In fact, I have resisted the need to have a mobile phone for years. I got my first mobile phone and signed up for a subscription free plan offered by the Telco company that owned my previous employer. (Sssh, don’t tell them I am still on the same plan after I left them for 3 years. That does say something about the efficiency of the HR department, doesn’t it?)

It’s convenient to have a mobile phone especially in emergency situations, but I don’t really move around a lot and the land line would have sufficient to call out. I seldom make calls from the mobile phone unless I have to, my phone bills rarely exceeded 10 bucks. Mobile phone is one of those items that I could easily live without. I only use it to receive calls and the two regular people who called me on my mobile phone are my mother and hubby. :-)

Use the first letter of your name to answer each question. Must be places, names…Nothing made up. Can’t use own name for boy/girl’s name question. If can’t answer, skip to next one.

My Name Starts with: L

Famous Singer: Lobo
Four Letter Word: Lamb
Street: Lok Yew
Colour:Lilac
Gifts/Present: Lamp
Vehicle: Landcruiser
Things in Souvenir Shop: Lace
Boy Name: Lloyd
Girl Name: Lydia
Movie title: Left Behind
Drink: Little devil
Occupation: Lecturer
Celebrity: Lizzie McGuire
Magazine: Living Magazine( Martha Stewart)
U.S. City: Lancaster

Pro Sports: ?
Fruit: Lemon
Reason for Being Late to work: Lost your way
Something you throw away: Litter

Something you shout: Let’s go
Cartoon Character: Looney Tunes

Not passing this tag to anyone, too lazy to find out who have not done this.:-)

5 things found in my room:-
Queen bed
Dresser
Full length mirror
Towel rack
Wardrobe

5 things I’ve always wanted to do:-
Live on a farm
Be a mother
Learn smocking
Visit Italy
Run a school

5 things found in my bag:-
Keys
Purse
Coins
Pen
nail clipper (?)

5 things found in my wallet:-
Money
Driver license
Identity Card
ATM Card
Bonuslink card

5 things I’m currently into:-
Blogging
Sewing
Volunteering
Packing stuff
Moving stuffs

Not going to tag anyone this time.

Jesslyn and Chinnee gave me the nice awards, Joanne and Elaine sent me the smiling awards, so I am nice and smiling! (wink, wink) Thanks, my blogging friends.

(Jesslyn, sorry eh, it has been so long and I forgot about the tag)

I think most people have already got this awards more than once, so not going to tag anyone.

If the time machine were here, I would like to go back to be 26 years old again. The year that I took in a friend’s sister as roommate, without realizing that she was mentally ill. I didn’t have a good feeling when I first met her, her eyes were not focusing when she talked to people, very little contact, in fact. But I choose to ignore my own instinct, trusted that my friend would have told me or at least warned me if anything was wrong with her sister.

If I were to go back in time, I wish I have trusted my own instinct more. Taking her in as roommate was the beginning of a year of nightmares and traumatic experiences. Suffice to say the whole episode ended with her smashing everything breakable in the house, broke the wooden door and chopped (yes, chop as in using the cleaver, not the stamping pad) some of the furniture into pieces.

I was so shattered by the incident and at the same time couldn’t be more grateful that I was too busy running around at that time, else it might not be the furniture but me in a few pieces.

Though everything happened for the good, and there’s really no time machine.:-) I wish that I didn’t have to go through such traumatic experience and didn’t have to bear the financial burden of replacing everything she broke.

Here, would you share me yours:

Chinnee
Sue
GiddyTiger
wuching

******************Start copy************************
Instructions:
Title: The Age That I Wish To Go Back To
Requirement: Write about the one age that you wish to go back to and why?
Tag Mode: 5 blogger
1st - You leave their blog and post link and add to the list below.
2nd - Let the blogger you want to tag know they been tagged by comment in their blog or etc.

The Age that they Wish to Go Back to:
Amidrin wish to go back to age 22 to correct back some mistakes in life.
Michelle wish to go back to age 19 to not break off with her First Love.
Leah wish to go back to age 26 to trust her own instinct more.

~ Start copy ~

It’s very simple. When you receive this tag, copy the whole list and add your own shopping tip to the bottom and pass it on.

1. Wear comfy clothing when you’re shopping. You don’t wanna fuss with too many laces and buttons when you’re trying clothes on. http://rinnah-marketplace.blogspot.com
2. Choose stores offering some kind of reward program, e.g. purchase points, rebates or store coupons. Knowing how the program works and when to use them will save you a lot of money in the long run. http://kakishopping.giddytigers.com
3. Always ask for a discount or bargain, especially when you pay cash for big purchase like furniture and electrical items, you will be surprised how much lesser you have to pay. http://leahschrader.com

~ End copy ~

I’d like to pass this tag on to these fellow bloggers who I believe who like to shop, and like Joyce, the shopping queen says, you ought to be members of Shoppers Anonymous.:-)

Elaine You are going to pop any day, but I am sure you can still shop online during your confinement period. :-)
Kiasumum You have slow down a bit with blogging eh? This is a topic of interest of every woman for you.
Hijack Queen Your recent shopping in Vietnam and Cambodia will well qualified you to be the queen of the queens!

Instructions:

1. Go to Wikipedia.
2. Type in your birthday and search your birthdate : 10th APRIL
3. From the results, list down 3 events, 2 births and 1 holiday.

3 Events
1) 1912 - The RMS Titanic leaves port in Southampton, England for her first and only voyage. And, if you look at the list, there are at least 3 ships sunk on this same day, I choose Tatanic coz it’s the only one I have heard of. Wah, I am born on a ship wreaking day.:-)
2) 1970 - Paul McCartney announces that he’s leaving The Beatles.

3) 1970 - Vietnam War: 48 percent of the Americans polled in a Gallup Poll approve of U.S. President Richard M. Nixon’s Vietnam policy, while 41 percent disapprove

All happened on the day I was born, no wonder my mother said I cried so hard!

2 Birthdays:

1) 1847 - Joseph Pulitzer, American journalist and publisher (d. 1911) I only recognized Pulitzer because I know there is Pulitzer Prize.:-)

2) 1970 - Kenny Lattimore, American singer. I have no idea who is he, I don’t listen much to R&B, the genre of music he plays, according to Wiki. I list him coz I want to bring out this point: the list is populated with a lot of artists, almost half of them are singers, actors and musicians.

1 holiday

1)Liturgical observances

• Saint Fulbert of Chartres
• James, Azadanus and Abdicius ^[1]
• Saint Paternus

A day to remember 3 saints, all 3 I have not heard of.:-)

People who have participated so far:

Mommyness is Happyness
This is a Miracle
Life’s Prisms
Rooms of my Heart
Life’s a Rollercoaster
Keeyit’s Wonderful Life
Lingzie’s Tummy Treats
Lilian Chan’s 5xmom
Adrian’s void sky
Sasha’s Tags & Such
Lemonjude’s Memoirs.:*CRoSs mY hEARt*:.
wHOisBaBy’s Family Friends Food & Fun
LiL’deviL’s LittLe famiLy
Everyday Healy
Giddy Tigers
Paris Beaverbanks
Leah’s Cafe

Everyone I know has done this, anyone wants to do, I can list you down here?

Being a careless and forgetful person and a daydreamer, I have quite a few incidents like wearing a skirt with the zip opened, discovered the purse was not with me in a restaurant/grocery store.

So, I would tell you my most recent embarrassing moment.:-) It happened about 3 weeks ago. I was at the Wednesday farmer’s market to get some fresh produce. On that fateful morning, it rained heavily early in the morning, so ground got wet and muddy.

The farmer’s market is at an open space doubled as parking space later of the day, it’s surrounded with big drains with a main entrance. Some people put some wood planks about 2-3 feet wide across the drain at a few spots for easier access to the market. I parked my car near one of the “bridges” made of this planks and being lazy to walk to the main entrance, I took one of these bridges to cross. Wrong choice!

What I did not realize was the plank was so slippery, the minute I stepped on it, I slipped. Even though I tried to maintain the balance, I still fell flat onto the muddy ground, literally “pok kai“. There were probably about 100-200 people there at the Farmer’s market, the vegetable sellers helped me to get up and they were all concerned “Teacher, are you ok?” I got bruises on my knees, left elbows and under my left eye, not really deep cut, so just applied some antiseptic and they are all healed now. Argh, that was embarrassing!

And, now, can you share your most embarrassing moment:

Joanne

ParisB

Miche

My numero uno pet peeves is the death of common sense, and the many pet peeves I have just a variation of that.

DO NOT ask how do I know something?
because even every source failed, there is Google.

DO NOT ask me how much sugar/salt to put in the cooking?
to taste, just mean “taste it”

DO NOT tell me your child didn’t go to sleep till 12 p.m and that’s why she is late?
coz you are the parent, I am not, I don’t do parenting for you.

DO NOT follow me around and ask me “Do you want to try?” every time I lay my hand on a piece of garment.
I will if I want to and I will ask you if I don’t know where the fitting room is.

DO NOT say Montessori is new idea or tell me it’s Western and won’t work here?
It has been around for 100 years! How western is Tibet? Dalai Lama founded a Montessori school runs by his sister in Tibet!

DO NOT ask how you can improve your child’s poor attention span.
when you feed him nothing but junk food loaded with sugar and/or colorings and let the TV/DVDs babysit him constantly.

DO NOT tell me it’s dangerous to stay alone or to go out at night.
unless you are ready to invite me to move into your spare room and be my 24/7 bodyguard.

DO NOT change the TV channel without asking

when I am clearly watching. Specially to all the male remote control flickers(brother/father/hubby): am I invinsible to you?

DO NOT tell me it’s easy.

when you have no sligtest idea or haven’t figured out how to do it. DH:Take note?

Can you tell I like to rant? I can go on forever, but I am stopping here before you think I am such a difficult person and decide to stay far far from me or this blog! :-)

Those who have told the TRUTH are:

Ogre the Caveman
Janice this is a miracle
Trinity from Rooms of My Heart
rinnah from It’s all about the spin…
Giddy Tiger from Giddy Tigers
Leah from Leah’s Cafe

And those who need to take this test now are:
Chinnee from De’ Moments - You are so very positive, lets the truth comes out?
Elaine the Montessorimum - A tag for you to rant, rant and rant more.
kiasumum- I make sure I got your link right this time.
The New Parent - You always sound so cool and in control, I want to know what pissed you off.:-)

My two sisters used to joke that if they were grant 3 wishes by the genie, they would just ask for one -”unlimited supplies of wishes” Greedy eh? Life is full of hope, isn’t it?

***Start Copying Here***

Rules:

1. Write a short paragraph about your visit by the two Genies and include a link to the blog that passed on the Genie Symbol to you.
2. COPY the Rules and ENTIRE List below and post it on your blog.
3. List down your wish.
4. Place your name below the last name on the list and pass on the Genie Symbol to at least 5 other bloggers.
5. Please put up either one (or both) of the Symbols of the Genies on your blog to show that the Genies have visited your blog:

Genie King and Genie Princess

The Genie King, the Genie Princess and their trusty Genie Buddy have visited:

Mariuca would like to wish for happiness and success.
Adrian would like to wish for good health and happiness.
Emila would like to wish for happiness and success.
Trinity would like to wish good health for Jan’s brother and Yah and Wan and success
MPG would like to wish for love and peace
Jean would like to wish for stress free work environment and happiness
Cbenc12 would like to wish for health, happiness and luck for my family and friends and me too!
Paris Beaverbanks would like to wish for more publicity! Hooyah! (taps swollen head)
Leah would like to wish for good health and be blessed with a bundle of joy.

Welcome aboard the Magical Flying Carpet for the Ride of your Life!

Alakazam!

***End Copying Here***

Who wants a genie in your life to grant your every wish?

Elaine -Another tag for interim?
Miche -Linky love for fellow Malaccan? :-)
Jesslyn -Maybe you need some linky love for your new blog?
Vedis -Do you play tag?

Without further ado, here it goes the FIVE tag

INSTRUCTIONS:
Remove the blog in the top spot from the following list and bump everyone up one place. Then add your blog to the bottom slot, like so:
1. Wuching
2. Ehon’s Rojak’d Life
3. Rinnah
4. Giddy Tiger
5. Leah

Choose 5 people to tag:
1. Miche
2. Chinnee
3. Elaine
4. Jesslyn
5. Kiasumum

What were you doing 10 years ago?

I just completed the first half of my masters degree and started writing up the dissertation. Unfortunately, it didn’t complete for another two years as I made an unwise decision to start teaching at a private college at the same time. I wasn’t aware how demanding first year of teaching and completing a dissertation could be.

What were you doing 1 year ago?

I was running an after school care, a tutoring service and a preschool. It didn’t help that hubby had to return to America twice to help his parents who suffer from cancer. Too much work and no play drove me insane, many white hairs and sleepless nights later, I stopped the after school care.

Five snacks you enjoy

Peanuts, Chocolate with nuts, Pistachios, Green beans(Ok, I am a nutty bean), Popcorn.

Five songs that you know all the lyrics to

I’m not good at remembering lyrics and I am tone deaf, my sisters used to laugh at me when I sang, because they said I was totally off. I used to be very conscious, but I don’t care this days, I sang loudly MY way during worships in the church. So, I’ll just name the five songs that I can sing from the beginning to the end MY way.:-)

• As the deer
• Climb Every Mountain (from The Sound of Music)
• ai de dai jia (Sylvia Chang Ai-Chi )
• yi tian dao wan you yong de yu (Zhang-Yu-Sheng )
• Amazing Grace

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire
Mine are already listed in the million dollar tag that many of us have done

Five bad habits
I’m disorganised, Procrastinator is my middle name, I am forgetful, I spend too much time online and I misplaced things all the time!

Five favourite toys
The new digital camera, the Jenome sewing machine, the Tetris game, the pressure cooker and the sanding machine.

Five things you like doing
Reading, eating, cooking , sewing and crocheting.

Five things you would never wear again

Elaine a.k.a montessorimum wants to know 8 random facts about my mum.

I may try to upload some pictures of her later if I can find them.:-) Here are 8 random facts about my mum:

1. Mum is 5′7″, very tall for an Asian woman of her time, but none of her three daughters is as tall as her. My dad teased that she had a lot of exercises running to pick up durians when she was growing up on a farm.
2. Mum has 8 brothers and 3 sisters. She is the only daughter not giving away.
3. Mum has never gone to school. My fourth uncle who is 10 years older than mum felt bad that her ONLY sister did not go to school, so he asked the neighbor’s wife to teach her to read, at 12 years old!
4. Mum married dad at 24 years old and had me the following year. Mum said she had picked dad over other suitors because she wanted her children to be literate. Dad was poor but among the few in the village that had gone to a Catholic high school.
5. Mum learnt to sew because that’s the few things available to women at her time. I never saw her sewing anything. She was quite against the idea of me learning to sew or knit when I was a teen, but I eventually pick those up. She could not understand why would I want to learn all this skills that no longer required nor needed for modern women.
6. Mum has hot temper though has mellowed down a lot as she gets older. It’s usually like the tropical storm, come fast and go fast. We learnt to find a shelter until the storm is over this days.
7. Mum likes to play card games, she is quite addicted to it. Since it doesn’t involve much money and that’s ONE thing that keep her busy and alert, so we are not complaining.
8. Mum was very close with my late grandmother. We lived with our grandmother till she died few years ago. Mum cared for her all those years and the last six months when she was bed ridden, without complainings.

Not going to tag anyone. Anyone wants to do the tag? Feel free to pick it up.

I haven’t really shown my face on this blog, I was hesitating, should I continue to hide behind the screen.:-) Excuses like I do not have my most recent pictures and yet to get a digital camera replacement sound a bit lame even to myself. Well, I have not met many online friends in person, except for Elaine (who probably don’t remember I met her when she was a student) and my ex student Jason.

Ok lah, since you have all revealed your faces, not fair if I don’t play the game right? Here are a few that that I found saved in a CD while doing spring cleaning this week. Can you tell which one is the most recent?

Me at work.

Me at parent’s home.

Hubby and I went up to Cameron Highland.

And here’s the instruction to this tag :

1st step - Post a short blog article that includes a photograph (or a series of photos) showing the face behind your blog. If you already showed a photo somewhere on your site (such as in your about page), then make your post more interesting and choose a photo that’s not currently online.

2nd step - Include links to other people that have displayed a photo, or include their photos in your post, adding a reference.

3rd step - Tag as many others as you like in your post to spread the meme.

4th step - If you link back to me here, I’ll be sure to include links back to you.

Each person tagged should create their own post and repeat the process.

I am going to forward this tag to some of the blogger whom I have not met or seen any photos of them on their blogs:

1) Kiasumom - Not sure anyone had tagged you?
2) Parisbeaverbank - I am curious. :-)
3) Jesslyn -I have a feeling that we might have seen each other i.e. on the school bus?
4) Miche - So when I see you in the Tesco/Jusco, I can say “hi”.:-)

So here the rules: “Each person links to the person who tagged them. Then each person posts the rules before their list. Then they list 8 things about themselves. At the end of the post, that person tags and links to 8 other people and then visits those people’s sites and comments and letting them know that they’ve been tagged, and to come read the post so they know what they have to do …”

Fellow Malaccan Miche wants to know 8 things about me. I wonder why 8 things, is it has to do with the Chinese belief that “8″ is a lucky number for prosperity?

8 Things about Me:
1. My Name is Leah
2. I am a Christian.
3. I have been a teacher for the past 13 years.
4. I am married to an American angmoh.
5. I am born and bred in Malacca, and I live in Malacca right now. Do I ever leave the town?! :-)
6. I am not a fussy eater, don’t eat out that much and prefer home cooked food, almost every edible thing minus the cardboard tastes good to me.:-)
7. I have too many hobbies that I don’t have time and money to keep at this point of life!
8. I run a small Montessori school and a tuition centre that I am trying to sell, and my dream is to have opportunity to educate the community about the difference between schooling and education, and the alternative to learning.

I am going to tag the following 8 people that I enjoy reading their blogs though I don’t neccesary always leave comments.:-)

1. Montessorimum
2. Chinnee
3. Hui Sia
4. Parisbeaverbank
5. Jesslyn
6. Giddy Tiger
7. Vedis
8. New parents

Was awarded this “Rockin’ Girl Blogger” by both  WMD and Chin Nee,  tenkiu, tenkiu. Surprised but happy, just short of rocking my computer and do a happy dance.:-)

I am going to name three other ladies:

1) Kiasumum

2) Mommy of 2 angels 

3) Lilian (I know you got one for your personal site, this one is for your mommy site, ok?)

1 million of what currency? I think I have 1 million Rupiah. :-) Hopefully, I will have total of 1 million Ringgit for retirement in saving & investment.

But, we are allowed to dream, aren’t we? What to do with a wind fall of 1 million? I choose a million in USD because 1 million Ringgit is not enough for the dream, 1 million pound would be too much. :-)

My dream is to purpose built an authentic community based Montessori school that I can choose to enrol ONLY those who wanted a Montessori education for their children, one I can choose to interview the parents before their children are enrolled, one that I can have a sliding scale in fees structure, meaning people who can afford pay more and people who can’t afford pay less or get tuition exemption.

So, the 1 million dollars will be spent to:

• Take a Montessori teacher preparatory course in person for myself (I am taking one through distance learning)

• Buy a piece of land

• Purpose build a community Montessori school

• Fully equiped classrooms

• sponsor training for teachers and assistants.

• Operation cost before it breaks even

I would like to know what the following people want to do with $$ 1 million $$ :-)

1) Wuching

2) Jessie a.k.a Hijack Queen

3) Jerry a.k.a Simple America

4) Shooi at Just My Tots

*****************************************

**Start Copy**

Proposition: If you Have $1,000,000.00………………..

Requirements: continue above sentences

Tag Mode: 5 blogger
1st - You leave their blog and post link and add to the list below:
2nd - Let the blogger you want to tag know they been tagged by comment in their blog or etc.

What They Do With Their $1 Million
1. SYH will Miche will give to the needy.
3. Montessorimum will keepsake
4. Lovely Mummy will spend & save
5. Kiasumum will spend & invest
6. Leah will purpose build a Montessori school

Four jobs I have had in my life:
I have had many temporarily or part time jobs throughout my school years, so I am listing the real job that I have had.

Research assistant (right after my BSc while waiting to get into a Masters program)

Teacher (Taught A-Level Maths and Physics in two colleges in Klang Valley)

Lecturer(Taught Engineering maths)

Tutor/Preschool Directress(running my own tutoring service and a preschool)
I know, there is a lack variety in the job scope.:-)

Four places I have lived:

Melaka(from birth to 1991)

PJ/Subang Jaya (from 1991-1999)

USA(from 1999-2001)

Melaka (from 2001-current)

Four Countries I have been to on vacations:

Thailand

Cambodia

Vietnam

USA

Four of my favourite foods

Hakka Yong Tou Foo

Hakka Lei Cha

Bak Chang

Dragon Fruits

Four places I rather be right now:

Visiting hubby in IL, USA.

Relax at my parents’ place.

Sleep on my comfy bed.

A spa or a massage parlour

Four friends to tag:

Don’t know who to tag

Too lazy to check out who hasn’t done this.

If you want to do this

Pls let me know.

I am not a mom and do not know I am ever going to be a mom, so this is a hypothetical question. And we often hear those glamorous stars say “I am not going to answer any hypothetical questions”. So, end of this tag? :-)

I am no glamorous star, I guess I have to come out with some imaginary reasons for an imaginary answer.

Actually it reminded me of an ex who asked me the same questions when I was in my mid 20s. I didn’t know whether he asked this question to find out whether I am a marry-able material, but I think my answer did turn off our plan to get hitched. What was my answer? ” Yeah, I don’t mind not working, but then you probably won’t find me at home (if I am not working)” I said that jokingly as tongue in cheek coz I was really having a ball of my life at that time going places and doing things. But he took it rather seriously and as they said the rest is history.

Like hubby said, working hard is in my Hakka blood (after he saw how women in my family work like horses). So, I am pretty sure I will not stop working even if I have to stay at home.:-) Actually, after learning about child development and sensitive periods and understand the important of those critical years of development, most probably would work out a way to stay at home and work, or stay with the child at a work if I am ever so blessed to be a mom.

I do see it’s possible to do it (stay with a child) while running a Montessori preschool, though I think I will need my mom or a helper to assist me. Currently, I have a 20 months baby that I occasionally babysit since he was 16 months, he fits in fairly well with the children in the preschool and it’s amazing that older children are so eager to take care of him or teach him.

~~~Instructions~~~
Here’s how it works:
1. So easy peasy, if you were given a choice, would you be a SAHM or FTWM? Just provide 3 good reasons.
2. Include your post link to the list below and Finally,
3. Tag other mommies

List:

1. Immomsdaughter prefers to be a SAHM

2. Miche prefers to be a SAHM too.

3. SweetPea is happy being a PTWM

4. AllThingsPurple choose to be a WAHM

5. Dr. Bernard Chan is both Mom and Dad

6. HijackQueen is a FTWM

7. Lilian Chan, the 5xmom wants the best of both worlds.

8. Leah wants to be a MAW (Mom at Work)

ChinNee had long wanted to know how seriously I am infested with Blogivitis, but the procrastinator me and the StreamASS had me kept delaying the MeMe.

I certainly have all the symptoms that everyone talked about:

(1) I woke up in the middle of the night, turned on the computer, went blog hopping, so if you saw me left comments on your blog at 3.00 a.m, I did it in my sleep.:-)

(2) my mum for one thinks my dad and I are nuts “fighting” over computer use over the weekend, dad with his BTComet, me with my blog hopping and she cannot relate to our insane-ness. But hor, how could I win my dad especially when it’s his computer at his house? So it has been no blog hopping for me during weekends.

3) if I happen to have a few minutes be anywhere near a pc or notebook that I can go online, I hop online to check out blogs, …..

4) I started to have withdrawal symptoms when StreamASS was down for two weeks, I missed my blogs, I missed visiting my blog friends and wonder if they would be offended if I don’t go visit them often.

5) I started a few more blogs.

6) I have been doing lots of paid posts at the other money spinning machine coz my shopping list is getting very long, I love this disease coz it helps me to keep my overgrown hobby a.k.a Montessori Preschool running!!

Not going to tag anyone on this, coz almost every blog I visited have done this liao.