Corcovado?

Quiet thoughts and quiet dreams
Quiet walks by quiet streams
And a window that looks out on the mountains and the sea
Oh, how lovely

Made A List. Checked It Twice

Camera... checked.
Sunnies... checked.
Books... checked.
Shirts, shorts, flip flops... checked.
Swimgear and sunblock... checked.
Air ticket... checked.

I'm all packed, all set, all ready to go for my little island escape! Finally get to go on a real seaside vacation (no beach though, but I guess it's close enough). Will be flying on a fokker, so, fingers crossed, let there be no flight delays.

In any case, I'm feeling all happy, smiley and gay! I've finished working for the year, which is a great feeling (even if there's only a week left in the year); my new television's here, spurring a whole redecorating frenzy (not quite done yet, but almost); and I'm gonna be jingling all the way to the new year!

So will I be naughty or nice?

Considering I'll be with family it'll be pretty much be a PG thing. But, one never knows, does one?

Keep my fingers crossed on that as well ;-)

Merry Christmas, all! Jingle all 'em bells!

Happiness Is A Warm Waffle

Ecstasy, on the other hand, is a crisp, warm waffle, topped with a scoop of Jamoca Almond Fudge (my second favourite flavour, next to Peanut Butter Chocolate), and a scoop of the sweet but perfectly fitting Maple Walnut, sprinkled with nuts, drizzled with maple syrup and chocolate fudge sauce, and served with walnuts and cream on the side.

Honestly, this has got to be way more delectable than a quintent of Salma Hayeks gyrating away in short, tight nurses' uniforms, singing "Bang, Bang, Shoot, Shoot"

Granted, I'm neither straight nor lesbo, but still, this is one fantasy you can actually have. Like, for real.


A little piece of heaven - now available for just under RM20 at Café Baskin Robbins.

Absolut Dreamin

Finally. I've gotten hold of the book I've been trying to get for about two months now. Sure I could have bought it over at Borders since the beginning of the month but it's Kinokuniya that's offering it at a cool 30% discount. And of course, the stocks in Kinokuniya get snapped up within a day they hit the shelves. Every single time. Despite the hefty three-figure price tag!

I think I've been doing too well a job in promoting Mr. Gaiman's work, seriously.

But the good people at Kinokuniya called me up yesterday morning to tell me the stock's arrived, and they were nice enough to hold a copy for me. Which was just as well, because when I got to the store last night, there wasn't a single copy of it left on the shelves.

So just what book's been selling like hot cakes? None other than The Absolute Sandman Volume 2, collecting issues 21 to 39 of the acclaimed The Sandman series from Vertigo, with a bunch of bonus materials thrown in, all in heavy, encyclopedia-like hardcover.


I just have to make sure I don't literally drool over the pages.

And of course, it's totally gratifying to get to the counter and see the cashier punch in a RM100 discount. Like, omg, this must be the best deal ever!

Well, that's two down and two more to go.

December Dealing

Time really flies when you're busy as a bee. It's already nearing the middle of December? Heck, how did the whole damn year go by just like that?

It was only last weekend when I realised the year-end sales were in full swing. Funny thing is, year-end sales for most people is about gifts and clothes and shoes and bags. Somehow I've managed to gloss over that pretty much (although I did spontaneously buy a pair of shoes last week, but that's something I'd do even on a non-sales period). Instead, I found myself hunting for things with three-figure price tags, if not four. After discounts.

Well, I honestly couldn't watch Wingedman populating his new pad prettily without being drawn into the whole "let's see how I can do up my place a little more" routine, could I?

Granted, my place justifiably needs a lot more doing up. My store room's still a junkyard and my kitchen... well, let's just say it isn't quite one still. But my focus is currently on my almost-but-not-quite complete living spaces.

Thankfully, I've been budgeting for a new TV these last several months. Yes, it's finally time to upgrade from my almost portable 14" mini that's been with me for 8 faithful years (even surviving that break-in, which is why I say it's almost portable). After checking out the price difference between picture-frame-perfect LCD TV's and the modern slim-design (but still bulky) CRT TV's, I figured the RM2,000 I'd save could go into my kitchen budget.

A perfectly good plan, until I realised that slim as it may be, a 29" CRT needs more serious furniture than the plywood DIY cabinets I've been using as a TV console. Oh well, at least I can still get a branded CRT (even one that pretends to be an LCD TV, at least on the face) and a branded TV cabinet, all for less than the cost of a 32" LCD TV. I could save even more I guess, but I've looked at cheaper options for both the TV and the TV cabinet, and I gotta say none of them tickles me gonads.

Looks like it's gonna be another long while more before I finally do up my kitchen. Or my store room.

Sigh, home ownership = no money in the bank.

Here's hoping for enough bonus this year to help cover the bills, what with the personal and car insurances due, the TV and cabinet I'm getting, the other stuff I'm wanting to get, and the all-in-one printer I just got (damn PC Fair!).

Oh, and that little beach holiday I'll be having to wrap up an already amazing year :-)

Of Food, Fun and Friends

Gathering around tables is something most people do. Whether it is over dinner or over a round of drinks, the table has always been a place for conversation and company. Unsurprisingly, I've been doing the dinner/drinks rounds with various friends over the last week or two. I've been constantly away for so long that I'm losing track of what's what and who's doing who, so it was good to finally be back for a longer period of time.

So around I went, though they were all spontaneous gatherings. From fine dining with the who's-whos of blogging (or rather, more appropriately, who-weres) at Alexis, to sinful dining at Delicious; from dai chow at Kota Damansara, to teh halia in Puchong and Bukit Jalil; it's been seriously fun. And fattening.

But heck, it's all in the name of compadre-ship.

In the end, I figured for once, I'd do the catching up in the comfort of my own home. It's about time to polish up my rusty culinary skills, anyway. So I whipped up a simple meal in my simple kitchen, and simply called some people over for a simple dinner.

No, I didn't plan a party, nor was I doing a do. It was, for all intents and purposes, instant noodles and canned tuna. With a side of mushrooms. And of course, fruit salad for desert, while we watched High School Musical on my 14" TV (gawd, I really need to get a much bigger one).

The simple things in life can be nice, so long as there's good company :-)

Thanks to Slim and Kevin for bringing drinks, and to Chris and 38kia for doing the dishes!

A Salad, Stolen

Once upon a time, I made a salad. No, not the kind meant for rabbits. A fruit salad. Of fruits, for... fruits.

Easiest dish I ever made, and as it turned out, it was a crowd pleaser at the pot luck where I had presented it. That was quite a while back, and I hear my salad's been making the pot luck rounds. Without me.

Humph. That's what I get for coming up with something that's easier to make than stewed pork and cabbages (and much healthier to eat too!). Okay, admittedly it wasn't quite an original idea. I simply picked up the idea from a Paddy's Pancakes dessert dish and did a drastic simplification of it.

Anyway, I figured I shouldn't keep something so simple and scrumptious all to myself (and who knows how many others who've been having it without me), so here the recipe for anyone who just needs to make something without much effort.


The what:

canned peaches in syrup
fresh strawberries
ripe bananas
roasted peanuts, unsalted

The how:
Drain syrup off the peaches.
Dice the peaches, strawberries and bananas into bite-sized chunks.
Crush the peanuts.
Toss everything together.

Voila! Shiong's Simply Summer Salad is served.

If it's too peasanty for you, you could always glam it up by substituting the peanuts with pine nuts, add some dollar pancakes, throw in some boys 'n berries with whipped cream on top, or perhaps sin it up with a scoop of ice cream...

Did I say boys 'n berries? Oops. I meant boysenberries. Haha, silly me...

Anyway, there's leftovers from the batch I made for dessert tonight, so looks like I'll be having a healthy, fruity breakfast tomorrow.

Well, healthy, if I can stop myself from dumping on dollops of the choc/vanilla ice cream that's in my freezer. But still fruity, nevertheless.

Sunday

But things just get so crazy, living life gets hard to do
And I would gladly hit the road, get up and go, if I knew
That someday it would lead me back to you
That someday it would lead me back to you
Maroon 5 : Sunday Morning

It's been a while since I spent a day like this. A lazy Sunday, staying in, lounging on my sofa the whole day long.

My sofa, my place.

No hotels.
No work.
No gym.
No braving traffic and window shopping.
No cafes with wifi and cholesterol-laden drinks.

Just some games of Scrabulous, and countless turns at Bogglific (my latest obsession), and catching up on episodes of Samurai Champloo.

Ah, it does feel good to be at home.

In A State Of Gluttony

It seems not a month goes by without me blogging at least once about what I've been eating and how much rounder I get because of it. It's not quite rightly a rant, since I am enjoying the food too much and cannot be bothered to (a) eat less; and/or (b) exercise more. But it won't stop me from blaming a job that keeps me away so much that going to the gym is most inconvenient, whereas eating is way too convenient. Hehe.

So yeah, I've been (over)indulging in repeat servings of all sorts of local and national delicacies these past number of months. Char kueh tiao lah, KFC lah, nasi lemak lah, chicken chop, roast duck, even belacan fried chicken, okay! The list just goes on and on. Then on some more.

And it doesn't help to have buffet breakfast at the hotel I've been staying in recently. Damn my small-town-Chinese-family upbringing for programming me to waste not food, and to maximise the value of a meal already paid for (especially when I'm not the one paying for it).

I won't blame you for thinking I'm a blimp by now. Heck, I already feel like one. Thankfully, my friends have courteously refrained from calling me one.

At least, not to my face, anyway

Times like this, I just wish a bubble belly is about as sexy as a bubble butt. Obviously it isn't, so I'll just resign myself to being a glutton (and be damn proud of it!).



Anyway, a l'il fat monkey had been urging me to go do lunch at this place he had found on a trip to Penang earlier this year - a shop called Restaurant Minah, tucked away in a place called Gelugor. Now, this place is rather out of the way for me to have lunch. But find the time I did, and last week, I finally made the trip across the bridge to check out what the monkey had been raving about.

Boy, was the monkey right on the money about the yum-factor of this minah's servings. The food there really was sedap-sedap belaka (ie, very yummy). There's what I had, up in the main pic.

The kerabu was nice enough, though kerabu (sort of a Malay-style salad) tastes more or less the same everywhere, the importance being the freshness of the ingredients. The ikan bakar (grilled fish) stuffed with sambal, a dish I've always enjoyed, was pretty good as well. They were seriously generous with the sambal stuffing, giving this one plus points.

What really got me hooked, however, was the chicken kurma. This dish was really delicious - the meat was succulent and had thoroughly absorbed the flavor of the kurma spices. The kuah (gravy), surprisingly, was extremely mild, compared to the meat. Now, I normally favor more flavorful gravies but I have to say this one really worked. The gravy was much thicker than the usual kurma sold elsewhere, so it clings well to the steamed rice. The mild flavor lent the rice a fragrance without overpowering the taste of the other dishes accompanying the meal. Slurp!

All in all, a satisying meal, worth the trip I had made (two trips, actually - the first time I went, it was closed) just to try it out. Truly, madly, deeply sedap!

Memorable Musical Moments

Ah, The Man has tagged me with yet another meme. Well, I'm not saying I'm not doing it but, erm... it's going into my KIV tray. Indefinitely :P

Meanwhile, since my last post, musicals have been playing in my head. So I'm gonna pull out a few of the more memorable (as far as I'm concerned) scenes to share. Haven't caught as many theatre musicals as I would have liked, so I'm gonna throw in some from the movies too.

Belle (Beauty And The Beast)/Good Morning Baltimore (Hairspray)
"There goes the baker with his tray, like always, the same old bread and rolls to sell. Every morning just the same, since the morning we came to this poor provincial town"
"Good morning Baltimore, there's the flasher who lives next door, there's the bum on his bar room stool, they wish me luck on the way to school"

These two share a spot, since they're so similar. Perky girl wakes up in the morning and goes out, all bubbly, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, and sings her hellos to every fucking person on the street.

How fun!

Peron's Latest Flame (Evita)
"We have declined to an all-time low, tarts have become the set to know"

The one I watched was the movie (actually a feature-length MTV) starring Maddy. Aside from the superbly bitchy lyrics, this particular scene stands out in my memory thanks to that full-frontal shot of strapping, young, well-endowed army lads showering. Well, yes, they were clad in towels. But those towels were small. And white. And wet.

Very wet.

With One Look (Sunset Boulevard)
"To my people in the dark, still out there in the dark"

With the lights off, and Norma Desmond singing directly to the audience, you just know she's singing to you, for you. All of us, sitting out there in the dark.

Best tribute to the audience ever!

Overture (Phantom Of The Opera)
Tuh... tuh tuh tuh tuh tuh...

Like, so there are no lyrics. Just that famous Phantom pipe organ piece. But who's listening to lyrics, when the chandelier lights up and floats out and up above the audience, as the stage transforms before your very eyes into the Paris Opera.

Sheer theatrical magic, and an unmatched opening!

Finale (Les Mis)
"To love another person is to see the face of God"

Starting off slow, with Valjean and his regrets, he is soon joined by whine and whinier, erm... Cosette and Marius. My favorite part's where the spirits of Fantine and Eponine sing him to death. In perfect harmony, mind. Then the entire cast appears, marching behind a gauze curtain to close the show with Do You Hear The People Sing.

Revisiting the major musical themes and then bringing the entire cast on stage to render a rousing finale. What a way to end a brilliant show!

Life In The Wastelands

Don't you fret, M'sieur Marius, I don't feel any pain
A little fall of rain can hardly hurt me now
You're here, that's all I need to know
And you will keep me safe, and you will keep me close
And rain will make the flowers...
A Little Fall Of Rain (from Les Miserables)

It's just not funny. Project's dragging way past the due date and I've pretty much been stuck in this provincial town for almost half a year now. Sigh.


Alright, so it could be worse. At least this provincial town's got malls and wired coffee. And it's only a bridge away from a reasonably sized city. And oh, time does go by a little more quickly when you're cracking your pretty head over a game of Scrabulous. Or two. Or three. Or... a dozen.

In any case there's been time enough in my hands to get blogging a little more than usual, not to mention opportunities to get snaphappy. If you're wondering just what there is to shoot in the desolation of a wastewater treatment plant, well, not much. But, as they more or less said in Jurassic Park, life finds a way.


Wastewater treatment plants aren't just about getting the water clean enough to discharge out into the rivers and seas. Large enough plants actually form ecosystems of their own. I remember once, as a student, I visited Melbourne's Western Treatment Plant. Sure, there were places that stunk of rotting eggs. It's part of the process. What really impressed me was that, by the time the treatment reached the final stages, you'd find a wetland environment serving as haven for local and migratory birds.


In a nutshell, treating wastewater produces microbes, which go on to become a rich food source for higher organisms. Worms thrive, plants propagate, insects flourish. With enough of these around, even fish and birds will come along for the feast. And there we have it, a living habitat, generated from waste.


Indeed, rain will make the flowers grow.

Coffee, Tea or Meme?

Aduhai, four memes in one month? Sadistic-nya... This fellow ah, I tell you... meme-happy lah.

So I started the month with one, now I kena end the month with one too. Without further ado, let's roll:

Tissue or handkerchief?
Tissues. Handkerchiefs are decidedly unglam and are potential biohazardous materials. Tissues don't save trees though, so maybe I might one day release a designer 'kerchief that says "I AM NOT A TISSUE PAPER".

Shoes or sneakers?
Sneakers. Casual and comfortable is how I like to walk.

Collar-shirt or T-shirt?
Like both, though these days I tend towards collared tees. Can't fight time so may as well age gracefully.

Brief or boxer?
Briefs most of the time. Boxers for sleeping. Occasionally wear my 'nice' boxers out.

Pants or khakis?
Prefer khakis to pants but hey, a guy needs to maintain a variety in his closet, no? Did I say closet? I meant wardrobe.

Fast food or restaurant/kopitiam?
Don't get the restaurant/kopitiam thing. Like, restaurants? and kopitiams? belong to completely different categories? Doesn't matter though, because I like everything from fast food joints to cafes, from traditional kopitiams to pricier restaurants, even from the roadside warong to the Ikea canteen, I'd patronise them all. Glutton or gourmet, as I long as I get my grub.

Horror or fantasy movie?
Horror's fine but fantasy's my genre of choice in everything.

Genki Sushi or Sushi King?
Try Sakae.

Pavilion or The Gardens?
Pavillion. Posh, parking's less of a hassle, and I can always walk across to Bintang Walk and all the other malls.

And for a month-end bonus, I'll throw in one more that's not in the original meme, since it's quite possibly one of the most important lifestyle choices one makes upon reaching adulthood:

My toilet paper rolls OVER, not under.

Happy Halloween!

Dust, Anyone? Dust?

How many miles to Babylon?
Three-score miles and ten.
Can I get there by candle-light?
Yes, there and back again.
If your heels are nimble and light,
You will get there by candle-light.

Nursery Rhyme

Finally caught Stardust in all it's big screen splendour. I've been waiting for the movie to arrive on our shores for so long. So very long, indeed.

I must admit, I had my reservations about the inevitable deviations the movie would make from the original Neil Gaiman/Charles Vess graphic novel that I love so much. Having now seen it, I can safely say that it wasn't as bad as I had feared it would be. No, siree. Not at all.

It was worse.

Take a charming modern fairy tale from one of the most acclaimed writers of the day and give it the Hollywood treatment, and what do you get? A farce.

Campy performances, crude humour, pointless action sequences, not-so-impressive special effects, angsty love, subtle lesbianistic tensions, not-so-subtle gay-gay-gay overtures, and a storyline that got sidelined by the need to keep the audience entertained, as only the Americans would want to be entertained, ie. with campy performances, crude humour, pointless action sequences, et cetera, et cetera.

They might as well throw in a Titanic moment, so cheesy it was. Oh, wait. They did!

Tristan screams, "I'm the king of the world!", not knowing words like these could earn him an untimely death, courtesy of murderous megalomaniac heirs to the kingdom.

Okay, it was rather funny and not too bad for a piece of fluff. But at the same time, my eyes just couldn't stop rolling and rolling. And rolling.

Guess I'm just totally anal when it comes to seeing a story I dearly love completely stripped of its original spirit.

When they glossed over the back story covering the little adventure had by Dunstan Thorn (protagonist Tristan's father) back when he was young and foolish, resulting in the arrival of Tristan, it was kind of groan inducing for me, but understandable. The focus was, after all, on Tristan's adventures, so this little 'creative license' they took was quite forgiveable. Halfway through the movie, however, the scriptwriters really began to let loose their lesser imaginations and turned Gaiman's beautifully crafted tale into a monstrous mockery. By the end of the movie, we were watching a completely different story altogether. Ah, the Midas touch of Hollywood - where a quiet, dignified ending would be sabotaged into a silly showdown culminating in a glitzy, gaudy, happy ever after.

*retches

Excuse me.

On the plus side, there really is a lot of star-spotting in this movie. Biggest stars, of course, being Michelle Pfeiffer and Robert de Niro, both demanding lots of screen time just to have a good time. They really had fun with their roles and it showed.

Luscious Mz. Pfeiffer seeks for something a little stronger than botox.

Sinister Robbie wants very much to be Hitler. Or was it Evita?

Somehow, the Brit stars got relegated to bit parts in the show. I didn't even recognise Rupert Everett as Secundus. Of course, he did spend most of the show being semi-transparent and with half his face flattened. And Ricky Gervais of The Office got paid for doing nothing much.

At least we did get a rather yummy hero. Not exactly a hunk, but he's got the kind of dorky adorableness that grows on you.

Charlie Cox trysting with his role as Tristan

Much hotter eye-candy appear in the movie too. Unfortunately, they've got severely limited screen time.

Here's the hawt Henry Cavill (Humphrey) and debonair Ben Barnes (Young Dunstan Thorn)

There you have it. A nice little movie for when you have nothing better to watch. And these days, in the local cinemas, there really isn't much that's better to watch despite everything I had just said. You may actually like the movie for all it's Hollywoodiac formula, especially if you haven't read the book. Heck, I know a couple of guys who loved the movie even though they had read the book before hand! To each his own, I suppose.

For me though, the magic of this Stardust has turned out to be nothing more than a handful of cheap glitter.

A Letter

Baby,

Seems like everywhere I go, I see you. From your eyes, your smile... it's like I breathe you. Helplessly, I reminisce. Don't want to compare nobody to you

Know that I can't get over you, cos everything I see is you. And I don't want no substitute. Baby, I swear it's... it's.... it's like I've heard it all before.

I've heard it all before?

I've heard it all before!

It's a glitch in the matrix.

All Rise

Good morning? This is J? bringing you the traffic report? The situation? in the valley is bad? as usual? Fucking Highway is at a crawl? along the whole stretch? while slow moving traffic? is reported at kilometres? 11 to 17? on the North Expressway.

In the city? there's been an accident reported? at Cat Street near the Citihall intersection? If you're headed in that direction? you might want to take an alternative route? or just stop somewhere for teh tarik? cos traffic there is at a standstill for the last hour? and it doesn't look like it's going to clear for awhile.

Meanwhile? up in the north? the bridge is experiencing heavy traffic? Down south? traffic is backed up? from neighbouring island? all the way to the immigration.

Like, hello? What's wrong with the reading? Seems like it's a new fad to replace every conceivable pause and punctuation with a question mark these days,with perhaps, the exception at the end of a paragraph where you can actually hear a full stop. I'm hearing it too many times on the radio. On one channel it's a news reader, on another channel it's a DJ. It would be quite funny if it weren't so bloody irritating.

It's bad enough that there are people who go on the airwaves speaking like this. On a regular basis! No, what's more horrifying? Is that producers? And station managers? They actually approved these people to be put on air? Like, oh my gawd?

How unfabulous.

You.Complete.Meme.

What goes around comes back around, and I suppose it's no surprise when I tagged people with one meme, I'd get tagged back myself. Like, it's meme season or something here in bloggaland. Haven't done complete-the-sentence assignments in a while. Wonder how many marks I'd get if this was an English paper.

1. I've come to realise that my last kiss was a kiss goodbye.

2. I am listening to a whole lot of shooting and violent explosions while ah bengs scream out to each other. And Akon's whining on a neighbouring terminal. Net cafes are so damn unfabulous.

3. I talk very little. Sometimes, I'd open my mouth only to sip on my drink while other people chatter away. I've been known to bring Will with me when meeting new people and let him do the talking while I just sit and smile and look pretty.

4. I love off days.

5. My best friends are the ones who have been there for me, sometimes without even my asking for it.

6. My car is big, black, cute and compact. But very the makan minyak.

7. My love life is on a sabbatical.

8. I hate it when people ask me to buy stuff or donate money right out of nowhere. Especially when I'm having a meal.

9. Love is what's left at the end of falling in love, when you've wound up lying bruised and broken on the cold, hard ground of reality; and he's right there beside you, holding your hand. Still.

10. Marriage is never quite what you sign yourself up for. Actually, that goes for any relationship.

11. Somewhere, someone is thinking of me.

12. I'm always noisy. But only in my head.

13. I have a secret cheesy crush on Liulian Flo!

14. My cell phone is my presence offline, as my laptop is my presence online. As to bodily presence, I have little of that :P

15. When I wake up in the morning, I always snuggle in bed for a little while longer.

16. When I go to bed at night, I turn off the lights. Which, incidentally, is something I don't do when I go to bed during the day.

17. Right now I am thinking about babies.

18. Babies are, thankfully, someone else's problem.

19. I get on MySpace, not. Having everything on one MySpace account is simply too convenient. For other people. Like, stalkers, for example.

20. Today I woke up in a hotel room.

21. Tonight I will probably watch some tv or a dvd while munching on something fat.

22. Tomorrow I will go home!

23. I really want to pee.

24. Someone that will most likely repost this is someone who does memes without being asked to.

Time for a toilet break!

Balik Kalompor... Ohh, Balik Kalompor...

Hooray for holidays. While our muslim friends balik kampung, I myself balik ke Kalompor (as KL is known in Hokkien) for a weekend of catching up with friends. And what a long and lovely weekend to do catching up in.

Sure it rained like mad every afternoon, but tak apalah. Not like we were going picnicking in the gardens or anything. Hanging out in KL is pretty much a mall affair.

So, after being ketinggalan zaman for a while, I finally got to make my pilgrimage to the spanking new malls in town - Pavilion and The Gardens. Not gonna say much other than that the glamour of Pavilion was kinda brought screechingly down to the ground by all the uncles and aunties who must have decided to take advantage of the holidays to step out of their kampung baru cinas to visit the big city. And all the hunky gay men must have left the country for an early Songkran.

I liked the concept of The Gardens. Well, I liked the colour scheme anyway (earthy shades of green and brown being so me). But the execution of the idea left a lot wanting. And given the horrendously infamous location at Midvalley (good luck finding parking, that's if you actually make it through the traffic snarl outside), I'd need a real good reason to go back there anytime soon.

Guess it's still The Curve that remains as the hangout place to beat. It's got a gym, it's got cafes, it's got Borders (still no Groo, though) and it's got plenty of dining choices - enough to keep me happily occupied, spending my off-days like a tai tai. And, if all else fails, there is always Ikea.

Thanks to wingedman and qwazymonkey, and all my other friends for their time and their lovely company. Dinner at Jaq+Keith's was beautiful, as always. And, amidst all the reunion-ing, it was nice to manage getting to know a few new friends as well.

Well, tai tai days are over, and it's back to the grind for me now. At least I've managed to destress quite a bit and started work today feeling rather fresher than I've been for some time.

Being home really is good for the soul. Even if it's just for five days.

Be A Man. Do The Right Ting!

Sometimes I wish I lived in the good old days, when life was simple. Back in the times when trees were abundant and it wouldn't matter if the day was hot because nubile young men would be out and about with nothing but their sarongs on.

Alas, those days have long gone. Trees have given way to concrete blocks and we've now evolved from simple village folk to decently clothed and covered prudes who scurry from one building block to another to stay away from the scorching heat of the afternoon sun, lest we burn our perfectly fair and radiant skin.

It is a world where air-conditioning is a god-send.

Admittedly, I welcome air-conditioning almost as much as the next person. I say almost, because I am one of those rare people in the valley who find the need for air-conditioning serious enough to actually install one in my apartment. Cost is one factor, but more than anything else, I simply do not want to become dependent on needing to chill the air to 16 degrees Celcius before I can have a good night's sleep.

I find it rather funny, not to mention strange, just how much people in this part of the enjoy air-conditioning. They sleep with the temperature control turned down so low, just to enjoy the feeling of snuggling up under a thick blanket. Of course, they wake up feeling cold in the morning, which means a water heater for the shower has also become a must.

Imagine that. Hot water showers. In the land of heat and humidity.

All that energy being spent, cooling down and heating up and cooling down again. We all know this comes at a cost. And most people are happy to foot a high electricity bill for these luxuries. But the cost isn't just about money.

Electricity is generated here mainly by either hydroelectric dams or coal plants. Each taxes the environment in their own ways - hydroelectric dams are built at the loss of large areas of forests, while coal plants simple pollute the environment.

Think all this doesn't affect you? Think again.

Air-cons are basically heat exchangers - they work by taking the heat from the room and putting it elsewhere, ie. outside the room.

So while we may complain about how it seems to be getting hotter by the year, we do not see that the more we use air-cons to cool ourselves, the more heat we're putting out into the environment. And there really is a lot of air-cons installed.

So guys, the next you turn on the air-conditioning, just remember: you don't really need to be putting on a jacket at the office. Not when we're this close to the equator.

More blogs on the Blog Action Day website. Apparently, over 15,000 blogs are in!

Questions One Should Never Ask A Lady

Some people. Just have no qualms about digging for people's secret origins and everything. You know who I'm talking about. Yes, YOU. And YOU!

But I guess I won't be divulging anything that I haven't already divulged. Or anything that hasn't been divulged by others, whether I will or no. So may as well make a post of it.

Your birthday when?
I suppose I could tell you straight out, but honestly, I prefer to be bent. Besides, I've only blogged about it three times before.

By the way, just like Sam, I'm a Thursday's child (far to go, they say).

Eh, you now how old already, ah?
I suppose I could tell you straight out, but... oh fine, then.

Thirty. One.

Happy now?

You born out where?
The same provincial town as Sam, too. Except I call the place Chiselstone. Or Saltertown.

Your first time celebrated your birthday is when ah?
I first celebrated my birth one month after that I was born. Or rather, my family celebrated while I did whatever one-month olds do - probably either sleeping or crying or drinking milk (while half-asleep or half-crying).

My family continued celebrating my birthdays too until I was old enough to actually know it was my birthday. That would probably be about the age of two or three. I even have proof they celebrated it, the dearies.



You next time birthday is when leh?
Depends on when I feel like growing older. Maybe in a decade.

Or in my next life.

You can remember or not you got get present on your birthday?
I'm 31. Not senile. Of course I remember getting presents on my birthdays!

I even remember getting presents not on my birthday, but that's not the point, is it?

So your birthday that time you want what 3 thing har?
Lemme see...

What I really really need is a complete kitchen makeover. Well, makeover's kind of an overstatement cos I don't even have much of a kitchen to start with. Which is why I really need this.

What I'd really really like is a one-month all-expense paid trip to Melbourne. Or London. Or Kyoto.

But, just for the night of my birthday, I'd like to have hot, handsome hunk who'd sleep with me the whole night and make me breakfast the morning after. Doesn't matter if he's paid to do it. In fact, even better if he is, cos he'd be obliged to fulfil the terms of service.

Your birthday ah, what kind of presents you want?
Simple, really.

Anything that's functional, and looks good on me or in my apartment.
Stuff that's been made personally by the giver (if they are good at it), or stuff that's been custom-made for me.
Books.
Furniture.
Electronics.

I even accept cash.

You want to celebig... celbrake... aiyah you wan pak tik with who?
Close friends and family. Maybe not all at the same time.

How you wan the pak tik for your birthday?
With food. At a picnic, in a restaurant, a home-cooked meal around the family dining table, I'm not particular about it.

What matters is the company of good food and the fill of good friends.


Now that this is done, everyone (the two who tagged me, in particular) should know what to do when my birthday comes around again. I don't mind celebrating it next year if I can get the three stated presents.

Or at least either the first or second, plus the third. Hehe.

The Green, Green Grass of Home

Tis the season to be green, and I don't even have to dress up my blog for it.

Well, Raya is just around the corner and I'm finally getting a well-deserved break. Gonna join the exodus and go back to my little partially-green apartment and curl up. Then go out and eat with whichever friends who haven't quite forgotten me. And maybe even find time to visit some of the spanking new malls in the Valley.

Yes, tis the season to be green, but not only because it's time for Raya. It's also about my blog. And over 9000 other blogs. Writing about the same thing. On the same day.

The environment.

October 15 is Blog Action Day. Mark it on your calendars, people. Better yet, sign up! Yes, to all you meme-whores out there, YOU'RE TAGGED!

Tis the season to be green, and I don't even have to dress up my blog for it.

Well, except for that banner on my sidebar :D

Want It! Have It! Do It!

I want this one!

Groo's a favourite from my long-lost childhood. Just love the stories of this bumbling barbarian who pretty much brings disaster with him wherever he goes. He does try to be helpful but practically everyone considers it most helpful to send him away on long, distant, impossible missions. The farther, the better. Preferably to an enemy kingdom.

Back when I followed the series, the story was told in epic fashion. A brief lead-in, followed by a fairly detailed "opening title" tableau (usually with a trail of disaster tracing up to Groo), with a poem to introduce the story. And of course, it always ended with a moral. Whether or not the moral makes any sense is another question.

Anyway, as soon as I heard about this special 25th Anniversary Edition (like, I can't believe Groo is younger than me!), I headed over to Borders to get my hands on one. To my disapointment and disgust, they didn't have it. In fact, they don't even have any Groo titles!

Boo to Borders!

I had this one!

A friend of mine introduced this to me, and boy, did I get hooked from my first mouthful.

It's Peanut Snowie (no relation to the blogger... I think) from 600cc. It may not look like much, but it's quite heavenly. Basically, shaved ice ala ais kacang, smothered in peanut butter and ice cream. Peanut butter lovers, you gotta have this!

Haven't yet tried the other flavors they have. Recommended on the menu was the Flossy Snowie, as in chicken floss. While possibly palatable, it does sound rather dodgy. I mean, chicken floss on ice?!

Tried the beef on rice there too, but it's pretty ho-hum. It's the desserts that stand out, I suppose.

600cc (apparently, the "cc" isn't "cubic centimeters" as I had thought, but "cute cute") has quite a few branches, all of them though, in the state of Penang. I'd like to see them open in the Valley and give KTZ a run for the money.

I don't quite know if I like this one but...

You aint even tryin'a play me, boy
Cos you're so good, and you're so fine
Got me sayin' crazy things - listen!

Honestly, first time I heard this one, I thought, "Just like every other JLo song."

However, just like every other JLo song, it is rather infectious. No thanks to that Bollywood-ish trill (but, thankfully, no Benny Lavas). I scoped out the video and actually felt a smidgeon of disappointment to find that it didn't contain scores of people appearing out of nowhere to dance in perfect unison.

Still, this could be a contender for a future BodyJam track, no?

One plus point is that the song has driven out that incessant "ella, ella, eh eh eh" out of my head, which is a darn good thing. I just hope the ah-bengs would be so happy with JLo's return that they'd stop booming Beautiful Girls from speakers everywhere.

Oh yeah, this one seems to be a significant milestone for JLo, too. It is, I think, the first time a relationship she's in has actually lasted all the way into a second album (third, if you include the Spanish one released earlier this year). You go, girl! You're doin' it well!

Triple Play

I actually got up early on a Sunday morning for this.

10 am: BodyBalance. Aaah...

11 am: BodyJam. Eeeh...

12 pm: BodyCombat. Oooh...

An entire morning of exploring flirtatious feminity, releasing violent masculinity, and harmonising the yins and yangs of the self. All in the self-delusion of doing something to make up for the numerous times I haven't been to the gym this month, for the weeks of fast-breaking indulgence (minus the fasting), and for the week ahead where I'll probably be skipping more gym and indulging in Raya feasting (assuming, of course, I actually make it back to the valley for the holidays).

I'm probably gonna ache for the rest of the week.

Erh.

Getting High

Okay, I do occassionally bite when thumped with a meme, but this one from Queer Rant is simple enough not to give me a headache, and I realise I'm kind of misleading my friends with my rather emo recent posts (I'm not that depressed, I just write that way), so I'm doing for a shift of tone.

Anyway, it's back to school again (for once, not brought to you by the venerable, and simply-refusing-to-die LQ). Time to dust off those old (as in a couple of decades old) yearbooks and revisit the pimply, bad-haired days...


Favourite subject:
Chemistry - Yes, I was the geek who loved his molecular structures and equilibrium equations. Not to mention mixing up all sorts of potions that transformed into such lovely colours!

I love English too, just not the way it was taught in schools.

Favourite teacher:
Hmm... never really had a favourite teacher. Liked one of my art teachers because she thought I was good. And then there was this substitute History teacher who was fresh out of college and was rather fetching, though he wore perfume that was so strong we'd always smell him before he arrived.

Worst subject:
History. I loved ancient civilizations but just couldn't do the rote memorisation thing about what trees were planted where during which period of our colonial history, or when did that silly fellow go get himself killed. As much as I love to read, my mind never fails to blank out every time I read my history text books, so much so I'd find myself on one page with absolutely no idea what I had just read in the preceeding page. Heck, make that preceeding paragraph. Almost flunked history.

Almost flunked Pendidikan Moral, too, but that was more a case of me choosing to voice my honest opinion rather than parroting what the education ministry wants to hear. Those people would probably flunk anyone who wants to go see a Gwen Stefani or Beyonce concert.

Sat beside a boy or girl?
A boy, of course. No girls in my classroom. I can't vouch what he is these days, though. For all I know, he's going round telling everyone, "I'm a laaady!"

Hold any positions in school?
You mean besides assistant head prefect, secretary, vice-secretary, treasurer and vice-treasurer of scouts, Interact Club, Photography Club and English Club (though perhaps not quite in that order)?

Well, I was a committee member in the Counselling Club. Mind you, the posts we held were mostly like badges to be put on since there was hardly much activity other than with the scouts and Interactors.

Outside school, I was also president of my buddhist fellowship. Like I tell people, being president only attests to my administrative skills, not my zealousness.

Co-ed or all-boys?
Like, what a seriously biased question. There are all-girls' schools, you know. But yeah, mine was all-boys. Lucky me ;-)

Represent your school in any competition?
I was part of the debate team that made it to the district finals. Thankfully, I was on reserve and only had to make one appearance on stage (my public-speaking skills were, and still are, quite deplorable, which is why I stick to writing... though I have not as much problem pretending to be someone else on stage).

Getting to school:
There were the years when I took the school bus. There were some years when parents picked me up. Then I got my motorcycle license. Hehe.

Still keep in touch with your schoolmates after all these years?
After all these years? I meet up with some of them annually for Chinese New Year and surprisingly, I still get invites to weddings, though we're getting to the age where most of them are done with that (thankfully). Guess it just doesn't become me to go sit in the mamak to watch football, or go drinking beer in a pub and talk about titties.

Did Form 6?
Nah. Did the Australian Year 12 instead at a local college.


Whew. Got through that without any recurrence of adolescent drama. For more of my high school hijinks, just click here.

Oh, and looking at that previous one, Paul was complaining I did not tag him. So, Paul, you're tagged!

And so is Joshua.

And AJ, my high school junior.

And Will too, just to annoy him.

And oh yes, I won't want to be forgetting Geekchic, whose head I very nearly chewed up the last time she tagged me with a meme.

I don't want to be the only one revisiting high school horrors.

pulling, pushing

Couldn't pull my thoughts together enough to write a proper post so I'm gonna just pull this from my junk box archives. Wrote this a long, long time ago. It was back when I was just starting my first real relationship, and of course, this was the harbinger of how it was to be and how it would end.

pulling, pushing
know not where to go
wind is blowing
does the heart follow?
memory, dreaming
which is the echo?
pulling, pushing
bind my hands so

hither, tither
petals in the wind
bloom and wither
heart is wearing thin
wither my wandering
home, the next hill?
pulling, pushing
but only standing still

Better Be Home Soon

Stripping back the coats of lies and deception
Back to nothingness, like a week in the desert
*
I know I'm right for the first time in my life
That's why I tell you, you'd better be home soon
Crowded House : Better Be Home Soon

Can't believe how the project just drags on and on and on. At this rate, I'll be staying in this cowboy town on the wrong end of the bridge for half a year. This is truly sad.

True, there are perks. Allowances plus lower cost of living means I actually have more money then I normally do. Of course, increased liquidity also means I don't hesitate splurging on stuff like books, clothes and wireless coffee. Especially wireless coffee. I need my wifi fix more badly than I need caffeine. And that's saying a lot.

But I just feel cut off.

Cut off from my office, like I don't even work there.

Cut off from my friends, who give me a semblance of a social life (with Scrabulous becoming more addictive than blogging as a rather weak but offbeat way of waving hi to a few of 'em).

Cut off from my personal epicenter, my home.

Sigh. Just as well I have no one waiting for me back in the valley. I'd probably be dumped by now.

La Isla

My brain's on vacation, and my body's running purely on reflex and caffeine. Can't think, therefore can't write, so I'll just post some pics instead :P

Here's some glimpses I caught of an island I'm not exactly on... most of the time...

The Naza Hot L (or so it says on top of the building)

Boys riding into the sunset

A glimpse of bridge

Pavement outside a mall

Not too shabby camerawork, if I can say so myself, considering the camera was only a 2 megapixel camphone :P

Fatty Tuesdays Are Here!

Like, oh my gawd.

Like, this is so evil the Colonel must be deep-frying in his personal hell-vat, complete with his own secret blend of eleven herbs and spices, to pay for the sins he had unleashed on unsuspecting l'il me. And all the other good people of the world, of course. This isn't just about me.

Really.

*waves sadly goodbye to dream of having a nice, lean bod*

Some Like It Stiff

Reasons to watch Hairspray:

1. It's got John Travolta (most would know he did Grease) doing an Eddie Murphy (ie. dressing up as a fat woman).

But you'd know that already. Here are more reasons...

2. It's got Michelle Pfieffer (most may not know she was in Grease 2) in a deliciously catty role. Besides, I always loved her in singing roles (she did sing in Prince of Egypt, and she absolutely smouldered in The Fabulous Baker Boys).

3. The intro is reminiscent of Beauty and the Beast... gone wrong. Instead of "poor provincial town" we've got Baltimore. And the "Belle" here is short and overweight, if a little sweeter looking. Who, instead of meeting the baker with his tray (like always), meets the flasher who lives next door.

4. It looks like a Disney musical, but just listen to the lyrics and you'll know it's not.

5. James Marsden, if you're into him.

6. Queen Latifah, if you're into her.

7. Zac Efron. Didn't watch High School Musical, so didn't recognise him. Might not have recognised him anyway. But he looks rather cute. Actually, he looks rather like a much younger Lou Diamond Phillips as Rickie Valens back in La Bamba.

8. Elijah Kelly. Rather cute too :P

9. It's funny, and a whole lot of fun!

10. It's a musical!!!

Now go watch it now.

The Eye

Quite a while back, I ventured up into the overglorified ferris wheel called Eye On Malaysia. Never really knew why they called it that since, obviously, you can't see the whole of Malaysia up in that contraption.

Come think of it, I didn't get a good view of KL, either. Just a lot of water. I had a much better look back when I was up in KL Tower, and even up in the oh-so glam KL Hilton.

Still, it did provide a rather nice photo opp :P

Learning To Love Myself: Touchy Taichi

I love myself, I want you to love me

When I'm feeling down, I want you above me

I search myself, I want you to find me

I forget myself, I want you to remind me

The Divinyls : I Touch Myself

Here's a declaration: I just LOVE BodyBalance 38!

Ok. So I am rather partial to the BodyBalance programme, and I love most releases. But this latest one is definitely going back to the more relaxed tone of the older releases, as opposed to all the excitement we've had over the past year. Which, to me, is a darn good thing.

There were some new poses thrown in, but nothing so complicated that it would threaten to blow one's mind (or break one's leg). No strange, twisting (and tendon-spraining) poses. No back-breaking bends. No oh-my-god-we're-only-halfway-through eight minutes of standing strength. No can-I-die-yet abs track.

No Seal.

This time round, it's back to basics. Long, deep breaths. Easing into positions. Connecting with yourself. And, of course, more beautiful music including one of my all time faves - The Pretender's I'll Stand By You (yay!) - and a really cool cover of Phil Collin's In The Air Tonight.

Oh, who am I kidding. I love it only because right from the word go, the taichi warmup just put me in a real happy mood - one hand running down the opposite arm all the way across the chest, repeat on other side. Boy, did that feel good!

...

Obviously, I haven't been laid in quite a while.

I Smell A Rat

Oddly enough, it seems rather fragrant.

Of course, I'm talking about that animated chef of a rat, Remy in Disney-Pixar's Ratatouille. And for a dish that sounds disturbingly like some guy hawking up and spitting out a huge wad of phlegm, the movie just makes me want to fly off to France just to eat that "simple peasant dish".

It's really a wonderful movie, one of the best I've seen this year, also one of the most original (not that hard, actually considering the whole string of disappointing sequels that got trotted out this year). It's everything you expect from a Pixar movie - cute, funny, entertaining, and full of heart. If the story of a country rat who dares to dream, chases that dream, and changes everyone's lives in the process doesn't get to you, the amazingly rendered fur just might.

But just try to ignore the fact that one of the characters is ridiculously named after a cheesy Italian pasta, which, somehow, seems less believable than a cooking rat. Perhaps Pixar had decided it was payback time for all those years of unfortunately named talking clocks and teapots.

Ratatouille is a movie best served warm, cuddling up on a comfy sofa with your loved one, with a cup of hot chocolate near at hand.

Have can you not want to go see such an adorable rat?

I'm loving it so much I wouldn't mind watching it again. And maybe one more time after that.

By the way, the short that precedes the movie is excellent (as usual).

Teruk Things On Tuesday

The hash brown in the morning was probably the last happy thing to happen to me yesterday. After that, things just went downhill (figuratively) as I headed north (literally).

First of all, I hate the north stretch of the highway. Construction going on for most of the way, so traffic can be bad, and so can be the road itself. Worse still, none of these contractors nor the highway authorities give a hoot about safety and housekeeping, essential (though, in Malaysia, oft ignored) parts of any construction work.

Barricades not being lined up properly, insufficient notice of narrowing of lanes, dirt, stones and debris all over the place... the wonderful gray tarmac highway of Bolehland is now a national hazard traversing at least three states.

Anyway, somewhere along the way, on one of those single-lane stretches, a random stone flew off the wheel of the van I was stuck behind. It hit my windshield with a loud kuh-rack! And crack, my windshield did. Fuck. I've been only driving my baby for less than a year!

Luckily it was just a rather small crack, which didn't crack through, nor has it cracked across the windshield. Which means I can still drive my car around. Still, I still need to replace my windshield and we all know how much large pieces of good glass cost, especially bent ones. This is where I'm heaving a sigh of relief for having the foresight to insure the windshield and windows.

I thought I'd snap a pic of the crack on my handphone to show the insurance people. That was when I noticed the screen protector I had just bought for my phone on Sunday, was coming off. Damn! I'd be perfectly within my consumer rights to walk back to the shop and demand a free replacement. But then, I was halfway to the north and wouldn't be heading back to the valley for a few weeks. Grr...

Small problem compared to my car, though.

Well, I do have to give my thumbs up to the people of Perodua, from the salesman who had sold me my car to the staff at the service center. They were actually helpful, willing to answer questions, willing to consider options, and didn't give me the run around. Unlike so many companies in Malaysia who have no concept whatsoever of customer service.

So, despite not having all my car and insurance docs, they still managed to check my records out and will even help submit my claim. Now I just have to wait for the windshield stock to come in and get the repairs done.

Somewhere in all this, I totally forgot that bad things always come in threes. Well, I just noticed today that my back windshield wiper is gone. Not just the wiper, the whole arm contraption thingy.

Damn. Damn. Damn.

Drowned World

Why is my reflection someone I don't know?
Christina Aguilera: Reflection

Through The Looking Glass. Mirrormask. Stories that seem to ask - what places exist behind the mirror's keep?

Looking at the water, I sometimes do wonder - does it see a world that's different, mirrored upon its deep?

Mergers & Acquisitions

What I wanted to do was to update my blogroll.

What I ended up doing... well, you can see for yourself. I just can't tear myself away from Blogger's Layout page.

To be perfectly honest, that's also why I put up my side blogs which I never update. It's really to play around with my limited design skills. It's also supposed to present variety to my blogging but knowing me, I'm not too consistent with blogging anyway.

So I've decided to abandon my side blogs altogether and gather the material right here instead. Kind of like a consolidation exercise.

At the same time I've updated my sidebar with a little bit more stuff. Green links, to appease the guilt of my capitalist soul. Labels, because I just like label clouds. I'm keeping an eye for a good widget to display current reads, listens, etc. Any suggestions?

I'm also experimenting with Twitter (yes, I'm now officially a Twit), to see if I can go anywhere with it. At the very least, for those times when I'm too uninspired to blog, I could twit up a random line. Theoretically.

Sort of like blogging, except unplugged and running low on battery.

And yes, while doing all that, I rearranged the furniture. And put up a new sign.

Oh. Wasn't I supposed to clean up my place instead of my blog? And aren't my parents arriving very soon? Like, in an hours time?

Looks like I got the family activity for the day mapped out. Let me just go stash my porn first.

********************

Update 2 Sep: OK, so the banner isn't as colorful as before. How about the one below then? A little bit of the previous banner, a little bit of the new one, and a little bit of the blogspirit one :P

Let me know!

Give It To Me In C Minor, Please

I was gonna write a merdeka post as I've been wont to do the past few years, but then apathy set in and the rest, as they say, is sejarah.

So, I'm gonna turn my attention to something I have a little more passion for - music. Meaning, I'm gonna rip off Queer Ranter's song meme and fill in all the wierd and obscure lyrics I love so much. Hey, you just might even recognise one or two!

1. I know it's late, I shouldn't call at this hour. But yet, my fate, I need lips to devour.
[ Sleep - Conjure One feat. Marie-Claire D'ubaldo ]

2. I am milk. I am red hot kitchen.
[ Milk - Garbage ]

3. Hush, hush. Don't tell me cos it hurts.
[ Don't Speak - No Doubt ]

4. Everytime I get my hopes up, they always seem to fall. But what could've been is better than what could never be at all.
[ Could've Been - Tiffany ]

5. Have I been blind? Have I been lost inside myself and my own mind? Hypnotised, mesmerised but what my eyes have seen?
[ Carnival - Natalie Merchant ]

6. I'm trying to control myself, so please don't stand in my way.
[ Shattered - The Cranberries ]

7. There's nothing to do but believe. Just believe.
[ Breathe - Telepopmusik ]

8. I'm high enough from all the waiting, to ride a wave on your inhaling.
[ Breathe In - Frou Frou ]

9. Ooh eeh ooh ah ah ting tang walla walla bing bang
[ Witch Doctor - David Seville ]

10. All the lonely hearts in London caught a plane and flew away
[ Supreme - Robbie Williams ]

11. Late at night, I toss and I turn and I dream of what I need
[ Holding Out For A Hero - Bonnie Tyler ]

12. This is the book I never read, these are the words I never said. This is the path I'll never tread, these are the dreams I'll dream instead. This is the joy that's seldom spread, these are the tears, the tears we shed. This is the fear, this is the dread, these are the contents of my head.
[ Why - Annie Lennox ]

13. Butterflies are free to fly and so they fly away.
[ Always On Your Side - Sheryl Crow ]

14. Snip by snip, I'm losing it bit by bit.
[ Caught In A Moment - Sugababes ]

15. I know someday you'll have a beautiful life, I know you'll be a sun in somebody else's sky, but why, why, why can't it be... why can't it be mine?
[ Black - Pearl Jam ]

16. Autour de moi je ne vois pas qui sont les anges, sûrement pas moi
[ Paradise (Not For Me) - Madonna ]

17. I ran from my house that cannot contain me. From the man that I cannot keep.
[ Mer Girl - Madonna ]

18. Our love is swollen. Made of the quietest shade of loud.
[ Swollen - Bent ]

19. When you know the notes to sing, you can sing most anything
[ Do Re Mi - Julie Andrews; also used by Madonna in 'Deeper and Deeper' ]

20. So I say thank you for the music, the songs I'm singing.
[ Thank You For The Music - Abba ]

So there you have it. Some of the songs that have caught my interest over the years. And I really do mean over the years. Song titles and artistes are between the square brackets. Really.

Well, hope this brings some of you down memory lane. Or, which is the more likely, get you wondering just what kind of songs these are.

By the way, the post title's also a line from a version of one of the above songs :P

Have a good week, all. And to my fellow countrymen, a great merdeka weekend!

High On The Hill

What an amazing time
What a family
Gwen Stefani

Gorgeous! Fabulous! Stupendous! Absolutely fucking wild!

Despite the half hour wait. And the anthem preceeding that wait.

She came. She sang. She had us eating out of her hands with simple "terima kasih"s and "you guys are one of the best crowds I've had" (probably says that to everyone, the hussy) and "my father-in-law's wife is from Malaysia which makes her my son's step-great-grandmother, you know" (guess she is a natural blonde then).

Never mind the leotards. She was gorgeous. Absolutely.

Harajuku girls. Cute.

And the male dancers. Hunky. Very.

The band was great. Her backup singer almost stole the show from her.

Youngsters of all races and quite a few nationalities were mingling freely. They were enjoying themselves, even. Not-so-young ones, too!

Yes, the stage was kinda small. But she worked it, running from one end to another. She even ran out to the stands to shake some lucky audience's hands (the bastards).

And the little screen behind showing clips. I so did not get the Sayuri's kelumumur dance (as she sang Early Winter). But those clips of her with that album cover look - stunning.

I bopped. I clapped. I waved. I sang along. I screamed till my throat was hoarse. I'm still hyped up now though I really really should be getting to bed.

What an amazing time indeed.

The Sin Escape

I feel so lucky to live in country with men of upstanding character. People who would not bow down to something as flimsy as populist opinion but hold true to what they know to be right and true.

Kudos to those fellows who so politely requested the mayor of KL to do what is necessary to ensure the good people of the valley are not corrupted by the dreaded budaya kuning.

Stefani, they say, must be stopped.

According to one of them, “This concert does not bring any good to Malaysians except invite youngsters to enjoy themselves, mix around too freely, get drunk and commit sins”

Of course, the good man has not, himself, ever attended a Stefani concert. He is too fine a man to stoop to so guilty a pleasure. He has, however, seen "pictures on the Internet and advertisements on television".

I can only imagine the horror the poor guy must have been put through seeing such pictures and advertisements. No doubt they must have showed him in painfully explicit detail the debauchery that goes on at such concerts. Why, youngsters are enjoying themselves! Actually enjoying themselves! How can parents allow this? How can our mayor allow this?

And the sins being committed? Well, it must surely be too horrific for him to explain what dire, diabolical sins that are carried out in the concert arena, right here on our very own hallowed soil. I'd rather not imagine it, but what if she shouts? Or, heaven forbid, jumps around on stage?

Oh and it gets worse. News is, Beyonce's coming as well! And not only is she from the wicked west, she's black. With bigger boobs.

I think our country's gonna collapse very soon.

It's quite scary that such things are happening right here in our tolerant, peace-loving community. Surely we need to wake up to threat of such negative forces that threaten to tear apart our way of life, one that we know and love?

Oh, our moral guardians. What would a country be like without you?

The Curse Of The Golden Flower

Everytime I even think about drinking it, I'll think of you.

(...and remember how you once snapped at me for drinking the chrysanthemum tea and leaving you the soya bean, even though I was the one who had bought the drinks back. That was when I learnt a little more about you...)



Curses.

Jubilation And All That

Sixty. I cannot imagine so many years. But there we have it - sixty.

Mom had a quiet little weekend celebration with close friends and family (though unfortunately, while both her natural sons made it home, only one of her four inherited kids managed to be there). It was a pleasant affair. Non-stop eating. As usual.

But, sixty!

Makes me think that I really need to show more love and appreciation to the folks. Well, I'm always telling myself that anyway.

At the age I'm at now, mom was already raising two children (one of whom was purportedly a terrible tyke), while juggling being both a teacher and a housewife - jobs which were somehow both full-time. Quite incredible, really, since I look at myself and see a guy who can barely take care of himself much less keep a nice home and a happy family. Or at least a clean home and a well-fed family (close enough).

It's amazing how our parents pulled off all that they did. How they managed to manage.

In contrast, I still feel like a doddering kid. Even though I'm already past my thirtieth.

Is this how things really are? Are we all really just big kids simply putting on an adult mien and adopting grown-up behaviour in the hopes that it would eventually rub off? Or is it just me, one foot snagged in the brambles of Neverland?

I may never know for sure. So I guess I'll just have to dodder my way through this life any which way I can.

And, who knows? I might be in as nice a place as my mom is now when I get to be sixty.

...

Not that I'm ready to be sixty.

Live Eat

Take an overpriced cafe, beam wifi through it, and bring in a laptop and a cam-phone. What do you get? Why, a live food review, of course.

Well, not entirely live lah. Not like I'm doing a podcast. But at the very least, instant.

So here I am sitting in a... not quite a cafe, really. It's more like your typical chinese restaurant serving noodles, fried rice and stuff. This particular one, which unfortunately can't remember the name (even though I'm still sitting inside right now... no name displayed anywhere and I can't quite be bothered to ask for the menu, which is really a piece of laminated paper).

Anyway, this place is in Chai Leng Park, Prai (as in the wrong end of the Penang Bridge lah), and it's supposedly famous for it's mee sua tow. They plaster newspaper cuttings all over the front as testament to this. At RM10 a bowl, it better be famous for the right reasons.

I walked in not for the promise of great food, but for the wireless connectivity they offered. I figured if I was prepared to pay ten bucks for coffee with a connection, why not a bowl of noodles?

Shark's fin mee sua tow with ambra & lime drink

The sharksfin mee sua tow I had (yes, I can hear the greenies screaming bloody murder now) was okay. Just okay. Seriously not quite worth the ten bucks I'm paying. It's not particularly tasty or anything. At least it's got bits of seafood in it - almost all of which were actually real. There were even bits of what I'll generously assume to be real shark's fin (probably the cheap type but still real). However, if I were looking for a satisfying serve of seafood noodles, I'd rather head to KL's Jalan Ipoh.

Or nee

For dessert, I'm having (yes, 'am', as in present tense) or nee - a teochew dessert which is kind of a yam (and sometimes pumpkin) paste with gingko nuts - that's not so easily found in eating places here in Malaysia whether you're in the north, central or even south. I guess I'll have to be grateful for this even if the one served here isn't great (not too bad, just not great), and is served in plastic container. And I didn't even check the price of this thing.

Oh well, I'm always the fool when it comes to food.

And wifi.