sayonara 2009, ahlan wasahlan 2010

January 2009: I was spending my summer holiday in Malaysia, and as punishment for not doing very well in the previous year's final exam, i was struggling to revise all my first year's study without the luxury of books and lecture notes as reference. therefore, i solely depended on the notes which i took the liberty to save in my laptop. thank goodness for it, or i would have failed the exam around mid-January.

February 2009: Having finished the supplementary exam, i finally had the space to breathe normally again. and as what other overseas students coming back home would do, i spent the rest of the month aimlessly, waking up late in the afternoon, only to fall back asleep the next morning (which explained why i woke up late). the activites in between? well, i worked as a waiter at my grandmother's restaurant, that was recently opened since my grandmother and aunts moved to Kuala Lumpur. it was a good experience, the waiter job. and right before i went back to resume my study, i forked out some money from my personal account to purchase a new dslr camera (only to lost it six months later. freak.)

March 2009: Nothing much except the efforts to mingle in with my new housemates. oh yes, i forgot to mention that i've moved into a new house, from my crappy exceptionally small cubic room at the university's residents hall. and like a new clean-shaved face, i need to get my room some new accessories. and by accessories i meant furnitures, bed, wardrobes, study table etc. i spent a lot of my allowances here, and this results in me putting a belt around my waist, to prevent the trousers from falling off.

April 2009: I joined a new football team, formed mostly of Malays studying in Monash Clayton campus. we played in one competition that month, only to draw in all but one match, where we lost by 2 null. it was a one hell of an adventure. how can you forget the pain in the ass physical training. but thanks to that, i am now more masculin. oh, might as well take this chance to boast about myself. as if you know how i look.

June & July 2009: The winter break was drawing near. plans were to go for a road trip to Adelaide, spent a few nights there and afterwards shoots off to Sydney to see ncg 09'. did all that, had some fun, and last but not least, the break carved some lovely memories in the presence of my friends, some whom i met after i arrived in melbourne, others whom i've already knew even before i further my studies. alas, the good stuff never came without its counterpart. the trips also gave birth to some valuable experiences and unforgettable circumstances, of which i wrote a whole post on it.

August 2009: Came August, i am determined to become more active, and achieve what i have long put on hold. i decided to start doing 'social work', or volunteering to be precise. and hence i joined a prominent club here in the state, began learning plenty of new survival lessons under the wing of my good friend, whom i came to know in my university. there were many great classes, and i learnt a lot of life enriching philosophies. many of which i seem to have forgotten, but even more that i have already integrated into my daily life.

September 2009: Oh, this month is the most anticipated among others. its the month of Ramadhan and after that, Syawal! and you know what that means. Raya of course! it was also during this month that i went for my two weeks rural placement. great. luckily rural wasn't that terrible. all the basic amenities were sufficient, except for the fact that they provided internet access at the expense of your bills. i can say, for the whole two weeks, i'm definitely shielded from the outside world. i am katak bawah tempurung, except i'm a handsome katak (oh please.) and then came raya. eat your heart out i'd say, literally. i was stuffing too much food into my stomach that at one point i felt my hulu hati hurts due to overload. excessive metabolising actions i think. lepas berak baru okey sikit, kot.

October 2009: This was the month of studying. here and there, you could see everyone holding books. why? exams period were beginning at the end of the month. if usually when i went to have my lunch at the library cafe, there's always plenty of seats left, but this month was different. if you're late, you lose. so i decided to just study at home, in my own space and time. senang hati. but apart from the busy revision time, this month also made it as one of the months i will always remember throughout my entire life. it was during this month that i came out of my shell, and once again, decided to go public. from there onwards, i am one step closer to what i intend to achieve in the future.

November 2009: The final two months of the year were supposed to be the best months ever. it was within these time that summer break came. but before that, the judgement days await. days, because i have more than one paper for my exams. this time, i think i did quite well, and compared to the previous year, i could say i'm satisfied with the outcome. i came out of the exam hall on the last day of exam a free man. i'm no longer worried, even when the results haven't been released yet. not to say i'm confident i'll excel, but more towards i'm convinced i won't have to resit. well, you get what i mean.

December 2009: And then i went home, to Malaysia. the thoughts of getting some rest were put away by the preparations for my sister's wedding. more on the wedding later. i'll make a whole chapter on it. 'Congratulations kak long!', for i wish and believe you have found your eternal happiness, in the world and Godwills it, in the hereafter. this month also marks my true freedom. i can now legally buy cans of beer, or went to 'hustler'. but no, i won't do all that. it's just an expression. my conscience is still there to guide me to do what i think is right, and stops me from doing what i knew was wrong.

2009: towards the end of the month, down to the final hour of the year, i was spending the time with those i cherish the most. and while i'm writing, the year two thousand and ten already arrived. thank you 2009 for all those good things you've given me. and one big F for all the bad ones. let bygones be bygones shall we. let's turn over a new leaf. sayonara 2009.

2010: welcome new friend. let us create a strong bond and share all the good stuff among us okay? yang tak elok, kita buang tepi. i believe we will become very close throughout the year. but i shall say no more. let's see how the year ends and then i'll decide you're my good friend or not. for now, ahlan wasahlan 2010.

happy new year everyone!