first train home i've got to get on it

i love trains, cats, roses, and 2 seater planes.

i haven't written in a long time. i realised i don't even carry a pen in my handbag. this is disjoint. i will bore you with mundane facts. maybe explanations.

every 2 years in life, there comes some major overhaul. some change, which is a good thing. managing it can be tough. good or bad, it's how we learn and move forward. miracles come in handy, no doubt ;).

don't play with fire. dragon friending or otherwise. i will show you why on flickr soon. but like charlotte says, just don't play with fire. it tends to get you some black diamonds. (hell i wouldn't mind them, just don't say its the colour of my soul ;))

since saturday, ive got 10k under my heels. running at night, with planes taking off at your side was otherworldly. beautiful.

i never imagined that i would ever have achieved this, ever. but i tend to surprise myself. addicted to running, i will go halfway by the end of this year.

nitin sawnhey is a genius. acoustic evening blew me away on friday. i have been meaning to call classical heritage for a year now. maybe finally, it's about time. i think i've found the perfect song for a duet.

for the record, the cello is no doubt the sexiest musical instrument.

this saturday will be barefoot morning, for a cause i support. i believe everyone has the right to a safe, comfortable home. in my life, home has been the pivot, the nesting space, recovery zone. when this space does not offer the safety, security and certainty that it should, my life has tumbled and turned. we are privileged to have a roof over our heads, but for those who don't, lets bare our soles, make a statement and take several steps to change this reality.

there was something else i wanted to talk about, oh yes, it was food.

do try the cellar door, the hand burger, toby's cafe

do not try cafe cartel

these places call for a junkbox update, for which you need to wait. till then, i want to be blown away by jake gyllenhaal, and you should too.

scoop the goop

if you want the scoop on gwyneth, you go to goop. i love chris martin, and for that reason i love gwyneth palthrow. she's seems nice, in a sweet sort of way. but, i think 'goop' is not a cool name for a website. i think i get the logic - (gwyneth + scoop = goop) but somehow it does not digest well in my mind.

anyway, apart from ranting about the name, the site is good. and it has a lot of personal articles that won't necessarily interest all celeb stalkers. it's a lifestyle page of someone who's pretty, rich and famous AND has a rockstar husband. not forgetting that she gave birth to (an) apple and moses.

heres a list of pages i found particularly interesting, heartwarming, or useful

GO- Paris
her father said to her "I wanted you to see Paris for the first time with a man who would always love you, no matter what."

BE- Watch your words

avoid the 'evil tongue'

MAKE- Detox (excellent article)

detox with yummy food and no starvation

i hope these will keep you busy. i found them interesting and subscribed to the newsletter. i hope they (the website people) decide to change the name of the site, or atleast offer a better explanation of its existence.

i am off to compose another junbox entry, so i bid you goodnight!

sleep well my friends,

amelie

come... and burn your heart away

come... and burn your heart away
Originally uploaded by insee

reflecting on the past 7 days, i've realised that life does change. mine has been fluctuating like my bank balance. riding on a full tank of happiness and high on sun, sea and smiles.

i've discovered that there is such a thing as 'lightning wax' by diana king. developed my first lomo roll. i've tasted presshafruit juice from a triangular bottle. i've found the perfect foundation, crème and powder. finally got the perfect blush tint. i'm progressing en française. i've been on 2 budget airlines and i've been driven 1.5 hours on a motorbike/scooter to the airport. seen some beautiful seascapes. drunk chilled coconut on a burning hot day. not to mention i've had yummy food. sour sour mangoes with chilli. and i've been somewhere where the sleaze meter is so high that it made me feel safe.

all that's left to do now? go up in smoke.

au revoir,
amelie

fdisk /mbr

i feel like somewhat of a genius. with zer0 background in computing, i managed to reformat my comp which had linux and windows booting on this thing called GRUB. this is an anal post for most of you computer geeks, but to the dimwitted, almost dumb blond that some may say i am, it was an otherworldly experience. it was the first time i ever booted windows from my CD drive for that matter, and i must say, i thoroughly enjoyed it. i only wish i could go on reinstalling windows forever. or run the grubby thing and linux indefinitely. it just feels so cool to hit 'esc' when the comp is rebooting and get this weird sorta BIOS screen. having no clue  nonetheless, i have this intense sense of achievement in a total 'godayata-magic' kind of way. 

i'm vain...

and the canon service centre knows that too.

i can't imagine anything more embarrassing than sending your camera into service without removing the memory card. it doesn't help that there were more than 50 narcissistic photographs of myself with blood red lipstick and green eyeshadow. horrific i tell you, but the service centre guys would have had something to laugh about. (but then again, if they circulate it, i might become a movie star...)

my face may even be pasted on a dart board and every time someone aims well enough for a bullseye, i get a pimple. (although i'm quite sure there are a handful of people who may be doing that already...) grievances aside, i think it is only prudent that you be protective over your photos, even if you may want to be 'discovered'. your intellectual property is at risk too, and you never know if the person on the other side needs a subject for a voodoo experiment...

"... and the magic is in the eyeliner"

a long long day today began with a migraine of sorts. usually a cup of tea solves everything, unfortunately today did not seem very usual. two cups in the morning didn't open my eyes. the other two in the afternoon were not too useful either. but the 3 dozes of darjeeling in the evening had some effect on my capabilities and i managed to stretch my work day a coupla more hours. once the regular part of life, aka work, was done with, the hunger kicked in. half a pizza later, a friday night calls for something special. today it was known as pistachio and white chocolate cake. which, naturally would go along with a fragrant cup of earl grey. in total of 8 cups of tea could equal substance abuse, and hence i am awake at 3 am trying hard to think and explain why it is only eyeliner that makes it to heaven in the book of make-up.

i've come up with a random theory of weekly make-up. it is always lovely to look good because it makes you feel good too. but somehow my migraine today took out the greyer side of my face. dotted with concealer and a toned down red lipstick i faced the world of cosmetics. not very impressive i would say. but saved, in terms of 'face'. anyways i digress, from the varied levels of make up exploited this week along with the events that i was lucky to attend, i would say the eyeliner is royalty. almost the spice of life that encourages a stranger to smile, or a passer by to turn just for that second glance.

in any case, i leave eyeliner, mascara and the works only for extreme situations when it is absolutely necessary. mostly because my eyes suffer. even with all these clever remover products and opthomologically (right spelling i hope) tested eye make up my eyes can get itchy with all the residue. so naturally, after 2 days of using it, the third is always a rest day.

so back to the theory.
monday: basics (which are concealer, face powder, blush and lip balm) with pencil eyeliner
tuesday: basics, pencil eyeliner, lipstick
wednesday: basics, liquid eyeliner, mascara
thursday: basics, liquid eyeliner, lipstick
friday: basics. mascara. lipgloss. (anything more might make you attract way more attention than required, but then again i know a lot of people who can carry off the works with no issues so this report is subjective)

anyways since the tea has gotten me on the subject of vanity, i need to leave you before i begin a less indept and more ridiculous analysis of make-up and other vain vices of our world.

au revoir,
amelie

running in heels with a dagger in my hand!

this is the sort of expression that is going catch people's attention. and being in this lackadaisical couldn't care less phase of life, i would say achievement is a must. the problem is that there is no single plan. there are many. like a child entranced, each new experience, outlook and opportunity becomes exciting, eye-opening, and almost obsessive. it is the idea of an idea that can keep this wandering spirit alive.

walking down the cobbled path (yes the path is cobbled. this is not a random phrase from an old english tale) in killer red stilettos, i burst into song. this sort of enthusiasm isn't normal in a sobered down, knackered soul like me. but yes, these random moments do happen, and when they do, there is a need for an explanation. excitement wears off from novelty. this splash of energy resonates from an enticing 4 days in a country not my own (although i wish it were) and not my adopted home either. a first timer in any city is always awe struck. hk for that matter, was all my architecture case studies coming to life. the congestion, the shopping avenues, the classiness, the age and the dirt all combined into one was a wonderfully refreshing. the urbanity and the density of such a vibrant city was what i needed to see. the activity available in hk is another emotion altogether. and so i have begun another urban love affair along with a thirst to see and touch new places.

if you were to consider the elements that define me, i would find it hard to pin point any particular characteristic. some things at the top of my head would be;
1. colourful or pointy shoes (sometimes both)
2. make up
3. exquisite and exotic food that looks pretty (not necessarily expensive and usually very safe)
4.long aimless walks (camera in hand)
5. discovery (usually of places)
6. bright pink, red and more recently lime green
7.tea

feel free to add to the list. im usually the worst at judging myself. fickle it may seem, but it is an experience cherished. a personality explored and a phase enjoyed or overcome. this is what i feel life is about; transition and the jabs, bolts and ecstasy that's embedded in the package.

so i must say, for a wanderer like me, until the i find solid ground to stand on (or for that matter if someone decides to lend me some), i simply choose to live this moment chasing every penchant idea; beautiful like a butterfly trying to reach the sky!

princess amelie's weekend

Mood of the moment: weird kinda happy
Song that i can't get rid of: tere bin
Movie on my mind: Dil Se ( i realised that it's my favourite Hindi movie of all time :S)
Newest infatuation: nothing new
Secretly craving: SLR camera :(
Wish i were...famous

Time flies when you're having fun.
Unfortunately that's too true.

"You're such a fugitive... but you don't know what you're running from!"
We're running from life. At least at this part of the world. You live life in weeks, not days. Each week being an eternity.

But it's the weekend. The eternity has been worth waiting for. It's like your two days of heaven for the week. All the complain gene's have disappeared. :P

Friday was spent watching models strut some awesome 'designer' wear. Unfortunately the company that we girls kept at the show weren't too keen on the clothes... go figure. The show was brilliant, the colours, the lights, the music and the concept had everything going on. I have a bone to pick with the models though. Half of them really did not know how to walk. They were slanting backwards, (probably trying to maximise their minimal endowments), but that looked totally yuppie like and stole the look from the clothes. I'm sure there are a million local models who would have done a better job... sadly in this place, imported is always better.

After this amazing show we were trying to be all glitzy and glamorous so we went down to Clarke quay so that we could eat. Unfortunately (with the exception of a little fella) our pockets weren't deep enough for these places... so we ended up at bk. Way better than our 'prata' alternative.

Trying to watch a movie after a long work day, 'happening' evening is totally impossible. At such wee hours your brain equals that of a dumb blonde. So no point trying to convince me that this is actually really good shit! maybe another day.

nothing to say and nothing to do.
people at nus seem to sleep a lot :|