Goodbye 2007, Welcome 2008 Part 2

I was suppose to continue writing about 2007 yesterday but i could not because I was helping Charlyn, Pia and Gagan to move house and they had to clean their house because they had to hand in the keys to the owner by today, 2pm so I was up until 1 in the morning to help them clean and move their stuff into their new house. The amount of stuff that Pia and Charlyn have is absolutely amazing, I also cannot explain. Haih, they are girls mar, what else can i say?

I was talking about my PR and my job in Part 1 so i shall talk about the people that have impacted my life in 2007. There are so many people that have impacted my life in 2007 that I don't know where to begin. I guess the main ones are my PASSION cell group in sem 1 and sem 2 because both of these cell groups have just brought out something different in me.

My sem 1 cell group was amazing because Joel, my cell leader was just such an amazing teacher. I learnt a lot from this brother of mine in terms of Christ because his knowledge about the bible is just so huge. He is like a walking Bible dictionary man, ask him almost any question in the bible and I am sure he can answer them.

Even if he cannot answer them, I am sure he can point you towards the right direction. The rest of my cell members in sem 1, well the best highlight of the semester was the amount of laughter that we all had. Katherine is the main person to start all the jokes and laughter, she is just so funny and I am already missing her actually. She is now in Brunei working because she could not apply for Australian PR.

So sad for her because she was telling me how much she wanted to stay in Perth. My cell group in semester 2 was equally amazing as well because everyone contributed so much to the cell group and the fellowship that all of us had in the cell was simply mind blowing. all of us fitted in so well even though most of us were from different cell groups the semester before so ya, it was great fun! I was also worried for Rungano because she was the only black in my cell group but she blended in very well with the rest of us who were mainly from Singapore or Malaysia.

She is from Zimbabwe and a very lovely and sweet girl. I would always remember the times when I talk to her on the phone and she would go like : Hello, how are you? in the most nicest and sincere voice that I have ever heard. awwwwwwwwww, she is just such an amazing girl man!

The year 2007 has also been great because i got to know more people from different cultures who were non Asians. Examples are people like Julia, Peter, Olu and Mojo because we always have bible study every Saturday night at someones house and boy do i really miss those times. We not only learn about God's word but it made me bond with those people that i just mentioned more and more and it was such a blessing because i got to know them as a person and their interests, hobbies, beliefs and cultures so ya awesome guys, you guys are the best!

I also got closer in my relationships with the so called "Mars Angels" which is none either than Miss Pia (P), Miss Charlyn (Char Char the babe) and Miss Gagan (G). i did go to their house quite often in semester 1 so ya got to know the 3 girls much much better. It was interesting to hear about their experiences in life and what their dreams and ambitions are. oh man, that's what I love so much about people! amazing amazing! I was also given the title "Official PR of the Mars Angels" by the 3 of them, hahahahaha.

There are so many other people that I can write about but it would just be too long. Maybe I write it some other time when I am free. It is just 5 more hours before we all welcome the year 2008. Gosh I cannot believe it man, i cannot believe it! HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY WHERE EVER YOU ARE IN THE WORLD! WELCOME 2008, GOODBYE 2007! will continue part 3 tomorrow.

Goodbye 2007, Welcome 2008 Part 1

As i am sitting down writing on my blog, the time is 9.26p.m. on the 29th of December 2007 and lets see we are all just 2 days away before the new year arrives. I myself cannot believe how time flies and how quickly this year has gone by seriously. I just felt that ever since I came to Perth 4 years ago back in 2004, the time here in Perth has gone by so much faster than back home in Kuala Lumpur.

I don't know what is the cause of it but i can say being busy must be one of the main factors. I meant ever since I arrived here in Perth I had to be more independent and do things on my own. I had to wash my own clothes, iron them, wash dishes, clean the house, tidy up my room. gosh doing all those things already takes up like most of my time so ya that means i rarely have time for myself.

However, having said that I guess its a good learning experience for me because I learned to take up more responsibility in the things that I do. okay enough said about that. Since the end of the year is just a few days away, I would be reflecting on 2007 and how it has impacted my life. I have decided to break it up into 3 parts because I got too much to write that I don't want to cram all of them into one day.

2007, oh 2007. what a year it has been for me. I got so much to write that I don't even know where to begin. Well, I think i will start of with my Australian Permanent Residency and my first full time job here in Australia because those 2 would be the highlight of my year. The thing about my Australian PR that I am so blessed about is the fact that I got my PR sooner than expected. I got it within 5 months which to me is considered good already because I know people who wait like one year or more to get their PR. that is an awful long time to me because its just too long to wait.

I mean for me its good in a way that I don't have to worry about my PR anymore once I got it. I had a slight minor problem with my case officer which I wrote on my blog during April or May. gosh what a relief for me man seriously, the fact is that I always wanted to stay in Australia because I fell in love with this country when I first came with my family for holiday especially Perth which was back in 1996 if I can recall correctly.

Australia is definitely a nice place to stay and live because the quality of living here is so so much better than staying in Malaysia in my opinion. so after getting my PR, what next? A full time job? Not just a full time job but a full time job in an accounting firm. that was what i wanted to start of my career in since I studied a degree in accounting and finance double major. why not give a shot in accounting?

guess what? I got an accounting job in a medium size firm doing taxation. it took me 7 months man, 7 months to get the job but i got the job and that's all that matters to me. It was not an easy journey for me to get where I am today man. I had to fight off my dad who kept on persisting that I go back to KL and work in Ernst & Young doing audit. I mean i know he wants what is best for me, doesn't every parent want whats best for their children? Of course they do but I feel its that time of my life that I make my own decisions and stand up for my own self.

And that's what I did. I kept on telling my dad that I wanted to stay here and find a job. He was not happy, i know that, I mean i was jobless for 3 months, I started my first job working in Nando's because i needed the money to support myself. After working in Nando's for 1 month, I became a bookkeeper for a transport company doing their accounts payable and receivables for 1 month and then I moved on to work in Nutrition Systems as their accounts payable officer for 1 month before I got my current job which of course I have to thank En because he got me the job.

So ya, what a ride it has been for me this year. I thank God because he made all of these things possible for me even though i was going through a tough time and trying to hang in there. I shall continue part 2 tomorrow. Till then I shall leave you with a movie trailer of Alien Vs Predator : Requiem which came out during Boxing Day. Enjoy!

Perth's Record Christmas Heat

Today was a record in Perth Temperature. Guess how much was the temperature? It was 44.2C shortly before 1.30pm in the afternoon on Boxing Day. how hot was that man? Gosh, when i went out of my house it was really like an oven man and boy I am not joking. I was in Perth during last summer but I never came across anything like this before. Just so super hot man. It makes you feel like burning inside for some reason.

Had a pot bless for Boxing day in the afternoon. Just invited my summer cell group people. There were mocktail, kebab sticks, roasted pork loin, pasta, pizza and lots more. It was more than enough for us to eat. We all watched a movie after that called The Last Holiday starring Queen Latifah. it was alright but some parts of the movie is like super lame man.

Well I got about one week left before I get back to work, feels kinda weird not working because I have been working for quite a while now and it just feels so strange not to work. well the heat is not helping me either so what can I do? Just have to bear with the heat i guess. The air cond is going to be my best friend this summer! hahahahhaha.

Below is the movie trailer for The Last Holiday, enjoy!

Merry Christmas Everybody

Santa Claus down the chimney waiting to deliver those presents on Christmas day? Rudolph the red nose reindeer? jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way? so, what is Christmas all about? is it about santa and his presents?Is it about the Christmas tree? or is it about the Christmas decorations?

Well, all those things are significant because they play an important part on Christmas day but the most significant of them all is the birth of Jesus Christ. That is the main reason why we celebrate Christmas every year. Christmas is a time of peace, joy and happiness as we all come together to spread the cheer with our loved ones. Christmas is also a time of giving and blessing people by showing them how much we care. There are so many people out there who do not have the chance to celebrate Christmas with their loved ones because they may be away from family or are just not so lucky as we are.

Christmas is also a time for us to reflect back on our year and see what we can do to improve on the things that we did throughout the year in terms of the good and the bad. Well, that is how I would celebrate my Christmas day.

Anyways, I would just like to wish everyone out there a very Merry Christmas, may the joy of Christmas be with each and everyone of you. Let us all just enjoy this glorious and wonderful day.

The Art Of Punctuality

Punctuality, punctuality. yes yes, that is not a new word to me because I have been struggling to be punctual since I came to Perth 4 years ago. I finally got a wake up call this morning when I went to work. My supervisor En told me that I have been late for the past one week and yes he said its not good because one of the directors in my company has been watching me and he does not like it.

I don't blame him seriously because if my working hours are from 8.30am - 5pm Monday to Friday, I should arrive on time to work and I know its so important because I somehow seem to forget that I am still on probation period which ends at the end of this month.

Therefore, I am still in danger because if I continue to do what I am doing which is being late, I maybe shown the exit door. Of course I would not like that to happen so if I do not want that to happen, I have to tell myself to sleep early and wake up early. No excuses anymore Thomas Chua! you just have to do it!

I always struggle being on time. When I am suppose to fetch people at a specific time lets say 7.30 on a Friday night for cell group, I always rock up at around 7.40 till 7.45 which is like 10 - 15 minutes late. Thats not good because it made me realise that I need to honor people's time as well.

All of us live busy lives, no doubt about that. so how do we honor people's time? By being punctual! thats a good reason to give right? oh well, i know i need to change and yes I will make an effort to change. enough of the bad habits already man!

Christmas is just around the corner, gosh I cannot believe its already coming to Christmas and I have not even done my Christmas shopping yet! hahahaha. no plans for Christmas yet but I am sure I will rock up with something. Can't wait till Friday because my office will be close for 10 days, from the 21st of December till the 1st of January. wooohoooo!

Below is the trailer of Alien Vs Predator-Requiem which is out during Christmas, should be a good movie i presume. enjoy!

The Power Of Nice

the power of nice? are you sure the book is called the power of nice? When i first saw that book in the Dymocks bookstore in Carousel, i was asking myself a question :" Does a book like that ever exist in this world?". Well, obviously the answer is yes, there is such a book in this world. The title of the book struck me so much that I decided to buy it in the end and read it because the front cover is already interesting.

I reckon this world needs nice people, don't you think so? We all live in a self centered world where people always think about themselves one. Me,me,me, its all about me. Having nice people in this world really can make a difference in someone's life.

A good example I can give is one of the stories from the book where Frank, a security guard who worked with the author's group in the same building actually won a bank account for the group just by being warm and friendly when Richard Davis, the COO and president of U.S. Bank came to visit the group at their office building. Now thats the power of nice! The group won the bank account because the security guard was being warm and friendly. how cool is that man? just by being warm and friendly.

I recommend everyone should read the book because it is a very interesting book to read, you never know how much you can learn just by reading the book.

Summer Is Here In Perth

summer summer summer. when i come across that word in my mind the first thing i always think of is hot, hot, hot!. all you people who stay in Perth for summer last year or years back would know how it is, the temperature can reach 40 degrees one and my room is no exception as well. Every time I step into my room, I can straight away feel the heat and its like a sauna man seriously. You can straight away feel the heat in your body.

Thats the reason I have decided to sleep downstairs in the living room, can switch on the air conditioner. ahhhhhhhh, its going to be such a relief man. I have been so tired this whole week reason being have been sleeping late i guess. Been meeting up with my friends before they left because most of them left already this week to Malaysia for summer holidays. Its going to be really quiet this summer because most of my friends would not be around which includes my brother who left on Thursday. I slept for 9 hours last night and boy what a feeling, i just feel so much refreshed right now. whew!

Its actually good for me because it gives me more time to read which is what I should be doing. I know i have not really been reading books since I was young and its not good because reading gives you knowledge and if i don't discipline myself, I am going to be left behind man. people are going to be more knowledgeable than me and thats a scary thing.

Therefore I have decided to pick up a book and read for at least 10 minutes a day for a start, should make it a habit or else i would be lazy. I went for Pia's fashion show on the 24th Of November 2007 and boy was it good. It was my first fashion show that I have ever attended to in my life and I really loved her designs, I reckon she can be a very successful fashion designer in the future. The clothes that she designed were just absolutely stunning, fabulous, very nice.

I shall post both the videos that I took at the fashion show from my Kodak digital camera below so enjoy the videos people. do leave comments if you find the video is not good quality or needs improvement whatever, I always appreciate feedback.