y2leong's Xanga

Let. It. Burn.

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 10:16:14 GMT

You bring this upon yourself
Now don't go
Pouring cold water

The empty suspense is killing me.
Don't do it, girl.
Smack that hand!

What can you do
When smoldering embers
Turn cold

Will it be too late
And all would be lost?

Buy myself a condo

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 02:57:40 GMT

Why don't you hold on a second
While I try to climb out of this pit
This pit that I dug myself
Perfect hemisphere, like a bowl

I could put up my own circus
While you watch from up where you are
Peering over the edge, arms folded
Keeping your comments to yourself

We three outing

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 12:31:00 GMT

Rainforest, white forest—
I was found
Gazing and sucked in-
To White Christmas.

NY peachy waffle,
Fisherman's clam chowder,
Les viandes trois, et
Nachos with cheese and salsa.

Death on the Nile
And murder—
Interchangeable
On the express orient.

Engagement,
Who's straight and who's not;
Almost on?
Oh the betrayal.

Love, love, love.

Dedicated to Sze & Zu.

Joan invites a friend

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 14:59:00 GMT

While at The Aisle (where else? *wink*) at The Usual...

Me: (picks up book) The Beauty of the Husband...
Shern Ren: Aha!
Me: (reads sub-title) A Fictional Essay!
Shern Ren: Ooooooooooooohhhh! Ouch.

Third job offer this holiday, literary criticism turned photo criticism, hits and misses, and Ben's sense of hue has turned problematic, as he's been shooting so much in black and white lately.

A bright red shirt

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 11:27:08 GMT

The day I stepped out in a (counterfeit) Manchester United jersey, within the first few minutes, I got double that number of "Wow!" and "Nice shirt!" And I wasn't even out of the girls' room/corridor yet.

The boys' reactions were significantly bigger, and very telling of their football allegiances, as well as how well they know (or do not know) me. "Yen!!! Since when!"

Ben took it upon himself to outline three reasons to justify my appearance in the (powerful, as I discovered) shirt:

1. There are things about you I don't know.
2. You have a boyfriend I don't know about who has very diverse interests from yours.
3. You're really out of clothes.

To which on retrospect he added:

4. Standing in front of a carcinogenic barbecue pit really got to me: this is not happening.

The truth (as I knew it) was that I needed a red shirt (the brighter the better) to play the role of Traffic Light Red, and someone told me that Tse Hwei had one that fit me. Hence the tape recorder lines: "It's not mine, Tse Hwei's wan."

In the end the real reason was part of an elaborate trick hatched by the camp Fun Nite organiser herself. But I don't feel betrayed lah, Hwei. *grin*

First semester of masters

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:31:30 GMT

One of my favourite things about critical essays, apart from the Works Cited section (OCD!), is the title.

Person from Porlock: Fact or Figment of Coleridge's Imagination?

Black and/or White: Ralph Ellison Undermines Racial Binary Opposition in Invisible Man

Prospero & Co.: Postcolonial Colonisation in Shakespeare's The Tempest

Material and Psychological Equality as a Prerequisite for Marriage in Austen

George Herbert's Temple: Building, Prayer, Song, World, and Man

I wrote all of the above papers, with the exception of the first, which was only an exercise on formulating research topics.

Deadline dissolves overnight

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 11:39:11 GMT

One phone call,
One bombshell.
(Life is full of shocks and surprises.)

Ten thousand words, due one week's notice,
Candidature defense next week.
(You can do it, roomie!)

My ten to fifteen pages pales,
Discolours in comparison.
(Same deadline, the first of a string.)

Two postgrads permanently stationed in front of laptops,
The combined academic output rockets sky-high.
(Guess which room...)

Final few weeks of the semester,
Two disciplines, Third Sem and First Sem, respectively.
(Nod and How d'ye do.)

One month on the job

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 14:51:00 GMT

Miss Leong, Tutor.
This girl is officially UM academic staff.
One month on the job, and counting.

He claimeth my dedication.

There's something about convo

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:32:38 GMT

There's something about entering the hall together as a procession, that is not worth being late for.

I finally met, in person, the fellow L's whose names I always saw under/after my own in namelists at the faculty dean's office when collecting examination slips, results, and so forth.

I observed: Many people forgot to smile whilst on stage.
Dad observed: I was the one who forgot to stop smiling.

For the first time in the history of my mobile phone usage, my inbox was full and new incoming messages could not come in. (Thank you, :P)

There's something about waking up to a pretty little garden at your bedside. :)

I attended a total of 2 convocation ceremonies (including my own), 5 post-convocations, 1 grand celebration dinner (clashed head-on with an otherwise second dinner, unfortunately), and 3 photo shoots.

Many thanks to my current roomie for fitting up my robe the night before, Stephanie for make-up consultation & artistry, and Benjamin for everything photography.

Albums here, here, and here.

Much love to the gals (and one guy) who graduated with that B.A. in English Literature...

...As well as the roomies, college mates, PKVians, and others, who made up the rest of my undergraduate life.

She dreamt of this day.
Someone thought it'd be cute to take a picture of me in my dad's M.A. graduation hood and mortar board. Too bad I closed my eyes.

Which is the Best Thesis Statement?

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 14:35:00 GMT

Moby-Dick is about the problem of evil.

Moby-Dick is boring and pointless.

Moby-Dick is about a big, white whale.

The use of "whiteness" in Moby-Dick illustrates the uncertainty about the meaning of life that Ishmael expresses throughout the novel.

The class lols.