Friday, December 28, 2007

[my room | the garden]

out of boredom, I took my cam around to take some photos of my room and the garden.

enjoy =]

welcome to Don's life:




::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
my room:

marcus's and kenneth's gifts on the wall

my bed


::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::


the garden:

















that's all folks =]

with love,
Don =]

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

[hi]






hi all. I have a computer and an internet access, AT LAST!!! =]




My uncle has given me his desktop. It's quite ok but the ram is only 256MB (so tragic T.T) Still, it works fine =] I'm waiting for post-Christmas sale to get a new laptop =] Laptops are quite cheap here. I'm eyeing a Sony Vaio, which costs only 700 usd =]




Oh, enough with the boring talk. Well, I could not go online and blog much since my laptop is beyond repair. And now, I'm back =]




I don't really know what to say now. I'm staying at home, not working or going to college so I don't really have anything to talk about.




Just upload some photos for fun =] haha. See my new hair, it's quite tragic but my uncle asked me to cut it that way so I don't look different than other kids/men. HAHA. (click on any photo to see the original size)






i miss my old hairstyle =]
You know what, the night before my departure, I went to a hairdresser near home, and THREE hairstylists worked on my head, HAHA! and then I came to US and a Vietnamese lady cut my hair SHORT!
what a waste, huh!!!
anyway, I can see the shape of my skull now, at last!
--------------


Sunday, December 23, 2007

[some random stuff]

MY HOUSE

the house my parents are renting is near:
1. Safeway: a supermarket
2. One-dollar-tree: another supermarket that sells 1-dollar stuffs
3. Long's Drugs Store
4. Three Restaurants: One Vietnamese, One Chinese, One Indian
5. Lee's sandwich: a Vietnamese fastfood place
6. McDonald: oh my goodness, the McFlurry Ice-cream here is HUGE.
7. A gas station (which is useless cause I don't drink gasoline)
8. A railway
9. SUPERCUT, a hairdresser. Well, I'm waiting for my hair to be long again T.T
10. A pizza place
11. A lot a lot more stores

AND, I don't really have money to EAT and BUY stuffs

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAH

ok, not really fun, but Don's feeling high right now =]





which is rare =]


--------------------------
BALLPOINT PEN

How many people choke on pens every year?


there are 100 of them, and I'm not Kidding =]
--------------------------

THE PARK

there is a park near the house.

--------------------------

I'm still sad at the fact that ALL my files in the laptop are gone now. I have 5000+ songs inside that. And brendan's and marcus' music is really valuable to me.

T.T

Not to mention the choir photos.
SC4.
friends.

so much memories.

I have to let go.


I've learnt my lesson: NEVER BUY A MACBOOK

-------------------------------

Whenever I hear carols being sung, I miss the acjc choir.

Well, the choir is actually a big part of my life. A big impact on my life.

I miss the late night chat with my friends. Due to the time difference, I don't think I have the chance to chat with them again.




Someday soon we all will be together, If the fate allows.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE =]


with love,
Don

Saturday, December 22, 2007

[my fringe]

oh.

my uncle asked (forced) me to cut my hair so that I don't look out-of-place with my slightly korean hair.

and BOOM. I look hideous now =]

HAHAHAHA.

and mom and dad keep saying that I look so much better now.


I'm terrified with my fringeless head, my hair is so short now. aiyo.


still. I find it funny =]

HHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH.

with love,
from Don (and his hair)

[jennifer]

ok. I'm at San Jose library now. The membership is free. You will get your library card AT ONCE. You can borrow ANYTHING with your card, Cds, Dvds, books, anything... Wow right? =]

I'm in its TECH CENTER, using a computer named "CBBTECH07".

And that's how I get to blog again.

------------------------

You may wonder "Where's Jennifer?"
Don answers: "Jennifer is seriously dead."

Not just "Dead"
But "Dead." With a full-stop.

T.T

HAHA. ALL THE FILES, The music that marcus sent me, the photos, choir videos, everything inside Jennifer ARE GONE T.T

Catastrophy.

I'm gonna sent Jennifer to the service centre again, hoping a miracle can happen and I can recover the files.

After that, I'm gonna SELL Jennifer for 400 USD, and buy a new laptop.
I'll buy a cheap laptop. I've learnt my lesson.
And this time, if my new laptop looks nice, I'll name it "Jennifer II" (pronouned as Jennifer the second), if it's ugly, I''ll call it James (no offense to anyone named James).

James Potter is actually Harry Potter's father.

Anyway, back to earth issues, I'm STUCK at home, and so are my parents.

Catastrophy.


Wait, GOOD NEWS first. I'm FORBIDDEN to attend high school. WOOHOO.
hahahahah. Anyone from 18 onwards are considered adults and cannot attend high school.

SO. I can attend college and get a job.

Well. I think it's too late for college at this time so I'll have to wait a long time to get into a college (whichever is fine).
SO, I wandered around my house to see if I can get a job. And I saw the sign "Now Hiring" at "LEE's sandwich". I went in and filled up an application form, now all I need to do is to wait and see whether they will hire me or not. Friends, wish me luck =] If I nail it, you can say hello to Don- the cashier from 5.30 am to 2.30 pm.

I'm stuck at home for now.
STUCK at home = HELL on earth. With the house we are renting with NO windows, it means HELL ^ 2 (hell squared).
Staying at home with nothing to do is seriously boring and grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

My dream is to study voice and such at some college. BUT NO. There is no way I can get past the audition process. They require sight-read (which I can't), live audition of an aria by Handel... (which I can't). So dream burst.

So blah blah, I'll just go to whatever college, do whatever it has for two years, and then go to Uni.

Well. It's still a long time until I can get into a college. I hope I can get a job asap to get some money.

And you know what. I'm eligible to drive ^^ Cars here are only 1000+ US dollars. SO, I will have my own car, if I have the money. Cool right? =] Anyway, USA is too big, I need a car to get to college and such.

----------------------------------

I'm missing my friends, still. And all the photos in Jennifer are lost. GRRR. Thank goodness I uploaded some onto Photobucket. But still, I lost A LOT of photos.

This time is hell for me, no job, no school, nothing. My parents are not working either. They can only get a job in two months' time.

Oh dear. Money is disappearing and we are not making it. GOSH.
The house we are renting is painfully small.
But ok for me.

HELLish.

-------------------------------

This Christmas is the WEIRDEST of all. And 2007 is the worst year of my life.
But I have fantastic friends this year ^^

MERRY CHIRSTMAS TO ALL =]
and hope that 2008 will be a better year for all of us =]

with love,
Don

Monday, December 17, 2007

[acirema] [america]

As Jennifer is dead, I'm blogging this with my uncle's laptop.

-----

I've arrived, after 2 flights that lasted nearly 14 hours.

I am really stunned by US. It is just so unexpected, and not exactly in a good way. Things are weird here.

Again, I have a culture shock.

It's kinda cold here. 9 degree Celcius or so.

America seems to be quite sad.

But well, it can be fun =]


I'm really disorganized in thoughts right now so I'm just gonna blog about random things that happened today:
1. There is Starbucks coffee on the plane. Wow =]
2. ALL things in US are HUGE, GIGANTIC, ENORMOUS. Oh my goodness. The size of shampoo, potatoes, milk cans,... everything is so large. Not to mention the size of Americans. WOW. They are so tall and strong =]
3. I feel so tiny here.
4. The American accent is SOOOO CUTE. Ok, the "SOOOO CUTE" part is bimbotic but well, the accent is really nice. hahah =]
5. I hope I can have that accent. But well, three years in Singapore and I don't have the Singlish accent, so I don't know whether I can be influenced by this "potaDo" accent.
6. Americans are nice and kind and courteous. That's my impression on my first day here. Thank you. Hello. No problem. That kind of thing. And one guard at the airport actually refrained from his post for a while just to help me to some coins and dialed the number for me. I felt touched by that simple act =]
7. But still, America is still cold to me. Well, there are no Jowell, JJs, Kenneth, Darryl, Brendan, Marcus,... Nicole here.
8. The place my parents is renting is live-able. But I seriously doubt that I can survive in that house during summer. It has NO windows.
9. I'm not sure yet WHAT I will study. I hope I can get into a college. Whichever is fine. I don't want to do high school again.
10. They played a lot of choral carols during the flight. That brought back a lot of memories.

That's all folks.
Wish me luck.

With love,
Don =]

P.S. The time in my posts from now on will be according US time.

Thursday, December 13, 2007

[amazing]




i've just listened to our choir's recording of SYF2007, it's SO BEAUTIFUL =]

it touched me, again ^^

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

[random]


i'm bored. i have nothing to blog about. so i'll just go through what happened today.

i woke up
i smiled
i ate breakfast
i chatted with jowell/hope mi/ terrence
terrence is nice
i saw a cockroach on the street


the end.

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

[TOPMAN]


YESSSSS. TENORS are TOP MEN!!!






(".)

Sunday, December 9, 2007

[thank you all =]

I know I can never say thank you enough for all you have done for me, tenors and friends =]

I'll miss you all =]


(^o^)

I was really happy this morning when a few of you actually sacrificed your precious sleep time to come all the way to the airport to send me off at such an unearthly hour. THANK YOU, thank you!

All your laughters cheered me up, and I am sure we enjoyed "Pet me", the fake lao shi, walking back and forth, and something else I cannot post here =]

I hope you all enjoy the chocolate chips =]

And YES, my bass friend came =] Thanks JunJie =] I hope you enjoyed Tenoring Time with us!








with love,
Don

P.S. Thank you Jowell, Kenneth and Sharyl for your farewell posts =]

Saturday, December 8, 2007

[merry christmas to my dear tenors]


JiingJiunn: i wish you happiness this christmas, it's hard spending christmas without your family, but you have friends here, JOY =]


Kenneth: may your christmas be full of grace, rememer, always say grace before breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Must be thankful for the food always OK =p


Jowell: hope santa will give you what you wish for ^^


Jiajun: wish that all your wishes will come true [=


Darryl: i wish santa will give you a new ring ^^

with love,
Don =]

[fly away]

i'm feeling so very sad and tired.

i've just got to know a lot more about my friends lately, and i have to leave!







i'll miss you

T.T

Monday, December 3, 2007

[don's love stories through photos]

^^ hi everyone !

pink and blue

cookies

on the bus

red among whites, thorn among roses

they know the scores well ^^

love your smiles

classmates kiss

blues

TTB

warmth

TTB, again =]

a family shot

^^

with love,
Don

[all things bright and beautiful]

little things through my lens:


christmassy

little whites

green and red

harmony

oranges and apples

together
with love,
Don

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

[nicole]



this morning, it rained hard during choir practice.

water seeped into the Bach music room through the ceiling.

and Nicole sang the Titanic tune.



lol

Monday, November 26, 2007

[the 5 people you meet in choir =]





[horrors]

i've just searched through the education systems and schools in the US.
and then searched the schools in Fremont city, California.

well, some horrors found:
1. fights are common, students beat up principal, or one another
2. no choir in schools
3. ... no christian fellowship group
4. no rabbit hoping around innocently in schools
5. no duck in ponds


i think i'll do senior high school, aka grade 11 and 12, equivalent to jc1 and 2 here.

I found quite an ok school called American High School, quite a simple name huh.
A high school in America, called American High School, oh, so surprising.


This school is quite funny, the lockers area is called "Hell Hall".
its motto: Diversity and Dedication Enhance Learning and Education
sounds worse than the "The best is yet to be" thing.

imagine a speech like this:
... despite all hardships, we managed to get a gold for our efforts. Truly, the best is yet to be. Thank you =] *audience: clap clap clap

with the motto in red:
... despite all hardships, we managed to get a gold for our efforts. Truly, Diversity and Dedication Enhance Learning and Education. Thank you =] *audience: huh?

its colours are: red, white and blue. Well, seems like i'm stuck with red and blue =]
I like Red anyway, Blue a bit.

interestingly, Len Wiseman, director of Underworld (2003) and Underworld: Revolution (2006), also husband of Kate Beckinsale, is from this school.

[gao ya, rachel and sylvia]



oh my goodness! i found something super funny on rachel's blog.

they did this thing:


it reads: I, GAO YA, pledge that I will accept the facebook request if I get an A for Economics. In the case when I do not, Rachel and Sylvia will delete the blog and facebook and never mention Kenneth or Aaron in the presence and absence of GAO YA.

signed: Gao Ya, Rachel, Sylvia
witness: Stephanie

Saturday, November 24, 2007

[dears]








with love,
Don

[goodbye]

met charlotte and helsa for dinner. i was 1h 15 mins late.
swallowed a quick meal.
then went for Arabian Nights.
as the show still have one more night to come, i should not reveal my thoughts about it, except for one word: AWESOME.

this is the last time i met two of my classmates, three if I count Nick, who was acting on stage and had no idea of my presence.

i did not know what to say to them, except for: "All the best for next year =]"
sigh.





love,
Don

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

[quite excited]

i'm coming back to Singapore in a few days. I'm getting excited.

Cos this time, it will be different.

=]


with lots of love,
Don

Sunday, November 18, 2007

[how awesome!!!!]


i think having a nose is seriously fantastic.

i have eyes too, that's like how awesome.

hmm.

I remembered typing such things into an email sent to all the tenors.
they must have thought "uh! ok! whatever!!!!"


HOWEVER, i still think having a nose, two eyes is a really REALLY interesting thing.

I haven't even come to having eyebrows.
WOW. Fantastic stuff.

anyway, I am feeling sleepy now. I think I should watch a movie, go bungee jumping, cook my hair, and then brush my teeth and go to sleep.




That's all.


with love,
Don


P.S. Last week, I went to the zoo with mom.

Saturday, November 17, 2007

[a dream last night]

i had a very cool dream last night.

Mom and me were in some kind of resort. It had a zoo, with A LOT of lions inside. Then they broke free.

I ran, swam, wallowed in mud, climbed trees, jumped through branches to run away from the lions. With mom.

I was damn cool. And efficient.

No lions caught me. And the experience seemed real.




and i felt SOOOOO disappointed when I woke up. Cos I just managed to pull mom into a car in my dream. Maybe I would have felt what's it like to be driving if I had not woken up.


T.T




weird.

Thursday, November 1, 2007

[poem]

I feel like writing a poem.

in English.
Don't laugh at my first attempt XD


Green-eyed monster 
by Don (inspired by Corrinne May)

Bitterness crawl into my mind
Reaches down
With its toxic tentacles

I'm strangled.

Unfair!
Unfair?
He has all that I long for
A rose longing for its neighbor's red
Care and love - his companions
Love and care - my desires?

He has got everything I wanted
Not even close - I am stuck
Stuck in jealousy
Bitterness
Purity contaminated
With the darkness in my mind

Am I happy? Glad?
To scrutinize his life?
What's the use of being haunted?

Why?

My dear friend,
Though we don't really know each other
I should be hoping for the best
For you,
For me,
For everyone

Green-eyed monster I have turned into,
Green-eyed monster I want to reject

I'm one of a kind
Closing my eyes
Listen
To who I'm meant to be

Stop feeding the monster I will
Wishing for you - I will
To you...
For all the thoughts against you
Dear friend, I'm sorry

The rose
Complimenting his neighbor's red,
Not trying to outshine

A beautiful garden!
A glorious life.

-------

There goes my first poem.
Not really my first poem XD
When I first came to Singapore in 2004, I wrote a poem for my English Class.
About a cat XD
And I got the highest grade for the poem. Ha ha

The english bridging course was a good time for me.
This year, I've stopped listening to the radio, so I talk badly.

SO, I screwed up my OP presentation. My group mates did fantastic though =]
There was this girl who was sitting RIGHT in front of the examiner.
She kept making faces, as if my speech was SO bad she wanted to vomit.
And I was deeply affected by that, and I freaked out badly because of that.

Now about that girl.
Not just only me, she made small talks when others were presenting.
Commenting. Bitching.
Oh goodness, come on.

Doesn't my name tag with the big fat words "NGUYEN MAI QUI DON" tell her that I'm a foreigner? Couldn't she at least keep a straight face!
Like others did.

Gosh. why is there such a person in this world!!!!!!!

SC4 girls: nice
choir girls: nice
vietnamese friends: nice
all other girls i know: nice

except for that one.

------------

au revoir. I may not be around until 12/11.
See you all!

With love,
Don

 

"Peace cannot be kept by force.It can only be achieved by understanding." - Albert Einstein