With the completion of my last paper on Tuesday evening, I am now officially unemployed.
On one hand, I'm shamelessly enjoying this newfound freedom. I don't remember feeling this exhilarated and relieved at the end of my examinations the past semesters but I guess there's really something different about concluding my final semester.
Up until Tuesday evening, school was a major part of life.
Readings, lectures, assignments and examinations effectively took up most of my time. I was almost always dysfunctional from the lack of sleep.
And just like that, four years went by.
I woke up yesterday morning feeling genuinely aimless. My biological clock had adjusted itself to 8 a.m. mornings and I was up even before I knew it. I was prepared to sleep through the morning but my body rebelled against my will.
Either way, I woke up way before I should have so I ended up assisting my helper in the kitchen because Mel and Banana were coming over for lunch.
We were supposed to head out for Korean BBQ but since I turned (mostly) vegetarian, that's no longer an option for me. Believe it or not, I was momentarily convinced my Banana's Yea Smi, let's eat meat for one day. But I imagined myself downing some meat and it was revolting.
After two months of avoiding meat, I can't bring myself to eat anymore of it. I know it sounds a little extreme but just the thought of the chickens and pigs suffering in shabby conditions just to feed the demands of us humans- I shall leave the rest of the details for another post!
Anyway, since we couldn't go for Korean BBQ, I invited them over for real Indian vegetarian food. My helper is one amazing cook and turning vegetarian hasn't been much of a challenge thanks to her. She whipped up four dishes – tofu and quail eggs sambal, ketola daal, sayur lodeh and potato cutlets. We cheated on our cutlets by adding tenggiri because I was afraid Mel and Banana wouldn't be able to take an entire vegetarian meal.
We headed out for some bingsoo after lunch. Mel chanced upon Cafe Insadong's reopening promotion so we took advantage of the 1-for-1 and got ourselves two bingsoos for $17.90.
Our first glorious bowl of shaved ice came in s'mores flavoured and we were unanimously impressed with its taste.
Those are real toasted marshmallows and chocolate-flavoured shaved ice. Say what!? I must admit I'm not a fan of marshmallows and I can't say with 100% confidence that I appreciated its soft melting in my mouth. But I suppose anyone with a sweet tooth would love to down one of these.
There was hidden rice cereal at the bottom that turned out to my favourite part unexpectedly! It added the much-needed crunch to a dessert that melts too quickly. (I love my crunch, by the way!)
Since it was 1-for-1, we ordered our favourite matcha! I discovered, for the first time that day, all three of us have a common love for matcha. (I don't know why I have this impression that someone absolutely abhors green tea but I can't remember who. Is this age catching up on me?)
Matcha is a pretty safe choice. Anything matcha automatically becomes my go-to choice. Unfortunately, not everyone does matcha well and while this wasn't too bad, it could have been better.
The red bean overwhelmed the matcha by levels and the ice-cream didn't taste much like matcha. The only saving grace was real mochi! I don't fancy mochi but it was a good way to balance the mix of bitterness and sweetness.
The three of us left Cafe Insadong with fairly satisfied tummies. We walked from South Bridge Road, where the cafe is located, to Raffles City because I needed to satiate my craving for chocolate cake (from Awfully Chocolate, no less!)
When the time of month hits, it's like an inner cookie monster is unleashed. I get an uncontrollable urge for junk food and chocolate. Thankfully, I have enough self-discipline (or perhaps fear of piling on unnecessary weight) to refrain from overeating.
To my horror, however, chocolate-banana was sold out by the time we got there! I settled for chocolate in the end.
It is always strangely comforting to spend time with these girls. They would be my safe haven in school and turned out to be my retreat from the outside world.
Contrary to popular belief (among my friends), I am no socialite. I am, in fact, rather introverted. I find it difficult to approach people. I'm not good at keeping up with conversations and I find maintaining relationships a challenge. But with these girls, the inner Smi makes an unruly appearance. (The inner Smi is a homebody who bums around in her pjs and dates her Macbaby intimately under the sheets.)
It's always nice to not have to put up a front and guard myself against everybody because judgment is real. I might sound naive but I'm not prepared to fight the world yet. I liken these girls to my secret hideout where we freely hang out and sometimes, go crazy as well.
My first day of freedom ended really well!
On one hand, I'm shamelessly enjoying this newfound freedom. I don't remember feeling this exhilarated and relieved at the end of my examinations the past semesters but I guess there's really something different about concluding my final semester.
Up until Tuesday evening, school was a major part of life.
Readings, lectures, assignments and examinations effectively took up most of my time. I was almost always dysfunctional from the lack of sleep.
And just like that, four years went by.
I woke up yesterday morning feeling genuinely aimless. My biological clock had adjusted itself to 8 a.m. mornings and I was up even before I knew it. I was prepared to sleep through the morning but my body rebelled against my will.
Either way, I woke up way before I should have so I ended up assisting my helper in the kitchen because Mel and Banana were coming over for lunch.
We were supposed to head out for Korean BBQ but since I turned (mostly) vegetarian, that's no longer an option for me. Believe it or not, I was momentarily convinced my Banana's Yea Smi, let's eat meat for one day. But I imagined myself downing some meat and it was revolting.
After two months of avoiding meat, I can't bring myself to eat anymore of it. I know it sounds a little extreme but just the thought of the chickens and pigs suffering in shabby conditions just to feed the demands of us humans- I shall leave the rest of the details for another post!
Anyway, since we couldn't go for Korean BBQ, I invited them over for real Indian vegetarian food. My helper is one amazing cook and turning vegetarian hasn't been much of a challenge thanks to her. She whipped up four dishes – tofu and quail eggs sambal, ketola daal, sayur lodeh and potato cutlets. We cheated on our cutlets by adding tenggiri because I was afraid Mel and Banana wouldn't be able to take an entire vegetarian meal.
We headed out for some bingsoo after lunch. Mel chanced upon Cafe Insadong's reopening promotion so we took advantage of the 1-for-1 and got ourselves two bingsoos for $17.90.
Those are real toasted marshmallows and chocolate-flavoured shaved ice. Say what!? I must admit I'm not a fan of marshmallows and I can't say with 100% confidence that I appreciated its soft melting in my mouth. But I suppose anyone with a sweet tooth would love to down one of these.
There was hidden rice cereal at the bottom that turned out to my favourite part unexpectedly! It added the much-needed crunch to a dessert that melts too quickly. (I love my crunch, by the way!)
Matcha is a pretty safe choice. Anything matcha automatically becomes my go-to choice. Unfortunately, not everyone does matcha well and while this wasn't too bad, it could have been better.
The red bean overwhelmed the matcha by levels and the ice-cream didn't taste much like matcha. The only saving grace was real mochi! I don't fancy mochi but it was a good way to balance the mix of bitterness and sweetness.
The three of us left Cafe Insadong with fairly satisfied tummies. We walked from South Bridge Road, where the cafe is located, to Raffles City because I needed to satiate my craving for chocolate cake (from Awfully Chocolate, no less!)
When the time of month hits, it's like an inner cookie monster is unleashed. I get an uncontrollable urge for junk food and chocolate. Thankfully, I have enough self-discipline (or perhaps fear of piling on unnecessary weight) to refrain from overeating.
To my horror, however, chocolate-banana was sold out by the time we got there! I settled for chocolate in the end.
It is always strangely comforting to spend time with these girls. They would be my safe haven in school and turned out to be my retreat from the outside world.
Contrary to popular belief (among my friends), I am no socialite. I am, in fact, rather introverted. I find it difficult to approach people. I'm not good at keeping up with conversations and I find maintaining relationships a challenge. But with these girls, the inner Smi makes an unruly appearance. (The inner Smi is a homebody who bums around in her pjs and dates her Macbaby intimately under the sheets.)
It's always nice to not have to put up a front and guard myself against everybody because judgment is real. I might sound naive but I'm not prepared to fight the world yet. I liken these girls to my secret hideout where we freely hang out and sometimes, go crazy as well.
My first day of freedom ended really well!
In fact, this entire week ended on a really good note. Apart from the occasional reminders from my mother and sister about applying for jobs, I've never felt so at ease with myself in a long time.
I tried to sleep in again on Thursday but, of course, failed miserably. I slept at 2 a.m. and woke up before 11. I somehow assumed if I slept later, I would wake up later but once I get 8 hours of sleep, I automatically get up. (And then lament myself for not being able to sleep further!)
I was glad to find the teeter at home, though. She was nursing a flu and I had the novelty to roll in bed with her on a weekday. :')
That evening, I met Angel for dinner. We headed to Peperoni Pizzeria on my suggestion.
I tried to sleep in again on Thursday but, of course, failed miserably. I slept at 2 a.m. and woke up before 11. I somehow assumed if I slept later, I would wake up later but once I get 8 hours of sleep, I automatically get up. (And then lament myself for not being able to sleep further!)
I was glad to find the teeter at home, though. She was nursing a flu and I had the novelty to roll in bed with her on a weekday. :')
That evening, I met Angel for dinner. We headed to Peperoni Pizzeria on my suggestion.
It was $24 for a medium pizza and we got to choose two flavors so I had the vegetarian option while Angel has the one with ham and rocket leaves.
It was, without a doubt, yum in my tum! Eggplant and mushroom are my ultimate favourite so this scored high on my list. Also, I never knew how good olives were until I began eating more of them! They're strangely addictive and a surprisingly pleasant combination with pizza.
Thanks to Angel, though, I had free pizza (and a glass of iced lemon tea that cost $3!)
Woes of a non-working adult is having to depend on your already working friends to cover you while you desperately, or maybe not really desperately, search for a job.
It was a good catch-up with the captain. (Whenever Mama asks me who Angel is, I always describe her as my floorball captain.) For some reason, I would let my guard down with her and share with her the things I've never told anyone.
I honestly feel at a disadvantage if I let my personal struggles show but I spilled it all out to her last night and I now feel so much less weighed down.
Although, for sure, I will have to face the same struggles for as long as I cannot bring myself to broach the topic within the family, I'm really thankful Angel was the outlet.
It was also touching to know our annual meet-ups will now be upgraded. (Thank you for a wonderful evening, Angel!)
This morning began with the expected monthly visit. But it was all made good because Mama was home today.
While she was out at Tekka with my helper this morning, I slept most of the pain away. And then I slept some more after lunch.
For once, I survived without pills and without throwing up.
I'm laying in bed with AkMu's latest album playing in my ears and I feel so, so blessed to be alive right now. It's time to sleep and wake up to yet another splendid day tomorrow!
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