MCKL: The best college for A Levels

disclaimer:
1. MCKL is NOT paying me money.
2. This is just my humble personal opinion

With the new year coming up, I'm pretty sure lots of students fresh off SPM are searching for "the next step".

The laziest of them would just fall into the advertising gimmick of Taylors and HELP. Look at the newspapers, your school magazines, fashion magazines, posters and such... Taylors and HELP are everywhere! It almost seems like they're the only ones offering A Levels.

The slightly lazier but smarter people would just google "best college for A Levels", "best college in KL for A Levels", "most happening college for A Levels", "cheapest college for A Levels".. the list goes on.

Well, my personal opinion is, Methodist College Kuala Lumpur or MCKL, is the best college for A Levels. At least, it was the best while I was there in 2006-2007.

Yes, it is small.
But small is what makes it good. We may be small, but we have quality. Small also means smaller classes and a better teacher-student ratio. Hence, better results.

Yes, it looks unimpressive.
Hence, the low fees. So what? Bad packaging, but it's the insides that count. It is proven that hi-tech buildings do not make you smarter. What do you need when studying for A levels? Do you need a gym? A dance studio, a tennis court, a foosball table and such? No! Also, they just end up being a distraction.

Yes, our library is small.
Do you actually need a huge library with 10,000 books in it? I'm in uni and I never borrowed a single book from its big and impressive library. What more A Levels. Besides, the MCKL lecturers are good enough =)

Yes, we do have fun.
So what if we don't have stuff. We still have fun! Despite a majority of our students having major exams every 6 months, we still have 3-4 fantastic events every semester that ALL students and lecturers attend. And every time is FUN!

No, we do not have Asia Cafe next door.
But we have a monorail that's built on former MCKL land, which leads straight to Bukit Bintang and Times Square. And we are walking distance away from KL Central which is ONE ktm stop away from MidValley, ONE lrt stop away from Petaling Street (yummy food =) and few stops away from KLCC. Even so, Brickfields itself has great food!

No, Brickfields is NOT a dangerous place.
What horror stories have you heard? =.=' BLIND people can walk around brickfields at ALL times of the day and they're safe. What makes you think we people with perfectly good eyesight are in danger? We're the ones bringing the danger instead! A klutz and a person who is oblivious to her surroundings like me can survive taking public transport to college everyday, why not you?

Yes, we do have international students.
Despite our tiny size, we do have quite a lot of international students especially in the July intake. They are kick ass young geniuses!

No, Methodist COLLEGE is NOT a school!
Methodist College is a COLLEGE. We do NOT wear school uniforms. It only offers A Levels, AUSMAT and Early Childhood Education (for future kindergaten teachers, it's not a kindergarten).

Yes, there's hardly any adverts.
It means the tuition fees you're paying isnt to pay for advertising.

Yes, there's plenty of gangster looking indians there (back in 2006-07)
So what?! These people are the REALLY SMART and very well mannered indians who are all future doctors and lawyers. They're VERY impressive people who end up inspiring the rest to "buck up" so we don't look too stupid compared to them.

The lecturers:

If I had to describe my lecturers in one word, I'd say "FANTASTIC!" and mean it in every fantastic way possible.

I took 3 subjects, Accounting, Economics and Law.

Accounting:
Mr Ferns. I'm now in Uni and I still say Mr Ferns is the BEST accounting lecturer! I was once one of the biggest accounting haters, and despite my mental wall against accounting, he changed my opinion in just a 10 minute introduction on my first day. He made everything in accounting, so simple! Besides accounting, he is a really knowledgeable man who taught us many other things in his spare time.

Economics:
Mrs Chiu. She's strict yet lenient very often. She has very strong moral stands and harps them into us every chance possible. Her lectures are GOOD! Write down EVERYthing she says! They're IMPORTANT! I still keep my notes from her classes to this day. Also, she marked every single past year paper I did on my own and guided me through personally on how to improve my answers.

Law:
Mrs Dharma. Ooh.. she's a cute little lady, but she's fierce! And she loves scaring her students! But she's a really nice lady with a good sense of humour! Her lessons are very full and well prepared. She doesnt take the short cut and just teach you to pass exams.

Sciences:
OK, I'm an Arts student and didnt take any Science subjects. But I have good feedback from my science stream friends. They say Miss Lim, the Math teacher is THE BEST!!!

In MCKL (when I was there):

• Everyone knew everyone.
• Birthdays were celebrated by everyone.
• Teachers are our friends. They eat and play sports with us.
• We have a clean toilet. Phew!
• Parking is free =)
• We have our own building, a basketball court and a field.
• Classes are air conditioned.

MCKL to me:

MCKL didnt just teach me how to pass exams. It gave me an EDUCATION, in academics and morals. Encountering MCKL teachers was when I first understood what it is to "respect teachers". They deserve it.

It is a fantastic bridge from school to university. In that period of my life, I went through many changes academicly and at home. I was a fish out of water. Good friends and good lecturers made sure that I stayed on track and made my days brighter.

I learned to encourage others around me and build them up the way my peers did to me. I did many things I never thought I'd do. I became what I never thought I could be.

Note:

Sorry, I haven't been updating. I have a lot of things to blog about, but I do not have the time. Busy living a life and nerding it out. Exams are in January.

For random updates on "how I am" and "what I've been up to", check my facebook account. It tells quite a bit about my life (too much, in my opinion).

To my friends, I should've told y'all bout this earlier, I got accepted in my Uni's student exchange program to the UK campus. So, I will be going to be in the University of Nottingham itself, which is in Nottingham.

To make myself clear again and to put it in point form so you get it,

Occasion: Student exchange program (no, it's not twinning or transfer). I WILL BE BACK for 3rd year in MALAYSIA.
Location: University of Nottingham, in Nottingham, England. (Yes, Nottingham is a place in England, and is NOT fictional)
Duration: 1 semester (2nd Semester of my 2nd year of study), estimated 6 months.
Leaving: Flying on the 24th of January 2009

Yes, I know I'm very lucky. I feel very lucky about this too. I'm very grateful to God. Don't make me feel bad for leaving.

No, I have not packed. It is ONE MONTH away.

No, I'm sorry, I do not do souveniers. I do not give on request.

No, I'm not a courier service.

No, my parents will not miss me because I'm going overseas, neither are they "taking it very hard".

Yes, I know Air Asia is very cheap. Do come visit me instead of asking me to fly back during Easter holidays and such.

I do not mean to be rude or make you think I think you're stupid by writing in detail. I'm just trying to make it clear so you do not misunderstand. You'd be surprised the amount of times people ask me questions where the answer is very obvious.

Friends, I'd love to meet you all before I leave. The last day of my exams is on the 17th of January.

God help the outcast

Are you an outcast?



Have you felt like,

You aren't liked.
You're shunned.
You're left out.
You're forgotten.
You're last to be chosen.
You're looked upon with disapproval and distaste.



Nobody loves you.



What do you do?

Do you dwell in self pity?



Very often in the midst of the self-magnified misery we're dwelling in, we forget about the many blessings upon us.

Do you have food?
Do you have clothing?
Do you have shelter?

On top of these three essentials, I'm sure you're blessed with a lot more things.
If you're reading this, you have an education, and you have a computer and internet!

There are many others less fortunate than us.
What do we do about it?

The song God Help the Outcast from the Hunchback of Notredame pulls some of my heartstrings.



Esmeralda:
I don't know if You can hear me, or if You're even there
I don't know if You would listen to a gypsy's prayer
Yes, I know I'm just an outcast, I shouldn't speak to you
Still I see Your face and wonder... Were You once an outcast too?

God help the outcasts, Hungry from birth
Show them the mercy they don't find on earth
God help my people we look to You still
God help the outcasts or nobody will

Parishioners:
I ask for wealth
I ask for fame
I ask for glory to shine on my name
I ask for love I can posess
I ask for God and His angels to bless me

Esmeralda:
I ask for nothing, I can get by
But I know so many less lucky than I
Please help my people, the poor and downtrod
I thought we all were, the children of God
God help the outcasts, Children of God

I don't know if there's a reason;
why some are blessed, some not.
Why the few you seem to favor --
they fear us, flee us, try not to see us.

God help the outcasts, the tattered, the torn.
Seeking an answer to why they were born.
Winds of misfortune have blown them about.
You made the outcasts, don't cast them out.

The poor and unlucky, the weak and the odd.
I thought we all were the children of God.

~~~~~~
While we are busy dwelling in self pity on how others make us feel like outcasts,
Do we realise how we make others feel like outcasts?
Often, we unconciously reject others.
As in the song, we who are blessed, we fear the outcast, we flee them, and we try not to see them.

We're always caught up in our selfish desires. Wealth, fame, self-glory, selfish love, and blessing upon ourselves.

Every one of us have been an outcast one way or other. We remember BEING an outcast.. the unpleasant experiences and feelings.. and yet, we either do nothing about it, or contribute to the misery of the outcast.

Let us use our "experience" in being an outcast to reach out to them.

Senile rabbit

When I put that pic of me on my msn display pic, I knew it was a funny looking pic of me. It was a screenshot taken by my friend when we were on video conversation.

I got various reactions from friends. Some say it was "funny", just like I thought. Some say it was "lala"... understandable. Some say "cute"... erm, I think that goes with "lala".

But the "best" one was from my brother, four years older than me.


(click on pic for clearer image)

"Senile rabbit" O.o

Penguin race

With my recent obsession (again) of penguins, a long forgotten memory just popped up in my mind.

That penguin slide toy thing! Which I had when I was 3 years old or something.



With no idea what it was called (come on, I was three!), I google imaged "penguin slide toy for 3 year olds" and Wooh! There it was.. the "Penguin Race"



I loved that toy! I have no idea who created it, and why?! How could he/she come up with such an idea? All you do with that toy is just watch penguins go round and round the slide, go back up the steps, and down the slide again.

You can see how it works here


Absolutely fascinating. I could watch it over and over again!

In my "Penguin race" search, I came across this image which I think really resembles the toy itself =p



Then there's this hip hop penguin I came across. Wooh! It jumps like it's high! And towards the end of the video, it's a really funny bit of an EXTREMELY lazy polar bear!



And even a Coca-Cola ad involving penguins and polar bears. Cute~!



*sighs* Penguins are adorable.

To end this entry, here's my fav pics of a super gaya super cute penguin baby walking.. =P

After Awhile

by Veronica A. Shoffstall

After a while you learn
The subtle difference between
Holding a hand and chaining a soul
And you learn that love doesn't mean leaning
And company doesn't always mean security.



And you begin to learn
That kisses aren't contracts
And presents aren't promises
And you begin to accept your defeats
With your head up and your eyes ahead
With the grace of a woman
Not the grief of a child



And you learn
To build all your roads on today
Because tomorrow's ground is
Too uncertain for plans
And futures have a way
Of falling down in mid flight



After a while you learn
That even sunshine burns if you get too much
So you plant your own garden
And decorate your own soul
Instead of waiting
For someone to bring you flowers



And you learn
That you really can endure
That you are really strong
And you really do have worth
And you learn and you learn
With every good bye you learn.

6 breasted woman

When I was in London,

I saw with my little eye... a 6 breasted woman!



Don't stare too much, guys =P

How do you hold a bird?

Hold it too tightly, it dies



Hold it too loosely, it flies away



Instead of keep holding on, some do something to keep it coming back for more...



...while hoping that they wont merely be used



How can you just get it to stay in your hand and adoringly love you?



Well, one thing's for sure... It's not sex.

New Frank Sinatra video

Come fly with me

Happy Birthday Nico Tham!

Monday: 29 September

This is for forgetting your birthday when it finally came.. and went.

Yeah, what a terrible friend I am =.=' Unbelievable.

Especially when I've been looking forward to it all year. Thinking I would do something nice for you on your birthday.

Like treating you to a nice meal...


Go spend a day out (though you being the socialite you are, you were probably fully booked a week before and after your birthday)


Or AT LEAST wish you Happy Birthday!

And it's not like I don't know or forgot your birthday. Every time I dial your number I remember your birthday. I guess I just didnt realise September ended so fast. I still think it's mid September now though it's already mid October =S

Oh well, I'll just compensate by um.. cleaning up your room and keeping your water jug full and giving you warm water right at the temperature u like whenever I can =P



Here's a Happy Belated Birthday to you!

Blessings taken for granted

Today, my mother told me about a missionary friend who teached at a school in rural China. On her second day at school, the students exclaimed, "Wow, teacher! You have TWO pairs of clothes!"

I was surprised to hear such a response. But these people are so poor that simple things like a change of clothes is so grand to them.

Hearing this immediately brought my mind back home to my overflowing cupboard. Lately, my two cupboards have been getting fuller and fuller. Hanging rods are stuffed, and stacks of clothes at the bottom getting higher and higher...

...and YET, it always seem like there's never anything to wear! Girls, doesn't this hit close to home?

What my mom told me makes me wonder, do I really need all that much clothes? After all, I pretty much don't wear 90% of the things in my cupboard.

Little blessing such as a change of clothes, we take for granted. Worse still, we don't appreciate them. We demand for more and more clothes... and more and more things that we could easily live without.

It's about time we think about our spending.

Julie and bimbo

I finally managed to catch Julie and Bimbo on screenshot...

It was so nice seeing and hearing them.

This is Julie aka Julian. (The lighting wasnt good, and skype doesnt give ideal quality for screenshots)



And here's bimbo aka Zul



He was literally dancing so much so fast. Jumping up and down making lots of noise. More active than an energizer bunny. In he jumped in front of the cam, danced around awhile, and out he bounced. This is the best screenshot I could get of him.

I really miss these guys... (including Zul who I assume is behind the cam)



Though I dont play tennis, it was quite sad being at the tennis court and realising, that there was just Nico, Caleb, Hsing and Erik; and that's all. The rest of the gang weren't coming.

And there's no more "Aiya, bored la.. Ah! Go Nico's flat lepak with the rest of the gang" during free time.

Oh well, here's a pic I found in Gary's albums...



...and you wonder why I keep saying Julie's cute =P

Dear Fiona...

U're leaving (or as of now, already left)... How sad =(

One less friend to hang out with..
And we've (fri3ndz) lost our photographer,
and I lost my laksa quality controller.. =/

U'll b in UK for so many years.. I hope u dun change too much..

But don't worry even if u do.

No matter how different u look...
(Tho we might get quite a shock at first)



We'll still love you

Even if u decide to marry an ogre and turn into one...



And have baby ogres...



We'll support you..



We'll be the loyal and/or annoying donkey that'll always be there for u..



Sorry I get preoccupied with hot guys sometimes...



But I'll really try my hardest to always be there for you.

See? I'm already taking swimming lessons so I can swim to UK just in case there's a need to.. =P



Much as I'm so sick of surprise parties, I did seriously try to cook up a super extremely syiok surprise farewell party for you. But I saw ur warning on ur blog... Haihh.. Was tempted to have the surprise anyway, but decided to respect ur wishes in the end.

U really are a very important part of fri3ndz. U're the one that keeps us together. I really appreciate your effort and treasure your friendship.

We'll miss you.. and we love you...

Hi from Nottingham UK

While chatting with Gary who is now in Nottingham UK, look who came along to say hi!

Danny!



Khairi... Looking very cold. Come on man! What's with the jacket? Everyone's in just t-shirt and shorts!



and Papa bear! Hehe.. He's got the "hehe" look on his face.



Good to see you guys are alive and well. Calling for Bimbo and Julie.. where are you..

A Patchy greeting

Meet Patch...



Pretty adorable huh.. But this is quite a strange picture of it looking sorta like a sealion.



I drive home last Sunday and I have him greeting me excitedly as usual.

Except this time, he has something not so usual in his mouth...



As he runs towards me to bump his new found toy against me to proudly show me his new toy and to prompt me to take it out of his mouth and play with him...



I see the insides of the bird sticking out its ass as it approaches (click pic to enlarge to see bird's insides) and thank God I managed to open the grill quickly enough to run into the safety of my house and close the grill behind me.

Suddenly, I don't mind being greeted with damaged potted plants, newpapers and mats anymore.

How to open Ferrero Rocher box

...as done by Gary Choy

This is an ordinary Ferrero Rocher 16 in a plastic container.



Firstly, strip off the Ferrero Rocher plastic that goes around the container.



Hmm... What next? What next?!

I guess it would only make sense to Gary that we open the box like this...

Of cats and humans

Cat.


Human.