100 Happy Thoughts on Swap Bot

1. "Optimists have twice as many good days as pessimists; so be an optimist."
2. "So what if some of the crayons are missing; use the ones still in the box. Maybe the world needs a purple horse."
3. "When feeling down, buy expensive soap."
4. "If you're bored, plant a garden. It will keep you busy for the next eight months."
5. "When you come to the edge of the forest & find no path, make one that others will follow."
6. "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift." (from Kung Fu Panda)
7. "Early in the morning, let someone go ahead of you; it will make your day."
8. "If a miracle can happen at any time, then why not today."
9. "When driving in the country, wave to couples sitting together on their front porch."
10. "Never speak negatively about yourself; your enemies will do that for you."
11. "Love today. Squeeze all the sunshine and beauty from it, for you will never see the likes of it again."
12. "Surprise a friend at work with a morning cup of coffee and an apple fritter."
13. "At a family reunion, be the one who takes the most photographs."
14. "Don't be discouraged. Remember, to begin anything is usually to begin it badly."
15. "This is the question to ask that makes anyone smile: "Would you like a bowl of homemade peach ice cream?"
16. "Prepare for good luck, for it's often seen where it's unexpected.
17. "On Christmas Eve deliver a tray of baked goodies and fruit to the waiting room of your local hospital."
18. "Nothing exceptional was ever done on the first try."
19. "This next year donate extra time and resources to a cause you believe in."
20. "For every minute you are angry, you lose sixty seconds of happiness."
21. "It's never too late to have a happy childhood."
22. "Swallow your pride occasionally; it's non-fattening!"
23. "If you're headed in the wrong direction, God allows U-turns."
24. "Have a very good reason for everything you do."
25. "No one is perfect...that's why pencils have eraser."
26. "When your dreams turn to dust, vacuum."
27. "It doesn't hurt to be optimistic, you can always cry later."
28. "There's nothing good or bad, but thinking makes it so."
29. "Even a clock that does not work is right twice a day."
30. "Everyone smiles in the same language."
31. "Keep smiling - it makes people wonder what you've been up to."
32. "A smile is a powerful weapon; you can even break ice with it."
33. "Don't wait for people to be friendly, show them how."
34. "Be kind. Everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."
35. "Get mad, then get over it."
36. "I rather be optimistic than have misty optics."
37. "It takes 36 muscles to frown and 28 to smile. So why waste the energy?"
38. "A smile is a frown turned upside down."
39. "In this world of vast communications there is still a lot to be said for the smile."
40. ...seeing baby and cat sleeping next to each other
41. "Happiness is...your first ever hot chocolate on one of your first ever snowy days!"
42. ...seeing red shoes/ruby shoes (There's no place like home.)
43. ...seeing anything that reminds me of the movie 'The Wizard of Oz'
44. Flickr group: Bento Boxes
45. Flickr group: Traveling Toys
46. Flickr group: Japanese Craft Books
47. Plushies!
48. Website: www.flickr.com
49. Website: www.oneprettything.com
50. Website: We Love Crafts Magazine
51. Website: Lovely Design
52. Website: Geninne's Art Blog
53. Website: Flea Market Studio
54. Website: Heart Handmade
55. Website: Pikaland
56. Website: Indie Fixx
57. Website: Craft Zine
58. Website: Inspired Ideas
59. Website: The Unicorn Diaries
60. Lula Magazines
61. Buying new toiletries, using new shower gel, shampoo, conditioner...
62. Receiving snail mail
63. My Minnie head band that I bought from Disneyland Paris
64. When my virtual dogs won the first prize in competition on Nintendogs
65. When my virtual pet on Pet Society on Facebook scores some really nice stuff from the mystery boxes.
66. Movie: Amelie
67. Movie/cartoon: Spirit, The Stallion of Cimarron
68. Family Guy. It never fails to make me laugh everytime I watch it.
69. Romantic comedy movies
70. When I've got a real bargain from the one pound shop / discount store.
71. When the sales girls give me beauty samples when I walk pass their counters.
72. Song: Top of the World by The Carpenters
73. Song: What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong
74. Song: Singin' In The Rain, Doris Day's version
75. Song: Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer, Jewel Kilcher & Nedra's version
76. Song: You Jerk by Kim Stockwood
(This is a really good song to sing inside your head when 'someone makes you feel little'.)
77. Song: Only Time by Enya
78. Song: The Rainbow Connection by Sarah McLachlan
79. Song: Sing A Rainbow by Delta Goodrem
80. Music Video: I Rather Dance With You by Kings of Convenience
81. Any Weird Al Yankovic song, he just cracks me up. At the moment, the song 'Ebay' is my favourite.
82. Putting a smiley face and a ribbon on my little cactus plant.
83. Eating blueberries.
84. Collecting stamps.
85. Seeing horses running in the field.
86. Donna Wilson's Make Your Own Monster kit.
87. Betsy McCall!
88. Sampler package: The Sampler
89. Sampler package: PikaPackage & free online Pika Zines
90.Sampler package: Get Eurofied
91. Discovering Postcrossing.com
92. Discovering Swapbot.com
93. Finding bargains and hard to find stuff on Ebay.
94. Sales
95. Craft Shops
96. Watching cats flushing toilets on YouTube. They are so smart!
97. Free online games with cute design
98. Seeing foxes in the car park, some even jumped on cars and nap on them!
99. Visiting museums.
100. Paris. I love the city, the museums...

100 Happy Thoughts on Swap Bot

A Song That Makes You... (e-swap) on Swap Bot

1 - A song that makes you want to dance.

'I rather dance with you' by Kings of Convenience

I quite like the video too.

2 - A song that makes you laugh.

'Ebay ' by Weird Al Yankovic

I think he's quite a genius and the fact that he imitated Backstreet Boys way of singing on the original song is even funnier.

3 - A song that reminds you of an old friend.

'Last Kiss' by Pearl Jam

My high school classmate used to lend me this cassette tape, a compilation of songs for the war in Kosovo during 1998-1999 and this song is in that album.

4 - A song that makes you sing out loud.

'Pocketful of Rainbows' by Elvis Presley

5 - A song that makes you cry.

'Sincerely' by The Mcguire Sister

I first heard this song around year 1999 on a jazz radio channel and I never knew what was the title of the song and I found out about the title today while trying to get this swap done, after almost 10 years later...

6 - A song that reminds you of a book.

'Can't Take My Eyes Off You' by Lauryn Hill

This song is from the movie 'Conspiracy Theory' ( Mel Gibson,Julia Roberts) and in this movie, the main character always buy any copies of book 'Catcher in the Rye' whenever he saw them on the bookshelves in bookshops...That's what I can recall of, although I've never read the book before, hopefully in the future.

7 - A song that reminds you of another.

'Sunrise' by Norah Jones & 'Sunrise' by Simply Red

8 - A song that reminds you of your dear one.

'Sacrifice' by Elton John

I first heard this song when I was in primary school, around 9 or 10 years old and I didn't like Elton John's voice at first as I was just a kid without much appreciation of music. I was making a compilation of songs that I recorded on to a cassette tape from TV and I always saw the video of this song and I asked my aunt what she thought of Elton John's voice. She thought his voice is sweet. I couldn't understand it at that time and never really liked it until more than a decade later.

9 - A song that makes you want to learn how to play an intrument.

'Cornflake Girl' by Tori Amos

Any song by Tori Amos makes me want to play piano and makes me wish that I've taken my piano lessons more seriously and have practiced more.

10 - A song that has taught you something.

'I am So Ordinary' by Paula Cole

In the lyrics, it said, 'Love is truly giving...' It's a real honest song.

11 - A song that I can never get sick of:

'Amazing' by George Michael

12. - A song that I can relax to:

'Only Time' by Enya

13 - A song that always makes me happy:

'Top of The World' by The Carpenters

14 - A song that reminds me of year 1998

'Believe' by Cher

I didn't like it when it first came out during 1998 and I only start liking it after a few years later and when it get less air play.

15 - A song that makes me feel like I should embrace more colours and cartoons again:

'Happy Ending' by Mika

A Song That Makes You... (e-swap) on Swap Bot

Drawing at the near by park

I went to the near by park to clear my mind. Look what I've drawn and I base it on this tree trunk I saw in front of me while sitting on park bench.

Drawing at the near by park

30 Questions email swap +5 of my own questions on Swap Bot

1. Dogs or cats? Both as they are all equally cute and funny in their own way.
   
2. Do you mind if your pets sleep in bed with you? No, unless they have fleas & they keep me awake in the middle of the night.
   
3. Are you or anyone you know worried about losing their job? I was and I am jobless at the moment.
   
4. Extend your left arm all the way out, what do you touch if anything? A blue plastic box with miscellenous stuff. I'm never really organised, I wish I could be tidier.
   
5. Are you a saver or spender? I think I'm more of a spender. I used to save more when I was younger.
   
6. Do you believe in kids having chores? Yes, or else it will be hard for them when they need to go to college or something.
   
7. When writing a letter, do you prefer to hand write or type? Hand write. I love hand written mail, I always prefer snail mail more than email.
   
8. Ellen/Oprah or Regis and Kelly? Ellen. She's funny.
   
9. Do you watch The Bachelor? If so, is this the best season? you’ve seen? I've never really seen it before.
   
10. With postage going up soon, will that change your swapping habits? Not really, as that happens every year I think.
    
11. Have gas prices gone up a lot where you live? Yes, especially the bus fare, it has gone up twice since last year when there's huge demand on it during August last year.
    
12. Can you touch your toes, without bending your legs? Yes, I guess I'm lucky to be blessed with long hands even though I don't exercise much at all.
    
13. What’s the temperature there? I have the heater on, so it's nice and warm at the moment in my room
    
14. Do you prefer to walk around barefoot in your home? Socks? Shoes? I prefer walking around barefoot in my room. Since I live in a shared house with my other housemates, I tend to wear slippers when I'm in communal areas such as the kitchen, toilet, anywhere outside my room
    
15. Are you a night owl? Yes, I have always been a night owl and unfortunately, I always have more inspiration late at night and I wish I can change that habit instead.
    
16. On how many hours of sleep can you function? It varies, normally at least 8 hours. When I was studying, I used to just sleep for 3 hours or so the night before the exam and cram my studies. I always do things last minute which is another habit I really ought to change as well.
    
17. Do you own or rent? I rent a room. I don't think I'll ever rent or own the whole house anytime soon, hopefully in the future.
    
18. Which was your best birthday ever? How old were you? Probably when I was younger and still in primary school and my aunt always bring me and my cousins to fast food shop to have a nice meal there. They didn't really let me have cakes as their reason for that was I always never finish the cake and waste it.
    
19. Do you prefer baths to showers? The other way around? Both? I like both although I only have shower at the moment. Once in a while, I like to buy some bath salts and soak myself in the tub, which is quite relaxing and good for the skin too.
    
20. Finish the sentence-on my last vacation I went to _____. I went to Paris, It was a week vacation and seeing Paris for the first time and I loved it even though I went there by myself and I lived in a really seedy hostel and a bad area in Paris but I get to visit all the lovely museum especially the Picasso museum which is a real eye opener. I hope I'll get to visit Paris again. I never really understand how so many people love it there and now I understand, having to visit the city of light myself.
    
21. If you have a great day who is the first person you tell? Currently, it would be my boyfriend, we always ask each other how our day is.
    
22. If you’re a Mom which is the best part of being one? If you’re a Dad, answer the same way? I'm non of them at the moment but I do hope to be a mom in the future.
    
23. Humidity or heat? Probably humidity, I came from a tropical country and I don't like too much heat but if i had to choose, I'll choose humidity, at least you have rain once in a while.
    
24. When you were a bride did everything go the right way on your special day? I haven't been a bride yet, not even a bride's maid.
    
25. Which are/is your favorite magazine(s)? At the moment, Lula Magazine, Prima magazine, Essential Magazine & other woman magazine. One of the big advantage of living in the UK at the moment is that you always have free gift with the purchase of a magazine, be it a beauty sample, tote...
    
26. Are you reading a book right now? If so, what’s the name of the book and the author? I'm not reading any book at the moment, unfortunately. But I'm reading www.oneprettything.com and also Geninne's Art Blog which are both really inspiring and other craft blogs as well and of course swap bot blog too.
    
27. Am I boring you with these random questions? No, I find this fun and this can be another blog entry of mine as well and also you get to know the other participants too.
    
28. How much time would you say you spend on Swap-Bot daily? At least 15 minutes or more daily.
    
29. Do you prefer e-mail swaps to mailing swaps? Or both? I prefer both, of course snail mail swaps are the best as I love receiving snail mail although it invovles more hard work.
    
30. Do you clean your house or have someone come in to do it? I don't have someone else to clean my room. I seldom clean my room, depending on my room. I have always been mess and a hoarder. I wish I'm someone who is tidier and still get to keep lots of stuff in place.
31. Tea or coffee? I always prefer tea as I never like the taste of coffee much. I like red bush tea, jasmine tea and green tea.
32. Do you buy much toiletries? Yes, I always buy new ones even though I haven't finish the old ones and I have tons of them, which is quite a bad habit.
33. Do you prefer the libraries or the book shops? I prefer the libraries if I want to read chick lit or something, but I normally buy magazines from the bookshops.
34. What is your favourite food? My favourite food will be anything vegetarian. At the moment it's olives and italian marinated chargrilled mushrooms.
35. What is your favourite movie? Amelie. I can watch it over and over again.
    

30 Questions email swap +5 of my own questions on Swap Bot

Picasso's Exhibition at The National Gallery

I bought the Calepin notebook from the Picasso's museum in Paris last August.

Today, I went to the Picasso's Exhibition at the National Gallery in London. I've come to London since yesterday and will go back to Leeds tomorrow. I've got the ticket at half price as I brought my redundancy letter with me and still unemployed. I have always love Picasso's work ever since I first saw his works in Peggy Guggenheim Musuem in Venice during year 2004. His arts are sometimes simple which make it easier for your eyes to look at. I did a few sketches in front of his arts during my visit this time:

Study on Picasso's Sleeping Nude With Blonde Hair, 1932

Study on Picasso's Reclining Nude, 1969

Study on Picasso's Minotaur, 1958

Study on Picasso's Large Bather, 1921 (Face Part)

Study on Picasso's Nude Woman in Red Armchair, 1932

Study on Picasso's The Artist In Front Of His Canvas, 1938

Picasso's Exhibition at The National Gallery

25 Random Things About Me on Swap-Bot

1. I was born in East Malaysia (Borneo Island) on 5th October, 1983. I am half Chinese, half Nepalese and I am an only child. I used to always regard myself as a Chinese, and i was raised by my Chinese mother's side. I did that because I didn't like people questioning me about my father and that I haven't seen him since I was 12.

2. I'm a vegetarian. I became a vegetarian overnight when I first learned that Darren Hayes of Savage Garden was a vegetarian during the end of October 1997. I was 14 years old & was crazy about the singer. I've been a vegetarian for more than 10 years. In between that time, I tried to be a vegan for 2-3 years but started to consume dairy products and eggs again. I will be a vegetarian for the rest of my life, it's one of the things that I'm proud about myself & my will power for it.

3. By the age of 4, I was raised up by my aunt and my grandparents while my mother worked in Brunei to earn more money to provide for me. It has always been hard for me to express my feelings and I missed my mother a lot when I was in primary school and I used to wander around the house crying on my own as I didn't know who to talk to about it and I felt embarrassed about my feelings.

4. During kindergarten, the cartoons that I obsessed most are My Little Ponies and Care Bears. I think it was the fact that the cartoons are mostly in pastel color which grabbed the attention. I remembered my mom sent me a My Little Ponies colouring book which i loved dearly and the bed sheet that me and my aunt slept on had the prints of Care Bears. I remember the cartoon 'Jem' as well. When my aunt was driving me to kindergarten school on her scooter, I'd look at the sky and imagine the Care Bears sitting on the clouds. I guess that's how I start to day dream and I day dream a lot at school & was been caught out by various teachers & been embarrassed in the class. I still day dreamed when I was at work & was been caught out when my ex-colleague saw me staring on my computer screen displaying a folder containing a few files.

5. I used to have a yellow back pack that I use to store my precious things in it when I was in kindergarten. I remembered the stuff that i put in it was a mini stamp book & a coin box. I used to carry it around the house and imagine that i'd be carrying it safely with me if something happen to my house. It was my escape back pack.

6. I will never want to smoke in my life as I've seen what kind of damage the cigarettes have done to my aunt for just been a second hand smoker. She had nose cancer as she worked in her husband's bar for a few years where smoking is allowed and the situation worsened when she doesn't smoke herself. I'm glad that she has overcome it now but the chemo treatment she has taken has some side effects.

7. I have never been good at babysitting and I never have much experience on babysittting but I'm able to dog-sit or cat-sit. I would love to learn to be good with kids and I think it's an important trait to have.

8. I have always been a pessimist in my life and I wish I were not. I always believe in karma and I have this belief since I was a kid that if something good happens to me, something bad will happen & vice versa. I know that I've missed lots of opportunities in my life if only I had been more optimistic.

9. I studied Civil & Structural Engineering for my degree. I wanted to study psychology at first but my family urged me to study something that I can make a living out of it. I think I love & hate it at same time; love it when it's in the skill shortage list & it's easier if you want to work abroad, it pays a bit better, it sounds quite technical & people generally think you must be a smart person, it creates the very fabric of a society & you're part of it; hate it when it requires lots of mind boggling moment to solve something out when I just want to go home & play with my Blythe dolls; it is still quite a sexist industry where there are more opportunities for male engineers.

10. I have been in England for more than 5 years. I first came to Bradford, West Yorkshire during September 2003 to continue my degree. So far, I have gained 5 years (instead of losing 5 years) here and I am really grateful for the opportunities and experiences that I have had.

11. I love eating olives. I have never eaten olives before when I was in Malaysia. My first encounter of eating olives was when my Greek classmates invited me to have dinner at their hall and they prepared greek salad for me. I didn't like olives at first but after a while I start to miss the taste of it and I have been addicted since. Greek salad has also become one of my favourite dishes.

12. I have recently been made redundant and I think have reached the lowest point of my life at the moment. I'm ever so grateful for all the supports that I have from my family, my friends and my boy friend. I'm glad to have found pet society, swap-bot & postcrossing at the moment to keep me occupied while waiting for the outcome of the interviews I've been to.

13. I love traveling. I'm hoping to visit some more European countries in the near future, also north & south america. I hope that I would have the patient to write about my travel in a journal. I love reading travel journal & I remember the travel journals featured in The Motorcycle Diaries & Seven Years In Tibet which are very inspiring.

14. I wish I had been more serious about learning to play piano when I used to have a piano at home & when I had piano lessons until grade 7. I really envy those people who can play by ear as I won't be able to play any song if I have a piano in front of me without looking at piano books.

15. I love animals. I really can't imagine a world without animals. It's also one of the reasons that I become a vegetarian. I also like watching Dog Whisperer, I never really know that animals can sense our energy and how our energy can also effect them.

16. I love going to seminars on personal development. I think that it will be useful for me and change the way I look at my life. I have been to a few Tony Robbins & Christopher Howard seminars & although they sometimes cost an arm & a leg, I'm glad of all the information & experiences that I've gained from them. Using the information is still a different thing than knowing the information though.

17. I wish I am more organised & tidier in my life. Most of my friends who know me well know that I have always been a messy person and that my room is always messy. I'm also a hoarder and I don't like to throw stuff away. I am also a magazine junkie and like to keep them thinking that one day I'll have time to do some magazine clippings. I always envy people who can still be tidy and keep lots of stuff.

18. I love receiving snail mail. Even though e-mail is quicker, I prefer snail mail which is more personal. I miss the time when I was in high school and we used to pass notes around in the class until text messages on phone are made popular now. I still keep some of those notes that my friend wrote to me. It brings a lot of fun memory back.

19. I am a shy person. I'll get a bit uneasy if I'm in a group of people and I'm always the quietest person. I find this quite a bad trait of mine as I've been seen as a person who doesn't communicate much at work, contribute in meetings and should have been more proactive. I guess that's why I've been laid off from work.

20. I love listening to a variety of music, mostly easy listening at the moment. I guess I'm getting older. My favourite singers are Sarah McLachlan, Tori Amos, Paula Cole, Fiona Apple, Jewel, The Carpenters, Doris Day, Norah Jones... I love the music during 1997 & 1998 the most, that's when Sarah McLachlan, Paula Cole, Fiona Apple, Jewel, Matchbox 20 ruled the charts. There are still some good music on the current charts as well. I also love music from 20s to 70s, they are quite different than the music we listen to nowadays.

21. When I first started my job after I graduated, I became a spendaholic. I spent a lot of money on clothes which I never wear, lots of toiletries, magazines... It might be the imbalance that I've created while I was at university and not being able to spend a lot at that time as my mother provided my living expenses and school fees.

22. Whenever I had a fight with one of my close friends, I have never really been the one who apologised first and made up with the other. I guess it's hard for me to swallow my own pride and I would try to be the first one who apologise when it's really straining the best friendships I have ever had in my life.

23. I used to be quite independent as I didn't grow up around my parents and had to stand on my own feet. Ever since I have my current boy friend, I feel that I've become less independent.

24. I want to live my life to the fullest. I want to be inspiring to my kids in the future, if not for myself. I always admire those really crafty mothers who encourage their kids to be creative and confident about themselves.

25. I wish I can cook better and be more creative about cooking and never have to run out of ideas on what to cook. Until now, I still think my grandma is the best cook ever because I grew up eating her cooking.

25 Random Things About Me on Swap-Bot

'I Made This Postcard' Swap on Swap Bot

These are the postcards that I've made for the swap:
I didn't think that they will turn out like this. They took me a few good hours to complete and I have had mind blocks and decided to stick to what I normally draw. I should pratise to draw more. I've been experimenting with Photoshop the first time, hence, the different ways of smudging the addresses as I always use Paint before.

'I Made This Postcard' Swap on Swap Bot