white christmas

The view outside my window was like this...


3 hours later...

well, this is 4 hrs later, when it stopped snowing, but i wanted to compare the two shots taken from my window.

ok 3 hrs later...
it's snowing, snowing...


snow on the evergreens

welcome to the magical land of park forest villa!

snow on the ground

on the woods


on the bench (Tudek Park)

on the dry flowers

And so...

I will not be sleeping tonight. I'm going to throw ice on my housemate and tell my lecturers that I don't have to work on my assignments b'coz it snowed...

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"IT's the FIRST DAY OF SNOW !!!"

hello? who's going to stay indoors to study?

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I have 2 assignments due tmr... but since this is the first time I am seeing snow, I grabbed my camera and clicked around my neighborhood and into the park...uploaded them on my computer and mailed some to my family...posting it on my blog. So clicked away my working time... ophs.

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"...Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory."

Isaiah 6:3

living by faith

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In response to my prev post, God has been teaching me about the rewards of relying on Him in times of nothing-ness.

Now, I've been wishing for a puncher (in America a puncher makes 3 holes and it's as long as a letter size paper, I don't know why they just make everything different here). Stationaries are expensive here and I don't want to pay USD 8-10 just so I can make 3 piercings on my paper.

Guess what? I got one free today ! Got it in church at the lost and found section. No I didn't steal it. But after a period of time, everything on the table goes free if left unclaimed. Other than this, I got a corduray jacket, a pair of gloves, lunch bag, pencils, a set of wooden toys.

Not to mention my 2 hikes over the past weekends. I was complaining to God about being home-bound... and lo and behold a few hiking opportunities popped out.

I'm still praying for:

1# A visit to an apple farm. There was an apple-picking festival at a nearby farm over this weekend, but since my house-mate and course-mates were busy and I don't have a car so I missed it. Grumbled I did. But since God has been a Santa-Clause to me, I'm sure more opportnites will come by. The good thing is, even though I don't get to pick apples, I get free apples from friends who went.

2# A beautiful sunset. Sunsets are lovely here, you'll see shades of purples and reds (something about how light is reflected or bend over the horizon here...) Now I've caught a couple of lovely sunsets but those view were obstructed. There are some locations where you get to see sunset over the hills, but I need a car to get there...

3# Color papers and photos. I got my picture frames free, I need some color papers to paste my photos on. I hope someone can donate some art papers to me or that I can find some good deals at yard sale... (coz they're expensive here, and there's only one art shop around)

I've become very self-absorbed since classes begin. I used to complain to God that I don't have time for myself. In my previous job, I work with people, on Friday there's cg and on Sunday I'm scheduled for eithr worship or sunday school.

Here, I don't have much time, so it's just me and my books plus church on Sunday and bible study on Thursday. I hardly get to serve. Well, I guess I didn't volunteer to serve too because I am still church-hunting plus I did not think I would have thee time.

But it gets depressing after a while. Being self-absorbed. During bible study on Sat, a friend shared a story from "The Great Divorce" by C.S. Lewis which went *nudge nudge* -> me. This is how the story goes (I may have mixed up some facts) : There was a group of visitors from hell who took a ride to heaven. One man had a snake tied around his neck. It got tighter every day. Now an angel (or was it God?) asked if he wanted to be healed. The only condition was he had to surrender the snake to the angel. He took a while to decide. Every day the snake kept telling him that he needed it or he couldn't live without it. But when he finally surrendered the snake, the angel turned it into a beautiful horse.

And that's how it is with the God of Abraham. He asked us to sacrifice our highest commodity so that He can bless it in return.

For me, it's my time. I've been very kian-siap to spend on it (with Him or for Him), since there's a big pressure to do well so that I can get a scholarship/assistantship to relieve my parents of their financial responsibilities. I feel bad relying on them at this age when every other filial son or daughter are giving back to their parents.

so #4, pray that I'll give God my time. Hopefully I'll get some form of assistantship/scholarship too.

"But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus" Phil 4: 19.

Pictures taken from Greenwood Furnace

p.s -I got a box of chocolate malt packets for free today. Someone from church gave it to me. Said her kids overdosed themselves and now they're sicked of it. This is just what I need ! Last week I returned a tin of choco powder back to Wal-marts caused they didn't taste anything like the chocolate I've drank before, namely milo. I didn't have time to look for another chocolate drink... God knows what I need ! oh ya this one's by nestle.

bare and empty

Today as I was walking back home from the bus-stop, I wish I could...

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lie on the bed with a good book

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play the piano

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drive my car out to grab an ice-cream or a cake

=

Checked my room and found I have...

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plenty of textbooks and references (borrowed fr library), a book on apologetic and another on relationship... don't really feel like reading these.

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no piano....but a worship book with musical notations which a Vietnamese friend lend it to me when she heard me playing the piano (at a religion center's meeting room psu)

a bus pass... which takes me around the 'college' areas.

a butternut squash

sold for 50c at the farmer's market. you bake it with butter and brown sugar. I'll tell u how it taste after i burn her. My first time!

I wish I can say I have nothing but I'm rich in Christ... sounds like THE quote for missionaries. Well, they probably used it when they're surrounded by babies gained in Christ or treasures stored in heavens. But I don't have any of those....

but those that I have, I'm holding on to it.. perhaps too tight?

Maybe I should let go and live. Search, discover and find. Perhaps my eyes are blind to what I have here because I'm still looking back. a

freebies

the stationaries were given by an SLP fr Virgnia's public school. The gov will fund you if you are willing to work in the public school. The bag of cookies were given away free. A college girl (and friends) with a box of em asked "you want cookies?"... I turned back to ask why but she left.

weekends

State college. View taken from Harvest Field, Calvary Baptist church. Can you spot the football traffic (after the game)? People and vehicles start lining up 3 hours before the show. The whole town will be painted in blue and white during football weekend.

Finally I can steal a breath ! I've had weekly assignments and quizzes (x2). America's BIG on constant assessment and I took a heavy load this semester.

Anyways, some updates...

Last weekend was very eventful back home.

1# Grandma passed away on Friday.

2# My brother's wedding was over the weekend

3# I could only witness these events faraway... sigh. I've been up since 3am studying. Exam week.

But last Saturday was full of surprises

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1# I received my first postcard from M'sia! My dearest thought he wrote to the wrong address. I left a note at my mailbox for the postman to look out for it. (postal system is good here. They constantly update their residents' record. The mailman took the trouble to knock at doors to verify mails)

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2# A stranger came knocking at my door when I was home alone. I peered through the little hole at my door and saw a man holding a bunch of something. "Flower delivery" he said. It came with a water-filled vase. I thought it was for my house-mate but my name was written on the card instead.

I feel so treasured :) The roses are as large as my fist. The largest that I've ever seen !

3# Farmer's Market ! My first time going there. :) The market meets every Friday in downtown, south side of my campus. It only occupies half a street (cannot beat our pasar malam). But I get fresh veges and fruits from the local farms (and Amish people too). Walmarts and the hypermarkets don't usually get their supply locally. Btw, apples here are 3x more expensive than apples in M'sia AND meat is cheaper than vegs. A phenomenon which doesn't make sense to me.

Apple cider. Yummy :)

Plums. Got these from the market. A basket of 20+ for USD 3. It looks big here but one plum is the size of a fish ball (M-L).

The berries were taken from the bouquet. I changed the hue to give it a Fall feel. The weather is getting colder now to make way for Fall. There are lots of plants with berries here.


I cooked my first curry dish today! I made this for the M'sia (chinese) potluck dinner. Not alot of us in Penn State.

today's a better day

Pictures are not in order (too lazy to drag and sort for now). Story's below the pictures :

Today's a better day. I walked down the road to Calvary Baptist Church (CBC). On the map, it's 'just' along University Drive (A straight street that pass through my campus). The walk took 40 minutes? tee hee...

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On the way, a new student stopped by to ask for directions. Halfway through the american grad student (my guess) went "are you from Malaysia?". I was like "how do you know?" He said he was from university of Michigan and there were many Malaysians there. So he shook my hands heartily. As if he was very proud of meeting a malaysian.

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Suddenly, along the straight road, i met a sign that said "pedestrian prohibited". Amazed was I. I've never seen such a sign in M'sia before. Not on a straight road at least. It's a bridge road that does not have a pedestrian trail. So I walked under the bridge and took a loop back.

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Anyways, CBC had a free furniture giveaway. By the time I arrived most of the furnitures which filled the halls were looted. The organizers were amazed. They thought they'd to stay till the evening. But I figured I wouldn't need them anyways, so it was ok. I had a msn phone chat with my parents in the morning (their Sat night). I collected some bedsheets, thick blankets, towels and cloth hangers back. Plus a box of new wooden picture frames and some candles. Later, I helped to clean up the church, which really reminded me of church back home. Even the initials are the same. :P

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Then I had lunch at Back Yard's with 3 amazing people. This is the first time (besides Johanna) I get to sit down to have a good long chat. They are two americans guys and a taiwanese girl. All god-loving people with a mission in mind.

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And best of all the taiwanese girl offered me a place to bunk in while I room-hunt. I'm glad. :)

departure and arrival

Some pictures taken on my journey here. The better days ;p

KLIA

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Waiting for my flight to S'pore. It felt like ages. Like I was neither here nor anywhere. I could grab a taxi home if I were to wait any longer. Saying goodbye to my love ones was painful

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Changi

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I like the lights illuminating through the floor. My friend came to greet me. I ended up resting at her place while transiting. That was my first time taking a cab at 330am in the morning. I think my dad was worried-fied. I'd to text him when I reached the airport. I got a reply back. So guess he stayed up for me. ophs.

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Changi

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I was bored waiting at Changi at wee hours in the morning. Next flight was 6+am. Airport security was strict. I saw armed officers. One of them took down my details when i was wondering alone at my empty boarding gate.

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HKIA

Mountains

I flew the artic way... a stretch of mountain ranges. Miles and miles it went. It might have been Siberia?

Mountains with feathey ice tops

Ice Sheets

My flight was catching the sun. The last time i saw night was in S'pore. But the window panels were always down. So that others could sleep. But it's kinda gloomy inside the plane. I couldn't sleep very well. The last panel of windows behind was unshut though cause nobody sits there. It's also a hang-out place for ppl who couldn't zzz or who liked to stare out.

Chinese noodles

Can you believe they serve us instant noodles at 9pm at night? Yeaps, that's united airlines. They switchd it to Chicago's time in the middle of the night, so it was 8am local time. But my tummy still craved for a big meal.

Guess where?

I missed my connecting flight here. Long immigration queue and rule abiding officers. They wouldn't allow me to cut queue even though my flight (to Pittsburgh) was boarding soon. O'hare is a huge airport. It's not that impressive though. Grey was what I saw. I can't tell one end of the airport from another apart. And it was hard to find a phone that could call out of state. Weird hur? Considering that it's an 'international' airport. A kind stranger borrowed her hp to me so that I could inform Dave, my friend's husband, that I would be late. Oh ya, my mobile phone can't be used here. Anyways, by the time I arrived at Jo's house in Ebensburg it was 1.30am. Was supposed to reach her place at 9pm if I had not miss my flight. Oh ya, we were trapped in a terrible jam on the way back too.

as for now...

The initial excitement for u.s. has waned off... i'm missing malaysian food (healthy food), my friends, my good old family, my car, cheaper hp rates, manglish. *sigh*

I met a couple of friends and some really friendly church people. There's an international student ministry over in my uni consisting of navigators and a few local churches. They offer free lunches, pinics, free furnitures, outings. Neat. I almost cried when i stepped into a church on Wednesday. It reminds me of home, or maybe it's a place where people care for you, or maybe just being in church itself is nostalgic.

Meanwhile, please pray for accomodations for me. I have not found any so far. The houses nearby the campus have all been fully booked. Penn state took in more students than the town could cope. It's crazy. There's a lady from Navigators who allowed me to bunk in for a few weeks. Glad am I that God decided not to leave me out on the streets. :p But it's 6 miles away though !! the buses only come 4 times in the day. No service on weekends.

Overwhelmed but filled with grace.

Goodnight.

Malaysia, I miss you...

9 more days...

I have 9 days more in Malaysia before I bid her goodbye. Yet the reality of me leaving has not set in. Here are some thoughts that are flying in my mind :

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aaasunset at the beach below tanjung tuan light house, PD

Workplace:

1. My colleague gave me a USD 20 note. Said it's for my taxi fare to transit in between terminals, so that I won't miss my flight.

2. A parent dropped by on a non-class day to pass me a gift. It's a book with a lovely prayer written inside. Jer 29 :11-13 was given as a promise and I miss-yous. My 5 year old student has the cutest smile (Parents' blog here)


What to pack:
Besides my summer wardrobe (the ONLY seasonal clothes i have in abundance), I would like to bring these along :

1. all of you
2. my room
3. diary, cards, gifts, photos (that will remind me of my good friends here)
4. CDs (no pirated CDs allowed. I have yet to download my music collection in my laptop
5. medication & spices
6. books (sparingly. It would be heavy to carry them there. I figure I'll have more books to buy there)
7. Cash (all donations are welcome)


Hanging in the air
1. Medical report
my uni did not send a medical form to me, it's mainly an online self-report thingy. You need to submit paper records too. But what I heard is that alot of foreign students end up taking their jabs there. (not sure whether it's because they fail to produce a paper documentation or that they have not had those immunization shots taken. I can't find my BCG/ polio/ tetanus/ hepatitis B record and the GP i saw refused to sign it off for me. Do u have any friendly doctor-friend? :P

2. People I have yet to see before I leave

3. Weddings that I will miss
Including my own brother's & many good friend's


Prayers
1. Catch my connecting flight in O'hare Chicago
I have 2 1/2 hrs transition time there. With this I need to pass by the immigration/custom queue, fly across terminals (international -> domestic), pass another security line before the domestic terminal. Plus I have another friend waiting at Pittburgh for me at night. She stays 2 1/2 hrs away from the airport. We won't want her to wait till midnight for me if I were to be placed in the next flight.

2. Housing
Not found accomodation yet. I am not sure whether to arrange them online or find it when I arrived. I figure the issue is not so much as a place to stay, but housemates and the area where I live in. So i'll have to take the risk to find it there.

3. Church
to serve in and worship God. God's ppl to love and be loved :)

pure joy

Pure joy. How many of us get to experience that? Or are actually experiencing it?


It's tempting to get angry or all worked out when things don't go our way. Very often we yield to hopelessness or despair. To cope with that in mind, we dig a cave, throw mud on others or like me, walk around like a zombie.

Little did I realize the effect of my weather casted on my surroundings(although I like to think that i'm invisible sometimes). It has been quite an adventure for the past two years since I graduated. I felt like a gypsy. Cruising. Direction? Unknown. But the good thing was, this gypsy made alot of discovery about herself or see paths unknown to her eyes if she did not start the ride.

One stormy day, a friend showed me sunbeams: a
"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him"

She encouraged me: "Have joy, knowing that through all these trials and uncertainties, there is a purpose. God has a greater agenda for u ! Be joyful in knowing (vs apathy for unknown)! Ask God for wisdom when ur stuck or tested. "


We have a choice : Praise the Lord? or kick the wall?

Paul could have a reason to get bitter. He was rewarded with a sentence to jail right after casting the devil out of a girl. Instead, he led a celebration of praise in his cell. The prison doors could not content his joy that it burst open.


pictures taken fr cherating at dawn/sunrise with the guidance of a xifu.

sunday

Last Sunday I celebrated Palm Sunday with my Sunday School preschooler's class. Btw, our Sunday School just got a new name. Kids For Christ (KFC). "no..." said the groovier folks. Imagine them growing up associating themselves with chicken? Finger-licking Christ's chickens? :) Anyways, I did of sketch of Jesus riding on a donkey to Jerusalem from Mt Olives. The girls were the crowd waving leaves to welcome Jesus.

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The important revelation I received from this lesson was that our King did not come with a robe and chariots, but He came riding on a donkey saddled with mere clothings put on by his disciples. An age old prophecy fulfilled with awe entwine with meekness.

a "hosanna, hosanna"

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Easter play, thus- Sats. I got robbed in just 2 weeks before to fill in the background music. Most of the cast & crew have sweated for 2 months to see "the perfect murdered" (title of our play) solved though.

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I'm feeling nostalgic about it. Now that it has ended. It felt good to be part of something big. It felt good to see people presenting their best to God. It felt good to be working with one another for a cause, a purpose.
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Through this play, I developed a growing appreciation and a sense of pride towards my church, my family. Seeing talents in the house came to bloom. Pat, the director - i'm pretty positive about her becoming a famous movie director. Someday. Suet Beng's scripts... ps Mal's and Suet Beng's voice... there's 'woa' factor that goes beyond the ordinaire. I'm hoping for greater things to come.

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Pull open the curtains of March, and there you find me flapping my wings (trying to) on new grounds. I'm learning. Learning how to teach little children who do not know how to learn by themselves. Lessons which come naturally to us are a long journey to some. Learning how to be self-less so that others can be loved. Learning that I can't go around thinking what I would like to think, feeling what I would like to feel or saying what I would like to say.... learning that the decisions we made are not just unto us. Our steps are connected to God, our love ones, others who depended on us, people before and after us... because we matter, because He loves. Our past, our present, our future, our community are weaved together as a piece of story... our story are weaved into a grand scheme...

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Life is a journey of lessons arranged in zig-zagged steps. We do not choose them. They come to us. If we do not learn to pick up the steps, we remain stuck or we would be ushered into a different doorway with different steps.

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I duno when I become so philosophical. Maybe it's because 'm sad about having to leave soon. Maybe i'm waking up. Maybe it's the changes i'm going through.

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Good-day March !

because he lives, there's always hope. Happy Easter ! (:

good morning

last year slipped by, and I hardly miss it.
Except the sassy golden hunk who faithfully waited by me each day when i came home... my neighbor's retriever moved. I didn't ask for his name :(

Here's to 2008...Nature greets thee !

purple on sky

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violet impatiens

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pink flowersa

sleeping morning glories

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white lilies
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hanging foliage

goodbye 2007...

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pictures taken fr aunty YF's hse.