Aree's Work

Diploma In Communications Projects

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Harrieth and I helping some students to dye their shirts

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"Project SAVE"

DAY 1

We were up early in the morning and on campus getting everything ready for our kick off. There was a lot of excitement and camaraderie among the team and everyone was ready to do whatever was necessary.

I was apprehensive at first, since Harrieth and I were assigned to tie-dye and it is not something we had ever done before. But before we knew it, we were making colourful shirts and acting like quite the experts. I am pretty sure that the students who visited us had no clue that this was our first time trying it too. We sold a lot of shirts and it was a huge success. Renee did a good job as an MC and even when there were less participants she made it sound like a lot was going on.

During day 1 a lot of shirts were bought by our team members themselves and we were all excitedly playing with the paints like kindergarten children.

DAY 2

There was neither tie dye nor face paint on this day. It hardly mattered though because I did not mind working on anything that was needed for the project.

Harrieth and I were reassigned to quizzes this time. It was math and we had to do a lot of screaming to get people to participate. We managed to get quite a lot of participants and a few of our friends came by too to show their support. We hardly had to be on our feet in the quiz booth as opposed to the tie dye booth and this was a welcome change. Some lecturers visited our booth too and it was fun to get to test some lecturers instead of them testing us as usual. I also helped in the merchandise a bit but it was a very slow day for merchandise.

I discussed our budget with Ms K and we reminded the team yet again to give me the receipts so that I can calculate the final budget. We were cutting a little close and I tried not to worry over that. My expectation was to keep our budget for Project SAVE within our estimated budget while excluding the t-shirts.

Day 2 was a relative success.

DAY 3

Tie dye was back on again. We had learned by now that while some wanted to do their own shirts, others wanted us to do it for them because they did not want to get their hands dirty. And they wanted their shirts to look great. By now we were quite the tie dye design experts. I managed to convince some teammates on day 1 to let me experiment a bit on the bags and shirts, so now we had even more patterns. Harrieth turned out to be quite a natural in twisting the shirts and Mina was great in mixing colours in the right consistency.

We must have done a good job on Day 1 because this time the participants were other students out of our team and everyone seemed so excited.

I also made a short video of us doing tie dye and put it up on our page.

I completed the budget until that day and posted it up on the Facebook group so that everyone could see our status.

By the end of Day 3, we were dead on our feet and I was afraid I would not wake up in the morning the next day.

DAY 4

This was the final day of the project. We were all a little nervous because SPCA representatives were coming. We wanted to make a really good impression on them because they were our clients. I was also apprehensive about the face painting activity because the Photo Booth had so many options and it would be hard to get people to actually paint their faces when they could just take a prop and pose for pictures. However, we did get some participants. 

Surprisingly day 4 seemed slower than the other days for the first hour and I was worried that it would give the wrong impression to our clients. The pace picked up later and everything was going well by the time SPCA representatives came with the dogs. The dogs were well likes by all the students who were passing by. 

Harrieth and I were determined to make our own shirts before things picked up so we made two and I turned mine into a tank top and displayed it on the board. This seemed to inspire a lot of students to come and try for the same thing. I spent a lot of time cutting shirts on top of tying and dying. I also had to sell my shirt to a girl because she was running late. In the end we sold all the shirts we had and some even gave orders for 2-3 shirts when they passed by so that they can come and collect later. 

The only oversight on our part was that we did not buy and XL sizes and there were quite a few who wanted them. This is a learning point for all of us in the future.

By the end of the project we were all ready to go home and hibernate for days because it was so exhausting. Yet it was so rewarding. Working together as a team with very little hiccups and doing something for animals who needed our attention was very satisfying. When Ms Helen from SPCA came over to our booth I asked her how she liked the event and she said that we had done a good job which was the greatest compliment to our project as she is our client. 

Project SAVE has been a great experience and one I will remember fondly in the future.

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Project SAVE: Week 8

Week 9 is the actual project and therefore we were all very focused on tying up any loose ends. We focused mostly on distributing the prizes into days and activities. There was a lot of pet food involved. We had gotten so many prizes apart from the pet food including cinema tickets, goodie bags and toys and costumes for dogs. We were all very temped by the all pass movie tickets.

I helped Akhter with his thank you letter a bit and revised our write up about the project to Taylormade magazine. 

In the finance department, everyone was hurrying to give their receipts for refunds. I reminded again, to make sure that they get receipts for everything and give it to me so that I can record it. I also gave out cash to whoever needed it.

On Sunday we were supposed to go to campus and arrange everything. We met some roadblocks and decided to do it early on Monday but we did get to see the buntings and backdrop. A tagline I came up with in the file blurbs was used in the buntings too which was a pleasant surprise for me.

Reflections: I was glad that I joined Taylormade, and that it came in handy for our project. We are in mass communication and we mostly focus on the more fun parts. It was challenging to get everyone to follow rules regarding the finance. Until the last week I was under the impression that the university needed strict records and receipts and I tried to stress upon it a lot.

Project SAVE seemed to be very happening and I felt very proud to be part of it.

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Project SAVE: Week 7

This week had some online classes since we were all busy with the finals. Finance department is taking a backseat in the sense that we are supplying the cash required and keeping records but otherwise just trying to help out in other activities and anywhere that the team needs a helping hand.

I have mentioned in a previous post that Harrieth and I are also in charge of the face painting activity and we went and bought face paint. We planned on using a wet variety which came in a tube but came across a chalk variety which would be easier to rub off and decided on that one.

Ms K checked the progress of each sub team and everything seems to be going well. We have received so much material that the budget allocation for prizes do not even need to be used any further. 

I also helped revise the blurb for our customised files which we plan to sell on campus during our project to make some profit. 

Reflection: Project SAVE team is buzzing with activities and I cannot wait for the actual project to start. I also got to do a little bit of writing which is always something I enjoy.

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Project SAVE: Week 6

Side Note: We skipped week 5 since we were all on mid term break. 

This was a big week for the finance side of this project since our dean Ms Jo signed off on our seed money which is RM1500. We will be able to handle all the finances in the project without difficulty which this amount. I was however, a little afraid but it was laid to rest as we were expecting at least RM500 from other sponsors. 

I also received a reply from Ms Helen at SPCA informing me that SPCA will issue receipts for out donors. 

We have managed to acquire  goods including stationaries, pet food, movie tickets and goodie bags for our project and as such I proposed that we hold back on spending on prizes until the goods we already have are allocated to prizes for activities and spend only on materials needed. This was accepted by everyone. 

I have started handing out cash for everyone in charge of activities and made the required changes to the Excel budget sheet. I also have a form so that everyone signs off when they receive the cash. We made another change because everyone found it easier to first buy things with their own money and then give me the receipts. I agreed but advised to check the budget and spend accordingly. 

I made another post on our Project SAVE page emphasising the importance of spaying and neutering. 

Reflection: Everyone is doing their part and we have passed the planning phase and now we are actually executing our plans. We are very happy with the progress made especially in terms of donations and sponsorships. We have also had demonstrations of games and activities so far and they are fun and hopefully will get the kind of interest we envisioned.

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Project SAVE: Week 4

Week 4 was mid-term week and one class was replaced by online discussions. 

A cheque was handed over to the finance team and I sent an email to Ms Helen at SPCA inquiring about the procedure to obtain a receipt for the donor. Even though we received just one cheque, by now we have almost accomplished the second objective of fundraising. 

I also received RM1000 from Ms Karmini which is supposed to be seed money for our activities from the School of Communications. We have yet to present our proposal to Ms Jo but we are all very hopeful that we will get help from the school. Especially since we have made much progress with our project.

I also came up with some rules so that there are proper records of the spendings. They are,

1. Please send an email to ******@gmail.com when you need the money. 2. Please state what activity you require it for, the amount needed, and the items you plan to buy.  3. You will need to sign before I hand the money over. 4. Please give me all receipts after a purchase is made. Otherwise you will need to be responsible for the amount of money remaining.

Our online promotion team also asked for volunteers to be admins for our Facebook page and I volunteered and made a post.

We had demonstrations of games and activities during our class which was fun and things seem to be falling into place as the final date comes closer.

During our online discussion class we shared our thoughts on campus campaign, secretariat team and sponsorship list. The latter I found to be very useful since we are trying to get sponsors for our prizes and donations. We already have received some items and they will be deducted from the budget after they have been properly catalogued.

Reflection: So far there has not been a week where the finance team was inactive or had to wait as bystanders. This is something I am extremely grateful for. As the date for our campaign gets closer we will get even more work and will put more time into promotion. Hopefully, this campaign will be a huge success.

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Project SAVE: Week 3

There were many more revisions to be made in the budget. Ms K (our lecturer) advised to increase the estimated budget. Coincidentally, somehow we all had overlooked the cost for prizes and when added for every separate activity, the budget went up to RM2500 which is a lot. We have yet to present our proposal to Ms Jo and we do hope that she will grant us some seed money. 

Ms K promised to send me RM1000 so that we can jump start our preparation for our campaign activities. 

Presently, the finance team includes Harieth and me. In our fourth semester, for the event there were more people in the team and Jillyan was a very active member. This semester she is in another department, but when the computer froze and we lost our work she was very helpful and redoing some of the work for me. I taught her a little bit of formula and equations in Excel and it was a good team effort. 

The whole Project SAVE team did their part in class by coming up with the costs for respective prizes and we finalised the whole budget on that day itself. Even though the budget right now is very high, we are getting sponsorships slowly. Fiona and Kaitlyn made a tremendous effort and got some items as well as donations. We are therefore, very close to achieving our second objective which is fundraising.

Reflection: The budget might be the most tedious job in the whole project yet. Every little change in any item or prize changes the whole table of figures, which in turn changes the pie chart in the presentation. It, however, gives me a chance to really appreciate help from a member of our old team. During internship, our team's finance person was a wonderful woman who took everyone under her wings and working on this campaign makes me appreciate her more. Because, a finance person's work might be overshadowed by the other more visible aspects but it is proving to be a very challenging job so far.

This project is moving smoothly forward, one paw at a time.

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Project SAVE: Week 2

This week was quite busy in the finance department. I compiled the estimated budget for the event based on the activity cost provided by the persons-in-charge of each separate activity. There was a slight misunderstanding about the prices and items but it was cleared up easily. We also discussed as a group on how to cut costs in the budget and decided that the photo booth could be changed in such a way that we could save around RM400.

We also discussed more about what to with the donations we have already acquired. Since the second objective of this PR campaign is to present RM2000 to SPCA, I leaned strongly towards keeping RM1000 out of RM1500 secured strictly for SPCA donation, and it was decided that way.

Presently, the budget has been completed and embedded into the proposal presentation which will be used to possibly convince our dean, Ms Jo, to assist financially from the School of Communications.

There is still lots of waiting around since I am in the finance department but I am also in charge of Face Painting activity along with my classmate and we are trying to get a discount or possibly even a professional face painter to volunteer. 

Reflection: A finance person in any PR team is vital but it is a person who works with the numbers which makes it very boring. It has little creativity and lots of Excel worksheets. During high school and internship I did learn how to use equations in Excel which is a huge help in doing the budget breakdown. I believe that every PR person needs to be well versed in all areas of a PR campaign and being able to keep track of where the money goes to especially as the project continues will be a good experience.

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Project SAVE: Week 1

Quick Introduction: This blog from now on will be dedicated to documenting our final semester PR project. We have to come up with a project and we will be judged on our ability to complete the set objectives among other aspects. 

After a few discussions on the kind of event and what the theme would be, it was decided that an animal protection campaign will be the most appropriate to get the attention of our target audience which is the Taylor's University students. There were some ideas bounced around for the kind of event (mine being a carnival style event) and in the end we decided on a four day long campaign to raise awareness in collaboration with SPCA.

I am in charge of the Finance team which will handle the budget. I have some experience in this area because I was on the finance team for our fourth semester event (SOC STAR Awards) as well. I was also in charge of coordinating an event during internship last semester. As such I will try to reflect on the subtle differences in the financing and budgeting of this event and the previous ones. 

So far, since the second objective of this event is to raise funds (RM2000) we are going to try and keep the budget to a minimum for the whole campaign and gain profit and donations to reach our goal. 

When the proposal was presented, the client (SPCA) asked for our estimated budget. We had yet to get their approval for the campaign and decide on the activities and therefore were unable to provide a budget. After that meeting, the sponsorship team was selected and the logistics team hurried to find the best quotations for the activities. The finance people also joined in. It did not seem like the best thing to wait until the sponsorships came through and it was decided that the budget will be allocated according to the estimated cost and then as sponsorships came through, the amount will be reduced.

Reflection: The finance team is in charge of allocating the budget and keeping records. During STAR awards, there was a lot of waiting around and the budget kept fluctuating. During internship, working with a private company which allocated their own (very fluid) budget to their own marketing communications department, there was little to wait for. The budget was already decided in a few meetings by the department head and the only thing to do was to negotiate a lower price than the already set budget for the separate sections.

In this case we are expecting the SOC to allocate a budget according to our estimated budget, ask for donations from sponsors and other parties, make some profit from the campaign itself and reach our goal which can only be done with the full dedication of the whole PR team. By next week the budget estimates will be finalised and with stability, this campaign can be a success.

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Current News Headlines

I checked the headlines today at AlJazeera which is a very prominent news channel in the world, gulf news which is my personal favourite, E! Online which focuses on entertainment and Haveeru which is one of the most prominent news papers in the Maldives.

Al Jazeera - 'Glimpse of Syria's Qubayr massacre' 

This article describes the horrors which took place in a small town in Syria by whom the government claims to be a terrorist group. This massacre took place only weeks after Houla massacre where the residents of the whole village were brutally murdered in different forms too. This is so horrible to read and to even believe. When news media started writing and reporting about the atrocities being committed in Syria I did not believe them. I thought that the crimes were too terrible for anyone to commit. One day I opened my facebook account and on the home page there was a picture of what looked like tiny white sacks left on the ground, arranged neatly in rows. There was a caption saying that they were tiny bodies of children who were murdered. A part of me still wants to not acknowledge it. Because it is too heinous for human lives to be treated in that horrible a manner.  I wonder when they will publish that the situation has changed and the people of Syria are safe. I wonder how many more lives will be taken before that..

Gulf News - 'Bomb targeting government bus in Pakistan kills 18'

Another horror story. These days news seem to be a never ending array of crimes ranging from mass murder to rape. I think the headline says it all in this news article. Apparently these attacks have been happening in the same town for five years. Now it has declined and infrequent. If this is something to be thankful for I do not know what the world is turning into.

Gulf News - Codes reveal gender of unborn baby in illegal tests

Since mass murder has been covered on different scales in the previous two stories (that has happened on the same day) there should also be yet another kind of murder. This article's headline maybe innocent enough. What it does not tell is that the conscienceless doctors use codes (like pictures of barbie for a girl) to inform parents about the unborn baby's gender. Once it is known most female fetuses are aborted leading to mass female foeticide. It is a a horrendous crime that Indian authorities have been trying hard to stop. 

Haveeru Online - Arham was victim of a revenge attack over two gang rivalry: Police

A sixteen year old with no crime record was found murdered in a park in Male', the capital city of Maldives. Gang crimes and drugs are common place in Maldives now and it is frightening how many murders are taking place these days. 

That quite honestly is enough crime for one day. Focusing on smaller things like sports and celebrities is way better.

Al Jazeera Sports - Racist chants reported ahead of Euros

Apparently there are fears that racism will over shadow the Euro tournament. I am tired now of all these bad things happening in the world. We are all human. Regardless of our colour, features, sexuality, nationality, religion and everything else. If I want people to not be racist towards me I should not be racist towards anyone else. It's hypocritical of most people when they accuse the other party of being racist towards them while they themselves are being racist. 

E!Online - Miley Cyrus Too Young? Five Reasons Child Stars Marry Even Younger

It seems that every area of the news today are focusing on the deeper and more morbid aspects of the stories. Well, Miley Cyrus got engaged to Liam Hemsworth. I watched Hannah Montana a few years back. I loved the cast, especially Miley and Lily. I have also followed celebrity news for quite a while and found that they have always been a little too harsh on Miley. It does not matter what she does or who she does it with, the news stories that come out are always overblown. It could be that she wore a daring dress or that her movie did not do well. But then again I guess that is what news media is about sometimes. 

Since I seem to find it impossible to find some lighthearted news today I will stop reading them now and try my luck tomorrow. Let's hope that tomorrow brings happier news ant inspirational stories. 

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/06/20126720534968791.html

http://gulfnews.com/news/world/pakistan/bomb-targeting-government-bus-in-pakistan-kills-18-1.1033271

http://gulfnews.com/news/world/india/codes-reveal-gender-of-unborn-baby-in-illegal-tests-1.1032620

http://www.aljazeera.com/sport/football/2012/06/201268125845947589.html

http://www.haveeru.com.mv/news/42547

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MIyt7gUud4U/Tfcn2YppTfI/AAAAAAAAAPA/YmIn9bTBvdI/s1600/Barbie+Doll+Clothes4.jpg

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Malaysian Cultures

I am having a writer's block about this post. However, as time comes close and Friday is turning into Saturday I have to start writing this anyway. 

Malaysian Cultures. These two words are a little scary for me. I have been here for two months now and have yet to experience any cultural events. I normally love making the posts about my experiences. Or about my feelings on wanting to experience things. I am at such a loss today. So I Google searched a few cultural events in Malaysia.

Malaysia has three major ethnicities and most of their culture and traditions stem from those. There is Malay which is the majority, closely followed by Chinese and lastly Indian ethnicity. 

Malay people have their own traditional clothes and even food. Their clothes are called Baju Malayu for men and Baju Kurung for women. The latter is very popular and many women tend to wear it. The most prominent Malay food for me is Nasi Lamak. There are also festivals followed by the Malay people. Some are typical muslim celebrations which are celebrated all around the world by muslims. Like Hari Raya Aidilfitri which is the same as Fitr Eid as called by Maldivians. This is a day or even two celebrated by all muslims in a very colourful manner at the end of Ramadan. Everyone wears new clothes and pay respect to their elders. It is very similar to how Maldivians celebrate it too.

 [Malay girls shopping for new clothes for Hari Raya Aidilfitri ]

Chinese people have long been here in Malaysia. They have their own cultures and food too. Also their very own Chinese languages. Chinese women wear cheongsam which is normally made of soft material like silk. I find it very pretty. They also have their own food, like Char Kway Teow which I absolutely love. Some of the most amazing festivals celebrated are moon cake festival and lantern festival. Lantern festival is very colourful and everyone lights up a lantern and lets it float into the sky. I would love to celebrate and take lots of pictures in the next lantern festival.

Lastly there is the people of Indian origin. The women wear their traditional sari and the men wear dhoti. I have a high tolerance and quite like Indian food which is very similar to the food in India. Roti Chanai seems to be a very popular Indian food. One of their most famous celebrations where thousands of tourists come to witness is the Thaipusam Celebration. It is a very vibrant festival.

http://www.indusladies.com/forums/indians-in-malaysia/1521-indian-festivals-in-malaysia.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysian_cultural_outfits

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_Malays#Traditional_dress

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_Malays#Cuisine

https://encrypted-tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSenmsGVoh527rKuXloBCbxOf2JRITMBn2W_As9wtk_9ON0zfkY

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zIlXZHUydug/TNOiSNkfjVI/AAAAAAAAADE/svVgjvmMBL8/s1600/lantern.jpg

http://image.shutterstock.com/display_pic_with_logo/390/390,1234383647,8/stock-photo-kuala-lumpur-malaysia-feb-celebration-of-thaipusam-at-batu-caves-on-february-24829990.jpg

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Interesting hobbies and habits..

I have a bad habit which is procrastinating and even though that is not a good or interesting habit, it is the most prominent. Now let's talk about the interesting hobbies of mine. 

I love reading. However, these days I feel like I am too busy to read because I am always in class or too exhausted to actually get into a book and enjoy the story or novel. When I read stories and novels I like to soak it all in and block out everything else. I love to read slowly and imagine myself in one of the character's shoes. My favorite genres are thrillers, science fiction, fantasy and most recently romance. When I was younger there was a time I was hooked on horror. This gave me nightmares for weeks and I decided that I would stick to mysteries and thrillers more. Of course, in most thrillers I enjoy there is a lot of murder and chopping and blood but I still love them and surprisingly they do not give me nightmares. I have read so much that I could guess the culprit half way through the book. Agatha Christie managed to shock me in one of her novels however, when the writer himself turned out to be the killer. 

[Relaxing with one of my favourite books. My 'me' time.]

I guess I took up too much space with reading because I love it too much. Next is music which is pretty universal. I am an auditory learner and that could be one of the reasons why I love music so much. It's amazing how I could get entranced by a song even when I don't understand the words. Like, Mark Anthony and Jennifer Lopez's "No Me Ames" and multiple Hindi, Japanese, Russian and Korean songs. Granted I could sometimes understand some Hindi words but I still love the others just as much. I could spend an hour or two at a time just listening to music. My playlist is extensive and my favorite restaurant on Taylor's ground, Snowy, tends to play a lot of songs on my playlist. My friends make fun of me at times and ask, "Is there any song in their playlist that's not on yours?" 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELhGm2kxdhk [One of my favourite Dhivehi/Maldivian songs]

Next is dramas, animes and movies. Just like music I enjoy dramas and movies from all countries. I have watched Taiwanese, Korean, Japanese, Hindi and English movies and dramas. Today I finished watching a Korean drama called Rooftop Prince in which a crown prince from Joseon era time travels to the modern day Seoul. Needless to say it was hilarious. I love movies and dramas which has comedy and a happy ending. We see enough pain and misery in real life. I sometimes believe it is good to have a good laugh with a comedy. At times I do love a good documentary style movie too. Hindi dramas are very popular in Maldives but I don't like them because they always have horrible people who does evil things and for no apparent reason sometimes. And that could continue for seasons and years with the main hero or heroine always doing the right thing but ending up in pain. Very recently I went to watch the movie 'Avengers' in 3D. It was a pretty awesome experience. My favourite animes include Naruto and Death Note. I also read the Naruto manga.

[Right after Avengers]

The last thing I love to do is travelling. On an airplane. Because I have severe motion sickness and planes do not make me sick. Which is some kind of silver lining I suppose. I have been to few countries and I loved experiencing their cultures and even the cuisine. I am fascinated by the difference in the way people dress and interact. I am pleasantly surprised at times when I meet a total stranger who could end up a life long friend. Once in India we got into trouble at the airport. There were some issues with over booking and my father, my younger brother and I were stuck there. I went with my father and we talked to the officials together. A man in plain clothes, who we later learned was the head of security for the whole airport was attracted to us. Apparently he always wanted a daughter but was blessed with multiple sons. How I was with my dad through it all somehow touched his heart and he told me that he would have wanted a daughter like me. I have visited India a few times after that and he always meets us and he still remains a close friend with our family. I guess I could meet a lifelong friend in Malaysia too. Or maybe a lot of them. 

I almost forgot about the most recent and most frequent thing that I do these days. Photography. I love capturing every event and little details in life. I do have a camera though I tend to stick to my camera phone and posting the photos on Facebook. While I am away from my family this seems like a special and straightforward way to share my adventures with them. I do it so much that one friend described me as a paparazzi! 

That's about it. I would love to have a very unique and fancy habit but mine are very average. I suppose I am a little disappointed but maybe next time I would have to write about hobbies and interests I might have gotten myself something very special and unique.

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Cherry Blossoms http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/thumblarge_256/1207763363gdr0wM.jpg

Jeju Island http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeju_Province#Myths_and_legends

http://www.colourbox.com/preview/2224634-684432-buddhist-temple-at-jeju-korea-with-sakura-cherry-blossoms.jpg

Sabah http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/kjorgen/kjorgen1001/kjorgen100100012/6265404-mother-orangutan-and-her-baby-photographed-in-the-jungle-in-sabah-borneo-malaysia.jpg

http://www.fascinatingmalaysia.com/sabah/poi.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mount_kinabalu_01.png

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rafflesia_arnoldii

Venice http://www.bugeurope.com/images/venice-Fotolia_10767003_XS.jpg

Dubai http://dubai.travel-culture.com/images/falcon-dubai-desert.jpg

http://www.dubai-tourism.net/ http://www.dubai-architecture.info/Picture1-full.jpg

Maldives http://dialmaldives.com/images/shangrilla_1.jpg

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Thoughts about College

 "I wish I had come here in the first place..."

My thought on Taylor's college is exactly that. Ever since I was a child I had an affinity to read story books. So much so that my mother would hide my library card because if she allowed me I would forgo the basic necessities of life just to finish my story. It was my reprieve from the more difficult things in life. I was at a university before, which I never talk about anymore. The experience scarred me for life. I came home a broken shell of who I used to be. They did not even have a library with English novels or a shop in the whole town which sold them. On top of that I was doing a coursework which I could not motivate myself to study.

I decided to apply to Taylor's university for March intake last year. However a whole debacle of my cousin suffering from ADHD pushing me off the stairs and months of my right arm in a plaster and the left not so much better, lead me to apply this year. I had seen pictures of the library online and knew that this is the place I wanted to study at. I was let down once so I expected nothing. I had gotten cold feel the day before I arrived in Malaysia and wanted so much to tell my father to keep me in Maldives. This in turn would have meant giving up my dream so I decided to face my fears head on.

I have been here a month now and this is how college is supposed to feel like. I have many new friends who are from Malaysia, Maldives and other countries. I love hanging out with all of them. I went to the new king’s palace, KLCC and saw the twin towers with friends from best buddies. A program which help the new students acclimate to college life. I have lunch with friends from my coursework and dinner with my Maldivian friends. I went to see the Avengers with new friends I made at orientation. I am learning to live in harmony with my housemates at the hostel. They all have a story to tell and it is all very fascinating. Sometimes the social life at college is a bit overwhelming. There are so many places to be and knowing how to prioritize is very important.

College also means living alone far away from my parents. Not having my mom close by every time something goes wrong and taking care of myself. I was very worried about waking up and going to class on time. It is still a working progress but I have not yet missed a class which is very good comparatively. I got very sick a few weeks ago. I was all alone in my apartment and had to drag myself downstairs after two hours of being in pain. It was a horrible experience. I was not prepared for such a thing and did not have any credit in my phone. In college we grow up a little each day. Now I will know what to do if I get sick. Or to at least have credit on my phone all the time.

Classes and assignments are piling up and mid terms seem like it’s on a fast racing car heading straight at me. We have group work which we present to the whole class. My friends studying architecture ask me all the time if I am not scared to talk to the class. Sometimes I am but I still love that and every other aspect of mass communication. I believe that will motivate me to study and improve.

Two weeks ago I looked at the balance in my bank account and nearly had a heart attack because somehow all my monthly pocket money was almost gone. ‘What on Earth did I buy?,’ I screamed inside my head. Managing my own finances is something I have to learn. The new culture and food is also something I need to accept. Or my stomach needs to, since I am going to be here for a long time. I have tried multiple places and I feel myself slowly getting used to the food here. At times I find food I could get addicted to. Like Char Kuey Tow. I have no idea what that means but I love that dish!

 College life so has so far been so good. I hope that I can continue being positive and finish my diploma here. Then I can continue to my degree and at last join the thousands of fresh graduates in the battle for my dream job.

[areebahashim-blog]

White tern and it's baby

Reference: http://www.wildencounters.net/weblog/page/3/

[areebahashim-blog]

The horrible tales of my pets!!

Ever since I was little I adored animals and birds much to the concern of my mother. Because she is a health worker and when she looks at an animal all she sees is the germs and what not they get into. It did not help that I was always extremely allergic to everything. Like sunlight!

When I was around seven years old I found a baby white tern at the bottom of a breadfruit tree and fell in love with the chocolate coloured, helpless little ball of fur. However after my mom came home from work she convinced me that the baby bird was missing it's mommy and daddy and I should put it in the branch where it fell from. So I watched in tears as a neighborhood teenager climbed the branches and took what could have been my first pet to its home where it belonged.

I had my next pet was when I was around nine. I adopted a stray kitten much to the despair of my parents. I think I have inherited my love of pets from my late grandfather who adopted cats of all kinds and ages. My cat which was cleverly named "ma belhelaa" which translates directly to "my cat" in Dhivehi, was white with black dots. I used to carry him around everywhere. One day I left him outside and my mom was coming inside when the kitten decided to come in too. He was such a tiny little thing that she did not notice him slipping in and shut the door on him. He was crushed in the middle of his small body and died a painful death.

I did not have a pet for a long time since. I then met a friend who loved pets and was on a quest to get as many people to acquire pets as possible. I asked for a cactus. Because it is easy take care of and very resilient. Birds were noisy. I have a phobia of dogs and cats were a horrible memory. Which left behind fishes. He gave me a tiny little turtle instead. 

I named him Oscar. Oscar lived in a bowl and I fed him in a jar of water. He actually knew when I was going to feed him and would swim to the surface to get a bite of the turtle food that I would drop in the jar. He was very strong and I did not think he would die that easily.

One day I came home and found him dead and floating. I shook him around and begged inside my mind to not die on me. That he was so strong and he must not die. But he did. Now I have pretty much given up on pets. I still believe a cactus is the ideal pet for me. Though it is a plant. I wonder if they can be categorized as a pet though.