Event's done but PR still dragging

Lord, I'm so tired. It's a fucking holiday today and I'm in at work. NO ONE else in in here. I was also working last Saturday and Sunday. I'm not sure how long I can last like this. My body is already telling me to stop. Eversince the AJTT project, I've been suffering gastric problems and now it's worse. I feel nausea for no reasons from time to time. And I eat so little these days. Example: A medium set of McD's Fillet O'Fish. I finish the fries and that's it, I can't go anymore. What the hell, man... And the most stooopid thing is that I'm no thinner for it! I ask you, is that injustice or what? I suffer and I suffer for nothing.

Anyway, this is just a ranting session. The whole of the 10 days stationed at the press centre was damn exhausting. I run the Press Centre for 10am - 10pm, on top of that I continue with my PR duties of writing press releases and getting them out. Then I still had to write the MC scripts for every single day. And every day there is a different activity and there are multiple activities and the retailers are so slack in giving me info that I do all of the research myself, rather than wait for them. And if they do give me the info, it's usually 3 hours before the event starts. Bleeding idiots. On top of that. I have to brief the MC every evening and sometimes I have to stay on to see that everything is ok. Then, after that, I go back up to the press centre and work resumes for me until 2 - 3am in the morning, churning out press releases and what nots. I've not had a weekend or a day to myself to rest since the end of the 10 day event.

I've been so busy and tired that I don't have the energy to meet up with anyone. For that I apologise to you, if you're reading this, Friend.

The only good thing is that I'm going to Cambodia tomorrow for a couple of days and I'm so switching off my roaming on my mobile phone.

Culmination of 6 months of late nights, hard work and endless phone calls

A Journey Through Time
I'm so excited and I'm also very tired and I think I have gastric problems. I keep burping all the time even though I didn't eat anything.

The past 6 months have been an interesting journey for me. All my hard work, my very late 3am nights, or mornings rather, and all the press conferences, interviews, long phone calls from strangers and pitches to editors... everything has come together to create 141's realisation of Starhill Gallery's A Journey Through Time.

It's pretty exciting to see that all 141'a very hard work will be taking off this 3rd - 12th December 2007 at Starhill Gallery.

I will be based in Starhill Gallery and JW Marriott until 13 December.

So people, please drop by and see A Journey Through Time, only at Starhill Gallery.

Haha, I'm so doing my PR spiel. But then, according to my lovely colleague, that's who I am. =)

I'm finally a REAL public speaker

Haha, no la. I just gave a briefing yesterday to a bumch of people.

Actually, I gave a briefing to 214 foreign media from all over the world at Renaissance Hotel last evening. The foreign media were flown in by Tourism Malaysia and they gave Starhill Gallery a slot to present something on A Journey Through Time. And of course, Starhill Gallery nominated yours truly to go up there on stage to present the briefing. We were given 10 minutes to do this.

The day prior to the briefing, Thursday, I was calm and controlled. I prepared a briefing deck and I prepared a press release complete with fact sheet and the schedule that was distributed before the presentation. I wore a suit and I had a laser pointer. I even prepared a script for myself.

Haha, the moment I stepped on stage, I couldn't see anything on my script. It was nothing but jumbles of lines that I didn't have time to look and read. So I did my presentation off the cuff! Whatever info I had in my head, which was A LOT, it all came out. My voice shook and I just said whatever I thought was relevant and interesting to the media.

I was initially told that I'd be presenting to foreign media from around the region only as that was the list I provided MOTOUR with. However, yesterday, when I arrived for the event, I noticed a lot of blond heads, sharp noses and frekled cheeks, and I didn't think much about it as there were other functions nearby. Imagine my surprise, when all those blond heads started filing in to MOTOUR's designated room and sat down. I later found out that the media were from the US, Germany, China, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Australia, France, Indonesia, Hong Kong & Korea. OMIGAWD.

Anyway, I was told that I did fine by my PR Superior and my interns (who were cheering for me; they are so cute) and that the media sat up and took notice when I presented my stuff. Apparently, some was sleeping in the back when other presentations were going on. What more, during my presso, there was some technical difficulties and they couldn't play my informercial! That was horrid, when the infomercial was the best part of my presso. Instead, I read out one of the tactical ad copy to them and after that, I could see that more media sat up.

"To create a giant clock called the stonehenge, men dragged 240 tonnes of rock with their bare hands.

Now, see timepieces which took even more effort."

I am really glad that I did this. I'm glad I didn't chicken out and that I'd gathered my courage and I went ahead and did it. It feels damn good.

But then it didn't feel so good AFTER coz I got a massive headache from the adrenaline rush.... =P

P.Ramlee the Musical

Recently, I've been to Istana Budaya to watch P.Ramlee The Musical, twice. The VIP tickets were courtesy of my clients YTL. Managed to get 3 extra tickets and invited some close friends to go with me. Out of a rating of 10, I would give The Musical a 7, compared to PGLtM which was a 9. Of course the latter would rate higher! Puteri Gunung Ledang was a world-class show and I can't wait for 2008!

Anyway, watching P.Ramlee from the VIP seats gave me a whole different angle. Literally. The last time I was in Istana Budaya, it was to watch M! The Stoopid Opera. The seat I was in was actually ok, but the musical sucked, big time. I digress. The seats were good as I sat on the third row from the front and the second time I went I was in the middle, 4th row from the front. Not too bad, and they served dinner before the show and refreshments during the intermission. But then the food was so-so la. Nothing flash.

Back to PRtM. Sean Ghazi did a great job as P.Ramlee as he managed o get even the mannerism down pat. But his singing didn't create the urge to buy his album though... I've heard his album the last time and for me, his singing is still not quite there yet, he wasn't as good as I thought he'd be... But he's still better than the other Malaysian singers we get here. Mawi who? Psshaw.

Then we have the talented Liza Hanim, who plays Saloma. I like her singing. Not too over-the-top and somehow it seems just right.

Dato' Siti Nurhaliza gave a good showing too. Her voice is very good. That was the first time I've ever heard her sing live and she really does deserve the accolades. I love her kebaya but I don't like her blue tudung organza that she accessoried with last Friday night. I preferred her pink, delicate lace one that she wore last Saturday. Prettier also. Her role was P.Ramlee's muse, the incomparable Azizah. Siti also sang like 2 songs and they really should have more of her. But somehow I don't think she can play anything passionate. One, she's too "delicate and breakable". Second, don't think her husband and the public would take too kindly to their princess being touched or fondled onstage by other men.

Then we have Atilia who plays the first kampung wife, Junaidah. She is a cute actress and not that bad a singer. But I think the strain of singing everyday took its toll on her voice. By last friday, we could detect loss of strength and a little crack. Poor girl.

And then we have Melissa Saila, playing Norizan, P.Ramlee's second and attention-seeking and drama queen of a wife. Good lord, what a flamboyant person she must have been. But the part where he confronts her about her cuckolding him... that was overdone and not nice singing. But then I didn't like the Malay lyrics for this song.

The rest of the cast was good too. Joseph Gonzales did well for the BS Rajhans role.

But the real star of the show was the girl who played Budak Azizah. In the programme, it says that it's Nurazliana Haslin Binti Rusli, but she has an understudy: Rachel Wesley, so I'm not sure who was it that I heard sing both times. Anyway, Budak Azizah's voice was so clear, strong and so heartbreakingly sweet that I held my breath so as to not mar the sound with my own breathing! This girl will be the one to watch out for.

Not too bad an effort for PRtM and Enfiniti Productions. Good job.

Dead interest

Yeap, my blogging inclination has definitely waned. I'm bored with the whole blogging thing now because I really do not feel the need to tell the whole wide world how angsy or cheerful or pissed off or whatever, that I am each week, day, minute or second. And I'm tired and bored with irresponsible bloggers who think nothing about hurting other people through their blogs. Grow up.

If you want to find me, look me up on facebook.

Is bad luck attracted to me?

Believe it or not, someone knocked into me again! The last time it was that idiotic motorcycle at MidValley and now a lady outside my house in front of 7-eleven!

The best thing was that after she reversed into my car, she tried to drive off! What the hell? I was so pissed off that I jumped out of my car and stood in front of her car! Yeah I know, I wasn't thinking about my safety and after I cooled down, I did realised it was a stupid thing to do.

Anyway, since I stood in front of her car and after repeated demands from me that she alight from her car, she finally parked her car to one side and got out to discuss the accident.

She said she didn't see my car parked behind her and that it was my own fault that she backed into me! I felt incredulous that she was trying to blame me for her faulty driving abilities! The best thing was that her car's back back windscreen was totally covered with window shades and she say that it's my fault that she didn't see my car!

In the end, we settled it with her paying us some cash for the dent in the driver's side as well as fixing the door so that it can be opened. Only later in the day did it occur to me to try to pour water on the affected door and bloody hell, it's no longer water-tight! Seriously, what the hell is wrong with people these days?! Not only are they careless, they are unscrupulous as well!

I think I should try to mandi bunga soon.

Freakin blasted hell.

Quick update

I've been really busy lately and have not had the chance to blog much. But here are the top ten things that has happened with me recently.

1. Went back to Kelantan during the Merdeka weekend to help my mom clean and air the house after her long absence due to her surgery.
2. Visited Patches' burial site to say Hi.
3. Bought another pair of Crocs - Sassari
4. Went to Tembila but didn't get toasted this time. I was very good, I actually reapplied sunblock after every single dip and I stayed in the shade (!)
5. Made Pengat Durian for the very first time
6. Bought more gemstone beads
7. Made my first pair of cute kindergarden-size mother-of-pearl earrings for my sister's friend's daughter.
8. Had an asthma attack after 5 years
9. Achieved and went beyond my targeted Ad value & PR value for a Client
10. Joined and enjoyed Facebook

To blog or not to blog

This is a question a blogger usually ask herself or himself before committing their thoughts down in cyberspace. A simple basic question that sometimes operates at the back of our minds. Some might say that a lot of bloggers do not do this self-editing and willyninnily put their soulful, chaotic, antsy, narcissistic views in their private personal online space, their blog. But then isn’t the term "private personal online space" an oxymoron? This of course begs the question: Is the World Wide Web private? For me, the answer would have to be: No. Nothing committed online is private, for there will be always someone out there, other than your circle of influence, who will have permissible or otherwise, access to your cyber musings. A blog is not a personal possession like a real 100-page diary. A web log is, by all definitions, a public space.

I read a column in the papers today about the perils of blogging, or revealing yourself too much to strangers. This is true as much information about a person can be gleaned from a blog. For example: what car you drive, your daily activities, your hobbies, your circle of influence, what kind of products you use, what banks you partronise, which coffee you hang out to surf and so much more. All these information can be used to detail a person's life and with enough information, identity theft can occur.

Back in Uni, I wrote a thesis on the false security of the Internet. I can't believe I forgot about the perils of putting too much information about ourselves online. I look back at the early stages of my blog and thought to myself, "Holy fraking shit, woman."

Well, that's just one thing. The other issue is of course, self-governance of your personal space. I believe that we should all be mindful of what we write online. Not because of national unity and the threat from the government, but because of self-preservation. We are held responsible for what we say and do in our real life and it's no difference with our online-self. What's more, committing your thoughts online is an even bigger threat than saying something verbally in real life, unless of course what you say happened to be taped then that's permissible evidence that can condemn you.

But to bring it closer to home, a blog can define who you are, to others. To your circle of influence, you are just little ol' lovable you. To others who read with detachment, you're nothing but a spoiled 30-year-old brat with the emotional governance of a monkey. Who knows what strangers are thinking? Should we care what others think of us? I believe we should, because we write now with a passion and we fear nothing. But later in life, with a paperless but evidential trail spanning the globe thrice over, we can be measured, weighted and we might be found wanting.

This is the part of the reason I've reduced my blogging time. I'm more mindful of what I blog these days. Of course the other big reason is that I no longer feel the need to let strangers know when and how I burnt my barley water.

Thank you for your prayers

My mom went for her 1st check up after her surgery today and according to the doctor, she's doing well. She's even walking better now and without the aid of a walking stick. But it will take another 6 months for the damaged veins to heal and grow back. Her veins were inevitably damaged when the surgeons had to scrape the tumour off them (her tumour had grown/wrapped itself around some of her veins), and since veins are tiny, some were cut and damaged. But according to the doctor, the veins should grow back in 6 months time and she'll regain the feeling in her foot.

The doctor also got the test results back on the tumour and it's benign. So thank you all for your support and your prayers.

A tableau of an accident and hospitals

Was involved in a car accident yesterday morning on my way to work. Actually, I was already just outside my place of work when it happened. A motorcyclist was winding his way in between cars and in that split second, he somehow navigated wrongly or misjudged his speed and knocked into the back of my car and went flying off his bike. I was horrified that of all cars there, he had to knock into mine.

I called the ambulance as he was bleeding from scrapes on the face and he couldn't get up. I even gathered his belongings and documents and followed the ambulance to the hospital and passed his belogings to the nurse. The guy broke his hand, leg and some ribs. After that, I went to the police station to make a report. It was a horrid experience.

Yesterday was a horrible day. Damn suay I tell you. I've never been in an accident where I was the "targetted" driver. I've never even stepped into a police station before for matters like these. I'm usually accompanying someone there to do their reports like snatched bags, break-ins, lost Identity cards and all that shit. I guess there is a first time for everything. I think this experience is somewhat hardening me to the plight, self-inflicted or not, of others.

*sigh* I'll blog more about it later. I'm tired.

I'm going to the hospital now to see my mom. She was in surgery yesterday to remove her tumour and she's in ICU now.

What a horrible day.

Hong Kong: Land of the Dripping Air-Conditioners

Hong Kong is a city that is teeming with life and chaos; with masses of stinky human bodies moving like lemmings in search of the best bargains in this overpriced shopping mecca. Yeah, Hong Kong is a very crowded place, but it is to be expected as space is a commodity and not many people have the luxury of owning their own landed house. Even our hotel rooms are smaller than standard size.

The culture there is like New York, everyone is always on the go and time is money. They don't linger at restaurants like we do. They sit, eat and leave. There is no such thing as savouring a cup of coffee or just resting your legs at Chinese eating places during peak hours; you'd likely to get shooed off once you've cleaned your bowl. If you want that pleasure, the best places are western cafes and Starbucks. But you have to pay for that privilege.

Although, Starbucks prices are pretty standard - it's about HK$25 - 35 for a cup of ice-blended coffee. But juice bars are way more expensive. I paid HK$37 for a medium size cup of banana and strawberry smoothie and HK$15 for a small packet of Maltese. But then it's to be expected as living standards are pretty high in Hong Kong. Apparently, a Giordano sales girl earns HK$7k - 10k a month. I shudder to think of the rent.

The people here, sans salespeople aggresively tries to convinve you to buy their wares, and sans hotel staff, aren't very friendly or receptive to strangers. They are not affected by a stranger's presence in any way. It's like you're a piece of pavement decor. I can imagine that New York would be like that too, as people are too involved and busy with their own lives to look up once in a while to see what and who else is there.

Hong Kong is not a place that I would willingly go on my own. I'm more of a beach bum and water-loving fool than a Metropolitan girl. Getting around alone in Hong Kong wasn't much of a problem though, as I do speak a smattering of primary school Mandarin. (Did I just admit that out loud?) But it's good that I was with my Cantonese-speaking colleagues, as the times when I was with them, I just followed wherever they went lah... So for this trip, it is definitely the company (friends) that maketh the trip and not the place. Goes to show that no matter how sucky the venue, if you have friends, it can be fun. Well, the booze helped a little of course. Haha.

Alcohol is pretty expensive in HK. In one of the night clubs we discovered to our horror that they were charging HK$1500 per bottle of Chivas! This is in one of the clubs at Lan Kwai Fong, an expat clubbing area. Can you imagine how much expats are earning in HK to be able to afford X bottles of Chivas in one night as seen that night at several tables? Most of us stuck to our favourite beers (they were cheaper than our KL prices) and left it up to our kind and good bosses to pick up the tab on the Chivas. *grin* Speaking of beer, I love their home-brewed Lan Kwai Fong beer! It was good! It had a flowery aroma to it and drinking it was a pleasure. Price? Only HK$23 per bottle.

Another thing I don't like about Hong Kong is that there are always dripping water from air-cons every 5 steps or so. Since humidity is around 81%, Hong Kong is a very hot and sticky country, hence the perpetual air-conditioning. So, if you're pounding the pavement in Hong Kong looking for bargains, be sure to be aware of dripping water from above at all times, else you'll end up sticky and wet by the time you walk a couple of blocks. Just look out for wet patches on the pavements and circumvent them, and you'll be fine.

Speaking of walking, I love my Mary Jane Crocs. I had no problem walking around Hong Kong island and Kowloon for 12 hours each day. By the time the sun went down, I'm the only one bounding up stairs... the rest were lagging cause their "walking" shoes were pinching their feet. Haha. Go Crocs!

Despite the walking around the city, I didn't shop much, but I made it up the last day when I bought 3 hand bags in one swoop and a pair of Adidas sneakers at Lui Yang Kai (Ladies Market) and Fa Yuen Street. That's all. I didn't even get any souvenirs or jewelry stuff as all of them were plastic-y and I know I make better ones. It was not worth the money to buy those things... everything was made in China. I went with one luggage, I returned with the same luggage. Good for me and my credit cards. *grin*

Below are some of the pictures from my Company Trip to Hong Kong.


Waiting at the KLIA Departure lounge



Arriving at the Hong Kong International Airport



HK's street at night



Dim Sum brekkie



Any space is good poster space



Repulse Bay

It's called that coz some soldiers managed to repulse invaders there lah... The guide wasn't too sure on this... *shrug*



Taking a boat ride on a Junk


Jumbo floating restaurant


Boatride with colleagues


Top of Victoria's Peak



Mong Kok MRT Station


Soaking our tired feet at the end of the day

#end#

My new Mary Janes Crocs!

I finally bought myself a Crocs! Got myself the black Mary Janes Crocs and they are sooo adorably ugly. I've been wanting to get Crocs for a long time now but never got round to it and I was kinda hesitating because of the price. The catalyst of my capitulation came when I unpacked my boots for my trip to Hong Kong tomorrow, and discovered red ants by the hundreds, living in my boots! And they had drilled countless holes in the leather! I was so furious I drowned the lot of them in soap, together with my boots.

Anyway, I was in KL yesterday for a meeting and I decided to stop by Isetan, KLCC to check out the Crocs. I initially wanted to get the Prima model, which looks like ballerina shoes without the ribbons, but the sales girl could not find one in my size. Yes, I have big feet. Bite me.

So, I settled on the Mary Janes and I do not regret my buy. They are SOOOOO comfortable! I even wore them to work today to give it a test run before I wear them in HK this weekend. My Mary Jane Croc is so fantastic that I refused to wear my heels, despite my GM's howls that Crocs are ugly and should not be worn at all. Yeah, he HOWLED. I have no idea why the sight of Crocs provoked such an antagonistic response in him. Go figure.


Wha-? Oh yeah, did I not say I was going to HK this weekend for a company trip? Yeah I'm going to HK, of all places. Anyway, THAT is another blog entry.

So see ya! Need to go back and pack now.

I'm a Deep Blue Square?

The results suggest that you're actually a deep blue square. Squares like order; they are organised, logical, analytical and task-oriented. You have a high degree of perfectionism, but you are also sure-footed and self-confident. When you are given a job to do you will always see it through to its conclusion.

As your shape suggest, you are strightforward and honest; you can be trusted both at work and at play. You are loyal and dependable, and always a committed friend and partner. You probably find that people come to you for help, particularly on a practical rather on an emotional level.

Squares tend to be left-brained, tactical thinkers. You make notes and lists, but often get bogged down by too much information and this hampers your ability to make decisions. In life, you're invariable striving towards something quite specific and you might have more fun if you could manage a bit more spontaneity. Try taking a few risks and a pur of the moment decisions. You could be surprised how much fun you'll have particularly if your partner is a triangle or a squiggle.

Your colour is deep blue. This denotes great strength of character and exaggerates the traits of any personality shapes. Deep blue suggests integrity and maturity, but it is a colour that may conceal hidden depths, often making you appear a bit of a dark horse.

Are you worth it?

I was watching Grey's Anatomy the other day and in the scene where Meredith's dad, Thatcher meets Derek in the laundry room after Izzie accidentally blew a fuse, Derek confides to Thatcher that although Meredith is very difficult to handle, she's worth it.

This got me thinking that I've never met anyone who was "worth it". None of the guys I've met made me want to dig deeper, discover more, find out what makes them tick, and how they are put together. And with all that, suffer through it all to find the goodness and core beauty of it all. None of them were worth it. I find this lack of enthusiasm worrying for myself now. What if there is an almost perfect person out there for me, but because of my lack of interest, I lose him. But then again, where is the truth that the divine universe, with its infinite stewardship of all things in existence, would have the time to find me the one perfect person to ensure my happiness? Is there such a thing as a Soul Mate? Pshaw. Such privilege of divine intervention only falls into backyards of the skinny & kittenish.

I used to be enthusiastic, and optimistic, and I slept the moment my head touched the pillow. Hah. Not anymore. Nowadays, I have insomnia, I've grown up and I'm cynical and suspicious of anyone who tries to get near. That, I've realised, is just too sad.

I see friends taking risks in their love lives. Some hit the motherloads and some are sadly blinded, to let go even though the guy is just not worth the dust beneath her shoes. But one thing I do admire about my friends is that they dare to take the leap. I not only do not dare, but the moment I find a flaw, I throw whatever is it that I have, away. I've become so unforgiving that it is no longer about not suffering fools, but rather more of unrealistic lofty expectations. This protective recoil not only covers my scarce dealings with potential lovers but also the other people around me. What have I become?

Which brings me to the next shattering question: Am I worth it? Maybe to a compatible mate, I might be. I'm beginning to think to hell with it all.

Welcome Arie Owen Pearman!

CONGRATULATIONS to Kim & Ben on their new baby boy, Arie Owen Pearman!

* The amazingly cute illustration is from the Paige Keiser's Illustration. I've tweaked it to make it into a personal wishing card for Kim & Ben's baby boy.

You Son of Pokemon, Spawn of Dragonball!

That is going to be my curse sentence for a couple of weeks. *grin* That creative curse (lacks heat but it's too funny not to use it since I'm not a fan of those Japanese cartoons anyway), from our Malaysian-made Sumolah, was so funny that almost everyone laughed when Ramlee cursed Akira with it. Lowest common denominator to appeal to the masses. The movie in essence is about the spirit and principles of Sumo wrestling and applying it to a Malaysian context. Kinda reminds me of "Wax on. Wax off."

Zona and I just got back from the premiere (she's the Line Producer) and even though it's LATE and I have to be in the office at 8.30am tomorrow, my mind is too active thinking about the movie, for me to sleep now anyway. *Spoilers ahead* Advance warning 'kay... so go watch it first if you don't want to know how it ends.

Sumolah is the 3RD Malaysian-made movie I've ever watched and 2ND that I've watched in a cinema. First was that very laughable Jangan Pandang Belakang, not for the movie was good, but because it was amateurish. Can't believe they made money out of it... I guess we all paid money out of curiousity. No second-watch value la. Come on the ghost was hanging off a crane and flying oh-so-convincingly scary. Riiightt.

Anyway, back to Sumolah. The starting was different and surprising. I like the fact that it was unconventional. Ramlee, being the despatch guy for an animal hospital which does animal organ transplants (LOL), was in charged of fetching donated animal organs on his sexy yellow motorcycle!!!! The movie does poke fun at some *ahem* questionable but true aspects of our Malaysian culture, shows that the creators and producers were not scared of making fun of themselves. Kudos on that!

Ramlee, played by our talented funnyman Afdlin Shauki, is a lazy fly-by-job man who keeps botching up his jobs and being fired for his mistakes. His mother, a security guard (again, unpredictable character casting, but then it serves no real purpose except maybe to show that our Malaysian women also boleh jadi Security Guard carrying nightsticks ready to whack people), despairs at her good-for-nothing son who by the way, is still staying at home and eating her noodles.

So anyway, our poor Ramlee has no job, no money and is starving. Now, amidst the grumbling growls of Ramlee's stomach, we see the occupants of Boleh Sushi, a sushi restaurant in Puchong, pulling their hair out because they lost a member of their Sumo wrestling team. Every year, the sushi restaurants send in teams to compete in the Malaysian ONLY, Annual Sumo wrestling competition. Boleh Sushi, owned and run by Mr. Honda (free publicity for Honda here!!!), his 2 workers who are also his sumo wrestlers and his pretty mixed-parentage daughter, Siti, played by Thai "Nang Nak" actress, Inthira Charoenpura. To be honest, I think the only real reason they used the name Honda because of the play on the name "Honda Siti" which is pretty hilarious! Again free publicity for Honda and Honda City. Hee hee.

Anyway, Honda-san saw Ramlee and wanted him as the 3rd member in his team so he tricked Ramlee into working for him by asking him to join his "Eat 20 plates of Sushi in One Minute" contest. Naturally, our starving Ramlee could not refused such "generousity". Unfortunately, he threw up the last bit of wasabe roll after the 61st second so he had to work off his debt of 20 plates of sushi.

Anyway, long story short, our Ramlee then became a Sumo wrestler after overcoming his shyness of flaunting his half naked body in from of our friendly Cik Honda Siti. His protagonist is of course Akira, played by Gurmit Singh, who is a rival for Siti's affection. No guessing who gets the girl in the end la. Akira's over-highlighted-Dragonball hair pokes fun at the Japanese culture and with the sporty Nissan car with sky light... Funny! The way Gurmit portrayed the arrogant Dragonball-wannabe Akira was damn funny. The long strides, the colourful John Travolta suits and the slinging and whipping of the jacket over the shoulder thingie... tsk tsk. I didn't realise they were poking fun at Japanese cultures and their penchant for Cosplay until the end of the movie with a particular scene of Akira storming into Boleh Sushi with wind effect, horrid-looking kicks (sneakers) and wrap-around sunglasses and all. But as a Sumo wrestler, Gurmit's body... tak boleh la... but then I didn't know he had muscles either so not too bad looking as well.

Speaking of not-too-bad-looking bodies... Gavin Yap's character Mickey was what we can only call "care-le-fair" (again serves no purpose but to throw in creativeness I guess). Mickey, a psychotic sumo wrestler in Akira's team, sports an impressive Mohawk and Mike Tyson Complex with kohled eyes, gets to mouths off cheesy lines like "Is it strange that I enjoyed that?" when pinched / pushed aside by Akira. Compared to the rest of the Sumo wrestlers, Mickey is scrawny. Well, all except Radhi Khalid, who plays Andy who has a son named after a toad, whom is even scrawnier with his ribs sticking out. But even after taking bruising kicks to the stomach from Hassan, our Andy still managed to throw a few guys, twice his size, out of the dohyo.

Oh oh oh... at this point I must point out that our Malaysian sumo wrestlers wears tights with their loincloth! I'm sure you've seen it in the trailers. Malaysians will still be Malaysian la. Good for them! Haha. I don't think anyone's gonna pay money to see Afdlin's butt cheeks quake with each big stomp. So good call. But then maybe people might just.... *grin*

To train our unlikely heroes better, Honda-san flew them to Fukuako, Japan to train with REAL Sumo wrestlers. My god, there was a scene with real wrestling bouts, and the meeting two of two gargantuan shoulders sounded like the crack of rams butting their buttresses together. Then there was a scene showing the Sumo wrestling practicing ramming his shoulders into a log... owww.

In the end, Ramlee and Akira faced off in the dohyo in the final round. Both fought valiantly and hard and both fell at the same time. But the judges ruled that Akira won. Ok, so our hero lost and went back without a trophy. No happy ending there.

Next day, Akira comes by Boleh Sushi, accompanied by a whirlwind, not to gloat but to apologise for cheating team mate Hassan for bashing up poor Andy and telling Mickey to punch Andy's sore ribs during the competition which gave the rival team the edge to win that round. Akira offers to forfeit his trophy and prize money. Not bad.

Ramlee declines of course, product of good Asian parenting, and offers to beat him next year instead. Anyway, the ending.... with shots of happy faces looking up into the Nokotta sign, a gift from Akira's father and coach... reminded me of a Celcom ad (or was it Telekom). Sappy happy ending. But then I don't know how else to end it either.

I guess what I like about this movie is that it was unpredictable, looks like a proper movie, good scenes like sunset shots with our heroes silhouettes practicing moves and Honda-san following with an umbrella at the back despite it being sunset and thus no hot sun, and poking fun of certain things (the pokemon dragonball aspects), and of course some clever scene planning like the scene where our heroes are practicing toughening up their limbs by hitting them against the coconut tress at Putrajaya, the director put 2 coconuts at Haris' (played by Awie) feet, 1 coconut at Andy's feet and non at Ramlee's feet, to indicate the level of strength and skills they had at that moment. Damn cute.

My advice to you, GO WATCH IT, and see that Malaysia indeed Boleh in the movie industry.

Tidal motion of my disposition, two

Seven dawns and twilights rose and fell in relative silence
A friend accompanied to coast, another returned from afar
A second specialist consulted, answers are in total absence
A date set, biding for a conquering Caesar named in the stars

God, the best maker of all marriages,
combine your hearts in one,
your realms in one.
-- Shakespeare

Congratulations to Lee & Zona on their engagement!!! Congrats, sweetie!((((((((((((HUGS)))))))))))))

Tidal motion of my disposition

Failure to hold drugery and confusion at bay
Weakened when slammed with adversity
Seeking rest and respite for seven days
A leave of absence granted grudgingly

Week of bad luck

(Image source: www.fnal.gov/pub/ today/safety/back.jpg)

It's been hell of a 2 weeks. First there was that toilet incident and then now, I've sprained my back, caught a viral flu and have a bloody pimple growing in my ear. Talk about suay (bad luck)... *sigh*

I'm better now after countless doses of pain killers and muscle relaxant provided by the good doctor. I've been floating and a little loopy the whole day today when I went back to work. But I'm so damn miserable - not being able to sleep properly because of my aching back as well as the itch at the back of my throat and coughing non-stop the whole night.

Y'know, all I did was bend over to get something and I felt my muscle protest and then give, and a sharp pain shot up from my lower back. The heavy stuff wasn't even in my hands when it happened. It was painful enough for me to be confined to the bed for 3 days and not being able to dress myself with dignity. It's gonna be a month before I can attempt any heavy lifting.

There goes my Redang diving trip.

*Blech*

I flushed my tag down the toilet bowl

HOLEYKAMOLEY! I accidentally flushed my security tag down the toilet bowl!!! I had just pressed the flush button when I dropped my tag. Since the lanyard was wrapped tightly around the card, my hasty swipe missed it by inches and before I could stick my hand down the churning water, the tag was sucked in and gone! It was a clean flush...

Had to fork out RM30 for a new tag. Now that's money down the drain... I'm actually more mortified and embarassed by the way I lost it than anything else, but for some reason, I can't stop laughing about it.

Edited on 17 April 2007
Omigosh... I just had a thought. I sincerely hope that the tag didn't get stuck somewhere in the pipe. Coz if the toilet overflows, the building's management will have to call the plumber and....*crap*... my name and company details is on that tag... @_@

Edited on 20 April 2007
F*ck! My nightmare came true...

Kimberley's pregnant

Here's a picture of Kim, probably one of the nicest friend a person could have. She's due this early May. You can check out her blog and more pregnant pictures at Team Pearman. She's staying in Rockingham at the moment. Very nice place with dolphin sightings, clean and sandy beaches with clear enough water. Not bad eh?

On a more sombre thought, we were supposed to visit Kim this May but had to cancel it as doctors found a tumour in my mom's leg. It's gotten so bad that she can't walk comfortably as it pains her. As if that's not bad enough, the tumour is pressing on a vein and now even bending down to wear clothes is painful. She's done a MRI but she's still waiting for the doctor to conclude if it's benign or malignant. She was suppose to have it taken out this coming 22nd April, but the hospital erred and forgot to schedule my mom's appointment into the system. So now she has to wait again. That's Malaysian government hospital for you. Idiots.

Whoever is reading this post, I humbly ask that you add my mom into your prayers at night. Thank you.

BMW The Hire Short Films

Paul Tan has archived 5 of the 6 BMW The Hire Short Films. Thank goodness for paultan.org. Click on the links and allow yourself some drool time, 'kay? *grin*
Star
The Hostage
Beat The Devil
Ambush
Ticker

Clive Owen should be the next James Bond

Found this picture of Clive Owen on the net. Look at the steely green gaze... This is from one of his BMW commercial series. Have been a fan since seeing him in Bourne Identity and then in King Arthur. Last night I watched Children of Men and boy what a bleak future. I like Inside Man better though... and there's not enough of him in Sin City. He will also be in Sin City 2 which is in post-production now, as well as Elizabeth I in which he plays Sir Walter Raleigh.

Truly gorgeous men are indeed hard to find and keep.

Working in JB this weekend

Will be heading down south this weekend for work. My boss was supposed to go but he came down with something nasty - infection or something. Anyway, it's gonna be a looong weekend. Hopefully I might have time to go across to the other island and meet up with a friend.

A brush with... something

Something strange happened yesterday. I haven't quite decided if its a normal thing or something supernatural.

I got in very early yesterday morning and went to McD to get breakfast. (McD opens at 8am and is on the same floor as the GSC movie theater in Mid Valley) When I got there, I discovered that I wasn't the person/customer there. Another old indian lady was the first. She was sitting quietly at one of the tables near the exit, but she wasn't eating.

After getting my order, I was on my way out of McD when she stopped me. She asked me about where the public phones were, as she needed to call her friend, Balan, who was holding on to her movie ticket. Now, having not used a public phone donkey years, I could not give her an answer. She mentioned that she was there to see a movie courtesy of GSC for senior citizens.

Since I could not direct her to a pay phone, I offered to let her use my mobile phone. She handed me a piece of paper with a mobile number on it. I dialed but no one picked up. I dialed another time and again no one picked up. In the end, I left her with an apology and a "hope you enjoy your movie".

When I got back to my desk, I felt guilty that she was waiting there all alone. so I called the number again and this time a guy picked up. I clarified his identity and then mentioned that his old lady friend was waiting at McD for him and for her movie ticket. But Mr. Balan then told me he has no idea what I'm talking about and that I had the wrong number, and he hung up.

Worried for the old lady, I called a GSC friend to ask what time was the movie starting. But she told me that they didn't have a Senior Citizen movie scheduled for that day.

Is that creepy or what???!!!

Introspectively older

Another year has gone by... and suddenly I'm another year older. Every year, the questions are the same "Am I doing what's best for me? What's best for me anyway? Do I even know what I want?" Lord, I can't believe that I still don't really know what I want in life. Sure, I have all the vague wants and needs, but I don't have the single-mindedness that I need to drive me to do and be the best I can be. That path is still unclear to me.

But I do concede that I have indeed gleaned more and learmed more in this one year. It's not a wasted year. Like a tree, each year lays a layer around my core, making me stronger, taller. Around me are people who love me and for that I am stronger too.

Fear not the dark side.

Happy International Women's Day too!

Happy International Women's Day to my sisters, my amazing mother, my cousins, and all my girlfriends! You gals make my world a better place.

Pardon me, but you're doing it wrong.

Apparently, I strained the ligament at the back of my neck. At least it's only strained and not torn. I shudder at the thought of another torn ligament. No, it was not fun. But that was 6 years ago when I tore my back ligament when I hand washed my jeans. Yeah, no kidding.

I've been in discomfort and this week it got worse. So I was ordered to go see the panel doctor by my boss when circumstance made me a little snappish. Hey, I was in pain.

And when I told friends about it, particularly guy friends, their responses were interesting to say the least. It's amazing how these peculiar male creatures have one track minds. When I told my male colleagues, they alluded it to vigorous bedplay. *roll eyes* And when I told another friend, he blithely murmured "Maybe your technique is wrong..." @_@

Men.

Olives fete with feta

I've been living in olives heaven last weekend, thanks to my cousin Tze Min! She read my blog about my insane obsession with olives and olives costing a ridiculous amount of bullion here in Malaysia, and so she sent back a care package of wonderful yummy olives when my sister was in London last week!

Lord, the ones with coriander and pepper was absolutely mouth-wateringly luscious... especially with olive oil, rosemary and feta cheese. Thinking and writing about it now is positively making my saliva glands working over-time.

*sigh* If you don't know what are olives and would like to know more. Check out The Olive Tree World for more reading pleasure.

I prefer the green olives as they have a stronger taste, the black olives are milder and usually used in salads and pizzas. The green olives are usually allowed to ferment before being packed in brine and this is what makes the green olives tastier, especially when pitted with pimento and eaten as hors d'oeuvre with cheese.

We do not get much choices of olives here in Malaysia as apparently it's an acquired taste, according to some. I can't imagine anyone not liking olives to be honest. I mean what is there not to like? Hmm... my mom and sister went to Turkey once, one of top five country producing olives, and brought back Lays potato chips in Olives flavour and it really tasted like olives. Too bad we can't find it in other places except in olive producing countries. They didn't have the olive flavour in Perth for some reason - Australia does cultivate olive plants.

Did you know that the olive tree is one of the earliest cited plants in literature history? And olive plants can grow and live for a very long time. There is one olive tree in Crete that is known to be 2,000 years old and another 1,636 years old on the island of Brijuni. (Source: Wikipedia.com)

Anyway, I'm gonna get back to my olives fete. Cheers everyone and long live the Olive.

Jaunt in the highlands

The air is crisp and cold up here. Against the hilly peaks, impressive clouds of mist swirls and flows into valleys and hotel room balconies. The room is luxuriously comfortable with ample space, a daybed overflowing with cushions next to the white-washed window, and a big balcony that overlooks the green hills. I'm enjoying the cold as much as I can. Reminds me of Perth - the cool weather, the cold breaths early in the morning, the hot sun soothing the nip of the cold air, and the smell of burning logs. I miss Perth so much...

This time round, my family and I are in Cameron Highlands for the Chinese New Year. Since Perth looks to be impossible again this year, the next best thing is somewhere local and with cold weather.

I came upon the Cameron Highland Resort online. At first I was totally scared away by the price - USD200 per room - I decided to call them anyway; I was getting desperate to find a suitable place to get away to this festive break.

It must have been my lucky day indeed when the lady informed me that they have a Resident's Package promotion - Deluxe Room and full board for 3D2N. When she told me the price, I immediately made a booking and even extended another night's stay. And now I'm here, up in Cameron Highlands, blogging in a very comfortable Reading Room with a fireplace, on my sister's wi-fied PowerBook.

To be honest, this is one of the most pampering holidays I've ever taken. I do nothing but eat scrumptious food, roll around my king-size four-poster bed and read and play scrabble with my mom and sisters. It is a holiday where there is no rush to do things, we aren't even really venturing out of the hotel even at this point, so comfortable are we right now. This hotel is just what I need to get away from the office and to recharge. I've not taken a proper holiday since I joined 141. Before this holiday, I received a warning email from Admin asking me to clear my 11.5 days of leave that was brought over from last year, by April. *sigh* Why the heck is it so hard to clear my leave???

Anyway, I don't even want to think about anything remotely resembling work right now. I'll have to arrange for a chartered taxi tomorrow to bring us around Cameron. Mom wants to visit the flower nurseries and pick strawberries, of course.

I'll post up my pictures later. See you all back in 32 degree celcius.

Happy Chinese New Year to all. ^_^

Happy Birthday Zona!

Here's a shout out to my mate in Sydney! Hope you had a fantabulous birthday today, sweetie! *(((((HUG)))))*

CONGRATULATIONS to Joe Jer & Zabrina!

Omg! Joe Jer and Zabrina won The Amazing Race Asia! Woohoo!!! Bloody hell that was one teeth biting hour! They were the most unlikely team to win and yet by a stroke of good strategy of hiring a taxi cab the moment the landed in Kuching to lead them around, they emerged VICTORIOUS! Joe Jer & Zabrina just became a household name, talk about brand Malaysia.

The Tourism Ministry is sure gonna export those two and promote Malaysia, espcially withe Visit Malaysia 2007! I thought it was funny that the puzzle the teams had to solve was a picture of Visit Malaysia 2007! And then poor Air Asia, despite beating MAS to sponsor this programme, had all the teams taking a MAS flight to Kuching instead! Tsk tsk...

Here's to Joe Jer and Zabrina for making history of being the first ever all-woman team to win The Amazing Race Asia and The Amazing Race! To think I used to work in the same building with them back in VNM... I think I've ever only said Hi to Zabrina and exchanged smiles with Joe Jer. But then, at that time, I didn't mix with the Channel V people. *shrug*

Oh, and Allan Wu is still cute when he's not quaffing blended brains, worms and eyeballs. ^_^

Endorphin high

I'm going through another Olive phase. Every once in a while, I get cravings for something and this time its olives, last month was Caeser's Salad from Strudels. Ohmeegawd, I just sat through half a TUB of green pitted olives that costs me RM59.50 for 500g of the yummy stuff. No, I'm not pregnant. And I had cheese with it to boot. There goes my 2 hours of sweat and grunts at the gym this morning. *sigh*

It's been an uneventful month for me so far. Nothing exciting happened. Nothing momentous happened, unless you want to count in me finding my joggers finally after 8 months. Now that I have my joggers, I couldn't put off going to the gym any longer, so I started my aerokick regime again today. The punches, the jabs, the blocks and the kicks... lord, it feels darn good. I forgot how it felt, after sweating it out - glowing, roling strides, airy, sexy. *purrr* Now, all I need is a tiger to curl up with. =p

Onions have layers

Tagged by Midnite Lily.

Layer ONE
On the Outside
Name: Sharon
Birth Date: March 8
Current Status: Single
Eye Color: Dark Brown
Hair Color: Black with NATURAL dark brown highlights
Righty or Lefty: Righty
Zodiac Sign: Pisces

Layer TWO
On the inside
Your Heritage: Malaysian - 3/4 Chinese & quarter Thai,with Malay blood in there somewhere
Your Fears: Amounting to nothing in this lifetime
Your Weaknesses: I cry at the drop of a hat
Your Perfect Pizza: Tomato and Cheese, baked in a wood stove

Layer THREE
Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow
Your thoughts first waking up: I have get the PR coverage report out today...
Your Bedtime: What earrings to wear for work tomorrow
Your most missed memory: Watching Patches roll around

Layer FOUR
Your Pick
Pepsi or Coke: Root Beer
McDonald’s or Burger King: Burger King
Adidas or Nike: Reebok
Lipton tea or Nestea: Green Tea
Chocolate or vanilla: Chocolate
Cappuccino or coffee: Mocha Latte

Layer FIVE
Do you
Smoke: Socially - when I inhale secondhand smoke
Curse: Oh yeah...

Layer SIX
In the Past Month
Drank alcohol: In the past month...? Try last night.
Gone to the mall: I work in a building that is attached to the mall...
Been on stage: Heck no.
Eaten sushi: Last month
Dyed your hair: Hell no.

Layer SEVEN
Have You Ever?
Played a stripping game: Nope.
Changed who you were to fit in: Nope.

Layer EIGHT
Age you’re hoping to be married: Before I shrivel and die

Layer NINE
In a Girl/Guy
Best eye colour: Green
Best hair colour: Dark brown
Short or long hair: Enough for me to run my fingers through

Layer TEN
What Were You Doing
1 minute ago: chatting on msn
1 hour ago: Finalising my PR report
4.5 hours ago: Having breakfast with a colleague
1 month ago: Working feverishly on the Exim Bank Launch
1 year ago: Working on Heineken and Nokia

Layer ELEVEN
Finish the sentence
I love: Scuba Diving
I feel: at loose ends
I hate: porridge
I hide: my real feelings
I miss: Patches
I need: to go on a real and long holiday

Joyride

Today, when I came out, I think I must have left my brains on my pillow. *sigh* I have just needlessly spent RM8 for a taxi ride. How so, you asked? Haha. In a very stupid way is my answer.

I came in to work today and I forgot to bring my tag, and no one was in this early. I looked everywhere in my big gold bag. I could not find it. I took out everything in the bag, I upended it. No tag. Crap I thought. No choice but to go home and get it. So, I managed to get a taxi to fetch that misplaced item. Anyway, at the U-turn outside my house, I suddenly had a thought. Maybe it's in here... and I reached for the small pocket outside the bag that I only use for keys. OMIGOD... it IS in here! ARGH!!!

The taximan was laughing at me the whole way back to Midvalley.