Holidays..........

You know what I've been doing this past two weeks since I've started my holidays?

I've been eating.

Like, really eating.

Like, the I-go-out-almost-everyday-to-eat sort of eating.

Scary, kan?

In no particular order, in these past two weeks, I have eaten (among other things):

• Indonesian food...TWICE (Ayam Penyet in Sunway, and Wang Solo in Taman Dagang)
• Mexican food at Las Carretas
  
• Japanese food at Sushi King cause my sister suddenly got addicted to their soba -__-
• Western food at Tony Roma's
• Chinese food at a Chinese Muslim restaurant in Melawati
  
• Penang food at Little Penang cafe in KLCC
  
• Mamak food at Pelita in Ampang Point (I love their sup kambing!)
• Yong Tau Foo near Ampang Point, too
  
• Korean food at Sunway Pyramid

So, yeah, I think it can be safe to say that so far, my holiday has basically become one big "Jalan-Jalan Cari Makan Around KL & Selangor" trip.

And yes, unfortunately, i think I have gained some weight. =(

But no matter, next week I'm going off to Langkawi with Anis next week! I'm so looking forward to that cause I haven't been to Langkawi in ages!!!! So excited!!!! =D

But I just realised that the day we arrive back to KL, my results are gonna come out, so that's a bit scary.

But I might as well enjoy the trip before the anxiety of getting the results kicks in cause once the anxiety kicks in, I won't be able to think of anything else except for the results. Even now I feel like I just want to see the results already so I can finish my holiday in peace!

What's sad is that the week after my Langkawi trip is the week when the new semester starts. And once the semester starts, I know it would feel like the year has gone by so fast and the next thing I know, it's exam time again.

That is such a scary thought.

Oh well, c'est la vie, no?

Love loads!

PS: Do you guys wanna read something interesting? I went onto the Time.com website and saw these two articles which are basically photos with captions la and I think they're quite an interesting read when you're bored and feel like there's nothing else to do:

• The History of the Bikini (how the bikini actually evolve. Somehow I feel like the first picture is a fake.)
  
• Top 10 Celebrity Funerals (my favourites are the John Lennon's and Lady Diana's)

Numbers =)

Warning: a Really nerdy post. Thou has been warned.

Anyways, I stumbled upon THIS article yesterday, and I couldn't help but smile and got excited, too.

And then I realised that i like numbers in general. They fascinate me, which is why I don't mind doing Accounting and Econometrics as my majors because they basically revolve around numbers (although in Econometrics I'm starting to see more symbols than numbers, which is kinda scary).

I know some people who shudder at the thought of numbers and calculations, but I absolutely love doing calculations.

Like, when I'm on the road, I'll subconsciously start adding up the numbers in the number plate in front of me so that I'll get a nice single digit in the end. Say, if the car's number plate 8467, I'll add all the numbers up, 8+4+6+7 = 25 and then i'll add 2 and 5 up so that the end number is a single digit (which is 7, in this case).

And after that I'll start thinking, 7 isn't really a nice number cause I like even numbers better. Hahahaha.

Yes, I do that subconsciously while I'm driving. A bit scary when you think about it.

I guess I can blame my mum for that cause she taught me this back when I was really young so that I'll have something to keep me occupied when we were stuck in traffic jams.

I guess old habits die hard? Lol.

Oh, while we're on this subject, I think the numbers 3, 6 and 9 are really interesting.

I think everyone knows that if you take a figure, say 441, and you see that when you add up all these numbers, these numbers will add up to 9 (4+4+1), then you know you can divide 441 by 9, right?

But I also figured out that if say all the numbers in a figure adds up to 3, 6 0r 9, then you can actually divide these figures by 3. Try taking any figure, and if the numbers add up to 3, 6 or 9, then the figure can be divided by 3.

Also right, if you take an even number that adds up to 3, 6 or 9, then that number can be divided by 6. Like, 144 adds up to 9, but because it's an even number you can divide it by 6, too.

See how my mind works? I can see patterns in numbers. Hahaha.

I don't know why I think of all these things, though.

Don't worry, I'm not posting any more funny calculations/numerical nonsense that'll make you guys go what the heck is wrong with this girl? cause it'll just confuse you guys (and me, too!)

So yeah, that's basically something that I've never told anybody before, cause my weirdness level will so go up in people's books. Lol. I mean, imagine going around saying "I love numbers!!!"

Oh yeah, I can see some people hiding already.......

Okay la, just wanted to post that down. I'm off!

Love loads! =)

PS: In case you guys were wondering, yes, I do watch Numbers on AXN. No surprise there, right? :P

Anthropology. Or I'd like to think.

Can't believe that more than half a year has gone by!!!!

Funny how time flies so fast kan????

I can't believe I've finished my exams already! It's like a chunk of the year just flew by like that and I can't exactly recall what I've done these past few months. It's quite scary la, not being able to recall what significant things I've done in that time span.

Oh, I've also realised that a stressed Alia is a very scary Alia because when I was stressed because of the exams, I started having all these weird cravings like I want to eat Mexican food la, (i went to eat at Las Carretas with Nat yesterday! So happy that i got to eat nachos and enchiladas and chimichanga!) i want to buy a kimono top la (I ended buying one online), that new Arsenal away shirt la (which I still do not have, by the way), a new bag la, shoes la....and the list goes on and on and on and on.

See how scary I can be when i'm stressed out?

I am so glad I don't have a boyfriend right now. Or else confirm he'll be putting on weight while teman-ing me makan all the food that I'm craving for. Lol.

Ooohhh, talking about boyfriends right, Nat reminded me of my weakness yesterday. She was saying that one of her eye candy's friend last time was tall, broad-shouldered, BALD, strong jaw, polo-shirt wearing dude and I was like "Dammit, why can't I find someone like that in Monash?"

Yes, I like those kind of guys. Lol.

I just think bald guys are hot. But usually my eye candy type tend to be smokers, which I really, really don't like. Boo.

I mean, I can tolerate smokers, but I hope I don't end up with one. Problem is, whenever I say never, my words will come back and smack me right in the face.

Like in Form 2, I said I will NEVER do accounts. What am I doing now? Accounting.

in Form 3, I said I will NEVER take Biology for SPM. Guess what happened? I DID end up taking Bio for SPM.

See how my words come back to haunt me?

So I can't say I NEVER want to end up with a smoker cause next thing I know, I might have smoke blowing in my face. Haih. Everyone keeps on telling me, "You better watch your mouth. What you don't want to happen will usually happen."

Oh yeah, while Nat and I were enjoying our makan-makan/Transformers trip yesterday, we both realised that we never take pictures of ourselves when we go out. And then we realised how we are two people who actually do not feel the need to camwhore.

Personally, I feel like one or two pictures that you take of yourself is okay, but if you're going to take a picture of yourself everywhere you go, it's a bit weird la. Nat actually saw this guy who was alone in the LRT taking pictures of himself in the LRT!

Dude, really?????????? Can you like be more subtle? -_-

I feel like even having this blog and my Facebook and my new Twitter account is quite narcissistic already cause it's all about me, me, me (yes, i do notice that. I'm not gonna lie :P), so I don't think I need to further unleash my narcissism onto the world by having close-up pictures of myself everywhere I go.

Thus I'm sorry if I look different from the pictures cause some of the pictures you've seen are quite old pictures. Lol.

Being the observant people that we are, Nat and I have come to a conclusion that generally guys tend to fall for girls who are pretty, smart but don't show that they're smart, fashionable and are usually skinny. And if they where 5-inch heels all the time it's even better.

Which makes us normal girls who can't fit size 2 clothes feel really inadequate next to all these people.

(Slightly off-topic, but I wouldn't wear 5-inch heels everywhere I go. It's gonna hurt my feet like hell and the probability of me getting into an accident would basically like quintuple, and after a while I'll start whining for my flats. Lol)

And even in movies it's like that. Nat was asking me, have you ever seen a movie where the jock falls for the nerdy girl when the nerdy girl doesn't get a makeover?

I don't think so.

I mean, even in the Mexican version of Ugly Betty she still had to go through a makeover before her boss realises that he's in love with her.

But you do see movies where the geek falls in love with the cheerleader and still have a happily ever after with the girl even if he's a geek.

See the double standards?

Oh well. If a guy wants me, he has to take me for me: randomness, impulsiveness and all.

Okay, I think this is a long enough post. I better stop before I start whining about how bad it was studying for the exams for the past 3 weeks. Which is a torture that i do not want to relive, and no one should listen to. Lol.

Love loads! =)

Teeny update.

Sorry for the lack of updates!

The past few months has been crazy....AND exams are starting soon. Haih.

I promise to update after my exams k? Sorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry!!!!

But if you guys still wanna stalk me, I'm on Twitter now! Stalk me there for the time being k?

Love loads,

Alia!

PS: The amount of notes I have to go through for the exams:


I am sooooooooooo dead. Haih.

Education rant.

As much as I love studying in my uni, sometimes the way they do things make me go, "Huh?"

One of the things that really pisses me off is the CGPA system that they've implemented to be more "on par" with the Malaysian system since some of us Malaysians still need to have our CGPA when we apply for jobs.

Speaking of which, I also have a bone to pick with the Malaysian Higher Education Board.

Who was the smart person who decided that it would be good to implement a CGPA system? Getting A's and B's not good enough is it, huh???

*Takes a deep breath*

So anyways, back to the point.

As if it's not bad enough that us Monash students have to struggle day and night to keep up with assignments and exams, some people from the IPTAs think that we have it easy cause apparently we're paying a king's ransom to get a degree.

Reality check: It's not easy being in private colleges and unis.

To put it into perspective, dear haters, we actually pay to have people torture us with assignments and exams, and we pay for practically everything that we use with our semester fees. Oh, we also have to pay parking fees everyday. And we pay to eat sucky, expensive food. And if a book costs RM50, it's practically a bargain cause the book shop suka mencekik darah.

A good life, no?

So please, just because I get my grades in a different system than your beloved CGPA, DO NOT think my results are inferior, and do not think I got my degree just because I had money.

In fact, we local Monashians are worse off than public uni graduates because even though we get good grades, at the end of the day, most employers will only want to look at our CGPA. And the way Monash calculates the CGPA makes me so bloody pissed off.

According to the Monash way,

Table 1: GPA grade conversion unit scores

GPA	Marks	4 point unit score
High Distinction	80 - 100	4
Distinction	70 - 79	3
Credit	60- 69	2
Pass	50 -59	1
Near Pass	48	0.7
Fail	<48	0.3
Withdrawn Fail	-	0
Other grades	-	not included in calculations

So when I calculate my CGPA, I only get a CGPA of 3.06.

I have spent more time studying in the past 2 bloody years than in my entire school life, and so far my CGPA is only 3.06?????? (By the way, if you wanna see my results, here's a link to it. Yes, my results. For the world to see.)

By the way, sorry if the table's a bit small, but I had to fit it into the page.

Not that I am ungrateful or anything (I'm thankful right now that I've not failed and I've passed practically everything with flying colours), but it's like, WHAT THE HELL?

(Frankly speaking, I highly doubt there is anybody who can score a 4-pointer every semester, so it's highly unlikely that you will find a 4-pointer student from Monash. Do you know how hard it is to get a HD in Monash? If there are people who has scored all HDs, please take me to them!)

So I searched for another way of calculating my CGPA, and I found this table from the Curtin website:

MARKS IN %	GRADE	OUR EQUIVALENT	QUALITY POINT
85 - 100	A	HIGH DISTINCTION	4.0
80 - 84	A-	DISTINCTION	3.7
75 - 79	B+		3.3
70 - 74	B	CREDIT	3.0
65 - 69	B-		2.7
60 - 64	C+	PASS	2.3
55 - 59	C		2.0
50 - 54	C-		1.7
45 - 49	D+	NOT PASS	1.3
40 - 44	D		1.0
0 - 39	E		0

So even though their requirements for the grades are different, when I calculate my CGPA using the Curtin system, I got a CGPA of 3.2.

Yes, I calculated. On Excel.

I actually sat in front of the computer and made this file where the only thing you need to do is put in your marks, and then Excel will calculate your CGPA for you. So I did that for both the Monash system and Curtin system.

So, 3.06? Or 3.2?

I'll take 3.2 anytime of the day, thank you very much.

Plus, it's a fairer system cause it takes the person's marks into consideration. I mean, if you think about it, if person A gets 70 and person B gets 78, under the Monash calculation system, they have the same CGPA, but under the Curtin system they have different CGPAs.

It's fair, right? If you get more marks, then by right you should get a higher CGPA la kan?

So right now, my friends and I are going to do more research on this and hope that we're going to be able to send a proposal for Monash to review their CGPA system because I refuse to believe that if I maintain a 70% average for my third year units, I will get out with only a 3.04 CGPA.

I'm in bloody 3rd year, for God's sake. It's not going to be as easy as the 1st and 2nd years!

But funny thing is right, apparently it took Monash 7 years to implement this system.

Huh.

And here I thought we were one of the best when it comes to research.

So, to those who still stereotype us, please understand that just because we're paying more, it doesn't mean we work less. When we get our degree, it's because we deserved to get it, not because we paid for it.

I'm so lazy!!!!

I'm too lazy to study, I'm too lazy to blog and I'm too lazy to do just about anything.

I can't believe it's been 4 weeks since I've started my classes in Monash!!!! It's like,

"WHAT HAVE I BEEN DOING THESE PAST WEEKS?"

I can barely recall what I've been doing these past four weeks.

I just know that my notes are piling up, and I haven't had time to study everything I've learnt in the past four weeks.

Luckily I've been doing my tutes.

Does anyone else feel like time has flown by so fast????

And I just realised that I'm gonna be 21 in less than 2 weeks.

OH MY GOD.

To put things into perspective, I started this blog when I was EIGHTEEN!

EIGHTEEN, for God's sake.

It's madness okay!

I'M OLDDDDDDDDDDDDDD.

Oh, talking about my 21st being near, right, I already got an early birthday present from my uncle! =D

You know how I'm absolutely infatuated with songs? So when my dad asked me what I wanted for my birthday, I said I wanted an iPod Touch.

Then the iPhone came out in Malaysia. So I went to ask my uncle, which one was better, the iPhone or the iPod? So my uncle said, "The iPod kot" and then he said he'll buy that for my birthday. I was over the moon la, obviously!

But in the end, he bought me this awesome phone (not the iPhone), the Nokia 5800.

It's pretty, isn't it? And it's touchsreen, too! And it has 8GB of memory! Enough to satisfy my cravings for songs! Especially considering the fact that I can't live a day without listening to songs!

So yes, I do feel like I'm being spoilt. And no, you can't have my uncle. LOL.

Oh, on my wishlist right now:

Or this:


Or this:


Orrr thisss:

Yep, all Arsenal stuff. LOL.

But the thing is right, when anyone asks me what I want for my birthday, I feel so guilty if I ask for anything for them, so usually I'll just say "No need la to buy anything".

Plus, it'll only be a gift if that person actually wants to give it to me, not because I asked for the things from them.

So yeah, I can keep on hoping that someone'll buy one of these for me.

If it happens, it happens, right?

Or else I'll just save money and buy for myself la then. LOL.

Lazy post. LOL.

Song of the moment: Ben Folds f/ Regina Spektor - You Don't Know Me

So.

Classes have started.

And so far, it's good. Except for this one lecture where I become restless and I start doodling on my lecture notes. Yes, I doodle. But at least it's been proven that doodling helps you pay attention during lectures. LOL.

Oh, and after sitting in front of the computer for God knows how many hours, and refreshing the page like 10 times a minute, I managed to allocate myself into a class that I really wanted. LOL.

(I just realised that it sounded like I had no life, sitting in front of my computer trying to get into a class.)

But ask me back how I am in a month's time. I'll definitely be cursing and swearing and saying that I don't have enough time to do anytime.

I think it's so weird seeing all my units starting with the number 3 in front of them. It practically screams, "Woman, you're in 3rd year now!!!".

And then I hyperventilate cause it like hit me right in the face that I can't run away from the dreaded four-letter word for long: W.O.R.K.

It scares me so much to start working. I mean, I want to start earning money, but God, going out into the working force is just soooo intimidating. And not too mention hell-ish when i start doing auditing later. Bye bye lazy days. =(

Oh yeah, I wanted to go to the Jason Mraz concert last Wednesday, but since we were late, obviously the tickets were all sold out, so we couldn't go.

Was I disappointed? Yes. But not devastated. It was more of a "Oh wellll..........." thing, rather than a "My heart is broken *sniff* *sniff* *sniff*" kinda thing.

BUT, my dad got four free tickets to Sarah Brightman from his patient (who had also given us the Beauty & the Beast tickets!), and since he, my mum and Zara went off to Langkawi for his conference over the weekend, I decided to go with the rest of my sisters that were left behind to the concert (Unfortunately, my brother couldn't go cause there were only four tickets).

After my dad gave me the tickets, I looked up for the ticket price online I found out that for the tickets that we got, EACH ticket was RM 800!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If I were to pay for that concert, mintak maaf je la. Sarah Brightman or not, I can do sooooooo much more with RM800 okay.

But I can't deny that the concert was awesome. I mean, it is opera, but she was really good! Even my younger sisters (who actually contemplated on bringing earphones to the concert, before I threaten to give their tickets to someone who would appreciate the concert more), were converted into Sarah Brightman fans.

I especially love when she sang the Phantom Of The Opera song! In fact, when that particular song started, everyone was cheering like mad.

I felt quite sad for her cause the hall was only like 60% full. But then again, in this time of recession, forking RM800 per ticket for a concert is a bit too much right?

Oh, talking about money kan, lately I've been going around all these online shopping blogs and looking through their stuff. And my hand itches to buy stuff EVERY.SINGLE.TIME I go to these blogs. Rambang mata okay. Such an unhealthy habit.

I mean, looking at everything that you want but can't have is annoying, right? Especially when you have the money, but you just know you have to save the money. And you start hearing this evil voice inside your head saying, "But you have to have that! You don't have anything like that yet!"

Please shut up evil voice inside my head. I already bought at least five tops in the past three weeks. And I also bought a pair of tights online. Have some mercy!!!

Okiedokes. Need to flip through some notes before I sleep.

Nite, people.