My 2010 in one post.

2nd last day of 2010. Boy, how time passed! Just like my posts for the ends of 2008 and 2009, here’s a rundown of the most memorable things that happened to me in 2010.

JANUARY

Started the year with a supporting role in Project Alpha 2, the best reality show about bloggers. Tagging along ST, KY and Ringo, we explored Tambun, Ipoh with Jojo Struys and her amazing crew.

You can read about how I got involved with Project Alpha 2 here.

# – Daring cameraman!

# – The crew jumping for joy when shooting wrapped :)

FEBRUARY

In February, I got my first Crackberry, a Bold 9700. And I promptly turned into an addict. Till today, I still don’t know whether I love or hate the phone more. It’s crazy easy for messaging but a major pain in the arse whenever I need to surf the web to look for something. I can’t tether it, I can’t get connected on wifi most of the time and updating applications is fucking tedious. But yet, the thought of letting go of my Crackberry remains a struggle till today.

# – First picture with my first Blackberry.

This month was also the month where I embarked on sewing projects. I had been having restless fingers but thanks to Haze who loaned me a sewing machine, I was finally able to channel off my restlessness.

Without being too ambitious, my 1st project was to sew Charlie a dog collar in conjunction with Chinese New Year.

# – DIY dog collar for Charlie.

And then, I made an effing infinity dress!!!

# – One of the many ways to wear my infinity dress.

MARCH

Renovation work finally started in March after a long and frustrating search for the right contractor. In the end, we chose someone who was recommended by a friend who has had his own home and family members’ homes done by the same contractor. I’m glad we got him because he’s trustworthy and reliable. You can read about our renovation journey here.

# – Was so happy to see a massive rubbish bin on our porch :)

APRIL

This was the month where my eye problems became very real. My shortsightedness and astigmatism had gotten to such a bad level that I couldn’t recognise people I know from a short distance. I couldn’t wear contact lenses because of my irrational fear of putting them on and I had refused to wear glasses regularly for the longest time because I just hated how they look. At the urging of the boyfriend and a certain incident involving buffalo wings, I relented…with one condition. It must be a pair of glasses that I’d love to wear everyday.

I found a pair of sunglasses frame from La Perla, got the tinted lenses taken out and replaced with a pair of Hoya Transition lenses so I could wear it from day through night.

# – The first picture of me wearing my massive glasses.

MAY

In May, an opportunity to stay at Westin presented itself to me. Together with Red Mummy, we flew to Langkawi for the mini getaway. It was also my very first time flying on FireFly and am glad to say that the experience was pleasant and not as scary as I had imagined.

# – A camho picture upon disembarking from the puny FireFly plane.

# – Living it up in a bathrobe.

JUNE

I went back to Redang after a 5 years hiatus. It was a really fun trip and the most memorable bit was doing the Discover Scuba. I had so much fun I was determined to get a diving license next year (which is only 2 days away!)

# – Trying to channel Jessica Alba in Into the Blue.

I seriously can’t wait to dive for real!

This was also the month where I participated in TLC Promise Me, a platform to engage the community for charitable causes. I went in with a lot of skepticism but left with so much hope and a whole new way of looking at the world :)

At the end of the campaign, thanks to the support of friends and readers of this blog, we’ve managed to raise a total of RM5215!!!

# – Goo in his new bed.

JULY

My favourite month of the year because it’s the month I was born. Also possibly the funnest month of the year 2010. I got to drive the MINI Cooper S under the watchful eyes of the most awesome instructor in the world, Mr. Ivan Khong and his counterparts, Hammond Lai, Ivan Khong, Irwan Ismail and Wong Kah Keen.

# – With the red MINI Cooper S.

During the MINI Driver Training, I learnt how to drive defensively but the highlight was learning how to make an Agent Turn!!!

# – Video of me attempting the Agent Turn or commonly known as J-Turn.

AUGUST

August was pretty uneventful which probably why I had to make something with my time. I converted a cheongsam that I bought online pre-weight loss into a shorter dress. Very simple work and I’m pleased with it.

# – My first dress alteration job.

Will probably wear it with a nicer belt though, right now I can’t stand that fabric belt hahaha.

SEPTEMBER

Throughout the year I had updated the blog with various stages of our house renovation but none as memorable as the one that happened in September. Our kitchen counter top was mistakenly built eleven inches too long which would render the initial design of the cabinets useless and my oven with no place to put.

I was seriously upset by it and couldn’t sleep for days till the problem was rectified.

# – Smiling from ear to ear not knowing that it was not meant to be.

Of course, I had worried too much as the problem was solved in less than 2 days.

OCTOBER

October was cool as hell! With, Huai Bin and Suan, I got to ride on a Cessna 172 a small private plane flown by Reuben, a youthful looking but very experienced pilot.

# – In the air!

Reuben made multiple 90 degree turns AND TURNING ENGINE OFF MID-AIR. It was fucking awesome!

NOVEMBER

Errr..had a pregnancy scare in November. Sucked a key right off my keyboard with a vacuum cleaner. Forgot to let the dog out and got a piss soaked sofa cushion in return. So yeah, November was a month of faux pas :P

That said, there were some awesome things that happened. For instance, I got a mini Charlie made by Ah Meow.

# – Charlie and his mini-me.

It’s also the official closing ceremony for TLC Promise Me campaign.

# – Giving a speech at TLC Promise Me Recognition Ceremony.

Of course, I can’t miss out mentioning Michael and Li Ling’s beautiful wedding up in the clouds. The ceremony took place at Michael’s family’s awesome Tudor style bungalow in Genting and needless to say, we had the most epic time of our lives!

# – The beautiful couple :)

# – Everyone that matters ;)

DECEMBER

December was fun, fun, FUN! First of all, went to Penang with Horng, Yuki, Keroland ST. Had an amazing time sampling ALL the best food the island could offer. We ate till we were literally bursting at the seams.

# – Up some hill somewhere between Ayer Itam and Balik Pulau, Penang. Horng, Su Ching (our gracious host), Kerol, Yuki, me and ST.

BF and I celebrated our 6th anniversary eating awesome food with some of our best friends. It was great :)

# – At Sunset Bistro, Penang.

Almost immediately after returning from Penang, we headed off to Hyderabad, India for a wedding. This trip couldn’t come at a worst time as we’re in the midst of moving houses (and hemorrhaging money) but we threw caution to the wind and had the best time of our lives :)

# – At the wedding, eating awesomesauce briyani while wearing a beautiful but comfortable cotton salwar kulta, a traditional Indian dress.

# – At the famous 4 minarets of Hyderabad, Charminar.

Here’s a post about getting a henna tattoo there. I still haven’t blogged much about India but will do so next year ;)

Of course, we’re officially moving to the new house this month. Did all the rituals, tying red cloth above our door, threw rice + tea leaves mixture at every corner of the house, get my family members to filled it up with “human warmth”, things like that.

It’s still a very surreal feeling everytime we’re at the house. That we actually own a property, and one that we had meticulously thought about in terms of design, colours and comfort.

# – Sneak peek at our wall light and staircase wall.

So how has your year been? Hope it’s been as fulfilling and fun for you as it was for me! However, if it hasn’t been a great year, take joy that the new year is only hours away and mistakes are just learning phases we go through to be better next time.

Cheers! Have a Happy New Year and party responsibly ;)

My highlights of 2009 in a single post.

Wow, I can’t believe that there’s only 1 day left in 2009. We’re fast moving into the last year of the decade since millennium. We’ve got 10 more years to achieve Vision 2020 but seems like the primary school murals I had painted of flying cars and a city well-connected by LRT are still distant fantasies. Oh well, we’ve got 10 more years right? To be honest, instead of a developed country I actually look forward to a more developed society. I hope gay people could get marry and have the same civil rights as straight people. I hope Malaysians will no longer be differentiated by the Melayu, Cina, India & Dan Lain Lain check boxes. I hope foreigners with specialised skills can attain permanent residencies much easier because frankly, we need the manpower. I hope cars can be cheaper and much more affordable so that children with poor parents do not have to be ferried around on vulnerable two wheelers. I hope that facilities for the disabled be made mandatory for all public transportation and buildings. Yeah, I hope for a lot of things, but right now I’ll be very happy if pets can be allowed to accompany their owners in restaurants.

2009 is a special year for me. Namely it’s a year where I did a lot of growing up. Sort of giving myself a break from being a brat, getting my shit together and do a lot of stuff I didn’t think I could ever do. Like 2008, I’m going to summarise my past year by months :)

January

This is the month where I got Charlie. Well, he’s still alive so I guess me and the boyfriend are doing a decent job. He is the light of my life and I can’t bear not having him in my life. Sure, I talk about selling him off and dumping him whenever the goings get tough but unless fate decides to play a cruel joke on me, I think Charlie is here to stay :)

# – Charlie & Mummy

February

February was an exciting month. I was easing comfortably into my job with Subaru and with that, came some perks. One of it was being driven by the best rally driver in the region, Cody Crocker. The thrill and excitement I experienced were beyond words. It’s roller coaster X 500 and more…

# – Prepping up for a session with Cody Crocker.

March

As I grew older, I’m starting to appreciate more & more the wonders of Malaysia. I find myself amazed by places that I never knew existed. It’s unfortunate that they are not promoted enough by the goverment but I hope blogs will be able to give some limelight to these places. I feel lucky that I know friends who are willing to explore and share with us these places. I visited one of these in March and it’s a charcoal factory in Kuala Sepetang.

# – Workers from charcoal factory taking a break.

April

This is the month where I had one of my dreams materialised – seeing Oasis live! We drove all the way to Singapore to catch a glimpse of them and the journey was marred by our severe lack of time keeping hehe. That said, we got there on time, got ourselves some good positions and had the best time of our lives! I am damn glad that I saw them because as predicted, Oasis split up not long after that.

# – Oasis Live in Singapore!

Okay, so nothing is perfect I guess. This was also the month where I got into a car accident after quite a number of years. The infuriating thing was it’s such a silly, silly, silly accident and I lost my NCB over it. Oh well, that’s life.

# – Dented doors :(

May

Well, I suppose it was a pretty quiet month, unless you count finding THE ONE. By the one, I mean my hair salon. I’m a loyal patron of Hair Kunst, because basically, they can do no wrong :) I need to go more often though to fix my banshee mane..

# – I’ve never seen my hair that way before, only at Hair Kunst.

June

June was an even more depressing month. It’s the month that Michael Jackson passed away. I seriously think the world changed because of that :(

Also, I was pretty swamped with work so I have blogged significantly lesser.

July

This was my favourite month cause it’s my month of birth and also I got to travel a little bit. Thanks to Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), I got to go on an all-expenses paid trip to Northern Thailand. I’ve never been to that side of Thailand and it was amazing. I went to the King’s Mother’s highland retreat (breathtaking!), Golden Triangle (interesting!) and many other interesting places.

# – At Wat Phra That Lampang Luang.

As for my birthday…I received flowers delivered to the office, a Nokia N97 from the love and lots of love from the love. What more can I ask for? :)

# – Birthday flowers.

August

Wow this is a tough month to write. Cause I think I was still really bogged down by work and had no inspiration to blog. Most of this month’s posts are made up of emo ranting -_-

I suppose the only good thing that happened was the full moon of my latest cousin, Qian Jie :) She was actually born just one day after my birthday so I imagine she would grow up just like me – pretty. Hehehehhe.

# – Qian Jie’s 30th day on earth.

September

Hot, hot, hot month! I achieved another of my dreams – to eat the habanero! It was the hottest pepper in year 1996, according to my Guinness Book of Records and I had been fascinated ever since. Thanks to Larry from Frontera, I was able to eat it…well, half of it anyway. I shared it with Ah Horng and it got pretty interesting after that. Lots of mexican food + lots of alcohol + 1/2 habanero = Merlion.

# – The unassuming Habanero.

Our experience captured on video :P

October

Hmm, this was quite an interesting month. I suppose things do pick up as the year begins to wrap. First of all, I met the Black Eyed Peas! It was quite surreal :)

# – With the BEP y’all!

Then I went to the Nuffnang Asia Pacific Blog Awards. I was also handling the media relations for this event so it was work + play. It’s like the Oscars for bloggers and who knows, maybe one day I’ll get to be nominated ;)

# – At the Nuffnang Blog Awards with ST.

And finally, I also ate natto, one of the most disgusting foods on earth apparently. I didn’t even flinch, probably because I’m just a pervert like that.

# – Natto – commonly described as snot-like.

November

So this is the month where I could officially call myself an adult with commitments. Got ourselves into lifetime of debts but we do it with a smile aight :)

We got a house and I finally changed my car. I can’t wait to start my life in this house and be warned next year’s blog posts will be mainly about house decorating and boring stuff like that hehe. As for the car, I shall bring out the Ah Beng next year heh.

# – The living room now.

# – Giving the new ride a scrub down.

December

The last month of year 2009. Wow. Time does pass really fast eh? This is a good month for me too. Experiences are definitely more valuable than material things and I’m so glad this month I had a couple that I’ll remember forever.

Firstly, it’s the BWM EfficientDynamics trip to Pulau Banding. Simply, simply gorgeous trip. And police escort, hello?

# – Police escort at TTDI.

# – Behind the wheels of a beemer.

Then it was the 6th annual Xmas party at KY’s. The ultimate sign that the end of the year is near. But we partied on like rock stars and it was awesome!

# – Even Charlie had fun!

Oh and I did prawn fishing which was mad fun but I haven’t gotten around to blog about it yet :)

Well, I’m supposed to end this already but I just had another fantastic experience to add on to December and that’s being driven in one of my best friends, M’s Porsche 911 Turbo. It was F.A.N.T.A.S.T.I.C

# – Nine eleven turbo.

This year is the year where I’ve made really good friends too and I’m most happy with the creation of the #porkgang – consist of ST, KY, Kerol, Suanie, God, Horng,Ringo and Ruby. Never had I been in a group so loves to eat and so fun and comfortable to be around. We hope we all stick around for a long, long time!

So that’s my 2009 condensed into a single post.

I hope yours is good because I think mine was. Have a happy new year 2010 and I wish you all great health and happiness for next year :)