Fav Quotes

I'm getting obsessed with this quote from Louise Gluck:
From the centre of my life, came a great fountain. 

Love it even better in the Italian version:
Dal centro della mia vita, venne una grande fontana.

And by my beloved Pablo Neruda:
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved, in secret, between the shadow and the soul.

Muffins

I baked lemon poppy with blueberry muffins yesterday. When it first came out of the oven, I ate a spoonful of it despite the temperature and got my tongue burned. But hell, it was totally worth it. The texture was unbelievable. It's so soft and chewy and oh, dio mio. 5 minutes later, when it cooled down slightly, I made strawberry tea to go with it; even taking out my mum's best china. 

And I said to myself, "this is it. This is heaven."

Anyway, I brought some to school since I promised Lixian and Wenshen I would make them some and brought a few extra ones too. And guess what??? The air sacs freaking collapsed. I mean, it's not light and airy and soft anymore. It's heavy and dense and lord, it breaks my heart to talk about it. I think I'm going to cry.

Can someone pleeeaaaaseeee tell me how's this happening? I'll be eternally grateful to you. Swear.

I'll post the real pictures when I have the time. These are just for you to drool.

P.S. Sorry cy, I don't have enough for you. But will try to make chocolate ones next time, okay?

P.P.S. I know why it's dense!!! Even though I'm mixing it verrrry verrrrrryyyyy sloooooooowly, it's still way overmixed because I tried to get rid of all the flour lumps. And I just found out that it's supposed to be lumpy because they'll eventually dissipate in the oven. No wonder. They fold the mixture for like, 4 or 5 times max and I was folding it for I dunno, 10, 13 times? My mood just got considerably better. 

By Charles Baudelaire

"One should always be drunk. That's all that matters...But with what? With wine, with poetry, or with virtue, as you choose. But get drunk." 

Alone

Small love:
Black as the night and silent
Adroit limbs and body
Moving; twisting,

Into abeyance
Where the trees stiffen and tongues
Twitched. Ceaselessly,
Carried by the invisible current.

And the innocuous heart
Bleeds itself out in
An eclipse where
It shrivels and withers

Among empty plates and upturned
Saucers, huge as the Mad Hatter's
Flamboyant hat; yet still
Irrevocably, alone.

Red is Passion

Let it rain roses
And shower me red,
Till my lips are stained
Petals.

Deep in liquid
Moon's fluxes,
I sway with the wind
In blue eyes' gaze.

For now and always
Under the nightingale's
Careful scrutiny, we shall
Kiss; the night away.

Shipwrecked

World wrecked; if only the wind
Would work up a tempest
And scoop her up with it, in
An amalgam of dust particles
That would soon
Resurrect.

For all the times God
Knocked His knuckles on the spheric globe;
Knobbly and rheumatic,
Demanding,
Over the din of overlapping voices,
Reticence.

And she is beaded in tears.
Shipwrecked heart, floating;
Greying, decaying
Soundlessly moving among the seams
Of silky sea.

Ode to the Unknown

The foudroyant rain comes
Sifting down. Claiming
Dominion over the gloomy world.

Already the liquor stank of
Stale mulberries; in black shift
Convulses.

And there, lying in quietus
Away from absolution,
The fugitive colours die.  

RASA SAYANG - part 3

After a few rounds of crazy 'Truth or Dare', we went to the beach just outside the hotel. And I was persuaded by Lixian to do something I never would've done in my entire life: lying on my shoes. He's all, look at the stars, listen to the waves, lie down on the sand, what are you afraid of?

But then, it was worth it, in the end.

That's us. Lying on sand. Crazy. But as I've said, totally worth it. Looking up at the stars, listening to the waves and feeling the soft sea breeze. I could fall asleep right then and there.

Do you know what's underneath my head? My freakin' SHOE. That's disgusting. Okay, stop dwelling on the past.

Group photo with Rach's parents.

Group photo with friends. From left to right: me, Rachel, ChorDing, Jeremy, Lixian, John and Belinda.

Again, thanks guys. Love you.

RASA SAYANG - part 2

And these are my lovely friends. (Thanks for the awesome day guys, I love you all.)

First, huge thanks to Rach's parents for bringing us there and paying for the taxes. And thanks for letting me stay over.

John and Belin, the so-called couple. You guys are SO cute together!!! John couldn't resist the temptation of fried rice and got a plate in the end when everyone was so full we can hardly move. Belinda went crazy over the seafood section and got loads of 'em.

John, Rach's sister, Sing and I. Sing has got the hugest, most surprising laughter ever. Surprising in the way that she bursts out laughing when you least expect it and laughs so hardly you can't do anything else but join in.

Chor Ding. He ate the jelly Ming and I were supposed to share. HE ATE THE JELLY!!! HE ATE THE JELLY!!!!!!!!! THERE ARE RASPBERRIES AND STRAWBERRIES AND GOD KNOWS WHAT OTHER DELICACIES IN THEM!!!!!!!!! Shit! I totally forgot to get another one. Shit shit shit. And I've just realised he ate them. God dammit when I'm high - I forget everything.

Clockwise direction: Jeremy, LiXian, ChorDing, Belin, John and me. Rach's the photographer.

That, is the most minor laughter. At some point, Lixian and I laughed over something (and I'm not even sure what that something is) till my shoulder blades actually hurt. A lot. Like bone fracture and I'm not exaggerating. I've never seen someone laugh like that before and I certainly didn't know I can laugh like that. But we're past embarrassment. The whole restaurant was already booming with our laughter anyway.

Girls' group photo in the toilet - where else? (Ming, I love your dress.)

Left to right: Belinda, Rach and I.

RASA SAYANG - Part 1

First off, desserts!!! They're enough to make a monk go wild and lose control. And with all the sweet sugary delights, of course we were all freakin' high.

Oh yeah, to make matters worse, we were too full to finish the desserts. I know, such a waste right??? I should've brought a tupperware and sneak those things out.

Photo credits to the photographer of the day: Jeremy Cheang.

Night Lovers

All night the lambent flame
Flickers, thrashes
Against the cold

And the plain, brown moth flies
Stupid; head in the clouds
Narrowly misses the fire.

The vengeful statue stares
Daggers; at the lovers
And the molten piece of chocolate lungs
Burn bright.