Best Times July 28, 2011

It’s been 2 years since I’ve completely spent my summer months in Toronto and I couldn’t believe how much I enjoyed being here this summer! Everything has been going so well and so wonderful that I honestly can’t ask for anything better!!

[1] After SOA, I’ve been busy with rehearsals for New Talent Singing Awards (新秀歌唱比賽 2011）. What a great show this year! It was SO much fun, especially doing the dance with the chair! The world is so small – met a fellow Schulicher and SOA-er as well as a high school friend doing the show! Wooo~

[2] Next was the annual Night It Up! Got to participate in the fresh new project that was one-of-a-kind in Toronto called Paint-a-thon, perform on keyboard and mic with Power Unit Rockband (although the song choices totally blew my mind off) and help out with sales in taking care of vendors. First time experiences painting with fellow artist-friends, performing first time as a band with oh-so-much cheese, and dealing with a very difficult vendor and long hours of clean-up… Despite the many hour at Markham Civic Center for the event, Night it Up! was so awesome this year I would not trade to be anywhere else!

[3] It’s been a while since I have had my birthday in Toronto! There were small gatherings and celebrations here and there which felt really nice <3 I feel so blessed to have all my family and friends around me!

[4] Passing the SOA and screaming our heads off in Wonderland – this is absolutely the key highlight of my summer so far! Passing the SOA felt really good; and can I say, I am super proud of myself in Wonderland this year? I conquered not only the Behemoth but also the Drop zone!!! Everything went SO smoothly on the day of – from checking the results, to seeing all of us passed, to barely having to line up at Wonderland, to going at the perfect time for dinner before line-ups got really long… Just simply a super fantastic, perfect day : ]

[5] Blue Man Group!! My ears were dancing to the beat and my eyes were smiling to the colors – one unforgettable experience!!

Other highlights were: having many meet-ups where I got to catch up with different groups of people and seeing my brother’s NEW puppy!! (It’s really adorable!!!)

Everything has come together so well. The past 4 weeks have been the best times of my life – literally the most carefree summer ever!

Now, back to training for the next big exam, the UFE, and one more show coming up next Friday [故鄉情濃演唱會]!

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Sunshine~ June 30, 2011

Life is AWESOME!

SOA is OFFICIALLY DONE TODAY!!! FINALLY!!! Intensive schooling for 3 weeks with mock exams at the International Center every Friday for 2 of the 3 weeks; add onto that a two day exam – 5 hours first day and 4 hours second day – is quite something! UFE is going to be 3 day exam, can’t imagine how that will be like. I gave it my best, so whatever happens happens, in 3 weeks when the results come out! There’s nothing more to that.

Had rehearsals tonight for a show on Sunday (yay everything kind of worked out! I’m only doing two (edit: three) dances because I’m not available before due to exams but I am happy for that because of the costumes of the dances I’m NOT in hahaha =P). Then rehearsals for Night It Up! for PUYO Band and meeting up with friends – quite some big overlaps of schedules to work out, but it’s all for stuff I LOVE to do! =D  Every time I’m on break, I feel like there’s just not enough time! hahah

Life is sunshine.

=)

In Hiding June 13, 2011

Have been MIA for the past while, and will continue to be for the next little while…until the School Of Accountancy exam end of the month.

SOA SOA SOA SOA!

Love for Stage May 17, 2011

I LOVE the feeling of performing on stage.
我真的非常喜歡在舞台上表演的感覺.  =D

Had a show at Casino Rama yesterday (珍愛女人心演唱會 w/ 關菊英, 張德蘭, 麥潔文) and it was uber awesome – SO much fun! Dancing to a full house at the Casino Rama entertainment center and doing a almost 12 minute medley (two separate songs combined with a minute-ish of time to change in between) at the end was so energizing! The adrenaline rush I get when I perform is an indescribable, amazing feeling to me…<3 <3 <3!!

Completely forgot to take pictures with my own phone though haha oh well~
Now it’s time to put this feeling away in the drawers and concentrate hard on my studies!

On another note, it’s also time to say goodbye to my besties as one head back to Japan to work full time again and another one go off for an awesome internship in Asia! Goodbyes are hard to say, but I am so proud of them <3

Here are some photos of my besties and captures of recent shows that I randomly found online haha

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Glitches and Roadblocks May 6, 2011

The harder you try for something, the less likely things will go your way; or at least that’s how it seems to be, probably because you care so much about it that any glitches or roadblocks is magnified tenfold.

Perhaps, I should learn to not try too hard. As with the whole feedback process at work and the EOY nomination, rather than emphasizing so much on the result and outcome, I should learn to focus on the process. Then I would likely feel better about it. 太著緊了…. Sometimes, luck and fate just doesn’t work in your favour~

Sometimes, you just got to let go, move on and be happy with what you already have, because there isn’t really much else you can do to it. As with the opportunities to perform, I am going to miss FOUR (!!!!) shows in June because of SOA exam (sooo sad), but since I have to do the intensive schooling, there really isn’t much else I can do besides letting go. I should just be happy that I have had other amazing opportunities previously.

As Ralph Waldo Emerson’s quote goes: “For everything you have missed, you have gained something else”. Look not onto the lost, but rather, focus on the gain.

*Smile… =)

Magical touch April 29, 2011

Women’s figure skating at ISU World Figure Skating Championship 2011 —

I think Miki Ando did an amazing job in her short program this year! Her footwork, flexibility and jumps were pretty solid. However, even though Yuna Kim missed her signature jump at the beginning, I still loved her program more.

To me, what makes a spectacular performance (for everything, including piano, dancing, figure skating) is not simply just technicality. What really differentiates a winning performance is having the best combination of:

(1) Music,
(2) Choreography/Program,
(3) Facial expression/Feelings.

All of these adds to the “magical touch” that tucks on the emotions of the audience and draws them into your performance. Yuna Kim definitely has this talent.

Can’t wait to see how the results will be tomorrow!

———————–Edit: (April 30, 2011)—————————————–

Noooo, Yuna Kim missed two of her jumps =(  It felt like she was mentally weaker… Nonetheless, beautiful program~
And so… Miki Ando takes home the gold!!!

credit: Toronto Star

What a battle. The pressure must have been so great on both of them. Sometimes I feel like things like this are really a mind game. They have been practicing for long enough that they know they have the capabilities to do it. It’s a matter of winning over the pressure, the nervousness and the expectations, and not letting any other competitors or anything else affect you. It’s being confident on what you have been through and whatever happens happens! I think this goes for piano competitions and perhaps even the whole CA exam process. Of course, all of this is easier said than done~ =P

World Title April 28, 2011

Patrick Chan. Breaking the world record for men’s figure skating and receiving his world title.

What I admire most is his musicality. He captured the music to his movements SO well, including even the speed of his one-foot turns. Add together impressive choreography and brilliant choice of music…. Perfect. So well done.

LEAP!! / credits: patrickchan.ca /

I know I’ll never be able to do half his jumps/footwork no matter how much I aspire to be like him and other top figure skaters, since I started (as what my coach said to me) 20 years late LOL Dreams shattered.

That’s it! My kid is definitely going to learn figure skating in the future! hahaha

Tax Season! April 4, 2011

The storm has hit! A full blown tax season is hitting our team in the human capital tax pool hard and it looks like our crazy schedule is only going to escalate towards the end of April!

Fifty hour weeks turning into whatever is needed to get the returns done,
[+] training on weekends which takes up a crucial 8-10 hour chargeable time,
[+] a show this Friday, which requires rehearsal at night and a valuable day off (!!),
[+] my regular figure skating classes, which are now quite late on Monday nights…..

= absolute craziness.

Time is so precious and a day goes by so fast! I actually don’t mind any of this craziness and am actually excited to embrace this storm (especially with such a fun and great team!)         …except,  I have fallen sick………….again.  Honestly, why oh why do I always get sick (to the point that I-know-I-need-antibiotics sick) at critical times.  Pounding headaches, hang in there! Hopefully, the ginger coke drink I made tonight and the medicines I took would help save me and make me last through this hectic week and weeks onwards!

ROAR~              >= )

Relationships March 23, 2011

From a spectator role, I noticed that a perfect relationship contains two very key ingredients from both parties:
(1) Continuous Communication
(2) 100% Trust

If for whatever reason, the relationship is far from perfect, then it would require strong doses of:
(1) Understanding
(2) Forgiveness

Nothing is ever perfect, but a good mix of all of this can make a relationship last I feel. I hope these four ingredients can counter-balance each other well enough in the relationship that I’m spectating right now. Please keep trying! The ending can be beautiful~

Find Release March 16, 2011

So after the massive emotion explosion at home last Thursday, nothing has changed, besides me. I am only taking more and more responsibilities, although the true root of the problem does not come from me. Despite all this deathly suffocation and ultimate heartbreak , I am pulling through~

After work these days, I come home, cook, quickly eat and get on with things I want to do. No more reliance. No more guilt trip. I have to admit though, there is still a bit of a grudge, but thank goodness for the figure skating lessons. I felt SO good after releasing it all on my skates!! =D Today, we learned a number of exciting things, including the toe loop!!! WHAT WHAT! =P

Moving my body to the music, messing around on the skates, experimenting with more difficult moves = extremely fun! Coming home from it, I kept releasing all this energy in me, first on the piano, and then through singing and dancing my heart out!! <3 Ohhh it felt sooo good =D

I am so done with all this negative energy in me. I won’t let anything from home affect my mood anymore. Nope, no more.

Find release~~                 = )