Thursday, December 24, 2009

Wearing a Pashmina

Ok, I'm trying to research how to wear a pashmina or wrap or scarf on youtube....How difficult can it be? I can't seem to find a nice pretty way to wrap the pashmina around my shoulders and keep me warm at the same time! Anybody got any ideas?

Kamensk-uralskiy, Sverdlovsk

I just saw this on location on my Live Traffic Feed - Kamensk-uralskiy, Sverdlovsk....so cool!

I'm reaching poeple from around the world! Let's find out something abou the place shall we? (OOOoooh, my life must seem so weird/different to this person!)

"Hey there! If you ever come back, leave me a note and tell me if life where you are with its own concerns and issues is the same as all the way over here in KL, Malaysia, ok? DEAL?"

Kamensk-uralskiy is in Sverdlock, Russia!!! I've always wanted to visit Russia! It's one of the fastest growing cities in the area and its main economy/industry is cast iron smelting/foundry works.

One of the interesting things about it is that in the New Year when it gets to freezing, they build ice towns and ice figures there - including Chinese Zodiac Animals! I'm an Dragon - can you build one of me???

COOL!

High Flyer!

I've been travelling up and down to Johor Bahru recently and it's just been crazy busy at work! Also, bro in law got married and that was interesting and exciting to see someone else do it and not have to worry about what got lost/missing/forgotten.. Our wedding was crazee to plan and there were a multitude of hiccups but then, without hiccups what is there to remember huh?

JB is not a fun place - there is nothing to see, buy although! The last time i was down there, there was a pasar malam (night market) near my hotel and my colleague and I went a-visiting. We remarked to ourselves that it seemed like we had just been released from the big KL jail cos we were oohing-and-aahing over almost everything!!! I think it didn't help that we were hungry but we bought all sorts of things to stuff our gap with! We even tried some deep fried chicken feet! Not much to gnaw on but it was interesting since the ones I normally eat are the dark soya-sauced boiled ones.....

Will be travelling again soon - tomorrow to be exact - back to Penang to be with the family! Gosh, it will be so good to see everyone again and have EVERYONE back together again. It seems like ages since I've seen my sister! I wish she was here and my parents were here! No Fair!

But I'll be back in good ole Penang until the New Year so HEHEHHEHEHE!!! Then CNY is coming up and it'll be the first time we have to give angpows! Aioyoyoyoyooo.......Luckily bonus is coming along. We've spent quite a bit of money this month cos I had an aircon installed in my condo and we moved stuff over with a lorry etc cos we're renting it out.

I also wanted to custom make a shoe cabinet for outside the house but jezz Louise! It costs RM900!!!!!!!! Maybe I'll just buy one for RM200 huh? I think I need to tone down on my shoe shopping toolah.....Sigh....what else do I have to tone down on???? It's not fair! But I guess that's what you have to do when you live with other people....Sis in law also has many shoes (nuff said).

Can you believe it that for next year's CNY new clothes, most of them were bought by mum???? That shows when I can't even buy my own clothes, or not have the time to go shopping. Seriously, whenever I go out nowadays, nothing looks interesting....NO SHOES EVEN! Can you believe it???? NO SHOES!!!!!

Friday, November 27, 2009

RUMBLES of Mumbles

Today is a holiday - I had plans to go to the Big Bad Book Sale but saw a report in the newspaper that it was jam packed - JH advised not to go and get stuck in all that.....too bad, I was really looking forward to it - I've never heard of a book sale being so difficult to get to! Anyway, there is another reason why I'm abit down, besides the fact that JH is working today and we can't spend some time together when it's not a weekend. You know how you get that extra delicious feeling when you get a day off that isn't a weekend? It's like sneaky and extra fun cos you know it isn't normal????

Well, anyway, I was doing a bit of math and realise that I don't think I'm saving anything these days....I've gone from a massive saver to a 'cutting my coat beyond my cloth' person!!! I don't even know how it happened. What with paying for the mortgage and the maintainence and my car and various other things......what does it mean? That I need to get a new job? I think I am earning way below my potential here but am not sure what I need to get into to earn what I should earn.

I thought I was doing good but I don't think so anymore.....Suze Orman on the Oprah show just said, try to live on half your salary for 6 months.....I can't do that on my nett salary - as it is I am over it I believe hence me concluding that I don't think I am saving ANYTHING these days! She also said we oughta have an emergency fund 8 times our monthly salary. ACK! Scary - am I missing something here?

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Skinfood Cosmetics and Skincare

My mum always maintains that my skin looked its most glowing and radiant and healthy a few years ago when I used Skinfood. They have the most delicious gorgeous packaging - everything is made to be like food - hence the name. I really liked their Pumpkin face cream but after using one jar, I went back just to find out that they didn't sell it anymore! So instead I bought this icky little Su Cream (Blackberry or something). Cost me like RM80 and apparently it was a new product....expensive at that - for Skinfood.

One week ago, I was browsing in Skinfood again - they always look Soooooo Goodddd! And their Chocolate Facial Foam is to dieeee for!!! YUM!

Ok, anyway, a week ago, I was browsing and I.SAW.THE.PUMPKIN.CREAM.AGAIN!!! But THIS TIME it was retailing for RM60 (I believe the old price was RM48 or thereabouts). So, clever old me kinda thought - hmmmmm....so I take away a product, I bring it back after a respectable interval, I've 'improved the formula in it' and I sell it for a higher price......I mean, I'm not SAYING anything, just THINKING ALOUD. Whaddya think?

I have noticed that they are changing their products alot - and getting more expensive as they cycle through.....Worth 10 sen huh?!

Btw, I love the MAC mascara. I also just bought Maybelline's UNSTOPPABLE Curly Extension Mascara for RM28.00 (on discount) at Watson's and I really like it too! I figured I already have the length - I need some curl gurl! It goes on nicely, the brush is a nice size with nice brush bristles that coat nicely. The black colour looks good -I wonder what Gold mascara looks like.....or brownish lah....

JH thinks I'm defacing the Mona Lisa!

Friday, November 13, 2009

What can one do with RM50?

Lots of things:

  1. Get a Baskin Robbins quart
  2. Buy an ok pair of shoes
  3. Eat 1 kg of crabs cooked in sweet chili sauce
  4. Watch a movie in Gold Class
  5. Buy a SuhWEET hairband from Diva to wear with my pretty dress to an upcoming dinner
  6. Donate to charity
  7. Buy the 'Red Prophet' by Orson Scott Card (which is UNAVAILABLE in every bookstore in KL)
  8. Buy an AirAsia ticket ....somewhere, anywhere.....
  9. Buy a tank of petrol
  10. Pay for my Credit Card Annual Service Fee to Bank Negara....
So, I currently have credit cards from ummmm 2 international banks and 2 local establishments. So I have like a total of 9 credit cards....yikes, almost as bad as that government servant who reportedly had 10 right?

I only carry 5 around with me - god knows why I need so many....but maybe cos they give different offers/privileges at different establishments.....I can never remember which card gives me discounts where so I basically just ask the waiter/cashier and then pay with the card that is applicable.

But with the upcoming RM50 Service Fee, I shall be cancelling all but one - now the banks are ALL asking the big ole question - what to give my cardholder so they will keep my card???

Well, I'll tell you what I want:

  1. Discounts that are relevant to me - don't give me gifts or purchase with purcase, I want the good old monetary discount!
  2. The widest possible portfolio of merchants - I don't mean range - I mean portfolio as in, if I'm interested in shoes - give me the longest list of shoe merchants I can get discounts at.
  3. The best possible discounts - don't give me the measly 5% - if I can afford to buy a Jimmy Choo, I don't need no 5%! (WHY DO MERCHANTS NOT UNDERSTAND THAT????) If you give me a 25% discount minimum, I might think again about buying something I don't need! (Don't worry, I'm not a shopaholic! I'm a discountaholic! Can I start a group?)
  4. Ease of payment - over the internet, over the phone, without extra costs - better still if I can set up a monthly instruction to pay the statement amount automatically unless otherwise instructed. BETTER STILL - the Bank will call/sms me to tell me this is my amount for the month - do I wanna pay or not. So that reduces the scariness people feel about paying their credit card bill blindly cos you knowlah, if there is a wrong transaction in there and the money's gone to the bank, it could be quite hard to get it back!
  5. This next one - I've been talking about for some time for Malaysia but now the banks are starting to do - paying with points. Though again, I'd like that the points are not like 180 = RM1. Which means I am literally paying RM180 (from past transactions) to pay RM1 in my current transaction (I guess this is when you get rewarded 1 Bonus Point for every Ringgit you spendlah). I know the points are from the Bank's income but still man - can we maybe say like 50 points for RM10????? I'm on the side of the consumer here! I also love it where I can also pay a portion of my bill with points - it's like getting a discount right there.
  6. Customer Analytics and Differentiation in offers. Nowadays all the banks give the same offers - dining, slimming, exercise machines, hotels in god knows where....where is the GOOD Stuff???? The credit card I stick with should perform Accurate, Timely and Comprehensive Customer Analytics and find out what makes me tick. And give me benefits in those arenas. They could also call me up/email me once in a while just to say - Hey, what kind of discount would you like? Hey, I wanna give you a gift for your patronage - what would you like? Hey, here's free 3 days 2 nights on us at the Four Seasons Langkawi cos GOD KNOWS I never win any contests!!!!!!!!!!!! At least I know I'm a name and a face to them instead of just a Customer Number.

Now I'm stuck between choosing HSBC and EON Bank. Which one will emerge the winner??? HSBC doesn't really do a lot of fun stuff - I know their customer demographics are probably the older set and the RICHER set but that doesn't mean they can't cater to people like me right??? I mean I have the potential to become OLDER and RICHER - I AM their target market (albeit 15 years from now!!!) They should catch me now!!!!

And for those of you asking - EON? As in the Car Financier? As in E-O-N???? Well, yeah! EON Bank! They have a pretty wide range of discounts and their MATTA credit card gives lots of travel opportunities.....Aiya, so difficult - I would say this - HSBC should modernise their package and start looking at the young and stable and potentially old and rich....cos baby - I'd love to take you home!!!!!!!

Why are people searching for 'Ludicrousity'???

So I realise that I wrote a blog post about this word - ludicrousity - a long time ago. I wondered if it was really a word and it seems that alot of people have in interest in it as well....very strange.

Ok - i took 2 mins out to search for it on the web but nothing interested me. And I found out my blog post is the first in the results list - hmmmm....they should read my other stuff too and tell me if they like my style, my topics.....I would love to write a column somewhere....do I have to know someone who knows someone to get to do that????

Today is a Holiday

Hi - it's been a while and I HAVE felt guilty - obviously just not guilty enough to log in when I get home. It's kinda tedious, I spend the whole day tearing around the office, getting around all the red tape and paperwork (in this day and age can you believe it?), even though I have so many topics to share, I just can't seem to wanna switch the computer on. And I have gotten emails about it....so here I am, on a holiday - writing.

I just got home from a business trip, yesterday I spent a LOT of time watching Sex And The City (hmmm....for a moment there, I was like...is it 'Sex IN the City'.....). It's amazing how Sarah Jessica Parker can maintain Carrie Bradshaw the way she was from the very first Season to the very last....And now, because I've jumped straight from the Serial to the Movie, I can see, Miranda looks better, like she's come into herself and just looks better, more confident and content....(well, to me she was never the looker of the show but in the Season 6 - especially when Big comes and talks to the girls about going after HIS girl in Paris - Miranda looked really good in that scene - I kept wondering if her eyes always looked like that!) Carrie looks a bit older but her mannerisms, the way she talks, walks is all the same.......she has that same style of talking about her that the Friends tease Ross about.....not that they both share the same style but that they each have their style and it's never changed.

Carrie is so cute - she makes me want to walk the way she does - or should I say strut....like she's full of life and joie de'vivre, with a little hop, skip and jump.

Ok, I don't know why I'm writing about Sex And the City.....I meant to come in at different times today to just write. I'm 'On Holiday' cos I've contracted Conjunctivities in my left eye. Not the first time in my life and not the first time from contact lense wear. Anyways, it's swollen, itchy, pus-sy (NOT 'pussy') and oozing some times.....Yahoo!!!! S-E-X-Y!!!!!

And I'm so busy at work too -sigh!!! It's a good thing no one else uses this computer, or else I'll have to Dettolise it.

Hmmm...sitting in front of the window now, it's a nice overcast day but still with light just not heat and watching the men outside clean the place - the neighbourhood has these landscape people...it's a nice feeling, just sitting here with my coffee 3-in-1 and watching the daily grind....

Ok - more later.....Toodles.

Sunday, October 04, 2009

Antibiotics Save The Day??

In the future, if I have kids - I'm going to train their bodies to be strong - how? By NOT subjecting them to antibiotics for every little thing. I realise that that is such an important quality to have - to build up your body strong enough that it can easily fight off invading armies of germs whenever, whereever......How does one build up the immune system again after it's been wracked by antibiotics????

Thursday, October 01, 2009

Project Runway Out - Stylista In

Oklah - this one is quite good too....

MUMBO JUMBO

Ya I know - it's a condition called 'LaZiness'......I have so much to say - I was just thinking about it on the drive home from work today - it's why Twitter was created cos people were too lazy to login into Blogger everytime they felt they had something to say about the world! Well, at the very least, I'm not someone who has the computer on 24x7 - so coming home and logging on just to stare at yet ANOTHER computer is not relaxing or a passion I want to exercise at home.....hence so many of my valuable 10-sen thoughts are gone with the wind!

Was listening to my Ipod on the drive home (see! I'm ALL woman - I multitask on my drives home!) and I just realise that I really like Taylor Swift - I think she is very pretty and I really enjoy the songs she sings - albeit, the few I know seem to sound a bit the same but still - they make me move my head and the lyrics and jingles stick in my mind. I notice though that she seems to have very good breath control - she sings non-stop....reminds me of when Celine Dion tried out 'Treat Her Like A Lady' and asked, "When do I breathe????". Heeheh hahaha

OOooh, hubby will be back in town tomorrow morning - tomorrow morning we will be breathing the same Malaysian air!!!! Woo hoo!!!! This is the longest we've been apart - or so I've been telling everybody....sometimes I wonder if people get sick of me when I start to say, "my hus....." or "my in-la...." They probably yawn under the cover of ....food or tudung or something!

Hubby being away though gave me food for thought on the topic of fidelity. It's no fun being all afraid of someone being unfaithful to you - all that worry, suspicion, hurt, frustration, rage, non-understanding of why ANYONE much less someone who professes to love you would do something so horrible to you! I can't imagine partners who actually catch their other halves red-handed with someone else! Oh.My.God!!!!! I am sure some people will say it's cowardly or just say it's plain wrong -me, I can't even find a word for it! It's so BEYOND wrong, hurtful, irresponsible, callous, cruel, selfish, arrogant, etc. etc. etc.

Well, I don't think JH would intentionally hurt me or shame me this way, lay to waste all that I ever felt for him, did for him, sacrificed for him, planned for him - but him being away just gave rise to those feelings you know - like "What IF you didn't know your man was cheating on you?" Mum-in-law and I were chatting about how a woman always knows - but somehow.....I don't think so.....(weird since I was the one who actually SAID 'a woman always knows').

I can say one thing, the one time I was cheated (?) on, I didn't know. Either he was a darn good liar - which is possible since now I know there are so many things I didn't know about before, or I was just too blind and arrogant. Notwithstanding the fact that I WAS under a great deal of stress at the time, a very emotional time but I didn't expect it, and as such, I didn't see it I think. That's why, I am nervy that perhaps one day too, I might miss the signs with JH. I can hear him denouncing cheating this right now but like I always say, ONE NEVER KNOWS!! There are no guarantees and there are no insurance policies (if you wanna love right) so, I guess we just have to take the plunge and risk it huh? But OOOH, when the heart breaks, I can tell you.....it changes your perception of everything!

I think I can write about it quite easily now even though I can't quite convey the heartache and trauma one goes through but at that time, I'm telling you - there isn't quite anything like it. And being a female, of course, every conversation and behaviour runs through your mind like a million times and a million times again just to re-check or validate or try to excuse what you reasoned out.....It's a dark dark time.

But like I wrote about several years before - there are ways to see the end of the tunnel so no SON OF A ....... is worth dying for.

AIyo, I didn't set out to write something like this - don't know how it got here!

Let's see what else do I wanna talk about.....Citeebank is not very user friendly - I don't like them. Everytime I use them I remember why I scrapped their credit cards before. My electricity bill is, for the second time, being 'dibiayai oleh Kerajaan Malaysia' - yup - because I'm such a good blogger, the Govt of Malaysia is paying my electricity bill. I'm.....hungering for some time away - with hubby.....ummmm....I wanna go watch Victor/Victoria in Singapore at the end of the year. ummmm...I love Atilia, our home grown singer but I can't find any of her songs on Limewire or any of her albums......

Oh! YES! A MAJOR GRIPE! Project Runway is now NOT AVAILABLE on Youtube! NOT AVAILABLE! The horror!!! Due to licensing!!!! How am I going to watch the seasons then?????? AHHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I stopped at Season 3 some more! AIyoyoyo......Recently I caught Amazing Race on tv which I've not watched for ages....seems interesting again! So, ...ahem ahem......

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Sakai Ourselves-lah!

If you speak Hokkien, you'd probably understand my title. If not, think ~knocking on your own head with your knuckles~...

I've lamented the quality of this Japanese place before....last Sunday, for god only knows what reason, I had the clever idea of going to eat there again - this time the outlet at The Curve.....I had already been quite hungry from 10am but waited til 11.30am for this place to open.

Sigh, I took the exact same thing I complained about before - the sushi that only had topping on one piece and the other one was an empty or rather 'topless' beancurd rice.

JH ordered some scallop newbie and we had some other stuff.....the bill came to RM60 over for the two of us (do we overdo things???). Sigh, things have NOT improved - we've decided to award it with the 'AEK' prize. From now on - JH and ET's 'AEK' list.....

So far the awardees are:
1. Sakai Sushi
2. Pizza One

(all names are changed to protect the privacy of these establishments). AHEM!

Cry-worthy song

I just heard this tonight on my Ipod....I Loved Her First by Heartland.

Here is an excerpt of the lyrics:

Look at the two of you dancing that way
Lost in the moment and each others face
So much in love your alone in this place
Like there's nobody else in the world
I was enough for her not long ago
I was her number one
She told me so
And she still means the world to me
Just so you know
So be careful when you hold my girl

Time changes everything
Life must go on
And I'm not gonna stand in your way

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But it still hard to give her away
I loved her first

How could that beautiful women with you
Be the same freckle face kid that I knew
The one that I read all those fairy tales to
And tucked into bed all those nights
And I knew the first time I saw you with her
It was only a matter of time.......

It's one of those songs that can make me cry - much like 'Butterfly Kisses' by Bob Carlisle from way back when.....now, THAT one I cried EVERY TIME I heard the song. This one by Heartland, at first I thought it was talking about an ex-love but then when you listen carefully, it's actually about a father's love for his daughter.......well, the phrase 'the love of a father' kinda gives it away...... hahah

Saturday, September 05, 2009

Globeshopper to the rescue?

Where to buy Victoria's Secret in Malaysia????

PRIVACY for some but not others - the ironies of life!

AIyoyoyoyyo - since the phishing scam - I've been paranoid and changing my passwords and logins everywhere and forgetting what I put in! Sheesshhh!

I actually don't have much to write about, just checking in and fooling around... Oh yeah! I should mention something - you know when you get your bills for utilities that you use like credit cards and handphone bills and usually the organisation provides you with a reply 'Cheque' envelope duly addressed back to their payment centres and free postage?? Well, I've just recently started using a new bank's credit card - an international bank and guess what! I realise they provide a blank envelope AND no postage!!!!!!!

I was thinking it would be much much easier to pay them since they only have one branch in the whole of KL and even so, located in a terrible far away place (from me).....but no! They're too cheap to even be friendly with customers like that! Sheeesh!

What else do I want to gripe about - let's see......my face is really spotty! I never really had a problem with acne before in my entire life, but perhaps due to my 'bragging' nature about having gone for only 10 facials in my entire life and not having bad skin during this or that time of the month.....I'm getting payback! And IN A BIG WAY!!!!!!!! Ever since the wedding, I've been having these quite terrible breakouts with big zits right on my cheeks, near my eyeline.....sian! I really look quite fugly now with my glasses, bad hair, bad skin, fat body....... :(

I've been on youtube recently - voyeuring, not posting......and I don't know if I've mentioned this but I found kandee the makeup artist who is quite cool and another girl - aubrey who looks Filipino but lives in the States.....the first one I saw of her was a bad one where she was trying to curl her short hair.....I think she wasn't in the mood for a shoot so the chemistry was off, the charm was missing and witty banter? Elek! But then I saw some other ones.....and she can be quite addictive! She's got 4000 subscribers! I mused out loud to JH - wonder if I just sat in front of the camera, people would subscribe to my channel.....just sit there and look pretty - oh, sorry, fugly now....perhaps I'll be the digital circus freak?

Anyway, I like to watch youtube for great singing talents like Charice (whom I've blogged about before....but is scarily MATURE for her age), Project Runway episodes and make up and hair how-tos.....though I never use the tips but I love watching 'the magic'!

Thursday, August 27, 2009

WARNING BOGUS EMAIL FROM ME

THIS IS VERY URGENT! MY TTANNY@YAHOO.COM EMAIL HAS BEEN HACKED INTO. THERE IS NOW A BOGUS EMAIL PURPORTEDLY FROM ME STUCK IN LONDON AND ASKING FOR MONEY.

DO NOT SEND ANY MONEY - IT IS NOT ME!

Please do not write or use my ttanny@yahoo.com email anymore - it is not me anymore. Apologies for any inconvenince caused.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Errolyn's Secret

I LOVE Victoria's Secret!!!!!!!!

Home Sweet Home

My family came down recently and we all stayed in the condo and enjoyed the view.....it has been a long time since I have been able to just sit back and appreciate it for what it is. I woke up on Sunday morning, padded to the kitchen, poured myself some coffee and cut myself an apple. The feeling hit me then, the very peaceful calm that just settled over me and told me this was home.....It was beautiful.

My house may not be the most decorated, the most modern, the most expensive etc, but it must be one of the most prayed over houses that it always be full of love and laughter and that it is always a safe haven for us. MMmmm.....

Driving with the Windows Rolled Down

This evening, it rained....and when I drove home after work, it was beautiful! Fresh raindrops on green green grass and the smell of freshness in the air....

I rolled down my window to pay the toll man (his grubby greedy hands always shaking around for more...) and kept it down the rest of the way home. It was refreshing and cool and wonderful to just be able to enjoy the world, the way God intended it.

Unprofessional Conduct??

A friend of mine recently received a congratulatory email from a well-known, established organisation in Singapore - a shopping mall. Needless to say, after being told you had won FIRST PRIZE in a 'Sealed with a Ki$$' contest, you'd be ecstatic - heck I'm ecstatic at anything! hehehehe

However, like 15 minutes later, my friend received a rather sterile apology email informing her that 'sorry, we already have a winner and it AIN'T you. Thank you for your understanding'. Now, you'd think there'd be some heartfelt apology, maybe a little token of appreciation....tadak! You sek chi kei la (makan sendiri, salve your own wounds....) so - I thought it was unprofessional and most definitely NOT customer friendly!

Would YOU want your custom with these people????

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Bookcrossing at 1U??

I went to check out the place a couple of weeks ago and re my blog post from before - I wasn't far wrong.......so sad. :(

Anybody can tell me what to do to share my books? I know I could put them at the bookcrossing but I just don't want them to be taken and never released again. I want to share them with people who enjoy them.....can I donate them to our national library?

Anybody got any ideas?

When you pay top dollar, you expect....quality!

Last weekend, JH and I decided to have dinner at Centrepoint. There is an Italian place there that had been quite nice when we went before......well, not anymore! We ordered fish and chips which came in a miserable, new style 'little plate', chicken lasagne which was cream based and came in a small square as well as some bruschettas with various toppings. We were going to have water, bearing in mind that everything comes with calories but were told they only served bottled water. I thought only the expats were advised to drink 'bottled water - still or sparkling!'.

All in all we paid RM75.xx for a meal that was decidedly unsatisfying to the palate as well as to the eyes. We very firmly decided that that was the last time we would visit the little Italian place and that we would blog about it! We got madder still thinking that we paid RM75 and couldn't even get some normal water to drink! What is this??!

Then we walked on over to a nearby mamak to quelch our stomachs since the food earlier wasn't very good (- if you're wondering what wasn't good, the fish was extremely fishy and not what they used to serve which we liked and the lasagne - well, I can make better - even though yes, pasta and its ilk is my speciality!). I faintly recall there is a hotline we can call when the roti canai and teh tarik are above a ceiling price? Remember when mamak prices were skyrocketing when petrol went up and gas went up last year?

Well, the mamak's small triangular nasi lemak was RM1.70 and a roti kosong was RM1.30.

I won't say anymore.

Thanks all for listening to me gripe - hopefully, someone can save some money and go enjoy a wonderful buffet breakfast for only RM16.xx at Royale Bintang Damansara! :D

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Stone Kyambadde - true symbol of grace and forgiveness

I'm currently taking a course in Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. .... yes, I know I'm kinda behind, seeing as there is already an 8th habit! But nonetheless, it's quite inspiring all that is being shared in this course!

One story/experience that really caught me is about Stone Kyambadde - a promising soccer/football player who was already almost within the big leagues. His goal was to play in the European Cup ....or something like that ....when someone premeditatedly 'took out' one of his knees! With his ligament torn, there was no way Stone could continue to play with the big boys and so he retired and went home to Uganda.

Stephen Covey's DVD begins with a Caucasian who went to Uganda for his gap year but ended up staying to continue helping to improve people's lives after more than a decade of corruption and bad living. Timmins is his name (if I recall correctly), who apparently got the many unemployed and out of school youths there to start a soccer team.

After a short bit, the boys came with a Coach....who was no other than Stone Kyambadde. He still loved football and he wanted to be able to pass on the joy and the skills to the young'ins. Hearing him speak and hearing the voiceover about this humble man, I almost got tears in my eyes. There is no bitterness or anger in his for his 'attacker'. Apparently, Stone gave him his forgiveness and said, "You had to do, what you had to do". And now, he just enjoys a quiet life with his family......seems he is now heading a vocational school in Uganda just because he wants to make things better for the younger generations of his country.

In the DVD, Stone explains that someone has to help the young men see their potential, see their future for they will become fathers and husbands themselves and if they don't know how to conduct themselves in those roles, no change will evolve.

Stone Kyambadde is truly a 'Transition Man'! I salute him!

Sunday, May 31, 2009

Sak@e Sushi value for money?

Today I had lunch at Sak@e Sushi in 1 Utama. It was 5 minutes to opening time and the roller shutter was partway open. We knocked on the glass and spoke with the Manager about coming in to eat already. She said, I don't open until 11.30am cos my kitchen is not ready yet.

Fine, even though there was already plenty of little plates on the kaiten belt, she was very sure we would need to order from the kitchen and the kitchen wasn't ready yet.....not to mention, the very act of us getting in after the roller shutter is fully open (we aren't going to rush in by ducking under the roller shutter like neanderthals!), sitting down, them getting us our empty cups and us looking through the menu to actually decide what we want to order would have taken us more than 5 minutes - at least!

So whatever, here's a manager who plays by the books and is of the old school - customers aren't that important when I am following the rules my company sets me! Whatever......

I took a plate of inari skin filled with, of course, rice and layered on top with egg mayo. It was artfully arranged on the plate. One facing up, looking all nice and cheery and yellow with some roe and the other piece facing down. I've eaten in a lot of japanese fast food places and restaurants....I usually expect both pieces to have some stuff on it - especially when I'm paying RM3.90 and not RM2 for a plate.

Imagine my surprise, and I may be an imbecile or a really naive customer here but one piece was empty!!!!! EMPTY!!! JH said it's cost cutting to the max. I agree - do you?!

Thursday, May 28, 2009

BOOKCROSSING AT 1U!!!

i LOVE books! Absolutely! I read almost anything - except self help and religious and boring stuff! hahahhahahah.

And now I am absolutely tickled pink and gloriously happy that 1Utama has become the first mall in Asia to launch Book Crossing! What is that? Well, for the short version of it - where you don't have to click this link - it's basically where book lovers 'release' books into the wild (read: public) and more and more people get to read different books. I think it's superb in Malaysia where books are so expensive.

My only fear is that all the good books (definition by me!) are taken and never released again and all that are left are the 'Chemistry for Scientific Dummies' or 'The History of The Computer Mouse'. That is quite likely to happen in Malaysia - though I would hope that book lovers will already understand the joy reading a book brings and be expansive and kind enough to take books, give some books in return and release books they have already read!!!! PLEASE I BEG YOU!!!!!!

I'm definitely crossing some books - and I can't wait to read yours!

(P.S. I haven't actually gone to the corner yet but I will and will report back what I hope will be good news).

The Book Crossing corner is supposed to be at the Ground floor High Street near Parkson and Zara, New Wing.....

Monday, May 18, 2009

When the Big Bad Wolf comes a-calling

I spent some money at the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale this past weekend. They had advertised that they were going to throw a book sale the way it should be thrown – with real discounts and real deals to attract new readers and to reward existing book lovers.

It’s great going to a book sale – cheap books are a real treasure in a country where a slim paperback can set you back RM40 and the slimness of the book means you can finish it in one day! Some people may find this ok but I prefer to find good deals so I visit places like second hand bookstores and for a long time, I loved ‘Novel House’ available in Penang and KL but now, sadly – they’ve ALL closed down!!! WHY OH WHY!!!!!!!!

Anyway, books were mostly selling at RM8 at the Big Bad Wolf Book Sale with some special ones and children’s books too going at RM3 or RM5……The place was air conditioned and the staff were helpful. The ONLY thing I would ask for for anybody having a book sale is the arrangement of books by genre ….. but it seems a very hard thing to do – I guess cos the stock comes in boxes all jumbled up already…..

But all in all – I bought 8 books for a grand total of RM64 and I would have bought more if only I had space for storage!

Thanks Big Bad Wolf!

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Save the One You Love!

In life, there are momentous times when you have epiphanies, when you realise it's time to give back to society....and then the moment passes and you continue in your wild goose chase (?) for money, status and power.

Remember this name - MVFRA.

Visit this website - www.mvfra.org - the Fire and Rescue Volunteers, Malaysia.

Help someone!

Captain K. Balasupramaniam or Captain Bala for short is a young Malaysian who's been tireless in his efforts to save and educate people from around the world. He's been in countless rescue missions within Malaysia and he's been sent as an angel of mercy to other countries like China and Indonesia where massive natural disasters create an even greater need for a show of human kindness.

When you start a search for the website above, you will find that it is not something new and others have written about it. I'm writing about it tonight because I just attended a Road Survival Talk (2 hours and all too brief!) conducted by Capt. Bala. He's a funny man, very young - I was surprised to see someone so young....but the message that he is trying to deliver is neither comical nor new.

He teaches numerous courses on how to survive on the road, in the city (especially for women), in fires and even has specialised courses for kids! No one has walked away from his seminars bored or ambivalent. I am sure many of those who attended tonight are as of now, making hectic plans to visit their nearby hardware store to get the much acclaimed Life Hammer that could indeed, save your life if your car happens to turn turtle or turn renegade and you have to get outta there fast .......

When he shares his stories, his sentiments and his experiences (all 18 years worth), I couldn't help but shed a few shy tears - yes, I love my husband, yes, I love my family - so why don't I take better care of them AND of myself?

A couple of hours and a few ringgit could award you many more years with your family! The MVFRA is a non-profit privately-sponsored initiative that tries to educate, promote and instil values of safety and I must say, humanity, in all Malaysians.

Our talk tonight was sponsored by the company and it was, as in the famous words of Visa, priceless!

So please - if you can, if you want to, make a contribution to help them achieve one of their aims this year - to gift 18 full-fledged ambulances that will provide FREE service for accident victims. And if you want to provide corporate sponsorship, all the better cos every RM counts!

After his talk, driving home tonight I had a better understanding and empathy, not to mention tolerance, for the motorcycle riders out there. I don't swerve around them or honk at them, not because I am afraid they are Mat Rempit, but just because it doesn't cost me anything to not take a life, not jeopardise a family cos everyone has someone who cares for them. 15 minutes, or even 30 minutes extra is going to buy me a whole lot more time with my family and everyone else's theirs - if only we showed a little kindness along this journey called life!

Captain Bala's underlying message was one of love and hope as he teaches us about survival and emergency rescue tips as well as knowing how to stay calm and know what to do so you can help yourself and someone else! For example, if you/someone need/s a neck brace in the event of a car accident, you need to know that it needs to be put on tight with the head and neck held rigid - if only for the simple reason that no further injury to the spine is caused and to stop the neck from lolling around and the tongue to jam up the airway. Also, knowing about the ring cutter to stop your rings from stripping the flesh from your fingers, besides learning how to use oxygen tanks so that CPR is not worthless - heck, learn how to perform CPR!

There were so many hints and tips I can't list them all here - but needless to say, every little bit of correct information we learn could be useful in helping us save a life one day.

Monday, April 27, 2009

SIGH! Guilt is a sign of a mind that is free...

Now I feel guilty…..maybe some people are just made the way they are…..maybe they don't know any better? Sigh - oklah, I will just keep to my own business from now on.

Toxic People Around You?

A couple of things I wanted to highlight.

No. 1 is this great quote I read in an email attachment someone sent me - great in meaning and great in untackiness….

"Dream of what you most enjoy
Go where you want to go
Be whom you want to be
You have but one life
So achieve what you want to achieve."


You know living life and being happy is not difficult in its core. We just do it. If you want to be rich, then when you work for it (be it by working in an organisation or on your back as some people enjoy doing - which will be discussed in more detail later in the post) then don't complain about it because that is what you decided makes you happy.

(Gosh, I can feel my mood changing as I write this - it started out happy and motivated and enlightened and became a little bit….angry…)

I get upset when people whine all their lives (ok, start of 'much more detail later part of post'). I know some people in my life who are happy to fcuk for money and presents and gifts with no thought to anyone but themselves and still manage to find time to whine. I can’t understand how some people can love themselves so much to the exclusion of others. I have always thought it unfair to cheat on your partner, be it with someone else or with yourself (not that I'm counting masturbation - but when you love yourself too much to the point you'd hurt your partner to advance yourself then yeah, that can be called cheating - right?) ((Another aside: yup, definitely angry mood), But ever since getting married and feeling the emotions that I feel now when I look at JH's face (I love just looking at his face - I don't think he knows I stare at him when he eats….)…..Anyway, I feel so doggone ANGRY when people are selfishly fcuking for money and cheating on their partner! ARRGGGHGHHHH!!!!!How can you live a happy life when you can't even forget yourself for one moment and fully love and care for another??? It is one of the greatest joys in life - says the woman who isn't sure she wants children….- but seriously when you want to do all the little things you sometimes wouldn't even do for yourself, for someone else, you know that you're happy. Do you understand what I'm saying? You know, like I want to eat that fruit in the refrigerator downstairs but I'm too lazy to get it - so I don't. As compared to I want him to eat it or I'm sure he wants it - therefore I go down and get it……

Some people think that when you get a man to spend money on you or when you humiliate him and he takes it, it makes you great - well, it doesn't. It tells me you're shallow and immature and your parents have brought you up to care more about yourself than others! Trust me, no man wants to be taken for a ride and no man will take it forever - that's why God invented the concept of trust and respect. Aiya, I don't know why I'm in this mood. I just read about whines all day long - people who want more than they're getting just because they can. Like I said in my Beijing post - I saw a garbage woman pushing her father/husband along in a wheelchair collecting recyclable aluminum tins from garbage cans and she was happily smiling and chatting away. It's not money and material things that make you happy!

It's having your husband drive up to the house and break into a wide smile as he sees you at the door. It's preparing the chair for your husband when you're settling down to watch a movie cos he is more comfortable that way. It's buying something expensive for your sister just because you know she'd love it. It's telling your mum you love her to get her out of a funk, even when you're upset yourself and reminding your dad that he's done so much to shape you into the person you are….

People wonder why I wonder at having children - perhaps I'm just a pessimist - I know there are good people out there but I am deathly afraid I won't know how to raise our child(ren) into good people - good not necessarily as in rich and famous but good in the heart and mind and soul. These are things I don't know how to teach! So many people can go wrong - I have friends who can, by all accounts and standards, be happy but they continue to whine - I don't have enough money, I don't have enough stuff, I don't have enough skinniness….sigh…..perhaps they just need more luck and good karma - then the right inspiration will come into their lives and they will have an 'Eureka' moment - life is about having the right happy people around you. I think I have to explain this - in order for the people around you to be happy, you will have to influence them right, and vice versa…..so it's a bit of a chicken and egg situation where you make them happy and when they're happy, they make you happy and the cycle goes on…..the thing is just to identify the right people for your little group and to be willing to start the cycle - but hey, that's just me.

Maybe others are happy with an extra bottle of perfume! (Yikes, maybe I shouldn't have said that - the best perfume in the world is happy pheromones)!!! Someone stop me PLEASE!!!!!!

Thursday, April 23, 2009

I TOOT BLOODY TOOT HATE DIGI TOOOT!!!

I tell you I am bloody sick of Digi!!! Their signal sucks and even though I am on a special discounted line between myself and hubby, our bills still run to the RM100s!!!! I don't understand this?? We're supposed to have discounts between us Digi freaking zens but I don't see the discount reflected anywhere!!!

Hubby's recent bill had a RM10 discount - for all that he calls me, no way there is only RM10 worth of calls that can be discounted!

And when I try to check our bills on their so-called All Convenient Online Customer Service (OCS) whaddya know - it's OFFLINE from 19 - 30 April.

I am telling you - if you are not on Digi - don't go there and if you are, do think of switching. I just told JH that we oughta get rid of DIGI, I don't care to which provider we go to - just anywhere BUT DIGI - Disgustingly Inefficient Gila Idiot!

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Tit Bits from My Life

JH asked me to write that the Lorong Seratus Tahun Curry Mee in SS2 is very very good!

He also asked me if I had written a blog about something else but I hadn't and now I can't remember what I'm supposed to write about.

I had a very antsy feeling yesterday evening - I feel like I don't wanna go home and veg and make small talk. I feel like going to a mall somewhere - of course it'd be great if I could pak tor with my husband but…..well, let's just say his employers aren't paying him to go dating…..sigh…..
I also have to clean up the house in time for somebody to come stay in it - I hope it'll be alright….I've never let my house or anything else out for that matter and am feeling just that teensy bit possessive….actually I'm just afraid the tenant will be careless (I shan't say irresponsible) and my whole house will be at risk.

Also, tomorrow night, my new car will be arriving! YEAY! Stay tuned for pictures - maybe on Wed or Thursday or after Beijing if I don't have the time. At the same time, I can test out pics from the new camera of the car on the unsuspecting public (yeah, that means you!). At first I was excited about getting a new ride but with the time lag my dealer is making me endure, it's gone rather stale….I just want to be able to collect my RM625 petrol rebate….come on man! It's your job, just do it ok!

And it doesn't help my mood that I'm getting fatter by the minute. Not anyone else's fault but my own - or maybe I can blame it on my Mother In Law for cooking great dinners and my Father In Law for hiring a maid.

Yesterday JH said I should be a very happy woman. I'm 4 days away from hopping on a jet plane to a honeymoon in Beijing for a week, I don't do any housework, I don't cook unless I want to experiment and potentially call out for Domino's (heheheheh) and my "husband loves me so much that he plans a massage for me in the middle of the afternoon on Sunday" (verbatim from his mouth). However, sometimes when I'm in a funk, he has also offered to spend me off to a day spa - so he can escape my diarrheic harangues! So I don't know- was I being bitchy on Sunday???

It's true though but I try not to revel in it too much - lest the heavens get jealous (to quote Kino/or his wife Juana in 'The Pearl' by John Steinbeck!)

On another note, I CAN'T BELIEVE I remembered Kino's name! This is a novella I read in Secondary School in English Literature class and haven't thought of in years!!!! I.CANNOT.BELIEVE.IT!!!!!!!!! I confess that I got Juana's name from the internet but KINO was all on my own!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When we come back from Beijing, I have a few things to sort out - the housing loan, the car loan, the condo, the kid…..

Monday, March 30, 2009

Online Photo Printing

Aiya, I have been trying for the past half hour to upload some photos to an online print facility - eoe.com.my tapi cannot one! So upsetting! And I purposely came home early to do this some more! Bleakh!!!!

Better go down and eat some dinner now - Mother In Law (henceforth known as MIL) cooked Butter Chicken for dinner.....

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

China's Camera

We're off to Beijing, China for a week for our honeymoon!!!! YEAY!!!!!!!!!! China is one of those places that I am ambivalent about though certain parts of it are a must visit - I term those my 'At Least Once In A Lifetime' locales. Like India, like Egypt, like Alaska, like Machu Picchu…….

We bought a camera for the trip….yeah weird isn't it? The last time I bought a camera was for my trip to Scotland oooooh, about 5 years ago? And now it's konked out but I loved it - loved the ease of use, the picture quality (only 3.2 Mega Pixel - ooooooooohhhh!!!!). It was a Fujifilm. So this time around when shopping for cameras, I kept to Canon and Fujifilm. I know hardcore amateur photographers always go for Canon since it does do its job quite well - even a couple of my cam-whoring friends have them! Another friend though has the Fujifilm F100fd. For the models that I was looking at, both were priced the same - RM1399.00 but Fujifilm having 12 MP while Canon has 10MP. Not that it matters so much - actually more MPs could end up crucifying the photos if you don't know how to work it, people!!!! But everything else was about the same - the zoom, the wide angle lens, the free gifts….the pic quality I would say is a personal distinction.

The Canon pic quality from my amateur perspective, is brighter, more vivid and some say, more enhanced therefore looking rather artificial. The Fujifilm one looks more subdued, less over exposed with more natural colours. However, from an objective standpoint, when the wedding photos were loaded into sis' laptop from Canons and a Fujifilm, the pic quality I liked (forget composition and subject matter!) was from a Fujifilm - so 1 up for Fujifilm.

Sis also suggested that I check out http://dpreview.com/ for expert reviews and comparisons of cameras. I love that site! It's so informative and it's neutral and objective. So of course I checked out the competition between the Canon 870IS and the Fujifilm F100fd. And guess what, it was a very very slim whisker by which the Fujifilm won out!!! Woo HOOOOO!!!!! But dpreview did concede that most people would buy the Canon with its longer reputation and bigger customer base and therefore, bigger fan base/people who've used it before and don't want to learn how to use a new camera. So, 2 up for Fujifilm. Now the only thing holding me back was the price of these babies!

Since I had not bought a camera in so long, I asked a couple of people what I should realistically be spending - I'm more a point and shoot person while Ju Han is a 'DON'T GIVE UP THE DAY JOB TO TAKE PICTURES' person so we'd most probably be using the Auto mode for 90% of our pics….Though reading dpreview did teach me a thing or two about ISO settings and low light picture taking. So what SHOULD I spend on a camera that gives me and hubby what we need for the best value. My sources came back and suggested to cap spending at RM1000.00. Ok.
I put together a list of what I wanted and matched it against several more reviews and against pricing. I wanted fast start up (from the time you turn on the camera to it being usable), small shutter lag (from the time you 'Click' to picture taken), wide angle (to take nice pics of the Great Wall of China), good battery life and nice picture quality on the LCD screen and printouts. And oh yeah, something easy for both of us to use! Other cheaper cameras didn't have what I wanted so in the end it was back to the Canon and the Fujifilm.

SO WHAT WAS THE CLINCHER???????

A 'little' known fact: Fujifilm the company has been running an exchange campaign which brings the price of the Fujifilm F100fd down from RM1399 to RM999!!! I think the campaign has been on since end of 2008 but there were still certain camera shops (like FotoKem in 1Utama) that still had stock. The paranoid me would be wondering why there was still stock if the camera really was so good but I just couldn't ignore the great 'Highly Recommended' review it got on dpreview.com. I just thanked my lucky stars.

Upon calling Fujifilm, they told me Foto Shangri-la branches were mostly sold out but FotoKem still had them.

So last Saturday, hubby and I paid RM999 plus RM80 for 2 years extended warranty from FotoKem and walked off with our black Fujifilm F100fd, a 4GB memory card, a kisgnbn gi rechargeable battery, a soft case and a screen protector. We had a choice of the protector or the mini tripod but looking at the spindly spider leg tripod, we chose the screen protector.
It's about the same weight as the Canon that we were looking at - a tad weight-ful (heheheh) but can fit into the pants pocket (shirt pocket also can but a bit heavy lah). We didn't get any additional battery or memory card cos Ju Han says he doesn't want to spend 1 hour of everyday taking photographs……we're not really that sort of people and I prefer scenery shots anyway so less time fiddling with the camera.

It's not the sleekest or prettiest of cameras and at 12MP, when you zoom in really close -you see the painting like quality of the photo. It's got a cool edit (trim) and save function too which is something I didn't know about but really like. It's easy to use and we're happy. Now I want to see how it performs in China!!!!!!

Which brings me to - CHINA! I can't speak the language but we're going on our own. Since it's our honeymoon we just wanted to take our time to slowly explore or amble and wake up at a reasonable hour. Ju Han speaks some Mandarin so we will wing it and we're forking out for a 5 star hotel too!!!! Good reviews on that too - gotta be careful in China cos their local 5 star is an international 3 star…..But anyways, we saw pics on the web and read user reviews so it should be ok.

We gotta change some moolah and I wish we could use HK dollars cos we still have some of that left over from before……and then next week we're off!!!!!!! SO EXCITING!!!!!!

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Wedding Photos!!!

Weeee!!! The photos are ready!

Feel free to go into:

www.lucaschua.com
Select "Client Login"
Input username: juer09
With the password 0808

Hope you like them!!!!!!!!

Sunday, March 01, 2009

Good Places for Food...in KL!!!

HiHIHI!!! Just wanted to recommend a couple of good places for eating in KL! I know! Can't believe I said that!!!!

Anyway, here goes:

1. Old Hong Kong Kitchen in Jalan Utara (or somewhere thereabouts). It's near the Pasar Rakyat - NOT PLaza Rakyat which is Puduraya. So it's at a corner lot bungalow just around the Bus Station that's there. If you drive a full circle around the bus station you should be able to find it - Oh Yeah, it's opposite the Beryl's chocolate kingdom......

(Aside: That whole road is actually full of chocolatiers!!! Can't believe it man!)

So this place serves the most awesome DIM SUM!!! I am not really a big fan of it but I thought the little itty bitty things were all so deliciously and (it tasted like) lovingly prepared! The skin of the Prawn Dumpling (ha kau) was soft and thin and the prawns inside were big and fresh and juicy and sweet. Another fave of mine, the beancurd skin with prawns inside - mmmm, the skin was crunchy and melt-in-your-mouth and the prawns again.....Even the Siew Mai which I usually hate on account of it being too MEATY - was great! I would have had a second piece if I had room in my stomach!

We also ordered the Fried Rice with Dried Scallop (19.90 for a sharing portion) and that was good too - couldn't really find a lot of scallop but overall, very ok to eat! The dim sums were RM4.80, RM5.80 on average.....So very yummylicious food for affordable prices!

2. BBQ Chicken LG floor at 1Utama, New Wing. We had walked by it many a time, always feeling kinda sorry for it cos it would inevitably be empty but I told myself we have to try it SOMETIME! And we did! And it was great to JH and ok to me. It was very healthy chicken - steamed or broiled or grilled or something but leaving a wee bit of redness on the inside (which I can't stand) and lots of juicy tenderness (which I love!). So all in all, we promised ourselves we'd come back! The mushroom soup was good too!

Last night we walked by it again and WOO HOO!!!!! It's packed! I am so happy for them cos I was afraid that they were going to have to close down.......

So there you go. Go I tell you! GO!

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Puteri Gunung Ledang the Musical

Last Sat, we went for the afternoon show of Puteri Gunung Ledang starring Datin Tiara Jacquelina and Stephen Rahman-Hughes. As of now, I can't very much summon up the excitement to tell you about it. Yes, it was filled with sets, pyrotechnics, magical elements but it just didn't burrow its way into our hearts. We bought loved Stephen's singing though and to find out that he didn't or doesn't have professional training is shocking. His voice and timbre was awesome, the kind of singing I expect when I pay a lot of money to watch a theatre performance. Mbok's, Puteri Gusti (aka Puteri Gunung Ledang's) nanny, also sang well though she didn't have many opportunities to showcase her voice.

I didn't like the colours of the show. There were too many browns and somehow it just made the whole look dull and bland. The chemistry between the two leads was also dull, if in existence at all. I thought much better acting would have done PGL justice but all I saw were rote gestures and there was a general feeling of 'going through the motions' by the female lead. The singing was uninspiring as well, yes she can sing but she didn't really SING. I didn't see any sign of 'discovery of love at first sight - the wonder, the excitement, the naivete' and I also didn't see any heartbreak - no 'anguish, torture, loss or abandonment, 'why-me''.

The rest of the cast - especially the chorus - were of course, enthusiastic, they always are. And I loved the mannerisms and the voice of AC Mizal who played the Javanese Adipati (King). He brought a breath of fresh air to the show, a touch of comic relief at the beginning but then also feelings of shock and fear, often accompanied by an intake of breath, when he used his terrible voice.

The other King - the Sultan of Melaka was very lackadaisical, I almost imagine he had been pulled in to play the Sultan at the last minute and epitomised Malaysian acting - 'I am saying the words, therefore I am'. The only part where he seemed to come more to life was when he danced and sang the equivalent to My Fair Lady's 'I'm Getting Married In The Morning'. Even then it was very 'selamba', nonchalant but at least there was something to actually watch.

The chereography was so-so, we both much preferred P.Ramlee: The Musical but the magical elements of the show, and by that I mean the appearance of the Nenek Kebayans in the forest, were very cool to me. Ju Han didn't like them, he thought them tacky. But we did both agree that Hang Tuah's posse being revived with magic red laser light pointers was indeed …..Tacky. Ju Han didn't like the pyrotechnics, they didn't add value to the show for me. I did like a few of the sets though - the 6 Egyptian 'stairs/mountains', the Sultan of Melaka's palace, and the Gunung Ledang forest.

Some loose ends I remember are the two giggly girls from the Puteri's court - I would have expected the had a bigger role to play when they were introduced, In fact, I also expected the Adipati's advisor to be better and bigger while Mbok also had what seemed to be a small role to me.

All in all, I wouldn't have paid RM203 per seat for the show. Maybe RM100. Not because the direction or the set or the production details were bad. Purely because the two leads just didn't deliver. Everyone gave a standing ovation to the Datin for a job I didn't think she did well.

tephen, while having room for improvement in the acting department, sang beautifully but it was disappointing that with PGL being a love story, I just didn't Feel.The.Love.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Malaysian Ringgit buys what these days?

Sigh, more and more cars everyday on the road. I would gladly take public transportation if it was reliable, clean and safe. Not that it isn't clean now but I just wanted to throw that in.

I guess when the petrol price goes up, people start to save on petrol expenditure. But doesn't the economy going down contribute the same effect???? Actually I don't see much difference in the spending habits of Malaysians. It's as the NST recently reported, a lot of people are still spending money as they used to - am I the only one who is cautious, wary??? It doesn't help that getting married drains the coffers! ACK!

And an indirect result of the economy spiralling downwards is the price of gold rocketing. Madness! We bought some gold just 2 weeks ago at RM117 per gram and now it's what - nearing RM140 per gram??? It's good that we have earned some of it but now I need to buy something elsee…..W.H.I.N.E…..

I can remember a time when gold was RM33-36 per gram and people started complaining when it rose to RM50 per gram…..now, don't even bother! I should get me some good ole ingots!

Monday, February 09, 2009

I want a City to call my own

I've heard many many times that I need to change my ... ummm.....10?....year old car - my Proton Iswara Aeroback which is still working perfectly fine - Ole Faithful! Mostly I hear this from my mum but nonetheless, it's got me thinking.

I think I can afford a Proton Saga (new) but if I had my way (in the real world) I would love to get the new Honda City. I think it looks so cool - a cheap big (looking) car! :)

Gaza vs Malaysia

I think the people of Gaza are very lucky to be able to garner so much attention from our citizens. I only wish some of our own unfortunates, in-need-of-assistance, could-do-with-some help, physically-disabled-and-used-within-scams, people-who-try-and-try-and-yet-just-can't-catch-a-break people could get even half the attention deserved. There are people like those in Gaza in Malaysia as well - perhaps we ought to spare them some thought as well!

Thursday, February 05, 2009

Botox in the Year of the Ox

I recently saw a FAMOUS Feng Shui master on tv touting her wares. Her face could hardly move - do I detect Botox??? HHehehehehehe.....I am so bad....but ....I think I am RIGHT!

Monday, January 05, 2009

Charice Pempengco

Three words - Oh My God ...but not as good as Celine yet! Hahhahahaa

She is a 16 year old Filipina with a voice maturity belying her age. First Lea Salonga, now Charice. It is just indescribable when you hear voice talent like that!

Check out YouTube for videos of her duet with Celine Dion singing 'Because You Loved Me' on Oprah!