Pictures

Found pictures of my river rafting experience. It is fun. If anyone wants to go, I recommend it. :)

These are my friends I went with to Sungai Tampak, Perak. Nurul, NAdz, Azlee, Andy, Ruf, Myself, Ruf's sis (can't seem to remember her name) and Nor.







This is us being gung ho before the actually rafting. We had to carry our own rafts to the river below.

Stuck at a rapid.

The end of the rafting. All in one piece. Happy and grinning. 10km of hard paddling. Arms sore.


My certificate. Ain't that cool. :)

Bored

So bored. I thought I could enjoy the MCs but this is sheer boredom. What good is a break from school when I can't do anything? This is so sad. A Saturday and I spent my day watching TV. At least LOST is good. But after 5 hours of the series, it is just too much tv. I need to run, play ball, skate or do something. Something that gets the heart pumping and adrenalin rushing. I know, I know, no vigorous exercise, yadda, yadda yadda...

What can a gal do? There is only so much tv watching and book reading I can do before I permanantly get lost in the world of imagination and escapism. Even then, I get a headache when I leave reality behind far too long. Sleep, too much. I am tired of sleeping. I get daymares and it just means that it is not a proper sleep and I wake up grouchy and moody. Then at night, I can't sleep.

Sheesh! so much energy but can't use it. Everybody's asleep in the house. It is so quiet. EEEEKS! I just want to scream. Why can't they give me drugs or something that makes me drowsy and forces me to sleep most of the time. At least they can be sure I won't do anything vigorous. I am going crazy. How long does it take for stitches to get healed anyway. I am sure it is healed already. Sigh, double sigh, triple sigh...this is torture.

Maybe I should plan what I am going to do for the rest of the year. I read in Shape magazine that if the ring finger is longer than the index finger, it means that one is a better driver. This is due to the level of testosterone that one has at birth...or something along that line. Well, my ring fingers are longer than my index fingers. Maybe that should renew my faith to take up driving sometime at the end of the year. That would make a whole lot of people happy. Why they bother about me and driving, I am not too sure. But, I highly doubt that i will take up driving. I will just panic on the road or something and plus I do so enjoy being driven.

Oh god, I am just rambling on about unrelated stuff. This is majorly boring. It is times like this that I am starting to think that my aunts do have a point. It is time I find me a man. At least I have someone to talk to when I am bored, angry, moody or whatever. Okie, this is X rated for all my students. R(A) 21. So scoot, no more reading. Go on, read and I will make your life miserable. Last warning....Oh heck... this is my space. I have to get back to the dating scene soon. Oh help, that would not be so easy. Malay men are just so ... so .. so ... what's the word, oh yeah, typical and boring. Of course, Sohabahs excluded. :) Typically boring. What happened to vision-mission men? They are not interested in marriage and I think they are not interested in malay gals. Ay, that's the rub. A string of family weddings coming up pretty soon. My cousins are marrying gals who are younger than me. A younger gal cousin is getting married in December. Nagging aunts galore. Heehhee. At least they are concerned, adorable aunts. :) Hah! maybe I could spend the rest of my medical leave planning on how to meet guys. That would be a blast! NOT! :/

Maybe I should just break the rules and go skating....

My boys

Went to watch the C boys softball match at Montfort. There, I realized the wisdom of taking MCs seriously. At home, I am all alert and perky but outside it took a whole lot of energy just to be normal. Quite woozy, fluey, slower and my stitches do hurt.

But, it was all worth it. My boys may have lost and it is the end of nationals for them, but they played well. They fought well from the beginning to the end.

I am immensely proud of them.

surgery blues

I just got home from SGH. Still slightly groggy. I need to sleep but I need to eat too. Not that I am hungry (went without food since 10 last night - 18 hours of no food) but i need to eat in order to take the pain killers. Am waiting for food now.

I am going to have 2 scars. Sigh...don't like scars.

The lady before me had complications and so I waited for so long to go in surgery. The wait helped me clear my nerves a bit. The staff all very nice and they made it all very comfortable. I was very nervous when it was my turn. Trembled slightly at the operation table. Could feel the injection in my hand. But the general anesthetic took care of everything else after that. Next thing I knew, I woke up facing a window. Feotal position and shaking badly. Very, very, very cold. They put some kind of hose that blew hot air into my blankets. Felt better after that. Pain is bearable.

When I took the taxi to SGH in the morning, the driver was very kind. He assured me that everything will be ok. His wife went through it and he understood. It was nice of him. He said that I will get moody after the operation. And yes, I did. But my parents started it. Never ask someone who is still slightly groggy from an operation a battery of questions. You are just going to get frustration and tears.

Anyway, 11 days of MC ... that's the upside. Still, I might not use it all. I only prepared enough until Friday. well, shall see how. I might pop down to school tmr and go Montfort for the match. It all depends on how I am feeling in the morning.

Think I can skip the food. I just want to sleep. Can't stay up anymore.

Uncovering reality

Going for surgery in the morning.

Have you ever had an experience so unpleasant or shocking that you refuse to acknowledge it?This is the very situation. I know for a month now. I refused to even think about it. I won't let it all sink in and accept it. It does not help that school has kept me busy. Sec 4s, tournaments and all.

No time to deal with it. Don't think about it. It won't happen. Wishful thinking. Illogical.

Madam Sim asked why I did not tell her earlier. How could I, when I myself refuse to believe it.

Fear manifests itself in many forms. The most common form of disguise that fear takes is anger. Can't suppress fear. It wants to be heard and dissipate from the source, the person. Covered and hidden, it brews, it breeds, it feeds.

Morning arrives. Going under the knife.

homecoming elections

Went to TKGS yesterday for match. It was nostalgic. Back to my old school. I can see my old classroom at the corner. They had additions to the school. Plenty of changes. Hard to believe it was 10 years since I graduated from TKGS. Moribus Modestus - Demure and Resolute. We were resolute but seriously never demure, until we graduate. All the fence climbing, yakking loudly etc... those were the days. I could practically see ghosts of my younger self and of my friends. It would probably be more nostalgic if I went to the old school building. All the naughty and mischievous things we did as students. I am much naughtier than most of my students. But, I am smart, never get caught. Oh, and our road crossing abilities developed during our TK years. :)

Oh and the TKGS spirit! Do I miss it. TKGS softball girls are aggressive and loud showing what true TKGians are made off. Long live the TK spirit! The cheers they did, very uplifting. We are very good at cheerleading. I so do want to do a cheer.

Anyway, today did a very important thing for the future of our nation. I went for elections training. Yupps, was selected for this upcoming elctions to be on duty. 4 hours training session. All teachers and of course teachers... we are such sociable creatures and so by the end of the session we are all friends. I just realise there are so many teachers living in Bedok Reservoir. So many of us. . Being teachers, we were so into the role play and all. Kind of fun la the hands on session. Too bad I wasn't able to play the role of a wheelchair bound voter.

what happened to the weekend?

Sunday night. Tomorrow school. Sigh. I am tired. I so need to do my work now. Marking, lessons to plan. Can't do it. I really have no energy. Spent most of my weekend asleep. Supposed to do work and all, but there is no energy. My PC is always on as a reminder to do my work but I cannot bring myself to get started. Goodness, I think I am going to break.

This term is one very busy term. Plus with that thing happening in Week 5. Have been too busy to really think about it. Actually, I don't want to think about it, but I have to. Classic ostrich syndrome, as I called it. As long as I don't see/think about it, it is not a problem/it won't happen. Wake up! It is going to happen and you know it.

I am just so down. Emotional rollercoaster. Started with missing Nadz's solemnisation at ROMM. I would have given anything to be there. Of course, I have about 250 teenagers to mould and my conscience just wouldn't allow me. That weighs heavily on my shoulders. Plus, I have to miss a few lessons with my sec 4s in the next few weeks and that makes me feel more terrible. Of course, week 5... why am I not a total ditzy blonde?

I would like to take this opportunity to ask my students not to do things last minute. For example, the test is tomorrow, please try to ask me questions days before the test. Not the day before. I do not mind answering questions but seriously, what good does it do? Especially when the test is on a Monday morning and you are asking me on a Sunday night. It is a bit too late especially if you ask me questions that requires a long explanation. Please call, and don't sms. It is easier to explain long and difficult questions that way. Also do that if you have more than 1 question. Much as I would like to make myself available to my students at all times, I am not always free. I wish the best for all my students and I wish I could be there for all of you at all times but I am only human. Perhaps, this is a good time to give fair warning to my students that I am planning a trip to Chiangmai in September hols. I need a break. I hope it gets approved. I know, prelims is right after the hols, so I am giving you the heads up to ask me questions way before then.

Achin'

Tired. muscles hurt. Still haven't finish doing ppt slides. Had been a looooooooooooooooong day. Stressed out. Tonnes to do. When will it end?

OIC Singapore was good though. Love the musical/dance extravaganza. Glad they got Jacintha to sing the national anthem. She did it beautifully. It was a sophisticated arts affair. Rahimah Rahim was great. Seriously, she has such grace and elegance. Super glad they decided to use veterans in this affair.

So tired, was glued to the tv while marking mind maps. Refused to move. Finally budged out of the sofa. Would have been a good day overall but I was served with a letter from IRAS. Must pay tax! Darn! Am super broke now.

Body achin', heart achin' and pocket achin'!

amazing things in a small world

Didn't eat breakfast for 2 days in a row. Amazing. I seldome ever skipped breakfast, but for 2 days I did. That is saying something. i love breakfast. Always eat a huge one. Went for sports day on an empty stomach and I still had loads of energy. Today went and had tutorial with 4G while stomach growling. Had lunch at home. Quite a treat we had today. I ate yesterday's leftovers cos my mum was too sick to cook and then my father came home and he brought Indian Rojak! So had a huge lunch to make up for today.

I took taxi home from school today. A waste of money but no choice cos I was tired and loads of stuff to carry. What luck I flagged down my neighbour's taxi. At that time both of us didn't know we are neighbours. It was only after the driver asked which block I stayed then he said he lives in the same block. We talked some and he said something that made me so ashamed of myself. Told him I took taxi cos I have so many books to bring home and mark. And he said he understands cos he knows my father and my father is not an extravagant man. So he is sure that I am not extravagant as well. Boy, I was silent for a while. Not very nice to contradict him. I am not extravagant but the amount of taxis I take.... actually, I have a theory. My father never spend much money on us while we grow up. Always very basic and loads of hand me downs. No toys, no games, just that one Scrabble he bought for me when i was in Pri 5 because I reasoned that it is an educational game and that the whole family can play together. And that camera in Pri 3 because I made a deal with him that he will get me a camera if I get 1st place. We were very understanding, he is the eldest of 10 siblings, some of my uncles and auties were still schooling when I was very young. So he had to help his family. We made do without a lot of things. No complains, grew up fine after all. But, now that I have my own money, I want to buy things that had been denied from me. So, Aussino, branded T shirts etc...but then again, I wouldn't call it extravagant since I live within my means and I dont buy a whole lot of branded or expensive stuff. Still...think i should cut down on taxis. I spend quite a bit on taxis each month....

Extravagant is this certain someone I know who earns very little but she changed her hp every few months and she spend hundreds each time she changed it. Nvm...don't wish to talk about her. She is totally taking advantage of the situation.

Anyway, the taxi driver who happens to be my neighbour refuses to except payment from me. So I got a free ride. Yaay. What a nice day it had been.

Going to go out with sohabahs later. Can't wait.

on teachers

Sports day. Won third place for EL dept in 4X100 relay race. Not too bad for someone who hasn't run since God knows when. There was a crazy teacher who was cheering away at the grandstand. The only teacher crazy enough to do that. Cheering away for Softball, of course. Crazy. No other teacher bothered to cheer for anybody. ;p

Lunch at BK. Talked about students, books, Tom Cruise and dirty stuff. (Ms Zarinah!!! dirty stufff????)

We also talked on the way to BK about the lack of awareness of students. ;)

Facts on teachers:
Teachers do not live in staff room. We have homes to go back to.
Teachers read other books too. We do not read only textbooks.
Teachers have dreams, ambitions and hobbies. We do not just teach.
Teachers were given birth to, nurtured, went to school and we were once your age (gasp!).
Teachers do not just materialise out of air, all grown up and ready to teach.
Teachers have feelings. (yes, we do. So watch it!)
Teachers who are not married are still entitled to 5 day work week - we have parents to spend our weekends with.
Teachers do not disappear on the days they don't teach you. So please hand in your homework.
Believe it or not, teachers do get tired, teachers do not like to scold, teachers do not know everything (if we are omniscient, we are demi-Gods), teachers watch movies, teachers are also capable to hold a conversation about movies, celebs and things other than school related matter. Teachers are human beings.

Wow! what a revalation about teachers. :)

Cats 'n' such

Cat's sick. He's been home all day for the past few days. He is never home when well. Actually he is not our cat, he is just a cat that we feed and share our space with. He treats us like a restaurant, hotel and hospital roll into one. I swear that cat is much more intelligent than we give him credit for. I mean, what other cat actually devised a cat sharing sytem? Seriously, this cat put us in a cat sharing sytem and did not tell us. We thought we were the only ones who feed and pet him. Apparently he has been going to my neighbours too. And we only found out by accident. Plus, that cat knows Malay. He understands everything we say to him! But, in all fairness, he likes us the best. Why else would he treat us like a convenient convalescence resident or a resort?

7 cats since I was 7 and out of all these 7, only 2 was rescued by me to it from the life of a stray cat. All others were smart enough to appear at our doorstep begging for food. Then they keep coming everyday for food, and everyday they get bolder and then one day we would find that stray cat sleeping on the sofa. They have claimed us as their family. We are stuck with them. No arguments about it. Don't know why though, being my family's pet ain't an easy life. Sure we feed them but my mum and I are perfect Almiras from Animaniacs. We squeeze and cuddle and kiss our cats till they beg for mercy or scratch or bite, whichever is more convenient. Still they love us and these cats kept coming.

Too bad these cats are regular pariahs, would love a British long hair. And only 1 cat was female. All others male. Tom cats are terrible. They don't like cuddles and kisses. Tabies are much more loving. As I type this, that cat is sleeping on the bed, making a bloody mess on the sheets.

Kidnapped

Was kidnapped, went to East Coast for R & R while awaiting ransom. Hehehe. It is so cool, hanging out with friends on a thursday evening. My Sohabahs

Thousands of lights across the horizon at twilight. I swear I thought I was looking at another city just out there. But they are all ships. Amazing.

Love these impromptu outings. Makes life spicy and exciting.

Due for a proper outing this saturday. ;)

Funny how something so small can be so significant. Funny how memories can be sweet and beautiful yet painful at the same time. Funny how something that seems so difficult to do is actually the easiest thing in the world to do. Funny....

KL trip continued

KL is really bustling. We went around via the monorail and LRT. It is rather easy to get around KL. Everywhere is connected by train. Oh and the food! Food glorious food!. Almost everything is halal. We ate and ate and never skipped a meal. I regretted not buying the hot dog at GV. Not that it probably taste any different from other kind of hot dogs but it is an experience, right? I gained weight after 5 days. I can't refuse the food because I just love the food.

Oh and you know the traffic lights are cute. Okie, interesting not cute. You know in Singapore, the green man just stands there and blinks but in KL the green man that signals padestrians to cross actually walks and it will speed up to show that the time is running out. It is cool.

By the third day of shopping, I felt really tired and my legs were hurting. My thighs and calf muscles never had to work so hard. Had to check out of the comfy 4 star Chorus Hotel and we extended our stay till 3 pm beause we wanted to take a nap. We never made full use of the facilities or the things in our hotel rooms. I discovered there were extra pillows in one of the cupboards half hour before checking out. How silly!

Moved off to Maluri Hotel in Cheras. I was initially sad having to move away from KLCC and i was crushed to arrive in Maluri because Cheras is a suburb and it looks so residential without any form of shopping or fun. It looked so ulu. The only saving grace was the Jaya Jasco nearby. Not too bad and we had such a good meal at Shakey's. My sis and bro in law went for their business meeting at PGRM so I decided to watch TV and sleep early. I was very very tired. The aircon was very dry in our room and i was very dehydrated. My skin had started to peel and I had to wake up a few times in the night to get a drink.

Next morning ate nasi lemak at the road side and we went to Menara PGRM again. Played SmartMoney. It is a very interesting game. I was hooked on it. It is a simple board game but the objective is to achieve more passive income than active income. I have always thought about money for my future and this game made me think even further. Everybody who is working should play this game. It is a great financial advisor.

I had the chance to shop around at Jaya Jasco. They had problems with credit cards cos MayBank was upgrading the system. So they had to charge manually. I was fascinated but it was very troublesome. Oh Malysians service is not too great and they are slow. Not very efficient but they make up for it by being very polite. Somehow when people are polite it makes up for everything else. Singaporeans sales staff are very efficient and all but soemtimes they are so not polite and that is a turn off.

That night I went for the leadership seminar in place of my bro in law cos he went to York, England for work. I was told to dress formally but purposely did not bring any clothes suitable for the seminar. So what I wore that night was mostly bought in KL. The only thing from home is my brooch and watch. Hehee. New top, pants, scarves, handbags and shoes and don't forget the new makeup! If I had more time and options i probably would have bought a new brooch and watch too. Seminar was very motivating but a little over the top. Fell asleep at the end but I was convinced about the Network 21 system. The first thing that hit me when I went in the auditorium was that people were very excited. They are from Singapore, Brunei and Malaysia and they believe in this sytem. Then the idea is not to get rich quick but to work to build up the Amway business and get rich via the business. I was sold. I want to retire early and spend more time with my family and do my hobbies. The more I thought about it, the lesser my scepticism became. Seriously, I like teaching and I love my students but the amount of work I put in now is going to make me burn out in a few years time. If I do get married and have children, no way am I going to put in this much effort. And looking at my sis and her family and their struggle not to make ends meet but the struggle to look after their own children and spend time with them makes me resolved that there has to be a better way. Plus, I know that in order to live this lifestyle that I have now when I am older, I need to make more money and I dont think money will come in via conventional work.

last day in KL and one more seminar in the morning. Phenomenal experience. Think i would like to go for the next weekend seminar.

Okie, that's it. Running out of steam so I had better end here. Adios...

5 days 4 nights in KL

Juts came home from KL. Fun trip but tiring. Went on Wednesday morning via AEROLINE. A bus company that offers a plush ride to KL and straight to Chorus hotel. The seats in the bus are nice and clean. Very comfy. High deck too. Plus they have a cabin crew that serves food and drink. A tad expensive though. Chorus hotel is a 4 star hotel. Very near to KLCC. Walking distance and next to Avenue K. I had a room all to myself which is cool.

On the first day, we went around KLCC immediately after we checked in. we spent a few hours just going round and round the mall and window shop. Met a few of my relatives there. We were so surprised to see the other. At night we went Chinatown. Wonderful bargains but since it is our first night in KL I did not buy a lot of thinsg because dont want to run out of $. But really, a lot of cool and branded stuff at a cheaper price and the haggling is just fantastic.

Woke up the next day to eat breakfast at A&W. Then we went to Masjid India to look for scarves and my mum's stuff. It is not as fun as I would expect. The scarves look very normal. We were trying to find Italian donatella scarves but they are pretty ex in KL. One shop sold it cheaper but we didn't know. We fell in love with 2 yellow scarves and tried to haggle. She wanted $18 each and would not even lower a single red cent. So she told us to take a walk first and see if her price are not good. So we did and well her words are true so we came back to jher but what a rude shock we had. She refused to sell us the scarves. I was so insulted and embarrassed. My sister was mad. My bro in law was disgusted. Seriously, we were willing to buy her scarves at her price and she turned us down. And she wouldn't even give us any kind of sales service. She practically ignored us and said "not selling". Tolak rezeki betul pompuan ni. Adake boleh buat niaga macam gitu. Macam mana lah orang Melayu tak maju. Tak tahu nak pikat pelanggan. Entahlah, susah nak cakap...Anyway it was usch a contrast to Chinatown. The stall owners in Chinatown were enticing us to buy theirs goods and treating customers like kings and queens and were giving us good prices. All I know is that next time I go to KL and buy scarves, I am never buying from that woman.

Went to Berjaya Times Square next. I wanted to go there to ride the roller coaster. We had lunch at Kenny Rogers first. Was very full by the time we dinished eating. We went to teh theme park to check it out. It is rather interesting and we saw how thrilling teh roller coaster ride is. I was quaking in my sandals at the thought of riding teh roller coaster. But we were too full and i know I would throw up my very delicious black pepper kenny rogers chicken if i were to ride it then. So we decided to pray and shop first. There are 8 floors and up to 5 floors were occupied. I finally found a pair of shoes i liked and bought another pair of sandals. The show shop is called VAMP and tehy are setting up a store in Sg soon. By the time we finished shopping we were too tired to do the theme park. So we had to skip it and we had to rest at Secret Recipe and pig out on cakes. We had hazelnut cheesecake, raspberry cheesecake and Tiramisu. How very sinful. hehehe.

Went back to hotel for some reprieve and then went back to KLCC for more shopping. Bought Rm230 worth of makeup from M.A.C because my sis said I have to wear makeup in order to attract guys. I thought "why not? Makeup is fun. Dont have to attract guys though. They should look at me beyond my physical beauty or defects". Had a fast makeover session too. Had to shop for pants but the prices were ridiculous. We stopped at Coffee Bean for a light snack and drinks. Maybe teh makeup really works plus glossy lips and all, the guy at the counter practically was trying to catch my eye and smiling at me. hehehe. My sis and bro in law can't stop teasing me about it. We chatted until it was time to watch BAtman Returns at 1145. Very cool show.

2 days in KL so far. Very fun and exciting. But I think the standards of living is so much higher than in Singapore. A lot of thinsg are costly. Food is costly for Malaysians I feel. Oh and the sun...thought I would be running away from softball training but the sun was so much hotter than in Singapore. The humidity was low and you hardly perspire but we did get dehydrated easily. And so drying. On the second day, my face became red like sunburnt. I had to use so much sunblock and mosturizer. And the pollution is terrible. A walk along the road made my face itch after that. And I was sneezing away due to the dust particles. I am that sensitive to dust and pollution.

Anyway it is 112 am and i need to sleep. Will continue the rest of my journey another time.

high on frappe

Had dinner and dessert with TKAMAZONians today. Its been awhile since we met. Well, there were 5 of us of the original 15 today. Or well...14 now since 1 has left her earthly shell. Anyway, 5 of us but we had a good time anyways. 4 of us teachers. It is a wonder we did not talk our internal auditor to death about students and school. Missed the rest though. I especially wanted to see Azian cos she should be 6 months pregnant now but she cant make it. She is the first amongst us to get preggy and we don't want to miss all her developments and all.

All of us have grown somewhat. F still quirky but suffering from dementia. Hehhee. And she is jealous that we have all started blogging and she isn't. hehehe. Ain wordly wise now that she came back from her Eu trip and still garang and jetlag. Lijun has let her hair grow long and an NPCC officer. Suxian telling us the ups and downs of her life and job. We are all so grown up now and it was just 13 years ago we all met as NPCC cadets in TKGS.

TCC desert is to die for. The lava chocolate is fantastic and the ambience great. Should patronise TCC more often.

2 more weeks of hols!

Wow, time sure fly past. i have only 2 more weeks of hols and not a scrap of work has been done. Oklah, did some work but have lots more to do. Actually, it has not been much of a holiday. went to school everyday for the past 2 weeks. Softball training, remedials, personal coaching, cleaning up desk and history room. Of course did more than just that. Went out some. This week I went out with Ruf and Nurul to Sentosa. Had a good time talking about 'vision-mission men' and of course our lives while soaking in the lagoon. Nurul's and my stories are mostly about students, school, volunteer work, students and school and students. We gathered we dont have much of a life outside school. How sad. It is more interesting to listen to Ruf's stuff cos it has no students in it. Hehehee.

Went out with Khamilia and Hazelin too. Being teachers we talk mostly about, well guess ... yeah students and school mostly... but we did talk about other stuff too. It was fun. Should do more of these meeting up more often.

I finally started to exercise. As of today, I went jogging twice and skating once. Taking a break today. My back and leg muscles hurts. Guess they are in shock ... suddenly their services are needed again. Heheheh.

Nothing eventful happened so far. Well, can't wait for my KL trip next week.

Of Minahs and Mat motor

There was a wedding in one of the blks here yesterday. Quite a big party cos they had a celebration on Saturday as well. I didn't really take note of it, because it is after all wedding season, until the bride and groom was ushered in their car with an entourage of at least 20 motor bikes. They were very noisy, revving up their engines and blasting their horns. To make a statement, no doubt. No grudge against them abt that. It is after all a happy occassion and they just want to celebrate the fact that their bro/sista are married. I understand the clannish attitude.

But, something turned me off. It was the minahs sitting perched behind the guys on the motorbikes. I have nothing against minahs .. really nothing, but I do not like it when girls wear our malay traditional costumes and ride a motorbike. Why? Because it is indecent! I mean, the traditional costumes, be it the kebaya or the baju kurung, are a symbol of a girl/woman that is sweet and decent and alluring. Now, when u wear these costumes and u want to sit on a motorbike, it means u have to hitch the long skirt up thigh high...it ruins the image of what a malay girl in the malay traditional dress suppose to epitomise.

Of course the smarter ones wear the skirt with slits, so they dont have to hitch it up. But still... I may be a ferring but i do know something ... The slit is there as a form of peek-a-boo to "now u see my ankles, and a little bit of my calf, now u don't". It is sexy, alluring, a mystery. So, when u wear a skirt with a long slit and u sit on the motorbike, u expose an entire leg all the way up... what mystery is there left? U lose the appeal, it becomes too blatant, grotesque, cheap even. Same goes with the traditional costume, the kebaya and the baju kurung, the long sleeves and long skirt is to provide mystery, illusion. what is left exposed or seemingly exposed is just enough to tantalise. It leaves a trail of wonderment, exquisite elegance BUT it is all spoilt by riding a motorbike!

I don't claim to be an expert but this is what I believe. To don on the malay traditional dress or any traditional dress, one must be a lady. Elegant and poised. What that is covered by the dress should remained covered. Don't go spoil it. To ladies who think it is liberating and sexy to hitch up their skirts and ride motorbikes, think again. Men, honourable men, do not think it is sexy .. I am no prude but I think when sexy becomes too blatant it becomes cheap.

I am not sorry if I offended anyone because what I saw offended me. I am entitled to my own beliefs, values and principles. Judge me if you will but I will not change them.

holiday blues - got hit on the head

Well..I did it. After much cajoling from my dear sohabah, I went and got this blog set up. It took some time, but at least the skeleton is up. I wanted to wait until it is all perfect before I post a blog but I forsee that this blog is a project that will never finish. I will probably change it every now and then. So, watch this space for more new stuff in time to come.

It is the holidays and I am blue. I went shopping today and I didn't really enjoy it. I was in a reverie much of the time. I was thinking about my life. A dangerous place to go because the last time I thought about my life like this, I was in my quarterlife crisis. I just hope that I won't go into a second crisis ever again in my life. Going through a crisis was very painful, depressing and lonely. Seriously, if I didn't have faith, family and good friends, I probably have gone into a full blown depression and God knows what I might have done. That was 4 years ago. Good news is, I know I can prevent myself from going into a crisis. Cos I figured out why I am feeling lousy. I can't say it here, perhaps I will never tell anyone the reason. It is too personal. But, I know how to remedy the situation. I have to follow my dreams, even though I may be alone while pursuing them.

Why did I not think of it before? Perhaps getting hit on the head by a softball woke me up. Lucky it was thrown by a sec 1 girl. If it was thrown by one of the boys, I'd probably have a concussion. Yupps, softball are not soft and if you insist it is so, you need a hit on the head by one. Hey, my head still hurts k...

forgive me for being a bit philosophical these days... one needs to look at life and question it from time to time. It doesn't help that I have been reading some philosophical books lately. Yesterday I read Z for Zachariah and A Brave New World. Today I read The Orange Girl by Jostein Gaardner. All pretty much philosophical and question certain theories and assumptions of life. I was even doing a parallel with St Exepury's The Little Prince while reading The Orange Girl. These are good books to read, maybe a bit heavy for some but very good books indeed. Certainly, I look at life differently each time I read these books.

Life, Oh life... If I were at the brink of the universe and I had to choose to live my life for a short span on earth only to be wrenched back from it, never to return or to say no, thank you because I cannot except the rules... I would choose the short span on earth.

The dream of something unlikely has its own special name. We call it HOPE. - the orange girl