Hormones and depression...just a little.

What is it with hormones that makes my mood go up and down and up and down? Seriously I hate having periods, period! (no pun intended)...

This is one of the days where I felt extremely content an hour ago, and upon seeing that Ange's out with Mr. Practical and probably won't have time for me, my mood turned a little for the worse. Where's my empathy of understanding, you ask? Oh, it's right here, in my head. It's telling me that he needs his time with his friends and all that and he can't cater to my every whim every time. Yeah I know that. I just can't help but to feel depressed that's all. Probably the hormones. (Hormones inside me are probably going : "yeah yeah, blame everything on us *grumbles* nobody gives us any credit". Well, if you want credit, quit making people depressed!!!)

I'm not sure why but I just don't feel too serene. I have nothing on my mind to worry about, 'cept for the idiotic landlord and chief tenant's lack of courtesy that's pissing me off. Otherwise, I'm perfectly serene, with just a splash of depressed emotions in the heart. 

The mind has no control over the heart. It's as if both my brain and my heart works together at the same time, one of the main reasons why although I have empathy, I constantly struggle with myself and my decisions. Empathy and irrationality works together hand-in-hand, making clashing decisions to think and feel different at every chance they get. As if my hormones aren't doing enough to my emotions once every month (hormones: "quit blaming us will you?!" ; Me: " yeah yeah yeah...*scoffs*").

Sometimes, the heart in me likes to tell people that take him away from me (temporarily - obviously). People like his college people (uni stuff), his friends (normal case), even his anime-s and games (yes I'm that crazy...). My heart's telling me to be selfish sometimes when it comes to him, it's just that I don't really...do too much of what my heart tells me (anyone at this point might sigh in relief). Unless there is no conditions where following my heart doesn't give bad consequences, following my mind (aka Miss Rationality the Empathy Department of Brain Inc.) has always been the way to go, to avoid others being mad at me. 

Heh...what do I know right now, right? I'm just depressed...

Glamour: Le self or le cosplaying self?

Now this is a topic that I find very interesting. Why do people want to be somebody else? I stumbled upon a friend's Facebook site and saw the grouping of profiles in the 'friends' category that interested me. There is was, Miss Shirley and her cosplaying persona side by side, though I wonder how many people actually know that they are both of the same person. 

I looked at their profile pictures and I saw that, evidently, the cosplaying profile was more glamorous than her normal persona. And thus is why she maintained her cosplaying profile more than the normal one. Interesting how people want to be someone else. I'm don't condemning, don't get me wrong. I envy that they are able to do that. Actually, I envy that they have the budget to do that. If I could, I would love to dress up as somebody else, getting all the attention and adoration without people actually knowing it's me. It's some sort of a freedom that not many people can or want to have.

I love (good) attention. Sure, I do. But I don't want attention as myself, cause I have this issue with being too self-conscious, which is where my empathy comes from (ironically). Call it a clash of character. But it is easier to adore getting attention when we're not ourselves. Because we won't be judged for wanting attention. 

Hmmm....this is just a short train of thought. Not much to write about really...

A message to the loved ones...

There were a lot of embarrassing moments that happened in my teenage years, especially when it came to boys. I had a crush on this guy once, Elliot. He was, at that time, the most popular guy in my hometown, even among the 5 famous schools. I got to know him through my closest girlfriend at the time, who was (again, at the time - how things changed) his godsister. She was freaking out about talking to him and asked me for help to do the communications work. I did a lot of that for her back then, and got to know a lot more people that I probably shouldn't have known for my own good. Ah well, let bygones be bygones. 

Now, Elliot's life has always been drama-worthy. I'm guessing by the look of his Facebook, that hasn't changed that much either. But back then, it freaked me out that I could be talking to him. The friendly tomboy who doesn't know a spec of boys in her early puberty years was talking to the most popular guy in town. If you were me back then, most of you probably wouldn't feel any different. A lot of girls dream to be close to the popular guy one time or another in our lives. 

Then came Elliot's birthday. I come from a normal (and loving) family where gifts that were handmade are (still) very much appreciated. The heart shaped pillow I made for papa when I was 8 years old is still in his drawer I think. And seeing as I didn't have much budget for an expensive gift, I opted to give Elliot something I thought was more meaningful (to me), a bottle of stars and a couple of handmade flowers. I know what're you going to say. He's a guy, receiving flowers (especially at the age of puberty) pretty much spelled geek. I made them, put them in a bigger box and handed to that close friend of mine to give it to him. 

I later found out that he opened the presents in front of everybody. I'm not sure whether this is in my head or it really happened, but I have a certain memory of knowing that a few girls actually laughed at what I gave him. Sounds very typical, isn't it? Needless to say though, I was embarrassed. I wrote what I could in my diary (I didn't have a blog back then) and locked it in the deepest chasm I could find in the house: my bedside drawer.

I shudder to think if I ever should take and read back the part of 13th of August. Yes, I still remember the date, very clearly. It was a moment that I really do not want to recall and yet can't help but to. This makes me think that sometimes, when a person is used to receiving expensive gifts, no matter how bad being materialistic is, it is hard to give them anything else that meant spending less than what they're used to receiving. Just to give you an example, at the moment, Hugo Boss perfumes is his cheapest gift yet. Note the 's'. 

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

I'm a person who loves to make handmade things. It makes me feel like I'm making more of an effort into the gift. One of my main love languages is receiving gifts. It makes me happy to receive one and to give one in return. I think I spend half my yearly allowance back in puberty time on sending Chinese New Year and Mooncake festival packages to people all around my hometown. And it made me happy when the same people have the courtesy (?) or the initiative (?) to send one back to me. It was the sign of a close friendship for me, as materialistic as that sounds. 

So as a result, I have made it some sort of an obligation for the people that I'm close with to give me something for birthdays, anniversaries, special days and so on. Some people might think that I just love presents. True. I do love them. I love something that I can keep, use, or hold onto. But it is the people who give me the presents that mean the most to me. You should see how many trinkets I have kept over the two decades that I have lived from the people I love, my family in particular. Every single one I have kept, even if they're just taking up space. I'd cry if any of them is thrown away. That's how much I cherish these things, materialistic or no. 

Ange drove me to meet me at a highland resort for my birthday this year. And to be honest I feel rather guilty for asking something from him as a present. Driving to meet me itself should be something that I appreciate to no end, which I do. But I guess my being adamant and wanting something solid to remember gets the better of me. *soft laughs* I'm sorry...

Sometimes when people ask me what do I want for my birthday, I feel rather odd. Of course I would love to tell them anything, anything at all that I needed. But sometimes, it is also the spontaneity that makes me appreciate the present all the more. I guess in my heart, it isn't just gifts that touches me, it's the effort behind it. 

But to papa and mama, thank you so much for giving me what I want for my birthday. 

To papa, thank you for asking before my birthday ever came. Thank you for buying me both the present and the birthday cake, which I relish in eating even if it is squished beyond recognition after coming home from the trip *chuckle*. Also thank you for loving me so much. 

To mama, thank you for giving me the allowance to spend, knowing that I need it. Thank you for loving me so so much to the point I want to cry every night. 

To my brother and sister, thank you for giving me the present, even thought I suspect it was just a by-the-way purchase =w=;;. 

And to Ange, thank you, for driving up to see me, for being there with me on the day that I could call my own, for kissing me and hugging me, for agreeing to get me another thing for my birthday even though I know that driving up is already one heck of an effort for you to make ( ❤ ), thank you for setting your schedule aside for me, thank you for loving me and taking in my ridiculousness regardless of the time of day, and thank you, for being by my side. 

I love all of you so so much. Thank you. ❤❤❤❤

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

With much love, 

Kaitlyn ❤

Two is perfect but is three a crowd???

Do we ever feel jealous whenever our best friends try to bring a new friend into the fold? Or when the new friends try to squeeze themselves into the fold? Well...I've been through both. And through my experience, both of them really isn't pleasant at all.

When it comes to friendships, I'm rather territorial. I don't mind extending my hand of friendship to a new person that I have just met. But when that particular person is invited in without my consent or tries to push in the fold without my consent, I will feel my shackles rise. My brain will naturally want to reject that person away from me, and most importantly, away from the group. I just don't want to lose the solidarity that I have with the current friend, especially if it is a best friend. 

There have been too many cases in my life where the current friend pushed me out of the circle because of that new friend. Granted, some of you would say that maybe they weren't 'steady' enough to be my best friend in the first place. Or maybe I did something wrong. But no, I always try my best to be the loyal and helpful friend. I've never done them wrong. So my guess is as good as yours. Maybe I just wasn't interesting enough.

At any rate, self-pity aside, I just don't like it whenever a new person comes into the fold forcibly (through my eyes). My (gay) best friend Callum has asked to bring a new friend to our gathering. More of a date than a gathering, seeing as it is only two people. This new friend is a girl that I know exists. We talk fairly little, mostly only random comments on each other's posts on Facebook, and even that is once in a blue moon. Through Callum, I have known that this girl has some sort of a same interest as me and him, Literature and books. She blogs too, but I rather not include her blog in here. 

Now, Callum is gay. So obviously (in case some of you think so), there is no romantic intention towards him whatsoever. I waste no time in telling you that I am poker straight. But I am just the type of person that cannot stand someone else trying to bring in someone new. Probably it's some sort of a trauma from past experiences. I tend to think negatively of the person they try to bring in, even for no reason at all. 

This girl, I shall call her Fiona (a name I really don't like in the first place, so you can see where I'm coming from), is not someone I can relate to. To be honest, I'm not even sure that I want to relate to her or connect with her. She speaks English and thus, language is not the barrier. But Callum and I have this bond, this bond where it enables me to crap about whatever topic under the Sun. And I personally feel that anyone else who is there will just ruin the bond. I've been through the same with Elene and her boyfriend where when she's around, I am unable to talk about anything personal with him, with him being my past best friend. 

I don't know what I should think right now. But I guess if Callum is willing to bring her in a once in a long while gathering together, I'm guessing that he isn't that exclusive a friend after all. Someone told me once that having a smaller circle of friends means you don't have to take much crap from people. Usually a smaller circle means most of your friends knows you very well and vice versa. But in my case, I'm guessing that having a small circle of friends only makes me risk being hurt by them more and not being able to have back up. Harsh as that sounds, this is reality.

It's a matter of Perception

It's 7.30pm in the evening and I'm sitting here struggling with whether I want to watch the next few episodes of Perception or not. I'm trying to catch the episodes on TV (what with excitement of watching shows on TV and all) but I already have the full Season 1 on my laptop. 

Credits to Google Images

I've downloaded the whole series for Season 1 and 6 episodes from Season 2 at the moment. I'm guessing in a couple of weeks I'll have the next 4 episodes in hand as well. I just couldn't imagine that the show is so intriguing. Dr. Daniel Pierce (second from left in the above image), who struggles with a condition called schizophrenia, a condition that makes him hallucinate people and objects, helps out the FBI with their cases. It's sorta my new favourite TV show. To be honest, this is one of the few shows that actually makes me think (more than usual obviously).

Thoughts seem to swim in my head easier after I've watched an episode of Perception. Maybe it's due to Dr. Pierce's starting and final few dialogue that always gets me thinking.

Credits to Dr. Daniel Pierce's Quotes FB

"The self is really a collection of several distinct neural networks, all running on this glob of jelly between our ears. 

So, if there are different versions of yourself floating around inside your skull, which one is the real you?"

- Dr. Daniel Pierce

Interesting...isn't it? The way he talks. I suppose the writers of the show's scripts should have credit. But I like to think that Pierce actually said that (well, technically as Pierce is also fiction, he did say that). 

So who is the real 'me' inside all of us? The one who dreams to sing on top of a stage? Or the one who achieved the top scorer's award in Harvard? The one who sit in the room just chillin' to the music? Or the one who thinks constantly about the world's problems and its society?

Personally, I feel that there is a lot of 'me'-s in me. There is the girl who yearns to sing on that stage. There is the girl who yearns to be the top scorer in Harvard. I don't usually chill to music. But I am also the girl who giggle and laugh around, the girl who protects her friend, the girl who's not afraid to speak her mind, and also the girl who's afraid of what people think about her. Ironic, isn't it? The last two especially.

In my more-than-two-decades of life, I've learnt something very important. None of us are just one person. We are many people in our lives. We are daughters, sons, friends, mothers, fathers, teachers and so on. We are also happy, sad, cheerful and depressed. We can be the loudest person in the group to the quietest person in the room. We can be the most precise leaders in a task and we can also be the most reckless in the team (think Captain James T. Kirk). 

Sometimes it confuses us, especially during our teenage years. We find that we can be many many people. We can have different personalities around different people. Some people find it that it is hard to determine who they themselves are because of such complexity of the human mind. It confused me once. Thankfully, after understanding the fact that we are many people in our lives, I've stopped struggling with myself and just let 'the chips fall where they may' about my life. 

I don't go about trying to be who I'm not. I just go about trying to be what I think is right. That may be narcissistic, some of you may say. But then again, some of us live the days not even knowing who we are and try to fool other people (and mostly importantly ourselves) that we must live according to the 'self' that other people think we are. So I, for one, am thankful of who I've decided to become. No matter which 'self' that I am, I am myself, always changing.

Now, that's my opinion. If you had one minute to think about the 'selves' that are swimming around in your brain, who do you think is the real you?

Waging a war with the experts in a game is like you're prepared to lose...innit...

Ever think that sometimes, we go around trying to make others feel more inferior than us? Even subconsciously? Yeah...I do that sometimes. But not to make others feel inferior, but instead to make myself feel superior.

You see...there is a difference between the two. What I see certain people are doing is that they use their so-called 'skills' to play mind games with people. Most of the time it's using words, whether it's from a bully, an academic (a plain psychology student maybe?), or even the smallest kid. We do a lot of things either to make other people feel inferior to us (in other words, bring them down), or to make ourselves feel superior (bring ourselves up). 

Certain people like to bring others down. They humiliate others by pushing them around, saying mean things (that mostly aren't true and come from their own insecurities) and beating people up, even. Some use things that they learn from places to play with people's minds without the use of violence. Myself, I like to think that I do both. I bring people down and pull myself up, but more on the latter, and only when I'm hopping mad. I say whatever I want about that certain someone (of course, making sure that it's a logical explanation before I start spouting words) to the closest people around me (preferably someone that has something to do with the person I'm mad at or it won't have the impact that I want), just to make myself feel better without actually hurting the person I'm mad at. I never actually get mad at a person without actually knowing that I have good reason.

Regardless, I still sound rather mean, don't I? *sigh* 

I have this friend of mine who has just gotten his first girlfriend, a psychologist student at that. Ange told me that she has made a hobby out of 'playing' his friends, using words to make them back up and probably with the intention to show that although she's only two decades old she's still 'smarter' than the rest of the twenty-year plus year old friends. Unfortunately, she made the mistake of coming to me with her childish way of playing. Childish, because being an expert is at least knowing to find out about your opponent's strengths before actually going ahead with her game. 

Needless to say, she lost. She tried to play with my mind, to get me to back up to her 'teasings' just as how she expected all her boyfriend's friends to be like. She didn't know she was dealing with the Mistress of this game. I analyse people faster than anyone can complete their sentences. The minute she came in with her 'war' strategies, she was a goner, I saw through her straight away. Knowing she wanted to play, I played along with her, trumping her at every strategy she had on her sleeve. She was, at most, a good player. Me and Ange are veterans. When she threatened in her way, to go to Ange with her 'teasings', I invited her to go ahead, not even worrying about him as I know, if she was stupid enough to 'play' him, the one losing would be her. She knew that she had nothing on me, and thus she gave up the game. 

I didn't bother so much before because my friend was a willing recipient of her psychopathic warfare, so long it didn't come to me and Ange. Now that it has come, it made me mad that she doesn't even know her own level to play with the experts. Ange said that I'm probably mad because she is similar to me. Yes...she is similar, but without empathy. And that is where she will lose dearly should she forget to measure the strengths of her opponents. I ask analysing questions to allow myself and other people see themselves better. Most of my 'clients' get surprised whenever they answer my questions and find out new things about themselves. I enjoy making people squirm sure, once in a while, but only teasing them as a good friend, never to shoot at people. 

You've brought the war to me. Make sure you don't come to me or Ange with your nonsense again. I don't mind being your friend. But come to me with another war in your mind and I can assure you, you will find your degree totally useless when you're facing me. 

True friendship and what comes with it

Today, I'm going to talk about friendships. It occurred to me that sometimes, people don't know what it takes to be a true friend. I've seen people with friends left, right and center. Every Tom, Dick and Harry seems to be their friend. It makes me doubt whether that person is trying to make friends, or just trying to increase their popularity. Granted, there are people like Gabriella Montez in High School Musical that just make everybody like them, without trying. But in this time of day, I find that when I see people who has more than two thousand friends on Facebook (and increasing each day), I'm not sure that I can believe those people are even people that they know. 

There's a thousand on my own page but I am trying to cut out the ones that I don't even know. I used to want to have a lot of friends on my social sites. We were using Friendster back then. In Friendster, there was this thing that we call 'featured friends'. I would add those people who were 'popular' (so to speak) and 'famous'. And if we were close enough, I would eagerly put them as my featured friend. Now, about half a decade later from then, I find that it is very over-rated to show people how many friends you have on Facebook when half of them is just for show. Thus, I am making a point to un-friend anybody that I do not even know (even if it's just knowing that they exist in my hometown) when their birthday notifications pop up. Everybody has a birthday, so I expect that I'll narrow down the list after 365 days. *chuckle*

I want to talk about true friendships. Friendships where both sides contribute to the relationship. A close friend of mine has offered me this analogy of friendships, or any relationships to for that matter. He dubs it the 'push and pull' theory. Imagine an empty room, with just a door. That room is the space for our relationships, be it friendships, kinship or romantic relationships. Imagine two people in the room, two friends, two lovers, two siblings, you pick. Now imagine their aura emitting around them, filling the room equally, or as equally as you can. If I have to draw out an image, it would be something like this:

The two circles are the two people. The pink is one person's aura, and the blue, the other person's aura.

In a normal push and pull relationship, one person would push and the other would pull (their auras in or out), making sure that the room (the relationship) is always filled. However, let's say when the Pink pushes too much, the Blue will find that he needs to contribute less to the relationship. And when Pink has pushed too long then decided to pull back to see what Blue would do, it would be a while for Blue to feel the emptiness to push back. Worse comes to worse, Blue would find the need to go out the door, as in get out from the relationship. 

It's a fairly simple analogy, and I credit my friend Zeke for giving me this information. It has been a bundle of usefulness in my life, trying to use it to explain to people who would not care nuts about a certain relationship, friendship or kinship. I use the theory to comfort myself too, whenever I find myself pushing too much, then pulling back only to realize that the other person doesn't push back immediately at all.

The 'Push and Pull' theory is what we usually call the give and take. Push means putting in effort. Pull means allowing the other person to make the effort for you to maintain that relationship.

I've been in friendships that required me to do most of the pushing, only because I'm the more enthusiastic one. But to know that the other person isn't pushing back at all when you try to pull, you find that your efforts were a little redundant. 

Miss Wilhelmina was that particular person in my life. Mina came from a distant land to my university to study. During the first semester, she was alone. Everybody didn't know anyone, so obviously some of us get a little distant in fear of stepping into a new world. Then came the second semester. I befriended Mina and we became best friends in due time. I talked to her, I accompanied her, I sat with her, I taught her languages that she wanted to learn. This friendship continued into the third semester. Any drama I had in my life, I told her about it, and thankfully, she was (is) open-minded enough to give opinion and support me in whatever I decide to do. 

I took in to heart to go out of my way to take care of her. Coming from another land, I was pretty sure that she missed her home. And so I made it a point to ask her out, bring her go shopping, for a drink and so on. I would even go to her hostel to do assignments together while gossiping the day through. Granted, it was fun while it lasted. Fourth semester hit and I found another friend through her, Kate. Kate's different from Mina. If I were the vivacious, active and loud person, Mina would be the balanced one (loud when she has fun but quiet in other places), and Kate would be the totally introverted one. Kate and Mina were close from the start, so I welcomed her into the group. Alas, little did I know, Kate would be the one who'd end up being my close friend, instead of the latter.

After a while I noticed changes in Mina. To set a day for the three of us to have a girls day out is like making an appointment with the President of the United States. Actually, I think the latter would have been easier, because Mina kept bailing on me. The last straw came when she bailed on me at the last minute for the third time. I ignored her, and brought Kate out for a fun time with Ange's help. Kate understood what I went through as Mina made her go through what I did a few times already. She was too chicken to walk out the door (reference to the push and pull theory), so she advised me to do so before I got hurt further. I understood, Mina had other friends now with me helping her to fit in, so she wanted to forget me. I got the message and backed off.

I take friendships seriously. I take care of the friends whom I see as true friends. I don't forsake them, I treat them fairly, and I make sure that even when I have a boyfriend I will never abandon them when they need me. I don't understand why others can't see that when they just cut off their friends just to please their other half, what they're doing is unfair. I've had best friends who cut me off because their girlfriends got jealous of me, though I had no intent to make my mark (or any mark for that matter on their boyfriends). I have a boyfriend myself, might I remind them again.

True friends won't cut you out of their life without an explanation. If you need to stay away from any of your friends for a while because of a boyfriend or girlfriend (especially a girlfriend since girls are rather touchier), make sure you at least explain yourself. It's not fair to treat any of your friends unfairly by just cutting them out for no reason. It will just show that you are too immature and without a back bone to at least have the guts to explain. In Mandarin, people like to say that 一定要给他人一个好好的交待, I find that very commendable. 

Credits to Google Images 

At least one of the past best friends who did try this on me came back to me to make it up. But his girlfriend Elene still isn't that decent. She still wants to be possessive in front of me, to show me that he is hers. So I'm here to tell you this, lady. Your boyfriend is yours to keep, but what you are doing is just showing that you're not confident enough in yourself to keep him around. I would never try to take any of my friends away from their other half. But I don't expect the other half to take my best friends away from me. I'll be fair to you, I won't even try to slander you to him although I know that is what you did before in an attempt to tarnish my good relations with him. You do what you see fit, but don't expect me to see highly of you when that happens. God bless you when you've realized what you yourself have done. Amen.

A heart's inspiration: While you're away... *laughs*

This is one of the times where I actually feel more philosophical, thus the reason I'm writing now. 3 days ago, it was (is) me and Ange's 5th month together. When I'm together with him, I never really think about the fact that he is my boyfriend. In my mind, I actually refer to him as 'the person that I spend as much time as I can with'. The sentence 'he is my boyfriend' never really comes into mind. And I find that really interesting. Because just the thought of that sentence makes my heart skip a beat, excited. But it will only last for one second until I think of the sentence again. 

I'm guessing that fact sentences like that excites me, though it doesn't really appear much in my mind naturally. Growing up, I never really think of getting boyfriends, or even having one. To be honest, the idea of a 'boyfriend' didn't even exist in my dictionary. To me at that time, me having a crush on a boy would just mean that I really really want to spend time with him. Back then, I was only 11. So the only way that I wanted to spend time with the boy I had a crush on was to play with him, like kids. We chased each other whenever he teased me about something. We would exchange sentences that we thought were insults. And because of this family hierarchy thing we had in our class back then, I was his wife where he was the third son of the 'mother' of the class. I still find those experiences really fun to think about.

It's probably why whenever I see Ange, all I think about is that I want to spend time with him. The word 'boyfriend' doesn't really come into mind until someone actually asks me who he is to me. Interesting, isn't it? Funny thing is, the sentence of 'wanting to spend time with him' itself doesn't appear. My heart feels it, very strongly too. I'm not really sure why is this interesting to me. *laughs* But I find it relaxing to just write it out.

Now, we're both going through this distance period where we (technically) have to stay apart for 2 months. It's probably going to be the last 2 months holiday that I'm going have in a long while. So to be honest, I am appreciating this holiday a lot. I love being at home, being able to relax (albeit remarks from my parents once in a while to exercise or do the chores). Being able to sleep in my own comfortable bed in an air-conditioned room is a luxury to me too. The room I have at university is just too warm to even feel comfortable. Not to mention the bloody stink bugs that come once in a while to annoy and scare the heck outta me. 

I can say that I'm starting to get used to being away. I probably still can't last too long a period, but compared with the first week (and second), I think I'm doing better at taking the distance in stride. I envy Ange sometimes. He's able to switch off the part where a person is supposed to yearn for the presence almost immediately. But however I envy that trait, I think I still prefer to miss him this way if I have to go through distances, instead of turning off that part of me. This is because I want to know myself that I still love him. As crude as that had sound, I think the moment where I am able to 'turn off' the part of me that misses him, it might be the moment (God forbid) that I stop loving him. And I truly don't want that to happen.

Credits to Google Images.

Oddly enough, it is when he is busy watching a movie that I am able to have time to type out this entry *chuckle*. Once in a while, writing about things does the soul much good. Pity I don't have much patience with handwritten work, especially since my hand does get tired after a while. 

Thought of mentioning how men being partial can risk them losing their female friends. But as my writer's block has arrived in my brain, perhaps another time. =)

Goodnight, ladies and gentlemen.

I think I need a therapist...

I've lived my whole life basing it on the thoughts of 'not troubling other people'. Being empathic, I pretty much have to live my life that way to be able to live with myself. I am such a sucker for guilt trips that I pretty much make myself end up the one who endures all the setbacks so that everybody else can live easy. It comes with being too self-conscious for my own good. But it's something that I can't help. I grew up this way. *scoff* I guess I should thank my mother for teaching me to be this way, seeing as she is this way herself. 

They say it is a blessing to be able to think both ways, or as many ways as there is possible. People like me are able to debate critically, hitting at every single possibility that the other person might give. People like me are also able to understand very well, if not empathize, what the other person is feeling, thinking and dreaming. This makes me able to give good advice to others, knowing when they need advice and when they need comfort.

Well, it is a blessing, in a way. But a curse as well. Because I'm empathic, I find myself understanding other people a little too much, and in turn wanting to give in to them just because I know where they came from. I forget that sometimes, being human means putting my foot down, especially when it's something that is important to me. Problem is, usually if I go with what I want, the guilt that comes after that seeing everyone's sad faces is something that I myself am not even sure that I can take. As I've mentioned, I'm a sucker for guilt trips. It's bad enough that I put this on myself. It's worse when other people try to put guilt on me. 

Sometimes I feel that nobody's going to be able to understand what exactly the hell am I going through. I've only had one acquaintance where he is empathic too. Alas, being a man (more like a boy who's just trying to show people how superior he is), he cannot exactly fathom what emotions go through the female heart, let alone one that is added with a strong sense of empathy. He tells me to just let go of my sense of humanity, and just assume that I am special and different. People are going to just keep wanting me to understand them, and he says I've got to accept that and just let go. 

After listening to what you have got to say to me, I've got this to say. I'm sorry, but I cannot let go of the hope that humanity can still be understanding. Probably because I understand where humanity has come from. I care about the people around me. I care about them so much I would do almost anything for them (well, certain people that is...). Getting hurt and angry whenever they give me a reaction that pretty much spells out ridiculousness (though their blind hearts cannot see it), is something that I cannot help. Because I do expect them to understand better than I do. For those younger than me, I only hope that I can guide them well enough to understand the people around them. For those who are older, I expect them to know more than I do. Unfortunately, without empathy, most of them can't reach that expectation. 

On a related subject, I have already been living every day trying to just not let myself get into trouble. Or as an ex once told me, follow the 11th commandment (that he invented), just don't get caught. *chuckle*

My birthday is looming near, and I am excited about it. It's the one day where I can use as a reason for people to understand me instead of the other way around. And yet, other people still want me to understand their ways, and follow them, forgoing my plans and my hopes. I move to follow them and yet still try to get my plans to work, compromise as I call it. But my mother gives vetoes after vetoes that just eats at my empathy because I know I should be listening to her by moral standards. 

My empathy tells me to just let him stay home, and let them celebrate my birthday alone without him, just because it'll be less troublesome and less dangerous for him that way. But I just have a feeling that if I forgo my hopes and plans completely for that day, I would regret so badly for the rest of the year. I don't want to sacrifice myself just so others can have an easier life. I've understood people well enough for the past two decades. I have taken the high road and always, always tried to explain to people when I know that they're doing things wrong. 

To him, I've always tried to put things right, instead of going by my pride. I've always tried to make the communication between us smooth and obstacle free. I've gone out of my way to make him happy by showing him that I really care and love him, especially on his birthday, even if he didn't care much about birthdays in general. I did not let distance be an excuse for me to not show that I care about him. Just because my love language of physical touch cannot be used during the distance period doesn't mean I can say that it's too troublesome for me to do anything else to show that I care. I just sincerely hope that he can do the same for me, and not just tell me that even answering me a yes or no is troublesome. 

A girl just wants to feel cared for, loved and the priority. I've tried my best to give my heart to you. I don't want a sense of bond where the other half feels that everything else is more important than me. My empathy would probably allow me to just understand that you just have other things to worry about. No, not allow, make me more like. But I don't want a relationship where my empathy have to make me understand everything. I don't want to have to understand at all. A loving relationship isn't supposed to be that way. Understanding yes. But understanding for every moment where even an unsure event is more important than my birthday, more important than just seeing me, that's just too much for me to take. 

I don't need you to really make me the top priority in everything. I just want to be the top priority in something...because right now, I really just feel like I'm everyone's second choice, even yours. And if I can't even feel like I'm the top priority for my birthday if not any other day, then what's the point of me living as a person?

My mother asked me why can't I just not see him. For someone who doesn't understand, I guess I cannot blame her. She just doesn't understand how our relationship goes. She doesn't understand what I expect and what I give. She thinks I don't have to give anything and thus not having to expect anything. But if that were true, a relationship wouldn't exist. Because even in friendships, there is something called give and take.

I have to see him because it is part of my love language. I am a person who cannot take long distances for long periods of time. I've had to go through that once before. I know what hell that was. I cannot bear to let my heart go through that raw again. Call me weak, if you like. Call me dependent. Call me whatever words you like. But I will say this, everyone is different. It is only with empathy that I am able to understand at least half of them. But you whom are without it, don't judge others with your own principles because chances are, without empathy, your principles will crumble when debated with someone else who has it. 

Worried...

Yesterday I felt like one of those emotional wrecking balls came right at me, without even a warning that things were going to happen. Annoyed, left-out, hurt, depressed, bothered, and perhaps even jealousy, all of them rolled into one huge ball of chaos. And yet, I couldn't help it. So God help me.

I told Ange everything that was bothering me. God bless that sweet man of mine. He can always understand (if not empathize) the reasons why I would feel a certain way. Just that I myself don't really know what to do or say sometimes to help myself feel better. Just because everything else I've tried hadn't worked. 

Anyway, I bought a new ukulele to play from the Read Malaysia bookfair. Only 88 bucks adding 2 for the picks and 15 for the bag. Total 105 bucks then. Partly, I didn't feel the burn because it felt like an investment more than a purchase. I really want to learn how to play it, to be able to play songs as I go around in the future. Of course, partly it is also because I'm not opening the Excel file for expenses that I have. *grins*

Ah well, the next four days eating instant noodles will be the plan then. Gotta get more instant noodles. 

After assignment frustration...

It is only now that I've just finished my final presentation for tomorrow's Rheatorical class. 1.30am in the morning huh? Lovely. *nose wrinkle* I wanted to blog earlier, but I was rather afraid of not having enough time to complete the whole friggin' thing. I was annoyed at all the smallest things around me. I hadn't bathed, I hadn't finish the speech and the shorter hairs on the back of my neck are prickling me to no end, not to mention the mosquitoes that is flying around the place, waiting for an opportunity to bite me.

I miss Ange today. Really badly. You don't know how much I want to just be with him and just sleep there right now, isolated from the whole world. His room is like that, isolated. Makes it nice when you just want a mini getaway every day after school. Unfortunately, my place here isn't like that, which means it's adding to my stress at paramount amounts. Damn the lecturer for making us do this. Jeez...

I've got to pop to bed. This is just a short post, but at least still better than nothing. :) 

Goodnight world.

Best-Dressed? Best fraud more like...

No matter how I try, nothing seems to be worth the effort. For days I've stayed up late trying to complete the gloves which I thought would give me the edge to at least be noticeable and at last, win the Best Dress Award. It is general knowledge that for the Best Dress Award, one usually has to dress according to the theme, look fabulous in it, and also, be different. That has always been the key.

But tonight, I felt like the definition of Best Dress Award has been changed. Changed. To Miss Popularity. Because the person that won tonight, was a clone of three. Three girls, wearing almost the same thing, two of them 100% identical on their outfits and accessories, except the colour choice. One was green and another was pink. And there was me thinking initially that they wouldn't stand a chance at winning anything with those identical outfits. Boy, was I proven wrong. The green one won. 

She was no different from the tens of other girls who donned ribbon hair ties and A line dresses with their loopy earrings. Even the friggin' stilettos were the same design with Miss Pink. Only the colour remains different. If colours were the criteria, then screw the damned theme, someone just wear a rainbow coloured dress to the party and she'll be crowned best dressed. *smirk* A clown could win. 

Now, people would say that I am bitter because I didn't win. No, that isn't the case. If the person that won deserved to win, I would not spare her the congratulations that she deserves to get from me, a fellow contender. Last year, someone of worthy status took the crown. And I congratulated her with no qualms or hesitation. Because she was different. She caught the people's eye. People voted for her. I conceded defeat with satisfaction.

In this case, people did not get to vote. Someone unknown decided. And the someone who won was a clone, a complete clone, of another in the same party. So explain to me this, how the hell did she wear any differently from her clone? Why the hell does she deserve the Award? Can someone tell me who the hell decided on this nonsense and also, can that someone give a legit explanation as to how Miss Pink Clone won the award? Because, right now, it feels like there is no difference to the elections.

The award may not seem like anything to you guys, dear readers. But it means a lot to me when I put in one hell of an effort in dressing to kill and to see it fall to the hands of someone unworthy. I am no sore loser. I concede when I know I am truly defeated (in the sense of having a better costume). I congratulate the winners with an open heart and a smile (no matter how much I don't feel like smiling, granted I will still be disappointed). But to see someone as such holding the award, sorry, I feel no intention to congratulate you. You do not deserve such a praise. Yes you look nice. But like almost everyone there tonight, you're nothing but a clone. The End.

p.s. Ange has been very very sweet to me even though I don't feel too happy. Just want to take this chance to say thank you :) Love you lots. xoxo

Happy Mother's Day!!!!

Finally back here at the house after spending more than half a day at home with mama and the family for Mother's Day. :D Felt kinda guilty cause I made mama wait for her present, probably letting her think that we didn't get anything for her. God bless mama. But I wanted le bro to be home before we gave it to her together. That idiot took so long to come back I almost thought that he was going to miss seeing me off (at 6pm!!!!) even. *swt*

But everything was redeemed when I saw mama's happy smile when she saw the present. I made le bro give it to her cause she seems to be happier when she receives things from him. *laughs* She peered into the Elianto bag we gave the present in and took out the Body Mist =w= Then I explained that there is two bottles inside. One, the Body Mist. Two, the Perfume. She seemed touched and said we shouldn't have spent so much on her, two bottles some more. I still feel like I haven't spent enough on her. She's the best mama in the whole world really. She would cook for me in the middle of the night if I ask. Best mama! *hugs* Don't worry, 'kay mama? When I start working, I'll bring you out to one of the best restaurant there is and choose the best food to your taste for you! :) If not, I'll order the best spa package there is for you. :) I promise. Love you mama!! *loves!*

Crap! I'm hungry. *sobs* Ange brought me out to have a late dinner just now. Poor dear couldn't eat because he had to pick me up from the bus terminal. But just watching him eat was pure torture. The fried chicken on the plate was so intoxicating that I had to force myself to read a book to be distracted. Unfortunately, my nose and my stomach wasn't distracted at all. It growled to the point of madness. Ange must have sensed something amiss because he asked me again if I wanted to call for food (I just ordered a tall glass of Honey Peach Juice). But I had to tell myself to say no. One thing, I wanted to help him save a little bit of money. Two, I really have to stop eating so late into the night. I'm already getting rounder ('fat', as mama put it) from all the late night eating that I've been doing almost every weekend. Granted, I enjoy eating regardless of the time. But I guess I have to start somewhere with my 'diet'.

I quote someone from Twitter. I am on a seafood diet. I see food, I eat them. =3= *sigh*

Election, best friends and hotties (as if in any way they go together... =3= )

Ange's still teaching and I'm left at home to finish my assignments and whatnot. I wonder really. Tomorrow's the election and it will probably be a mess, the places I mean. People rushing to places to get their vote in. Not sure if it's a good idea to be a registered voter this year with all the hubbub, but I guess the people have to voice out somehow. 

Mother's Day is in a little more than a week's time and I'm wondering what to get for mama. I can't get her a pair of shoes, what with the superstition surrounding shoes so much. Better let her buy her own shoes. Not sure if the superstition applies to mothers really. Maybe I can get a her a bath set or something. If anything, she needs relaxation. Just that I'm not sure what products she would be happy to use. I suppose I can head to The Body Shop the next few days to have a look around. Let's hope the roads aren't as messed up as I predict it might be. 

Many things happened over the past few days. Things that made me just want to hide in a hole and cry. But I guess life has to go on. But for one thing, sometimes, having straight guy best friends suck, big time. This is coming from a girl's point of view obviously. More specifically, my own.

Having a guy best friend who's straight will just in end up in so many problems if he doesn't turn out to be your beau. You'll face a certain amount of jealousy when he gets a new girlfriend, for one thing. You'll be wondering whether, compared to that new girlfriend, if you're not good enough. Granted, you yourself may already have a beau, but heck, the mental comparison is still naturally made. One can't help this sort of thing can you. You just wonder why has he never liked you. Or if he did, why did he ever change his mind. It's baffling really. I'm wondering if poor Ange is thinking that he's stuck with me for the rest of his life with my kind of baggage. *chuckle*

*** ***

Looking at Dubai princes and hotties at the moment on Facebook. Gosh those men are D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S to look at. Mm mm mm mm mm~ 

Credits to FB page : Omar Borkan Al Gala

Gorgeous, isn't he? Man, they don't mak'em like that in most countries *snicker*. Maybe I should ask my Arabian friends about it. Reminds me of the guy who acted in Sinbad. Yummy~ Some eye candy for the weekend wouldn't hurt. Especially with all the election yahoos on the go. 

Perhaps a biscuit is in order. I'm hungry.

Back home...

It's a cloudy day after a bout of rain. Me and Ange are just sitting in my house's upstairs living room, both doing our own assignments. The Usama song is starting to get to my head. *swt* Mama bought all of us an ice cream cone from the passing ice cream man that comes around 3pm to 4pm everyday of the week. *chuckle* Nice to be able to eat all this stuff again. Man, I miss home so much. 

Credits to Google Images

I am very very sleepy at the moment. Not sure how on Earth am I going to finish a full paper today. But I suppose I must. I have to complete another paper by this weekend. Another Saturday / Sunday working on a paper. Meh! 

But eh~ better than rushing four papers in a week anyway. It's good enough that it's split to two a week. I still got my Pragmatics and Sociolinguistics class full project paper to complete. Not to mention the elusive Syntax paper that we're supposed to be doing, although God help us on that one, cause the lecturer hasn't been coming for ages. Can't we just cut that paper off our list and just take it in another two semesters? Would be so much easier seeing as we will probably get killed going into the exam hall for that paper anyways.

Maybe a nap before continuing the stupid paper. =3=