What is a Malaysian Chinese?

Ever since coming to the United States, people have been asking me where I come from. Well.. the obvious answer would be from Malaysia. I'm proud to be a Malaysian. As a matter of fact, I'm the only Malaysian in the whole campus! Haha.. Well.. there's actually another girl who's a Malaysian too but she moved to the United States when she was around 11 years old and she wants to give up her citizenship! So.. haha.. that doesn't really count! =P

But what people don't understand is when they ask what race am I! Am I a Chinese? When I say I am, they would then give me a wide-eyed look and say, "Really? So you're from China?".

"No.. I'm from Malaysia"

"Huh? But you're a Chinese!"

"Yeah, but I'm Malaysian."

"Oh? So you're a Malay Chinese?"

"No, Malay is Malay. Chinese is Chinese. We have a lot of races in our countries. We have Indians too"

"Really? So you're not a Malay? How come? What is a Malay? How do they look like?"

This question is so funny I tell you. I'm sometimes am speechless when I get asked this question. How do you want me to describe them? Em.. They're a bit darker and they're all Muslim? So frustrating.

Then the next question would be..

"So are you parents from China?"

"Em.. No.. But if you really want to know my family's history, my great-great grandparents are from China I guess."

Then they would suddenly have this revelation, thinking .. 'Oh.. she is from China..'


Argh.. So frustrating I tell you! People don't understand it at all! Or maybe.. we are still considered as a foreigner of our own country. Although I'm a Chinese, I never ever considered myself as from China. Never ever felt connected to China or anyway like that. I'm a Malaysian. But people from other countries don't really get that because a foreigner is still a foreigner. Though they have citizenship from that country, they still consider themselves citizens of their home country. Like American Japanese. But what about us? Other people think that of the people of our country.. but...

What does the people in our own country think of us?

Do you have Home Insurance?

My family is looking to look for a new house to buy. Because my dad is transfered to another country, it is important that my family feels at home especially since its a totally different country from where we came from. It is really important that my mother feels at home and not feel homesick because its a totally different environment of what she is used to. Looking for a new house is definitely not easy. Once you get through the exciting part of actually finding your dream house, you still have to go through all the boring paperwork to finally have your house under your name.

Do you have insurance for your house? What if something bad happen to either your house or the things inside? Home insurance is important for the what if's of the day. You just never know! Its scary to think about it but its better to feel safe than sorry. Don't you agree? That's another thing that people should really take into consideration. Make sure you find an insurance that is from an ethical back that shares its profits with its customers, which is of course us, and not with the oh-so-rich shareholders!

Have fun decorating your home!

Books Meme!

Oooh.. Its been ages since I last did a tag. If any of you tagged me, and I didn't reply, please do remind me again. I totally forgotten where the tag is. So sorry ya guys.

Josette from Books Love Me just gave me a books meme! Oooh.. Since I love books, I'm gonna do this tag! Hehe..

Here goes..

Total number of books owned:

Oh dear.. I really don't know this. I had this book buying craze before I left for the States and bought like over 30 books in just 6 months. It was totally crazy! And the worst thing was I didn't get to read finish any of them before I left. And I didn't get to bring all of them when I came here coz of the limited space. To tell you the truth, I brought less than 10 books here. Sad.. I know..

But I'm probably going back this holidays so books here I come.

No space in my room though. Boohoo..


Last book bought:

Hmm.. Online shopping is really getting to me now. There are so many cheaper books online compared to my university bookstore. You can't imagine how cheap it is. That's if you're willing to wait for say 2 weeks. But its so worth it. Love online shopping now! Haha..

Just bought Fruit of the Motherland: Gender in an Egalitarian Society
by Maria Alexandra Lepowsky for my Anthropology class. Its surprisingly interesting. Its about this anthropologist that went all the way to New Guinea to do research on the gender issues of the people there. You really see how different the culture of the people living there. What is considered normal and what is not.


Interesting part: The women there don't wear clothes, just skirts make of leaves. =P


Last book read:

Oh dear.. last book read? Em.. I haven't finish reading a book in a long time. But if you don't consider me not finishing it, well then I guess its either my Anthropology text book or my Physics book. Hahah..

But leisurely though, the last book that I really read was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows. And can you imagine, I havent finish reading that book yet? I wanna slowly treasure it that I think I'm the last Harry Potter fan that hasn't finish the book. I hope I don't have anyone putting the story's ending in my comment section. =(


Five books that mean a lot to you:

Hmm.. Hard question. But I'll try it anyway!

1. A Youthful Diary by Daisaku Ikeda
2. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
3. P.S I Love You by Cecelia Ahern
4. Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela
5. New Human Revolution Series by Daisaku Ikeda

Yup! That's done! Its hard to choose only 5 though. But these are my precious 5 in no particular order! =)

People I wanna Tag

1. Pinkster
2. Terra Shield
3. HcFoo
4. Miss Positive
5. Menchie!

Have fun playing this tag!

Dell Printers

Being in college is really a huge difference compared to being in high school. You really wont know how much of papers you need until you actually get here yourself. Practically everything is paper. You write papers, you read papers.. Everything!!!

I print papers by the hundreds every month. I feel so bad for the trees I know but.. =( I don't like reading PDF files. You can't highlight them or mark them. And your eyes get so tired after a while.

There are printers all around the campus for me. But sometimes, when you finish your paper 5 minutes before class, and you realize the printer in your dorm is having one of her moods again, you know you're doomed!!!

Its really that bad. I'm not exagerating. Printers are students lifeline now. It can either save or break you. That's why I really want my own printer.

Better yet if its a printer scanner copier. Dell Printers are personally my favorite. They are definitely a trustable brand and you get can it online easily. Online shopping is one of students favorite past time too! Just sit in front of your laptop and click away!!! And see you money flowing! =( Kinda sad but absolutely fun!

Online shopping is not really popular in Malaysia. That's what I like about this place. Dell Printers!!!

Princess Shin is tired..

Princess Shin is tired of waking up at 6:30am on Mondays Wednesdays, and Fridays to join the swim team for practice even though its only her first time doing it last Wednesday. She's terrible at it and is the slowest of all in the whole team but still wants to stay in it to feel how its like being on a team.

Princess Shin is tired of weighing herself everyday in fear of gaining weight! =(

Princess Shin is tired of missing Malaysian's Food!!! >.<

Princess Shin is tired of having one and a half hours before the next class starts thinking whether to take a nap or not and by the time she wants to take a nap, its time to go for class.

Princess Shin is tired of going to classes everyday though she loves her classes because its so interesting but there are just so much homework!!!

Princess Shin is tired of not having a car and is stuck in campus everyday though she absolutely adores her campus.

Princess Shin is tired of having her laptop as the main source of distraction though that's the only thing that has nothing to do with school work. Other than Microsoft Word, and Google. Boohoo..

Princess Shin is tired of being so busy all day long with classes, clubs, classes, clubs, organizations.. =(

Princess Shin is tired coz she's not feeling well and wants to sleep! >.< And class is starting in 30 minutes!

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Lunar Eclipse

I know this is long overdue but there was a lunar eclipse recently in my university. It happened September 4th around 2am to 5am. I was so reluctant to sacrifise my sleep but I was thinking of my wonderful imaginary readers that I thought, "What the heck! What is a few hours of lost sleep compared to the joy of my imaginary readers right?"

See how great I am?

Well.. it was also more towards thinking that this would be my last time seeing a lunar eclipse if the thing about it appearing once in a 1000 years is true.

The start of the adventure


Slowly..

Beautiful right?

Uh-Oh.. the moon is disappearing!


Oooh.. Note the color change?


I love this!

Sorry guys.. this is the end of it.

I din stay up till 5 am so you will notice that the pictures only go one way. It climaxes but doesn't go down! Haha.. But its almost the same right? You just put the pictures the other way around.

You know what I mean.

The process was so slow it was torturing. The last time I saw an eclipse was like just 30 minutes. If you din pay close attention, you would miss it. Maybe it was because it was the sun eclipse but still.. This was sooooo... s...l...o...w....!!!!

By the way, these pictures were taken by my Canon S5IS camera. Great shots right? Though I know it needs lots of improvements. The noise is terrible in this. But goodness gracious me! My hands were absolutely exhausted after it. Had to hold so still!!! Din even dare to breath!

See what kind of lengths I go for you guys! Visit me more often ah! Haha..

Muarx!

Want a healthy skin?

Ah.. ever since coming to the US, my skin has taken a rather bad turn. I though after turning the big two-O, I would escaped the horrors of being a teenager which mainly constitutes having major acne problems.

But NO... No such luck for me. I'm having small little 'friends' popping out on my sweet young face and I'm not loving this at all! I thought my skin would love it here because its not as hot and humid as our wonderful good ol Malaysia but alas.. she doesn't seem to like the dry windy Californian weather too.

My skin is so confuse I tell you!

I heard somewhere of the wonders of the Gâc (Momordia Cochinchinemis Spreng) fruit, which is a tropical superfruit, is found abundantly on vines all over sub-tropical Asia, especially in Vietnam. It contains Beta-carotene, a natural carotenoid antioxidant which helps boost the immune system and assists the skin’s cellular rejuvenation process. It also contains carotenoids which basic function is to protect the plant against excess sunlight. Imagine what it can do for your skin. Only R.G. Skin Revitalizer contains Gâc inside.

It has a rich history of medicinal use in Asian households and the best part is its all natural!!! No free radicals or the fear of getting cancer later on in the future.

Clear beautiful skin here I come.

We dont have maps!

Ok.. I really don't want to be mean or anything but seeing this video really makes me laugh! Haha.. Oh my goodness..

Blame the education system for churning out students like these!!! Though I think we can't really blame her because she was under pressure and everything.. but..

Sigh.. this just goes to show how the 'aware' the people in our world is. Not only the United States but every other place. Youth are basically not as aware as they should be concerning world issues. I admit I'm not as aware as I should be. I don't like reading the newspapers. But if we really wanna take action to make the world a better place, we have to equipt ourselves with as much knowledge as possible.

Poor girl. She's just one of the many million 'average' kids but everybody is making jokes at her expense. A lesson to be learned I hope!

Tired of the boring old places?

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I want a hug..

Ooooh...

Its amazing how a picture can speak a thousand words.

Heard of Bachata dancing?

Ever since coming to the US, I have really seen how much the Latin America culture has influence the lifestyle here. The Latin Americans are the hippiest people around. They are loud and friendly at the same time. And almost all clubs are high on the salsa fever. Heard of bachata dancing? It is absolutely amazing! I really have to learn it myself to attract hot Latino guys! Ooooh..Wee!!!

There's a PayPerPost University now?

Wow.. You just don't know what to expect from PayPerPost! They think of everything! You may be looking for a bag, but this Opp is not about that. It's a Worldwide Wednesday Opp. Just follow the instructions below, and your post could earn you $50. Great job finding a Worldwide Wednesday Opp!

Check out the link in the required link section below. It's for the new PayPerPost University, recently launched. It's a place where we can keep our video tutorials, Postie Service Announcements, Best Practices, etc. It's a collection of our efforts to educate the entire PPP community.

Take a look through the videos and links and post about it. Tell your readers they can find it from the Community tab of the PayPerPost site.

What do you think? What are your favorites? Which would you use most? Are there any that are not helpful? Any that you'd like to see added? If so, why?

*** Please note, the post you submit for this Opportunity should have an original, non-sponsored post before it and after it. This is in line with a Term of Service change that rolled out yesterday, and will start being observed across all submitted posts 9/12/07. Check out section 5.5.A of the Terms for the full details on this Term.

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PayPerPost University

Remembering September 11th

Being here in the United States has a different feel for the tragedy of September 11th. I remember when this happen, my family and I were having a holiday in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, and during breakfast the next day, we saw the news on TV. We didn't know what really happen or how serious the whole thing was. Innitially, when we saw the flashbacks of the plane crashing onto the twin towers, we thought it was some kind of show.

Only after watching it for a little while longer did we realized what was happening. But even then, it really didn't hit us. When we got back to KL, I had some friends who told us that they were watching television that night itself (the time difference is that it was during the night when it happen!) and the show suddenly stopped and there was this news showing the twin towers crashing down. Some kids actually thought it was Gozilla in the making.

But today, my university had a memorial service. And listening to the students and faculty talking about how it was like being in New York itself when it happen really changed everything. Its not far and away anymore. It is not something that we hear on the news, feel sad for a while and forget about it the very next minute. These are people that were actually there when it happen. They actually knew someone that lost their lives in this tragedy. They experienced the smoke and the smell of burned flesh which lingered on for weeks without end. They were actually people that were glued to the news in hope of finding survivors in the rumbles of the twin tower.

These were actually real people. Not someone that we see on television. It was so surreal for me. And it truly made me feel the impact of the aftermath of September 11th. How much sufferings and sadness it brought to people.

However, what actually to people get from through incidents like this? Is it to form anger and hatred to whoever that did all this? I felt that after the memorial service, it is not important who was behind the September 11 attack but what can we do to prevent it from ever happening again. Such incident brings intense suffering to every possible human being on earth. But what can we do as a human being to stop it from every happening again? What can we do to stop violence from happening again? This event happen because of anger and hatred but are we going to reciprocate it with anger and hatred too?

It has been 6 years since September 11th 2001. And slowly, the memory of this event is diminishing. People are starting to forget the seriousness of this event. It is not about who was behind this attack, but the fact that it was an attack of violence towards humankind. It's not important who did it, but that innocent lives were lost.

What are we going to do about it?

So many innocent lives and families were torn because of this incident. It gives you the perspective that life is so important. Every single one of us is important. What can we do to respect and value everyone?



This is something that we truly have to ponder upon.

Looking for furnitures for your new home?

Ever since moving into my dorm room, I have been obsessed with finding stuff to decorate my room. But everything seems to be so expensive! Being a student is really not easy. Students are broke!!! And that is the absolute truth!!!

Though I have my own room in my dorm, but it is really small. I can't really fit in any other furnitures. But in this experience, I got a taste of how decorating your own place would be like! I would definitely start with my dining furniture because that's the place where I would eat!!! I love food! I can't wait to start buying my own dining room furniture, decorating it with paintings and stuff!!!

Maybe I would even buy formal dining room furnitures for my house! Who knows, I may be some great politician when I grow up and the president of United States would come for dinner. By then I'm sure it would not be the current US president. God forbid!

I would have a super long Dining Room Table with elegant table cloth, and candles on top. Wouldn't that be nice?

Celebrating Independance Day alone!

Hmm.. living in US for around a month now has really made me appreciate Malaysia more. Its undeniable that the standard of living here is much higher and the shopping here is absolutely fantastic, but one still misses home. Even though it may not be as good.

I celebrated Malaysia's National Day alone here. I was the only Malaysian in the whole university so there wasn't anyone for me to go 'Merdeka!' with. It's funny though. I never really fully appreciated or felt the need to go out and celebrate, but when you're the only one, it's kinda different. I felt that I had the responsibility to tell everyone that 31st of August 2007 was Malaysia's National Day and we're celebrating our 50th Anniversary.

I didn't do any elaborate party and cook curry chicken for everyone. Though I wanted too but had no idea how. I just went on and wore my baju kurung (Tradisional Malay outfit) to class that day. It was kinda weird though, everyone wearing jeans, acting all trendy and fashionable and there I was wearing this long dress covering me from head to toe. But I was happy. And everyone came over to me and ask what was I wearing. And there stood my chance to tell them that it's Malaysia's Birthday!!!

Good way to promote right? Hehe..

It was funny though. That was the only baju kurung I had. And I had to buy it because I was forced to wear it during my orientation when I attended a local university. I hated wearing it because it was so hot. But now.. I'm wearing it voluntarily. Super ironic!

Though it was a small gesture. But I was happy that I did my part as a Malaysian. =)

Malaysia Boleh!

Storage Cabinets

One thing about Malaysian's house is that we don't really have such thing as garages. I remember watching American shows and noticing that they have a special room just for their cars. I was super amazed by it. The garage door would slide up and down and sometimes people would accidentaly knock their own garage door! And what's more, some garage is not only just to put their cars, it is a place to fit all your junks, or tools. Hence garage sale right?

To most people, the garage is like a rubbish dump. All the unwanted stuff are all inside there and can't be seen by the public eye. Fortunately, garages don't always have to be like that.

When I have my own house next time, my garage would be nice and comfortable. For my little pink Volkswagen. =)

And to fit all my precious junks, I would need nice beautiful Storage Cabinets.

And carguygarage.com has beautiful storage cabinets to put all my stuff in. Better more if you're a guy. The storage cabinets that they have will definitely satisfy the manhood in you.

Happy choosing!