+=-My Guitar Obsession-=+

[-Sunday, April 08, 2012-]

Post No:#951

YAY!!! The holidays are here!! =)

Had a fun weekend so far, celebrating Mr. Hao's birthday and hanging out with Van and Jess~ Obviously overspending and running out of money~ XD

1 Mid semester test on the Tuesday back to uni, then 2 assignments to hand in during the first two weeks of May, gotta start some actual researching soon.

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Other news:

Received a Letter of Commendation from the Faculty of Science for last semester's GPA of 6.5 overall~
Told parents, Dad said "Good, strive harder and get better results next semester!", Mum said "Top 20% (of the faculty) very high meh?! You should get GPA 7 overall since you said it was easy peasy!"
My reaction as follows:

Then continued saying that I should go find out which part of the 20% I am in or specifically my place compared to other students....
My reaction as follows:

Yes...DAFUQ?~ (Okay, no more memes) Like seriously?! Why do I need to even know that?! You think the University is really going to put together a list telling you who is 1st, 2nd, 3rd.........Xth place?! Even if they did, I am not remotely interested!

Don't get me wrong, I love my parents, it's just the whole "You should get a perfect GPA since you said it was easy" and "Go find out your exact place in the whole uni" that's annoying me. Can't you just be happy that I did well, after like almost 3 years of doing horribly in Vet Science.

When I failed stuff in Vet science, I didn't get told off or anything just nagged at to study harder etc, so why is it that when I do well in Vet Tech, I don't get congratulations?! =.=" Parents~~(Rolls eyes and shakes head)

Seriously?! Now I know why everyone in Singapore is so freaking competitive over every single little subject/test. Random classmate A:"Hey, so what did you get for the test?!", Me thinks:"Why the fuck do you care?"

Blah....Then Dad goes on talking about me going back to Vet Science after finishing Vet Technology, which kind of annoyed me further cause right now, I honestly do not want to go back there. Running away, giving up on my dreams...Call it whatever you want, but it's not even an option to go down that path again.

It's like what, 50K/year for tuition fees alone...Dad said to get PR before going back to Vet Science then the fees would be waaaaay cheaper. Really? So easy to get PR huh...~

Arrgh...Yes, I still love my parents.

-Logged Off-

Labels: Everyday's Post, Ramblings, Rants

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['-Ah_Ying-'] ;11:01 AM;

[-Thursday, March 29, 2012-]

Post No: #950

I made super yummy Paella for dinner!!! =)

I saw the Curtis Stone brochure (Less than $10 meals for your family) in Coles while out buying groceries and that particular photo of his Chicken and Chorizo Paella made me crave Paella.

Bought the ingredients needed, went home and broke out the new saute pan (30cm, it was huge and quite heavy!) from the cookware set I bought on KitchenwareDirect.com.au.

Because I don't like fresh tomatoes (go ahead, call me weird) and capsicums, I decided to chuck in sundried tomatoes and roasted capsicums (which come in a jar, and was also on sale) instead. And chicken wings cut into 2 instead of drumsticks cause they cook much faster. Added some herbs (oregano, basil and thyme) and chilli powder as well, probably not Spanish but it turned out delicious~

Considering I have never made Paella before, I would call this a success.

Putting up the recipe in case I forget what I put in it~

Chicken and Chorizo Paella (Serves 4)

*Note: Ensure that the pan you are using to cook the paella is oven-safe to at least 180°C, and a flat bottom for best results.

*Note: I used the measuring cup specific for measuring rice for the water and rice, if you are using a standard measuring cup, then it would be 720ml of water and 1.5 cups of rice.

*Note: I seasoned the chicken with 1/2 tsp of paprika, salt and pepper before browning. This is optional, I just think it gives a better flavor and color.

Ingredients:
- 1 Chorizo, sliced
- 4 Chicken Wings, separate the drumlets from the wings
- 4 Garlic cloves, chopped
- 1/2 brown onion, chopped
- 4 to 5 sun-dried tomatoes, cut into strips
- 1 Roasted Bell Pepper/Capsicum cut into strips (I used about 10 strips from a bottle)
- Small pinch of Saffron
- 4 Cups of water
- 1/2 tsp each of paprika, chilli powder, oregano, thyme and basil
- 2 Cups Rice, , washed and drained.
- 1 stalk scallion/spring onion
- Olive oil for stir-frying
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Some reduced salt chicken stock in case the rice dries out too much in the oven.

Steps:
1) Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced)
2) Bring 4 cups of water to boil in a saucepan, remove from heat and add in the saffron strands
3) In the paella pan (or whatever pan you are using to cook the dish), heat some olive oil
4) Brown the chicken pieces in pan, for about 5 minutes, remove from pan and set aside
5) Turn heat down to medium, add the chorizo into the pan, fry till brown
6) Add onions, garlic, capsicum, tomatoes and paprika, fry till onions are soft
7) Add in the rice and rest of the herbs, fry until dry and coated with oil
8) Add in the saffron water, bring to a simmer
9) Once at a full simmer, put the chicken pieces back in, evenly spaced
10) Season with salt and pepper
11) Placed the whole pan into the oven, and cook uncovered for 30minutes or until chicken and rice are cooked through. If the rice seems to be too dry, add some chicken stock to help it cook.
12) When done, remove from oven, garnish with chopped spring onion and let it stand for a few minutes before serving.

-According to Curtis Stone, a good paella should have crispy sides! I was really happy with mine, the top of the paella was crispy while the inside stayed nice and moist.

*Note: The original recipe said Medium grain rice, but I had long grain rice and it turned out fine

Enjoy!

-Logged Off-

Labels: Recipes

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['-Ah_Ying-'] ;12:40 AM;

[-Tuesday, March 27, 2012-]

Post No:#949

You know what pisses me off?
When people decide to put up photos of you in the middle of an action (eating and talking are the most annoying ones), which you have no idea they took, on Facebook!

You really think that's funny? To have photos of people in the midst of eating (food hanging out of their mouths) and talking (open mouths, animated actions, tongues out, pursed mouths, weird faces/eyes) etc?!

Oh and then go on and tag me to see my reaction...And in order not to appear unfriendly I have to go like "omg? LOL~" etc, when I don't think it's funny at all. Har-de-ha-ha, what about I put up a photo of you in the middle of constipation, or while you are drooling in your sleep, or singing in the shower?! Just imagine yourself in my shoes, you still think it's funny?

I already know how ugly I am, thanks for reminding me every opportunity you have that I am the ugliest in the group. I bet hanging out with me makes you feel so much better about yourself.

Oh actually it's not just those photos, it's also photos where I already told you not to put them up or to delete them but for some reason you decided that it would be funny to put it up~ Awesome job guys, you are now on my hate list.

And then you get so dramatic when I put up un-glam photos of you...Revenge is sweet baby.

Freaking nutjobs

Obviously a rage post not directed at you.

-Logged Off-

Labels: Everyday's Post, Rants

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['-Ah_Ying-'] ;5:35 PM;

[-Friday, March 23, 2012-]

Post No:#948

Blog Design Overhaul!!!!

=) Am loving the new blogskin so far. Haven't make blogskins in ages and this took 6 hours (0.o") to complete including the HTML/CSS coding which I had totally forgotten and needed major help from W3schools.com. It's an awesome website if you are looking to learn HTML or CSS!

The banner was custom made by Yan Hao a few years ago, and I have used it as my desktop background, I thought that it would be great for a blog cause it's a really simple design, not much frills at all with a neutral colored background. can you see the face of a lion on the banner? Well at least I think it's a lion~ XD

How do you like it? I think it's a great change from the black skins that I have always had previously~ Something nice and bright for a change. Popped the blog right in the center instead of on the left hand side, increased the size of the skin and font too (now people will stop telling me my blog's turning them blind~).

And it's about time for a new song don't you think?

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Oh and you know how I just blogged about Pinterest yesterday?! I received the invitation to join today!!! Took a couple of days but I am now officially on Pinterest. It's great for saving the things I see on the web without actually bookmarking it and for things that always capture my attention like interior designs and wedding styles~ Not that those are happening anytime soon of course.

Anyway, I am tired and hungry....

-Logged Off-

Labels: Blogskins, Everyday's Post

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['-Ah_Ying-'] ;6:02 PM;

Post No: #947

Been surfing Pinterest ever since I discovered it...(about 2 days ago, yes I know I am slow and outdated). If you don't know what Pinterest is, check it out!

Pinterest is full of ideas, it is basically pinning things that interest you onto the boards hosted on the site. I haven't been able to join it yet cause it's "Invitation Only" so either you get someone who's already in it to invite you or you enter your email into the "Request Invitation" box and cross your fingers that an invitation arrives soon!

I found out a lot of websites through it where I learnt a couple of tips and tricks for the homemaker, which I will be posting up today, with a couple of pictures and links!

1) Flexible vacuum: To vacuum in those tight spaces such as under your fridge without moving the fridge, fit an empty paper towel roll on the hose end of your vacuum, the other end of the cardboard can be bent and flattened for those awkward spaces!

2) The power of baking soda: Multiple uses for baking soda, everything from whitening clothes, getting rid of tough stains on cookware, getting rid of soap scum deodorizing to whitening teeth and soothing insect bites!

3) Tired of taking apart your blender to clean it after every use? Add a little dish soap, fill it with water and turn it on for a few seconds. Empty out your soapy water and rinse. Voila, all clean!

4) How to properly fold fitted sheets on Marthastewart.com (Click here for link to step-by-step):

5) Keeping marshmallows in a container with brown sugar (Original post: HERE ), helps to prevent the brown sugar from hardening!

6) Clean your mattress! (Original post: HERE) with baking soda too!

7) Coffee Filters are good for cleaning too! They are lint-free and soaks up oil well making them great for cleaning glass items (gonna use it for my car windscreen and windows~). Filtering other liquids like oil for reusing or if you happen to drop pieces of cork into wine.

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On another note...My bed frame almost fell apart!!!!! The solid wood bed frame started squeaking last year (yes, due to the increasing weight on top of it =P), and today I noticed that the end board made from 3 pieces of wood (2 vertical ones on the ends and a large, horizontal on between them) was separating at the joints!

Took the bed apart and found that one of the side rails had a crack down 1/3 of it's length and that the dowels in the joints were loose....Well, luckily I had some "Liquid Nails" super strength adhesive that claims to hold just about anything together and for filling cracks.

So I went through the process of gluing in the dowels into their holes and fixing up the end board and turning it on its end to help the glue set right. Put some into the crack so hopefully that doesn't fall apart. Gonna put it back after the weekend since I am staying at Phoenix's anyway, if it still doesn't work then it's off to Ikea for the MALM or NYVOLL bed frames!

Alright, it's getting late! Toodles~

-Logged Off-

Labels: Ramblings, Randoms, Rants, Websites

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['-Ah_Ying-'] ;1:00 AM;

[-Tuesday, February 21, 2012-]

Post No:#946

Have kind of decided on my future, if I can work in Australia then that's great, if not then so be it. Work in Singapore, gain experience, knowledge and move on higher up. Save up the money, maybe study business management/veterinary practice management, buy/co-own a practice then move on from there. Maybe save up enough to study Vet Science again with enough knowledge and experience to not have to worry about anatomy and pharmacology.

This could be a plan so far into the future that I will not be able to predict what's gonna happen (just look at what happened to the Vet Science plan which I made like....8 years ago?), but at least I have a plan. I probably can never understand a person whom does not know where he/she will be or what they will be doing in the future, sure the future is unpredictable but shouldn't that be the reason to plan for all scenarios?

Some people just live from paycheck to paycheck, 一天过一天, but I can't. Maybe its in-grained in me due to family influences, but I have to plan for what I have to do, then I have a clear path to follow. Planning for the worst case scenario so that I always have a back up plan to fall back on.

I am probably one of those people whom are able to answer those "Where do you see yourself in X number of years?" questions without batting an eyelid, cause I am always planning what to do in the future.

Enough about my future, am gonna go worry about my parents' health now.

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Last night in Singapore, and I just got back home from a heart-to-heart session with long time buddies Hans and Yeleng. I just gotta say, there are close friends, then there are friends like these.

Almost 5 hours of conversation, talking about our worries, problems, jobs, plans for the future, the past and the usual jokes to lighten up the mood. I feel as though we have grown up, possibly changed, but instead of growing apart, we are growing more alike and learning from each other each step of the way.

I don't have to feel as though I am weighing my problems on them when I just let go and talk about every single thing worrying me, I don't have to feel as though I am taking up their time. Just a natural conversation flowing from one thing to the next and back again. Advice given and taken, knowing that we want the best for each other. Hey, we may not be best friends but we sure are close. Understanding each other well enough to give advice that we know will be put into use, most of the time, me needing the advice.

Our schedules might be totally different with us being in different stages of our lives; studying, looking for work and working, but it's quality of time spent together not quantity of time spent together that counts.

As always I am gonna miss these sessions, but like Hans says, there's always FB, Whatsapp, MSN and Skype, not like we have to send mail by pigeons anymore.

-Logged Off-

Labels: Everyday's Post, Randoms, Reflections

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['-Ah_Ying-'] ;5:33 AM;

[-Thursday, February 02, 2012-]

Post No: #945

It's been eons since I did a proper post. Well, I guess the content in this post isn't really something that I would often write anywhere but I just need to get something off my mind and where better to do it than here?

So as everyone already knows, I have made the transition from Veterinary Science back into Veterinary Technology so obviously this would seriously affect my future.

Say if I continued living in Australia after graduation then career prospects are pretty good and I can continue to educate myself with Diplomas and certs/workshops so that I can specialize in a certain area for example Dental assistant, Emergency and Critical Care, Anesthesia Technician, Radiology Technician etc. I could potentially earn quite a good income working as a Tech.

So what am I worried about? Well, first of all, Veterinary Technician/Nurse/Assistant are not in the Skilled Occupation List (SOL) for Skilled Migrants, and I seriously doubt that it would be on the list anytime soon as there isn't a lack of Vet Nurses seeking work in Australia.

Some late night mulling and searching on the Immigration website turned up the only way I would be able to work in Australia, and it's not a permanent solution. The Business (Long Stay) Visa is my only method of remaining in Australia, but I would have to find an employer that's willing to sponsor me (at AUD$49, 330 per annum) and honestly the odds don't seem that great because current Vet Nurses/Techs don't really earn that much.

Then you might say "Just come back to Singapore and work here!"

Well, prospects aren't good;
1) Veterinary nurses/technicians in Singapore don't really earn much. Most job offers require you to state an "Expected Salary" and I have no idea what the average salary for Vet Techs are here. Though I did see a job opening offering between $1200-$1800 depending on experience, which is too darn low.
If anyone has any idea regarding market rates please help me out, the only information I have is off the TP website for the Dip. in Vet Tech which says that avg income for graduates = ~$1700.

2) The number of job opportunities are really low.
3) There are limited opportunities for further education/training.

Now that you know what I am worried about, I can continue with the rest of the story.

The only occupation that is directly related to working with animals in the SOL is a Veterinarian, and I honestly don't want to go back there. It would be stupid and I can't really tell my mum "Hey, I wanna go back to Vet Sci! Can I get almost $50,000 per year for another 4 years?" 0.o"

So to increase my chances of being employed in Aus under the Business Long Term visa, I need to be able to specialize in a certain area of Vet Nursing but to study the Diplomas I have to be employed by a clinic, and to be employed by a Clinic I need to hold the visa first, so that's a stupid cycle right there.

So considering other areas of animal studies I am interested in; Animal Nutrition, Genetics, Animal Behaviour and Welfare etc....I can aim to get a Master degree in one of those but again, it's not in the SOL and job opportunities seem to dwindle the more specialized the degree.

Am having a huge headache over all of this. Arrgh~

-End-

Labels: Ramblings, Reflections

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['-Ah_Ying-'] ;7:27 PM;

[-Sunday, January 29, 2012-]

有时候回到新加坡真的很烦
没有一天是平平静静的
三天一大吵，每天一小吵
一定会有人在大吼大叫，不然就会有人惹是生非

回到来想和大家一起吃饭都难
不是有人没到或迟到, 不然就是不想和家里的人吃饭。。。
都是一家人，有必要闹那么僵吗？！

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帮一个人要先看他有没有要你帮忙，不要帮人还被人家嫌你罗嗦嫌你烦，这样真的会觉得自己吃饱太闲没事找骂。悲哀哦~~

Labels: Rants

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['-Ah_Ying-'] ;1:07 PM;