Shopping Before New Year

Wah....Queensbay was extremely PACKED yesterday, which was a Sunday. Suddenly, where did everybody come from? I didn't know that it would be so, so crowded and almost all the shops had at least more than 5 customers in it, even those expensive boutiques.

The people were definitely taking advantage of the sales that were going on. It's still going on anyway. I went because I wanted to get my eyes checked - time for new glasses and also to find out about optical goggles for swimming. I searched on the Internet and most people suggested using contact lenses but using contacts underwater is not safe. Even with goggles.

Then, luckily a helpful lady/optician from one of those eyewear shops told me that Jusco sells optical goggles. I was surprisedly happy! At least I don't have to wear lenses and I would not be blind as a bat while swimming. That's one problem solved.

So, it's New Year's Day tomorrow. A whole new year and a whole new you. Actually, I think I'll still feel like my old self. =) And I haven't made any New Year resolutions. I will make resolutions every now and then, not only for New Year's. I make the resolutions but it doesn't mean that I'll keep them! It takes discipline and willpower. =D

Okay. Wishing everybody a very Happy New Year 2008!!! Be good.

Changing Templates - Risky!

I just tried to change my blog's template. Unsuccessfully. I went to the BlogSkins.com website and just browsed around for some nice-looking, fresh template, perhaps with a few nice pictures of books or someone reading books, etc. Many of the blog skins there are very cartoonish, lovey-dovey, and nah, I'm not going to use them. I'm still looking for the RIGHT one! I don't really know what the right one is.

So, I just tried to experiment with one skin that looked okay. But, it didn't look okay when I've copied and pasted the HTML code in Blogger. The font was too small. I tried to change back to my old blogger template and somehow, everything went wrong! It happened the last time too. I know there's a way to restore my old Blogger template but forgot.

Anyway, after a few clicks here, a few clicks there and a few anxious heartbeats and the crossing of fingers, finally everything was okay again. Well, it's not the old template anymore now, I'm using the same template like my new bookshop's blog. Looks kinda nice. A dotty nice.

Oh, imagine if all was lost. I would have to retype the links, put up the ads again, etc...that will surely take up my precious time. Luckily all is fine. *lets out huge sigh*

The skins over at BlogSkins are nice and creative. I really like some of them but they are not suitable for this blog. There'll be a lot of adjustments to do if I were to use them. Maybe for the time being, I'll just stick with the usual Blogger templates. When I really have free time, which I don't quite know when, then I'll try to change to one of the skins from BlogSkins.

It Pays To Wait

Has this situation ever happened to you? Here goes:

One day, you were flipping through the newspaper or just surfing the Internet, and you found out that a particular thing that you have always wanted (book, blouse, CD, DVD, etc) is available at a store near you. Of course, you get excited. Then, the next logical thing to do is rush out to the store and buy it. You are afraid that the item will be out of stock if you were to wait a minute longer. Am I right?

Then, perhaps a month or so later, you flip through the newspaper or surf the Internet, and you see the item being advertised again. It's still available and its price has been reduced!

Oh, don't you just hate it??? I know how you feel. Because the other day, about a month ago, I saw that 'The Book Thief' was available at MPH Bookstores and since I came across numerous book reviews praising the book to bits, I thought that I had to read it for myself and see what the fuss is all about. So, I bought the book at RM42.90.

And today, only a few minutes ago, I decided to open MPH Online's website, I saw that the book's price has been reduced by 30%. See? If I had waited, I would only have to pay RM30.03! If I had waited, I would save around RM12! *cries loudly with huge tears flowing down*

Well, what's done is done. No use crying over spilt milk. But then, I didn't know that the price would be reduced. I didn't know that the book would be part of the sale. I didn't know the future. Enough said.

So, I guess you should check out the bookstores now to see if your favourite books cost less than the usual price. If not, it's up to you to wait or not to wait.

I Woke Up At 12 p.m.!

Well, almost 12 p.m. actually. =) I don't sleep like a pig you know though last time my friend used to say that I hibernate instead of sleeping normally.

Yesterday morning was my Spanish class and we learned the alphabet in Spanish. A is ah, B is bear, C is theh, CH is chair and so on. After that, we had to spell out our Spanish names in Spanish! We also learnt new Spanish words. Looks like we have to memorize them in case the teacher randomly calls us to translate the word!

After class, my friends and I went to a nearby shopping mall to look for stuff to make to sell for our Entrepreneurship class. Yeah, we have to sell things for almost a month and then see if we make a profit or not from our little 'business'.

We were out almost the whole day walking around, looking for our 'sources'. We couldn't find much unfortunately. Today, I'll look in some more shops.

Hola!

My second Spanish class was today! It was fun as we had to choose our Spanish names to use in class. Too bad the Spanish version of my name was already taken by someone else! So I had to choose another one.

It was really funny to see normal-looking people with new names like Marcella, Nikolas or Nicolas, Sergio, Alfonso, etc. We only encounter these names in all those telenovela shows on TV! The Marcella that I knew on TV (was she from Mis Tres Hermanas?) was sophisticated, snobbish, stylish and everything that the new Marcella in my class was not. I don't think I'm anything like my new name either!

But it's all for fun and for the sake of learning. That way, we got to know almost everyone in class. The teacher asked us to memorize everyone's new names and then she'll randomly call out somebody to tell out almost everyone's names! So, everybody quickly looked around and asked one another their new names. Now, that's an effective icebreaker.

Today's class was short. She just gave us some basic Spanish expressions and then we were dismissed. I'm so looking forward to the next class.

Blog For Money With Smorty!

Since there aren’t any more opportunities left for me at other blog advertising sites, I’m turning to Smorty.

Smorty? What does it mean? I don’t know either but I know that at Smorty, you get paid for blogging. It works like other blog advertising sites too and at least at Smorty, there are opportunities like this one for me! That little thing makes me happy.

Smorty connects bloggers with advertisers. You write what the advertisers want you to write and then you link back to the advertisers’ websites. Advertisers prefer to advertise on blogs. Then, you get paid for it! That’s the best part, isn’t it?

The dashboard at Smorty's site is pretty neat too. I just joined and yet I have over 150 points already. There's also a referral program if you're interested too. Smorty's here to stay, I tell ya.

So, if you want to blog for money, go to Smorty!

Have A Merry Christmas!

Ho! Ho! Ho! Where's Santa Clause? Did he bring you lots of presents? I hope he did.

Anyway, I'd like to take this opportunity to wish you a

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Have you read any books lately? Or if you haven't, then have you compiled a list of books to read next year since New Year's just a few days away. Time to make some New Year resolutions, too. No matter if you can't stick to them. The important thing is that you've tried. Right?

It's sad that I have no classes only on Christmas Day, that is today. Tomorrow it's all back to normal....sad! Even if it's just one week holiday, I'm happy!

Well, what are you gonna do today? Besides opening presents! =D Whatever it is, enjoy!

Now there are werewolves?

In New Moon by Stephenie Meyer. First, it's only vampires and a really klutzy girl named Bella Swan who happens to be hopelessly in love with one particular 17-year-old vampire. Then, suddenly werewolves appeared.

It's quite a confusing story actually. I didn't really enjoy the writing in it. I felt there were some parts which were not necessary and no wonder the book is so darn thick! I bet the third book, Eclipse, will be even thicker.

Okay, one could feel sorry for Bella because (a) the love of her life left her and (b) she finds out that she's being hunted by a lady vampire. And she thought she was just an ordinary girl. So much for being ordinary when she has so many secrets.

Well, don't we all think the same? You never know. Maybe you think that the girl you always sit next to in class is a totally normal. Who knows? Maybe she's a plain Jane by day and superhero by night???

Secrets like the ones that Liz Parker from Roswell has to keep. It's not her secret to tell. Speaking of Roswell, I'm starting Season 2 already. Just watched 4 episodes. Nope. I'm not getting sick of Roswell yet.

Anyway, now I'm at the part where Bella just realized that one of her friends may be a werewolf. Could be a danger to everyone. This werewolf story reminded me of Harry Potter's Professor Lupin!

What are you getting for Christmas?

I mean what are you going to buy for family and friends for Christmas? I'm getting books for my nieces. Bought them from two online bookshops. I just hope that they'll like the books!

We really should take advantage of these year-end sales. That means no shopping for the first 10 months of the year and only start all shopping in November! Sounds almost impossible don't you think? Put shopping on hold for almost a year??? Ridiculous! Haha! Well, there's still the Merdeka sale.

Oh, I bought the paperback version of Shopaholic and Baby from MPH Online for only RM25! And delivery was fast! It's so much cheaper than the first version where it cost around RM60++. That was a great bargain, I'd say!

By the way, is everyone staying glued to the PayPerPost website? Almost all the opportunities were already grabbed up, so I'm like left with one miserable opportunity. Well, better than none!

Today is a public holiday, so no classes! There aren't any classes tomorrow too! Now that's fun.

Oh back to the main topic. So, what did you buy to give as Christmas presents? Books? Movies? Clothes? Whatever it is, I'm sure the receiver will be happy. It's the thought that counts, right?

Quite A Depressing Day

3rd day of school. How was it? Well, if you noticed the title of my post, then you can guess how it went. Just felt totally moody today. Maybe it's because I slept late last night - couldn't sleep cos I slept a lot in the afternoon.

This morning had a class. In this class, I didn't know anybody. So far, so good. I could just stay invisible and just listen to the lecturer. But no, she can't leave me alone. She had to ask us to get into groups. She gave us the 'opportunity' to choose our own group members. Aduh.......I was dying there.

It would be better if she chose for us, then I would not need to ask some group to take me in. Anyway, most of them already knew one another. So, this fella next to me was writing down the names of his group members and I noticed that there were only 3 names. The lecturer said we should have 4. So, I quickly asked him if I could join. He said okay. But, I was still feeling left out. They didn't even know how to pronounce my name!

Anyway, tonight's class was better. Again, we had to get into groups and the members in every group had to be of differnt gender, race, and course. So two of my friends and I had to scout around to look for 2 more members who are not Chinese, not a girl, and not from our school. In the end, we found 2 new members.

Today it's been a lot of 'group work' stuff for me. Ahh...I don't look forward to next Wednesday....

2nd day of the 2nd Semester

Yesterday and today weren't so stressful. That's because tutorial classes haven't started yet! That's why I'm still so free now. Well, tomorrow I have to wake up really early so I don't miss my first class of the day!

Today's class was okay. It wouldn't be okay if I were the girl who was sent out of the class. For good. There's this girl who signed up for my class but the lecturer said she's not allowed to take it this semester. The lecturer talked to her through the microphone so all of us heard everything. The poor girl. To be sent out of class and to be told to return the course sheet too! I won't be surprised if the girl wouldn't want to sign up for my class again. She can take my class but not this semester.

Well, I finished watching Season 1 of Roswell. That's good progress. And I'm still reading New Moon by Stephenie Meyer. Haven't reached the middle page yet.

Okay. Good night!

Books For The Challenge

You do know right that I'm joining the Young Adult Challenge right? It's being hosted by Joy.

It will start in January 2008 and will go on for the whole year of 2008. I'm supposed to read a young adult book a month. It sounds pretty easy, huh? There are currently 50 participants already! If you're interested in joining, just head on over to Joy's blog to check it all out. You know, read the 'rules' and all. It's all very easy, don't worry!

Well, here are some books that I plan to read for this upcoming challenge. My first challenge too!

1. I Capture The Castle by Dodie Smith
2. Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
3. I, Coriander by Sally Gardner
4. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
5. A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly
6. In The Hand of the Goddess by Tamora Pierce
7. The Woman Who Rides Like A Man by Tamora Pierce
8. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
9. Does My Head Look Big In This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah
10. The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne
11. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
    

I'm not really sure what one more book will be. I'll look around in the bookstores and see. But I'll most likely read the books listed above for this challenge. I'll update if there are any changes. Can't wait for 2008 to come!

Roswell Rocks!

I was so excited when I got my hands on the whole Season 1 to 3 DVDs of the Roswell TV show starring Jason Behr, Shiri Appleby, Majandra Delfino, Brendan Fehr, Katherine Heigl, Colin Hanks, and more. The show was on TV2 back when I was in secondary school, around the year 2002. I haven't watched it for so long that I don't remember the plot that well. I think that I've watched every episode. Maybe...

Well, now I can watch any episode anytime I want! Cool, huh? When I'm bored or lonely at my hostel, I can watch my Roswell. There are 17 DVDs altogether and each DVD contains 4 episodes. Now, I'm only watching DVD 5. 12 more to go! Yeah, the more the better!

Anyway, I just checked out Wikipedia about the Roswell High books for young adults. Max, Liz, Isabel, Michael, Maria are so different in the books! For example, in the books, Max Evans is blond! However, in the TV show, he's brooding brunette. And Liz in the book is of Spanish descent? Shiri Appleby doesn't look Spanish to me.

There are 10 books in the series but the TV show has 61 episodes! Wow!

Hmmm...but in Popular, I saw the Roswell books in a box set - 5 books altogether if I'm not mistaken. Ah! We'll see. Now, I just want to watch my Roswell DVDs! =D

More Books I Want To Read

I'm going to finish 'The Alchemist' soon and I don't have anymore books with me now. The rest are at home! So, I decided to just compile a list of books that I want to read later. These books I've come across in book reviews, book websites, book blogs, other book bloggers' reviews, auction sites, etc. Anyhow, they seem interesting and that's why they are on my list. I so enjoy making book lists! The longer, the better, don't you think.

So, the other day at MPH, or Borders, I don't remember, but this book, 'The Minister's Daughter' by Julie Hearn is definitely at MPH. It's quite cheap over there if compared to the one at Acmamall's site where it's sold at RM30.92. That's something else that I have to do too - check and compare prices! Something I hate to do but I ought to do. I'll feel bad if I had to pay more for a book when I could have gotten it cheaper elsewhere.

Anyway, I still have 2 more Shopaholic books to go. Yeah, I enjoy reading her books. Probably the only chick lits books I've read. I'm planning to read 'Shopaholic Ties The Knot' and Shopaholic and Baby' and 'Can You Keep A Secret?' and then I'll have read all of Sophie Kinsella's books! She writes captivatingly, that's why her books got me hooked.

I've been finding for 'Postcards From No Man's Land' by Aidan Chambers everywhere and finally found it on Acmamall. The cheapest edition costs RM30.92. Shipping would cost RM7.50! That's where the expensive part is.





Next up is Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer! Well, actually I haven't read 'New Moon' yet, sad to say. I left the book back home because it's quite heavy to carry while travelling. When I get back, I'll definitely read it.




Oh, another book would be Stardust by Neil Gaiman! The movie was fantastic! Then, there's Chocolat by Joanne Harris. I saw this book on eBay, but sadly I can't bid on it. Ah, never mind. Know what? Why not I sell off my books over here, right in my very own blog? We'll see how that goes.



All right, enough for now! More updates on what books I want to read later.