Ask and ye shall receive. Don't ask and ye shall still receive.

So did I just twittered I miss house parties? I did and then last night I went to a friend's housewarming and had fun.

I was a bit 'blah' about coming there alone and knowing only one person there, but in the end it was cool. I met new people who like Blur, caught up with an old friend who wore glo-stick bracelet and had peanut butter chocolate cookie. I felt like I could belong to that crowd.

I refuse to surrender to this virus! I'm not getting sick!

Long overdue

I've been wanting to take pictures of my street during autumn, where all the leaves are red and the sky is grey. Not at all how I expected the photos to turn out ("damn cars, move away from the picture!"), but at least I captured the redness a little bit.

There's that mixed feeling of liberation and fear standing in the middle of the road like that. You feel like you're on top of your game breaking the pedestrian rules yet you still look over your shoulder and make sure there are no cars ready to honk at you.

In response to that...

You know, reading Jarome's last blog got me thinking a lot. Me five years ago would've thought, "well, I think it's a load of shit. You gotta stick up for your friends no matter what." But now I think there's definitely some truth to it. Even if you're best friends, they still hurt you in some ways. Yes, they do that because in some twisted way, they're trying to teach you a lesson, but is it worth the heartbreak? Because true friendship is a hell of an investment, you know. It's like, you put sweat and tears into it, so if it disappoints you over and over again, you start asking why bother?

I mean, call me having high expectations from people, but I expect some kind of relationship from my close friends but when they don't do it, you're left looking like a fucking idiot. And at that moment, you just think, "To hell with how long we've been friends, they don't know me at all so I'm not gonna waste my time."

I guess I gotta learn to assume nothing and expect little. But the biggest lesson would probably be not to trust people too much. How many times have I been eaten up by sweet words and charitable deeds by new friends, only to be ditched by them? Too many to count.

Remember, friends will still ditch you when they can only save their own ass from a burning building. It's a fucked-up metaphor, but it's true. You just learn to have your guard up, be there as much as you can but don't sacrifice everything for them, especially if they're shit friends.

I'm a dummy...

Worked on the magazine dummy tonight. Loved doing the layout design and putting shit together. It was like playing puzzle made of fashion pieces.

Still got a lot to work on, but I'm trying to keep positive.

Current playlist

What I'm listening to right now:

"Ava Adore" - The Smashing Pumpkins
Probably one of the best releases they've ever done. Ironically, it was one of the last things they released before they broke up, as far as I remember it. Well, at least they reunited so that's not such a big deal anymore.

"Hold Me, Kiss Me, Thrill Me, Kill Me" - U2
This is the reason why I'm missing U2's finer rock moments. A good choice too for a Batman soundtrack.

"Downfall" - Matchbox Twenty
A lesser-known gem by the band. If Rob Thomas didn't talk so much (based on his 20-per-second Twitter updates), he usually works out to be a pretty mean songwriter. This remains my favourite Matchbox Twenty track.

"Monday Morning 5.19" - Rialto
A classic.

"Yellow" - Coldplay
Let this be the mourning song for the death of Coldplay. Just kidding. I just don't like the band anymore, but their first album still impresses in my book, especially thanks to this track.

"Paparazzi" - Lady GaGa
I like this much better than "Just Dance" or "Poker Face". The chick may be sick-crazy, but she writes pretty good stuff, so who cares?

"Glycerine" - Bush
The only thing I can remember Bush released. I used to know more about them but somehow this one stuck out in my memory, and it's justified because it's a masterpiece.

"If God Would Send His Angels" - U2
This track reminds me of The Netherlands as I remember it 10 years ago. A lesser-known gem by u2 after the more widely-received "Discotheque" and "Staring At The Sun", but nonetheless something I'm really impressed with.

"3 AM" - Matchbox 20
Easy-listening, atmospheric piece. A little like something Counting Crows would write, but Thomas' vocals and lyrics gave it away as something only a Matchbox Twenty could do.

Oh, it's exciting!

Got myself a pencil case in my favourite colour ever!

It's not important to you, but it's an important milestone for me. The amount of times I've had to scrub off the pen marks on the bottom of my bags due to lack of containment for ink leakage is quite disturbing. Not to mention the inimitable embarrassment of burying my head in my bags looking for that particular Faster pen. Yes, I love my own country's product, so sue me.

Comes thundering in this wicked blue pencil case, and all my problems are solved. Well, not all. I'm yet to clean my black Longchamp bag. Thank God it's black, so the pink/blue/green marks all over its base are not that visible.

Listening to a lot of music right now. Isn't remembering the things you've been wanting to listen to for ages the next best thing to reading a four-digit figure in your paycheck?

Shopping? Yes, I love it

I bought a whole bunch of shit today. Went to Camberwell Market and Chapel Street - lethal combination, fabulous for sartorial perfection.

I love Melbourne

Spotted on the train to the city at 10 AM: Asian guy, shaved head, with a permanent scowl on his face. Tough black Doc Martens boots, listening to hard metal on iPod.

To complete the look? Big white Gucci bag.

Oh dear.