The Year That Was......

The year that was...

(The list compiled below is done in no particular order, nor it is an exhaustive list as I've most probably forgotten some things that probably should be in the list =p)

Sights:
1) The vast, rolling green hills of tea plantations in Cameron Highlands
2) The rich colour of maroon robes, and the myriad of rainbow coloured bouquets during UTM convocation 06.
3) The spread of yummy food (including my fav chocolate eclairs ;)) specially prepared for me and Rebecca at our farewell at Imperial Hotel
4) The Lincoln profile at Deer Cave, Mulu National Park.
5) Rambutan trees all RED with rambutans at Grand Uncle's farm at Lubok Antu.

Sounds:
1) John Mayer's Continuum - Soulful tunes paired with great, thought-provoking lyrics.
2) High School Musical - Beautiful duets, tunes so catchy with positive lyrics to match, you can't help but be buoyed by its 110% feel-good-factor.
3) Black-Eyed Peas - With songs like "Mas Que Nada" and "Gone", they never fail to surprise me with their new twists on their hip-hop sound.
4) Panic!At the Disco - Quirky, but catchy. Their videos are definitely attention grabbing too.
5) "Crazy" -Gnarls Barkley. Very low-key and understated. Very cool.
6)"Somewhere Over The Rainbow" sang by Katherine McPhee on American Idol. Her performance gave me goosebumps.
7)"You Give Me Something" & "Beautiful World" - James Morrison
I can't quite place my finger on it, but his songs definitely "gives me something" good ;)
8)"Put Your Records On" - Corrine Bailey Rae
- Breezy, laidback "relax-don't be so stressed out" music.

Stories To Remember:
1) The Lonely Planet Story - Tom & Maureen Wheeler
- Interesting read on the asal-usul (beginnings) of the Lonely Planet travel guides....did you know that the first official Lonely Planet guide was the guide to South-East Asia? This means that Malaysia (by virtue of it being part of South East Asia) actually played a big part in the beginnings of this very famous publisher....Georgetown is a quite a fav of Tom & Maureen Wheeler (the couple-founders of LP) too ;) ...

2) Julia Quinn's Regency-era historical romances.
- Funny, charming, at times scandalous..... =p

3) Three Weeks with my Brother - Nicholas & Micah Sparks
- Another Nicholas Sparks novel that left me teary-eyed...a travelling plus family memoir in one book...Did u know that Roasted Guinea Pigs are a delicacy in Peru? =p

4) Brand New Friend - Mike Gayle
- Interesting insights on the "can guys and girls ever be JUST best friends?" question

5) Q&A - Vikas Swarup
- Brilliant book, each chapter is like a mini story within itself that culminates in the powerful ending...I finished it in 3 days straight.

Reels:

1) High School Musical =)
2)Pride & Prejudice
- Two words : Mr Darcy!!! *Swoon*
3) Click
- I laughed hard, and cried even harder at this movie =p
4) Ice Age 2
- The pursuit of the elusive acorn continues....


On The Tube:
1) Grey's Anatomy - Quite possibly my new favourite show ;)
2) CSI - My weekend date with my sis

Memories to Savour:
1) That first bite of Starbucks' Sirens' Salad on my way to see Khoon at KL Sentral. Maybe I was just hungry, but it tasted heavenly....:)
2) Khoon singing "Happy Birthday" to me over the phone (and thanks to the US-Malaysia time difference we celebrated our birthdays on the same day!)
3) Singing Natasha Bedingfield's "Unwritten" to myself on the motorboat ride back to our resort in Mulu. There was a light drizzle at that time, and at that moment of calm and happiness, I felt no other song lyrics were more appropriate than "feel the rain on your skin..." =)
4) Having Khoon, June & Yee Wei in Miri for 1 whole week! =)
5) Sunnybears Mini-Reunion in UTM Convocation 06 = )

Lingering (sad/bad) memories...
1) Ajang's passing...we were not particulary close but it is still hard to fathom someone so young is no longer here.
2) The loud bang and rocking motion when our car was knocked from behind by a lorry on the way back to Miri on Boxing Day.
3) Crying with disappointment when Khoon told me that he will be going to US for 2 months + and won't be ableto attend his convocation where we were supposed to meet up ( but in the end he DID came back so it's all good...=D)
4) Working late. REALLY late.
5) Our house cat is no more =(


Count my blessings:

1. Being steadily employed
2. My sister's come home...for good :)
3. I have a new room =p (due to point #2 above)
4. All the nice pressies/gifts/souvenirs/postcards that I got over the year
5. I'm home =)
6. I'm still happily in love with my Sayang
7. Though geographically far apart, I am definitely not short on GREAT friends =)

Things to look forward to in 2007 :
1) Trip to Bangkok!=)
2) Hanson's new album, "The Great Divide"
3) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
4) Graduating Bears : June, Wei Ling, Yi Ying
5) Getting confirmed on my job (and the increment that comes along with that +p)

Resolutions? I have never been one to make them, but perhaps one simple one will be sufficient...Here's hoping 2007 will see more beautiful moments such as this one...