thanks for nothing Unknown

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow. - Melody Beattie

Today, I walked an hour to the home of a family I've never met before, and sat down to feast with them. Crackers, spinach dip, cheeses, turkey, mash potatoes, stuffed mushrooms, turkey stuffing, key lime pie, pumpkin pie, fruits, and coffee. I'm pretty sure I missed out many more. It's ridiculous, but ridiculously good! Oh, and the family was really nice and warm too. No seriously, I'm glad I was matched to this home. =)

It was in truth a lonely day for me.
No family.
No one from Malaysia.
Roommate left for home.
Friends on holiday or at their own Thanksgiving plans.
The whole campus is like a ghost town.

But I'm thankful.

Encouraged by two articles from Boundless, Thanks for Nothing and The Best Way to Live, I choose to be grateful.

For God's faithfulness, grace and love.
For my family's unfailing love.
For my baby brother on the way!
For everyone who's not here today but has been there for me every other day.
For the family who welcomed me into their home for the day.
For being denied the good because the best is on the way.
For not having everything that I can be grateful for what I do have.

No matter that the origin of today's festival is less than noble, it's still good to take time to be grateful.

Happy Thanksgiving! =)

funnimals Unknown

This is Emo Zebra, better known as Emobra

And this is Okapi, cousin of Emobra.

No, actually, it's more the relative of Giraffe.

Wait, that's not Giraffe...

And this is the Groovy Emperor annoyed at the rain.

paddleboarding... Unknown

... was great fun!

• I had a really good arm and core workout - 2 hours of paddling!
• I got to admire the homes of the rich in Miami
• I got to admire their ridiculously huge yachts as well
• I saw a raccoon
• I also spotted an iguana
• It's just great to be out on the waters

Downside - No waterproof camera =(

And if you don't really know what paddleboarding is, here's an idea what it is. This pic closely resembles what we were doing, paddleboarding up and down canals.

one afternoon Unknown

 It was a quiet day in downtown Miami. I went to take pictures for my photojournalism class. The picture above is of who I assume to be a down and out man. He obligingly smiled. I wish I had more guts to actually speak to him. I did think about it and went back, but he was gone by then. A moment missed.

abajo Unknown

One of the perks of salsa is you get to dance with 
cute guys who know how to move it.

And today a veerry cute one asked me to dance

(Although half the time I didn't know what I was doing)

truckloads of food Unknown

Tonight was Gourmet Food Truck Night!

Two things happened today.

1. I ate 5 fries. NOOOooooo...
2. From the day I landed, my left knee has been clicking, and it can get pretty painful if I bend my leg quickly. I don't even know how or what I did on the flight here that made it such. I was just thinking of making a trip to the medical center on campus, but today while walking back from Food Night, my knee clicked back into place! Praise the Lord! I was so worried it'd be a permanent injury. I'm so grateful for God's little surprises. =)

let me count the ways Unknown

So I figured, I should try to post a little bit about life here every day or so.

And yesterday, I finally, finally got to watch this classic!

Now I know why everyone's talking about it. It's pretty artistic. I forgot just how sexy Heath Ledger's voice was. sigh. Oh, and add Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and I'll leave the hall happy!

Here's a glimpse of the campus cinema.

And here's us just before the movie started. =D

4 weeks Unknown

Today was the beginning of my fifth week here. Yes, I have been in Miami for a month. Can you believe this? I can't. Honestly, my time here has been both fast and slow. I've been doing so many things and meeting so many people I can't believe it's only 4 weeks. Then when I think about home, I can feel the distance. Like totally.

So what can I say about my stay here thus far?

1. I'm enjoying my classes! Aiyo, Charms, of all things, you start off with the studies? But... but... I'm a nerd! So yes, I'm taking Public Policy and Administration, Elementary Spanish, Newspaper Editing and Layout, and Photojournalism. I have more homework than assignments, which when accumulated on paper looks a lot, but somehow I feel the workload is easier than Monash. Strange eh. Maybe one thing is because it's a 15-week semester. And I save a lot of time from living on campus.

2. I'm feeling all things Latin! I'm so glad I'm finally learning Spanish, which turned out useful yesterday. Hehe. I hear people speaking Spanish everywhere man. What's more, I know a group of exchange students from Spain. Oh and did I mention I'm learning salsa? And I went for zumba today. Maybe there's a purpose why I'm learning all things Latin.

3. There are people from all over the world here. Dutch, Sri Lankan, Czech Republican, Spanish, German, British, Chinese, and Americans of course from across the states. It's nice to get to know people, although I do get moments of culture shock. All comes with the experience, I guess. One thing I know is there are so many people to visit next time. LOL!

4. UM has a very beautiful campus! There are trees and grass everywhere. Squirrels and ducks. I walk under the sun more there than I do at home, which I love. Now this is one thing Malaysia could definitely benefit from. And the facilities! There's a cinema free for students. There's a huge wellness center with a cool gym, pilates room, jogging track, indoor and outdoor courts, swimming pool, sauna, and multipurpose rooms. I can assure you, I'm making the most of the facilities!

5.Food's pretty good here (bacon and brownies!), but I so totally miss seafood!! Fish! Sotong! Lala! And although salads are always healthy, I'm craving chai tan, chai sim, tauge, kangkung, and all the many greens available at home. Strange cravings, but when I was watching WongFuProduction's video on ramen cookoff (actually it's just maggi mee la, but they refer to all as ramen), wow it looked so good! Reminds me of my cousin Ben, he always makes maggi mee look so delicious.

6. Sometimes I still can't believe I'm actually in the States and thousands of miles away from home.

So that's it for now. I will try to update more often now that I've settled down. And as for the 30-day challenge, I'll try to post on it every few days. Nag me if I don't!

Missing you all back home!
Much loves