i want i want i want

I think our generation is too ambitious. Don't get me wrong. I think ambition is a good thing. But i've been thinking of the unnecessary stress we put upon ourselves. It's the constant search for that ultimate job, in hopes of a high salary, so we can afford that nice car and fancy condo, where we can raise our children, who will attend only the best schools and excel in music/sports/origami, and then proceed to be lawyers, doctors and engineers. Bleh. And twice a year, we get to travel to some exotic location so we come back and boast about it to our less-priviliged (read: happy with their simple lives, non-money grabbing, anti-designer label wearing) friends.

Oh and i forgot to mention that this should all be ideally achieved by/before/at the age of 30.

Maybe i'm exagerrating. Maybe I think too much. Maybe lunch time is approaching and i don't know how else to deal with my hunger. Thing is, I'm a bit tired of planning for the 'perfect' future these days. Pursuing my postgraduate, buying a house, getting a better car, looking for a higher-paying job... It never ends. Whatever happened to 'come what may'? Ok, granted, we all need to plan some things at some point. But i think our generation is obsessed with the notion of having/doing it all as soon as possible. Sometimes we just want too much, too soon. And hey, like i said, a little ambition isn't a bad thing but when your whole life begins to revolve around 'I want, I want, I want', it's time to take a reality check.

I'm gonna stop doing that. Let's face it: Whatever we make, it's never enough. When you have what you want, you'll always want more. Maybe it's a new economic principle (that supply/demand one was getting old anyway). I'm gonna stop house-hunting because truth is, i don't make reasonably enough to buy one yet. And my postgraduate? It's not a priority. A better car? Mine will do for now (i need to get rid of that squeaking sound though). A husband and 2.5 kids? If it's meant to happen, it will (if not, there's always match.com. Haha). And yeah, who doesn't want a higher-paying job? But right now, i work with people who have become my friends, i get to travel, write and on Fridays, i get 2 and half hours for lunch. Life's good. Right now, my short-term plans include buying bread so i can make sandwiches for my deep-sea fishing trip tomorrow. Oh and I need to buy a new toothbrush.

What's that song again? Oh yeah: Que sera, sera...

Me samurai

You are a Samurai.
You are full of honour and value respect. You
are not really the stereotypical hero, but you
do fight for good. Just in your own way. For
you, it is most certainly okay to kill an evil
person, if it is for justice and peace. You
also don't belive in mourning all the time and
think that once you've hit a bad stage in life
you just have to get up again. It's pointless
to concentrate on emotional pain and better to
just get on with everything. You also are a
down to earth type of person and think before
you act. Impulsive people may annoy you
somewhat.

Main weapon: Sword
Quote: "Always do the right thing.
This will gratify some people and astonish the
rest" -Mark Twain
Facial expression: Small smile

What Type of Killer Are You? [cool pictures]
brought to you by quizilla.com

Colour me pretty.

The Luscher Colour Test (http://www.viewzone.com/luscher.html). Here's what it said about me:

PROBLEM UNDERLYING THE PRESENT STRESS -- The fear that he may be prevented from achieving the things he wants leads him to play his part with an urgent and hectic intensity.

DESIRED OBJECTIVE -- Preoccupied with things of an intensely exciting nature, whether erotically stimulating or otherwise. Wants to be regarded as an exciting and interesting personality with an altogether charming and impressive influence on others. Uses tactics skillfully so as to avoid endangering his chances of success or undermining others confidence in himself.

CURRENT INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR -- Believes that he is not receiving his share -- that he is neither properly understood nor adequately appreciated. Feels that he is being compelled to conform, and close relationships leave him without any sense of emotional involvement. (this is inappropriate behaviour? Hmm.)

i like this. 

A very annoyed fridaycat. 

Annoyed.

I am annoyed because the magazine should be done but it's not.

I am annoyed because it's so hot outside.

I am annoyed because I received an annoying letter in the mail saying i have to show up in court eventhough it has nothing to do with me (don't ask).

I am annoyed because construction work is still going on and i can hear them drilling and knocking all day long. Shut up you bastards.

I am annoyed because my throat is sore and i don't know why.

I am annoyed because I'm getting hungry.

I am annoyed because Lester cancelled our lunch plans to do work. Yawn.

I am annoyed because there are still five hours to go before i get to leave the office.

I am annoyed because I am now OFFICIALLY hungry.

I am annoyed because i don't know what i want for lunch and i know whatever i have, i will STILL be annoyed with my choice.

I am annoyed because I had a bad dream and it's still annoying me.

I am annoyed because I haven't found my not-too-tall, not-so-dark and handsome knight in shining armour who will whisk me away from all my annoyances and build me my own shopping mall where I can shop to my heart's content.

I am annoyed because my nails look horrible.

I am annoyed because David Duchovny should never have left The X-Files.

I am annoyed because it's Tuesday and the weekend is still a bloody four days away. Wait, i have to work this Saturday...

Shit, now i'm really annoyed.

"My shadow's the only one who walks beside me..."
-f****** annoying song by Green Day. Boulevard of Broken Dreams.

To the tip and back.

I spent three days at Kudat. We organized the Sunset Symphony – basically someone’s bright idea (which usually means, we do the dirty work) to invite the KK Orchestra to perform at the Tip of Borneo, in Kudat. It was the first time the orchestra performed outdoors so it was quite a challenge, logistics and all. Plus, some of the musicians were so annoying that I wanted to chuck them and their squeaky violins out the bus half the time.

It’s a three-hour drive (another hour from Kudat town to the tip itself) and I’m not a big fan of long road trips. Especially when it’s with difficult and fussy people. “Aiyah so hot lah”, “Why the bus so smelly one?”, “Are we there yet?”. You get the pic. If they think they’re tired, they have no idea what it’s like to babysit 80 whiny musicians who think life is unfair because caviar isn’t served on the bus. Ok la, granted there were a handful of nice musicians who bothered responding to our ‘Good morning’. Ah well, you win some, you lose some.

As in other events, I’m usually in charge of the media people, which is cool because most of them are my ex-colleagues anyway. I told them the only off-limits area was the front of the stage, so they could take shots from anywhere else. They took that literally because the next thing I knew, I had a line of cameramen standing on top of the sound and lights truck! Anything that gets the job done I suppose.

So there we were, at the northern-most tip of Borneo (if you look at the dog-shaped map of Sabah, it’s right at the tip of the left ear). I have to admit, the view there is spectacular. Standing on the cliff, you can see the meeting point of the Sulu and South China Seas. And, interesting historical fact, Magellan stopped here to repair his damaged ships. But the natives also say it’s a sacred site so we have to be careful whenever we hold events there. Basically, as a sign of respect, we’ll always have a native priest or priestess conduct the necessary rituals to appease the spirits a week before the event. They do some chanting, slaughter some chickens and chant some more. It might sound like a bunch of hullabaloo to some people but we know better than to mess with the natives and their beliefs.

Anyway, we worked under the blazing sun two days in a row. It was so hot that at times I felt like we were actually ON the bloody sun. Oh and did I mention our official uniform was black pants and black shirts? Why not just make us wear a winter coat while we’re at it? At night, it was the usual boozing/card games session, while the rest of us channel surfed (who am I kidding, the hotel we stayed in had a total of 3 channels so it was either Bintang RTM, Drama Minggu Ini or the SAME Chinese movie aired four times a day.)

Good to be home.

"The hills are alive, with the sound of music,
With songs they have sung, for a thousand years..."
- yeah they played a medley of 'The Sound of Music' favourites. Still ringing in my head.

Tee hee.

My weekend was alright. My fever went away but it was replaced by a case of the sniffles. However, none of it mattered because… Lester is back! Yes, ladies and gentlemen, my boyfriend who has been out of town (sporadically) over the last seven weeks is finally back and won’t be leaving town till the first week of May (but only for a couple of days so…yay!).

Today is Monday. The day isn’t too bad. My boss is on medical leave for two days and my other colleague is on emergency leave for a week (a family member passed away). So it’s kinda quiet in here, which isn’t such a bad thing.

I think it’s the medication but I feel a bit high. Like happy high. Like everything makes me giggle.

(pause. I kicked the table. And now my toe is bleeding. Enter profanity).

As I was saying, I’m giggly. And a bit clumsy. And when I do something clumsy I giggle some more. Dunno la. I went for lunch today with Haw (it’s pronounce How by the way) and he couldn’t fathom my giggly-ness, so he figured fresh air might do me good. The minute we stepped into the coffee shop, it started again. First, I dropped the plastic container cover (which holds the chilli) into my bowl of soup. So bye bye soup. And then it took me a whole minute to chew a piece of sweet and sour pork.

Haw: What’s wrong now?
Me: Tough la the meat. I can’t chew it…
Haw: Don’t eat it.

So I proceed to spit it out and move on to the next piece of meat. Which is just as chewy and to prove my point to Haw, I try to cut it into smaller pieces with my fork and spoon. And then I accidentally bend the spoon. Hey it’s not my fault it’s one of those cheapo eating utensils ok?

So I’m still hungry after that. I decide to grab an ice-cream. One of those X-Choc Cornetto/Walls ones, I forget which one. Anyway, first two bites and I’m in sugar heaven (which probably isn’t such a good thing considering I’m giggly). And then as I’m halfway done, Haw looks at me, shakes his head and tells me to look in the mirror.

Yep, chocolate all over my mouth and chin. And my tongue is brown.

Anyway, I’m still in pretty high spirits eventhough my toe is bleeding. Maybe I should do something about all that blood…

It's like that y'all (that y'all), that y'all (that y'all)
Da da da da, I like that y'all (that y'all)
It's like that y'all (that y'all), that y'all (that y'all)
Like da da da da, I like that y'all (that y'all)
-Mariah Carey, 'It’s Like That'. Once again, her songwriting skills are incomparable.

Pass the panadol.

I’m not well. Sniff. Fever, sore throat, the works. I hate being sick. I especially hate being sick when I have loads of things to do in the office and I’ve planned my weekend. I took a sick leave yesterday but today, even if I’m frothing and having convulsions, I can’t afford to take another day off. There are just too many things to settle in the office. I’m gone for a day and already I have sixteen emails in my office inbox. I’m gonna fight this fever, no matter what it takes. Lester will be home for ONE day and I’m not going to waste it by being in bed nursing my fever. It’s so annoying. Why couldn’t I be sick earlier in the week?

Ok, let’s see. Bright side:
Today’s Friday, which means lunch is from 11:30am to 2pm.
Tomorrow is a non-working Saturday. Yay.
I get to spend the whole day with Lester. Double yay.
I can wake up late tomorrow.
I’m feeling a bit better than yesterday.

Not so bright side:
My body feels funny.
I feel so drugged up form the antibiotics and what nots.
I’m getting hungry but I have a sore throat so I’m limited to non-yummy stuff.
Deadlines. Grr.
I have to work tonight.

Alright, back to work. Damn deadlines.

“Closing time, time for you to go out, go out into the world.
Closing time, turn the lights up over every boy and every girl.
Closing time, one last call for alcohol so finish your whiskey or beer.
Closing time, you don't have to go home but you can't stay here.”
-Semisonic, Closing Time

My current wallpaper. Blonde pole dancer, haha. 

My trusty work companions. Sometimes, I still dunno how to spell ciggar...cigarre...A smoke. Oh and i recommend that book right on top by Mike Haddon.  

This is what happens when the boss is on leave and they leave the office camera lying around.  

Smoke, pee and party.

People shouldn’t smoke in the office. I have nothing against smokers but I do have a problem with inconsiderate smokers. There’s a Board of Directors meeting going on in the conference room right now and someone is smoking in there. I know because the whole office reeks of cigarette smoke. That’s just not nice because the office is an enclosed, air-conditioned area and the majority of staff here doesn’t smoke. Plus we have a number of pregnant women around.

And my nose is getting itchy.

I have another peeve: People who can’t aim properly in the john. What is with that? The office toilet is usually spotless until an outsider visits the office. There’s pee all over the toilet seat and on the floor! How hard can it be to pee INTO the toilet bowl? Are our office toilets oh-so-different from the ones other people have at home? I think it’s a safe assumption that the perpetrator was male (probably the smoker in the conference room too, grr). Pardon me as I get a wee bit detailed here but I always figured that it would be easier for guys to pee and not cause such a mess. First up, they’re standing and no removal of garments is required. Secondly, they actually ‘handle’ their ‘equipment’, so they should have better control of where all the urine is going. And they say men have better hand-eye coordination, pah.

Anyway, on another note, Friday night was da bomb. I haven’t gone out like that in ages so it was pretty fun. Mia, Pu, Sel, Carol, Yo and I got a hotel room at the Hyatt so none of us have to drive back after a night of boozing. The merriment began during dinnertime. Beers all around! Around 9pm we headed back to the room, got dressed (which was an event by itself when you have six women applying make-up and getting dressed in one cramped bedroom) and continued our drinking session. We had three bottles – names of which are all a blur to me today – but we didn’t polish them off. We just needed a bit of a buzz before we headed to Shenanigan’s, where my good friend Jim Beam awaited us in eager anticipation. The current live band still sucks but good enough for us to sing along and shake our bon-bons to. I knew the drinks were doing their thing when Yo and Pu start getting louder (yes, Pu can actually get louder, haha), Carol starts scoping the bar for cute guys (wait, we were all doing that…), Mia starts ordering tequila shots and I’m trying hard to make the room stop spinning. Sel had to work a bit so she only re-joined us after midnight (sober as ever, sial. Making her the sole credible witness to the night’s events). When the music stopped and the lights came on, that was our cue to head back to our room.

Er, and then I had a sandwich and I went to sleep. The end *innocent whistling*

Disclaimer: The author reserves the right to withhold any information pertaining to the night in question. The author also reserves the right vehemently deny reports of untoward behaviour due to intoxication. The author was a little tipsy but still made it to work the next morning.

I'd rather have bad times with you, than good times with someone else
I'd rather be beside you in a storm, than safe and warm by myself
I'd rather have hard times together, than to have it easy apart
I'd rather have the one who holds my heart
-Luther Vandross, I'd Rather. Ya a bit mushy la but it's on my playlist and it's the only lyrics ringing in my head now.

School daze.

I was listening to the radio today. They were asking listeners who took Additional Math in secondary school if they found it useful or relevant today.

Yeah, I find it about as useful as installing an air-conditioner in an igloo.

Come on la. Here’s what I really learned in school:

Chemistry – Always have a good lab partner. Preferably someone who knows what’s going on. Mine was Puei. She would be busy calculating the formulas while I played with the air suling bottle. Also, Mr. Ang (our chem teacher) knew I hated chem. and relished in calling me up to the board to complete the equations. Evil man. (And to top it off, I had to see on Tuesday and Thursday nights for extra chemistry tuition. Grr.) SPM result: Pass, 8 units

Physics – That it actually IS common sense but it’s the formulaic babble that makes it a complete bitch to learn. F=MA. E=MC². I=DNT/CARE. And inertia. Ok at least I found that concept interesting. And that small Indian men with big moustaches should not wear carrot-cut pants. EVER. SPM result: Pass, 8 Units

Biology – Of all the sciences, this I was slightly better at. Mainly cuz it just required lots of reading and remembering who’s who on the kekunci dikotomi (dichotomy tree?). But there was an interesting moment during my SPM practical examinations where I had to identify a piece of gooey blob on a petri dish. It looked so strange and after classifying it as “no backbone, clear, water based”, I decided that it closely resembled a jellyfish. After the session was over, my friends were excitedly debating about the seven specimens they had to identify. “Seven?” I asked. “But there were eight on my table.” After I described what it looked like, my friends calmly held my hand, “Mel. That was the petroleum jelly for the second experiment.”
SPM Result: Pass, 7 units. (it would have been a 6 if not for the Vaseline tragedy)

Math – If I gave the chicken rice lady RM5 for my RM3 chicken rice, I should expect RM2 back. Ok la, this one a bit useful. SPM result: Pass. 3 units.

History – Parameswara. Sultan Muzaffar Shah. Melaka. 1816. Ogos 31, 1957. Perjanjian Versailles. Laksamana Cheng Ho. Stamford Raffles. Sir David Attenborough (wait, that’s National Geographic). Boring as hell but I survived. I also learned that the kingdom of Brunei used to be huge but the King kept giving away land and today it’s swamped by Sabah and Sarawak. SPM result: Pass. 5 units.

Additional Math - …was the biggest mistake of my life. It was this or Accounting (they both had numbers so I figured I was a goner either way). Still, I should have chosen the lesser of two evils. The memories of algebra, trigonometry and Satanism (well it seemed that way) still haunt me till today. I don’t think I’ll ever be the same. SPM result: Pass. 8 units.

BM – ok la. I can bullshit it both English and BM so this was a breeze. SPM result: Credit. 3 units.

English – ditto. SPM results: Credit. 1 unit.

English Lit – My favourite subject. The only one I didn’t mind attending class for. The only one where I did extra research. The only one that didn’t make me wish the science labs would explode and classes would be cancelled. The only one where people asked ME for MY homework (hey, I was always on the other end so this was a big deal for me). SPM Result: Credit. 2 units. – I was pretty pissed because someone totally undeserving and copied my work day in day out got a 1 (carol, pu, sel, mia and yo: u know la who).

I’m not even gonna discuss Moral Studies. It doesn’t deserve any space on my blog. (I just mentioned it. Doh.)

K la. Enough reminiscing for now. My secondary school days ain't nothin' to shout about.

"Child, don't you worry
It's enough your growing up in such a hurry
Brings you down, the news they sell ya
To put in your mind that all mankind is a failure
But nobody knows
What's gonna happen tomorrow
We try not to show
How frightened we are"
-Duran Duran, What Happens Tomorrow

Yawnie yawnie yawn

Die la i'm so sleepy...It's 10.40am and i'm trying to keep my eyelids open. I've lost count of the amount of times i've yawned. I try varying the things i do so i won't get bored but everytime i start on a task, i start nodding off anyway.

die die die die die die.

I only had four hours of sleep (don't ask). I can't read because it makes my eyes heavier. I can't write because the words aren't coming out coherently. I can't take a walk around the office because i feel too tired to move. I can't go shopping cuz i don't have money (oh wait, wrong blog). But you get what i mean.

"And everytime i close my eyes i thank the Lord i've got you.
And you got me too..."
-Babyface, Everytime I Close My Eyes. Whatever la. I just wanna close my eyes and take a nap.

Home.

Was too lazy to blog yesterday so pardon the disappearance. Yesterday was just a lazy lazy lazy day. I think I wrote two articles in the morning (which sounds like total crap now that I re-read it) and I was done for the day. Verrible terrible but I was malas to the max.

Anyway, Tuesday seems to be much better. I had nasi lemak for breakfast at a coffee shop nearby (yum) and was off to attend some income tax talk. I know it sounds deathly boring but I actually volunteered to attend it. It wasn’t so much a talk, more of a step by step introduction on how to calculate your taxes and how to fill in the form (aka Taxes for Dummies). I learned lotsa new stuff, such as

1) You’re entitled to RM500 worth of magazines and books in a year as long as you keep the receipts (basically they deduct this from the total tax amount you have to pay)
2) You can also deduct medical bills for your parents up to RM5000 a year
3) You have to pay by April 30th or else they fine you a minimum of RM50 or a percentage of your taxes

And most importantly:

4) I don’t have to pay taxes yet. Yay (of course this also reflects the peanut-pay I’m receiving).

My KL trip was good. Brief but good. But tiring. I forgot how exhausting KL can be. I’ve never been a city girl at heart anyway. I like the laidback pace of KK better. But nothing beats the shopping and nightlife buzz of the big city, I must admit! My colleagues and I checked into Parkroyal Hotel around 2:30am on Saturday, hit the sack at 3 and was up by 8am. We managed to hop to Sungei Wang for some browsing before we grabbed a cab to get to Istana Budaya (where the Sound of Music musical was held) around 1pm. We were given a special tour backstage and met the stagehands and music producer. It was really cool to be backstage and see the technical side of the production. Did you know the whole stage is actually as big as half a football field? Yep, you only see one third of the stage during the performance. And it’s seven floors high! This is to make space for the props and lights that are suspended in the air.

Anyway, the musical itself was amazing. I can see why it was an award-winning Broadway production: the costumes, the set, the cast and the music…Everything was amazing down to the last detail. And since it was the Sound of Music, I couldn’t resist singing along most of the time, haha. I hardly felt the 2 and a half hours go by.

So back to the hotel we went, humming The Lonely Goatherd all the way of course. I met up with my brother, Johann, and we went shopping at One Utama. Took us an hour to get there from KL. Suddenly the ten-minute ‘traffic jam’ after work here in KK didn’t seem too bad after all. And all those toll booths. The amount we paid was enough to cover my lunch here for a day. Note to self: Only consider job opportunities in KL if pay offered is between RM3 to RM5 million.
Johann said I could have anything I wanted for dinner.

Johann: So what u want?
Me: * looks around * Burger King?
Johann: * stunned silence * You flew all the way to KL and you want to eat at Burger King?
Me: They have Whoppers…
Johann: No. Choose something else.

And that was that. So we had dinner at Friday’s. Which turned out to be a better dining choice after all, heh heh.

Sunday was crunch time. If I didn’t buy anything now, I’d probably end up with nothing. I was happily traipsing along KLCC when suddenly I felt my right eye go blurry. I started seeing spots and people were talking louder and louder. Ah shit, I knew immediately what was happening. Migraine attack. The last one I had was late last year and it was so bad I had to pull over till my vision came back. Anyway, there I was in KLCC with my left temple pounding and my right eye going blurry. I bought my meds at a pharmacy, gulped it down and prayed for the migraine to go away. My colleagues decided it was best if we went back to the hotel and grab lunch along the way. In the taxi, I felt like my left eye was going to pop out of my head at any moment (not the best feeling…Gee you think?). At the chicken rice shop, things were improving but I cringed everytime the waiters dropped something or dragged a chair across the floor. Migraines mean everything is five hundred times louder and brighter, so go figure. It was like having someone rattling spoons while screaming Hakka obscenities inside my head. Bising oh.

But come evening, all was well and by the time I boarded the plane, I was looking forward to sleeping in my own bed that night. Yeah, KL still has its charm and nothing beats retail therapy in the city. But come to think of it, nothing beats the familiarity of KK’s tight roads, annoying jaywalkers and ten-minute traffic jams.

"One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
Two can be as bad as one, its the loneliest number since the number one
No is the saddest experience you'll ever know
Yes is the saddest experience you'll ever know
cause one is the loneliest number that you'll ever know
one is the loneliest number even worst then two."
- Filter, One.

Play nice.

I started my morning writing the nastiest blog. Profanities, swearing and full-blown venting. Someone in my office pissed me off big time. But after re-reading it three times, i realised it wasn't worth the risk of the person reading it (you never know who stumbles across your blog these days) and causing bad blood in the office.

Cuz it was really nasty.

I almost scared myself when i realised how horrible I could sound. I mean, sure we have our bitchy days, but when you see it in writing....Wow. It ain't pretty. I hate my temper. I'm relatively slow to anger but once i do lose it, the term 'blind fury' brings a whole new meaning. Ok, note to self: Vent, don't dent.

I'm not so pissed at her anymore but she's pretty much the last person on earth I want to have a conversation with right now. Ok happy thoughts, happy thoughts...

It's raining crazy outside: thunder, lightning, huge-ass raindrops. I can leave the office early today (yay) because i haven't packed (oh no). I'm really happy about my KL trip. The show is Saturday afternoon which means i have the whole Saturday night to do...whatever I want! First things first, gotta look for the food. I'm meeting up with Johann, my bro, and it'll be mall hopping from there onwards. Too bad it's only till Sunday otherwise i'd love to call up my buddies and just hang with them. Haven't had a good mamak outing for a while :) But let's focus on priorities here.

Shoes.

"I'm leaving on a jet place, dunno when i'll be back again..."
-Chantal Krevaziuk (well that's the version i remember anyway), Leaving on a Jet Plane. See u Monday.

House of D.

If this isn't fate, i dunno what else it is. Look what i came across:

http://lionsgatedirectors.com/duchovny/index_flash.html

David friggin' Duchovny's BLOG!!!! Ok, ok before you go all cynical and pessimistic on me (shame on you), you have to check out the blog and judge it for yourself. I had to read several entries and after a while, i'm quite convinced it's The Man himself. Basically, the blog talks mainly about his directing projects and upcoming movies. Nothing like the "I had a cup of coffee and counted the cracks on my ceiling" kinda entries. It's strictly about his work.

But i just can't get over that it's DAVID DUCHOVNY blogging! Those of you who know me understand what the hype is all about (I call it my X-Files collectibles, Sel calls its my 'Shrine').
Wow. I'm getting all excited here. I've got ants in my pants. I loved him as Mulder. Heck, I LOVE Mulder. That whole trenchcoat, alien-chasing, sunflower seed-eating extreme paranoia thing....Now that's sexy. And those droopy eyes and trembling lower lip just begging to be nibbled...

Ok let's keep this PG rated.

But seriously, i just find him magnetic. And his work ain't half bad, heh heh.

People, i have news: This just in: My GM is sending me and three colleagues to KL tomorrow night to watch The Sound of Music! Yippee kai yay! Ok it's kinda work-related- we have to check out the production set and take notes for our own future events and stage productions. We're getting an up close and personal tour of the stage, double yay. I'll be back on Sunday. Ok ok here's what's really on my mind about the trip: SHOPPING!!!!

"Such a feeling's coming over me,
There is wonder in most everything i see...
Not a cloud in the sky, got the sun in my eye
And i won't be surprised if it's a dream :)"
-Tukang Kayu, Atas Dunia.

What's that smell?

My office stinks. I mean, literally. They’re doing renovations in the ground floor and the smell of paint has somehow traveled to the top floor. Thing is, it doesn’t smell purely like paint. It’s like a mixture of paint, sweat and –as my boss puts it- someone’s armpits. Yes, not pleasant.

So far I’ve rubbed on The Body Shop body lotion (ooh, free promo here) on my arms four times today, in fear that the horrid smell might actually stick to me. That and the fact that I need something to mask the stench. What are your favourite smells? Here are some of mine:

1. Freshly popped popcorn – I had a whiff of these during lunch time. I nearly bought myself some just because they smelled so good. Popcorn AND caramel…

2. The baby’s department in any shopping mall – The talcum, the new clothes, the baby wipes. I can spend ages just sniffing baby clothes (not in a perverse way, mind you). And no, it’s NOT my maternal instincts kicking in. There’s just something very soothing and clean about the baby scent.

3. Clean sheets – I love it when I change my sheets, fresh from the clothesline. It’s a combination of washing detergent and warm sunshine. And they feel so clean!

4. Fried chicken – or anything similar in my kitchen. I can always tell if my parents are whipping up something amazing for dinner. Drool.

5. Brownies in/fresh out of the oven – Need I say more? Which leads me to…

6. Famous Amos cookies – commercial or not, I think they smell divine

7. Bak kut teh – I used to stand in front of the bak kut teh stall in Foh Sang when I was younger just to inhale the herbal aroma. Not only do I love the smell but have since developed a taste for this delicious dish (minus the innards please, ugh). My parents still don’t touch the stuff though.

8. Clean hair – Lather. Rinse. Repeat. Inhale.

9. Lester – A familiar scent that I never grow tired of (maybe because he’s a constant combination of bak kut teh, popcorn and clean sheets).

I can’t think of number 10…. Oh wait, I got it:

10. Books – Especially new ones. But old books have their own charm too. The fusion of paper and ink is quite intoxicating. Mmm, nice oh…

All those happy thoughts of my favourite smells have made me forget the icky paint/sweat/armpit smell.

Now I’m just hungry.

“Alright stop, collaborate and listen,
Ice is back with a brand new invention
Something grabs hold of me tightly…”
- can’t remember the rest of Vanilla Ice’s Ice Ice Baby. Maybe that’s a good thing.

Technical problems. Right.

Yes, I've been gone. Well, not quite. I haven't had internet access for more than a week (yes, and i'm still alive) due to some 'technical' problems in the office. I'm rather suspicious because we couldn't get into most websites and the only one i could get into with no problem at all is sabahtourism.com. How convenient.

But enough complaints...I'm back! It's been a better week compared to the recent ones. Work's been kind, health all good and Lester was back for the weekend *big cheesy grin*. Went to church (Good Friday and Easter) , watched Hitch (Will Smith still rocks) and played squash. Let it be known it was the first ever squash game for yours truly. I picked it up pretty fast but i won't be in the national championships anytime soon. Still, there is something therapeutic about slamming a ball full force against the wall. Recommended for the angst-ridden.

Oh and i went to look at property yesterday. It just further fuelled my need to be a homeowner ASAP. Sigh. I dunno how much longer i have to wait. The property i was looking at will only be completed in 2007 but if i want it, i'll have to put a booking fee sometime this year. It's a duplex, three bedroom, two baths and a kitchen that's not too big. Perfect for me and my cat :)
Now to buy that lottery ticket...

"To market, to market to buy a fat pig
Home again, home again
Jiggety jig."
-To Market, To Market, traditional nursery rhyme. I'm outta lyrics this morning.

Laugh it off.

It’s been a long two weeks. Murphy’s Law: If things can go wrong, they will. Sure we have our good days, but lately the office seems to be the epicenter of disasters. From missing documents (“It was on the table, I swear on it”) to fickle-minded powers that be (“Yes I know you’ve printed RM11,000 worth of banners but I’ve decided to change the venue for the event”). Seriously, I’ve been trying to work on meeting the magazine deadline but something always comes up. I was rushed to do a press release for an event yesterday. After two days of interviews, phone calls, research and two drafts, Big Boss decides (two hours before the press conference, mind you) we won’t need a press release after all. Ta-da.

But after these things happen day in day out, there is only one way to deal with it to ensure sanity: Laugh it off. It’s just too tiring to get angry, frustrated or annoyed anymore. So yes, I just laugh it off. Make a joke of it and rectify the matter. I mean, what else can you do anyway? When my boss said I didn’t need to issue the press release anymore, I just shrugged and said, “Great, less work for me” and went back to reading the newspaper. When they told us we have to make corrections on 400 banners, my boss and I laughed and said, “What’s 400 banners? We’ve done corrections on 13,000 copies of the magazine in three days!”

So I haven’t been having a good week, big deal. I’m just gonna let it go and take things as they come. Plus all this stressing out cannot be good for my skin. La-di-da, I know.

What’s that line again? Oh yeah…Hope for the best and expect the worst.

“And I wanna believe you,
When you tell me that it'll be ok,
Yeah I try to believe you,
But I don't
When you say that it's gonna be,
It always turns out to be a different way,
I try to believe you,
Not today.”
-Avril Lavigne, Tomorrow

Lovely, lovely day.

Pardon the brief absence. It’s been one of those weeks. All I need now is a cow to fly over the moon and shit on me. But I resolve not to dwell on the bad stuff, especially as the weekend is approaching (please, please, please let it be nice).

Let’s see, what have I been doing? Had dinner with the Ferrari engineering team from Italy at Nexus Karambunai Resort, went for a hand and foot spa treatment at Six Senses and had an exquisite Italian lunch at KK’s newest restaurant, Danieli’s, to do a magazine review. It sounds oh-so-exciting but in between all that, I’ve had a myriad of dramas that I could seriously do without. From screwing up at work to arguments (that should have and could have been avoided, I’ll admit), most days I come home and crawl into a hole, hoping Happy Elves will appear out of nowhere with shopping vouchers from my favourite stores. Oh and Lester’s going out of town for six weeks. Icing anyone?

Today has been a roller-coaster as well. The morning started off well as my muse finally decided to pay me a visit: I managed to write three articles all before 11:30am. Lunch was uneventful but when I got back to the office, it was as if someone decided to press rewind, fast forward, pause and play all at the same time. My phone wouldn’t stop ringing, my boss is angry at the printing company for botching up a delivery, the Big Boss is angry at my boss over something else which is actually beyond our control, I have to make five million phone calls to fix the matter, all my office-related emails from the morning bounce back, the Internet is down (and then up again)….

Oh and did I mention I’m supposed to finish at least three more articles today?

Instead of tearing my hair out, I figured it’s far more therapeutic to blog it out. My highlight of the day? I’m waiting for Lester to come back from Far Far Away this evening and forget about everyone and everything else. Till he leaves again on Sunday that is. But that’s another blog altogether.

“It’s gonna be a lovely day…”
-Bill Withers, Lovely Day

Agnello alla Griglia: Lamb chop with mint, honey and apple brown sauce. Danieli's finest by far. 

A little show for the Ferrari engineers during their dinner last Tuesday.  

Yes people, it tastes as good as it looks. Compliments of Danieli's. 

It's a sign.

Do you believe in signs? Sometimes you can’t help but believe in them. Like when you’re thinking of having a Whopper burger and then you flip open the newspaper and it’s right there on page 3. Or you can’t decide between taking a trip to the mountains or the islands for the weekend and suddenly you spot a huge billboard of sunny skies and sandy beaches. It’s like God sending you a memo.

I think I had one of those moments today. It’s Monday morning and the first thing I discover as I walk through the office door is that there’s a major boo-boo in the monthly magazine I work for. Long story short, oversight on my part, made my boss VERY unhappy and now I’m gonna spend a good part of my night in the office sticking correction stickers on 13,000 copies of the magazine.

But back to my ‘sign’.

On my way to work this morning, my mum was asking me about switching jobs. There’s a job opening I have my eye on but I haven’t seriously considered it. And then this mishap occurs on a Monday morning and I think, “It’s a sign. Gotta be.” See, I enjoy what I do now but the new job is supposedly offering a pay 40 percent higher than what I’m making. Sounds inviting but I need to find out what the real deal is. Oh and the job description is alright, it’s a communications-related post so I figure I’ll still get to write.

In the meantime, I still have to face the wrath of my boss for the rest of the day and it’s only ten a.m. Gulp.

I have stood here before inside the pouring rain
With the world turning circles running 'round my brain
I guess I'm always hoping that you'll end this reign
But it's my destiny to be the king of pain
- The Police, 'King of Pain'

Surfing.

I did myself some surfing today. Internet surfing that is. Found some interesting reads (hey it's Friday, i deserve to sit back and relax. Wait a minute, don't i already do that every other day?)
Anyway, here's an article i thought was worth posting:

A Different Life by Jennifer Tai

Last month, Reuters published an article about how Japan is facing a failing birth rate because of a growing number of Japanese women want to stay unmarried.
The article also reported that seven in ten single Japanese women surveyed by a conservative Japanese newspaper said they would rather stay unwed, and thus reflects the recent trend among single women who no longer attach social stigma to choosing the single life

..............

Of course, Japanese women are more than the sum of their clothes. Apparently, they are also very forward-looking - and forward-being. Which Asian country can profess to have a majority of young women who are comfortable with being single for the rest of their lives?
Can a Malaysian young woman today, claim the same? And should she?

I'd told myself that I'd marry late. Get a career going, see if climbing the corporate ladder suited me, see if I could find a guy who could tolerate a gal who was not afraid to speak her mind AND smoked.
The day finally happened when I was 28, exactly the age I predicted that I would get married - along with an allegedly clairvoyant colleague of mine from another life.
Thinking back - and this is something a lot of women are ashamed to admit to - I could have never imagined a life without a man and eventually, kids. No matter how gung ho I was about my career, I knew one day that I just had to nest. Deep inside, I was as traditional as the next Chinese-tea drinking, Chinese-calligraphy-writing, cheongsam-wearing Chinese girl.

So what is with this complex of women wanting to be out there alone, doing our thing, making it in the world? It's like we are overcompensating for centuries of oppression.

Do the men harbour ambitions of a lifetime of singlehood?

................

As a woman and a mother, I believe that it is the right, and privilege, of every woman to seek companionship and to bear children. While we have more opportunities today than ever before, we must not forget our eternal roles as mothers and nurturers.

You may not want to get married or have children, but don't let it be in the name of gender equality. In the same vein, don't get married and multiply because of peer pressure.

Things that make you go hmm... You can read the whole article at http://www.msn.com.my/women/love/article1/default.asp

Oh, also worth a visit is www.baltimoresun.com. I highly recommend Kevin Cowherd's column, heh. Thanks for the tip, Lester!

Time to greet another weekend. Over and out.

"Whenever we kiss I get a feeling like this
I get to wishin' that there was two of you
My heart cries out 'More baby!'
I love you so much
I wish that there was more of you to touch
-Smashmouth, Can't Get Enough of You Baby

Can you guess who these monkeys are?  

Lara Croft.Pretty cool eh? 

One of my fave bands, U2. Check out rocktoons.com for more bands!  

Joy Juice anyone?  

Tooth fairy.

I've got a toothache. It might be my wisdom tooth but based on where the pain is coming from, i doubt it. Ah crap. Now i have to go to the dentist. Right up there under my list of 'Really REALLY Dislike With a Vengeance' are roaches and...Dentists. No offense if you are one but it's just something i've had an aversion to for quite a while now. I'd sooner have a needle in my arm than a stranger probing my mouth whilst holding a drilling mechanism in his/her left hand. *shudder*. I hate the whole dentist experience. Sitting in the waiting room, nervously flipping through an old issue of Asiaweek - pretending to really care what the GDP of Mongolia is - while listening to the drilling sounds coming from the dentists' room. And then when it's your turn, there are all these evil nurses lurking around, carrying weird metal tools. And then the dentist starts asking you questions, tells you to open your mouth and he methodically begins the 'torture'. He takes a small poking device, starts digging around and goes, "Pain? Here? Here?" and *BAM* he hits jackpot. As your body goes into convulsions and beads of sweat trickle down your forehead, he takes out the drill/needle/weed-whacker and proceeds to hurt you even more. All the while, you feel like gagging and Evil Nurse sticks the spit-vacuum even further down your throat. Bi***. Just when you're about to go towards the light, everything's over and Dentist goes, "See? All done. Wasn't that quick and painless?"
In the land of flying pigs, maybe. You know why dentists wear those white face masks?

So patients can't identify them in a police line-up.

I've got a Snickers bar sitting in front of me, just waiting to be gobbled up but alas, my hurting tooth denies me the pleasure. So to fulfill my sugar craving, i've opted for a healthier choice: Orange juice. Ok, it's not exactly chocolate but better than nothing.

Happy Wednesday everyone.

"Pain my head, oh i'd rather be dead....
Spinning me round and around."
-Boyz II Men, End of The Road.

Oh Tuhanku.

I tend to read the Malay subtitles on TV. It's annoying but you can't ignore them neither. You'd be surprised how entertaining the translations can be. Few years back on an X-Files episode (ah yes, the days when watching TV brought meaning to my life), Scully was asking Mulder, "How do you kill it?" (referring to some monster thingy). Mulder replies, "The same way you kill a rabid animal."

Translation: "Seperti membunuh seekor arnab."

RABID, people, not RABBIT. Oh and also, in another episode, Mulder says, "I've always wanted a peg-leg."

Translation: "Saya inginkan kaki khinzir."

Yes indeed, Mulder has always dreamed of having a PIG leg. Another famous one is one of those war movies where a soldier throws a grenade and shouts, "Duck!" And yes, you guessed it, our trusty translators decide that it means, "Itik!" Quack, quack.

But most recently, the biggest boo-boo i've seen on Astro was on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Jim Carrey says to Oprah, "I don't want to talk about it anymore. No more. Period."

Translation (get ready for this): "Saya tak nak cakap tentang hal ini lagi. Tidak lagi. Menstruasi."
Oh. My. God.

Press be asking do I care for sodomy
I don't know, yeah, probably
I've been looking for serial monogamy
Not some bird that looks like Billy Connolly
But for now I'm down for ornithology
Grab your binoculars, come follow me
- Robbie Williams and Kylie Minogue, Kids. Translate THIS.

Yesterday...

...all my troubles seemed so far away.

But 'twas yesterday I also got a nice, white ticket flapping on my windshield. Apparently i have RM253.00 worth of unpaid parking tickets. Ok sure, let me go pluck some notes off the money tree i've got growing in my backyard. Please. Like i don't have enough things to pay for these days. Car and life insurance, Astro, handphone bill, monthly car payment...yada yada yada.

Oh and did i mention my squeaky tyre?

And to top off my misery, i come home to discover that my dad has (brace yourself) unsubscribed the Cartoon Network on our Astro. Noooooooooo!!!!! I mean, cancelling the Chinese channels i can understand (the only time we utilize it is when the Miss Chinese International Pageant is on...Go figure, i have two brothers). I panicked when i flipped to channels 61 and 62 and saw them blank.

Me: But dad, what if Francine and Leilana (my nieces) come over? What are they gonna watch now? *gulp. cold sweat*
Dad: They've got their dvds and videos. They'll be fine.
Me: But....they ALWAYS watch the cartoon network (i conveniently forget to add 'with me' at the end of my sentence)
Dad: What to do la.
Mum: Why? Did YOU want the cartoon network?
Me: *trying to act 25* No la. I was just thinking of the girls.

Yeah right.

Anyway, I spent the evening cooking dinner for my parents, watched the Hallmark channel (Strong Medicine is pretty good) and got some reading done. Yeah my life is a non-stop rave party, ain't it? I wanted to call my girlfriends out but since my mum was home alone, i thought i should spend some time with her.

Maybe today will be more eventful.

"It's something unpredictable, but in the end it's right,
I hope you had the time of your life..."
-Green Day, Time of Your Life.

It's getting hot in here.

It's too hot. I know i can't stand the cold neither but seriously, it's just getting too hot out there. I spent the first half of the day driving around town, getting stuff done and lunch was spent at a client's open house event at their office. They pitched a tent, had a lion and dragon dance performance, and fed everyone well. Thing is, having lunch outdoors -even under a tent- at 12:30pm in MALAYSIA is never a good idea. And you know what they serve? Beef rendang. Chicken curry. Satay. And sambal. It's really tough trying to look half-decent at a luncheon with three gallons of sweat pouring down your face, a plate of food balancing on your knee and curry dripping down your chin. Speaking of hot weather, i read this in Glamour UK magazine last night. It was something about "Exciting Places to Get It On" and this guy shared how having sex in a sauna is NOT one of those places: "It was so hot. It felt like i was having sex on the sun." I dunno why but i thought that was an interesting comparison, heh heh.

Anyway, back in the office, the first blast of air-conditioning is pure heaven. But after half an hour, it just gets too cold again and i start bundling up in my jacket. It's madness, i tell you.
Weather-bitching aside, my car is making funny noises. I think it's one of the wheels. My sister was commenting on it the other day.

Sis: What's that noise?
Me: What noise?
Sis: *turns down radio volume* That noise (refers to squeaking/creaking noise)
Me: Oh that. I think it's the tyre at the back.
Sis: Aren't you worried? It could get worse. Better do something about it.
Me: Nah, it goes away once in a while.
Sis: It does? How?
Me: *turns up the radio volume* See? No more funny noises.

Yeah, i'm a smart ass and i'll probably regret being one when i have to fork out six million bucks to fix my squeaky tyre.

"I know that there is pain, but won't you hold on for one more day,
Break free, break from the chains."
- Wilson Phillips, Hold On. Here's hoping my car will hold on for just a coupla more days.

Mel's World

A day in the perfect working world of Mel:

The alarm clock rings. I roll over, not annoyed at all -because in my world- i've had enough sleep and it's 8am. The sun is shining but it's not too hot. I leisurely get ready for work and meet up with my friends for a breakfast at a nearby coffee shop. I take my sweet time-because in my world- i don't have to get to the office till 10am.

I finally get to the office, where my clean, uncluttered desk awaits me. My boss calls me into her room. Hey, she's giving me a raise! I get back to my desk and get some writing done. The clock says its noon and its lunch time. I have sushi for lunch. I get back to the office and, magically, all my paperwork's done and the magazine is finished for the month! In fact, all 13,000 copies have been printed, packed and distributed because - in my world - i have little elves to do my work for me when I'm busy with other things. My boss is happy. I get another raise.

I look at my watch and it's already 3:30pm. I'm happy -because in my world- my day is done and i get to go home, go for a jog, shower, buy a pair of shoes and spend the evening with my honey.

And i live happily ever after.

Disclaimer: I have to clock in by 8am everyday, rush through lunch hour, attend dull meetings, and sit through the damn traffic jam at 5pm. Sigh. On a good day, i get to work outside the office. Don't mind me, i'm just feeling the Monday pinch.

"Waiting on a Sunday afternoon for what I read between the lines...
Your lies. "
- Stone Temple Pilots, Interstate Love Song

Of oohs, aahs, aches and pains.

I spent my Wednesday at a spa. I was asked to do a write-up of the place and in return they gave me a free three and a half hour session. Normally I'd be happy as a clam to do these things but i've just recovered from my bout of flu and i was a bit worried about getting a massage with my clogged nose.

Anyway, i arrived at 11am (after making only ONE wrong turn this time) and was whisked straight to my 'session'. After i stripped down to my birthday suit -they gave me a robe so i still had some modesty intact, ehem- my first treatment was a thallaso foot bath. Basically, my masseuse, Christine, scrubbed my feet with some grainy stuff and bathed my feet in floating petals. Can you say 'princess'? heh. Next was my body scrub. Maybe i'm a prude but i'm not too crazy about being butt naked in front of strangers but since this was part of my job so to speak, i had to grin and 'bare' it (they give you disposable undies so, again, it could have been worse).

So she scrubs every inch (ok not EVERY inch) of my body with jasmine rice and oatmeal. It sounds strange but smells divine. After it dries up, everything is rinsed off with cucumber mush (c-c-cold) and i take a quick shower the rinse of what's left. Christine then leaves me alone in the room for my milk bath in the jacuzzi. Twenty minutes of soaking in milk and rose water, surrounded by candles and soft music - yeah completely cliched but i wasn't complaining! It definitely beat sitting behind my desk...

Next up: My Balinese massage. Basically, it's nice and not-so-nice at the same time. Nice because Christine managed to get rid of aches and pains i didn't even know i had. And not so nice because i discovered aches and pains i didn't even know i had. I actually dozed off the last ten minutes of my massage. I woke up and was ready for my facial. It was pretty nice except when the lady started massaging my shoulders and neck. I could hear a strange cracking sound and she told me it was the air in my body. Whatever it was...It hurt like hell. Anyway, she does the whole facial thingy and leaves my mask on for 40 minutes. FORTY minutes? i hear you exclaim. Trust me, it feels even longer if you were the one smothered with gunk, with no one to talk to for forty minutes. And then there was some eye treatment thingy which basically felt like someone was removing my eye-make up. But more refreshing.

So three and a half hours later, its back to office except that now i feel a lot lighter and my body's a tad greasy: you can't shower immediately after a massage. I could definitely get used to this.

Now my body feels like its been pounded, kneaded and grinded (what am i saying, it has been...) I thought i was supposed to feel better?

"Must've been love....but it's overrrrr now..."
-me in a Roxette mood.

I feel icky.Oh so icky.

Good to be back, y'all. The week-long break was just what i needed but knowing my luck, I'm back at work, ravaged by the flu. Sniff. Cough. Hack. Yeah, I'm a real pretty picture at work today. Let me update you with my recent activities:

Tuesday, 8th Feb: Chinese New Year eve. Had a nice family dinner at home followed by a second round in Papar (my 'kampung', about forty five minutes drive from KK). Of course, the highlight was ang pow time, heh. Yep, as expected, the usual "Too old for you to be receiving ang pow..." speech was delivered every fifteen minutes but what the hey, as long as i get my moolah, they can say what they want. Cousins proceeded to play 'Twister' and realise 'gee, we might be getting too old for this' but had a blast anyway. My 24 year old cousin, Choms, was the champ. 2:30am: Arrive home and off to bed.

Wed,9th Feb: Visited Wilson today. Gorged on dried pork, nuts, crackers, cookies, oranges...You name it. That night, my friends and i get together to 'hoi toi' - which i learnt means 'gambling time!'. We played Black Jack, accused each other of cheating, ate, drank and laughed. After we drained Adrian of his earnings, muahaha, we decided to play Risk. Ah yes, global domination! It was good fun. Except that by 2am everyone was having a hard time remembering who owns the continents of Asia and Africa.

Thurs, 10th Feb: Second day of Chinese New Year. Visited two more houses with Lester. Collected ang pows - always a good thing!- and endured the worst headache. Little did i know that this was the sign of things to come...

Fri,11th Feb: Body feels out of sorts. Kinda rubbery. My sis thinks it's definitely signs of the flu. I'm in denial. I can't get sick now. I've got a whole weekend to enjoy before monday rolls around! Friday night i'm too drained to hoi toi with the gang, so lester spends the evening with me on the couch, aww. We watch EuroTrip and right when a young,nubile blonde takes her top off and rubs her breasts in the hot tub, my dad walks by. Murphy's law.

Sat, 12th Feb: Ugh, not feeling better. But i promised Lester i'd drop by his place for a while. I take him out for lunch, we head back to his place and while he watches the Discovery channel, i'm on the PS2. We both get tired, take a nap and by 5:30pm,i head home. I hit the sack early, knocked out by flu tablets. Nice.

Sun 13th Feb: I have to work today. Went on a photo shoot with David Kirkland at the Mai Aman Homestay Resort in Papar. Brought out Dutch interns along as models. Everything was fine and dandy...Till i had to eat a grilled sago worm. But i must say, they smell really good once they're cooked. They taste like peanuts actually. But that said, i don't think i'll be adding those critters to my list of favourite food anytime soon. Went home, once again collapsed in bed thanks to my trusty drugs. Felt a wee bit better come evening so i went to watch Constantine in the cinema. It was alright. It's Keanu Reeves so i can't complain much, heh. And Rachel Weisz is delicious, don't you think?

So here we are, Monday. And i still feel like crap. I can't breathe and everything tastes like water. I'm coughing and hacking and grossing my colleagues out. My boss won't touch me with a stick and i don't blame her. I think i'll take half the day off, spare myself (and those around me actually) the misery.

Oh, happy Valentine's day. In my 26 years, I've never celebrated it, usually due to circumstance but i've come to the conclusion that i'm destined to never celebrate it. My only date tonight is with the bed - and not in THAT way, mind you. But it's all good :)

"Sometimes I wanna give up,
I wanna give in, I wanna quit the fight
And then I see you baby
And everything's alright, everything's alright."
- Bad English, When I See You Smile.

Oranges are not the only fruit.

Actually that's a title of a book by Jeanette Winterson. It was one of the books we had to read for Literary Criticism back in uni. Anyway, it comes to mind everytime i look at my desk, overladen with -you guessed it- oranges. It's that time of the year where the fruit du jour is indeed these citrusy little babies.

Everyday, at least two (mandarin) oranges appear on my table. Yesterday four BOXES arrived at the office and because so many people are already on leave for the Chinese New Year, what's left of us here have to bring back more than the usual share of oranges. Ugh. And if that's not enough, there are a couple of boxes waiting at home. Tis the season to be orange-y.

This will probably be one of the few blogs i'll write this week. The week-long holiday begins today and i've got no internet access at home for the mo (oh the horror!). We've been given half day off but i still have to run off to the Rasa Ria beach resort in Tuaran for a photo shoot. My manager wants me to have a look-see to make sure everything's running smoothly. Ah well, i'll get to check out some models so it'll be bearable, heh heh.

I've got to get home in time for the reunion dinner though. You know, i find it interesting how my Chinese blood kicks in during Chinese New Year. I mean, nobody in my family speaks the language (except dad but i've heard him converse twice in Hakka in my whole life) and I don't look the part. I don't even dare consider myself half Chinese because i live up so little to the culture. It's all kinda complicated because on top of all this, my surname is Leong.

Yeah, go figure.

Some people think i look like Chinese, some say Kadazan. I think i look like my mum. But back to Chinese New Year. It's cool how we 'sorta' celebrate it. We do the whole reunion dinner thing but our dishes aren't traditionally Chinese. We don't necessarily buy new clothes for the occassion but my parents have this thing about wearing only bright colours and to stay away from black. And we get ang pows. Ka-ching! Easily the best part of Chinese New Year for me, heh heh. Of course, as i get older every year, aunties and uncles declare loud enough for the whole KK to hear, "Wah so old oredi...Bila lagi kamu mau bagi kami ang pow?" Loosely translated to, "My look how old you are. So when will it be your turn to give us ang pows?" Also translated as, "Can't get anyone to marry you yet, huh? Poor thing."

I love family gatherings. Wish me luck.

I believe when the Kingdom comes,
Then all the colors will bleed into one
Bleed into one
But yes i'm still running.
-U2, I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For

Sorry, did you say something?

My boyfriend, Lester, offered to drive me around town this morning. I had to browse for coffee shops that serve 'ngau chap', for the magazine of course. And i couldn't drive and look around at the same time so i needed someone to assist me. I thought it was really sweet of him to offer, considering he's not working today and that he might prefer to laze around in bed rather than play chauffeur for me.

I figured out the hard way that my assumption was spot on.

First off, i always knew he wasn't a morning person. That's our main difference: I love getting up early and getting the most of my day but i start to nod off way before midnight. Lester, on the other hand, can sleep into the afternoon but stay up till 3am. So yeah, mid-afternoon to early evening are the times when we're both fully operational simultaneously.

But i digress. As i was saying, getting up before 9am was probably asking a bit too much from him. The minute i stepped into his car with a perky 'Hi!' his gloomy expression said it all. He was sleepy -having had a late night-, had a headache coming on and the works. To make a long story short, we drove around for two hours in silence. My attempt to make a joke turned offensive which soured him even more. And when he finally tried to make conversation, you could almost feel him using every ounce of willpower to do so. I hate forced conversations. You can smell them a mile away. Halfway, i even asked him to send me home so i could just get my car, drive myself and he could go back and get more rest. And, after all the talk about being sleepy, having a headache etc., he tells me, "No really, i want to do this for you." In my head, i'm like, "But every bone in your body doesn't." I just couldn't help but wonder was the luxury of being chauffeured around worth the deafening silence? I wanted to jump out the window at every red light. Instead, i chewed on my pen.

So i decided to keep quiet. We even had breakfast in silence. He told me not to take it personally. Okay. More silence. I paid for breakfast and we were outta there. And as if God wasn't amused enough, the whole of KK was experiencing a massive jam (Chinese New Year, expected). So it was more silence and the car not moving any faster to my office. I started playing tic tac toe with myself. I won all three times. I turned on the radio and all the stations were playing mushy love songs. Where's Marilyn Manson when you need him?

I guess that's what it's like when i'm pms-ing and the boyfriend is trying hard to get something out of me other than, "What?" "Mmm" "No" and *sigh* Yes, I was highly annoyed and offended with his behaviour but i suppose everyone's entitled to having their bitchy days. The trick is to stay away from them when this ill phenomenon occurs. I wish there was a sign, like the moon turning blue or little voices in your head going, "Stay away! Stay away!" (I'm sure you men agree on this).

I was just disappointed. I was excited at the prospect of spending the short time in between work. You know that excitement you feel on Christmas eve because you get to open your presents the next day? Or you've had a long day at work and you can picture your dog waiting to greet you at the door? It's that kind of anticipation. But it's no one's fault. Just bad timing. Ah well, there's always Gaya waiting for me at home :)

"You say it best...When you say nothing at all."
-Ronan Keating, When You Say Nothing At All. Haha i just couldn't resist!

The Visionary has spoken.

You Are a Visionary Soul

You are a curious person, always in a state of awareness. Connected to all things spiritual, you are very connect to your soul.

You are wise and bright: able to reason and be reasonable. Occasionally, you get quite depressed and have dark feelings.

You have great vision and can be very insightful. In fact, you are often profound in a way that surprises yourself. Visionary souls like you can be the best type of friend.

You are intuitive, understanding, sympathetic, and a good healer

http://www.blogthings.com/kindsoulquiz.html

In my element.

Your Element Is Earth

You excel at planning and strategizing.You could be a champ at chess or Survivor.

Well grounded, you are able to be realistic and rationalize. On the inside, you have a hard core. It's tough to phase you.

You are super productive, and you are able to think anything through. Focused and super charged, your instincts are a good guide for your next step.

http://www.blogthings.com/elementquiz.html

Grr.

It's very unnatural to be working on a Saturday, don't you think? I mean, although I'm used to it, doesn't mean that I like it. And they make us work half day. Half day? You want to know what honestly goes on during a 'half' working day?

8 am - Punch in. Check e-mails
8:15 - make tea, read newspapers. Check some more e-mails
8:30 - notice that some people have just arrived for work and wonder why i bother coming in
on time. Check more e-mails.
9:00 - chat with people online, blog.
9:15 - fill in online surveys while chatting so i look busy
9:30 to 10:30 - whine about working on a Saturday. clean desk, rearrange pens, sharpen pencils,
read magazines for 'research'
10:30 to 11:30 - head down to the bakery for a mid-day snack. chat with colleagues, reply
e-mails
11:30 to 12:00 - Realise, "Yay almost time to leave!", surf the net for more nonsense, fwd them
to friends, call friends and make plans for lunch.
12:00 to 12:30 - plan work for next week. Get bored. rearrange pens. doodle. talk to colleagues
about what's showing in the cinema.
12:30 to 12:45 - get ready to leave, drum fingers impatiently on table
12:45 -head downstairs (i work on the third floor i make my way down sloooooowly)
12:50 - hang around the punch-card area, chat with people who work downstairs
12:55 - keep checking my watch.
12:58 - damn clock ticking so slow
12:59 - massive crowd gathers around punch card area
1 pm - outta here.

I love working for the government.

"Sorry i'm not in right now, i'm working on my spider web, so leave a message and i'll call you back..."
-No Doubt, Spider Web

What's my age again?

You Are 28 Years Old

28 Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe. 13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world. 20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences. 30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more! 40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax.

What Age Do You Act?

Ok, so how do you explain my facination with Barney the purple dinosaur?

Cat stretch.

Ah Thursday. I can almost smell the weekend. Then again i might be working this weekend so big difference that makes. When nobody's looking in the office, what do you do? I like to do cat stretches. I make sure no one's looking (or better, nobody's around) and i lean back and stretch. Now, this isn't ANY stretch. I slump my body halfway down the chair, my arms go all the way above my head and my toes are pointed straight down. And then my back curls in and my head goes back...Followed by a very satisfied sigh. It's therapeutic i tell you. But the trick is to REALLY stretch, till you can almost hear every muscle celebrating in joy. Blissful.

Yesterday was a long day. I had a four-hour meeting, brainstorming ideas for our upcoming promotional photo shoot and checking out models - not as exciting as you might think. We were short of another Asian guy. The photographer, an Aussie dude, wanted someone whose fun personality would show on the photos, not someone who just looked 'pretty'. I racked my head all day thinking of guys who might fit this bill. Got la...and then i realised the guys i had in mind were in KL and not KK. Darn. Back to square one. Anyway, after the meeting, i had to go and source for a white one piece swimsuit for the shoot. Needless to say, i only explored one shopping mall and i was done for the day. Plus, i still had the magazine to work on...aaarrgh! Work and drudgery aside, the evening fared better. I went for drinks with Mia and Selina at Arriva's (i thought they meant Ariefa, the mamak stall, at first).

Me: Ariefa?
Mia: Ya in Lintas. Nice place, there's beer and stuff, even a pool table
Sel: It's the one in the corner (mind you, the mamak shop is also located at the corner, in Lintas as well so at this point, i'm still lost)
Me: They have beer?
Mia: Ya, quite classy the place.
Me: thinking to self *Ariefa has a pool table?????*

Of course, everything clears up once i drive to Lintas and actually SEE the huge neon sign board that says -you guessed it- Arriva's.

I always thought the place was actually called 'Arrival's' but the L fell off.

Anyway, we had beer - i had a sorta-beer, also known as Shandy- and nuggets. And french fries. Dinner of champions. So we sat around talking: Sel and her quest for a puppy (I still can't get over the fact that she has a pet chick that sleeps in a sock at night), Mia scaring the bejesus out of me with her hotel ghost stories and me telling them i don't wanna hear any more scary stories, thankyouverymuch. And then it starts to rain. Talk about dramatic effect.

Friends are fun. It was just what i needed after a long day at the office. That, and a cat stretch.

"Sunday morning, rain is falling,
Steal some covers, share some skin,
Clouds are shrouding us in moments unforgettable,
You twist to fit the mold that I am in."
-Maroon 5, Sunday Morning (which seems like five million light years away)

Maggi mee for lunch.

Some days, i give up wondering what i should have for lunch. Today is one of those days. Hence, i had maggi mee, perisa ayam no less. And then my boss invites me for lunch Part 2, in which i ended up walking to Centrepoint with her and grabbing a grilled lamb kebab. Made me think: Maggi who? Yes, i am such an oinker but it would have been rude of me to decline my boss's invitation.

Yes, ok and also the fact that i am indeed an oinker.

I cleaned my keyboard today. I just figured out that i can actually pluck each and every key out from the keyboard and polish them one by one! And you don't wanna know the things that were breeding beneath the keys. I found:

1. hair
2. dust balls
3. crunchy noodles
4. insect droppings
5. insects

...Add a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. haha. I was told that they've NEVER cleaned the keyboard since they bought it. And that's like three years now. Gross. I polished each and every key and now, my keyboard is glistening! It even smells new (i used some sort of disinfectant to get that clean smell). If i had a digital camera, i'd post a pic of my keyboard right here! Once i started cleaning, my colleague got fascinated and started cleaning hers too. Thing is, my fingers are a bit red and sore from plucking and polishing. Ah well, well worth the trouble. In fact, I'm gonna go home and clean my keyboard there! - i'm not lifeless, just...methodically clean.

Today, I am also going to watch mindless TV. Have you seen Manhunt on Astro? I find it both appalling and amazing at how self-absorbed some people can be. And strangely, all these people live in the state of D-E-N-I-A-L. "They don't know it yet...But they're gonna be so sorry they eliminated me because, like, i'm gonna be the next big thing...You'll see..." and then his pouty lips start to tremble and his eyes well up but in true 'man' style, holds it back, runs his hand through his hair and turns away from the camera. Uh yeah, ok. Can you blame me for watching this stuff? Ok, besides the blinding fact that most of them are pretty hot (Hey same reason you men watch America's Next Top Model and Baywatch, so no finger pointing).

And now they're gonna show Outback Jack - 12 hot chicks and 1 hubba hubba. Mission: hot chicks chucked in the Outback must get hubba hubba's attention. Brainpower needed to watch this: minus 20. Ratings: sky high. Will i watch it: High possibility - stay tuned.

"When I wake up in my makeup, It's too early for that dress,
Wilted and faded somewhere in Hollywood
I'm glad I came here, With your pound of flesh
No second billing cause you're a star now
Oh, Cinderella, They aren't sluts like you"
- Hole, Celebrity Skin.