Sell your books online

As a book lover, I have the incurable habit of buying more books than I need. I love to read books and I love to buy them even more! In fact, like most of you guys, I have more books than I can read. This is why I need to be more disciplined and spend more time reading.

Buying lots of books also affects the question of space. I don’t live in a Harry Potter world where I can use magic to create extra space for the extra stuff. So what do I do? What do you do? Well, you could trade the books with friends, donate them to the library or sell them off.

From my experience, selling books online works quite well despite having to wait for somebody who wants to buy them. But I just came across this site called Sell Back Your Book and guess what? They buy used books! Forget about waiting for ages to sell off that extra heavy textbook because that website will buy it. They also buy hardbacks and paperbacks as long as the books are in good condition.

When they receive your books and have confirmed the contents, you’ll be paid via check or Paypal. They pay for the shipping of the books too!

With sites like this, I guess you won’t need to worry about selling off your books anymore.

School: Best time of my life

It’s no secret that education is becoming more important by the day.

Choosing the best school to go to isn’t that easy. Will your child enjoy their time there? What kind of friends will he mix with? How are the teachers? So many questions but they can be answered if you do some research of the schools you’ve got on your list.

I remember my primary school days as fun and carefree. There were almost no problems except the occasional scolding from teachers and the childish arguments with friends. But those were trivial stuff.

My teachers were great. They were really dedicated and cared a lot for their students. They would go to great lengths to help us understand our lessons. When we did well, it would be nice to see their remarks on our behaviour in our school report.

Besides, I had friends from different walks of life. Okay, so we were still kids and haven’t seen much of life yet but in any case, we were all a mixture like different-coloured M&Ms in a bag. I studied in a national school, which has students from different races and our medium of learning was English and the Malay language. So we were a diverse lot and by all means, we learnt a lot from one another.

So I think that the kids who attend Ross Global Academy may have the same experiences with mine. I visited their website and was happy to know they aimed to serve students from diverse cultural backgrounds.

The students of Ross Global Academy would also learn about history, current events, and technology. They have to wear a school uniform too. Hey, I wore school uniforms for almost 14 years of my life. At least I didn’t have to worry what to wear to school every day.

So if you’d like to enroll your child in Ross Global Academy, take a lot at their website or find them on Facebook.

Math made easy

1+1=2
2+2=4

If only Math was that simple, right? But the truth of the matter is, I really enjoyed Math during my school days. My friends would call me a Math freak (I think!) because they can always find me sitting at my desk practising some Math questions. Ah, I did love Math. If only I could still take out my old practice books and get down to solving some hard head-cracking problems!

Since I did a lot of questions, I also couldn't solve many of the Math problems. I did ask some of my friends for help but I couldn't ask them all the time. It wouldn't be fair to wholly depend on them. So when my Math teachers came into class, (yes I had two of them as I was taking Modern Maths and Additional Maths in Form Six during my pre-university studies), I'd bring up some questions for them to help me solve.

Another way to get additional Math help was through the Internet. Of course there are Math tutors online who would kindly oblige to guide students in solving those darn Math questions. They are absolute geniuses, let me tell you that! They were my life-savers and also saved a lot of my time. So if you're looking for a Math problem solver, you can just google "math help" or relevant search terms on the search engine.

Good luck with Math!

Mad for Maths

I loved it when the holidays came during my school-going time years ago. Of course, after weeks and weeks of studying, I do deserve a long break. I used to reread my Enid Blyton books about children going away to visit cousins, aunts, uncles, nannies and then having seemingly unlimited adventures. How I used to envy the characters!

But nothing lasts forever. The holidays were bound to come to an end and it’s time to psyche myself up to look forward to school. My long break usually lasted for two months and since I rarely go near my school books during the holidays, it’s not surprising that I might have forgotten what I’ve studied before. Well I never attended tuition so I had to refresh my memory at home by myself. If I didn’t understand anything, I would just ask my parents or my sister. I’m lucky to have such smart people in my life!

And when it came to questions, it was usually Mathematics questions. I loved Maths (kind of miss solving them problems now!) and would love the challenge of solving a problem. How I’d feel when I could solve a difficult problem. I’d let out a big sigh, grin widely and throw my hands up in the air in jubilation. Mathematics isn’t just about logic and solution to me. It does have its emotional aspects too, for me.

Anyway, thanks to the Internet, I’d shoot my questions to Maths experts online who’d guide me on solving the problems. They wouldn’t give the answer straightaway but only gave the first few steps and then provided an explanation. I could still ask more if I didn’t understand. The other fun part of doing Maths is feeling happy and excited whenever anyone responded to my questions online.

What Do You Wear To Work?

For work, I've been advised to wear formal clothes like good-looking shirts with collars and sleeves, black slacks or pants and shoes that aren't sandals, sports shoes or slippers. Jeans and t-shirts are absolute no-nos. But some people at my workplace wore jeans and khaki pants!

Anyway, I guess it's the work that one does and not the kind of clothes one wears to work. What's the use of dressing up like Michelle Obama and end up delivering less than 100% at work? That bothers me a lot actually. I feel kind of guilty when I'm not doing anything or if I finished my work early. But not to worry nowadays because my boss realized that I like to do work so he gives me some to do. My overall performance will be graded at the end of my training so I feel that it's important that I do something every other minute of my working hours not including lunch time.

As for accessories, what do you wear? Yeah, there's the watch, bags, water tumbler, etc. Anyone wears jewelry to work??? A co-worker was really casual once when she wore slippers but maybe the boss didn't notice or just didn't bother.

Well no matter what, looking presentable is still important besides giving your best at work. :)

I Want An iPod!

I’ve been listening to music ever since….I can’t remember when! When I was younger, my parents would listen to Radio 4 (or now known as Traxx FM) with the voices of Patrick Teoh and Yasmin Yusoff blaring out from the radio.

They then switched to Light and Easy (now LiteFM). I was already in my teenage years then and would protest every now and then to change the radio channel to Hitz.FM. Light and Easy played all the old songs from ancient times, that’s what I thought. On the other hand, Hitz.FM was the cooler channel with the latest hit songs. Well, I didn’t know how to appreciate music from the 60s, 70s and 80s then.

So whenever the opportunity arose, I would secretly switch the radio channel to Hitz.FM. I’d then wait until my parents realize that they’re listening to a totally different channel and make me switch back. Haha!

Right now, I have my favourite songs on my computer and I can listen to them whenever I want, as long as I’m at home! It’s kind of difficult as I can’t carry my computer around with me wherever I go. Getting an iPod would be really convenient, don’t you think? Therefore, wherever I go, I can bring my music along with me!

Me, a Florist?

I didn't know why I wanted to become a florist when I was 10 years old.

In class, my teacher asked every one of us what our ambitions were. When it was my turn, I answered that I wished to be a florist when I grew up. The teacher asked what kind of plants I'll plant and I said, "Roses". She then blurted, "Romantiknya..." (How romantic) and the class began laughing.

I blushed and thought that I should have named some other flower like orchids or tulips, anything but roses!

Perhaps I was partly influenced by all those Enid Blyton books I read that time. I learnt of bluebells, snowdrops, hedgehogs, robins, etc. Erm, were there bird baths? As for the roses, we had a rose plant at home. Pink roses would bloom every now and then.

I didn't bother to find out what bluebells or snowdrops were, so I've been left wondering for years and kept guessing on how they looked like. I thought snowdrops were literally snow drops, something to do with snow!

Well, maybe that's what inspired my dreams of becoming a florist. I would plant all sorts of flowers, roses included, and then sell them in my flower shop! For a 10-year-old kid, it seemed like a grand idea.

Cycling Memories

I don’t do much cycling now because I don’t own a bicycle. My old bicycle was sold off when we moved house. Therefore, no bicycles for me to cycle. =(

Last time, I would cycle around the neighbourhood with my friends and discover new housing areas or areas that I’ve not been to before. It was quite an exciting time. I certainly won’t forget the evenings when I’d wake up from my afternoon nap and hop on my old-fashioned Raleigh bicycle and cycle for hours with my friends from school.

Once, a friend and I cycled past a teacher’s house without stopping by to say hi to her. We were actually afraid of her as she was one of the fiercest people/teachers we ever knew. Unfortunately she spotted us. My friend was aware that the teacher had seen us and yelled at me telling me that the teacher saw us. Her yells made me even more panicked and I cycled off faster! That was an unforgettable moment for our teacher too who related that incident to other students at school. How embarrassing! My classmates teased us after that.

Ah, it sure is fun to ride a bicycle. If only there were better roads and less speeding cars, then I’d dare to ride on a bicycle around here. Or I'd probably need a specialized bicycle.

Things People Sell Online

In order to earn some extra pocket money, people would try absolutely anything including delving themselves in selling stuff online. Recently I’ve been slightly obsessed with visiting online stores and forums where people sell off all sorts of things even second-hand clothes! And people actually buy them! That’s even more surprising.

The other kinds of stuff that people sell are like used books, CDs, DVDs, jewellery, mobile phones, laptops, radios, cars, and many more things. It’s quite fun to browse through their items for sale and also observing what sells the most. Although some people sell off their used clothing at cheap prices, I’m still kind of wary about buying them.

Some people also take advantage of their own creativity and make things to sell like handmade bookmarks, greeting cards, cakes, and jewellery such as earrings and necklaces.

How's Your Online Shopping Experience?

There was a feature article last week in one of the daily newspapers on online stores that sell clothes, accessories, shoes, and other stuff that can be sold online! Well, I didn’t realize that there were so many local online stores selling ladies’ clothes. I was, like, where did they all spring out from? How come I have never came across them in my long days of spending online?

Have you purchased clothes or shoes or bags from online stores before? So far, I have only bought books and DVDs, never clothes. My sister once remarked that maybe the clothes might have been worn before or they could be some dead person’s clothes! Yeah, she’s pretty skeptical about most things. =D

What I’m worried about is the size of clothing and shoes. What if they don’t fit me and what if I can’t return them? I noticed on some online store blogs that items sold are not refundable and exchangeable, whatever that means. It’ll be kind of risky, won’t it? But some stuff I saw in these online stores look darn good. They are even hinting at me to buy them! It’s just too bad actually since I’m kind of broke right now.

Time To Think About Earth's Temperature

Did you know that the temperature on Earth and the concentration of carbon dioxide will increase drastically in the next 50 years? It’s all due to global warming and our irresponsible actions. Even now the temperature’s so darn high, so just imagine when it goes even higher later.

During an English lesson, my teacher showed us a video on global warming. Some guy was presenting a speech about the temperature and level of carbon dioxide on Earth. That was an interesting video and I’m glad she showed it to us. At least the 20-something students in my class have an inkling of what’s really happening to our climate now.

So what can we do to really save the Earth? Lots of campaigns have been run, protests have been held, and education provided in schools but it all doesn’t seem to be enough. I guess we have to start with ourselves first right? We have to change our attitude towards the environment and not turn a blind eye to the situation.

What we can do is to use less air-conditioners, less polystyrene, less fossil fuel burning, etc. I’ll write more on how to save the Earth later.

Help save the Earth! Think of your children. Do you want them to live in an over-polluted world in the future? No, I don’t think so.

Sporty Days

I used to be on the athletes team in primary and secondary school. Well, I could run because I was quite active during those days and I always enjoyed Physical Education classes. The fun classes were the times when we got to play baseball, netball, handball, hockey, and we even played football once! Too bad Phys Ed classes were only held once a week. It sure is better than sitting in class poring over books!

My teacher would also put my name in cross-country events. I would go but I never win! Haha! My friends and I would jog and talk all the way. We knew we will never even get in the Top 100, so we might as well enjoy the run. Those days were absolutely fun.

Hmm, my old trainers are already worn out and I think I threw them into the bin. I have a pair of Reeboks now, given to me by my sister. I can’t do much sport now, anyway because of my back pain! I hope I can go back to playing my favourite games.

Things You Bring Along

What do you bring with you each time you leave your house? Whether it’s school, college, shopping mall, wet market, church, temple, mosque, friend’s house, party, what items do you always take with you?

For me, I need my watch with me whenever I go out. Once, for a couple of months, I did not own a watch because my old ones didn’t work anymore and I had to resort to my cell phone to check out the time. But then wearing a watch on my wrist would be much easier and also the watch is an accessory.

Of course I carry a sling bag to put my stuff in. Things like my wallet, a bottle of water, a small book, a packet of tissues, keys to the house and car, and my umbrella! I’ve just acquired a cool bucket hat and that goes into my bag too. What’s the difference between a fedora and a bucket hat? I think the fedora looks trendy.


Left: fedora, Right: bucket hat


So, what do you take out with you?

Go Riding

Do you own a bicycle? Do you know how to cycle? I first learnt how to ride a bicycle when I was 8. Riding a two-wheel bicycle, that is. Riding a four-wheel bicycle was pretty easy, actually.

Anyway, I think my sister tried to teach me to ride. To push forward and just ride away! Sounds easy, right? Well, learning something new can be quite daunting at times. I tried and tried but I couldn’t balance. But finally, one night, when my mom was just out for a late evening walk, and I think I decided to just ‘ride’ my bike when suddenly I could ride it without stopping! It wasn’t perfect riding. I was going left and right and was quite unsteady but still, I could ride. That was unforgettable.

In my teens, I used to ride our old Raleigh bicycle. I was quite jealous because other kids were riding mountain bikes. We didn’t own a mountain bike as it was sold off when I was still small.

So, how about taking some time off the computer or the TV and go ride a bike? It’s good exercise for the legs, that’s what I read.

A Very Cute Baby

I attended mass last night and then later, a couple with a baby girl in a stroller came and sat in front of me. At first, I couldn't see the small kid because she's hidden in her stroller. But then, she cried in the cute way that some babies cry, and her mom plucked her out and carried her.

Oh, finally I got to see her. She's cute with large, innocent eyes. Haha! And she looks blur too, like all babies do. But then later, her mom put her back in her pram and gave her some toys to play. She clumsily grabbed hold of a toy and flung it to the ground. Her mom had to get up from her seat to pick up the toy. Hmm, babies really do like to throw stuff, do they???

Well, the baby didn't stay put throughout the mass. Her mom carried her and walked around outside the church. It was quite warm inside and even though her dad brought a mechanical fan, it still wasn't enough to keep the baby happy.

And me? I had to pay attention to mass, of course! Even when mass was over, the mom and her baby still hadn't returned. They're probably enjoying their nightly stroll!

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Exciting England!

I’ve always wanted to go to the United Kingdom. London buses, Buckingham Palace, Oxford University, etc! Guess what. I’ve dreamt of attending Oxford University before but since I’m not a genius or anything, that dream never really came true. Anyway, I can always go to England for a holiday or something. The main thing is: books!

Yes! If I ever find myself in the UK, I’ll definitely go to the big bookshops there. Places like Waterstones and Foyles. Oh yeah, those places are unquestionably at the top of my list of places to go when and if I’m in England.

Besides those bookshops, I’ll make sure that I stop by Notting Hill in London too. Uh huh, that movie starring Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts. The Portobello Road Market sells books, furniture, clothes, food, etc. Well, I wouldn’t buy the furniture but I’ll check out the other smaller stuff that I can bring back home easily. London would be really exciting.


The Portobello Road Market


Now, what about going to Manchester too? The name should sound familiar to you if you have some knowledge in football. Yup. Manchester United. You guessed it right. But if you’re not the football type, you can always pay a visit to the Manchester Art Gallery at Mosley Street. The Imperial War Museum North would be another interesting place to go in Manchester. Admission is free!


Manchester United logo


Let’s go to Birmingham now. Hey, I didn’t know that it is considered the ‘second city of the United Kingdom’. The first city is London, of course! Oh, and check out St. Philip’s Cathedral too. Incredible, isn’t it?


St. Philip's Cathedral


Wow, the UK! Hold on there, I’m definitely flying off to this amazing place sometime in the future. See ya!

Don't Wanna Sneeze! Achooo!

I've got the flu! I've got the flu!

NO, I'm certainly not happy about it, it's obvious! How did I get the flu? I have no idea. This morning, in class, while writing notes, I was busy wiping my nose away. Disgusting, yeah, but I can't help it. I had to go to class like a good girl on a Monday morning. Even though my nose was behaving like a waterfall.

Then, I got home and continued sneezing. I can't count the number of times my heart stopped to give way to my sneezes. It is terrible. I hate getting the flu.

Well, I bought Scott's Emulsion Orange Flavour and will take 3 spoonfuls a day after every meal and at the same time hoping that my flu will miraculously go away. I have more classes to attend tomorrow!

I'm still reading Holes by Louis Sachar. If I set my mind to it, I can finish it today because I'm halfway through the book. Most unfortunately, I'm busy sneezing so I don't think I'll get much reading done. And I have one more assignment to complete. Yes, only one assignment left for me. My friends have two more! But, after the assignment, it's time to get ready for my exams, which will most likely begin at the end of next month.

All right. See ya then.

Back to earn money!

Yes, I'm back doing paid posts for PayPerPost and Blogsvertise. I haven't been very active in Blogsvertise and I'm lucky they didn't suspend my account! They sent out emails to all members warning them to either accept or decline blog offers. If we didn't take the trouble to visit the website to accept or decline the offers, then we might have our accounts suspended!

Well, it's a Saturday night and there's Smallville on StarWorld but I'd rather be blogging now! No more money already lah.... University isn't cheap. And I want to practise writing, too. Haven't written much for months already. So, now it's a good time.

I have a stack of new books waiting to be read, too. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (oh yeah, not Deathly Hallows, see how outdated I am?), I Capture The Castle, A Walk To Remember, Devil Wears Prada, New Moon, and many more! I borrowed a book from the library, I forgot the title. I'll check it out now. Ok, the title is 'Derik's Bane'. It's supposed to be a funny book, so I'm prepared to laugh like crazy.

Coming Nearer and Nearer!

I've got to go to school AGAIN to get more of my certificates' copies certified! I didn't know that I had to photocopy my other certs like leaving school ones, activity certs, competition certs, etc. My classmate even got her parents' birth certs certified! I mean, that's a little too much right??? Haha! I hope my parents' birth certs aren't needed cos I didn't photocopy them!

Yesterday, my sis drove me to JPJ to renew my license. To upgrade from a P (Percubaan) to a permanent driver's license. My father suggested to renew for 3 years. 3 years ma 3 years lah! Hehe...

However, when we got there, the computer system was OFFLINE. So, we had to wait for a quite a while. I could see other people looking bored, tired, or just plain frustrated! Can't blame them!

And my stupid second-hand Proton Tiara is giving 'alarming' problems. Each time we tried to start the car, the alarm goes off. Irritating-nya... Hope the mechanic will do something about it or just tell the right way to go about it!

Plus, I need to drive more with the Tiara so I'll get used to it, like what my mom and sis are always saying.

Ah....chooo....alamak! Sneezing non-stop now. Gotta go!