balik kampong

as usual the thought of going balik kampong initially fills me with some dread.

and then i move to stage two – resignation, and also start to get a wee bit excited at the prospect.

then comes stage three – into the mood full swing, planning what dvds / cds / books to bring, exercise implements/books (if any), dig up that half written letter to S to finish off, food snacks to buy/cook, tiny bottles of toiletries, etc etc.

time seems to stand still in our kampong.

afternoon naps are always great back there, after a simple afternoon meal, and after (or during) whatever movie we pop into the dvd player. wake up around 6.30pm, dither around a bit, shower and figure out what to have for dinner.

there’ll be lots to do, maybe explore the old kampong house, check out that antique bed underneath it to see if i can salvage it for my own, go see the swollen river, maybe even go for a spot of hiking with the cousins.

a barbeque is planned for sunday night under the stars (and trust me, over there you can actually see them), with the qurban beef we will get in the morning (hopefully they wont be too tough).

doing my laundry right outside the house, and hanging it to dry in honest to god sunshine, fluttering in the gentle breeze.

it’s a simple life.

…………………

today is declared a half day by the bosses.

apart from one other person, the floor is empty.

i have my windows open, and bright sunlight is spilling in.

it’s a beautiful day.

…………………..

enjoy what's left of 2006.

auld lang syne

left, trinket from new year’s / house warming party with miss j, london, 1995

right, bauble from christmas / house warming party with miss j, kuala lumpur, 2005

i wonder where we’ll be in the next 10 years' time?

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

have a happy new year and a good aidiladha, everyone.

manic monday

after two days of minimal human contact (actually, didn’t even leave the house on sunday), i of course had to break the spell by making plans to watch a movie, possibly meet up with des to return his book as well as a catch-up session with mraccenture on monday.

there i was with therose at cineleisure damansara, well in time to collect our movie tickets, quite pleased coz neither of us had been to that particular cinema before, only to discover that in my confusion of booking several random movies for the day just in case, i got the venue mixed up. the movie we wanted to watch was showing not at the curve, but at gsc 1-utama.

mad, mad dash.

the movie? tentang bulan. a local movie about the friendship of five kids (what is a movie about kids at the age of 12 without bicycles, a stream or railway tracks? this one has all three).


the group of children has the usual mix – the nerdy looking one, the fat kid, the frail one, and the head honcho, mastermind and inevitably fairly good looking one. (if this reminds you of stand by me, suppress the feeling. hard).

having seen eragon two weeks earlier, i have to say i prefer the latter movie.

unfair perhaps to compare a movie based on a book written by a kid, to a movie about kids written by an adult, but there you go.

the kids all did a fairly good job, given their scripts; i can’t however say the same thing about the adults in the movie.

and they could perhaps have found a more pristine stream (i remember the streams of my own childhood, accessible of course by bike and a hike, and they were nowhere near as murky).

there are worse ways to spend your afternoons (like watching eragon).

one jarring error though – what mrsm (science stream boarding school) is there in kl??

oh and miss j and chocolalat, the movie was based in perlis : )

merry xmas

dear santa

all i want for christmas is denzel washington.

you can keep the brad pitts, tom cruises, jude laws of the world.

just denzel washington.

no gift wrap necessary.

thank you.

home alone

mum and dad balik kampong. bro went off recce-ing for a future project.

am home alone over christmas weekend.

no responsibilities, no schedules, no deadlines, nothing.

yesterday, went of to sis’ to pay for my broadband account which had been cut off for late payment (don’t ask), baked carrotcake for mum to bring back, watched superman returns (sigh, kevin spacey is still dreamy. there goes another sexy baldie..), had afternoon nap, watered plants.

too lazy to get on treadmill, and not in the mood for yoga.

so dug up my callanetics book (which claims to make your body look 10 years younger in 10 hours) while re-playing v for vendetta, and, at circa 9pm was asking my legs to do impossible things.

feel tight already. or maybe its just my deep dormant muscles protesting at having to be woken up.

must must must try and keep it up. it wouldn’t hurt to look 25 again, surely?

no concrete plans for today either, and nobody to care for but self.

will see if can watch déjà vu, the departed, 2046 and finish off gie, with food break/naps as appropriate.

with a spot of yoga.

or not.

bliss.

amnesia lane

the year i came back from london for good, was a year of firsts.

it was my first tropical raya after three years of wearing 70 denier tights underneath my baju kurung.

we also had, for the first time in 14 years, a next door neighbour.

stifled from the heat i took off my baju kurung as soon as humanly possible after lunch, changed into my then most comfortable outfit – my ¾ leggings and baggy pearl jam alive t-shirt, and went into my room for an afternoon nap.

voices outside later woke me up.

curious and groggy from sleep, i came out of my room (which opens straight into the tv room/dining room), still in my pj t-shirt and leggings, with my long curly hair a total freaky mess from the combination of humidity and sleep.

and there, right in front of me, was my new neighbour’s entire family, resplendent in their baju melayus and baju kurungs and kebayas.

also for the first time since we lived there, apparently neighbours actually came a-visiting on raya day itself.

one of the sons (who is a fairly successful actor, and has a fancy car), had, as luck would have it, brought his then lady friend with him.

she was skinny tall and booby (you notice a trend here?) with long straight hair (not a single strand out of place), and wore a bright orange kebaya that looked like it was painted on.

my initial reaction upon seeing the neighbour family was “oh shit”.

my reaction on seeing supermodel-esque woman in her second-skin outfit, fully aware of how i looked at that particular point in time, was “OH FUCK”.

i could care less about the actor or his girlfriend, really.

but that feeling of mortification, bottomless sinking feeling coupled with complete inadequacy, visits me, not often, but once in a long while.

and for some inexplicable irrational and totally unrelated reason, it visited me that night in the parking lot seeing my mr sexy casually stroll to his ultra fancy car.

instantly i was back in that hot afternoon, and the sinking realization that there must surely be a perfect orange clad beauty somewhere for my mr sexy too.

and i went, “OH FUCK”.

starlight, starbright

chocolalat just gave me the link for this.

am well chuffed.

i have been waiting for years for them to make a movie out of good omens, and they go and quietly make stardust instead.

brilliant.

stardust was my third neil book, after good omens and neverwhere. and honestly i liked it better on the second reading.

the story started life as a graphic novel, but i only read the novelised version, which came after.

it’s a bit like princess bride, but much, much more sinister.

as only neil can deliver.

there’s fairly big names involved – claire danes, michelle pfeiffer, robert de niro, sienna miller - except for the lead actor playing tristran who is someone i have never heard of – charlie fox (who?).

initial reviews seem to be good, so long as (as usual) one doesn’t expect the movie to be the book (after lotr, i have learnt my lesson, thanks).

can’t wait for march 2007.

ps. halva, if you are reading this, is my book with you?

too good to be true

found out on friday night that mr sexy drives an audi coupe.

which means he is rich.

which makes me nervous.

which somehow makes him not so appealing anymore, actually.

(which incidentally also almost definitely means there is a skinny booby leggy supermodel girlfriend in the sidelines (maybe even two).

sigh.

all i want is a normal decent bloke whom i can talk to/with about anything under the sun, and be just as comfortable with not saying a word; whose skincare regime is not more expensive than mine; preferably someone who knows next to nothing about wine, who’s good with his hands and doesn’t balk at getting down and dirty from honest work.

is that too much to ask?

i'm an aunt again!

WELCOME TO THE WORLD, BABYJ!!!

kisses and hugs,
your auntie lita

mr sexy is back…

… having a meeting at the conference room since 2 pm, facing this way and therefore very very visible.

yum.

hope the meeting goes on all night long.

have decided he is not that good looking but damn, the idea of him is driving me nuts.

ooh yes, more of that fingers-interlocking-behind-head-at-base-of-neck action, baby, please.

sigh.

it doesn’t take a lot to make me happy these days.

is that good or bad?

(i so need to leave this office and get a life, man)

in need of tranquility

still water, part i
fish pond amidst padi fields, danau maninjau, sumatera

selamat hari lahir

to be sung with great enthusiasm today:

duliii yang maaha mulia
selaaaaamat dii aaatas takhta
allaaaaah lanjuuuuutkan usia tuanku
rakyat mohon restu
bawah duli tuanku
bahaaaaagia seelama-lamanya
aman dan sentosa
duli yang mahaaaaaaa
muuuuuuuliaaaaaaaaaaa...*

happy birthday sultan selangor; thank you for the public holiday!!

* one of the most difficult state songs to sing, surely?

another music plug

stumbled across this artist / songwriter / bassist / composer / producer / genius while surfing about the movie “cinta” (he is the music director).

do check his songs out – he’s got the coolest website too:

http://www.pacheye.com/index.php

i will be on the hunt again soon …

cinta* (not really a review)

i was horribly late for the movie.

midvalley on any given sunday is a nightmare; midvalley on a school holiday weekend with sales everywhere and christmas around the corner was beyond madness.

i was stuck in the jam trying to get into parking for almost half an hour; i went round and round like a possessed person hoping against hope that there would be an empty parking spot just for me for yet another half hour, maybe more.

the rest had already gone into the cinema; i couldn’t even text or call them to tell that i would be late coz there was no reception on my handphone (thank you maxis, the extent of your coverage simply astounds me).

i was beginning to compose the sad text to the girls which went somewhere along the lines of “dear girls, failed to find parking after 40 minutes. am stressed and fed up and am going home. sorry, catch up with your guys some other time. will reimburse for ticket, no worries”, when lo and behold, a couple casually walk up to their car and made a quick exit just as i reach them. with no other predatory drivers in sight for me to fight with.

so, i made it into the movie having lost god knows how many minutes (there was apparently a technical problem and the movie was stopped for a while – waiting for me?).

i was in a foul mood, hungry, stressed and tired, sceptical about love in general and more than ready to hate the movie with a vengeance.

and i loved it.

and cried buckets into the bargain.

yes of course there were some cliché bits, and some wooden acting and cringe-worthy lines/scenes, but aside from those faults, the acting and casting were great overall, the cinematography fresh (with some lovely shots of kl taken in a parallel universe where there’s no haze) and the soundtrack for the most part spot-on, if a wee bit too loud at times.

it restored my faith in malay films killed off by the onslaught on yusoff haslam movies in the 90's and the like.

if you haven’t yet, please do go watch it.

and bring a box of tissues.

i watched the movie not knowing a thing about it’s storyline(s). so try and stop yourself from reading reviews or seeing the trailer even – just watch it.

you will be pleasantly surprised.

(“cinta” is malay for “love”)

there he goes ...

there he is again.

still working long, long hours.

of late there has been a lot of activities, a number of meetings and a whole bunch of people in the office, but at the end of the day it’s always him alone in front of the pc, in the near dark, working hard.

occasionally he’d have people report to him.

he must be the big boss, surely. and a fairly young one at that, too.

i should just nip over and see what kind of company it is. the curiosity is killing me (but where’s the fun in knowing?)

he’s most probably married, anyway.

most of them are, these days.

he’s never really acknowledged me (his desk faces away from me at the far end of the room, and the only time he can see me is if he comes over to the near window to get better reception on his handphone. i on the other hand can see him each time i come back into my room or look out the window).

but it’s certainly heart-warming to know that there are married men who don’t flirt even when there is no possibility of being found out.

then again, maybe i am just not his type.

damn.

lost somewhere in time

been in a bit of a funk lately.

but clear blue sky mornings always make me feel better.

and driving to work on a clear blue sky morning, with the windows down and the cult’s sonic temple blaring out at full blast (this song in particular), through mist covered little baliem, with hardly any traffic and the promise of a steaming mug of coffee, works wonders.

“don’t you know paradise takes time”, indeed.

mememememememe

right. tagged by miss j.

there’s supposed to be a porky-pie in each set of four, or something like that. but, just for the heck of it, in one or more sets, it's all true.

just because.

4 jobs i have had in my life:
house painter
tour organizer
data entry clerk
paralegal

4 movies i would watch over and over again: (note – these are not necessarily my favourite movies. my favourite movies, the ones i truly love, tend to make me depressed. so i can’t watch them over and over again. go figure)
gosford park
sepet
v for vendetta
greencard

4 places i have lived:
albert park, melbourne
croydon, south london
kitasenju, tokyo
kota kinabalu, sabah

4 tv shows i like to watch:
casa impian
project runway
c.s.i. (vegas)
any specials on egypt on discovery/natgeo

4 places i have visited:
masjidil haram, makkah
pokhara, nepal
tutankhamun’s tomb, valley of the kings
loch ness, scotland

4 websites i visit daily:
miss j
google.com. searching for kitchen inspirations, which leads to gazillion others

4 places i would like to be right now:
lili’s, danau maninjau
perhentian, terengganu
in bed
having dessert with miss j chatting over the silliest of things

4 of my favourite food:
dark chocolate (min, 50% cocoa)
pizza with sun dried tomatoes
creamy tomatoey salmon pasta or salmon anything
laksa johor

4 bloggers i would like to respond:
mal
chocolalat (just to get him to update his blog!)
...
...
(err, i don't think anyone else knows about this blog, so if you are reading it (god save you), consider yourself tagged)

pg-13 & other nonsense

something miss j recently said, and my response to it, triggered this rather unsettling realisation:

almost all of my favourite "love stories" – or rather, my favourite modern movie romances, have absolutely no sex in them whatsoever.

heck, in some of them, they don't even kiss.

they are (in no particular order and i keep thinking am missing a few):

~ andie macdowell and gerard depardieu
greencard

~scarlett johansen and bill murray
lost in translation

~franka potente and whatzisname
the princess and the warrior

~tim robbins and alfre woodard (bit parts, but memorable ones)
miss firecracker

~natalie portman and tim hutton
beautiful girls (an otherwise forgettable film but for portman and hutton. click here and here for a couple of scenes)

(and of course v and evey in v for vendetta..)

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

saw this at kinokuniya last night and almost fainted.

it's going for RM 337.

damn damn damn.

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

against my better judgement (because by the time i left home i didnt feel up to it anymore) i headed for ikea/ikano today by myself to check out the kitchens/harvey norman for appliances.

it is however no fun having a puny budget and yet expensive taste; it's worse when you have to fork out everything yourself and not have someone to split the costs with even.

everything just seemed that much more expensive.

in my depressed state i went to borders, and bought this (at 20% discount):

so now i am no nearer to the kitchen of my dreams, am still broke, but marginally happier.

yay.

remember remember the 5th of november ..

hugo weaving is not, by normal reckoning, a particularly good looking bloke.

but what he is, is a good actor (my eyes water every time i see that bit in priscilla queen of the desert when he opens up to his son, and his son accepts him for who he was).

ok, so he may have overdid it a wee bit in the matrix and lotr, and i worried about his voice being too distinctive to be anything but agent smith and elrond in my head, when first i contemplated watching v for vendetta.

maybe it was a combination of things, finally watching the movie in the cozy apartment in hong kong, perched on my window seat (also my bed for three nights) with just a half inch glass wall between me and 22 floors down, dimmed lighting and a great sound system.

but rather surprisingly, his voice as v gave such tenderness to the otherwise faceless, emotionless role (despite/because of? the smiling guy fawkes mask), that i - voice-whore that i am - found myself strangely, inexplicably drawn to the character. found him *sexy* even.

ok so he goes around killing people left right and centre and blows up the old bailey and the houses of parliament.

but when he goes:

behind this mask is more than flesh
behind this mask is an idea …
and ideas are bulletproof …

sigh…

.. am such a sucker for poetry-spouting, knife-wielding, vengeful, disillusioned madmen with ideals and a gentle heart. the cooking skills were a bonus.

darn, now i have to get my hands on yet another graphic novel …

disclaimer - i have not read the entire alan moore graphic novel; only bits from the two chapters i got together with my RM 69.90 two disc special edition dvd pack from speedy video. my perception is based entirely on the film version.

kitchen slave

i'm in love.

as much as miss j was with her aquos, i want to make muffins and cakes with my pattisier (tm) cake mixer on rainy sundays in my beautiful new kitchen (my brownies mixture is beaten by hand).

except i haven't decided how to design my new kitchen yet, and am not exactly swimming in dough to have the finishings i want.

but, whatever it is, it will be a labour of love.

my head is filled with different kitchen cabinet materials (white painted wood? beech? birch?) and designs (partial overlay? full?) and corresponding countertops (granite? (i wish), corian? lg hi-macs? quartz solid surfacing? wood - mahogany, beech? laminates?), and all i want to do is surf the net and run out and visit showrooms.

please excuse me while i go and drool.