I have been using Photoscape software (FREE) to edit my photos (arrange few photos into grids) and post it in other websites. However, I found Picasa (FREE) to be more exciting and I am still exploring the other possibilites of making my pictures fun for viewing (plus I just need to post one photo instead of 10 photos to tell a story).

I am no expert yet but I would like to share the basics of using this software. I know there are people out there who would like to arrange their photos like me but just do not have the time to explore the steps to create them. Hence, I have created a step by step instruction on how to create one nice photo from a variety of photos. Hope this helps and when you have time, explore the programme more! :)

First download the software as shown below (http://picasa.en.softonic.com/)

Click the folder(s) containing the photos you want to choose from

Choose your photos by holding down the CTRL button on the keyboard and click using your mouse (just like how we would normally choose files or photos to copy/cut/etc)

Create your collage

Select how you would want to arrange your photos. You can choose Picture Pile, Mosaic, Grid, etc). In this post, I will be showing you examples of Picture Pile and Mosaic.

In "Picture Pile", your photos are automatically piled up together. You can re-arrange your photos anyhow you want. Choose the type of frame that you want (there are only two options apart from NO FRAME). I would have prefered if I could choose different types of frames just like Photoscape. You can also change the background colour of your page. Then click Create Collage

Edit further if you want to by adding text, or cropping or others (explore). In this example I added text.

Once finish, click "Export" to save your picture into your folder


And....VOILA!!!! A "Picture Pile" End Result!


Another example: Mosaic (To add frame for the photos, you have to edit the "grid spacing". You can also change the colour of the grid background)


And...VOILA!!! A "Mosaic" End Result!


You can always play around with the settings they have in Picasa. I have yet to explore all because I have only just started using it.


And...VOILA!!! A "Mosaic" but with different applied settings on it, End Result!


So hope you busy people out there will find this a helpful post in creating FUN FUN FUN photos in a few simple steps. Plus, ain't my little one CUTE??? :). I have always wanted to introduce my new family member here but just did not have the time. So here I introduce you to the new addition to my lovely family, little Ayden!

I have finally found a term to describe the relationship between PoPo and DJ...a term I am very familiar with with my sister when I was younger. DJ is like the "irritating" little brother PoPo never had..hehehe.

When they first met and DJ started disturbing PoPo, we thought that perhaps they are trying to determine who the more dominant one is (since both are males). As times goes by, I realised that DJ may actually be looking up to PoPo as a big brother. Few indications:-

1. Following PoPo almost everywhere he goes
2. When at the park, DJ waits for PoPo. When PoPo reaches DJ and continues walking, he will then walk beside PoPo
3. Playing on the bed: When PoPo rests, DJ rests
4. At home: Keeps looking at PoPo to see what PoPo does. When PoPo rests, he rests. When PoPo walks, he walks. BUT when PoPo seems to be doing nothing much, DJ will then disturb him as if to invite him to play.

Luckily PoPo does growl at DJ when DJ is being too clingy or too rough with him. DJ does need someone to teach him what is right and what is wrong. But PoPo sometimes gets too lazy to bother with DJ and seems to get irritated by DJ..haha.

I am the youngest among my siblings. And I do admit that among the three of us, I am the least responsible child due to the fact that I did not need to hold much responsibility when I was younger. My brother who is the eldest has always been the most sensible one among us. He makes decisions after giving it much thought. My sister always had been the one with her own opinions and is not afraid to follow them. And all I could think of when I was younger was how unfair the world is when my parents forces me to study…hahahaha. Hence, it is not a surprise that my brother and sister are much more sensible in making decisions. I really salute them for making so much effort in researching before they decide on implementing or decide on something. I am such a lazy person that I do not bother to do such thing. Lots of time, the both of them will do the research for me and I will just read the summary. It was even better if they came up with a solution for my problem :P

However when I decided to get a puppy, I did my own research for a month before deciding on what breed of dog would be suitable for me and my hubby. I continued researching on how to bring up DJ (my Mini Schnauzer) and what is acceptable and not. To me, it is an obvious decision to do these researches before getting a puppy. It is not like buying a PC or handphone, etc. You are actually buying a “life thing” which will be in your life for the next 10-15 years! Hence I thought it was normal for everyone to do what I did.

But it actually shocked me on how many people out there (same age as me or older) buys a dog without doing a single research. Many of them do not know that certain breed of dogs is not suitable for them. At times I get so angry when someone buys a dog not knowing what to do with it. They thought that everything could be trained but this is not 100% true. I get so angry till I say this “You not only have to research on which kind of dog is suitable for you. But you also have to think whether the dog will be happy in the environment you plan to bring him up in. Getting a dog just to please you is not the right thing. The dog deserves to be happy too”.

After this experience, I suddenly realized how irritating I may have been to my family…haha. I have always been the one that refuses to do any research. Well, hopefully from now on, I will make more sensible decisions..but no promises..:P

I was uploading some of DJ’s photos (old and new) into a website when I suddenly noticed how much he has changed in just a few months (look at pic above).

The first picture was when AK and I first met him at the breeders’ house. He was in a medium sized rattan basket with his brother (named T-Rex by his owner now). DJ was very curious with what was happening out of the basket that he tried to stand up against the basket wall to look at what was happening outside. AK was amused by him and that was when we decided to get him. (30 Jan 2010)

Second photo was taken on his first outing to a friends’ house where he played in her garden and had a blast, but was extremely tired after that. (6 Mac 2010)

And the last photo was taken recently in May when he went for his first Obedience Training Class. (28 March 2010)

See the difference? Miss his “puppy” look a little after seeing these photos together..hehe. But he turned out to be one handsome miniature schnauzer huh? :P

30th March 2010 marks our one year marriage anniversary and 8 years anniversary of being a couple. Truth is when I was younger; I never thought I could be with someone for that long…hahaha.

I recall the first time I saw AK. He was performing on stage, singing a Chinese song he wrote. The name of the song was “Kuai Le”. I enjoyed some of the songs performed by various students that day and one of it that got my attention was his. I bought the CD that the organization sold and actually wrote down the lyrics of AK’s song : ). I did not buy the CD just because of him of course but the more I listened to his song, the more I loved his voice. From then on I seemed to notice him more when we were in the same lecture hall. I started liking how he talked, how he laughed, how when I thought he saw me and how cute he was….hehe.

Well, lucky for me, one of my housemates knows him from a tuition class when they were in high school…and one of his housemate was in my English class. To set the record straight, I was the one who made the first move by sms-ing him :P. Anyway, to cut the story short, we went on our first date to Batu Feringghi, Penang. ..and the rest was history.

Like any other couple, we had our ups and downs. We have been through some hard times together. It did not help when the both of us had bad tempers. You can just imagine the loud arguments we had. ..so immature. I can safely say this now..we are all over that craziness although there are still the occasional arguments. All I know now is I have never been in love with my hubby so much as I am in love with him now.

Thank you dear for 8 wonderful years. Thank you for being patient with me. Thank you for learning to understand this complicated soul of mine. Thank you for loving me.

Today DJ experienced many of his “firsts”.
First Obedience Training Class
First time meeting so many dogs (previously only had a brief meet up with my parents’ dog PoPo)
First time out in the park
First time on training leash
First time at Chinese Food Court

As you can imagine, he is now out of ‘fuel’ and just resting by my side. His first class turned out better than I expected. He was quite obedient out in the park with all the distractions around him. However, he was not use to me handling him with a leash. Hence he did not really like the idea of being tied down with it.

Today’s class was mainly for DJ to learn how to Heel (walking close by me when I walk forward) and to Stop and Sit when I stop and give the Sit command. AK and I taught him how to sit at home so that was not a problem. My problem was getting him to heel. We have a lot to practice before his next class next weekend. One of the trainers did however notice something about DJ and approached me. She said that DJ showed some future potential in joining some championship competitions because most of the time during his training, he was just concentrating by looking at me (however I was concentrating on the trainer too much..haha). The trainer said that this is one of the most important traits of a dog during training. So I guess now, it is just up to me. My training method has to be good in order for DJ to unleash his full potential :)

Gambatte to the both of us!! Hehehe..








As you can see, we were both lagging behind the rest..haha. It was because DJ refused to move forward with me with the leash on him. Anyway, hope with more training, he will get used to it by next week. But doesn't he look so handsome in the first photo? :)

p/s By the way, all the photos were taken using our new camera- Sony DSC HX1




Pic courtesy of cameramoon.com and itechnews.net

I had a short but yet very meaningful skype conversation with my sister today because it was my first "typed conversation" with my nephew Matt. My nephews (Luc and Matt) just turned 3 years old a few weeks back. So far, my family and I had some video call session on Skype with them. Today Matt had to stay home with his mum because he is sick. I could not go on video call, hence I typed out what I wanted to say and my sister helped to convey my messages to Matt. Below is an extract of the conversation with my sis and Matt :). Enjoy!

Sis: Matthew at home sick today. He said he wants to say hello to Aunty Lyssa and kong kong - could not go on video call :(
Sis: hi from matttttt (matt type this with my instructions)
Me : HELOOOOOOOOO.Big kiss from Auntie Lyssa
Sis: he says he does not  like kisses...hahaha
Me : haha...blow kiss ma
Sis: no kiss (from matt)
Me : then HUGSSSSS la
Me : big bear hugs - then I gave him one icon of a bear hug
Sis: yes please (from matt)
Me : (hug)(hug)(hug)(hug)(hug)(hug) - gave Matt 6 more icons of bear hugs
Me : many many hugsss to throw away his flu
Sis: he likes the bears
Sis: he's saying they are giving cuddles and imitating the hand motion...LOL
Me : hahaha...so cuteeee
Me : tell him Auntie Lyssa will give him one bear when he comes to Msia
Sis: ;( Matt wants me to give you this face - It is a "crying" icon
Sis: I like a little bear said Matt
Sis: (hug) Now he wants the bear to cuddle you - gave me an icon of a bear hug

Isn't he just adorable? Hahaha. However, I am not too sure why he wanted to give the crying icon to me.

DJ is a mini schnauzer and some will call this kind of breed the “old man” dog because of its long moustache and eyebrows. Although DJ is just a puppy now, but my little one is a grumpy, long-winded old man at times. It is hilarious when seeing him “grumble” about something. Few examples below:-

Scene 1: After we come back home from work, he would want us to carry him so he can “complain” to us. He would make noises like soft whines and it can continue for a bit. And when I pass him to my hubby to hold him, he will continue to do his whining. As if telling us “Why you leave me alone for so long? I am so lonely you know? I am also very hungry you know…etc”…hahaha

Scene 2: DJ knows how to climb up the staircase already (knew it since the 2nd week we brought him back) but do not know how to climb back down. Hence, we have to block the staircase entrance with boxes when we are not around. However, there were many times that our little DJ finds his way through the boxes and ends up being stuck upstairs till we come back home. To avoid this from happening, we are now teaching him how to climb back down whenever he wants to. And boy, when we coax him down (without a treat), he WILL come down eventually..but not without grumbling while he does it. He will let out a soft growl and look at me and continue growling as he climb downstairs. As if telling me “Why force me to climb down when you know I do not like climbing downstairs? Why? Why? Why?”…hahahaha

That’s my little DJ for you :P

I have a friend whose mum passed away yesterday morning. Her mum was only 50+. Worst thing was it happened during her family trip overseas (after a very long time of not having one) and to top it all, it happened on the 2nd day of CNY. Normally they will not travel during CNY because her parents insisted they stay in Malaysia. This year though, they decided to change the tradition of staying in Malaysia because they could not celebrate CNY as her grandmother passed away not too long ago.

Her mum was a healthy lady. She had headache spells in the hotel and collapse into unconsciousness. Doctor said she had stroke and brain hemorrhage. Was in the hospital the whole of CNY when she finally passed away. It is a SAD SAD moment as she was so close to her mum. I have never met her mum but I recalled her mum commented that I was so cute like a little girl after seeing my photo and even wanted my friend to introduce me to her cousin. I even joked saying to my friend "Ask your mum whether she wants a god-daughter or not since she seems so fond of me". And now, I will never have the chance to meet this person.

Life is so short and unpredictable. Love the ones you have now with all your heart so you would not have any regrets when one leaves you. It is afterall the Cycle of Life.

Lets pray for her and her family to be able to go through these harsh times

Chinese New Year came on 14th Feb 2010 and left us yesterday. It is not in a joyful tone when I say that this year was one of my most tiring CNY ever. As I grow older, CNY became less and less exciting to me. When I was younger, I would get all psyched up by the thought of CNY. It was not only because it was the school holidays and the collection of angpaws. It was also the thought of meeting up with my cousins on eve and first day of CNY, traveling for visits to relative and friends' houses, eating all those delicious cookies and home cooked food, etc. I recall playing with my cousins the whole night of CNY eve till about midnight before going home and waking up in the morning to see them again for our vegetarian breakfast. Running around all sweaty and playing with firecrackers was the highlight of the eve.

As I reached my teens, CNY was also quite exciting even though there were no more running around and playing with firecrackers. At this age, I look forward to meeting up with my cousins and friends for a good chitchat and lots of laughter. This was also the time I would get to see my brother and sister longer than I normally do and the family time I had with them were also precious.

And now I am all "grown up". A working woman means lesser holiday during CNY and hence lesser time with family and friends. A wife means I not only have my own family to think about but also obliged to think about my husbands' family. Cousins and friends have also begun their "new" lives with their husbands or wives and rarely have time to meet up anymore. This year I got to meet up with some of my cousins because my parents cancelled one of our out-of-state visits. The meet-up lasted only about an hour and they had to leave for family matters. Meeting up with friends have long been a history in my social life. New Year eve dinner is not as lively as it used to be. Vegetarian breakfast on the first day is even worse..too quiet.

CNY to me now is stressful and nothing else. How I wished that during the limited holidays I have, I can choose on what I want to do instead of needing to consider so many other factors around me. If I cannot have what I had when I was younger, then I would prefer to just stay home with my family and have a very good rest before I start with my hectic working life.

I can’t wait for DJ’s last vaccination in mid-March. Currently he still needs 2 more vaccination before he is able to go out into the public or even interact with any animals. The full vaccination is supposed to boost his immune system to the maximum. For the meantime, we have to just spend the weekend in the house with him. Hence, we have limited activities that can really tire him out.

Apparently my hubby found out that there is an association full of dog owners that meet up every Saturday for hiking activities at Bukit Gasing with their dogs (small or big dogs). This would be one activity we will try out. I like hiking so would not be a problem for me (plus I really do need the exercise..hehe). My hubby on the other hand who dislikes hiking is now willing to hike because of DJ. WooHoo!! Usually if I suggest on going for a hike, he will give excuses like “tired”, “next time”, “don’t feel like it”, “lets go for a movie instead”, etc. So I should really thank DJ for this change..hehe. But we still have to see how things go when we really do join the group :)

I will be going back to my hometown this coming CNY with DJ. It is just too bad the vet discourages DJ to have any close contact with my parents’ pet dog. Would really love to see him play and interact with PoPo (3 year old Pomeranian).

FYI, it is not a BABY. Phew...now that I got that cleared out, I would like to announce to the whole world that the new addition to my family is D.J!!...our puppy.
After a few weeks of contemplating whether we should get a puppy, we finally got one after doing some research. DJ is of a miniature Schnauzer breed.
He was just a few days shy from 2.5 months when we brought him back home last weekend. I visited his breeder twice before deciding to get her miniature Schnauzer.
My hubby could not stop saying "Look at him dear, he is sooooo small la". Then I would look lovingly at DJ and then at my hubby and say "Ya lor...he is so cute and small"

We did not know what to expect from him when we brought him home. First thing we did was to make sure he is comfortable in our house and with us. Introduced him to his own "house" too. Today is the 5th day he is with us. Got very comfortable with us to an extend my hubby said he may be too attached to us :P. Followed us around the house wherever we walked. I was cooking dinner in the kitchen yesterday. Whenever I walked to the fridge to get something, he will get up from his resting position and follow me around to see what was I doing. At night, we try to wear him out so that he will be extremely tired and have a good 8 hours sleep at night. Our problem is not about us having the time or energy to do it. Our main problem is that he gets tired and takes naps after every 10-20 minutes of playtime...haha. We usually try to force him to wake up when he nap for more than 15 minutes. Most of the time it works but sometimes he sleeps like a log. It was really funny how we tried finding ways to wake him up from his nap.

DJ has started his whining and howling when he is left alone (out of our sight). Training him on this will be my biggest challenge. Second challenge will be teaching him it is not right to gnaw/bite on human's skin. So far he is doing fairly well on his pee-ing and pooping. 90% of the time he pees on the designated area and 50% of the time he poo at his designated area. I think it is a job well done for him at such a young age :).

Anyway, here is a photo of our new family member, DJ :)



p/s It is confirmed that DJ is one healthy puppy :). Had his first visit (by us) to the vet for a general health check up. The only comment from the doctor was that DJ was a little under weight but it is something we do not need to worry about. Reminded us to give him his vitamin daily and to monitor his appetite.

I usually just read these kind of "predictions" for fun...but I have a strong personal connection with this one and I have a strong feeling this will be my ultimate setback for 2010. Hope I can resolve my issues early of next year. Anyway, HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!!! :)

Year 2010 Overview
The symbol for Libra is Balance. In the next year, you'll find yourself doing even more balancing than usual; you're going to be pressed to decide if your internal sense of happiness should be the focus of life more than the outward signs of success. This may have been weighing heavily on your mind for the last several months, as far as work and the state of your love life. What you are likely to be weighing this year is a little more intangible (and a little more important) than those things. Specifically, in 2010 you'll find yourself weighing out the cost of the connections you've formed for yourself versus their actual value to you.

There's going to be a lot of pressure on you from within and without as to who you really are at heart and who you really are to those closest to you. This will be both in your personal life and at work. The natural Libra impulse is often to make peace with these kind of pressures, or negotiate your way around them. Your best bet in the next year though will be to recognize your own inherent value -- not just what you appear to be worth to others.

In the final analysis this is all good news, even if it's good news in disguise. No one is better than you at beautifying things or finding the inherent beauty in the mundane. Once you realize that you yourself are at least as shiny and pretty as any accessory -- in your heart and soul, where beauty really counts -- you'll have begun assembling a better You. Breathe through the difficult spots, and enjoy the results!

Source: http://shine.yahoo.com/astrology/libra/yearly-overview/20100101/

Recently I started listing down the invitees for my house warming coming New Year. As for my hubby and I, we agreed to have a small house warming and only invite those we are close to. However, it occurred to me I have not many close friends (the ones that I really keep in touch with). I have many friends, but not many close ones.

In my younger years, my family shifted around a lot (a total of 13 times for me!!). Therefore I never had any neighborhood friends or childhood friends. The first few years of my life was in one state, then 6 years in another then back to the first state. And now I am in another state because of work. This is just one of the reason. Another reason is (I am ashamed of admitting this) that I am one LAZY girl. Many of times I had friends inviting me for gatherings etc, but I do not want to go. I will give all kinds of excuses even though I know it would be fun. Deep down inside, I am afraid I would not have much to say at the gathering or I do not fit well with them or I do not dress right or..and the list goes on (I know, I know, I think too much). Because of me being a scare-dy cat most of the time, I loose out on being one of ANY of the "gang". But I am one lucky girl. I still have a few friends who never gave up on me :P. Some still calls me up for a chat or invite me to gatherings. Since I realised what kind of person I am previously, I will force myself to meet up with friends (sometimes it works and sometimes not..haha). After meeting up with them, I realised how much have I been missing.

Although at times I still go back to the old me, but now I will pull out the courage to invite my friends out instead. And usually things go very smoothly and all that I was worried about before never even appeared. I admit I am stupid in this sense but it is hard to shake of those feelings I had and still have in me.

Anyway, I would like to take this opportunity to thank those friends who never gave up on me even though I 'ffk' many times before. Don't give up on me and I will try my very best to change my ways :P

P/s Oh...and to my new friends, just ignore what you read here and just continue to be my friend..hahaha. I am trying to change, remember?? Give la chance...hehe

Christmas is drawing near. I am neither a Christian nor a Catholic, but out all of the Malaysian celebrations, I love Christmas the most. Compared to Chinese New Year, Deepavali and Hari Raya songs, Christmas songs are the BEST. It seems to lighten up your mood and suck you into the occasion even if you are not celebrating it. The other celebrations for me is too loud, too much work, too much of everything..and it does not help that most of their songs are unpleasant to my ears. Another thing I love about Christmas is their decorations. It makes me happy and excited just seeing the decorated Christmas tree.

I never really celebrated Christmas. At most, I join my cousins for mass on the eve of Christmas and visit them for lunch on the first day. But this was years ago. This year, my parents and brother will be coming down to my place for Christmas. I think like all celebrations, Christmas is all about FAMILY. I wish my sister will be here too but she is just too far away. At least this year I get to spend Christmas with my hubby, my parents and my brother in my new HOME. It is going to be a WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS!!

TO EVERYONE: HAVE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Love,

Lyssa and hubby

So...WOW...below here will most likely be the last photos I will be updating before I officially move into my house this weekend. I have my hubby to thank, for his great effort on making our house as close to a HOME as possible :). Thanks to his patience and hard work throughout the two weeks I am away. Thank you dear...big MUAKSSSSS for you!! :) :)

From my last update, we have progressed into the installation of our electrical appliances and the delivery of all of our furniture.

We still have a few more things to settle before we shift in. Some touch up here and there, some appliances to install, some stuff to buy etc. One BIG problem that occurred was the scratches made on the parquet by everyone that did any type of work upstairs..sigh. Should have been more careful but what was done cannot be reversed. Hence, we had to hire people to polish and shellec the whole of upstairs and the staircase for RM1000!!!..something that we did not budget for.

Anyway, here are the progress photos;

View of living hall from our dining area (sorry about the rotation of the photo.could not fix it :P)

Close-up photo of TV cabinet

View of Dining Room from Living Hall

Dry Kitchen

Wet Kitchen (Cooking Area)

Wet Kitchen (Washing Area)

Family Hall

Master Room Built-In wardrobe

The new polished and shellecked staircase

As I recall, the issue of buying pirated or original CDs or DVDs have been a topic of discussion with my brother long time ago (around 6-8 years ago). My brother has always been a person who will only buy originals as a respect to the artists involved. I, for one cannot afford to buy originals. However, I did mention to him that I will buy originals once I start working.

(note: I did have some originals at that time...but just a few..just one or two of my favourite korean drama series :P)

So, what really happened when I started working? I still hardly buy originals as I did not think it was worth my money (and I have so many other things on my mind such as clothes, shoes, food, haha). This changed quite drastically this year, when my hubby started buying quite a number of original CDs. As for DVDs, he will buy the originals if it is on sale (movies, animes, etc). Hence, I follow suit..hehe. The Mariah Carey CD I bought was the latest original CD added to our collection (it was on special priced item though...RM29.90). As for DVDs...well, we are cinema-goers...so it is alright la..hehe.

My say on this is that if YOU can afford to buy originals, PLEASE to go ahead. It is really important that we do this IF we still want to enjoy the beautiful music and movies created by these artists. But if you are not that well-off, you can just save up to buy one or two originals of your favourite artist/movie. You will then notice the satisfaction feeling welling up in your body and hence will then make an effort to buy originals again..and again...and again :) :) :)