ParisB tagged me on this interesting meme over a week ago (see, told you I’m a terrible procrastinator!). Somehow, the word worm sends a chill down my spine, but I am indeed one when it comes to books. Here goes.

Do you remember how you developed a love for reading?
Coming from a house of worms (so to speak, heh!), reading has played a big part in my life since, well, as long as I can remember. Books are the one thing in our house that is more populated than anything else. One of my fondest memories of childhood is my parents reading me one fairytale story after another. My father’s animated gestures that accompanied his story-telling are still vividly etched in my mind. Great times!

What are some books you read as a child?
Coming from a Chinese educated background, the books that I read in my early age are mostly in Chinese, with a few Enid Blyton’s books in between. Most of the books I read are about popular Chinese folktales. I also read a lot of China’s history and Chinese literature. Among the mountains of books are stories from the book One Thousand and One Nights as well. I guess that’s where I developed my vivid imaginations.

What is your favourite genre?
My favourite genres span across thriller, horror, Chinese literature, comedy and true crime(!!) just to name a few. From the likes of Stephen King to Sophie Kinsella. I love them all. No fantasy books though, I’m one of the rare people who doesn’t enjoy the Harry Potter series at all.

Do you have a favourite novel?
Without a doubt, The “Torrents” Trilogy《激流三部曲》from the great Chinese writer Ba Jin 巴金. the trilogy consists of ‘The Family《家》’, ‘Spring 春》’, and ‘Autumn《秋》’. I first read them back in high school as a requirement for my Chinese subject. The first volume ‘The Family’ is simply one of the best realism literature of all times. The series greatly depicted the struggles of the modern youth against the age old dominance of the incredibly feudal Confucian family system back in the 1930s. Ba Jin took over ten years to complete the three volumes. It is the early years of his life that fueled his denouncement against the ugly persecution and feudalism happening in that era. The trilogy totally blew my mind away and formed the fundamental core of my love for Chinese literature. For me, it will always be the great literature to read time and again. It is also one of the very few books that reaches deep into my heart and vibrates my world.

click photo to enlarge.

Where do you usually read?
Anywhere really. On the bus, plane, couch or in bed.

When do you usually read?
When I’m free of course, normally in the dead silence of night time or a relaxing afternoon.

Do you usually have more than one book you are reading at a time?
Sometimes, when I want a change of pace or emotion, I will stop and pick up a book of different genre. It rarely happens though, I like to finish a book in one go if possible.

Do you read nonfiction in a different way or place than you read fiction?
Not particularly. Only when I read nonfiction, I sometimes do some research online as well, to get a little more insight into the stories.

Do you buy most of the books you read, or borrow them, or check them out of the library?
I am a little germophobic, so not really into borrowing books from the library. When I love a book, I just have to own it.

Do you keep most of the books you buy? If not, what do you do with them?
If it turns out not to my liking then yes, I sell them online.

If you have children, what are some of the favorite books you have shared with them? Were they some of the same ones you read as a child?
No kids yet, but I will most definitely instill in them my love for Chinese folktales and literature. Especially those I read as a child.

click photo to enlarge.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading some of the books that I bought from my Taiwan trip back in February. I bought one whole box of them! LOL. Amongst them are series of books from 鄭華娟, the Taiwanese author cum singer/composer. She writes about her life in Germany with humour. Also re-reading Stephen King’s Carrie. This early creation of his is still my favourite.

Do you keep a TBR (to be read) list?
Not really, which book I read really depends on my mood at the time. I keep a TBB (to be bought) list though. Heh.

What’s next?
Finish reading the books I bought from the Taiwan trip, over 20 of them.

What books would you like to reread?
If I have the time, some of the Stephen King’s classic, like The Shining. If you found the movie adaption creepy, wait till you read the book!

Who are your favourite authors?
So many of them! Ba Jin 巴金, Lu Xun 魯迅, Zhu Ziqing 朱自清, 鄭華娟, Stephen King, Sophie Kinsella, just to name a few.

In conclusion (eh, am I writing a thesis?!), books are a huge and crucial part of my life. Can’t live without them! So, what do you think? Wormy or not?

Now, I’m interested to know about your reading habit,
sasha, che-cheh, zewt, gina and jeremy. Have fun!

Post from: Quaint Melody

• Tagged: One Word
• Those were the days
• Singapore trip – CNY lion dance part 1
• Headless chicken on the run.
• A song for you

1. Where is your cell phone? Bedside
2. Your significant other? Livingroom
3. Your hair? Black
4. Your mother? Cool
5. Your father? Great
6. Your favorite thing? Photos
7. Your dream last night? Sleep
8 Your favorite drink? Ribena
9. Your dream/goal? Happy
10. The room you’re in? Study
11. Your hobby? Photography
12. Your fear? illness
13. Where do you want to be in 6 year? Parenthood
14. What you’re not? Insincere
15. Muffins? No
16. One of your wish list items? Durian (what?! I really miss it!)
17. Where you grew up? Johor
18. The last thing you did? Reading
19. What are you wearing? PJs
20. Favorite gadget? Camera
21. Your pets? Nil
22. Your computer? Mac Pro
23. Your mood? Happy
24. Missing someone? Yes
25. Your car? Nope
26. Something you’re not wearing? Tutu
27. Favorite store? Early Settler
28. Like someone? Yes
29. Your favorite color? Rainbow
30. When is the last time you laughed? Yesterday
31. Last time you cried? unsure

You three are tagged: rimus, shionge, uncle suituapui
Have fun!

Post from: Quaint Melody

• Bookworm in da house
• There she goes again…
• I’ve been tagged!
• Big happiness comes in a small way.
• Seek for the perfect chair

IF YOU WANT A HIGHER TECHNORATI RATING – TELL ME! GET ON BOARD!

It’s easy and worth it. If you want to move up in Technorati there are 2 ways to get there: gaining massive amounts of links to you from other blogs, or getting the most favourites. One thing you can do is get lots of favourites who favourite you in return! Before you start you may want to grab this supercool autofave program from Eng Tech. All the people who have favourited you, this automatically favourites them in return. No more excuses for not returning the favour! Automatic Technorati Fave program the coolest program ever! Finds fans that have favorited you and automatically favorites them!

grab the program here [2.4MB].

(Reword the following paragraph a little. The Janice link should be changed to link to who you got this from {me CC}. Move the 5 new faves (one is you) to old faves below Gary Lee. Add 5 new people to new faves. Each name linked to their blog, and Fave the site is the link on their technorati fave widget on their site. AND, name THE WHOLE POST DIFFERENT FROM MINE!) The time has come for me to get up on the Technorati Fave Train. I was added to the Technorati Fave Train by Monkey Wong. The Train was started at Gary Lee.

So, do you want to ride the train?

Here are the rules:
1. Write a short introduction paragraph about what how you found the list and include a link to the blog that referred you to the list.
2. COPY the Rules and ENTIRE List below and post it to your blog. To avoid duplicate content and increase the amount of keywords your site can accessible for, go ahead and change the titles of the blog.
Just don’t change the links of the blog.
3. Take “My New Faves” and move them into the “The Original Faves” list.
4. Add at least 3 Blogs that you’ve just added to your Technorati Favorites to the “My New Faves” section. Remember to also add the “Fave Me” link next to your new blogs (i.e.
http://technorati.com/faves?add=http://www.yourdomain.com)
5. Add Everyone on this list to your Technorati Favorites List by clicking on “Fave the Site.” (Please FAVE EVERYONE on the List prior to posting the list or a Kitten will Die Alone in a Dark Alley Tonight).
Those who want good karma will fave you back. If not, you will for sure get the benefits of faves from the bloggers who continue this list after you.

My New Faves
Huei – Fave the Site
lasilasi – Fave the Site
mott – Fave the Site
Fattien – Fave the Site
Kenny Ng – Fave the Site

The Original Faves
Gary Lee – Fave the Site *
Nastasshea – Fave the Site
BabyFiona – Fave the Site
Quaintmelody – Fave the Site
JerryLee – Fave the Site
Criz Lai – Fave the Site
BokJae – Fave the Site
Lili – Fave the Site
Monkey Wong – Fave the Site
Dani – Fave the Site
Endoh – Fave the Site
Amber – Fave the Site
Mariuca – Fave the Site
JeanChia – Fave the Site
Janice - Fave the Site
Bobby Revell – Fave the Site
Wonder Woman – Fave the Site
Steve Olson – Fave the Site
BlogoSquare – Fave the Site
Dosh Dosh – Fave the Site
Nate Whitehill – Fave the Site
Ms. Danielle – Fave the Site
Jeff Kee – Fave the Site
Scribble on the Wall – Fave the Site
Jimi Morrisons Head – Fave the Site
Jon Lee – Fave the Site
SiteLogic – Fave the Site
Julies Journal – Fave the Site
Tea & Slippers – Fave the Site
Pencil Thin – Fave the Site
Garry Conn – Fave the Site
Stephen Fung – Fave the Site
eWritings – Fave the Site
Mommy’s Getaway – Fave the Site
GR8 Egypt – Fave the Site
Divya Uttam – Fave the Site
Sean Dinner – Fave the Site
O Salepito – Fave the Site
Kyle Beabo – Fave the Site
Six Degrees of Inspiration – Fave the Site
Randa Clay Design – Fave the Site
Failure is the key to success – Fave the Site
Tech Bold – Fave the Site **

* – Train Engineer
** – Last Wagon

***End Copying Here***

Post from: Quaint Melody

• Alexa Redirect Link Train.
• Make money from money4blogs.
• Linky love
• Blog-hopping
• The Z-list.

Here’s one, tagged by KC ages ago.

8 random facts and habits.

1. I love to tidy up and decorate my home. A tidy and well-organised house gives a sense of order I need to keep me sane.
2. I was bitten by a dog when I was 11. The incident left a small faint scar on my upper thigh.
3. I love horror, triller, crime genres in movies, tv series and books. Anything dark, including dark comedies. My favourite of all time is Six Feet Under. It’s the only series that truly touches my heart and in my opinion, showcased the best moments on TV.



4. I have an ultra-active mind, and although I’m sharing and warm in nature, I don’t share all my thoughts with others and doesn’t show my sorrow easily.
5. I don’t enjoy clubbing that much. I enjoy staying at home more when I’m free.
6. I can get pretty paranoid about things.
7. I love eggs with all my passion. (ever since I was a baby according to my mum.)
8. I hate it when people eat potato chips in cinema, or make any noises for that matter. I feel an uncontrollably urge to strangle those who do. I think they should be heavily punished and banned from the cinema, forever.

OK, I know I’m supposed to tag 8 people, but I’m pretty sure most people have done this one, so I’m not going to tag anyone this time.

tag random facts

Post from: Quaint Melody

• What a wonderful world
• How’s life in NZ?
• Ridiculous bin thief.
• Warning: yellow creatures roaming town
• Of love and broken hearts

1. Write a short paragraph at the beginning of your post and link back to the blog that put you on the list in the paragraph. This isn’t a suggestion. You need to break up the duplicate content. Someone took the time to add you so the least you can do is give them an extra link back.

2. Copy the list of originals below COMPLETELY and add it to your blog. If you would like a different keyword for your blog then change it when you do your post and it should pass to most blogs with that keyword.

3. Take the adds from the blog that added you and place them in the ‘Originals’ list.

4. Add at least 1 new blog that you KNOW is using the DO FOLLOW plugin to the list in the ‘My Adds’ section. (Add no more than 5!) Let the people you’ve added know, so that they can keep the list going!

My adds:
Kok
Shionge
Judy

Originals:
Paris Beaverbanks
Narrowband
Chinneeq
Giddy Tiger
Rabbit
Huei
Rinnah
Simple America
Niceheart
Ethel
Sanna
The Queer Chef
Shoshana
Leah
Gina
Haze
Ghee
Neng aka Sirena
Angelo
Ju aka The Border aka Juana of Femjo
Tina
Keep the Faith
jsonvlog
Suncoast Scribe
Blogging Kenneth
My 2 Centavos Worth
Manila Mom
3 Dogs, 3 Pigs and A Family
Cafe Romanza
Earn Global
Credit Ability
Macuha.com
Flee the Cube
Smart Wealthy Rich
MomReviews.net
Fellow Eskimo
Pajama Mommy
Amanita.net
WebStyle
Meredith’s Weight Loss Blog
Pink Blog
Tricia’s Musings
Ugh!!’s Greymatter Honeypot
Midlife Musings
Utterly Geek
Whatever I Feel Like
My Dandelion Patch
Surviving NJ
GeekySpeaky
Simple Kind Of Life
3DayMom
BuyMeBlog
The Hockey Dad
Narrowband
wuching

There you have it, my love for the link. Do spread the link love and help increase ranking.

Post from: Quaint Melody

• Jolly ride on the Techonorati train
• The Z-list.
• Alexa Redirect Link Train.
• Make money from money4blogs.
• Blog-hopping

1. I don’t eat tomato, especially the raw ones. The few times I tried ended in projectile vomiting. I like tomato sauce though.
2. I am superstitious about numbers. I try to avoid 4s and always try to get 8s.
3. I go straight to my computer first thing in the morning, and can sit there for hours straight before doing anything else for the day.
4. I love rainy days even though gloomy weather makes me feel blue.
5. I am more afraid of the small bugs than the big ones. Big ones I can see, but the small ones, you never know where they’ll get to. That very thought creeps me out.
6. I have a mild case of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder. There’s certain little routine in my mind that I do when there’s no one’s around.

Now that you know I’m a weirdo, don’t get in my way or I’ll weird you out! Heh.

OK, I would like to geh po the weird things about the following 5 lucky people.
wuching yenjai mott criz nonnie

Post from: Quaint Melody

• Local foreigner syndrome
• Do you want to learn a thing or two?
• Good things come in small ways
• Tenacious light
• Ugly beautiful