all over the world and bring my experience back to Singapore and share it with my customers.'

nah. not dating...

Hellloooo everyone who visits my blog even more than me...

I'm so sorry for not updating for so long. I totally gave up writing my blog for so long, and admit i didnt even check my tagboard... Have been quite stressed over here adapting to serving in the new christian organisation, and managing my work at the same time that blogging just went really far down in my priority list. So i go back to my usual habit of hibernating for some time.

Awww. If only... but i'm sorry to disappoint everyone looking for new exciting conversation topics i'm not dating right now... It's not the right season la. Too many changes, and i'm just clinging on tightly to God, then supporting and being supported by a huge bunch of friends than to any 1 particular guy... Well, who knows? Anytime.. anywhere.. :p

Anyway, 1st sem it was a whole new country, 2nd sem it's a whole new spiritual atmosphere and ministry altogether. I was really tense since mid-aug because i started serving more. Which wasnt the way it should be. I looked forward to serving so much in COS and spending all my resources there. But somehow i was afraid of investing more of my time and energy in OCF, till i started to even dread it a little cos i wasn't feeling comfortable with myself. The perfectionist in me just sparked off. And i struggled to meet the own expectations i placed on myself.

State wide planning, uni scale events, personal ministries.
Weaknesses revealed, strength gathered, but now personally refreshed and renewed.
Hard-pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted but not abandoned; struck down but not destroyed.
Because the all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

So it has been a great learning experience, and will continue to be as i keep building on on skills. Can be painful and stressful, but it's all worth it for the growing of character in light of the hope.

Anyway, that's the minimum turning point and inflexion points briefly described.

For now, exams are coming up 24th for nutrition and 25th Nov for chem. I have, by right, 2 weeks to study. But by left, i only have 1 week. Cos i'm going for a holiday the week before my exams! haha... I'm almost done with my revision for this 2 modules. Only 1/2 a module left to revise for a 2nd time. And try out 4 past yr papers. So i aim to finish by... tues/wed? Aiming to get both High Distinctions. So that i will top my grades last sem.

So there, i'll stop here because i can go on forever about all my experiences... but i needa go mug for whole week and know all my materials inside-out. (hwa-chong sydrome) Before i go though, there's always room for testimonies.

It's still absolutely amazing, even though I should be used to his amazing-ness by now, how God has been providing for me in every aspect even though i feel most stressed the previous few months during this sem.
For studies: Managed to get High D for NT, and should get another D for lifespan development (i think).
For finances: They were running quite dry due to some delays, but just at the right time it was topped up again.
For strengthening weakness of perfectionism: Voluntary research study that i signed up for once a week for 10 weeks let me have one on one sessions with a psychologist to see how it's possible to change certain unhelpful thinking styles to helpful ones. Enlightened me in a very different and practical way to live out Romans 12:2, to develop a renewed mind and to test and approve his will.
For more counsel and sharpening of ways: Mentors, advisors, parents and also friends.
For leisure:
Caleb and Serene coming over to celebrate bday week!
Lotsa running,
baking (this time - more apple crumble, fudgey brownies, bread pudding, macaroons) and tried sorbet freezing too,
learning to make more Korean cuisine,
kayaking with dolphins,
performing on stage in a hostel charity fund raiser event with 2 other gal friends (with group name 'The Singing Muffins'! haha.. I was 'raspberry and white choc muffin'.) AND. Getting our very first album... Ha. Cos the event was recorded live and sold as CDs to raise funds.)
Then managed to raise about $500 in another OCF event that we planned in just 2hrs and abt 30 ppl. I was auctioned off to a friend to help organise her receipts. Raised $50 just for that!! Nice~
And many other fun...

Anyway, I'm coming home 8 DEC!!!

And i wanna see my photo on the YPM camp shirt. *devastated*

Sigh. Took so long to even type out this entry... Frustrated that i can't put up pictures cos i needa try to get rid of my dark eye circles and go to sleep.

Excited to mug more tmr, and try cooking shi2 quan2 ji1 tang1 (10 medicinal herb chicken soup), for the 1st time, for my unit mates, for a farewell meal for my korean friend, for dinner.

Missing everyone...
luvs mel

Pls don't send me to Africa

This has been my secret prayer previously... Ha. Check it out. May the many of us take a different stand...

He has spoken

Once again God has spoken. It's going to be an amazing journey. May he create miracles and work wonders through his people...

What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. Philippians 3:8-9

Eeling + Choc Bean = :)

Received news that Ee Ling got top 5 in Flinders Law and for her 1st class honours!!! Praise God. He really answers prayers! Still remember how she studied so hard and stayed up countless nights to do her assignments. Special thanks... to Matt, her bf who helped her during this difficult time of completing assignments. and also to UNIT 7!!! Haha. Cos we were fantastic encouragers isn't it? :)

Miss you lots Ee Ling. May you have even better days / your 2 years at NUS Law as you convert your degree. Keep us updated!!! (Hope you're reading this~)

Here's our picts from Chocolate Bean just before you left. If only i could make such delightful desserts. Just got to meet Kelvin, someone who studied at Le Cordon Bleu in Sydney. His first module was baking. OMG. If only i could study there during just one holiday.... Maybe.... haha! :)

Summarised thought process

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. Ps 27:14

Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart that I may fear your name. Ps 86:11

If the Lord delights in a man's way, he makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand. Ps 37:23-24

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope. Ps 130:5

21st!

Okies. Yang Wei wants a birthday post. So I'm going to be nice and wish him Happy Bday again~ Happy 21st muscleman!!! I'm glad you liked the Mars Bars Cheesecake that Cheryl and I paintakingly made, enjoyed the best Jap restaurant in Adelaide - Wasai lunch and absolutely LOVED the wallet present. Heh. :)



Birthday boys get special birthday wishes:
It's tough being far away from home and studying so hard at the same time to fulfil your dream of becoming a doctor! I think us international students all understand homesickness full well. Aren't you glad you have friends like us? :) So far you've been doing great. Mugging much more than I think is required (thus the fantastic results), and opening up to your 'fully (maybe over-) developed confidence' compared to the really shy guy we knew at the start! LOL. Hope you have a fun year ahead as you keep experiencing and learning new stuff. Enjoy!

Verse dedication (for one who desires great strength):
A wise man has great power, and a man of knowledge increases strength;
for waging war you need guidance, and for victory many advisers.
Proverbs 24:5-6

Us all!


Goodness. I'm going to be 20 soon. And I already feel the pressure... So many changes are taking place. Too many, too fast. Must time fly by so quickly? :S

Celebrate good times, celebrate!

It's time to celebrate~

Happy birthday Alethea, Sarah and Ash!
NATIONAL DAY!
and because it's the beginning of a joyous period.
*grins*

Olympics 2008

It has begun!

Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
1 Timothy 4:7-8

Another learning point

It's great to be back in aussie attending The Edge church again. Once again, the sermon spoke very strongly to me, relating to what had happened during the week and answered my questions to God.

Interesting n unique people come and go here in the hostel. Usually we'd flock to people of the same kind, and very easily push away people that we don't really like, or don't usually associate with isn't it? Had a hard time trying to not push some away this week. Actually it was like that since a long time ago. Well, somehow i understand how it feels to be different, to be left out, and not to be accepted. That's why I felt the pain, and the loneliness even before it happened. But I just couldn't really explain why i did the things i did. When others ask me why i still spend time with certain people, or do things for them that i don't need to, I couldn't really answer them. I don't know how to put these feelings into a logical explaination.

Pastor Jonathan spoke about the power of the word 'because' on Sunday. How if we were to give a reason for all the things we do, we might be more deliberate in doing certain things. Not just do it because of comfort, or culture. I found out my 'because' then.

If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

1 Corinthians 5:13-21

Emo day

Have been quite excited about this sem cos i really really like my modules. They've been fun! And the work hasn't really started. Ha. So it's good to just learn and absorb and reflect.

I even had the time to go watch Mama Mia! It was FANTASTIC. I cried for half the show, and kept singing. Almost wanted to dance too. Lol. But was abit shy. 4 of us gals went together - Sam, Alethea, Anna and me. And the other few seats in the whole cinema were filled by really old people. Ha. Weird though. Even though they older ones should be bigger Abba fans, I think we were the most excited ones in the place. GO WATCH IT. I rate it 5 stars. Like 赤壁! :)

That was an emotional day actually. After crying during the show, I was crying while talking to Siew Ho on msn. Haha. It was just one of those moody days where I couldn't really control my emotions. Think i'm get less stable when i'm all alone in my room.

The story goes like this:
I was approached to help make refreshments for OCF for Friday's orientation nite. So I happily agreed to do it! Given a $30 budget and told to make refreshments for 40 ppl, I decided everyone would really like some apple crumble and ice cream! Since the usual snacks are like 2 bags of potato chips, i thought this would be really a great idea to have homemade dessert and just indulge for the big event! Everyone is allowed to take 2 fruits per meal, so it'll be free when i rope in all my friends to help me get green apples. The other ingredients like flour and butter are so cheap. And i got lotsa cheap nice vanilla ice cream too. So i spent about $20. Which is actually much lesser, cos i won't be using up all the ingredients.

I later found out that I was actually supposed to make LOTS more food! Cos most ppl would be at OCF about 5pm to prepare stuff and rehearse and won't have any dinner. So the food I was supposed to prepare should be filling and lotsa carbs. Thank God i found out before the big day. Pat saved the day by helping me buy some other stuff so tt we can bake and prepare on friday. But in the end we had to increase budget by $10. Even though it was my fault for not asking specifically what was expected, others told me that it was just a miscomm.

The perfectionist in me ran wild and took over. Shucks. I WAS SO SAD. Made a mess. So in my room, not knowing who to talk to, I was glad when Siew Ho asked how i was! Told him the whole story and he actually offered to ask churchies to donate to the 'Save the Melissa's OCF supper time fund'. Haha. I was so tickled, and thanked him for the joke to cheer me up. But i realised that he wasn't joking!! OMG. Haha. Then he wants to transfer the money over so that I can give it back to OCF. Gosh. I was laughing and crying at the same time. Thanks siew ho.... You have no idea how grateful i felt by the thought. Thanks....

In the end, I baked from about 9am to 5pm together with a few others, and managed to prepare lotsa yummy food. Apple crumble, ice cream, 2 types of muffins, tuna puffs, sausage rolls and fries. Glad that people enjoyed it and was able to fill their rumbling tummies!

O nite was good i guess? Programs went well on that day. Just abit sad that we weren't able to set up a booth before that to publicise OCF more. Only 2 new people came. At least 2 came! But i just hoped for more. Nvm. We'll just keep praying for more.. more more more.

It has begun

It's been 1st week! Played mahjong with Sam, Colin and Mahjong Master Kenneth + made lovely apple crumble with Cheryl's recipe already.


Felt so comfortable being back with my hostel friends. Wonder how i'll feel when i leave them next yr to move into a cheaper apartment without food... :(

Ee Ling just left... I'll miss you lots. You've been such a dear to me. Always crazily random, sheepishly humourous, yet the lawyer in you never fails to shine through when I need advice. The unit is much quieter now... but i'll see you back in Spore! Have a good sem in NUS k? I have appointed you as my lawyer if i ever need one. :)

Managed to clean up my room and fix my internet and printer. My super hero power never fails to act up. Internet got cranky and my new printer cartridge was rebelliously dry since 1st sem. But i managed to bring in fresh supplies... So it's working fine now. :)
Talking about my powers, Alethea and I laughed for about 5 full mins when i walked into her room and the next second, there was a 'BING' sound that said she temporarily lost internet connection. OMG. HAHA.

I love my modules and my timetable this sem. So far so good for 1st week. The workload seems fair. Did i tell anyone that i have only 4 classmates in my NT class? 1 guy and 3 gals. Who are much older than me. I think the ladies are at least 40+. We even sit around cosily in his office for lessons and there's free coffee and tea in the student's common room during break. Haha. Prof suggested we change timings from 5:30pm to begin from 4:30pm for our 3 hours seminar. So my timetable looks even better now... Was so nice of one of my classmates to offer to send me back home every week. So i wont have to suffer in the cold waiting for buses since the bus change and waiting would take me almost an hour to get back.. in the dark.

Core mods: Chem 1B & Fundamentals of Nutrition
Electives: Lifespan Development & Interpreting the New Testament
Deciding and still sitting in lectures: The Individual & Society (Philosophy)

My Timetable for 2nd sem
		Monday		Tuesday		Wednesday		Thursday		Friday
09:00						DSRS1202 Lecture (1) STS.S403		CHEM1102 Practical (4) PHYS.121
10:00
11:00
12:00		CHEM1102 Tutorial (1) SLTH.STH1		CHEM1102 Lecture (1) IST.STH3		CHEM1102 Lecture (1) IST.STH3		CHEM1102 Lecture (1) IST.STH3
13:00
14:00				NUTD1000 Lecture (1) FMC		NUTD1000 Lecture (1) FMC
15:00
16:00
17:00				THEO1201 Seminar (1) ACD.E3
18:00
19:00
20:00

Now... to set out to look for a job to work on Fridays.