Category: Going Places

I’m gonna be random today. Too busy. Just a quick update on my life here.

It’s the second month of winter, it’s definitely colder than the first month. Hate winter hahaha… However, have to be thankful that the winter here isn’t that bad as winter in NZ or UK or Canada. Still I don’t like winter, too cold to do anything, it makes me all lazy. I dread to go out too. If there’s nothing that need me to be out of the house, I’ll just be staying at home. The days are miserably gloomy and wet, no snow ;p. Then again, it’s not as bad as other countries.

Currently busy with studies and also work. Lots of work to do. It’s a good thing I guess, to keep me busy but at times it’s quite stressful because everything due at the same time. If I’m doing my studies online, then I can make up my own schedule and study based on my own interests and my own pace. However, I’ve done it before so now I’m learning to be a full-time student ;p

By the way, failed the recent interview 😛 Then again, it’s a great experience as it’s not your typical interview, it was such a fun one. It’s also my very first formal interview here.

I only have less than a year here, how time flies. I really don’t want to go back so soon 🙁 One year can’t experience much, some more most of the time I’m just studying. No holiday at all, will only have a long one, a pathetic one month in December and will start class again in January 2012 aih… That’s the problem joining the odd intake *LOL*

I only knew it when I’m here, there’s the normal one and the other is the odd one but it’s a good thing too because I only need to concentrate on 2 subjects for each exam period even though the study period is shorter with no holiday in between unlike the normal one, 4 subjects with many holidays. That’s a lot of work and postgrad students don’t have study break. Also, there’s no extra money to go around exploring yet.

On the other personal side of the matter, I’m still soooo screwed. I just don’t have the courage. Thought maybe drinking a bit of alcohol can lossen me up a bit to be braver but muahahahah… It got no effect on me, I guess it’s too little to take effect. I guess it’s not easy to get drunk with American Honey with ice then later I added coke into it ;p It was not intended to, I was just curious asking my friend whether I could have a sniff of it but ended up my friend offered me a drink. My very first time drinking something not stout, beer, or wine. I’ll get itchiness drinking those no matter how little they were but not this one.

All right, that’s all for now.

GOSH! Can you believe it?!?! All these while we’ve been getting false fire alarms, At least it’s not as frequent as what I heard from many people. It’s only once in a while and they’re all false ones. This time… It’s for real!

This morning, before 5am I heard people going down the staircase non-stop, usually it’s not like that, would just hear it on and off. Then, I heard the fire alarm from the other part of the building too. As usual, we all would think that it’s false alarm because it’s been way too many false ones and people are getting immune to it. Finally, the alarm in my apartment went off too. Since I’m living at the very corner unit next to the fire exit of 1st floor, by the time the alarm reaches my place, not long later it will stop if it’s false alarm. I decided to go to the window and look out to see whether there’s anything amiss but everything seemed normal and went back to bed. Thank goodness! It stopped. Thought I could go back to sleep but who knows it started after few minutes of peace.

I still ignored it, trying to get back to sleep, after about 15 minutes later then I thought I might as well go to the toilet then go back to sleep, I opened my room’s door and I smelt smoke in our living room! OMG! This time it’s not false alarm! I quickly knocked on my housemate’s door and told her I smelt smoke and we should go down a.s.a.p.

Instead of going to the toilet, I went straight down with my jacket and my bathroom slippers! -.-” Wore the wrong slippers. Brought my phone along. I switched it on while going down the staircase(good thing I’m living on the first floor) and I received non-stop SMS telling me that my friend who lived on the 12th floor called me. I think there’s 11 missed call SMSes from her. She wanted to tell me to get out of the apartment a.s.a.p because it’s real alarm, not false one but couldn’t get through my phone as I usually switch off my phone when I sleep.

Left: Took the photo with my phone while waiting.
Right: Waiting to go back up.

Finally, when I was outside, I was shivering, it’s extremely cold! It’s dawn and that’s usually the time the temperature plummeted. GOSH! Even smelt the smell of the smoke from outside. Don’t play play wei! It’s real fire this time! If not mistaken there’s 3 fire engines. My friend finally got tru’ my phone and was asking me where I was and so on. She told me, “don’t ever switch off your phone when you’re sleeping! I was so worried!” I asked her what actually happened, she said that she smelt the smoke in her room and fire alarm went off too. She immediately fleed her apartment and thought of me and wanted to tell me it’s real fire alarm and it’s not the usual joke we got.

WOW! The whole building smelt of smoke. Was out in the cold for about 45 minutes. At about 6am, we were allowed to go back up. The only way to go back up is with the lifts and there’s only 2 lifts. Can imagine so many people staying here, it’s going to be a chaos to go back up but luckily the staff there got a good idea, 1-6 floor use one lift and 7-13 use another lift. So many people actually came out without bringing their keys with them so they’re locked out of their apartment. It’s going to be a lot of work for the staff to open the doors for them.

IDIOT! What the hell you’re thinking by starting a fire in the the garbage chute at fricking dawn?!?! That’s what we heard, the fire started from the garbage chute that’s why everyone in the building smelt the smoke and sent all the tenants fleeing out of the building in a winter dawn.

Finally got back into my room and slept. My very first experience with real fire alarm in a cold winter dawn. So misrable.