Goodbyes

Today, a Malaysian friend left for home. Quite sad to part - we go to each other's houses quite often. Actually, she's the wife of Nazir's friend but we clicked so, it's all jolly good fun. We had them over for lunch - final meal together. Quiet baby is not so quiet now - babbles in baby speak. Cute actually. Never thought I'll see the day when I say a baby is cute. Anyway, quite a well behaved child so am happy.

I wonder when we'll meet again. It's not like we go to KL everyday. But at least it's only KL.

Well, that's all that I did. Am still mad over Prachett. At book 2.

Quote of the day:
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, get it out with Optrex.
- Spike Milligan

It getting hot, hot, HOT

How's this for irony? I spent the last eight years or so of my life griping about the heat in Singapore and plotting to escape it, only to find, having had a reprieve of eight months, more hot weather. Grrr....it's 31 degrees in London; that's even hotter than Singapore. My fiend the heat headache said hello before slamming into my frontal lobe. Someone fix environmental controls! You know I have watched way too much Trek when I start spouting things like frontal lobe and environmental controls. But I digress.

Meanwhile, Londoners went mad with the weather. More crazy angmohs (in nothing but shorts or underwear) tanned, played in their tiny plot of lands called gardens, mowed lawns. The weatherman chirpily announced the temperature, with a "Will this weather last?" in a hopeful tone. You get the drift.

But I have become more philosophical with age - it's more "C'est la vie" for me than "Kill, kill". Of course, it could be that I can slouch around in short slips and tank tops and short skirts around the house now. No Mummy to go, "Baju apa ni?" (What on earth are you wearing?) - not that I try. Plus, I hacked off my hair, with Nazir doing the final trimming. Now, I sport a ear-length bob with a fringe. A fringe! Harks to my primary school days. Q. fun. Nazir is reconciled to the short hair; like most men, he prefers long hair - hah! Bloody hot, innit. He had to conceed I look quite cute with short hair - "I told you so"-s all round. Hmmm...am not very gracious in victory.

Two of Nazir's exams are over. Phew. Am getting quite sick of cooking, truth be told. It's his turn starting next week!

Late nights, exams and Death

It is 1.30 am in London. Everyone I love in Singapore are at work right now - 8.30 am! What a difference. I am staying up until 4.30 am, time to wake Nazir for some last minute revision and then, it's off to school. Exams are here - pray for him, okay?

To keep awake, I have been reading Terry Prachett for the past hour. French colonialism would just send me to sleep so it's fiction for me now. I find it quite curious that some days my insomnia would hit me, and on others, like today, when I need to stay awake, my eyes keep drooping.

It's 22 years late for me but I've finally read "The Colour of Magic" - the first in the Discworld series. It's fantastic! Hilarious, wacky and punny. Is there some genre in which Prachett, Hiaasen, Douglas Adams, and Fforde fall - sth like wacky funny? I don't know, but I do find these are the books I love most. Anyway, in "The Colour of Magic", Rincewind, an Unseen University non-graduate, is saddled with an inept, bumbling, happy tourist. This is a world where gods play a game of chance (literally) and Death comes a knocking, offering help - to die, of course. In a hysterical fashion, our not very heroic protagonist helps this tourist get out of scrapes he is not even aware of being in.

My favourite is Death. He is so funny in an understated sort of way. A sample of just how funny he is, an excerpt from "The Colour of Magic"

----

OF COURSE, WHAT'S SO BLOODY VEXING ABOUT THE WHOLE BUSINESS IS THAT I WAS EXPECTING TO MEET THEE IN PSEPHOPOLOLIS. [Death talking to Rincewind]

'But that's five hundred miles away!' [Rincewind]

YOU DON'T HAVE TO TELL ME, THE WHOLE SYSTEM'S GOT SCREWED UP AGAIN, I CAN SEE THAT. LOOK, THERE'S NO CHANCE OF YOU-?

Rincewind backed away, hands spread protectively in front of him. The dried fish salesman on a nearby stall watched this madman with interest.

'Not a chance!'

I COULD LEND YOU A VERY FAST HORSE.

'No!'

IT WON'T HURT A BIT.

'No!' Rincewind turned and ran. Death watched him go, and shrugged bitterly.

SOD YOU,THEN, Death said.

----

Death's favourite words - "It won't hurt a bit". Ha ha.

Well, if your tastes lies with this sort of humour, I would recommend reading Prachett. If you haven't already! Death gets his own book in "Mort", the one that started it all. Am eagerly anticipating....Death! Ha ha.

On other news, Liverpool won the Champions' League today - much to Nazir's delight. He's such a ...bloke sometimes. He's been scaring me with yells, curses and excited cheers. I'm glad though - there is something quite not 'man' if a guy doesn't like sports - though only manly sports like soccer, rugby, boxing; something people can get injured with or get beaten up in. I know! It's a sexist view, but what can I say? It's what I think.

I also managed to cook a lovely meal, bake a lovely snack (at the same time), do the laundry AND watch the first three episodes of ST:DS9 - new favourite Trek character: Dr. Bashir. He looks disconcertingly like Luke Perry (I kid you not!) and is so charmingly blur and inept, and in love with stronger women. V like Tom Paris, come to think of it. Sans the daddy issue, have a tissue. This week's "I'm a doctor, not a -" is 'spy'.

Am leading a full life!

Vulcanology

Spent a whole day yesterday watching ST: VOY and ENT.

Non-Trek fans, skip to next paragraph.

"Azati Prime" on Enterprise yesterday - T'pol is a junkie!!! I am so offended by the cavalier way they had totally destroyed Vulcans - B&B seem intent to make Vulcans the villians of the piece. The message I get from ENT is see, Vulcans are not so great after all. First, was the Vulcan High Command not sharing tech, the secrecy and infighting. Then, the whole T'pol is emotional - argh!!! Vulcans are NOT emotional. That is they feel emotions but just control it really well. I like the whole Trip and T'pol romance (though lots of Trekkies disagree) but I don't think she would be so....girly about it. The ding-donging: should I or should I not? I think a better conflict between the two (and more natural than this contrived T'pol exploring her emotions and becomes a JUNKIE!!! Grr.) would be the clash of their characters. How Trip would push to see that bit of emotion (he would...*eyeroll*) while T'pol would be so damn rational about it. See, this would be a perfect opportunity to see a Vulcan relationship at work - I do not think they would be so cold to each other. After all, Tuvok confesses to 'a deep attachment' to his children. But no...instead of stretching their imaginations, cop-out with T'pol being the weird Vulcan, who takes drugs. Words cannot convey my outrage - unfortunately, also making me inarticulate and slightly 'stream of conciousness'-y. Sorry.

Ranting aside....(non-Trek fans can resume reading here)

Hee hee. Watched "The Big Hit" (1998) with Mark Wahlberg, Antonio Sabato Jr. (Oh Joy!), and Lou Diamond Phillips. Damn funny show. Mark Wahlberg is a sweet, slightly insecure hit man, with a crappy friend - who played him out and 2 girlfriends - whom he simply cannot break up with because he doesn't want people to not like him. Hee. Highly recommended except for the R-rating for 'violence and pervasive language'. Not for the prudish.

Well, that was my weekend - TV! Hee hee. Days are flying by... exactly two months to my return.

Victory!

Arsenal won the FA cup!!! Yay! In case anyone is wondering at the sudden reversal, I supported Arsenal instead of Man Utd because am staying on Arsenal grounds. Loyalty to home and all that. Plus, Man Utd didn't play Giggs until extra time so am a bit miffed. :P So, joy oh joy. Didn't get my wish that Ronaldo would miss the penalty though. Sigh. Wanted him to miss bec of his fake dive and injury that resulted in a red card for Arsenal. Most grr.

Well, that's all the news for today. Giggs looks really cute! Hee ... but his curls are gone. :-(

Dr. Who's starting....byeeee.

Brand New Day

For someone who hated tech, I am really taking to this blog thing. I suppose, it's cause I see a point to reading my friends' blogs - and there's some form of interaction through comment pages, those tag boards (which I don't know how to do!!! ha ha). Am really enjoying myself. It's these little things I guess that keep people together - even an inveterate hermit like me. Perhaps am really not a hermit after all as I seem to need (select) people around me.

Been curled up at home - a touch of frost this week. Spring is a really weird season, summery at times, wintery at others. A wee bit of everything. Have just finished "Bath Tangle" by Georgette Heyer. Finally. It had taken me a week - I just couldn't sit down and read it through for some reason. Am finding less patience for romances now; I wonder why. Even the good ones. I find myself skimming just to get to the end. In fact, it is a rare book indeed that can engage me. (Amongst which are Eoin Colfer's, Carl Hiaasen's and Jasper Fforde's.) I have reached a plateau in reading. Maybe that's why I am dipping into genres I rarely read three years ago. Such as fantasy... have just borrowed four of the Discworld series by Terry Prachett. And classics-something I detested previously. But I guess that is what reading is all about - discovery and adventure.

What makes a good book for you? To me, a good book should entertain. Most of all, it should be funny - not necessarily rip-roaring, side-splitting funny, but generate amusement. Some might say it should be thought-provoking but I do not agree. At least not at the moment of reading - it distrupts the reading process, I think. A fantastic book would entertain right to the end but when you put it down, then, even some time after you have finished, some thoughts related to it might occur. You know what I mean? It seems to me, there is a divide on this with the serious literary sorts on one side and the pop culture sort (me!) on the other. Though my younger older sister (hee), Adik and a good friend, Banu don't really fall in either category so perhaps there isn't such a dichotomy. Evidence to the contrary and all that. Why do I even bother classifying things? - other than the fact am incredibly anal and organized.

It's really quite scary to find myself thinking of life in terms of a narrative. Everything has to have a neat ending, every action some purpose. But life doesn't quite work out that way. And people do not necessarily act in a consistent manner, especially me. Unfortunately, one cannot but help wishing otherwise. :S

Disparate (well, not wholly distinct) thoughts circling my head. Nazir is intent in his revision - exams next week!

Am in the wrong line of work...ha ha

Quiz link thanks to Minerva!

Your Dominant Intelligence is Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence

You are naturally athletic and coordinated, good at making your mind and body work together. Sports are fun and easy for you, especially those requiring good hand - eye coordination. There's also a good chance you're a great dancer, or good at expressing yourself through body language. You learn best by doing, and you feel like you've always got to be moving (even if it's just your hands). You would make a good athlete, physical education teaches, dancer, actor, firefighter, or artisan.

What Kind of Intelligence Do You Have?

Memories....

Allllll right!!! Am back with my full pep and vigor. All this upswing- downswing is truly weird but shall just put it down to hormones. Am not mad. Weird, but not mad. Heh. Thanks to all dear friends for reassurances and care and concern. Hugz!

Went to the library today - Nazir sort of forced me off my lazy butt for a walk. But hey, it worked. And of course, the library! Man, I love libraries - hence, why Farenheit 451 (Ray Bradbury) was so distressing for me. Anyway, today I got "Matilda" (Roald Dahl) and the first in the Narnia chronicles for Nazir - he has finally gotten into the whole fiction thing. So much for only non-fiction. Of course, it's a handy excuse for me to revisit my old friends (not that I need an excuse to re-read anything! ha ha). He passed up on Artemis Fowl for now unfortunately. Still, having infected him with Phillip K. Dick, Star Trek, Kevin and Sadie (Joan Lingard) and now, just fiction in general, am quite satisfied. One of my secret fears was to marry someone who did not READ. Sob. Btw, comic books do not count unless it's X-men. ;) And if you know Dune through the game, ARGH. Don't even tell me, please.

Right. Back to the point of today's escapade. Rented from the library an anime DVD - Katsuhiro Otomo presents "Memories", three short animes by different directors. Haven't figured out how Otomo ties in with the lot since he directed only one of the three but doesn't matter at the moment. My favourite was a hilarious piece by Tensai Okamura - "Stink Bomb". It is about how a young chemist ingested a pill which he thought was a sample of new fever medicine and inadvertantly turned himself into a biological weapon. The pill was in actual fact a prototype of a bio weapon contracted by the government. He sets off to Tokyo, under orders from the head of the company which made the pill, with papers and the sample. When the powers that be finally figured out he was the source of the gas, they tried to shoot him down. Ha ha. It's really quite funny esp since the guy is blur like sotong. He's like, ooh, why are people shooting at me? Snort. And people dropping like flies as he passed and he didn't make the connection. The Americans (involved, of course) steps in, captures him and bring him back to HQ in a space suit to contain him. Hee.
[Spoiler warning] The ending was hilarious. After handing his boss the papers and pills, he got out of the suit, knocking everyone unconcious. "What a stink" was the final words from our intrepid non-hero, still not realizing what he had done. Mwhahah. V funny.

Nazir was entertained despite protesting he hated Anime at the start. Hiakz. More influence on our poor Ustaz. Better than MTV, eh?

The other two stories were quite good but I felt a little sense of deja-vu. Again, been reading too much sci-fi. I suppose, some themes do not change but the spin on the themes (a Miss Havisham computer gone nuts and the other a Phillip K. Dick type story told from the point of view of a kid) was good.

That's all for today. Ta-ra.

Unclean! Unclean!

Wah lau! Confirmed deep funk a few days ago were hormones talking. Had my period today - hurt like the dickens. Wonder about the expression - hurts like the dickens, because reading Dickens hurt? Ha ha, just a piece of folk etymology, on my part.

Woke up late this morning - had 10 hours of sleep. And after Enterprise, I slept again! For 3 hours straight. Totatally wiped out just from mere blood loss. I don't get it - it's not as if I had been doing anything particularly strenous. Errr....watching "Hornblower" (Horry!) DVDs can hardly be called that, eh? I wonder why is it that everything to do with a woman's reproduction system is painful? Periods - cramps, back pain, lethargy, depression. Giving birth - generally acknowledged fact. Menopause - hot flushes etc etc. Why?!

Was shivering while sleeping...Nazir had to take three different blankets to keep me warm. Reason men were put on Earth, ha ha. :D Anyway, was a very fine day today....the neighbour next door had a barbeque, pot guy came out for a sun tan. Pot guy - the guy who lives at the bottom flat in the house opposite always comes out to smoke rolled up ciggies which look like pot. Am pretty sure it's not, but the name stuck. So, despite the shining sun and heat, I slept with a picnic rug, a throw and a comforter piled on top of me.

That's all the complaints I have today, I guess. On to more fun stuff, I dreamt of Voyager. Was in a spaceship in the Alpha Quadrant when we were hunted by aliens which looked like 8472 but was not 8472. By some miracle, we flew to the Delta Quadrant where Voyager found a safe haven... a miracle considering it would take some eighty-odd years at maximum warp. The logical part of my brain rationalized we must have used a wormhole or one of those Borg tech like Voyager did to get home even though I did not dream it. Anyway. Must be watching too much Star Trek - my mum would agree, ha ha. She'd seen so many bits from Voyager that she knows all the characters - and some names! Ha ha. Poor ma.

Am eagerly anticipating Star Wars: Episode 3. Am detesting bandwagon people though...ugh ugh. Especially the proliferation of Queen Amidalas on the Net. Yetch. Some ten years ago, they wouldn't know an AT-AT from a TIE fighter. Or an 'eyeball' from an X-wing. Hah. Wonder if they know even now! :D

How things have changed

Playful Girl


What kind of little girl were YOU?
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Wishing for more Trek tech...this time a stasis chamber

[Warning - if you usually read my blog for fun reports on London, this is not it. Run, run like the wind...before you keel over from boredom. ;D]

Went to bed this morning on the wrong side of the bed. Now that the days are lengthening, I have been staying up until subuh as isya' is super duper late and subuh ends super duper early. Don't ask about the super duper. Just came out. Anyway, didn't go to sleep till around five during which interval I spent ranting at Nazir. Not about him (cause he's greaaaat) but my life. Poor guy - has a slightly manic depressive, slightly OCD wife. It's quite funny, nothing happened but just felt so... I don't know. Angry, upset and, at the same time, nothing - because it doesn't matter, does it? What one feels about life, I mean. It won't change the past, the present or the future. I should get lessons from Tuvok.

Have never been much for cheesy, "inspirational" emails but this one from Ain's blog May 11, 2005 occured to me when I woke up. Could be because I dreamt of Ain today (we were at one of those cruises, peculiarly enough. Not talking much but understanding one another perfectly. The usual). Not that am facing adversity - can a depressive state of mind of one's own making be considered that? I think not. Back to the cheese, am I the carrot, the egg or the coffee? Based on experience, none - I'm the bomb (not da bomb. Hee. *eye roll*). I explode when messed with. But since it's a metaphor, I shall stop being so bloody literal-minded. But it's quite difficult to deal with the metaphor (hokey metaphors making me think real hard. Strange). Cause what I usually do (after exploding) is solve the problem, only I do not move on from there. Long after the problem is solved, it would fester in my mind. Second guesses, why did it happen in the first place? So inside I get both hardened by the experience (the egg) and soft (the carrot) while the water around me changes (that was the point of solving the damn problem, isn't it? Ha.). So, I'm all three now?

What is it about growing up that makes one want to stick one's head in a hole, accompanied by real loud rock music? I wish for a stasis chamber now - living live in a stasis chamber. Loads more fun, I think. And what is it about me that makes me relate to life to the books I read and the shows I watch? Not a good sign to deal with reality with unreality. More on life and books. Been reading "About a boy" by Nick Hornby. Dead funny, by the way. So is the movie. There's a line somewhere which I can't quote exactly but something to the effect that all this discontent Will (Hugh Grant in the movie) is feeling is just basically boredom. He's angry, discontented when he really doesn't have anything to be unhappy about - unlike Marcus. Now that's real adversity. Yet, Will's unhappy though knowing there are people worse off than you doesn't help much. Makes it worse actually. Invalidates your feelings - which is not the way to go to solve the problem.

Am glad in a strange way I'm not the only one feeling this way... reading my friend's blogs is good for more than keeping in touch, after all. Jieja reminded me inadvertently from a comment on my blog that I should be grateful for what I have. I am, most of the times. Just not when in low funk. Sigh. Maybe it's just PMS.

Sorry for the long exposition. Was going to just update my fotopages but I couldn't stomach writing a cheery accompaning report on Harlech. Will do it when feeling better.

Wishing for Dorothy's shoes....or at least a transporter

Woke up this morning feeling restless and out of sorts yet at the same time, lethargic. Miss my family so much, especially my mom. Weird huh. Spent loads of times while in Singapore being so busy, not talking to my mom much. Now miss her so much. Sniff.

Feeling much better now though having just talked to her. Makes me feel quite grateful for the telephone. I wonder how it was like for immigrants, especially those in the non-telephone, non-Internet era. Must really sucks - nothing but letters and, if one can afford it, black and white pictures to send home. There's no immediacy, any news would be weeks old. And you cannot even hear their voices.

Next step, I hope, is a transporter (not of the Jason Statham variety but Star Trek). Then, we can live anywhere in the world and still, literally, pop in and out of home. Joy.

An aside: fotopages updated - pictures of the journey to Wales. Should have put that up first but just found them. Ha ha. Enjoy.

Spate of industry in me

Fotopages updated!

Wow. Azrifah is such a good girl today - so rajin one. Up for today - pictures from the cottage and climbing a hill (Nazir's idea! Me hikin' days are supposed to be long gone). As mentioned, was very fun, despite the huffing and puffing AND avoiding all sort of shit (literally). But once we reached the top, it was well worth it. There we found some sheep grazing. *Echos of Nazir's Subahanallahs, here* Well, the views do make one think of God. The infinite power of the Creator, and His kindness in bestowing such beauty on mankind. To think we are set to destroy our beautiful planet with our pollution - Recycle, Reduce, Reuse everyone!

Yes, Jieja - am v happy! :D

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Have actually finished with this entry but was talking to my sister. Here's an appropriate joke courtesy of kakak, too delish not to share.

"Wee sheep wee sheep..shitting down the hill"
(to tune of 'Ryan Giggs, Ryan Giggs, running down the wings'.)

How very apt.

Welsh wizard!!!

Guess where I've been? Cymru.... Gwalia (a term for Wales very popular especially during Victorian times)....Wales....however you say it, it's absolutely smashing! Good God, starting to sound like a 98.7 DJ trying to be posh. Sort of like saying texting instead of SMS (courtesy of kakak :D). Righty-ho. Back to normal speech. Been away for a week; just arrived back from the countryside. Real countryside with cows, sheep (loads of sheep!) and everything. Call me sua' ku (that how you spell it? Spelling has never been my strongest suit) , but the whole experience was novel. The downside to all that fresh country air? It smells like shit. Sheep shit to be more precise. Overwhelmingly so. Before I get scolded by Nazir again for complaining about the smell, I shall just go on to the raptures over nature.

We stayed in a nice cottage called Cae Garw, somewhere near Botwanogg, in Northern Wales. Fantastic views from the bedroom windows. Imagine waking up to mountains and hills and little puffs of sheep. Ahh...bliss. We went to the seaside, hiked a not-so small hill (about 300 m), saw some castles - Harlech and Caernarfon, and went to Snowdon. Harlech is highly recommended. It's a wee castle set on rocks and cliffs overlooking the sea. Reminded me of those snow globes come to life. Nature, open spaces, loads of nature. Green pastures, wee sheep (stinky but quite pretty when viewed from a distance), sea, blue skies. Going back to London was quite a letdown after all that. Me, a city dweller saying that! Wales is that fantastic. Plus, real cute dragon on their flag too.

Despite the title, the trip had nothing to do with Ryan Giggs. Didn't even pass Cardiff! Ha. Appealled to my sense of humour nonetheless.