I was watching 'Johnny and the Sprites' (!) and thought, wouldn't it be great if some hot gay guys would just move in next door? I mean, the house has been empty for months now, and if I could choose between a nice family with a cute yappy dog moving in and a bunch of hot gay guys, the eye candy would definitely win lah. I mean, if they decorate like Nate Butkus (sp?) and bake like Nigel Skelchy...waaaah....happiness is, man!
Anyway, the latest suburban drama to unfold is my neighbour's maid getting it on with the postman. I tell you, the excitement. To cut a loooong story short, the maid has been siphoning money from various family members, and mailing it out to her friends (on top of getting it on with the postman), stealing bits and bobs, trading these bits and bobs for other bits and bobs from other maids in the 'hood and being a general scheming little cow. It just so happens, she told my neighbour that MY maid told her I was getting her a mobile phone (all lies), so she wanted one, she was willing to pay with her gaji thus far. Anyway, I don't know if this little drama had anything to do with the fact that MY maid just only the same afternoon asked if she can have a day off to meet with her 'relatives' and makan angin in town.
All very dodgy.
My maid is a nice person, she takes great care with the kids, she's respectful and quite on the ball with the housework. I've given her a substantial monthly increment after a year of service to show her we appreciate her, and to motivate her to continue being a good employee. I mean, I ain't no Trudie Stylar lah. I want my help to be happy working for me. But I feel you give these people an inch, they'll take a mile. She's giving me a real headache now because if I say CANNOT!, she'll sulk and possibly neglect the kids or worse, jampi my food! On top of that, she has it in her mind to buy a handphone! aaaaaaerrghhhhh.....
I thought all this drama was over with when we got rid of Joy, but...it never is, huh?
Monday, July 30, 2007
Friday, July 27, 2007
We be the Sunday people!
Here's the article that came out last Sunday in the NST - for the benefit of my family overseas who won't be getting a copy delivered to their front door!
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/Sunpeople/Sunday/
Features/20070721121305/Article/index2_html
it's a bit long, but if you really want to read it, I'm sure you can figure out how to sort this out!
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/Sunpeople/Sunday/
Features/20070721121305/Article/index2_html
it's a bit long, but if you really want to read it, I'm sure you can figure out how to sort this out!
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Saving Private Ah-Chong
I can be a downright nasty beaatch when it comes down to it.
It was a long day yesterday, the air was muggy and oppressive with humidity, I was in a sloooow checkout line at Tesco's and practically everything was irking the bejesus outta me. Plus, I was late picking up my son.
After paying, I discovered that I'd left my parking ticket in the car - and needed to validate it to get out. As I was fuming at my own stupidity, a young credit card promoter unwittingly put himself in my direct line of fire.
"Ah! Hi Madam! You have this credit card ahh?! You wanna Try Apply one!? Few moments only!".
I was scrummaging through my handbag when he approached me, and I lifted my face to him and practically ROARED, like in the cartoons you see the guy's hair all kena tiup angin-like from the roar? It was like thatlah! : "WILL YOU JUST PLEASE GO AWAY GET OUT OF MY FACE DON'T DISTURB ME CAN'T YOU SEE I'M BUSY HERE?!!"
The bugger blinked and said; "Sorry!" and I felt like a heel.
At the time, it felt good to bellow like that, but it was so bad. I really regreted it. The poor guy was just cari makan, you know. How could he know I was having a bad day?
I'm going to go back to Tesco later to look for him and apologise.
It was a long day yesterday, the air was muggy and oppressive with humidity, I was in a sloooow checkout line at Tesco's and practically everything was irking the bejesus outta me. Plus, I was late picking up my son.
After paying, I discovered that I'd left my parking ticket in the car - and needed to validate it to get out. As I was fuming at my own stupidity, a young credit card promoter unwittingly put himself in my direct line of fire.
"Ah! Hi Madam! You have this credit card ahh?! You wanna Try Apply one!? Few moments only!".
I was scrummaging through my handbag when he approached me, and I lifted my face to him and practically ROARED, like in the cartoons you see the guy's hair all kena tiup angin-like from the roar? It was like thatlah! : "WILL YOU JUST PLEASE GO AWAY GET OUT OF MY FACE DON'T DISTURB ME CAN'T YOU SEE I'M BUSY HERE?!!"
The bugger blinked and said; "Sorry!" and I felt like a heel.
At the time, it felt good to bellow like that, but it was so bad. I really regreted it. The poor guy was just cari makan, you know. How could he know I was having a bad day?
I'm going to go back to Tesco later to look for him and apologise.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
how I love the smell of napalm in the morning...
Ok, so maybe it's just the haze coming back - it is almost August...
I was out walking Bugly this morning and thought who the heck is out barbequeing this time of the day? but realised it was actually smoke from elsewhere.... Brace yourselves, it's baaaaack.....
I was out walking Bugly this morning and thought who the heck is out barbequeing this time of the day? but realised it was actually smoke from elsewhere.... Brace yourselves, it's baaaaack.....
80th post
party or what!
My husband thinks I'm nuts. I'm obsessed. It's mid July and I'm all ready to book the clown and cake for the kids' birthday party in October!!!
I'm going super hectic this year because I was so slack last year, I forgot Milo's cake for his daycare party, but his teacher, Mrs Razee, was kind enough to go down to the local Berry's to pick one up for him!!! AND she put together party packs for the kids at school! My God, how embarassing was that. Anyway, husbands don't understand these things so I told him to just shut up and pick up the tab when it comes.
Seeing as poor little Sophie had to cancel her very first party due to Milo's eye infection in June, I decided that Milo would share his special day with his sister in October. We've been to a few kids' parties lately and the clown thing is kinda big, isn't it? Milo used to be terrified of clowns, but like I said, he's seen quite a few now, so he's seasoned lah. I asked him if he would like a clown, and he said yes, but somehow, I think he said it absently because he doesn't quite know what options are out there. Truth be told, neither do I, so if you have any ideas or tips (or recommendations!!!) please drop me a line and I'll be eternally grateful!
Things I need info on: (please help!)
Clown/baloon artist/or gigantic bubble maker/blower
Magicians
Face painters
Caterers
Canopy, tables, chairs (for the parents)
Cake (a FANTASTIC one!...or two)
Website where I can download and print cool party invitations, thank you cards, etc.
I've got this fantasy circus theme in my head (only because it's unisex and tremendous fun), but my husband is drawing the line at renting Shetland ponies for rides up and down the street (think of the lawsuits should anyone be bitten, kicked or knocked off!)! I could get each kid to sign an indemnation form at the door! Man, actually I'm wishing it was MY birthday party! Maybe Pauline next door will let us hook up a wagon onto her huge dog to give rides to the little ones (again, another lawsuit waiting to happen).
What kind of kids' parties have you thrown or been to that are great fun for 2-4 year olds? What kind of games (of the non-competitive kind) can you suggest? What are the contents of the greatest party packs your kids have received? HOW DO YOU KEEP IT ALL IN YOUR BUDGET!???? Pray do tell..
My husband thinks I'm nuts. I'm obsessed. It's mid July and I'm all ready to book the clown and cake for the kids' birthday party in October!!!
I'm going super hectic this year because I was so slack last year, I forgot Milo's cake for his daycare party, but his teacher, Mrs Razee, was kind enough to go down to the local Berry's to pick one up for him!!! AND she put together party packs for the kids at school! My God, how embarassing was that. Anyway, husbands don't understand these things so I told him to just shut up and pick up the tab when it comes.
Seeing as poor little Sophie had to cancel her very first party due to Milo's eye infection in June, I decided that Milo would share his special day with his sister in October. We've been to a few kids' parties lately and the clown thing is kinda big, isn't it? Milo used to be terrified of clowns, but like I said, he's seen quite a few now, so he's seasoned lah. I asked him if he would like a clown, and he said yes, but somehow, I think he said it absently because he doesn't quite know what options are out there. Truth be told, neither do I, so if you have any ideas or tips (or recommendations!!!) please drop me a line and I'll be eternally grateful!
Things I need info on: (please help!)
Clown/baloon artist/or gigantic bubble maker/blower
Magicians
Face painters
Caterers
Canopy, tables, chairs (for the parents)
Cake (a FANTASTIC one!...or two)
Website where I can download and print cool party invitations, thank you cards, etc.
I've got this fantasy circus theme in my head (only because it's unisex and tremendous fun), but my husband is drawing the line at renting Shetland ponies for rides up and down the street (think of the lawsuits should anyone be bitten, kicked or knocked off!)! I could get each kid to sign an indemnation form at the door! Man, actually I'm wishing it was MY birthday party! Maybe Pauline next door will let us hook up a wagon onto her huge dog to give rides to the little ones (again, another lawsuit waiting to happen).
What kind of kids' parties have you thrown or been to that are great fun for 2-4 year olds? What kind of games (of the non-competitive kind) can you suggest? What are the contents of the greatest party packs your kids have received? HOW DO YOU KEEP IT ALL IN YOUR BUDGET!???? Pray do tell..
79th post
so true, so true...
Here are some home truths, in case you haven't noticed....
Men:
1. All men are extremely busy.
2. Although they are so busy, they still have time for women.
3. Although they have time for women, they don't really care for them.
4. Although they don't really care for them, they always have one around.
5. Although they always have one around them, they always try their luck with others.
6. Although they try their luck with others, they get really pissed off if the woman leaves them.
7. Although the woman leaves them they still don't learn from their mistakes and still try their luck with others!
Women:
1. The most important thing for a woman is financial security.
2. Although this is so important, they still go out and buy expensive clothes and stuff.
3. Although they always buy expensive clothes, they will still say that they never have something to wear!
4. Although they never have something to wear, they always dress beautifully.
5. Although they always dress beautifully, you hardly care.
6. Although you hardly care, they still expect you to compliment them.
7. Although they expect you to compliment them, when you do, they don't believe you!
ps: Thanks Zane, for this one!
17-July-2007
Here are some home truths, in case you haven't noticed....
Men:
1. All men are extremely busy.
2. Although they are so busy, they still have time for women.
3. Although they have time for women, they don't really care for them.
4. Although they don't really care for them, they always have one around.
5. Although they always have one around them, they always try their luck with others.
6. Although they try their luck with others, they get really pissed off if the woman leaves them.
7. Although the woman leaves them they still don't learn from their mistakes and still try their luck with others!
Women:
1. The most important thing for a woman is financial security.
2. Although this is so important, they still go out and buy expensive clothes and stuff.
3. Although they always buy expensive clothes, they will still say that they never have something to wear!
4. Although they never have something to wear, they always dress beautifully.
5. Although they always dress beautifully, you hardly care.
6. Although you hardly care, they still expect you to compliment them.
7. Although they expect you to compliment them, when you do, they don't believe you!
ps: Thanks Zane, for this one!
17-July-2007
78th post
googoo ga ga!
I love babies. They are (generally) very cute. My sweet little baby is no longer technically a baby, but if there's something I can pass on to any new parent, it's this: http://www.gourmetgoo.com/
Check it out! If you're too busy (or lazy) to cook up a storm for your little ones, get this stuff!!! It's so good, i even use it for dipping chips, nachos and veggie sticks in (when i forget to buy dip). Just add a bit of salt!
Sophie grew up on this stuff, and her favourite is the spagboll, chicken rice and the Sweet Veggie Medley. The best part is....jengjengjeng!...they DELIVER!!!! To your home or any mutually convenient location! Yaay! So Richard, please aah, your little Marissa needs some solids by now and baby cereal is not the only option out there!!!!
Have a great weekend people!
Fri the 13th - July 2007
I love babies. They are (generally) very cute. My sweet little baby is no longer technically a baby, but if there's something I can pass on to any new parent, it's this: http://www.gourmetgoo.com/
Check it out! If you're too busy (or lazy) to cook up a storm for your little ones, get this stuff!!! It's so good, i even use it for dipping chips, nachos and veggie sticks in (when i forget to buy dip). Just add a bit of salt!
Sophie grew up on this stuff, and her favourite is the spagboll, chicken rice and the Sweet Veggie Medley. The best part is....jengjengjeng!...they DELIVER!!!! To your home or any mutually convenient location! Yaay! So Richard, please aah, your little Marissa needs some solids by now and baby cereal is not the only option out there!!!!
Have a great weekend people!
Fri the 13th - July 2007
77th post
wet, wild weekend!
The first time I went white water rafting, I was about 8 years old, and it was with my dad and sisters, and the late Tan Sri Othman Yeop and his daughters in Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
25 years later, I found myself on a grey raft, barrelling down Sg Selangor from Kuala Kubu Baru with my husband and his friends and the great guides from Khersonese Eco-X. Mind you, the last exciting this I did lately was jump off a (stationary) boat amidst a group of tame Japanese snorkellers, so this was a nerve wracking ordeal! I didn't think I had it in me to be quick and light (ahem!) in an adrenaline fuelled situation. I mean, you have to have a certain level of fitness to do extreme sport. The guides were really cool, because they assured us that it was pretty safe and gave us a complete safety briefing and covered the many scenarios we may encounter on the trip down Sg Selangor. Mind you, there are some awesome rapids here, but the fact that it hadn't rained in 2 weeks would mean that the water level would be lower and yes! we actually had to angkat the raft a couple of times to get past rocks and what not. But in other areas, the water was WILD and I actually saw my life flash before my eyes!
Whooooohooooo!!!!! It was a great day outdoors, and I won't promise to put any photos here as I didn't take my camera down with me - we were floating in the water halfway down the river and everyone was wet!, but do check out the link below if you're interested in doing something other than manouvering the parking lot at Midvalley Megamall this weekend...
12-July-2007 (thanks to Tai Ching and Frank for organising the trip! Let's do it again!!!!!)
http://www.thepaddlerz.com/gallery.html
http://www.thepaddlerz.com/indexmenu.html
The first time I went white water rafting, I was about 8 years old, and it was with my dad and sisters, and the late Tan Sri Othman Yeop and his daughters in Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
25 years later, I found myself on a grey raft, barrelling down Sg Selangor from Kuala Kubu Baru with my husband and his friends and the great guides from Khersonese Eco-X. Mind you, the last exciting this I did lately was jump off a (stationary) boat amidst a group of tame Japanese snorkellers, so this was a nerve wracking ordeal! I didn't think I had it in me to be quick and light (ahem!) in an adrenaline fuelled situation. I mean, you have to have a certain level of fitness to do extreme sport. The guides were really cool, because they assured us that it was pretty safe and gave us a complete safety briefing and covered the many scenarios we may encounter on the trip down Sg Selangor. Mind you, there are some awesome rapids here, but the fact that it hadn't rained in 2 weeks would mean that the water level would be lower and yes! we actually had to angkat the raft a couple of times to get past rocks and what not. But in other areas, the water was WILD and I actually saw my life flash before my eyes!
Whooooohooooo!!!!! It was a great day outdoors, and I won't promise to put any photos here as I didn't take my camera down with me - we were floating in the water halfway down the river and everyone was wet!, but do check out the link below if you're interested in doing something other than manouvering the parking lot at Midvalley Megamall this weekend...
12-July-2007 (thanks to Tai Ching and Frank for organising the trip! Let's do it again!!!!!)
http://www.thepaddlerz.com/gallery.html
http://www.thepaddlerz.com/indexmenu.html
76th post
How will you age?
Have you seen anything new and exciting on channel 77 on Astro? On the off chance my kids are behaving badly, I get to confiscate the tv remote and watch MY channel for a change, and boy oh boy, there is some pretty scary stuff on tv these days...I particularly love watching face lifts and tummy tucks being performed, and marvel at how one's boozing and partying lifestyle can age one in a matter of computer simulated minutes. It's so fascinating! Everytime I tune in, there's a fat show on - if it's not teenage fat camp, it's some disturbingly obese group of people on a cruise ship trying to bootcamp themselves into shape.
The best one was this show about an Aussie mom and her gargantuan son, trying to change their atrocious eating habits. It was a little sad. I mean, I saw that and thought, is it just laziness, to feed your family all these processed, fat laden foods, or is it a socio economic issue that families from a mid-lower income bracket just can't afford to buy fresh food and produce.....?
To say that it was an issue of time constraint for food preperation, well, the mom was a homemaker. So, hello?!! I work, work-out and cook all our meals (granted, I don't do laundry, wash windows and all the other tedious stufflah). I deduce, that perhaps it's a lethal combo of laziness and ignorance, but here I'm just being judgemental (hello Shaz??? - read your previous blog! aherm). Or maybe, these people just LOVE to eat a lot of cheese sandwiches and fries.
Man, speaking of which, fries are currently on my list of banned substances, along with cocaine, crystal meth and Coffee Mate. I watched How Will You Age and decided to turn my life around. Seriously. I got two doctors to check me out and since I started actively following their advice, my jeans are looser and the inflammation in my feet mostly gone. I must say, having a supportive spouse helps. :-) He doesn't complain when I make a pot roast without any mash - he's cool with boiled veggies and a salad. He even ate the beef curry I made without any rice!!! I know that's sacriligious to most of you, but hey! I'm on a diet lah!!! He endeavours to join Bugly and I on our twice daily walks, which is great, coz his stride is larger than mine and I have to work harder to keep up!
If you've been looking to improve your fitness or health, or just to sit and watch a couple of home truths, check out 77. I love Shalom in the Home and Adoption Story. [God, I'm turning into my mother!]
3-July-2007
Have you seen anything new and exciting on channel 77 on Astro? On the off chance my kids are behaving badly, I get to confiscate the tv remote and watch MY channel for a change, and boy oh boy, there is some pretty scary stuff on tv these days...I particularly love watching face lifts and tummy tucks being performed, and marvel at how one's boozing and partying lifestyle can age one in a matter of computer simulated minutes. It's so fascinating! Everytime I tune in, there's a fat show on - if it's not teenage fat camp, it's some disturbingly obese group of people on a cruise ship trying to bootcamp themselves into shape.
The best one was this show about an Aussie mom and her gargantuan son, trying to change their atrocious eating habits. It was a little sad. I mean, I saw that and thought, is it just laziness, to feed your family all these processed, fat laden foods, or is it a socio economic issue that families from a mid-lower income bracket just can't afford to buy fresh food and produce.....?
To say that it was an issue of time constraint for food preperation, well, the mom was a homemaker. So, hello?!! I work, work-out and cook all our meals (granted, I don't do laundry, wash windows and all the other tedious stufflah). I deduce, that perhaps it's a lethal combo of laziness and ignorance, but here I'm just being judgemental (hello Shaz??? - read your previous blog! aherm). Or maybe, these people just LOVE to eat a lot of cheese sandwiches and fries.
Man, speaking of which, fries are currently on my list of banned substances, along with cocaine, crystal meth and Coffee Mate. I watched How Will You Age and decided to turn my life around. Seriously. I got two doctors to check me out and since I started actively following their advice, my jeans are looser and the inflammation in my feet mostly gone. I must say, having a supportive spouse helps. :-) He doesn't complain when I make a pot roast without any mash - he's cool with boiled veggies and a salad. He even ate the beef curry I made without any rice!!! I know that's sacriligious to most of you, but hey! I'm on a diet lah!!! He endeavours to join Bugly and I on our twice daily walks, which is great, coz his stride is larger than mine and I have to work harder to keep up!
If you've been looking to improve your fitness or health, or just to sit and watch a couple of home truths, check out 77. I love Shalom in the Home and Adoption Story. [God, I'm turning into my mother!]
3-July-2007
75th post
a day in the life...
I am a lazyass, bad mother.
The scenario: this morning - before leaving the house:
Me: Milo, what do you want for school today? A banana? An apple? Some grapes? Cheese sticks?
Milo: Me want JUNK FOOD!!! Muahahahahaaaa!!!(where the heck did he learn this word????)Ok, so he gets Twiggies, cookies and chips quite often, but I personally have never referred to them as 'junk food'....so, hello???
Me: Is that what your teacher says it is? (referring to his usual snacks)
Milo: Yes! Want junk food! Want junk food! (howling) JUNK FOOOOOD!!!!
So, to avoid a huge argument, I usually give in - I know he eats a balanced meal at lunchtime and dinner, so what's the big deal lah. But after this little exchange, I'm wondering what the other kids in his playgroup bring from home, carrot sticks and chicken sandwiches? Fruit salad? I know cute little Misaki gets sushi and some miso soup in a thermos...
Man, if the teacher is calling his stuff junk food, I am soooooo a bad mother for letting him eat it. I know it's horrible, but despite not exactly setting a great example to my child, I feel unfairly judged. It's not like I don't try to convince him to eat more fruit or want to make him a tuna casserole for school, but: a) he won't eat it and I don't want him starving at 10am, and b) if he eats anything heavier than a Twiggy, he won't finish his nutritionally sound lunch. It's almost a Catch 22 situation. So I let him have a little junk, because generally, he doesn't get it at home.
I know the teachers are trying to educate the children on eating well and all that, but...if memory serves me - the most envied kids at school in my day, were the ones who got to eat the junk.
Muahahahahaaa!
Sorry. I'm still a bad mother.
26-June-07
I am a lazyass, bad mother.
The scenario: this morning - before leaving the house:
Me: Milo, what do you want for school today? A banana? An apple? Some grapes? Cheese sticks?
Milo: Me want JUNK FOOD!!! Muahahahahaaaa!!!(where the heck did he learn this word????)Ok, so he gets Twiggies, cookies and chips quite often, but I personally have never referred to them as 'junk food'....so, hello???
Me: Is that what your teacher says it is? (referring to his usual snacks)
Milo: Yes! Want junk food! Want junk food! (howling) JUNK FOOOOOD!!!!
So, to avoid a huge argument, I usually give in - I know he eats a balanced meal at lunchtime and dinner, so what's the big deal lah. But after this little exchange, I'm wondering what the other kids in his playgroup bring from home, carrot sticks and chicken sandwiches? Fruit salad? I know cute little Misaki gets sushi and some miso soup in a thermos...
Man, if the teacher is calling his stuff junk food, I am soooooo a bad mother for letting him eat it. I know it's horrible, but despite not exactly setting a great example to my child, I feel unfairly judged. It's not like I don't try to convince him to eat more fruit or want to make him a tuna casserole for school, but: a) he won't eat it and I don't want him starving at 10am, and b) if he eats anything heavier than a Twiggy, he won't finish his nutritionally sound lunch. It's almost a Catch 22 situation. So I let him have a little junk, because generally, he doesn't get it at home.
I know the teachers are trying to educate the children on eating well and all that, but...if memory serves me - the most envied kids at school in my day, were the ones who got to eat the junk.
Muahahahahaaa!
Sorry. I'm still a bad mother.
26-June-07
74th post
My dream dog
Ok, I hardly have anything new to blog about this week, as I've been in a downright pissy mood....but, looking at this picture ALWAYS makes my day. I really wish my dog looked like this, but instead, my dog is quite an ugly piece of work. Alas, what we do for charity! *smirk*
These are Bernese Mountain Dogs - it's too hot for them to live in Malaysia, so I hope that if you have one - you have a good air conditioning system in your home and don't let them live outside. That's really mean. If you have one and can't take care on them on account of this, the cost of feeding them, medication, time constraints, etc....contact me. I'll gladly take him/her off your hands! (our a/c is on 247 anyway!)...
Ok, I hardly have anything new to blog about this week, as I've been in a downright pissy mood....but, looking at this picture ALWAYS makes my day. I really wish my dog looked like this, but instead, my dog is quite an ugly piece of work. Alas, what we do for charity! *smirk*
These are Bernese Mountain Dogs - it's too hot for them to live in Malaysia, so I hope that if you have one - you have a good air conditioning system in your home and don't let them live outside. That's really mean. If you have one and can't take care on them on account of this, the cost of feeding them, medication, time constraints, etc....contact me. I'll gladly take him/her off your hands! (our a/c is on 247 anyway!)...
73rd post
Soul Mate, anyone?
I've been wanting to post this little 'tip' for all of you who want to find, or recognise your True Soul Mate for the longest time. A message from Liv on the message board has prompted me to do it now. It's a prayer of sorts...please feel free to use a different header...
Dear Universe,
I am ready and willing to meet my true Soul Mate NOW. Let him/her be .....(list of qualities like: kind, generous, faithful, funny, rich, sexxxy, handsome, beautiful, smart, ambitious, etc). [here, you can even highlight specifics like - let him/her be SINGLE!!! great in bed, loves kids, great cook, enjoys the things I like, etc...YOU make a detailed list!]
Let us be compatible at all levels, in mind, body and spirit.
Let us both recognise each other when we meet.
Thank You, for bringing this person into my life Now!
I ask for this, for the Highest Good of All.Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.
Simple enough, isn't it? Hold on...there's more. You've got to BELIEVE he's/she's already HERE. You gotta feel that love thang....you know, the thing that makes your heart sing and walk on air...you have to feel lurvvvvve, baby....! Ok, if you think this is cheesy....tak pelah...Stay lonely and all by yourself! It's really lovely to wallow in self pity and continue b!!tching to all your attached friends a la Bridget Jones, but trust me....the 3 people I've given this (aherm!) Secret to, it worked for them, they all found/recognised their soul mates within a year and are happily married now, with people they are compatible with!!! Yeah, the Secret Cult of Shazmin membership is open to all...heh heh hehhhh.....
Trust that the Universe conspires for Your greater good.
Have a fabulous day, my people.
June 20th 2007
I've been wanting to post this little 'tip' for all of you who want to find, or recognise your True Soul Mate for the longest time. A message from Liv on the message board has prompted me to do it now. It's a prayer of sorts...please feel free to use a different header...
Dear Universe,
I am ready and willing to meet my true Soul Mate NOW. Let him/her be .....(list of qualities like: kind, generous, faithful, funny, rich, sexxxy, handsome, beautiful, smart, ambitious, etc). [here, you can even highlight specifics like - let him/her be SINGLE!!! great in bed, loves kids, great cook, enjoys the things I like, etc...YOU make a detailed list!]
Let us be compatible at all levels, in mind, body and spirit.
Let us both recognise each other when we meet.
Thank You, for bringing this person into my life Now!
I ask for this, for the Highest Good of All.Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.
Simple enough, isn't it? Hold on...there's more. You've got to BELIEVE he's/she's already HERE. You gotta feel that love thang....you know, the thing that makes your heart sing and walk on air...you have to feel lurvvvvve, baby....! Ok, if you think this is cheesy....tak pelah...Stay lonely and all by yourself! It's really lovely to wallow in self pity and continue b!!tching to all your attached friends a la Bridget Jones, but trust me....the 3 people I've given this (aherm!) Secret to, it worked for them, they all found/recognised their soul mates within a year and are happily married now, with people they are compatible with!!! Yeah, the Secret Cult of Shazmin membership is open to all...heh heh hehhhh.....
Trust that the Universe conspires for Your greater good.
Have a fabulous day, my people.
June 20th 2007
72nd post
a year older, a year wiser...???
Inside every older person is a younger person wondering what the hell happened.
Isn't THAT the truth? I have chronic foot pain - early arthritis (!??) - and I'm thinking...what the hell???? I'm only 33, for God's sake! Ok, Sophie's tea party yesterday was almost a disaster. 1) Milo developed a really gross eye infection - so we had to call his cousins and tell them not to come. 2) The beautiful, pre-ordered ice-cream cake from B&R wasn't ready - due to a really stupid mistake on the part of the staff in their Bangsar branch. If you were there when I went to pick up the cake and saw the commotion, sorry for the huge scene I caused, I was flipping LIVID! Luckily, there was an Angel Cake House two doors away. My parents also braved the potential 'health threat' and rain storm and came bearing balloons and donuts.
A good time was had by all, with two very chocolatey toddlers needing a hose down afterwards!
....to fathers everywhere.....HAVE A ROCKIN' FATHER'S DAY this Sunday!!!
Inside every older person is a younger person wondering what the hell happened.
Isn't THAT the truth? I have chronic foot pain - early arthritis (!??) - and I'm thinking...what the hell???? I'm only 33, for God's sake! Ok, Sophie's tea party yesterday was almost a disaster. 1) Milo developed a really gross eye infection - so we had to call his cousins and tell them not to come. 2) The beautiful, pre-ordered ice-cream cake from B&R wasn't ready - due to a really stupid mistake on the part of the staff in their Bangsar branch. If you were there when I went to pick up the cake and saw the commotion, sorry for the huge scene I caused, I was flipping LIVID! Luckily, there was an Angel Cake House two doors away. My parents also braved the potential 'health threat' and rain storm and came bearing balloons and donuts.
A good time was had by all, with two very chocolatey toddlers needing a hose down afterwards!
....to fathers everywhere.....HAVE A ROCKIN' FATHER'S DAY this Sunday!!!
71st post
BABY NO. 3
Yaaay!!! I'm pregnant!
No laaah...just kidding!!! [Daniel would kill me if I revealed that here without telling him first!] :-)
Just thought I'd get your heart racing, since I haven't updated this blog for ages. Actually, we do have a new little bundle of joy - and he's 10 months old and verrrrry hairy! Couldn't come up with a name for him, so at the moment, he's called Bugly - for 'butt-ugly'. He's the perfect little pet - and knows how to sit on command! - which is more than I can say for my own 2 kids at the moment!
Speaking of which, Sophie is celebrating her very FIRST birthday tomorrow (June 14th)! I'm so excited! We're just having a little family tea party in the afternoon with the grandparents, and my sister and her kids, Layla and Johan. Lots of chocolate ice cream cake, sarnies and the requisite chicken nuggets and fries! Yum! She'll have a 'proper' big girl party when she turns 2, just like Milo did.It really blows my mind to think that a year has passed - she's practically (and literally!) running circles around us now, and being just as rambunctious as her big brother was, and still is. But you guys haven't seen her pictures lately, huh? Well, I'll just have to remedy that, won't I...
*thank you, Uncle Lawrence Yek for the lovely card and ang pow for Sophie! That was very sweet of you to remember her birthday!*
ps: I'm really not pregnant.
Yaaay!!! I'm pregnant!
No laaah...just kidding!!! [Daniel would kill me if I revealed that here without telling him first!] :-)
Just thought I'd get your heart racing, since I haven't updated this blog for ages. Actually, we do have a new little bundle of joy - and he's 10 months old and verrrrry hairy! Couldn't come up with a name for him, so at the moment, he's called Bugly - for 'butt-ugly'. He's the perfect little pet - and knows how to sit on command! - which is more than I can say for my own 2 kids at the moment!
Speaking of which, Sophie is celebrating her very FIRST birthday tomorrow (June 14th)! I'm so excited! We're just having a little family tea party in the afternoon with the grandparents, and my sister and her kids, Layla and Johan. Lots of chocolate ice cream cake, sarnies and the requisite chicken nuggets and fries! Yum! She'll have a 'proper' big girl party when she turns 2, just like Milo did.It really blows my mind to think that a year has passed - she's practically (and literally!) running circles around us now, and being just as rambunctious as her big brother was, and still is. But you guys haven't seen her pictures lately, huh? Well, I'll just have to remedy that, won't I...
*thank you, Uncle Lawrence Yek for the lovely card and ang pow for Sophie! That was very sweet of you to remember her birthday!*
ps: I'm really not pregnant.
70th post
a new idola
Yeay, Jordin won! Ok, actually, the only thing I like about this year's American Idol is Jordin's wardrobe. I like seeing the clothes she wears every week, and she picks 'em well! She's living proof that BIG GIRLS can look cute and stylish and find flattering styles to suit their figures. Just don't stand next to a pygmy like Ryan Seacrest lah, or else you'll tend to look like a Giantess!
...Muahhhaahahahahahhahaaaa....!!!!!
Yeay, Jordin won! Ok, actually, the only thing I like about this year's American Idol is Jordin's wardrobe. I like seeing the clothes she wears every week, and she picks 'em well! She's living proof that BIG GIRLS can look cute and stylish and find flattering styles to suit their figures. Just don't stand next to a pygmy like Ryan Seacrest lah, or else you'll tend to look like a Giantess!
...Muahhhaahahahahahhahaaaa....!!!!!
69th post
now I've seen it all!
I was in The Village Grocer yesterday and saw something out of The Devil Wears Prada - but Malaysian style lah. The mem besar was a Datin-wanta-beast, 'nicely' dressed and overly made-up and ornamentaled as usual, but instead of the requisite Indonesian/Fillipina maid, she had a well dressed young man (!) in tow, pushing her grocery cart, and trying not to look as emasculated as I felt he must've felt. Don't get me wrong, I see plenty of guys doing the weekly shopping, but this was something else. At first, I thought they were a husband and wife duo, they were that close in age, even if she was a tad overdressed for the shops. It was when she started pointing at the stuff she wanted, and the way she barked at the poor man, I deduced this was her driver/p.a./kuli batak!It was fascinating to watch. I stood rooted to the spot, as initially I was going through a pile of kankung when I heard her first barking order: "Hah! Ambik kankung tu! Pilih yang bagus, jangan ambik yang lubang-lubang!". I was so enthralled by this little scene that I stepped aside for the guy to get to the kankung, myself mouth hanging open, still holding up the bunch I was about to bag and put in my own cart. The poor guy avoided my eye the whole time, and I just stared from him to her, like I was at Wimbledon watching a tennis match, to see how this scene would unfold.
Mak Datin pulak, ignored me (I guess I was that obvious), and shamelessly displayed her POWER by continuing in this fashion from the veggies, to the meat section and so on. God, it was breathtaking! I literally held my breath at the biscuit section - I was picking out Milo's school treats - and she stood right next to me, pointing at the tin of butter cookies on the bottom shelf right next to her own foot, and demanded her slave to get the tin, but the second one - mind you, not the one on the outer shelf. [you guys know me right? I was bursting to say, "Bend your fat back and get the damn tin yourself, you lazy, pompous git!!!"]...I didn't trust myself to speak, instead I just looked her straight in the face and rolled my eyes at her. As she passed me, I muttered, "...some people...!"
As for the guy in tow, well, he must need the money real baaaaaad to put up with that. It got me thinking, how many people I know who are actually in that position (or allow themselves to be) at work and in life. Are you one of them?
22-May-2007
I was in The Village Grocer yesterday and saw something out of The Devil Wears Prada - but Malaysian style lah. The mem besar was a Datin-wanta-beast, 'nicely' dressed and overly made-up and ornamentaled as usual, but instead of the requisite Indonesian/Fillipina maid, she had a well dressed young man (!) in tow, pushing her grocery cart, and trying not to look as emasculated as I felt he must've felt. Don't get me wrong, I see plenty of guys doing the weekly shopping, but this was something else. At first, I thought they were a husband and wife duo, they were that close in age, even if she was a tad overdressed for the shops. It was when she started pointing at the stuff she wanted, and the way she barked at the poor man, I deduced this was her driver/p.a./kuli batak!It was fascinating to watch. I stood rooted to the spot, as initially I was going through a pile of kankung when I heard her first barking order: "Hah! Ambik kankung tu! Pilih yang bagus, jangan ambik yang lubang-lubang!". I was so enthralled by this little scene that I stepped aside for the guy to get to the kankung, myself mouth hanging open, still holding up the bunch I was about to bag and put in my own cart. The poor guy avoided my eye the whole time, and I just stared from him to her, like I was at Wimbledon watching a tennis match, to see how this scene would unfold.
Mak Datin pulak, ignored me (I guess I was that obvious), and shamelessly displayed her POWER by continuing in this fashion from the veggies, to the meat section and so on. God, it was breathtaking! I literally held my breath at the biscuit section - I was picking out Milo's school treats - and she stood right next to me, pointing at the tin of butter cookies on the bottom shelf right next to her own foot, and demanded her slave to get the tin, but the second one - mind you, not the one on the outer shelf. [you guys know me right? I was bursting to say, "Bend your fat back and get the damn tin yourself, you lazy, pompous git!!!"]...I didn't trust myself to speak, instead I just looked her straight in the face and rolled my eyes at her. As she passed me, I muttered, "...some people...!"
As for the guy in tow, well, he must need the money real baaaaaad to put up with that. It got me thinking, how many people I know who are actually in that position (or allow themselves to be) at work and in life. Are you one of them?
22-May-2007
68th post
the Universe answereth!
I asked the Universe (ahemm!) to cure my PERSISTENT NOCTURNAL COUGH and the Universe delivered a remedy via email (thanks, Lee!):
Try this remedy It works 100% of the time although the scientists at the Canada Researchcouncil (who discovered it) aren't sure why. To stop nighttime coughing in a child (or adult as we found outpersonally), put Vicks Vaporub generously on the bottom of the feet at bedtime,then cover with socks. Even persistent, heavy, deep coughing will stop in about5 minutes and stay stopped for many, many hours of relief. Works 100% of the time and is more effective in children than even verystrong prescription cough medicines. In addition it is extremely soothing and comforting and they will sleep soundly.
It was a surprising finding and found to be more effective than prescribedmedicines for children at bedtime, in addition to have a soothing and calming effect on sick children who then went on to sleep soundly. An adult friend tried it on herself when she had a very deep constant andpersistent cough a few weeks ago and it worked 100%! She said that it felt like a warm blanket had enveloped her, coughing stopped in a few minutesand believe me, this was a deep, ( incredibly annoying!) every few seconds uncontrollable cough, and she slept cough-free for hours every night thatshe used it.
So, if you have kids/grandchildren, pass it on.
If you end up sick, tryyourself and you will be absolutely amazed.
I asked the Universe (ahemm!) to cure my PERSISTENT NOCTURNAL COUGH and the Universe delivered a remedy via email (thanks, Lee!):
Try this remedy It works 100% of the time although the scientists at the Canada Researchcouncil (who discovered it) aren't sure why. To stop nighttime coughing in a child (or adult as we found outpersonally), put Vicks Vaporub generously on the bottom of the feet at bedtime,then cover with socks. Even persistent, heavy, deep coughing will stop in about5 minutes and stay stopped for many, many hours of relief. Works 100% of the time and is more effective in children than even verystrong prescription cough medicines. In addition it is extremely soothing and comforting and they will sleep soundly.
It was a surprising finding and found to be more effective than prescribedmedicines for children at bedtime, in addition to have a soothing and calming effect on sick children who then went on to sleep soundly. An adult friend tried it on herself when she had a very deep constant andpersistent cough a few weeks ago and it worked 100%! She said that it felt like a warm blanket had enveloped her, coughing stopped in a few minutesand believe me, this was a deep, ( incredibly annoying!) every few seconds uncontrollable cough, and she slept cough-free for hours every night thatshe used it.
So, if you have kids/grandchildren, pass it on.
If you end up sick, tryyourself and you will be absolutely amazed.
67th post
The Secret
May 3rd 2007
Hi party people, I've decided to write about The Secret today, because EVERYONE is asking me about it. I saw an article about this book in a magazine I was perusing in a bookstore one day, and it's just one of those things you take note of, but quickly forget, and then, you realise, for some reason, your subconscious filed it away...because the next time I was in the same bookstore, The Secret was right there, on the counter, next to the makan guide to KL and The Edge magazine. Ok, my husband Daniel tells me I have this legendary tendency to impulse buy all the time, but this was not an impulse buy. I stood there, with my Postman Pat vcds (for Milo) and Star newspaper, thumbing through the small tome, and had a dialogue in my head: Do I really need this, it's exactly like all the other mind expanding/self empowerment books I've read and own, why should I spend RM62.90 for this little book? I couldn't really justify spending all that money on this little book, expecially considering I hadn't yet paid my Maxis bill and bought the groceries (what else is new!) that week, but something was prompting me Big Time, so I did buy it.
I took it to bed with me that night, hiding on my side of the bed so Daniel wouldn't see what I was reading!!! I was so excited, because, while I already know and have applied the basis of The Secret in my life previously, sometimes, we live unconsciously, and the noise in our heads prevent us from receiving the good that is out there. One example - I used to say (ior rather, think) I was too tired and didn't want to do extra work (ie. voice recordings, emcee jobs), this after having had 2 kids while doing the Breakfast Show, so the Universe granted my wish. No work, no offers. What offers I had I'd turn down anyway, and most offers to emcee functions were on nights I had other previous (unpaid, social) engagements. This was the Universe granting my wish to not work. Ok....so this was interesting...I decided to try an experiment. That night I declared to The Universe, that I was ready to work again, easy work, mind you, nothing too taxing or odious, but I wanted to be paid well for it and use my public persona to gain advantages while helping others. The next day I got a call from !!! for a voice-over recording for a client, who also wanted me to become involved in a project related to the Pediatric Association of Malaysia. I would be paid **** just for showing up!Waaah....this was really something.Ok, to cut a short story even shorter (and not to sound like I'm so bloody terror and blowing my own horn or what), by the next week, I've had more work offers than I've had since I got pregnant with my first child, and a call from an Australian woman IN AUSTRALIA, mind you!!!!, to ask if I'd emcee a function for her client in KL. Who would've thought it!?? This was out of the blue...S
o, in parting.....Ask, Believe,....and Recieve....and don't try and intellectualise on the how's....just let the Universe sort it out and deliver it to you. Notice the little things. See opportunities and seize them. And most importantly, be GRATEFUL always.
When you pray, don't supplicate, appreciate!
Have fun and be a happy camper always.
May 3rd 2007
Hi party people, I've decided to write about The Secret today, because EVERYONE is asking me about it. I saw an article about this book in a magazine I was perusing in a bookstore one day, and it's just one of those things you take note of, but quickly forget, and then, you realise, for some reason, your subconscious filed it away...because the next time I was in the same bookstore, The Secret was right there, on the counter, next to the makan guide to KL and The Edge magazine. Ok, my husband Daniel tells me I have this legendary tendency to impulse buy all the time, but this was not an impulse buy. I stood there, with my Postman Pat vcds (for Milo) and Star newspaper, thumbing through the small tome, and had a dialogue in my head: Do I really need this, it's exactly like all the other mind expanding/self empowerment books I've read and own, why should I spend RM62.90 for this little book? I couldn't really justify spending all that money on this little book, expecially considering I hadn't yet paid my Maxis bill and bought the groceries (what else is new!) that week, but something was prompting me Big Time, so I did buy it.
I took it to bed with me that night, hiding on my side of the bed so Daniel wouldn't see what I was reading!!! I was so excited, because, while I already know and have applied the basis of The Secret in my life previously, sometimes, we live unconsciously, and the noise in our heads prevent us from receiving the good that is out there. One example - I used to say (ior rather, think) I was too tired and didn't want to do extra work (ie. voice recordings, emcee jobs), this after having had 2 kids while doing the Breakfast Show, so the Universe granted my wish. No work, no offers. What offers I had I'd turn down anyway, and most offers to emcee functions were on nights I had other previous (unpaid, social) engagements. This was the Universe granting my wish to not work. Ok....so this was interesting...I decided to try an experiment. That night I declared to The Universe, that I was ready to work again, easy work, mind you, nothing too taxing or odious, but I wanted to be paid well for it and use my public persona to gain advantages while helping others. The next day I got a call from !!! for a voice-over recording for a client, who also wanted me to become involved in a project related to the Pediatric Association of Malaysia. I would be paid **** just for showing up!Waaah....this was really something.Ok, to cut a short story even shorter (and not to sound like I'm so bloody terror and blowing my own horn or what), by the next week, I've had more work offers than I've had since I got pregnant with my first child, and a call from an Australian woman IN AUSTRALIA, mind you!!!!, to ask if I'd emcee a function for her client in KL. Who would've thought it!?? This was out of the blue...S
o, in parting.....Ask, Believe,....and Recieve....and don't try and intellectualise on the how's....just let the Universe sort it out and deliver it to you. Notice the little things. See opportunities and seize them. And most importantly, be GRATEFUL always.
When you pray, don't supplicate, appreciate!
Have fun and be a happy camper always.
Monday, July 23, 2007
66th post
these all inclusive vacations...
Man! That was some vacation! I think I need a few days to recuperate.... [ie. my poor liver!]
We are back now (of course) and when I get a breather, I'll post some of the MANY photos I took with my crappy little camera. I know, Richard, I should invest in some heavier gear, considering my photo-journalistic talents (aherm!), but what to do lah...I'm saving up for a tummy tuck, to go with my new beach bag and bikini for my next trip to some far-away destination (ie. Club Med Bora Bora)....maaaan...I'm a wee bit addicted now to these all inclusive type holidays....If you've never taken one, you have GOT to do it, just once.
I had my reservations at first, coz the cost is substantial (even despite getting 3 nights out of the 5 free). These holidays don't come cheap. But once you're there, you'll realise it's money well spent - because any worries about hidden costs and the entire bill are well sorted out in advance. You just show up, make happy and have as good a time as your conscience will let you without you waking up the next day thinking - what was I thinking!??! Damn!LOL
We spent almost the entire week by the pool, and took breaks from it by going on the boat to visit local coral reefs teeming with tropical (and very large) fish to snorkel twice a day, visits to the poolside bar, and our noon break for lunch, which was a smorgasboard of French, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean and some Maldivian cuisine. Food heaven. Yummmm....One did not get hungry or thristy in this place, that's for sure. Breakfast and dinner was the same deal basically....and you could literally tell the Singaporeans (I was the only Malaysian there that week, otherwise Malaysians pun 2x5 lah) from the rest of the guests from their loaded plates and food combinations. Lasagne with sushi and barbequed pork ribs, anyone? Yeah, exactly. LOL! Yes, a great time was had by all.
The only downer was the trip back - our flight was 3 hours delayed and yes, there was that stopover in Colombo...I used to love flying, but it's getting a bit tedious these days. The older I get, the more intolerant of silly people I am. In general. There was this *silly (nationality withheld for sensitive reasons) guy spitting from the side of the boat, then his woman got into the spitting mode too, and they were oblivious to the dirty looks from the other passengers (and the people still in the water!), so I had to be the heavy and tell them, 'Dude, that's really disgusting, man." The guy didn't understand english but I think my face said it all coz he apologized and quit spitting. Really. Betul betul no finesse lah. Ai yaah...that also must tell.
Anyway, Club Med Kani Maldives gets two thumbs up from Daniel and I!
Man! That was some vacation! I think I need a few days to recuperate.... [ie. my poor liver!]
We are back now (of course) and when I get a breather, I'll post some of the MANY photos I took with my crappy little camera. I know, Richard, I should invest in some heavier gear, considering my photo-journalistic talents (aherm!), but what to do lah...I'm saving up for a tummy tuck, to go with my new beach bag and bikini for my next trip to some far-away destination (ie. Club Med Bora Bora)....maaaan...I'm a wee bit addicted now to these all inclusive type holidays....If you've never taken one, you have GOT to do it, just once.
I had my reservations at first, coz the cost is substantial (even despite getting 3 nights out of the 5 free). These holidays don't come cheap. But once you're there, you'll realise it's money well spent - because any worries about hidden costs and the entire bill are well sorted out in advance. You just show up, make happy and have as good a time as your conscience will let you without you waking up the next day thinking - what was I thinking!??! Damn!LOL
We spent almost the entire week by the pool, and took breaks from it by going on the boat to visit local coral reefs teeming with tropical (and very large) fish to snorkel twice a day, visits to the poolside bar, and our noon break for lunch, which was a smorgasboard of French, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean and some Maldivian cuisine. Food heaven. Yummmm....One did not get hungry or thristy in this place, that's for sure. Breakfast and dinner was the same deal basically....and you could literally tell the Singaporeans (I was the only Malaysian there that week, otherwise Malaysians pun 2x5 lah) from the rest of the guests from their loaded plates and food combinations. Lasagne with sushi and barbequed pork ribs, anyone? Yeah, exactly. LOL! Yes, a great time was had by all.
The only downer was the trip back - our flight was 3 hours delayed and yes, there was that stopover in Colombo...I used to love flying, but it's getting a bit tedious these days. The older I get, the more intolerant of silly people I am. In general. There was this *silly (nationality withheld for sensitive reasons) guy spitting from the side of the boat, then his woman got into the spitting mode too, and they were oblivious to the dirty looks from the other passengers (and the people still in the water!), so I had to be the heavy and tell them, 'Dude, that's really disgusting, man." The guy didn't understand english but I think my face said it all coz he apologized and quit spitting. Really. Betul betul no finesse lah. Ai yaah...that also must tell.
Anyway, Club Med Kani Maldives gets two thumbs up from Daniel and I!
65th post
64th post
the best and the worst
Despite my crazyass schedule, I amaze myself that I can find the time to read not one, but two books a week!Yay me!!! (smirk)Anyway, sometimes I lock myself in the loo to hide from my kids so I can sneak a paragraph or two...
The best book I read this week was/is (I'm still rereading it, it's THAT good) The Secret by Rhonda Byrne and the WORST book was Happy Housewives by Darla Shine.Uwekkk...Happy Housewives made me really sick. I googled it afterwards and saw what other women thought of it, and I wasn't wrong. Too bad I didn't google it before I spent about RM68 for it. Yikes....Now the RM 61.90 I spent on Rhonda Byrne's book was money well spent. I mean, if you've read Norman Vincent Peale's "The Power of Positive Thinking" (I read that 10 years ago), Neale Donald Walsh's "Conversations with God "-books 1, 2 and 3 (ditto), it won't be anything new to you, but if you've become disconnected with the Universe, it's a nice little refresher. My weekend recommended reading. Enjoy!
Despite my crazyass schedule, I amaze myself that I can find the time to read not one, but two books a week!Yay me!!! (smirk)Anyway, sometimes I lock myself in the loo to hide from my kids so I can sneak a paragraph or two...
The best book I read this week was/is (I'm still rereading it, it's THAT good) The Secret by Rhonda Byrne and the WORST book was Happy Housewives by Darla Shine.Uwekkk...Happy Housewives made me really sick. I googled it afterwards and saw what other women thought of it, and I wasn't wrong. Too bad I didn't google it before I spent about RM68 for it. Yikes....Now the RM 61.90 I spent on Rhonda Byrne's book was money well spent. I mean, if you've read Norman Vincent Peale's "The Power of Positive Thinking" (I read that 10 years ago), Neale Donald Walsh's "Conversations with God "-books 1, 2 and 3 (ditto), it won't be anything new to you, but if you've become disconnected with the Universe, it's a nice little refresher. My weekend recommended reading. Enjoy!
63rd post
a touch of the super...
...natural....!
I am exhausted. The last 4 nights, Milo (who's sick) has been keeping us up with his coughing, wandering the house at night and not wanting to stay in his bed. My husband has threatened to lock him in his room at night, but I thought that was a bit crazy, so I 'volunteered' to spend the night with Milo last night to basically, keep him in his room and not wake up the whole household with his nocturnal shenanigans. O-kaaaaay.....so I spread a blanket on the carpet and camped there on the floor in his room. He kept sitting up to make sure I was there - which was annoying, as I was perpetually on the very verge of sleep and had to keep answering his, "Mummy? There?" ...grrr.... I rolled around in this fashion for an hour before deciding it would be less uncomfortable squeezing in with him on his single toddler bed! Waaaaa....don't ask me how I did it, but there we were, cuddly like a Mama bear and her cub (with mama bear's fat ass hanging off the bed!), and before I knew it, we were both fast/half asleep (Milo kept waking up to cough).
Now here's the wild part: in the daze of the night, I dreamt (or really, it might have been real) that someone was pulling my hair. As I was sleeping on the edge of the bed, facing my son, it was highly unlikely that it was him. So I reached back and grabbed a shadowy 'arm' and told 'it' to go away. I think my exact words were "Oi, f@&# off lah, GO TO THE LIGHT. Now! I Command you." I felt this presence wasn't malevolent or anything, but merely mischievous. I didn't feel mortally concerned. I only feel 'mortally concerned' when the hair on the back of my neck stands up or the air temperature changes in the room (which has happened before!). The imp (for lack of a better definition) hung around a while, then went away. Creepy, huh? I wonder if that's what's been keeping Milo up at night lately. I believe my son is as sensitive to this as I am, so maybe got lah, but then again, maybe it was just a vivid dream brought on by the extreme discomfort of sleeping with a hacking toddler in a too-small bed.
I had another 'dream' a few months ago, where I was talking to a deceased friend of mine and told her how I was letting go of my spiritual 'gifts' and she clutched my hands together so firmly (to tell me not to let it go) that I actually woke up BUT still felt her nails in my palms. Maybe they were my own nails...who knows, but it left me feeling oddly comforted. Not so comforting though, was when I was sleeping next to my husband one night and this evil voice in my left ear told me something so disturbing, and then proceeded to snuff the very breath from me (kena hempap lah, what else), and I was awake at this point, but couldn't scream, so I was whimpering loudly to wake my husband up to 'break the spell'. But that's the strange thing, I was AWAKE when it happened. When my husband woke up, it went away with a roar. I kid you not![Twillight Zone music] Has anything like this ever happened to you?
...natural....!
I am exhausted. The last 4 nights, Milo (who's sick) has been keeping us up with his coughing, wandering the house at night and not wanting to stay in his bed. My husband has threatened to lock him in his room at night, but I thought that was a bit crazy, so I 'volunteered' to spend the night with Milo last night to basically, keep him in his room and not wake up the whole household with his nocturnal shenanigans. O-kaaaaay.....so I spread a blanket on the carpet and camped there on the floor in his room. He kept sitting up to make sure I was there - which was annoying, as I was perpetually on the very verge of sleep and had to keep answering his, "Mummy? There?" ...grrr.... I rolled around in this fashion for an hour before deciding it would be less uncomfortable squeezing in with him on his single toddler bed! Waaaaa....don't ask me how I did it, but there we were, cuddly like a Mama bear and her cub (with mama bear's fat ass hanging off the bed!), and before I knew it, we were both fast/half asleep (Milo kept waking up to cough).
Now here's the wild part: in the daze of the night, I dreamt (or really, it might have been real) that someone was pulling my hair. As I was sleeping on the edge of the bed, facing my son, it was highly unlikely that it was him. So I reached back and grabbed a shadowy 'arm' and told 'it' to go away. I think my exact words were "Oi, f@&# off lah, GO TO THE LIGHT. Now! I Command you." I felt this presence wasn't malevolent or anything, but merely mischievous. I didn't feel mortally concerned. I only feel 'mortally concerned' when the hair on the back of my neck stands up or the air temperature changes in the room (which has happened before!). The imp (for lack of a better definition) hung around a while, then went away. Creepy, huh? I wonder if that's what's been keeping Milo up at night lately. I believe my son is as sensitive to this as I am, so maybe got lah, but then again, maybe it was just a vivid dream brought on by the extreme discomfort of sleeping with a hacking toddler in a too-small bed.
I had another 'dream' a few months ago, where I was talking to a deceased friend of mine and told her how I was letting go of my spiritual 'gifts' and she clutched my hands together so firmly (to tell me not to let it go) that I actually woke up BUT still felt her nails in my palms. Maybe they were my own nails...who knows, but it left me feeling oddly comforted. Not so comforting though, was when I was sleeping next to my husband one night and this evil voice in my left ear told me something so disturbing, and then proceeded to snuff the very breath from me (kena hempap lah, what else), and I was awake at this point, but couldn't scream, so I was whimpering loudly to wake my husband up to 'break the spell'. But that's the strange thing, I was AWAKE when it happened. When my husband woke up, it went away with a roar. I kid you not![Twillight Zone music] Has anything like this ever happened to you?
62nd post
my malaise
March 23rd 2007 -
Malaise and Malay are spelt differently but sound the same. I think I got chronic malay malaise...A couple of nights ago, I couldn't sleep, so I went downstairs to watch CNN. What I caught was a coffeehouse discussion on American GIs back from Iraq, who are now actively anti war, and since that day, it's disturbed me a LOT. These were men and women who stood and fought for their country and believed they were doing the right thing. They have brought home with them the truth of the war in Iraq and what American soldiers were asked to do. 'Dishonerable Duty' was a catchphrase that I heard a lot in this CNN special report.
These vets are now actively campaigning to bring back American troops and to stop their government from sending more troops over to Iraq.
What disturbed me wasn't so much the hype. Yes, the war disturbs me, but what disturbed me more was that all these people, mostly younger than me, have a real purpose in their lives, and they're doing something to make a change. They believe in something. At the moment, I am sorely lacking a belief in anything and a real purpose in my life. When you think about the many contributions individuals and groups are making for positive change in the world, you tend to wonder, "For what the f*** am I here?". I am truly depressed just thinking about it.
And I was depressed about (Al Gore's) The Inconvenient Truth for the fact that even if I did change all my lightbulbs for energy saving ones and my fuel guzzling car for a battery operated model, my neighbours are still going to be driving their Nissan Muranos and Mercedes SLKs, or Proton Sagas and Kia Rios, for that matter. Would it matter? Would it even make a difference? Should one even bother????????! It's like, all the things that frustrate you about our country that you cannot voice for [fear] of getting hauled into jail, people in power who are not accountable for the things they say and do, policies that do not take into account basic human rights...all these lah. I was thinking, not that I want to be a hero or anything, but if I want to make a difference, in my own little way, shouldn't I SAY something? Hello? But...but....(stammering)...I'm just (basically)...a suburban housewife! Do I even have anything to be upset about? Then I thought, perhaps a younger more idealistic Shazmin would be out there making a difference, lending a voice and lobbying for change in THIS country....instead of chasing the almighty dollar to pay off a mortgage, car and student loans and private schooling for the next generation. Ai yaa...typical lah. I admire the heck out of Malaysian filmmaker Amir Muhammad for his stand and belief in making things real. Despite the bollocks he is constantly faced with from the censorship board, he remains true to his calling and vision. I hope his next project actually gets a public airing (the 1998 street protests in KL), as it is contemporary and happened in our day and age. C'mon, we were there lah. So, Amir Muhammad, Citizen Nades (for speaking out) and Matt Howard and the gang at IVAW (Iraq Veterans Against the War)...I'm not you, but I wish I were a little bit more like you.
http://www.ivaw.org/
March 23rd 2007 -
Malaise and Malay are spelt differently but sound the same. I think I got chronic malay malaise...A couple of nights ago, I couldn't sleep, so I went downstairs to watch CNN. What I caught was a coffeehouse discussion on American GIs back from Iraq, who are now actively anti war, and since that day, it's disturbed me a LOT. These were men and women who stood and fought for their country and believed they were doing the right thing. They have brought home with them the truth of the war in Iraq and what American soldiers were asked to do. 'Dishonerable Duty' was a catchphrase that I heard a lot in this CNN special report.
These vets are now actively campaigning to bring back American troops and to stop their government from sending more troops over to Iraq.
What disturbed me wasn't so much the hype. Yes, the war disturbs me, but what disturbed me more was that all these people, mostly younger than me, have a real purpose in their lives, and they're doing something to make a change. They believe in something. At the moment, I am sorely lacking a belief in anything and a real purpose in my life. When you think about the many contributions individuals and groups are making for positive change in the world, you tend to wonder, "For what the f*** am I here?". I am truly depressed just thinking about it.
And I was depressed about (Al Gore's) The Inconvenient Truth for the fact that even if I did change all my lightbulbs for energy saving ones and my fuel guzzling car for a battery operated model, my neighbours are still going to be driving their Nissan Muranos and Mercedes SLKs, or Proton Sagas and Kia Rios, for that matter. Would it matter? Would it even make a difference? Should one even bother????????! It's like, all the things that frustrate you about our country that you cannot voice for [fear] of getting hauled into jail, people in power who are not accountable for the things they say and do, policies that do not take into account basic human rights...all these lah. I was thinking, not that I want to be a hero or anything, but if I want to make a difference, in my own little way, shouldn't I SAY something? Hello? But...but....(stammering)...I'm just (basically)...a suburban housewife! Do I even have anything to be upset about? Then I thought, perhaps a younger more idealistic Shazmin would be out there making a difference, lending a voice and lobbying for change in THIS country....instead of chasing the almighty dollar to pay off a mortgage, car and student loans and private schooling for the next generation. Ai yaa...typical lah. I admire the heck out of Malaysian filmmaker Amir Muhammad for his stand and belief in making things real. Despite the bollocks he is constantly faced with from the censorship board, he remains true to his calling and vision. I hope his next project actually gets a public airing (the 1998 street protests in KL), as it is contemporary and happened in our day and age. C'mon, we were there lah. So, Amir Muhammad, Citizen Nades (for speaking out) and Matt Howard and the gang at IVAW (Iraq Veterans Against the War)...I'm not you, but I wish I were a little bit more like you.
http://www.ivaw.org/
61st post
highly sensitive
Apparently this Highly Sensitive Person thing is something of a movement. I spotted the book on a bookshelf at Times Bookstore a little while ago and had one of those amazing moments of self-revelation, you know, when suddenly you realize that you're not completely odd, you're actually really O.K. It must be something like when a Trekkie first sets foot inside a WorldCon, and they realize there are lots of people out there just like them.
The book itself is stocked with a fair proportion of dreck, but there's enough bullseyes in it that it goes a long way in explaining a lot of things about me, my husband, and about Milo, my little 'odd, shy, boy'. If the HSP thing has any validity in it, Milo and Daniel are both lodged firmly in that 20% of people with low stimulation thresholds (I'm slightly less sensitized!).
I've just started the Highly Sensitive Child book, where the proportion of dreck to substance is somewhat more bearable. One thing it points out is that HSC's end up having a much better time of it when their parents let them just be the way they are, rather than trying to get them to fit into some of the preconcieved standards that parents do carry around with them. But it's such a relief, so many of the things we've seen him do over the last two and a half years actually make sense now. It's such a relief to be able to stop thinking of him as flawed; he just has a different set of reactions to things is all.
So this morning I spoke to Milo's carer at nursery and she mentioned how Milo, at break time, just sat by himself and ate his snack, while all the other kids went running around. As a parent, you'd like your kid to have friends, to be popular, to get some exercise at least. But I have embraced some of the book's viewpoints, that that's the way he is, the way he needs to be, it's what makes him happy, and he's actually taking care of his needs. Wanting to eat lunch alone isn't a fatal flaw, it's not something that needs to be fixed, it's just part of what makes him him.
Then I hung up the phone so I could go to lunch myself. Alone, like I've done nine days out of ten for the past 20 years. I got out of my office full of people and out into the streets where I could carve some quiet space within the street noise and let myself breathe a little. I've always thought I should really eat lunch with my co-workers more, for years I've felt odd that I'm not going to lunch with somebody every single day, organizing these large, cumbersome fleets of people to go to some spot to eat together, or even staying in--they're all hobnobbing in the common pantry over their nasi bungkus while I'm Audi 5000!
And then it hit me, with the subtlety of a piano dropping onto my head. There I was, doing exactly the same thing Milo was, thirty-three years apart but on the same day. And you know what? I realized that if it was OK for Milo (or Daniel for that matter) to want to eat his lunch alone, it was probably OK for me to do it too.
It's nice not to be flawed. It really is. It's also nice to know that somebody close to you is not-flawed in almost exactly the same way you are.
Apparently this Highly Sensitive Person thing is something of a movement. I spotted the book on a bookshelf at Times Bookstore a little while ago and had one of those amazing moments of self-revelation, you know, when suddenly you realize that you're not completely odd, you're actually really O.K. It must be something like when a Trekkie first sets foot inside a WorldCon, and they realize there are lots of people out there just like them.
The book itself is stocked with a fair proportion of dreck, but there's enough bullseyes in it that it goes a long way in explaining a lot of things about me, my husband, and about Milo, my little 'odd, shy, boy'. If the HSP thing has any validity in it, Milo and Daniel are both lodged firmly in that 20% of people with low stimulation thresholds (I'm slightly less sensitized!).
I've just started the Highly Sensitive Child book, where the proportion of dreck to substance is somewhat more bearable. One thing it points out is that HSC's end up having a much better time of it when their parents let them just be the way they are, rather than trying to get them to fit into some of the preconcieved standards that parents do carry around with them. But it's such a relief, so many of the things we've seen him do over the last two and a half years actually make sense now. It's such a relief to be able to stop thinking of him as flawed; he just has a different set of reactions to things is all.
So this morning I spoke to Milo's carer at nursery and she mentioned how Milo, at break time, just sat by himself and ate his snack, while all the other kids went running around. As a parent, you'd like your kid to have friends, to be popular, to get some exercise at least. But I have embraced some of the book's viewpoints, that that's the way he is, the way he needs to be, it's what makes him happy, and he's actually taking care of his needs. Wanting to eat lunch alone isn't a fatal flaw, it's not something that needs to be fixed, it's just part of what makes him him.
Then I hung up the phone so I could go to lunch myself. Alone, like I've done nine days out of ten for the past 20 years. I got out of my office full of people and out into the streets where I could carve some quiet space within the street noise and let myself breathe a little. I've always thought I should really eat lunch with my co-workers more, for years I've felt odd that I'm not going to lunch with somebody every single day, organizing these large, cumbersome fleets of people to go to some spot to eat together, or even staying in--they're all hobnobbing in the common pantry over their nasi bungkus while I'm Audi 5000!
And then it hit me, with the subtlety of a piano dropping onto my head. There I was, doing exactly the same thing Milo was, thirty-three years apart but on the same day. And you know what? I realized that if it was OK for Milo (or Daniel for that matter) to want to eat his lunch alone, it was probably OK for me to do it too.
It's nice not to be flawed. It really is. It's also nice to know that somebody close to you is not-flawed in almost exactly the same way you are.
60th post
Lost, the musical
9-3-2007
Waaaaa!I never thought I'd have anything in common with Paris Hilton, but there you go. Lose your handphone (ie. get it stolen) and all hell breaks loose. Please, I had NO back up whatsoever (stupid huh), and if you know I had your number, please please please sms me your number again. I know it's a bit of a song and dance, but I've got to build up my phonebook from scratch! It's the same number lah, but new cheapo handphone (Daniel, if you're reading this, sorry I didn't take you up on your offer, but offer again lah!!! Schmatz!).
These people, if you're reading this, do it NOW! :-)
Rafina
Sharmina & all in TTDI
Gracie & Kennedy (Ken I was just about to call you, too!)
Laila & Shaja
John & TerryJemma & gang
Lynette
Sita
Kem & Ashley
Zubaidah
Fara
Farah
Nathalie (Anais' mum) - I was just about to organise a playdate!!!
Jenny (Maya's mum)
Marco - so I can keep tabs on you-know-who!
Nelson, from Tokio Marine - oi! My road tax and insurance due soon, woh!...
my brain a bit berkeceramuk (is that an actual word?) at the moment, so if I didn't list you, please just sms me anyway ok!?? This is not a time for pride and sulking! :-/
And to the jerk who made off with my handphone, those are picture of my kids, you a$#*ole. What goes around comes around - in the Power of Three! I will mojo-jojo you till your dying day!
9-3-2007
Waaaaa!I never thought I'd have anything in common with Paris Hilton, but there you go. Lose your handphone (ie. get it stolen) and all hell breaks loose. Please, I had NO back up whatsoever (stupid huh), and if you know I had your number, please please please sms me your number again. I know it's a bit of a song and dance, but I've got to build up my phonebook from scratch! It's the same number lah, but new cheapo handphone (Daniel, if you're reading this, sorry I didn't take you up on your offer, but offer again lah!!! Schmatz!).
These people, if you're reading this, do it NOW! :-)
Rafina
Sharmina & all in TTDI
Gracie & Kennedy (Ken I was just about to call you, too!)
Laila & Shaja
John & TerryJemma & gang
Lynette
Sita
Kem & Ashley
Zubaidah
Fara
Farah
Nathalie (Anais' mum) - I was just about to organise a playdate!!!
Jenny (Maya's mum)
Marco - so I can keep tabs on you-know-who!
Nelson, from Tokio Marine - oi! My road tax and insurance due soon, woh!...
my brain a bit berkeceramuk (is that an actual word?) at the moment, so if I didn't list you, please just sms me anyway ok!?? This is not a time for pride and sulking! :-/
And to the jerk who made off with my handphone, those are picture of my kids, you a$#*ole. What goes around comes around - in the Power of Three! I will mojo-jojo you till your dying day!
59th post
come dine with me lah!
I was watching MY FAVOURITE tv programme, you know, the one I have to fight with other members of my household, Come Dine With Me, to have 30 minutes of uninterrupted viewing, and came up with MY dream party guest list:
Author, comedian, genius and 'Pocoyo' narrator Stephen FryActor,
comedian Hugh LaurieActor,
comedian Tracy Ullman
The epitome of lurrrve, Prince Charles and Camillaerr,
Daniel Craig, sans Satsuki Mitchell! - he brings her everywhere, the tart!
"I don't mean to be rude, but" Simon Cowell
"Man, that was HOT, dawg" Randy Jackson
extra camp fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi
"Carry on!" Tom Gunn (from Project Runway)
Grumpy motor mouth Paul Teutel, Senior (from American Chopper)
Hysterically funny old b!tch Shirley Maclaine
Looking at the list, I've made a few observations:
50% of these guests are English
50% are gay icons
99% are ascerbicly witted (Daniel Craig being the exception)
1% is eye candy (see above ^ )
I'll probably have to sit between Paul Snr and DC, because their manhood would depend on it. Here's my stellar menu for the evening:
Apperitif - Kir Royal, Pineapple Bellini, Shazmin's berry*cherry G&T
Starter - Warm fig and goats' cheese with balsamico and rocket
Spiced pumpkin cappucino
Main Course - Rare lamb loin with a blanket of sauteed swiss brown, basil and sunkissed tomatoes in a light puff pastry 'purse'
Tossed chilled vine tomatoes with mint and cillantro
Dessert - Chocolate Fountain with fruit, sponge and marshmallows (a la the Shang KL buffet!); assorted cheese platter with fruit and nuts
See, I've taken everything into consideration. There's lightness with every course, and some substantial 'meat' thrown in there for the likes of the macho cavemen like Simon Cowell (huh?) and Paul Senior (don't know if they'd appreciate eating a 'purse' though!). Lotsa fruit and nuts too, for the fruity and nutty rest of us...I have absolute fantasies about having this uncanny bunch in my house. I think it would be a flaming riot! I wouldn't invite Paula Abdul though because she'd just drink all my booze and cause an embarassing scene - a barrel of laughs that'll just end in tears. Yikes, you know how awkward that can be...
I was watching MY FAVOURITE tv programme, you know, the one I have to fight with other members of my household, Come Dine With Me, to have 30 minutes of uninterrupted viewing, and came up with MY dream party guest list:
Author, comedian, genius and 'Pocoyo' narrator Stephen FryActor,
comedian Hugh LaurieActor,
comedian Tracy Ullman
The epitome of lurrrve, Prince Charles and Camillaerr,
Daniel Craig, sans Satsuki Mitchell! - he brings her everywhere, the tart!
"I don't mean to be rude, but" Simon Cowell
"Man, that was HOT, dawg" Randy Jackson
extra camp fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi
"Carry on!" Tom Gunn (from Project Runway)
Grumpy motor mouth Paul Teutel, Senior (from American Chopper)
Hysterically funny old b!tch Shirley Maclaine
Looking at the list, I've made a few observations:
50% of these guests are English
50% are gay icons
99% are ascerbicly witted (Daniel Craig being the exception)
1% is eye candy (see above ^ )
I'll probably have to sit between Paul Snr and DC, because their manhood would depend on it. Here's my stellar menu for the evening:
Apperitif - Kir Royal, Pineapple Bellini, Shazmin's berry*cherry G&T
Starter - Warm fig and goats' cheese with balsamico and rocket
Spiced pumpkin cappucino
Main Course - Rare lamb loin with a blanket of sauteed swiss brown, basil and sunkissed tomatoes in a light puff pastry 'purse'
Tossed chilled vine tomatoes with mint and cillantro
Dessert - Chocolate Fountain with fruit, sponge and marshmallows (a la the Shang KL buffet!); assorted cheese platter with fruit and nuts
See, I've taken everything into consideration. There's lightness with every course, and some substantial 'meat' thrown in there for the likes of the macho cavemen like Simon Cowell (huh?) and Paul Senior (don't know if they'd appreciate eating a 'purse' though!). Lotsa fruit and nuts too, for the fruity and nutty rest of us...I have absolute fantasies about having this uncanny bunch in my house. I think it would be a flaming riot! I wouldn't invite Paula Abdul though because she'd just drink all my booze and cause an embarassing scene - a barrel of laughs that'll just end in tears. Yikes, you know how awkward that can be...
58th post
ultimate con job
Ok, this is a classic! We listen to the "Mothercare - Wheels on the Bus" cd on the way to school every morning, and this little gem is on track 5. Let this be a lesson for our young daughters - it's never too early to make them savvy to the old adage, black is the con of man and all that rot. You have to wonder why the soldier in question is not wearing any clothes to begin with, ehh?!!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you
For I have no shirt to put on
So off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him a shirt, of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have no tie to put on
So off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him a tie of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have no suit to put on
So off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him a suit of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have no boots to put on
So off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him some boots of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
oldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have no coat to put on
So off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him a coat of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have no hat to put onS
o off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him a hat of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have A WIFE OF MY OWN!!!!!!!
Moral of the story: No man's going to buy the cow if the milk's for FREE and the cow is giving out freebies like Armani suits and Hugo Boss ties on top of all that! Ai yaaah, that also don't know, meh?!!
Ok, this is a classic! We listen to the "Mothercare - Wheels on the Bus" cd on the way to school every morning, and this little gem is on track 5. Let this be a lesson for our young daughters - it's never too early to make them savvy to the old adage, black is the con of man and all that rot. You have to wonder why the soldier in question is not wearing any clothes to begin with, ehh?!!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you
For I have no shirt to put on
So off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him a shirt, of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have no tie to put on
So off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him a tie of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have no suit to put on
So off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him a suit of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have no boots to put on
So off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him some boots of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
oldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have no coat to put on
So off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him a coat of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have no hat to put onS
o off she went, to her grandfather's chest
And brought him a hat of the very, very best
And the Soldier put it on!
Soldier, Soldier, will you marry me?
With your muscat, pipe and drum?
Oh no, Sweet Maid, I cannot marry you,
For I have A WIFE OF MY OWN!!!!!!!
Moral of the story: No man's going to buy the cow if the milk's for FREE and the cow is giving out freebies like Armani suits and Hugo Boss ties on top of all that! Ai yaaah, that also don't know, meh?!!
57th post
profound
I'm the old dog, trying to learn a new trick: the trick being the German language via cd in my car in between taxi-ing Milo to and from school, work and trips to the supermarket (there's always a jam to get stuck in and it's a hell lot more interesting)! So there I was, thinking, I'm going to wow Daniel with my linguistic prowess, "Ich muss haben Sie heute abend!" *wink wink* when the poor 'student' in the Michell Thomas German Language Series recording suddenly gets an earfull from the old geezer (MT). He was basically bulldozing the sentence structure to death and here's what the Old Man had to say:"No! No! Think!....Communication is a thought process......not just something that sounds gutt."
Waaah....tersenyap aku sekejap. I actually rewound that part and listened to what he said 3 more times! It's so true, though, isn't it? So many of us talk talk talk and it's just sound coming out of our pieholes, yakyakyaaakityyak, waawaawaaahblaaablablaaaaaa..... Can you think of one industry that can be revolutionized if you apply the above??? *smirk*******
On another note, I have a ton of cds littering the floor of my car, and now my son has convinced himself that his real mother is jazz chanteusse, Diana Kraal. He never fails to remind me as he fingers Diana Kraal's chirstmas album, "My mummy! My mummy!" all the way to school. Poor boy, I almost hate to break it to him. LOL
27-02-07
I'm the old dog, trying to learn a new trick: the trick being the German language via cd in my car in between taxi-ing Milo to and from school, work and trips to the supermarket (there's always a jam to get stuck in and it's a hell lot more interesting)! So there I was, thinking, I'm going to wow Daniel with my linguistic prowess, "Ich muss haben Sie heute abend!" *wink wink* when the poor 'student' in the Michell Thomas German Language Series recording suddenly gets an earfull from the old geezer (MT). He was basically bulldozing the sentence structure to death and here's what the Old Man had to say:"No! No! Think!....Communication is a thought process......not just something that sounds gutt."
Waaah....tersenyap aku sekejap. I actually rewound that part and listened to what he said 3 more times! It's so true, though, isn't it? So many of us talk talk talk and it's just sound coming out of our pieholes, yakyakyaaakityyak, waawaawaaahblaaablablaaaaaa..... Can you think of one industry that can be revolutionized if you apply the above??? *smirk*******
On another note, I have a ton of cds littering the floor of my car, and now my son has convinced himself that his real mother is jazz chanteusse, Diana Kraal. He never fails to remind me as he fingers Diana Kraal's chirstmas album, "My mummy! My mummy!" all the way to school. Poor boy, I almost hate to break it to him. LOL
27-02-07
56th post
utterly incredible!
24-02-2007
Anyone who knows me, knows I love my sleep. My night time sleep. And anyone who knows me knows I went to great lengths to 'encourage' (as opposed to 'train') my kids to go to sleep on their own, in their own rooms, and to sleep through the entire night.Now, this is upsetting. For both Sophie and Milo, I loosely followed Gina Ford's methods in her book "The New Contented Baby book". I found the outline for daytime napping and feeding quite sensible. I was never militant about following it to the tee, but somehow, we managed to get our little nippers on a good sleeping routine that works even now (7pm - 6.45am). I ritually lend out my copy to friends, so much so this book is in tatters (sorry Richard! Gotta go buy your own!)! The methods outlined in this book, well has stirred up a lot of debate. Everywhere. Particularly on one of my fave websites. What's amazing is that the author has really freaked out about what people are saying about her and wants to shut down the website! Needless to say, it's now an issue about freedom of speech, not so much her childcare methods. Though these events happened like 6 months ago, it's news to me. If you have the time, check it out. It makes for incredible (incredulous!!!) reading.
http://www.mumsnet.com/lw/state.html http://www.mumsnet.com/PressCoverage.html
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/justine_roberts/2006/08/mumsnet.html
http://pewari.may.be/2006/08/09/gina-ford-vs-mumsnet-continued/
24-02-2007
Anyone who knows me, knows I love my sleep. My night time sleep. And anyone who knows me knows I went to great lengths to 'encourage' (as opposed to 'train') my kids to go to sleep on their own, in their own rooms, and to sleep through the entire night.Now, this is upsetting. For both Sophie and Milo, I loosely followed Gina Ford's methods in her book "The New Contented Baby book". I found the outline for daytime napping and feeding quite sensible. I was never militant about following it to the tee, but somehow, we managed to get our little nippers on a good sleeping routine that works even now (7pm - 6.45am). I ritually lend out my copy to friends, so much so this book is in tatters (sorry Richard! Gotta go buy your own!)! The methods outlined in this book, well has stirred up a lot of debate. Everywhere. Particularly on one of my fave websites. What's amazing is that the author has really freaked out about what people are saying about her and wants to shut down the website! Needless to say, it's now an issue about freedom of speech, not so much her childcare methods. Though these events happened like 6 months ago, it's news to me. If you have the time, check it out. It makes for incredible (incredulous!!!) reading.
http://www.mumsnet.com/lw/state.html http://www.mumsnet.com/PressCoverage.html
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/justine_roberts/2006/08/mumsnet.html
http://pewari.may.be/2006/08/09/gina-ford-vs-mumsnet-continued/
55th post
slapper (for lack of a better header)
I'm actually writing this as I'm doing Ross's Drivetime shift! Ooo-errr! This feels so BIZARRE...I feel like I'm actually channeling Ross and about to spew forth last night's footie scores, London-accent alllll....hee hee! V. v. strange indeed.Anyway, hope you guys had a great Chinese New Year. Ours was verrrry quiet. Couldn't get away on account of Ross being on leave, but that's ok....more inevitable annual leave for moi.....!Speaking of which, we've decided to cash in our winning ticket from Club Med Kani Maldives this April - God, I am so excited! My sister will be down from the States with her brood, so she's going to shack up at my house, with my brood while we're away for a week! Yaaaaay! Free babysitting! I just hope Milo's not too much of a nuisance, he's going through a 'phase'.... It's the 'angkat tangan' phase....you know, like when you tell him off or something, his immediate reaction would be to angkat his tangan and try to whack you? That phase. Yeah. I've gotten a call from school already. Yikes.I could say, "Milo, please don't terajang your little sister like that" in the sweetest tone, and he'll hurl himself (from whichever part of the room) within arm's length of you in this superhero stance. It's quite funny actually, but I can imagine what this must look like to another parent whose precious toddler is in the same class as him! Alamak, if you're a parent with a precious toddler in the same class as Milo, please accept my profoundest apologies in advance! We are working on it. Really, we are.
Gong Xi Fatt Choy!
20-02-2007
I'm actually writing this as I'm doing Ross's Drivetime shift! Ooo-errr! This feels so BIZARRE...I feel like I'm actually channeling Ross and about to spew forth last night's footie scores, London-accent alllll....hee hee! V. v. strange indeed.Anyway, hope you guys had a great Chinese New Year. Ours was verrrry quiet. Couldn't get away on account of Ross being on leave, but that's ok....more inevitable annual leave for moi.....!Speaking of which, we've decided to cash in our winning ticket from Club Med Kani Maldives this April - God, I am so excited! My sister will be down from the States with her brood, so she's going to shack up at my house, with my brood while we're away for a week! Yaaaaay! Free babysitting! I just hope Milo's not too much of a nuisance, he's going through a 'phase'.... It's the 'angkat tangan' phase....you know, like when you tell him off or something, his immediate reaction would be to angkat his tangan and try to whack you? That phase. Yeah. I've gotten a call from school already. Yikes.I could say, "Milo, please don't terajang your little sister like that" in the sweetest tone, and he'll hurl himself (from whichever part of the room) within arm's length of you in this superhero stance. It's quite funny actually, but I can imagine what this must look like to another parent whose precious toddler is in the same class as him! Alamak, if you're a parent with a precious toddler in the same class as Milo, please accept my profoundest apologies in advance! We are working on it. Really, we are.
Gong Xi Fatt Choy!
20-02-2007
54th post
sore b.side
waaaa.....so much for the New Year's resolution to keep up the fitness program....I have a SORE A$$ just from climbing a couple of rocks at Ulu Yam over the weekend!At first, I couldn't fathom why my butt and thighs hurt so bad...then I remembered the 'physical exertion' (hah!) of clamouring over rocks, then wading in thigh high 'rapids' (!?) with a 2 year old clutching on me boobs for dear life. I guess my body's just not used to the exercise! Damn! I can feel the muscles in my backside I didn't know existed!Anyway, it was a really lovely trip down to Ulu Yam, I'll post some pictures later. How nice to have a lovely picnic spot so close to the city. Please tell me if you know of other spots I can take the kids to on the weekend! WE are SICK of the malls.
waaaa.....so much for the New Year's resolution to keep up the fitness program....I have a SORE A$$ just from climbing a couple of rocks at Ulu Yam over the weekend!At first, I couldn't fathom why my butt and thighs hurt so bad...then I remembered the 'physical exertion' (hah!) of clamouring over rocks, then wading in thigh high 'rapids' (!?) with a 2 year old clutching on me boobs for dear life. I guess my body's just not used to the exercise! Damn! I can feel the muscles in my backside I didn't know existed!Anyway, it was a really lovely trip down to Ulu Yam, I'll post some pictures later. How nice to have a lovely picnic spot so close to the city. Please tell me if you know of other spots I can take the kids to on the weekend! WE are SICK of the malls.
53rd post
makan what else?
Feb 12th 2007Really nothing new to report.Same ole, same ole. This week I get to NOT COOK. Yaaaay! The hubs is away til this Wednesday and I can do what the heck I please (culinarily speaking) and I pleased to make a bowl of curry maggimee, which I fell upon with relish and gusto. It took me about 1 1/2 minutes to down. Mind you, I'm still hungry, so I might call up Ahmad from Puchong (remember the McDelivery ad???! Brill!) for a top up Double Cheeseburger McValue meal. Or I might be brave and have a vanilla Herbalife concoction. Yurghh. Which shall it be? Decisionsdecisions.....
Feb 12th 2007Really nothing new to report.Same ole, same ole. This week I get to NOT COOK. Yaaaay! The hubs is away til this Wednesday and I can do what the heck I please (culinarily speaking) and I pleased to make a bowl of curry maggimee, which I fell upon with relish and gusto. It took me about 1 1/2 minutes to down. Mind you, I'm still hungry, so I might call up Ahmad from Puchong (remember the McDelivery ad???! Brill!) for a top up Double Cheeseburger McValue meal. Or I might be brave and have a vanilla Herbalife concoction. Yurghh. Which shall it be? Decisionsdecisions.....
52nd post
things that make you go Hmmmm...!
Nothing super exciting to report. Just that I'm suffering from a really bad bout of phlegm - gets into my throat, irritates the bejesus out of it and makes me cough until I vomit. All Night Long, just like the Lionel Richie song...So needless to say, I've not had much sleep lately....but thank God my maid, Feni, has things under control. I must say, she's the best that I've had so far (and last year, I had 4!). She's so good, Milo even called her "Mummy" this morning.????!!!!!!!!!!????????Ooo-eeerrrrr.......don't know how I feel about thaaaaaat...... At least she had the sense not to say anything to make the moment even more awkward than it was! [unlike the other day, when we were outside and Milo heard the azan ringing in the distance, he put a worried look on his face and said, "Oooh! Momok!!!" - to which I laughed my head off, but Feni had the cheek to say, "hmmm, itulah, Milo tak di ajar...". Which shut me right up].Really, though. I like Feni a lot. She's smart (but a bit cheeky), caring, clean, efficient, trustworthy and thinks on her feet, especially where the kids are concerned...and you can see, she loves them a lot. They adore her....I wonder if Sophie even knows I'm the Mummy here....Milo, I'm sure, was just being a smartass, he's at that stage. He called me "Kakak" this morning, too, just to get a reaction! Monkey. So, I guess, don't freak out lah, haaaah? What you think?
Update: I got a super tip that cured my cough...a caller, Michael suggested eating a ton of jackfruit, unwashed - straight from the nangka/packet! Apparently, the juices/'slime' from the jackfruit has properties that are healing....another caller, Ronnie, said it is actually 'cooling'..I donno lah, but it seems to have done the trick! Thanks guys!
Nothing super exciting to report. Just that I'm suffering from a really bad bout of phlegm - gets into my throat, irritates the bejesus out of it and makes me cough until I vomit. All Night Long, just like the Lionel Richie song...So needless to say, I've not had much sleep lately....but thank God my maid, Feni, has things under control. I must say, she's the best that I've had so far (and last year, I had 4!). She's so good, Milo even called her "Mummy" this morning.????!!!!!!!!!!????????Ooo-eeerrrrr.......don't know how I feel about thaaaaaat...... At least she had the sense not to say anything to make the moment even more awkward than it was! [unlike the other day, when we were outside and Milo heard the azan ringing in the distance, he put a worried look on his face and said, "Oooh! Momok!!!" - to which I laughed my head off, but Feni had the cheek to say, "hmmm, itulah, Milo tak di ajar...". Which shut me right up].Really, though. I like Feni a lot. She's smart (but a bit cheeky), caring, clean, efficient, trustworthy and thinks on her feet, especially where the kids are concerned...and you can see, she loves them a lot. They adore her....I wonder if Sophie even knows I'm the Mummy here....Milo, I'm sure, was just being a smartass, he's at that stage. He called me "Kakak" this morning, too, just to get a reaction! Monkey. So, I guess, don't freak out lah, haaaah? What you think?
Update: I got a super tip that cured my cough...a caller, Michael suggested eating a ton of jackfruit, unwashed - straight from the nangka/packet! Apparently, the juices/'slime' from the jackfruit has properties that are healing....another caller, Ronnie, said it is actually 'cooling'..I donno lah, but it seems to have done the trick! Thanks guys!
51st post
global warming, anyone?
Yo party people, check it out. I watched Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth and it's the best movie I've seen all year (no doubt, it's only January 29th but hey - I suspect it'll still be one of this year's best films judging on what Hollywood's been offering up lately). You MUST watch it.It's a real sitter-upper-eye-opener. Made me wonder why I brought kids into the world.We must do something....but what????
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/05/060524-global-warming.html
http://www.slate.com/id/2142319/http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/13248532/why_gore_should_run__and_how_he_can_win/1
Yo party people, check it out. I watched Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth and it's the best movie I've seen all year (no doubt, it's only January 29th but hey - I suspect it'll still be one of this year's best films judging on what Hollywood's been offering up lately). You MUST watch it.It's a real sitter-upper-eye-opener. Made me wonder why I brought kids into the world.We must do something....but what????
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/05/060524-global-warming.html
http://www.slate.com/id/2142319/http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/13248532/why_gore_should_run__and_how_he_can_win/1
50th post
Milestones for Princess Lemongrass
Jan 15th
Sophie Shiloh Aman, aka Puteri Serai, just celebrated her seventh month last weekend, and to date, she has learnt to:1. Eat solids 2. Spit 3. Blow bubbles with her spit 4. Grab and pinch (faces especially) 5. Sit up unaided 6. Crawl 7. Pull herself up on the furniture 8. Scream with indignation when she wants Playhouse Disney Channel as opposed to Star World on the telly!She's very vocal, dislikes strangers who come too close, loves to lanyak the cat and adores her Milo, even when he's being unreasonable with her. At the mo, he can do no wrong, but I'm sure that'll change any day now!We adopted a cute brown rabbit over the weekend, his name is Button. That makes the 4th animal to join the menagerie chez moi! Last month we got two black gerbils. Of all the cute, furry little creatures we could've gotten, Milo picked these two ratty black rodents to take home! He named them Bubu and Bubu. I've since renamed the slimmer Bubu, Slick, since he's such a b*&stard to catch when you want to clean the cage! The fat Bubu got stuck in his little plastic house (it was hillarious actually, his big fat arse sticking out, little rat legs kicking!) and we had to cut through it to free him! Phew! That was a close one! I thought he'd had it! Bought the farm. Kicked the bucket. I don't know what I'd say to explain death and dying and heaven to Milo....Thank God that's been put off (I read that gerbils have a short life span anyway. So it'll be any day now!).Anyway, I took some AWESOME photos of all of the above, but still haven't worked out how to upload photos onto this site, so you all wait lah....It's a coming attraction. Watch this space.
Jan 15th
Sophie Shiloh Aman, aka Puteri Serai, just celebrated her seventh month last weekend, and to date, she has learnt to:1. Eat solids 2. Spit 3. Blow bubbles with her spit 4. Grab and pinch (faces especially) 5. Sit up unaided 6. Crawl 7. Pull herself up on the furniture 8. Scream with indignation when she wants Playhouse Disney Channel as opposed to Star World on the telly!She's very vocal, dislikes strangers who come too close, loves to lanyak the cat and adores her Milo, even when he's being unreasonable with her. At the mo, he can do no wrong, but I'm sure that'll change any day now!We adopted a cute brown rabbit over the weekend, his name is Button. That makes the 4th animal to join the menagerie chez moi! Last month we got two black gerbils. Of all the cute, furry little creatures we could've gotten, Milo picked these two ratty black rodents to take home! He named them Bubu and Bubu. I've since renamed the slimmer Bubu, Slick, since he's such a b*&stard to catch when you want to clean the cage! The fat Bubu got stuck in his little plastic house (it was hillarious actually, his big fat arse sticking out, little rat legs kicking!) and we had to cut through it to free him! Phew! That was a close one! I thought he'd had it! Bought the farm. Kicked the bucket. I don't know what I'd say to explain death and dying and heaven to Milo....Thank God that's been put off (I read that gerbils have a short life span anyway. So it'll be any day now!).Anyway, I took some AWESOME photos of all of the above, but still haven't worked out how to upload photos onto this site, so you all wait lah....It's a coming attraction. Watch this space.
49th post
Happy Birthday to the old gal!
January 9th. Remember this date.Happy birthday to MEEEEE, yaddayaddayadda...!I'm actually more excited about Richard taking his wife to the hospital this morning and HOPE that she has a safe delivery (today? Please??!) so Marissa and I can share the same birth date! Wooohooo! Wouldn't that be SOMETHING!???!Weird or whaaaaaat? But totally cool, maaaaah!Anyway, things have been on the up and up.... I got a call from BSC (Bangsar Shopping Centre) of all people/places and they told me the FANTASTIC news.....I'VE WON THE GRAND PRIZE in their Christmas Advent Calender lucky draw!!!!! I was flumoxed! The only thing I've ever won in my life was a Lionel Richie cassette from 7Eleven back in 1984! So, you ask, what did I win?......heh heh hehhhhh! This will make the hardiest of you contest professionals weep....!A 4 day, 3 night stay at Club Med Kani, MALDIVES, all inclusive!A Pearl necklace from Amita worth !!!A Gold and Ruby ring from Fa'iq Jewellers worth !!!!Costume Jewellry from French Bijoux worth !!!I was so excited I almost fainted! Now I can understand why some people make it a habit of entering contests. I almost didn't enter, but I had several receipts worth more than RM Xxx each (we were, errr, stocking up on food and etc for our xmas party) and I thought what the hecklah! It took me less than a minute to put my name and number on the back of the receipts and drop them in a box! I'm so glad I didn't listen to my husband who said I was being damn kiasu! HAHAHAhahahah!!!! Should I take him to the Maldives???....hmmmmm.....! Ok, ok darling, you can come lah!Thank you muchly, BSC, for making my day!!!!!Happy New Year? Yes indeeeedy!
January 9th. Remember this date.Happy birthday to MEEEEE, yaddayaddayadda...!I'm actually more excited about Richard taking his wife to the hospital this morning and HOPE that she has a safe delivery (today? Please??!) so Marissa and I can share the same birth date! Wooohooo! Wouldn't that be SOMETHING!???!Weird or whaaaaaat? But totally cool, maaaaah!Anyway, things have been on the up and up.... I got a call from BSC (Bangsar Shopping Centre) of all people/places and they told me the FANTASTIC news.....I'VE WON THE GRAND PRIZE in their Christmas Advent Calender lucky draw!!!!! I was flumoxed! The only thing I've ever won in my life was a Lionel Richie cassette from 7Eleven back in 1984! So, you ask, what did I win?......heh heh hehhhhh! This will make the hardiest of you contest professionals weep....!A 4 day, 3 night stay at Club Med Kani, MALDIVES, all inclusive!A Pearl necklace from Amita worth !!!A Gold and Ruby ring from Fa'iq Jewellers worth !!!!Costume Jewellry from French Bijoux worth !!!I was so excited I almost fainted! Now I can understand why some people make it a habit of entering contests. I almost didn't enter, but I had several receipts worth more than RM Xxx each (we were, errr, stocking up on food and etc for our xmas party) and I thought what the hecklah! It took me less than a minute to put my name and number on the back of the receipts and drop them in a box! I'm so glad I didn't listen to my husband who said I was being damn kiasu! HAHAHAhahahah!!!! Should I take him to the Maldives???....hmmmmm.....! Ok, ok darling, you can come lah!Thank you muchly, BSC, for making my day!!!!!Happy New Year? Yes indeeeedy!
48th post
Have a great year, people
I'm back from my extended Xmas holiday! How are you? I'm good, people. Needed a break. Well, Richard said it all really. I share his sentiments. He has been the best working partner a girl could ever have and I'll miss his wayward ways in the mornings. But alas, the only constant is Change, and if we're going to go all cliche about it: all good things must come to an end.I'll miss all of you guys, too! But I'm still around! Keep listening at 10am - 1pm every weekday morning and let's have fun!That said, being around at home in the mornings is something I've never experienced and I like it. A lot! Seeing my kids wake up smiling is just precious. As for my husband, he's a grumpy bollocks in the a.m., but hey, that's something new I've discovered about him as I've never been on real speaking terms with him in the mornings - as I'm never around! Joy. Hmmm. LOL!Here's wishing everyone, especially the loyal lot of you who've been listening to Richard and I from day 1, the very best for 2007! May this year be a blessing to us all.
I'm back from my extended Xmas holiday! How are you? I'm good, people. Needed a break. Well, Richard said it all really. I share his sentiments. He has been the best working partner a girl could ever have and I'll miss his wayward ways in the mornings. But alas, the only constant is Change, and if we're going to go all cliche about it: all good things must come to an end.I'll miss all of you guys, too! But I'm still around! Keep listening at 10am - 1pm every weekday morning and let's have fun!That said, being around at home in the mornings is something I've never experienced and I like it. A lot! Seeing my kids wake up smiling is just precious. As for my husband, he's a grumpy bollocks in the a.m., but hey, that's something new I've discovered about him as I've never been on real speaking terms with him in the mornings - as I'm never around! Joy. Hmmm. LOL!Here's wishing everyone, especially the loyal lot of you who've been listening to Richard and I from day 1, the very best for 2007! May this year be a blessing to us all.
47th post
my neck got bigger!
My bathroom scale conned me! Waaaaaaaaaaa! sob sob! In actual fact, my weight remained the same and my measurements, too, but my neck got bigger (!), indicating a loss of body fat percentage of 1%.Go figure.Apparently, there's a science behind it. The neck's the first part to indicate muscle development. We did our measurements yesterday and Vince explained it all. I was really bummed out, despite the body fat percentage loss. I thought maybe it'd be more. I was cheating myself with the food part of the bootcamp. OK, the secret's out. I regret that now, and realise I was only cheating myself. I resolve to do better this week.I'm really proud of Marina and Francine - they recorded the most fat percentage loss, and they've been good about the diet too, so they really deserve it! Good on ya!
My bathroom scale conned me! Waaaaaaaaaaa! sob sob! In actual fact, my weight remained the same and my measurements, too, but my neck got bigger (!), indicating a loss of body fat percentage of 1%.Go figure.Apparently, there's a science behind it. The neck's the first part to indicate muscle development. We did our measurements yesterday and Vince explained it all. I was really bummed out, despite the body fat percentage loss. I thought maybe it'd be more. I was cheating myself with the food part of the bootcamp. OK, the secret's out. I regret that now, and realise I was only cheating myself. I resolve to do better this week.I'm really proud of Marina and Francine - they recorded the most fat percentage loss, and they've been good about the diet too, so they really deserve it! Good on ya!
46th post
thrilled to bits!
I know a minute ago I wanted to be Gerard Depardieu...but today I weighed myself and found I've dropped 2 kgs! How awesome is that!!!?I have to hand it to Vince and all our new friends at bootcamp who've been nothing but supportive and a barrel of laughs. Mind you, Vince is pretty scary, but he's meant to be that way (haha!) otherwise, we'd all just play the fool and not exercise. We all found ourselves belting out Christmas carols while doing one-handed pushups to distract from the IMMENSE pain of it all....kudos to Alan and Nigel who started the ball rolling! It was a great collaboration - didn't you just love my backup of Serena Williams-sized grunts?!!I admit yesterday I was feeling lazy but since I got off the bathroom scale, I'm stoked!BRING IT ON! WhoooooHOOOO!
I know a minute ago I wanted to be Gerard Depardieu...but today I weighed myself and found I've dropped 2 kgs! How awesome is that!!!?I have to hand it to Vince and all our new friends at bootcamp who've been nothing but supportive and a barrel of laughs. Mind you, Vince is pretty scary, but he's meant to be that way (haha!) otherwise, we'd all just play the fool and not exercise. We all found ourselves belting out Christmas carols while doing one-handed pushups to distract from the IMMENSE pain of it all....kudos to Alan and Nigel who started the ball rolling! It was a great collaboration - didn't you just love my backup of Serena Williams-sized grunts?!!I admit yesterday I was feeling lazy but since I got off the bathroom scale, I'm stoked!BRING IT ON! WhoooooHOOOO!
Sunday, July 22, 2007
45th post
fat bottomed girls
Funny the things we find ourselves thinking about when we're driving somewhere we aren't that thrilled to go to. In this case, the bootcamp HQ. Yesterday, as I was driving there, I asked myself a hypothetical question: If I could be ANYONE in the world, who would I want to be? Now, I thought...hmmmmm.....Daniel Craig's girlfriend? Melinda Gates? Oprah? (naaaa!) Queen Elizabeth 1 (she was so cool!)?!! I was having fun with this, and thought of a number of 'personalities' I could easily be and then, I REALLY thought about it and came up with the perfect ME. Gerard Depardieu.
Yes. I'd so LOVE to be Gerard Depardieu and I'll tell you why. He lives life on a large scale, and I'm not poking fun at the man's size. Far from it. He lives big, he's not pernickerty about food, diet and exercise (he has his own vineyard for God's sake and he's quite the gourmand!). He's an intelligent man with a incredible sense of humour and comedy, he's a talented actor and he's DAMN SEXY. I guess his sexiness comes from his love of life and the sensual pleasure he takes in living it. He is not bothered by his girth, and that self acceptingness is a quality I find truly hot. I don't for a second, think he ever wakes up in the morning thinking, "I'm having a fat day". I recently saw some, truth be told, god awful photos of him lounging in his birthday suit on a nudie beach somewhere in France but he looked so okay about it all hanging out and what. Man, he was with a woman 20 years younger (and she was skinny!) on top of that! Before you get funny ideas about moi, let me tell you, no, my tastes don't run with that of of the Big Guy. I'm essentially a gay man trapped in a woman's body. But I wish I had the self assurance, confidence and the so what? it tastes good! Carpe du fromage! frame of mind as that of Depardieu's. He don't give a sheeeet. I guess it's all in the mind. Unfortunately, this mind tends to care what people think when they look at the body!
So all that said, I went to KDT Academy, worked my butt off, came home and had a (small) bowl of soup and just fantasized about what it would be like to be Gerard Depardieu. Heavy in body, but light in spirit. *grin*
Funny the things we find ourselves thinking about when we're driving somewhere we aren't that thrilled to go to. In this case, the bootcamp HQ. Yesterday, as I was driving there, I asked myself a hypothetical question: If I could be ANYONE in the world, who would I want to be? Now, I thought...hmmmmm.....Daniel Craig's girlfriend? Melinda Gates? Oprah? (naaaa!) Queen Elizabeth 1 (she was so cool!)?!! I was having fun with this, and thought of a number of 'personalities' I could easily be and then, I REALLY thought about it and came up with the perfect ME. Gerard Depardieu.
Yes. I'd so LOVE to be Gerard Depardieu and I'll tell you why. He lives life on a large scale, and I'm not poking fun at the man's size. Far from it. He lives big, he's not pernickerty about food, diet and exercise (he has his own vineyard for God's sake and he's quite the gourmand!). He's an intelligent man with a incredible sense of humour and comedy, he's a talented actor and he's DAMN SEXY. I guess his sexiness comes from his love of life and the sensual pleasure he takes in living it. He is not bothered by his girth, and that self acceptingness is a quality I find truly hot. I don't for a second, think he ever wakes up in the morning thinking, "I'm having a fat day". I recently saw some, truth be told, god awful photos of him lounging in his birthday suit on a nudie beach somewhere in France but he looked so okay about it all hanging out and what. Man, he was with a woman 20 years younger (and she was skinny!) on top of that! Before you get funny ideas about moi, let me tell you, no, my tastes don't run with that of of the Big Guy. I'm essentially a gay man trapped in a woman's body. But I wish I had the self assurance, confidence and the so what? it tastes good! Carpe du fromage! frame of mind as that of Depardieu's. He don't give a sheeeet. I guess it's all in the mind. Unfortunately, this mind tends to care what people think when they look at the body!
So all that said, I went to KDT Academy, worked my butt off, came home and had a (small) bowl of soup and just fantasized about what it would be like to be Gerard Depardieu. Heavy in body, but light in spirit. *grin*
44th post
food or lack of...
Let's talk about food.I can't stomach anything on this new diet, actually. It's damn tough. I mean, on any normal day, chicken wouldn't be my meat of choice to begin with, but thank God I like fish. Unfortunately, I haven't a clue how to clean it and cook it, so I just end up buying sashimi! I asked Vince why red meat is a no no.Me: "Vince, why, aaah? Red meat cannot?"Vince: "You ever notice how when you cook lamb or beef rendang - it takes hours to make the meat soft? In some cases, the meat doesn't even get soft? That's how long it'll take for you to digest the food in your stomach if you eat red meat. Chicken takes less time to digest, fish even more so, it breaks apart easily. The longer you take to digest your food, the more your body will spend its energy doing that, instead of burning fat or repairing muscle, etc...."Me: "Oh."And it's not that we get lots of meat, either. Greens are the prescribed food here and rolled oats in the morning, which I don't mind really, except that I'm usually in a mad rush and can only grab a Nescafe 3 in 1 on the go at 4.30am. I try my best to get up 15 minutes earlier, but I've only managed it twice so far (cooking rolled oats before work). I'm good about the water though. We're required to down 4-6 litres of water a day to flush out the system. Apparently, you can loose quite a lot of weight this way. I don't know lah, I've been running to the loo in between song breaks, so it'll be that or the cardio!so, err.....bring it on? (the food platter!)
Let's talk about food.I can't stomach anything on this new diet, actually. It's damn tough. I mean, on any normal day, chicken wouldn't be my meat of choice to begin with, but thank God I like fish. Unfortunately, I haven't a clue how to clean it and cook it, so I just end up buying sashimi! I asked Vince why red meat is a no no.Me: "Vince, why, aaah? Red meat cannot?"Vince: "You ever notice how when you cook lamb or beef rendang - it takes hours to make the meat soft? In some cases, the meat doesn't even get soft? That's how long it'll take for you to digest the food in your stomach if you eat red meat. Chicken takes less time to digest, fish even more so, it breaks apart easily. The longer you take to digest your food, the more your body will spend its energy doing that, instead of burning fat or repairing muscle, etc...."Me: "Oh."And it's not that we get lots of meat, either. Greens are the prescribed food here and rolled oats in the morning, which I don't mind really, except that I'm usually in a mad rush and can only grab a Nescafe 3 in 1 on the go at 4.30am. I try my best to get up 15 minutes earlier, but I've only managed it twice so far (cooking rolled oats before work). I'm good about the water though. We're required to down 4-6 litres of water a day to flush out the system. Apparently, you can loose quite a lot of weight this way. I don't know lah, I've been running to the loo in between song breaks, so it'll be that or the cardio!so, err.....bring it on? (the food platter!)
43rd post
stiff weekend!
Oh. My. God.I had to get my husband to haul me off the loo - my legs, butt and thighs were so sore and stiff from Friday's bootcamp session! If truth be told, it was a pain in the a$R$% to sit down on the loo, too! You guys try doing lunges and squats for an hour and not feel it afterwards!It wasn't actually like that lah. The girls and I joined an intermediate class session as part of our bootcamp training on friday night, so it was a more gruelling workout. I wanted to 'keep up' with the best of them, so as not to look like a complete wimp, but the body (sigh), is now suffering for it lah. Another thing I discovered about myself: I have absolutely no balance, grace or coordination. It's a wonder I can walk around and not injure myself on a daily basis!Anyway, bring it on....
Oh. My. God.I had to get my husband to haul me off the loo - my legs, butt and thighs were so sore and stiff from Friday's bootcamp session! If truth be told, it was a pain in the a$R$% to sit down on the loo, too! You guys try doing lunges and squats for an hour and not feel it afterwards!It wasn't actually like that lah. The girls and I joined an intermediate class session as part of our bootcamp training on friday night, so it was a more gruelling workout. I wanted to 'keep up' with the best of them, so as not to look like a complete wimp, but the body (sigh), is now suffering for it lah. Another thing I discovered about myself: I have absolutely no balance, grace or coordination. It's a wonder I can walk around and not injure myself on a daily basis!Anyway, bring it on....
42nd post
Nivea Bootcamp - Day 2
Ok, everyone commented on the 'enigmatic grin' I had on my face the entire time we were put through the gruelling motions last night. I was actually thinking about Daniel Craig. Specifically, the training he underwent to get that body you saw in Casino Royale. Phwoooooaaar! Anyway, it didn't come easy for him, and it's not coming easy for me either, so I was channeling my inner Bond Girl to get me through the entire HOUR. I kid you not.It was like an out of body experience. I felt lighter, more agile, more determined to get through the sets than I would, I suspect, if I were just plain 'ole me. This is my coping mechanism. I wonder what our trainer Vince would think, if he knew!I've been dealing with a REALLY bad cough these last three weeks - you know the kind that triggers off an asthma episode?, one of those. So I've volunteered to sleep downstairs in the guest room, as I'm getting up every half hour to cough, hack, gag, vomit and spit. Only thing is, the bed in the guest room ain't exactly from The Ritz, so can you imagine what my body feels like today! I don't know if I'm sore from the bootcamp or from sleeping on that bed! All that said, I'm enjoying the bootcamp so far - the girls and I are all geared up to take it to the next level!Bring it on!
Ok, everyone commented on the 'enigmatic grin' I had on my face the entire time we were put through the gruelling motions last night. I was actually thinking about Daniel Craig. Specifically, the training he underwent to get that body you saw in Casino Royale. Phwoooooaaar! Anyway, it didn't come easy for him, and it's not coming easy for me either, so I was channeling my inner Bond Girl to get me through the entire HOUR. I kid you not.It was like an out of body experience. I felt lighter, more agile, more determined to get through the sets than I would, I suspect, if I were just plain 'ole me. This is my coping mechanism. I wonder what our trainer Vince would think, if he knew!I've been dealing with a REALLY bad cough these last three weeks - you know the kind that triggers off an asthma episode?, one of those. So I've volunteered to sleep downstairs in the guest room, as I'm getting up every half hour to cough, hack, gag, vomit and spit. Only thing is, the bed in the guest room ain't exactly from The Ritz, so can you imagine what my body feels like today! I don't know if I'm sore from the bootcamp or from sleeping on that bed! All that said, I'm enjoying the bootcamp so far - the girls and I are all geared up to take it to the next level!Bring it on!
41st post
Nivea Bootcamp - Day 1
- the day after -Actually, I feel quite ok lah! (maybe I'm in better shape than I think! -yeah, dream on!) I expected to be sore all over, considering my arms were "shivering" when we did the moves yesterday. The only things that hurt are my feet, but that's because I have a condition called Plantar Fasciitis - heelspurs, and probably aggravated from running barefoot in the gym for the warmup.I'm looking forward to the second bootcamp session. Bring It On, baby!
- the day after -Actually, I feel quite ok lah! (maybe I'm in better shape than I think! -yeah, dream on!) I expected to be sore all over, considering my arms were "shivering" when we did the moves yesterday. The only things that hurt are my feet, but that's because I have a condition called Plantar Fasciitis - heelspurs, and probably aggravated from running barefoot in the gym for the warmup.I'm looking forward to the second bootcamp session. Bring It On, baby!
40th post
goodbye cellulite!
yeaaaahh.......
Ok, then. We've got the first bootcamp session tonight and it'll be ggggGGGGREEEAAAAT!
Nevermind that nobody but the maid is going to be home to tuck in the kids at bedtime for the next three weeks, that my husband will have to subsist on tapau food, canned soup with bread or cold casserole made in the afternoon.
Sacrifice a bit lah, hor? After all, it's all about me, me, ME.
And about bloody time, too.
yeaaaahh.......
Ok, then. We've got the first bootcamp session tonight and it'll be ggggGGGGREEEAAAAT!
Nevermind that nobody but the maid is going to be home to tuck in the kids at bedtime for the next three weeks, that my husband will have to subsist on tapau food, canned soup with bread or cold casserole made in the afternoon.
Sacrifice a bit lah, hor? After all, it's all about me, me, ME.
And about bloody time, too.
39th post
happy monday
Hi there! Sorry I've not updated this blog for yonks....I've been away all week and my modem at home has been FRIED....but never fear! I'm HERE! I'm here!The hubby and Milo have been sick as a pair of parrots all week, so I've been nurse-maiding on my so-called "holiday". Hmmm. Fun. I've caught the contagion and have been trying to shake this cough off for a week now. But despite the illnesses, Daniel and I managed to get some Gold Class action and saw blonde Bond on Saturday night.Wow.That Daniel Craig. Wasn't I right about him? Enough said. (I won't go on about him here coz Daniel [Kraehenbuehl] reads this and I don't want to be in the dog house!). Ooo-err...The busking thingamij at Bangsar Village happened on Saturday and was a lot of fun. The collection of non perishable items for Agathians Boys' Home in PJ was really good and the boys are very happy with your donations of rice, biscuits, cooking oil, soap powder, milo, cookies, etc. But there was ONE of you (and you know who you are) who had the cheek to give us a bag containing one free tee shirt (no doubt a freebie), a pair of old shorts and a used pair of slippers. WHY???????God, was I annoyed. Just because you're giving to charity, pleaselah don't dump your garbage. Think of the poor boys on the recieving end. If you were one of them, would you jump for joy at this? No doubt you think that anything is better than nothing, but come on lah. You can do better than that, surely?I want to thank everyone who gave generously and showed up to support the GIRLS for the Battle of the Sexes busking challenge....There was a big bag of stationery - paper, pens, crayons, exercise books, etc. Whoever gave us that for the Agathians....God bless you.Take care!20-11-2006
Hi there! Sorry I've not updated this blog for yonks....I've been away all week and my modem at home has been FRIED....but never fear! I'm HERE! I'm here!The hubby and Milo have been sick as a pair of parrots all week, so I've been nurse-maiding on my so-called "holiday". Hmmm. Fun. I've caught the contagion and have been trying to shake this cough off for a week now. But despite the illnesses, Daniel and I managed to get some Gold Class action and saw blonde Bond on Saturday night.Wow.That Daniel Craig. Wasn't I right about him? Enough said. (I won't go on about him here coz Daniel [Kraehenbuehl] reads this and I don't want to be in the dog house!). Ooo-err...The busking thingamij at Bangsar Village happened on Saturday and was a lot of fun. The collection of non perishable items for Agathians Boys' Home in PJ was really good and the boys are very happy with your donations of rice, biscuits, cooking oil, soap powder, milo, cookies, etc. But there was ONE of you (and you know who you are) who had the cheek to give us a bag containing one free tee shirt (no doubt a freebie), a pair of old shorts and a used pair of slippers. WHY???????God, was I annoyed. Just because you're giving to charity, pleaselah don't dump your garbage. Think of the poor boys on the recieving end. If you were one of them, would you jump for joy at this? No doubt you think that anything is better than nothing, but come on lah. You can do better than that, surely?I want to thank everyone who gave generously and showed up to support the GIRLS for the Battle of the Sexes busking challenge....There was a big bag of stationery - paper, pens, crayons, exercise books, etc. Whoever gave us that for the Agathians....God bless you.Take care!20-11-2006
38th post
Blonde Bond
In the news today, Daniel Craig has been hailed as the BEST James Bond EVER.
Hah!
See? All you naysayers...who said he was not fit to shine Pierce Brosnan's brosnans! Blonde Bond rules! Na nanana naaaaa!
I got a little hot and bothered when Anu said the other day that she couldn't fathom WHY I found Craig so apt for the role.
In her words: "He's so smarmy".
My husband said, "He looks like a Russian sea port thug" (he's just jealous).
I think Craig is apt for the role because he adds a gritty sex appeal lacking in the last two Bonds. I mean, Brosnan was ok, suave, debonair, he had oil in his hair and all that rot, but he was too debonair lah. Tim Dalton was just wrong wrong wrong. Give me gritty any day.
(Check out Daniel Craig in Munich and Layer Cake)
In the news today, Daniel Craig has been hailed as the BEST James Bond EVER.
Hah!
See? All you naysayers...who said he was not fit to shine Pierce Brosnan's brosnans! Blonde Bond rules! Na nanana naaaaa!
I got a little hot and bothered when Anu said the other day that she couldn't fathom WHY I found Craig so apt for the role.
In her words: "He's so smarmy".
My husband said, "He looks like a Russian sea port thug" (he's just jealous).
I think Craig is apt for the role because he adds a gritty sex appeal lacking in the last two Bonds. I mean, Brosnan was ok, suave, debonair, he had oil in his hair and all that rot, but he was too debonair lah. Tim Dalton was just wrong wrong wrong. Give me gritty any day.
(Check out Daniel Craig in Munich and Layer Cake)
37th post
the Grinch who stole DeepaRaya
There's just no denying it. I HATE fireworks.I hate it, hate it, HATE IT!!!!
With Deepavali and Hari Raya on the horizon, I risk making myself very unpopular with the neighbours with my endless complaints, but...if you think about it, why should I be overly worried about what they think or feel - they seem not to give two hoots about the rest of us, who go to bed early, have small babies, or just simply HATE noise.
I wish the Government would get really serious about this issue, instead of just saying every year, "it's illegal". Pah. Whatever.
There's just no denying it. I HATE fireworks.I hate it, hate it, HATE IT!!!!
With Deepavali and Hari Raya on the horizon, I risk making myself very unpopular with the neighbours with my endless complaints, but...if you think about it, why should I be overly worried about what they think or feel - they seem not to give two hoots about the rest of us, who go to bed early, have small babies, or just simply HATE noise.
I wish the Government would get really serious about this issue, instead of just saying every year, "it's illegal". Pah. Whatever.
36th post
all choked up
My father used to tell me when I was a small child, that if I tak puasa, the sky will come falling down on me.Hmmmm....looks to me like there are quite a lot of us yang tak puasa, judging on the current air quality!How are you all coping? Milo's been having nosebleeds, and my sinuses are completely out of whack. My eyes sting all the time and I can barely see anything when I'm driving. This is really baaaad....When I lived in Brickfields around the same time last year, the jerebu was so thick I couldn't see the KL Sentral train station from my condo, much less the Twin Towers, of which we normally had a stellar view! I remember how scary that was! It was right after War of the Worlds came out, so it felt like some kind of alien invasion, but nooo....just some open burning activity in the region....but damn scary lah, nevertheless.Anyhooo...all I can say is keep indoors, drink plenty of fluids and pray for clear skies and clean air again. We need it!
My father used to tell me when I was a small child, that if I tak puasa, the sky will come falling down on me.Hmmmm....looks to me like there are quite a lot of us yang tak puasa, judging on the current air quality!How are you all coping? Milo's been having nosebleeds, and my sinuses are completely out of whack. My eyes sting all the time and I can barely see anything when I'm driving. This is really baaaad....When I lived in Brickfields around the same time last year, the jerebu was so thick I couldn't see the KL Sentral train station from my condo, much less the Twin Towers, of which we normally had a stellar view! I remember how scary that was! It was right after War of the Worlds came out, so it felt like some kind of alien invasion, but nooo....just some open burning activity in the region....but damn scary lah, nevertheless.Anyhooo...all I can say is keep indoors, drink plenty of fluids and pray for clear skies and clean air again. We need it!
35th post
Oct 6th 2006
It's Milo's 2nd birthday today! Happy Birthday my sweet! Sorry mummy screamed at you yesterday like a banshee for flinging spagetti at your sister and mummy's lovely white walls...Anyhoooo.....a BIG thank you to Uncle Lawrence in Kuching for the birthday card (and the little extra enclosed!), that was really very nice of you. I'll make sure he doesn't spend it all on candy!Milo's having a birthday party at daycare and we're going to a potluck berbuka puasa-cum-lantern festival party tonight at our clubhouse - but the highlight will be the Gymboree party on Saturday. Man, this guy's social life is better than mine. You know that RSVP rant I went on and on about the other day on the Breakfast Show? Well, two of the three parents who didn't rsvp me (grrrr!!!!), actually called up (sheepishly, might I add) to [finally] let me know they wouldn't be attending with their kids! The power of RADIO, what. Anyway, hope you all have a great weekend and talk to you on Monday!
It's Milo's 2nd birthday today! Happy Birthday my sweet! Sorry mummy screamed at you yesterday like a banshee for flinging spagetti at your sister and mummy's lovely white walls...Anyhoooo.....a BIG thank you to Uncle Lawrence in Kuching for the birthday card (and the little extra enclosed!), that was really very nice of you. I'll make sure he doesn't spend it all on candy!Milo's having a birthday party at daycare and we're going to a potluck berbuka puasa-cum-lantern festival party tonight at our clubhouse - but the highlight will be the Gymboree party on Saturday. Man, this guy's social life is better than mine. You know that RSVP rant I went on and on about the other day on the Breakfast Show? Well, two of the three parents who didn't rsvp me (grrrr!!!!), actually called up (sheepishly, might I add) to [finally] let me know they wouldn't be attending with their kids! The power of RADIO, what. Anyway, hope you all have a great weekend and talk to you on Monday!
34th post
what's YOUR latte factor?
Whoooa......we got a TON of calls this morning on David Bach's book, "Start Late, Finish Rich".Honestly, speaking of Latte Factor and all, it was browsing in a bookstore, killing time that I picked up this book...and you know how that is...my latte factor happens to be magazines and books (and bottled water, ice mocha lattes, ironically!) so of course I HAD to buy this book for RM49.95! Wow. Think of it: if I bought a book that costs an average of 50 bucks every time I walk into a bookstore (and that's about 4 times a week), I'd be spending RM800.00 a month!That's RM 9,600 a year! Crazy or what? But anyhooo...I exagerate the figures, but you get what I mean. This book's a real eye opener and I suggest that if you are:1) over 30 2) have credit card debt 3) have little or no savings 4) are working for D' Man (as opposed to yourself) , then this book is for YOU! It's not about becoming a millionaire, it's about achieving financial freedom. Happy reading! It's not to late to finish RICH, IF (and only if) you do something about it TODAY.
Whoooa......we got a TON of calls this morning on David Bach's book, "Start Late, Finish Rich".Honestly, speaking of Latte Factor and all, it was browsing in a bookstore, killing time that I picked up this book...and you know how that is...my latte factor happens to be magazines and books (and bottled water, ice mocha lattes, ironically!) so of course I HAD to buy this book for RM49.95! Wow. Think of it: if I bought a book that costs an average of 50 bucks every time I walk into a bookstore (and that's about 4 times a week), I'd be spending RM800.00 a month!That's RM 9,600 a year! Crazy or what? But anyhooo...I exagerate the figures, but you get what I mean. This book's a real eye opener and I suggest that if you are:1) over 30 2) have credit card debt 3) have little or no savings 4) are working for D' Man (as opposed to yourself) , then this book is for YOU! It's not about becoming a millionaire, it's about achieving financial freedom. Happy reading! It's not to late to finish RICH, IF (and only if) you do something about it TODAY.
33rd post
My World
'My World' according to me, but based on questions by Harper's Bazaar, because I was bored and decided it was time to update this blog......
Your idea of heaven? Having a full night's uninterrupted sleep to wake up to a gourmet food fest expo in the Carribean, with no body issues on my mind and no cellulite on my arse! (I'd know I'd died and gone to heaven!)
Dream job? Food taster to Henry the 8th - the feasts in his day were legendary! Barring that, I also want to clean up after Jamie Oliver cooks for his show, so I can eat his food!...Mmmmmm...
Signature scents?Chicco's Mama Donna Bust Firming Cream. I wear it all over my body and it smells GREAT!
Which historical figure do you most identify with and why? Ghandi, because I'm perpetually starving. And I would walk a mile for something salty!
What makes you laugh? My husband, when we're indulging in mindless pillow talk. Also David Spade's character 'Dennis Finch' in Just Shoot Me.
What or whom do you find sexy?Oddly enough, I find Jeff Goldblum sexy. Also blond Bond, Daniel Craig - no matter WHAT anyone says about him!
What do you have your eye on? The smartfortwo! I want one!!!!
A favourite recent discovery? Magic Knickers from figleaves.com!!!! Bloody fantastic!
Your favourite places to shop? The Piggly Wiggly in Isle of Palms, South Carolina - because there's a Target, Borders, Gap and Starbucks next door. You can find me at Cold Storage, Bangsar on any given day though.
What are the most essential items in your wardrobe? I have three favourite jeans in three different sizes, you know for thin, normal and fat days. Lots of fitted cotton v-neck tees in white or black. Scholls and Birkenstocks for my footsie comfort. I can't wear heels!
A moment when you knew you had grown up? Doing my taxes and registering the births of my children, considering both were an unholy hassle - the doing, not the children!
On your bedstand? Shape magazine (Sept issue), lip balm, flask of water, Barney Goes to Bed (for Milo) and The Art of Dying by Vena Cork.
Trademark accessories? My wedding band.
'My World' according to me, but based on questions by Harper's Bazaar, because I was bored and decided it was time to update this blog......
Your idea of heaven? Having a full night's uninterrupted sleep to wake up to a gourmet food fest expo in the Carribean, with no body issues on my mind and no cellulite on my arse! (I'd know I'd died and gone to heaven!)
Dream job? Food taster to Henry the 8th - the feasts in his day were legendary! Barring that, I also want to clean up after Jamie Oliver cooks for his show, so I can eat his food!...Mmmmmm...
Signature scents?Chicco's Mama Donna Bust Firming Cream. I wear it all over my body and it smells GREAT!
Which historical figure do you most identify with and why? Ghandi, because I'm perpetually starving. And I would walk a mile for something salty!
What makes you laugh? My husband, when we're indulging in mindless pillow talk. Also David Spade's character 'Dennis Finch' in Just Shoot Me.
What or whom do you find sexy?Oddly enough, I find Jeff Goldblum sexy. Also blond Bond, Daniel Craig - no matter WHAT anyone says about him!
What do you have your eye on? The smartfortwo! I want one!!!!
A favourite recent discovery? Magic Knickers from figleaves.com!!!! Bloody fantastic!
Your favourite places to shop? The Piggly Wiggly in Isle of Palms, South Carolina - because there's a Target, Borders, Gap and Starbucks next door. You can find me at Cold Storage, Bangsar on any given day though.
What are the most essential items in your wardrobe? I have three favourite jeans in three different sizes, you know for thin, normal and fat days. Lots of fitted cotton v-neck tees in white or black. Scholls and Birkenstocks for my footsie comfort. I can't wear heels!
A moment when you knew you had grown up? Doing my taxes and registering the births of my children, considering both were an unholy hassle - the doing, not the children!
On your bedstand? Shape magazine (Sept issue), lip balm, flask of water, Barney Goes to Bed (for Milo) and The Art of Dying by Vena Cork.
Trademark accessories? My wedding band.
32nd post
slapper
Sophie turned 3 months old yesterday (sept 14th) and not only that, she literally turned! From her back to her front!Such a clever little girl! Was I chuffed!We must've made a bit of fuss because Milo didn't like it and slapped his sister in the face. She screamed blue bloody murder and wouldn't be pacified. Now she frets and starts to cry when he comes within striking distance.His royal green-eyed monster gets very jealous if he sees me or Nanny holding Sophie...he screams to be held and if I'm sitting, he'll think nothing of lanyakking his sister to get on my lap too. Macam mana nih!?? I must confess I was rather angry with him when he slapped his sister and my natural reaction was to smack him back and see if he appreciates the treatment...but you only get violence from violence. Plus, he'll start screaming, too and I already had a headache. And it's not on lah, right? What do you all do? I'd like to know.And...from being such a nice little sleeper, sleeping through the night from 7pm - 7 am, he's getting up TWICE a night now. Fuuuuuuuuudge.......
Sophie turned 3 months old yesterday (sept 14th) and not only that, she literally turned! From her back to her front!Such a clever little girl! Was I chuffed!We must've made a bit of fuss because Milo didn't like it and slapped his sister in the face. She screamed blue bloody murder and wouldn't be pacified. Now she frets and starts to cry when he comes within striking distance.His royal green-eyed monster gets very jealous if he sees me or Nanny holding Sophie...he screams to be held and if I'm sitting, he'll think nothing of lanyakking his sister to get on my lap too. Macam mana nih!?? I must confess I was rather angry with him when he slapped his sister and my natural reaction was to smack him back and see if he appreciates the treatment...but you only get violence from violence. Plus, he'll start screaming, too and I already had a headache. And it's not on lah, right? What do you all do? I'd like to know.And...from being such a nice little sleeper, sleeping through the night from 7pm - 7 am, he's getting up TWICE a night now. Fuuuuuuuuudge.......
31st post - with photos!
aaah...finally! Here are some latest photos of Milo and Sophie! Click on the photos to enlarge, it's clearer!
See the family resemblance? We're all nose and lips!
Milo and his hotwheels!
"I wonder if she'll squeel like a piggie if I poke her in the belly button..."
"I just LOVE my little sister. No, I'm not trying to strangle her, by the way..."
T shirt says it all.....
"Can't you tell I just did something REALLY naughty???"
"Oh Maaa....please get that camera out of my face already."
My little angels before bedtime
See the family resemblance? We're all nose and lips!
Milo and his hotwheels!
"I wonder if she'll squeel like a piggie if I poke her in the belly button..."
"I just LOVE my little sister. No, I'm not trying to strangle her, by the way..."
T shirt says it all.....
"Can't you tell I just did something REALLY naughty???"
"Oh Maaa....please get that camera out of my face already."
My little angels before bedtime
30th post
am I the Eskimo?
You know that old biscuit about selling ice to an Eskimo? Well, I'm that Eskimo, have always been that Eskimo, and will always be that Eskimo!Ok lah, the fact is, I went out and bought the Herbalife concoction.....waaaah....spent all weekend drooling at my husband's breakfast and lunch...but all in all, it's not so bad lah.
I'm combining it with Jorge Cruise's 3 hour diet, so I'm not exactly starving. It's mind over matter at this point, but my mind has an unnatural preoccupation with food. Daniel says this thing will make me even more fat because it'll trigger some deprivation panic button, which will make me freak out when faced with the reality of everyday mealtimes. I'm actually determined to show him that I've got some (even if it's not a lot) willpower and I can make it work for me. Actually, if anything, being on it has made me more mindful about what and how much I actually put in my mouth everytime I open it. That has to be good, no? Yeah??? Now I just have to get off my lazy bum and start exercising!
You know that old biscuit about selling ice to an Eskimo? Well, I'm that Eskimo, have always been that Eskimo, and will always be that Eskimo!Ok lah, the fact is, I went out and bought the Herbalife concoction.....waaaah....spent all weekend drooling at my husband's breakfast and lunch...but all in all, it's not so bad lah.
I'm combining it with Jorge Cruise's 3 hour diet, so I'm not exactly starving. It's mind over matter at this point, but my mind has an unnatural preoccupation with food. Daniel says this thing will make me even more fat because it'll trigger some deprivation panic button, which will make me freak out when faced with the reality of everyday mealtimes. I'm actually determined to show him that I've got some (even if it's not a lot) willpower and I can make it work for me. Actually, if anything, being on it has made me more mindful about what and how much I actually put in my mouth everytime I open it. That has to be good, no? Yeah??? Now I just have to get off my lazy bum and start exercising!
29th post
party or what! so true, so true... Suri Cruise - this is funny! googoo ga ga! wet, wild weekend! Spot the diff! How will you age? a day in the life... My dream dog Soul Mate, anyone? a year older, a year wiser...??? BABY NO. 3 a new idola now I''ve seen it all! the Universe answereth! The Secret these all inclusive vacations... The honeymooners! the best and the worst a touch of the super... a new take on Sanjaya... a good laugh good little egg my malaise idol letdown funny dog photo! highly sensitive Lost, the musical come dine with me lah! ultimate con job profound utterly incredible! ulu yam She can blow! My American Idol prediction slapper (for lack of a better header) sore b.side makan what else? things that make you go Hmmmm...! global warming, anyone? my ankle-biters Bubu, Slick, Button and Umbrella Milestones for Princess Lemongrass Happy Birthday to the old gal! Have a great year, people my neck got bigger! thrilled to bits! fat bottomed girls food or lack of stiff weekend! Nivea Bootcamp - day two Nivea Bootcamp - Day 1 goodbye cellulite! happy monday A v. good idea from Robert. Any takers? Blonde Bond think about it the Grinch who stole DeepaRaya all choked up Oct 6th 2006 what''s YOUR latte factor? kekok! My World slapper Photos!!!!! am I the Eskimo? pening kepara! Herba-whaaaat? watch this space Richard''s baby names! gerrrroffff me! (or : An End To Faking Headaches) distant memories...! ...I wax nostalgic before it even becomes a distant memory... Fat Loser''s Joy Luck Club membership for sale here! body beautifuuul! why oh why can someone tell me...? green eyed monstress all quiet on the home front my world cup $0.02 Tom Magnum vs Doc Martin Mes enfants: Sophie et Milo aiyoo, alamak! the horse''s mouth Sophie Milo Beeyooootifoool Couples thank you thank you thank you! season for pink booties open letter from Chris An end to Joy labour party battle of the sexes questions! my salad daze... happy mother''s day! not for singletons! sorry! a real killJOY pukevomit''s out! My friend Liz Are you Perfectly Matched? Agensi Pekerjaan Shaz! FRESH UPDATE: rack of lamb photos, as promised!!! rack of lamb, anyone? Is this a problem??? RED HOT spice for married life! Living Coffee with the most annoying man on TV new maid saga...week 2 Self Maid Woes Speaking of photos..... I hate this picture! Will someone please CHANGE THIS PICTURE!!!!
pening kepara!
Richard's wife complained (to me via Richard) that there are not enough pictures of Sophie up. That's how it is lah, with subsequent children, isn't it? I have about 7 albums of photos of Milo, but only one album featuring Sophie at home. We especially bought a videocam for Milo's birth but neglected to film Sophie's birth! Her papa wasn't even there at her birth because he was watching football in the next room!
Worst thing is, she doesn't even have a birth certificate yet! I procrastinated so much, that now I have to go for 'an interview' at JPN to get her registered and to determine that I didn't buy her off the internet on the black market! Champion lah. Please don't do this to your children. If you're more than 42 days late, They really f(%$^! you up....You have to provide photocopies of your grandmother/grandfather's ic all...passport photos of your entire family, full photo - including feet! - of your new baby, all certified TRUE COPIES of marriage certificates, prenatal appointment cards, etc. It's a REAL headache. Trust me on this.I am so stressed but I brought this upon myself. Urghh.
pening kepara!
Richard's wife complained (to me via Richard) that there are not enough pictures of Sophie up. That's how it is lah, with subsequent children, isn't it? I have about 7 albums of photos of Milo, but only one album featuring Sophie at home. We especially bought a videocam for Milo's birth but neglected to film Sophie's birth! Her papa wasn't even there at her birth because he was watching football in the next room!
Worst thing is, she doesn't even have a birth certificate yet! I procrastinated so much, that now I have to go for 'an interview' at JPN to get her registered and to determine that I didn't buy her off the internet on the black market! Champion lah. Please don't do this to your children. If you're more than 42 days late, They really f(%$^! you up....You have to provide photocopies of your grandmother/grandfather's ic all...passport photos of your entire family, full photo - including feet! - of your new baby, all certified TRUE COPIES of marriage certificates, prenatal appointment cards, etc. It's a REAL headache. Trust me on this.I am so stressed but I brought this upon myself. Urghh.
28th post
gerrrroffff me! (or : An End To Faking Headaches)
Ok, here's a foolproof recipe for repelling your significant other, especially if you don't want to get pregnant with a third child so soon after having a second one (and it also tastes grrrrreat!):
1 whole chicken1 lemon1 head of garlic (or 20!)
1 bunch of fresh rosemaryolive oilcoarse sea salt cracked black pepper
Preheat oven at 200'C.
With a very sharp poulet/kitchen scissors, cut the chicken in half at the breastbone and rinse well. Pat dry with paper towels. Line a roasting pan with baking paper.
Rub olive oil into both sides of the chicken, then rub a generous amount of sea salt and black pepper into the chicken skin.
Place a few sprigs of rosemary into the baking pan, put chicken (flat) on top of it, and flatten the chicken so it will cook evenly (ie. make sure the breast is butterflied outwards).
Cut the lemon into round slices and place on the chicken to flavour and keep it moist during roasting.
Also place the remaining sprigs of rosemary in/around the chicken (under the lemon slices also can!) to add flavour and aroma. I usually stuff them under the wings and in the celah-celah kangkang of the thighs!
Take garlic and separate the cloves, with the skin on, and just bung them into the pan whole (no need to chop up or slice). Yum!
Roasting time usually takes an hour or an hour and fifteen minutes. Check by cutting into chicken at leg joint, if juices run clear, it's done. Let the chicken stand for about 15 minutes before cutting to give the juices a chance to settle and make the chicken even more succulent.
Serve with mashed potatoes and/or steamed veggies/salad.
Enjoy!Your spouse will guarantee to NOT want to touch you romantically with a 10 foot pole after you eat all the lovely whole roasted garlic (which, if made correctly, should be slightly caramelised and so soft that it melts in your mouth! )...I could leave the chicken and just eat the garlic......SEDAP NAK MAMPUS!
Ok, here's a foolproof recipe for repelling your significant other, especially if you don't want to get pregnant with a third child so soon after having a second one (and it also tastes grrrrreat!):
1 whole chicken1 lemon1 head of garlic (or 20!)
1 bunch of fresh rosemaryolive oilcoarse sea salt cracked black pepper
Preheat oven at 200'C.
With a very sharp poulet/kitchen scissors, cut the chicken in half at the breastbone and rinse well. Pat dry with paper towels. Line a roasting pan with baking paper.
Rub olive oil into both sides of the chicken, then rub a generous amount of sea salt and black pepper into the chicken skin.
Place a few sprigs of rosemary into the baking pan, put chicken (flat) on top of it, and flatten the chicken so it will cook evenly (ie. make sure the breast is butterflied outwards).
Cut the lemon into round slices and place on the chicken to flavour and keep it moist during roasting.
Also place the remaining sprigs of rosemary in/around the chicken (under the lemon slices also can!) to add flavour and aroma. I usually stuff them under the wings and in the celah-celah kangkang of the thighs!
Take garlic and separate the cloves, with the skin on, and just bung them into the pan whole (no need to chop up or slice). Yum!
Roasting time usually takes an hour or an hour and fifteen minutes. Check by cutting into chicken at leg joint, if juices run clear, it's done. Let the chicken stand for about 15 minutes before cutting to give the juices a chance to settle and make the chicken even more succulent.
Serve with mashed potatoes and/or steamed veggies/salad.
Enjoy!Your spouse will guarantee to NOT want to touch you romantically with a 10 foot pole after you eat all the lovely whole roasted garlic (which, if made correctly, should be slightly caramelised and so soft that it melts in your mouth! )...I could leave the chicken and just eat the garlic......SEDAP NAK MAMPUS!
27th post
distant memories...!
My leisurely mornings have now become a distant memory.....sigh...
On a PLUS note...I've lost some poundage! Milo's school principle accosted me in the driveway today when I picked him up and told me I looked slimmer!!! (Yay, me!) Well, she said my face was looking slimmer, but heck, I'm not complaining. Hips and thighs are usually the last to go on me! I'm doing the "eat sensibly, but in smaller portions (than I'm used to), every 3 hours"...so it's a low-cal snack in between main meals, but anything I put in my mouth is 3 hourly...so far, it's going good since I kinda know I'm not going to starve - the next meal is in 3 hours lah.
If you're interested, check out Jorge Cruise's 'The Three Hour Diet"...first saw him on Oprah and his eating philosophy resonated with nutritional information I actually believe in, so I thought I'd check out his book. The great thing about it is he actually has normal everyday people as his success story models! Very inspiring!There was one humongous chickimamma who lost like a million pounds over the course of a year - her before and after photos are on my fridge! A reminder to leave Milo's Petit Miam's alone!
My leisurely mornings have now become a distant memory.....sigh...
On a PLUS note...I've lost some poundage! Milo's school principle accosted me in the driveway today when I picked him up and told me I looked slimmer!!! (Yay, me!) Well, she said my face was looking slimmer, but heck, I'm not complaining. Hips and thighs are usually the last to go on me! I'm doing the "eat sensibly, but in smaller portions (than I'm used to), every 3 hours"...so it's a low-cal snack in between main meals, but anything I put in my mouth is 3 hourly...so far, it's going good since I kinda know I'm not going to starve - the next meal is in 3 hours lah.
If you're interested, check out Jorge Cruise's 'The Three Hour Diet"...first saw him on Oprah and his eating philosophy resonated with nutritional information I actually believe in, so I thought I'd check out his book. The great thing about it is he actually has normal everyday people as his success story models! Very inspiring!There was one humongous chickimamma who lost like a million pounds over the course of a year - her before and after photos are on my fridge! A reminder to leave Milo's Petit Miam's alone!
26th post
...I wax nostalgic before it even becomes a distant memory...
My goodness, how the time just flies....Pretty soon, no more waking up with the sun already out and the birds singing outside my window....I will creep out of the house before the crack of dawn, like a thief in the night, trying not to wake up 1) my husband, 2) the babies, 3) the neighbours (once my car alarm went off and that was chronic!) and their neurotic dogs...But the thing I'll miss the most about being home full time is..........a slow steady Nescafe 3-in-1 in front of the telly at 7.30am watching Hollywood Squares and Just Shoot Me before the brats wake up!I am, however, looking forward to going back to work. Don't get me wrong, I love the children but conversing with a toddler and the hired help thoughout the day just ain't cutting it as far as intellectual stimulation goes. And you know how it is, when the man comes home and asks, "So, how was your day?"....you just draw a blank...Coz it's the same-o-same-o lah. He doesn't really want to hear about you battling wits and wills with a 2 year old or how the maid put your delicate pink things in with the brown towels...nooo...he's going to want to be dazzled...and there's nothing glamorous about staying home, believe you me.I used to be one of those women who wanted to be a stay at home mom, and envied my sisters and friends who 'got' to do just that, but....now....hmmmm...I don't think it's my scene. Mind you, the only reason I feel I can go back to work with a clear conscience is because I have a really good nanny (Nanny Annie!) and my new Indonesian maid is nice and on the ball. After that fiasco with Joy (read old blog), I can breathe a sigh of relief. I deserve just that!So...it'ss less than a week to go! See you on monday!
My goodness, how the time just flies....Pretty soon, no more waking up with the sun already out and the birds singing outside my window....I will creep out of the house before the crack of dawn, like a thief in the night, trying not to wake up 1) my husband, 2) the babies, 3) the neighbours (once my car alarm went off and that was chronic!) and their neurotic dogs...But the thing I'll miss the most about being home full time is..........a slow steady Nescafe 3-in-1 in front of the telly at 7.30am watching Hollywood Squares and Just Shoot Me before the brats wake up!I am, however, looking forward to going back to work. Don't get me wrong, I love the children but conversing with a toddler and the hired help thoughout the day just ain't cutting it as far as intellectual stimulation goes. And you know how it is, when the man comes home and asks, "So, how was your day?"....you just draw a blank...Coz it's the same-o-same-o lah. He doesn't really want to hear about you battling wits and wills with a 2 year old or how the maid put your delicate pink things in with the brown towels...nooo...he's going to want to be dazzled...and there's nothing glamorous about staying home, believe you me.I used to be one of those women who wanted to be a stay at home mom, and envied my sisters and friends who 'got' to do just that, but....now....hmmmm...I don't think it's my scene. Mind you, the only reason I feel I can go back to work with a clear conscience is because I have a really good nanny (Nanny Annie!) and my new Indonesian maid is nice and on the ball. After that fiasco with Joy (read old blog), I can breathe a sigh of relief. I deserve just that!So...it'ss less than a week to go! See you on monday!
25th post
Fat Loser's Joy Luck Club membership for sale here!
Ok, so I dug out my dusty copy of Jorge Cruise's "The Three Hour Diet" and have come up with the actual HOWs of how/why I got fat (raise your hands if you identify with any or all of the following):
1. Overeating (from basic glutony and/or 'fear of starvation' mentality).
2. Bad food choices (I crave cheeseburgers on a daily basis!) - also because fast food is easy food! No need for hours of shopping/preparing, etc.
3. Emotional eating - mostly from boredom/apathy and oddly enough, a 'fear of starvation' issue (more on that later).
4. Lack of excercise - I get more exercise from counting up the excuses not to excercise!
Ok, now that I've accepted the 'how come', here are the reasons why I want and need to change my attitude about food and excercise; basically, my targets and reasons why I want to achieve them:
1. To improve my health - to get rid of chronic pain in my feet, joints and back.
2. For more energy - to play with my children, not to mention my husband!
3. To buy new clothes off the rack, mind! - in line with plans to revamp my image (btw, thanks Gracie, for the "MILTF" anecdote!)
4. To fit into some great old clothes - I have a lot of nice things I still want to wear.
5. To feel more confident - in shorts and bathing suits, for annual holidays. My general attitude so far has been, so what, nobody knows me here in St Tropaz...!
6. To feel lighter - in body and spirit!
I am therefore, going public here with my pledge to myself, to COMMIT to the following:
1. I will not OVEREAT, but will eat every three hours as per Jorge Cruise's eating program.
2. I will make WISER food choices.
3. I will occupy myself elsewhere when bored or apathetic and not seek oral gratification from food.
4. I will commit to a walking program (see? I am still not commiting to the gym! Let's not lie to ourselves, shall we? LOL)
5. I will focus on the me I want to be and know I have it in me to achieve - as opposed to the negative self talk I occasionally indulge in.
6. I will not lapse. And if I do, I will not let it do me in.
I hope that if any of you have been thinking of making lifestyle changes like these, you will let me know, and we can support each other on this journey for health and happiness. I know I'm not alone, and I hope if you're embarking on a new eating or exercise program, we can spur each other on! We can call it Shaz's Fat Loser's Joy Luck Club! (Losers in that we LOSE the Fat lah, stupid! Not that we are losers, in the loosest sense of the word....nevermind! You get the drift!)
BTW, Richard looking a heck of a lot slimmer these days, now that I'm not there to bring up breakfast!
* my 'fear of starvation' issue stems from my literal starvation of any [decent] food while at boarding school. I never had anything good to eat while at TKC (it was like that scene from Oliver Twist!), except when my parents visited (which was few and far between) and I would gorge myself like that was my last [decent] meal. Through the years, I noticed that this issue has really affected me and my relationship with food. I have to remind myself to "breathe Shaz...you will have an excellent meal again tomorrow, if not in three hours time..." Yeah, yeah, you all laugh lah, but it's true.
Ok, so I dug out my dusty copy of Jorge Cruise's "The Three Hour Diet" and have come up with the actual HOWs of how/why I got fat (raise your hands if you identify with any or all of the following):
1. Overeating (from basic glutony and/or 'fear of starvation' mentality).
2. Bad food choices (I crave cheeseburgers on a daily basis!) - also because fast food is easy food! No need for hours of shopping/preparing, etc.
3. Emotional eating - mostly from boredom/apathy and oddly enough, a 'fear of starvation' issue (more on that later).
4. Lack of excercise - I get more exercise from counting up the excuses not to excercise!
Ok, now that I've accepted the 'how come', here are the reasons why I want and need to change my attitude about food and excercise; basically, my targets and reasons why I want to achieve them:
1. To improve my health - to get rid of chronic pain in my feet, joints and back.
2. For more energy - to play with my children, not to mention my husband!
3. To buy new clothes off the rack, mind! - in line with plans to revamp my image (btw, thanks Gracie, for the "MILTF" anecdote!)
4. To fit into some great old clothes - I have a lot of nice things I still want to wear.
5. To feel more confident - in shorts and bathing suits, for annual holidays. My general attitude so far has been, so what, nobody knows me here in St Tropaz...!
6. To feel lighter - in body and spirit!
I am therefore, going public here with my pledge to myself, to COMMIT to the following:
1. I will not OVEREAT, but will eat every three hours as per Jorge Cruise's eating program.
2. I will make WISER food choices.
3. I will occupy myself elsewhere when bored or apathetic and not seek oral gratification from food.
4. I will commit to a walking program (see? I am still not commiting to the gym! Let's not lie to ourselves, shall we? LOL)
5. I will focus on the me I want to be and know I have it in me to achieve - as opposed to the negative self talk I occasionally indulge in.
6. I will not lapse. And if I do, I will not let it do me in.
I hope that if any of you have been thinking of making lifestyle changes like these, you will let me know, and we can support each other on this journey for health and happiness. I know I'm not alone, and I hope if you're embarking on a new eating or exercise program, we can spur each other on! We can call it Shaz's Fat Loser's Joy Luck Club! (Losers in that we LOSE the Fat lah, stupid! Not that we are losers, in the loosest sense of the word....nevermind! You get the drift!)
BTW, Richard looking a heck of a lot slimmer these days, now that I'm not there to bring up breakfast!
* my 'fear of starvation' issue stems from my literal starvation of any [decent] food while at boarding school. I never had anything good to eat while at TKC (it was like that scene from Oliver Twist!), except when my parents visited (which was few and far between) and I would gorge myself like that was my last [decent] meal. Through the years, I noticed that this issue has really affected me and my relationship with food. I have to remind myself to "breathe Shaz...you will have an excellent meal again tomorrow, if not in three hours time..." Yeah, yeah, you all laugh lah, but it's true.
25th post
body beautifuuul!
Body DYSMORPHIA, more like it!
I just got a look at some post-natal photos yesterday and whoooaa....hang on there a minute....when did I get so FAAAAAAT? I mean, just that morning, I stood in front of the mirror after mandi-ing to towel off, and it didn't register, maaah. So how come, all of a sudden, I look like someone's auntie??? I mean, up to that point, I rather thought I was still quite dishy, whaaat. Turns out I've got some kind of reverse body dysmorphia. Yikes. God, all this while my eyes and, to a larger extent, my brain, must've been deceiving me - or I must be in COMPLETE and UTTER denial. This is definitely a wake-up call...like when Kristie Allie saw her hugeass ass on the cover of the gossip magazines! Let's just hope that never happens here! Not pretty...
Body DYSMORPHIA, more like it!
I just got a look at some post-natal photos yesterday and whoooaa....hang on there a minute....when did I get so FAAAAAAT? I mean, just that morning, I stood in front of the mirror after mandi-ing to towel off, and it didn't register, maaah. So how come, all of a sudden, I look like someone's auntie??? I mean, up to that point, I rather thought I was still quite dishy, whaaat. Turns out I've got some kind of reverse body dysmorphia. Yikes. God, all this while my eyes and, to a larger extent, my brain, must've been deceiving me - or I must be in COMPLETE and UTTER denial. This is definitely a wake-up call...like when Kristie Allie saw her hugeass ass on the cover of the gossip magazines! Let's just hope that never happens here! Not pretty...
24th post
why oh why
Of all the things that mystify me, why God created morning breath is the one that truly boggles the mind. I mean, yes, God works in mysterious ways and all that, but I'm still trying to get my mind around that one! Do you ever wonder WHY, what on earth could be the reason for so rank a thing, so early in the morning? We all know the biological reason of how a thing like that should be, but do we know why it has to be so? I mean, you've had recreation and romance in the night...and then, the next morning, you need a verrrry thick duvet between your face and his to filter out the said rank morning breath. Talk about killer of moods.Yes, we are talking about it, though I've just brushed my teeth (yay!). Yealah, nowadays that I am actually home to wake up with my husband in the morning, this phenomena occupies my thoughts. That and why God created mosquitoes.Why did He create such things? What could've been the benefit of having such an annoying, bloodthirsty thing in our midst? And while we're on the topic, what are cockroaches put on the earth for? They serve no point or purpose, and can't even be eaten (well, in polite society!).
Why lah? WHY?
Of all the things that mystify me, why God created morning breath is the one that truly boggles the mind. I mean, yes, God works in mysterious ways and all that, but I'm still trying to get my mind around that one! Do you ever wonder WHY, what on earth could be the reason for so rank a thing, so early in the morning? We all know the biological reason of how a thing like that should be, but do we know why it has to be so? I mean, you've had recreation and romance in the night...and then, the next morning, you need a verrrry thick duvet between your face and his to filter out the said rank morning breath. Talk about killer of moods.Yes, we are talking about it, though I've just brushed my teeth (yay!). Yealah, nowadays that I am actually home to wake up with my husband in the morning, this phenomena occupies my thoughts. That and why God created mosquitoes.Why did He create such things? What could've been the benefit of having such an annoying, bloodthirsty thing in our midst? And while we're on the topic, what are cockroaches put on the earth for? They serve no point or purpose, and can't even be eaten (well, in polite society!).
Why lah? WHY?
23rd post
can someone tell me...?
ok, calling all Sisterrrrs out there......!Yes, you, you shiny happy people.....Can you tell me, if David Rocco is...or isn't he....?Because, not that I'm a total expert or anything...but he sort of is, isn't he?I mean, the guy dresses well, is so articulate and gentle and flicks his wrists when he cooks.It's all in the wrists, you all say.Betul ke?I was just curious, coz Non...well, you know...he said...Hahahaha...!(well, he did! and HE should know, he carries a manbag!)
ok, calling all Sisterrrrs out there......!Yes, you, you shiny happy people.....Can you tell me, if David Rocco is...or isn't he....?Because, not that I'm a total expert or anything...but he sort of is, isn't he?I mean, the guy dresses well, is so articulate and gentle and flicks his wrists when he cooks.It's all in the wrists, you all say.Betul ke?I was just curious, coz Non...well, you know...he said...Hahahaha...!(well, he did! and HE should know, he carries a manbag!)
23rd post
green eyed monstress
I am soooo jealous! I read Non's blog and seems like he had lots of fun in the States.I remember what it was like to be footloose and fancy-free.No need to ring ten people to see who can babysit last minute so you can eat someone else's cooking for once.Always had cash for spa sessions, updating your highlights - nevermind a proper haircut at a decent salon.No automatic mental calculation every time you hit the supermarket to see if you still need to stock up on wet-wipes and proper food (ie. lamb chops, vegetables and not Doritos).
NO MAID DRAMA....sigh...
(and the Murano observation at the end was just too much, Non...too much...)
I am soooo jealous! I read Non's blog and seems like he had lots of fun in the States.I remember what it was like to be footloose and fancy-free.No need to ring ten people to see who can babysit last minute so you can eat someone else's cooking for once.Always had cash for spa sessions, updating your highlights - nevermind a proper haircut at a decent salon.No automatic mental calculation every time you hit the supermarket to see if you still need to stock up on wet-wipes and proper food (ie. lamb chops, vegetables and not Doritos).
NO MAID DRAMA....sigh...
(and the Murano observation at the end was just too much, Non...too much...)
22nd post
my world cup $0.02
Whaaaaatlah...this has got to be the strangest World Cup ever.
Imagine...France couldn't even score against Switzerland in the first round, yet managed to beat Brazil.Brazil laah, hello!!!?The mind boggles.A lot of weird/wierd (a bit dyslexic today) inconsistencies throughout this year's WC I say, but nevermind me....I ain't no (aherm!) football pundit (sniggersniggersnigger). By the by, how does one become an expert on the subject? Does one have had to have played football at some professional level to be able to legitimately (not to mention convincingly and intelligently) comment on the subject? Is it enough to have clocked millions of hours watching and studying the game and its players from the relative comfort of one's couch? Or does mere passion and enthusiasm qualify one to have a valid opinion? It seems to me that everyone's a pundit these days. Even me - I'm a celebrity gossip pundit! I can offer my 2 cents on the longevity of the Brangelina and/or TomKat liason, or the next celebrity/"mystery-meat" to get it on with Jude Law/Olivier Martinez/Lindsay Lohan...all based solely on sheer morbid interest and a longstanding observation of celebrity happenings from (yes!) the comfort of my own couch!
So I guess I just answered my own question.
Whaaaaatlah...this has got to be the strangest World Cup ever.
Imagine...France couldn't even score against Switzerland in the first round, yet managed to beat Brazil.Brazil laah, hello!!!?The mind boggles.A lot of weird/wierd (a bit dyslexic today) inconsistencies throughout this year's WC I say, but nevermind me....I ain't no (aherm!) football pundit (sniggersniggersnigger). By the by, how does one become an expert on the subject? Does one have had to have played football at some professional level to be able to legitimately (not to mention convincingly and intelligently) comment on the subject? Is it enough to have clocked millions of hours watching and studying the game and its players from the relative comfort of one's couch? Or does mere passion and enthusiasm qualify one to have a valid opinion? It seems to me that everyone's a pundit these days. Even me - I'm a celebrity gossip pundit! I can offer my 2 cents on the longevity of the Brangelina and/or TomKat liason, or the next celebrity/"mystery-meat" to get it on with Jude Law/Olivier Martinez/Lindsay Lohan...all based solely on sheer morbid interest and a longstanding observation of celebrity happenings from (yes!) the comfort of my own couch!
So I guess I just answered my own question.
21st post
Tom Magnum vs Doc Martin
Hi ya.More like, hai yaaaa!
Despite all the babies and running around, I still find time to sit and watch the telly, and I TELL you, there's NOTHING on. Have you seen David Rocco's Dolce Vitta??? Puh-leeeeze. Is this guy for real? I want to smack him and give him a feather boa and some red lipstick and tell him to Be True To Himself.
When I was on maternity leave with Milo and breastfeeding 24-7, I was obsessed with Magnum P.I. reruns every morning at 10am. Now, it's Doc Martin at 9.30am. There's just no accounting for what some people (ie. me) will find attractive, I suppose...Tom Selleck was hot in his day, but Martin Clunes??? Shaz?! hello? You ok?I mean, he (Martin Clunes that is - who plays Dr Martin Ellingham on the show) is a grumpy bollocks, but he's got kind of nice, plump lips and his utter straightness ('rudeness', more like) is hysterically funny and endearing, especially when you see him trying to act somewhat human with the object of his desire, Louise, the village schoolmarm.
Now, I've never been one for hot looking men (despite marrying one - but that was pure luck!), but I think Doc Martin's really attractive. He's nothing in the looks department. In fact, he looks very typically English (sorry if I offend). But he's got such character and personality that he comes across as somewhat of a hottie.[HAHAHA!!! I'm smirking like crazy here!!!]Ok, only if you like tall, pasty, grumpy, caustically witty, clueless about women, loner, sad types. But watch this show a couple of times and you'll see what I'm talking about. The sexual tension between Martin and Louise is so "aaargh!!!!!" that I find myself holding my breath every time these two have a scene together! Wooaaaruugh! Wowser! Yowza!In one episode, DM saves a little boy's life and after the drama and tension and all that, finds himself passionately kissing L in the back of a cab. They were sucking face like mad, I tell youuuu! After which, he goes and spoils it all by asking her if she had a regular oral-care regime. Yikes. And he does this, the viewer suspects, not out of malice or sheer stupidity, but because it's the only way he knows how to cope with normal human emotions. He's not cold or callous, he's clueless, poor thing. And the endearing thing about him is that he knows it and you can see him struggling with this issue. Like Simon Cowell, he doesn't have time to be nice-nicey. He shoots straight from the hip. But with regards to Louise...he's just...pathetic and real. Somehow.Doc Martin is actually soooo highly intelligent, that he lacks the basic social graces one needs for normal human interaction in his small, close-knit community of Portwenn; what more for a boy-girl relationship. Alas, Louise is in a state of perpetual sexual and emotional frustration. There's an emotional cliffhanger in every episode where these two are concerned, made even more interesting with the arrival of Dan, Louise's ex from London.
I'm hooked, even if they are reruns.Who's the sad one, eh?
ps: I just reread what I wrote and I think I need to go OUT more....I'm over analysing a tv show character, for God's sake.
Hi ya.More like, hai yaaaa!
Despite all the babies and running around, I still find time to sit and watch the telly, and I TELL you, there's NOTHING on. Have you seen David Rocco's Dolce Vitta??? Puh-leeeeze. Is this guy for real? I want to smack him and give him a feather boa and some red lipstick and tell him to Be True To Himself.
When I was on maternity leave with Milo and breastfeeding 24-7, I was obsessed with Magnum P.I. reruns every morning at 10am. Now, it's Doc Martin at 9.30am. There's just no accounting for what some people (ie. me) will find attractive, I suppose...Tom Selleck was hot in his day, but Martin Clunes??? Shaz?! hello? You ok?I mean, he (Martin Clunes that is - who plays Dr Martin Ellingham on the show) is a grumpy bollocks, but he's got kind of nice, plump lips and his utter straightness ('rudeness', more like) is hysterically funny and endearing, especially when you see him trying to act somewhat human with the object of his desire, Louise, the village schoolmarm.
Now, I've never been one for hot looking men (despite marrying one - but that was pure luck!), but I think Doc Martin's really attractive. He's nothing in the looks department. In fact, he looks very typically English (sorry if I offend). But he's got such character and personality that he comes across as somewhat of a hottie.[HAHAHA!!! I'm smirking like crazy here!!!]Ok, only if you like tall, pasty, grumpy, caustically witty, clueless about women, loner, sad types. But watch this show a couple of times and you'll see what I'm talking about. The sexual tension between Martin and Louise is so "aaargh!!!!!" that I find myself holding my breath every time these two have a scene together! Wooaaaruugh! Wowser! Yowza!In one episode, DM saves a little boy's life and after the drama and tension and all that, finds himself passionately kissing L in the back of a cab. They were sucking face like mad, I tell youuuu! After which, he goes and spoils it all by asking her if she had a regular oral-care regime. Yikes. And he does this, the viewer suspects, not out of malice or sheer stupidity, but because it's the only way he knows how to cope with normal human emotions. He's not cold or callous, he's clueless, poor thing. And the endearing thing about him is that he knows it and you can see him struggling with this issue. Like Simon Cowell, he doesn't have time to be nice-nicey. He shoots straight from the hip. But with regards to Louise...he's just...pathetic and real. Somehow.Doc Martin is actually soooo highly intelligent, that he lacks the basic social graces one needs for normal human interaction in his small, close-knit community of Portwenn; what more for a boy-girl relationship. Alas, Louise is in a state of perpetual sexual and emotional frustration. There's an emotional cliffhanger in every episode where these two are concerned, made even more interesting with the arrival of Dan, Louise's ex from London.
I'm hooked, even if they are reruns.Who's the sad one, eh?
ps: I just reread what I wrote and I think I need to go OUT more....I'm over analysing a tv show character, for God's sake.
20th post - with photos!
Mes enfants: Sophie et Milo (taken in June 2006)
Here's the latest addition to our family, Sophie! And Milo's here too, for good measure...
Milo kisses with his forehead!
I quite like that baby, actually...
by the way, that's my granny's tummy, not my mom's!
now I gotta sit outside and have a smoke, like Tok Aki...
two sexy babes!
under the lamp
Here's the latest addition to our family, Sophie! And Milo's here too, for good measure...
Milo kisses with his forehead!
I quite like that baby, actually...
by the way, that's my granny's tummy, not my mom's!
now I gotta sit outside and have a smoke, like Tok Aki...
two sexy babes!
under the lamp
19th post
Sophie
Hello People!
First of all, thanks for all the 'good lucks' and 'all the bests' to me, and the new addition to our family! Means a lot to us!Wow. What a week. Sophie lies snoring in my bed as I type this at 7.20am, Wednesday morning. She is exactly 1 week old! In case you didn't catch it, she came EARLY, not just in terms of weeks, but also in terms of timing - the doctor hadn't even reached the hospital yet (though that didn't stop him from charging his specialist fee!) and I was alone in the labour room, dozing - courtesy of the epidural (lovely, lovely epidural!). My champion husband was in the next room watching the world cup highlights. I felt the contractions coming hard, but didn't think anything about it as they were like that the whole night/morning. I thought, 'what the hell, just sleep it through lah'). Next thing I know, I felt something 'plopping' wetly between my legs...I put my hand down there and felt her head, and called the nurses in!!! (BTW, shouldn't they be monitoring the contractions from the nurse's station???!!!). I also had my mobile, and was frantically calling Daniel, but he had put his mobile in my handbag - in the labour room! I was frantic, not only becaus this was MAJOR (I was worried because Sophie wasn't making a sound), but because he was going to miss Sophie being born! The nurses were calm, and helped to quickly deliver her shoulders, but they were a little quick to cut the umbilical cord. Alas, Daniel missed it. I was telling them to call him, and when they finally did, she was all wrapped up and I was delivering the placenta!He was in a daze because he had only left the room to watch the telly next door for a few minutes and didn't believe the nurse when she told him that his daughter was born! He was like, "Yeah, right!" and continued watching tv! Can you believe that! Anyway, he was just grateful that there were no complications (seeing that the doctor was MIA and all that), and his girls were fine.I was just grateful I didn't TEAR.
Whooooooo-hoooooo!!!!!What excitement! Milo is acting pretty normal, on top of all this, so that's a plus. He tried feeding her a popudam on one of his visits to the hospital! Hmmm. That, my dears, is normal Milo behaviour.Sophie really looks like a 'Sophie'. I will upload photos as soon as I can!!! Promise! By this weekend, at the very latest!
Sophie Shiloh Aman Kraehenbuehl was born on Wednesday morning, June 14th 2006. She is a healthy (albeit somewhat jaundiced) 3.8kg and a lovely, quiet little girl.
Hello People!
First of all, thanks for all the 'good lucks' and 'all the bests' to me, and the new addition to our family! Means a lot to us!Wow. What a week. Sophie lies snoring in my bed as I type this at 7.20am, Wednesday morning. She is exactly 1 week old! In case you didn't catch it, she came EARLY, not just in terms of weeks, but also in terms of timing - the doctor hadn't even reached the hospital yet (though that didn't stop him from charging his specialist fee!) and I was alone in the labour room, dozing - courtesy of the epidural (lovely, lovely epidural!). My champion husband was in the next room watching the world cup highlights. I felt the contractions coming hard, but didn't think anything about it as they were like that the whole night/morning. I thought, 'what the hell, just sleep it through lah'). Next thing I know, I felt something 'plopping' wetly between my legs...I put my hand down there and felt her head, and called the nurses in!!! (BTW, shouldn't they be monitoring the contractions from the nurse's station???!!!). I also had my mobile, and was frantically calling Daniel, but he had put his mobile in my handbag - in the labour room! I was frantic, not only becaus this was MAJOR (I was worried because Sophie wasn't making a sound), but because he was going to miss Sophie being born! The nurses were calm, and helped to quickly deliver her shoulders, but they were a little quick to cut the umbilical cord. Alas, Daniel missed it. I was telling them to call him, and when they finally did, she was all wrapped up and I was delivering the placenta!He was in a daze because he had only left the room to watch the telly next door for a few minutes and didn't believe the nurse when she told him that his daughter was born! He was like, "Yeah, right!" and continued watching tv! Can you believe that! Anyway, he was just grateful that there were no complications (seeing that the doctor was MIA and all that), and his girls were fine.I was just grateful I didn't TEAR.
Whooooooo-hoooooo!!!!!What excitement! Milo is acting pretty normal, on top of all this, so that's a plus. He tried feeding her a popudam on one of his visits to the hospital! Hmmm. That, my dears, is normal Milo behaviour.Sophie really looks like a 'Sophie'. I will upload photos as soon as I can!!! Promise! By this weekend, at the very latest!
Sophie Shiloh Aman Kraehenbuehl was born on Wednesday morning, June 14th 2006. She is a healthy (albeit somewhat jaundiced) 3.8kg and a lovely, quiet little girl.
18th post
Milo
Toddlers - are they babies? Are they children? Are they HUMAN???!Milo has discovered his nostrils (ie. 'nose hole' according to his dad). He is quite obsessed with sticking his finger in there and digging.The first time I saw him doing this I thought it was rather cute. Now I'm worried the constant digging will enlarge a rather quaint lubang...Why do children do this? It's like it puts them in some kind of transcendental state, or something! He could be watching Higgly Town Heroes on the telly or eating his dinner and suddenly plop!, in goes one finger and no matter what you do to try and distract him, he's right in there!It's downright embarassing in polite company.We've started training him for his move to the Big Bed weeks ago....(so we can put the new baby in his old cot)...it's been going ok...last night he actually only got up once from the bed and stood outside our bedroom door. It's really sweet: Milo will sneak out of bed, pad softly with his moose-bear trailing behind him and just stand outside our semi closed door. If we ignore him, he'll quietly look around the door. Then we'll get up and gently tell him to go back to bed,...he'll run back into his room giggling, but this'll happen at least 4 more times before we place him back in the cot for the night. That's why we're so proud he made it a full night in the Big Bed! What a milestone! What a big boy! When I think back to the day he was born, how small he was, mewling like a kitten, it breaks my heart (in a good way) to see him so big and independent...pretty soon he'll start proper school and wear a uniform! Awww! Some days I want to keep him a baby forever, and when he's being difficult, I wish he were older and someone you can actually reason with. In my heavily pregnant state, I'm not exactly a picture of Patience on a Monument, if you get my drift. I try though, God help us all.My due date draws very near. It could happen any day now. Wish me luck!
Toddlers - are they babies? Are they children? Are they HUMAN???!Milo has discovered his nostrils (ie. 'nose hole' according to his dad). He is quite obsessed with sticking his finger in there and digging.The first time I saw him doing this I thought it was rather cute. Now I'm worried the constant digging will enlarge a rather quaint lubang...Why do children do this? It's like it puts them in some kind of transcendental state, or something! He could be watching Higgly Town Heroes on the telly or eating his dinner and suddenly plop!, in goes one finger and no matter what you do to try and distract him, he's right in there!It's downright embarassing in polite company.We've started training him for his move to the Big Bed weeks ago....(so we can put the new baby in his old cot)...it's been going ok...last night he actually only got up once from the bed and stood outside our bedroom door. It's really sweet: Milo will sneak out of bed, pad softly with his moose-bear trailing behind him and just stand outside our semi closed door. If we ignore him, he'll quietly look around the door. Then we'll get up and gently tell him to go back to bed,...he'll run back into his room giggling, but this'll happen at least 4 more times before we place him back in the cot for the night. That's why we're so proud he made it a full night in the Big Bed! What a milestone! What a big boy! When I think back to the day he was born, how small he was, mewling like a kitten, it breaks my heart (in a good way) to see him so big and independent...pretty soon he'll start proper school and wear a uniform! Awww! Some days I want to keep him a baby forever, and when he's being difficult, I wish he were older and someone you can actually reason with. In my heavily pregnant state, I'm not exactly a picture of Patience on a Monument, if you get my drift. I try though, God help us all.My due date draws very near. It could happen any day now. Wish me luck!
17th post
Beeyooootifoool Couples
Beautiful Couples
I was looking at pictures of Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman in a gossip magazine, and was just blown away at how happy and comfortable they both looked with each other. They look so genuinely in love and very relaxed about it (unlike TomKat, who feel they need PDA OTT everywhere!). I never really thought much of Nic until after she and Tom Cruise split up - after that happened, I feel the woman just bloomed! Don't you think??? She really blossomed! Her acting just got better (remember The Hours, Moulin Rouge, etc?), she became more appealing as a celebrity, she seemed more interesting as a person (heck, she dated Lenny Kravitz and Steven Bing!).and she didn't moan about being dumped - and she was dumped for Penelope Cruz, mind you! - unlike sad old Jennifer Anistan, and she basically kept her dignity and her mouth shut about any new romances.
She had class - how she handled that crisis in her life.
And that Keith Urban...wooooarrrrughhh! Gives me the shivers. He's such a dish! They suit each other like a pair of really soft kid golf gloves, slim and sexy, togeder-geder. You look at Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes and just wonder..what is the story here? Why so over the top? Why is her body language betraying his megawatt smile? Why do her eyes look sad, her smile tentative? Why is she always fidgeting with her clothes, hair, etc when seen out in public with him? No doubt, in the early days, Katie was just as bad as Tom...but lately, she looks like having to keep up appearances is taking its toll. I wonder just how long she'll be able to keep it up.
The reason I feel a tad sympathetic towards Holmes is because I feel like I've been there. I once dated a much older, in-control (read: controlling) man. Yessss.. it was initially nice to feel cared for, but that feeling becaming one of suffocation eventually. What was a dream come true quickly became a worst nightmare. Hate to say it Katie, it looks kinda like your impending scenario. I mean, if he's already converted you to some quack cult!, alienated you from your family whom you were very close to, told you how to silently beranak, how he wants you to raise his child, chosen your wedding dress, enrolled you in a slimming program!, calls you a hundred times to check up on you - then calls your bodyguard to see why you are not picking up, etc.,.well!, it doesn't bode well, does it?!! The signs are all there: the concerned family members and former friends, the 'Dump Tom' website (!)... Girl, take heed. I wish I could take this young woman aside, give her two tight slaps and have a quiet word about Waking Up.
Just like some of my friends wanted to do with me when I was in her shoes. Did I listen? Of course not lah. I had concerned friends drop out of my life because I was so determined to make right something that was definitely not, and well, I guess in the end, God is Greater than any will of my own. He got me out of that one before it was too late and I ruined my life.
You look at Nicole and Keith and just from the pictures, think: these two let each other be who they are. They are free in how they love each other. It looks like a keeper relationship, something that'll last. They have nothing to prove to the public. Nothing to show. Nothing to hide. They are downright cool. It's cool, isn't it? Wish more couples were cool like that.
Other Cool Couples (in my book):
My mom and dad
Uncle Z and Aunty A (he once said to his wife, "I forbide you to wear a tudung!"
Tom Hanks and wife Rita? (name escapes me)
Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith
Prince Charles and Camilla Packa-Balls (just for being in love for 100 years!)
Elton John and David Furnish
Tun Dr M. and wife
Pierce Brosnan and wife Keely Shaye-Smith (he loves her despite the tremendous weight gain - he's a hero in my book!)
Not-Cool-At-All Couples:
TomKatPosh and BecksBritney and Kevin (yuck)
Sven Goran Erickson and his determined lawyer/geisha lady
J.Lo and Marc Anthony (ew!)
Jude Law and Sienna Miller (or whomever he's tupping at the mo)
Paris Hilton and whomever the garcon du jour is
Lindsay Lohan and Bruce Willis (hahaha!)
Downright-Dodgy Couples:
Brangelina!
Jordan (aka Katie Price) and Peter Andre
Madonna and Guy Richie
Oprah Winfrey and Stedman Grahamthe
Hugh Grant-Jemima Khan-Elizabeth Hurley triangle
I takes all kinds to make up a couple. While I know there are no perfect couples in this world, it's good to look at people in positive relationships and see how they make things work.
Have fun making it work!(to my husband reading this: I LOVE YOU! You're my Keith Urban! I'm your Nicole Kidman!...but we outweigh them by about 200lbs! Haha!)
Beautiful Couples
I was looking at pictures of Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman in a gossip magazine, and was just blown away at how happy and comfortable they both looked with each other. They look so genuinely in love and very relaxed about it (unlike TomKat, who feel they need PDA OTT everywhere!). I never really thought much of Nic until after she and Tom Cruise split up - after that happened, I feel the woman just bloomed! Don't you think??? She really blossomed! Her acting just got better (remember The Hours, Moulin Rouge, etc?), she became more appealing as a celebrity, she seemed more interesting as a person (heck, she dated Lenny Kravitz and Steven Bing!).and she didn't moan about being dumped - and she was dumped for Penelope Cruz, mind you! - unlike sad old Jennifer Anistan, and she basically kept her dignity and her mouth shut about any new romances.
She had class - how she handled that crisis in her life.
And that Keith Urban...wooooarrrrughhh! Gives me the shivers. He's such a dish! They suit each other like a pair of really soft kid golf gloves, slim and sexy, togeder-geder. You look at Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes and just wonder..what is the story here? Why so over the top? Why is her body language betraying his megawatt smile? Why do her eyes look sad, her smile tentative? Why is she always fidgeting with her clothes, hair, etc when seen out in public with him? No doubt, in the early days, Katie was just as bad as Tom...but lately, she looks like having to keep up appearances is taking its toll. I wonder just how long she'll be able to keep it up.
The reason I feel a tad sympathetic towards Holmes is because I feel like I've been there. I once dated a much older, in-control (read: controlling) man. Yessss.. it was initially nice to feel cared for, but that feeling becaming one of suffocation eventually. What was a dream come true quickly became a worst nightmare. Hate to say it Katie, it looks kinda like your impending scenario. I mean, if he's already converted you to some quack cult!, alienated you from your family whom you were very close to, told you how to silently beranak, how he wants you to raise his child, chosen your wedding dress, enrolled you in a slimming program!, calls you a hundred times to check up on you - then calls your bodyguard to see why you are not picking up, etc.,.well!, it doesn't bode well, does it?!! The signs are all there: the concerned family members and former friends, the 'Dump Tom' website (!)... Girl, take heed. I wish I could take this young woman aside, give her two tight slaps and have a quiet word about Waking Up.
Just like some of my friends wanted to do with me when I was in her shoes. Did I listen? Of course not lah. I had concerned friends drop out of my life because I was so determined to make right something that was definitely not, and well, I guess in the end, God is Greater than any will of my own. He got me out of that one before it was too late and I ruined my life.
You look at Nicole and Keith and just from the pictures, think: these two let each other be who they are. They are free in how they love each other. It looks like a keeper relationship, something that'll last. They have nothing to prove to the public. Nothing to show. Nothing to hide. They are downright cool. It's cool, isn't it? Wish more couples were cool like that.
Other Cool Couples (in my book):
My mom and dad
Uncle Z and Aunty A (he once said to his wife, "I forbide you to wear a tudung!"
Tom Hanks and wife Rita? (name escapes me)
Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith
Prince Charles and Camilla Packa-Balls (just for being in love for 100 years!)
Elton John and David Furnish
Tun Dr M. and wife
Pierce Brosnan and wife Keely Shaye-Smith (he loves her despite the tremendous weight gain - he's a hero in my book!)
Not-Cool-At-All Couples:
TomKatPosh and BecksBritney and Kevin (yuck)
Sven Goran Erickson and his determined lawyer/geisha lady
J.Lo and Marc Anthony (ew!)
Jude Law and Sienna Miller (or whomever he's tupping at the mo)
Paris Hilton and whomever the garcon du jour is
Lindsay Lohan and Bruce Willis (hahaha!)
Downright-Dodgy Couples:
Brangelina!
Jordan (aka Katie Price) and Peter Andre
Madonna and Guy Richie
Oprah Winfrey and Stedman Grahamthe
Hugh Grant-Jemima Khan-Elizabeth Hurley triangle
I takes all kinds to make up a couple. While I know there are no perfect couples in this world, it's good to look at people in positive relationships and see how they make things work.
Have fun making it work!(to my husband reading this: I LOVE YOU! You're my Keith Urban! I'm your Nicole Kidman!...but we outweigh them by about 200lbs! Haha!)
16th post
thank you thank you thank you!
Wow! I walked into the studio this morning and there were hampers EVERYWHERE! Thank you, God, for all the abundance in my life.Thank you to the lovely people at Parenthood Magazine, Hamil Magazine, Johnson & Johnson, Pigeon, Revlon, Wyeth, Palmer's Cocoa Butter and Garden of Eden. I feel so pampered! Oh, and thank you Nila, for delivering the hampers when I couldn't make the Spa Party!Thank you, Mr Boon of Patchi in Bangsar Shopping Centre for the lovely Patchi chocolates!Thank you to Chilli's in Bangsar for not charging a fussy pregnant lady for a soggy Ranch Burger!Thank you to the lady who let me withdraw cash at the RHB atm in BSC ahead of her because I looked tired standing in line!Thank you Allie for sending me your maid to clean my kitchen and water my garden when Joy took off, and also for sending all that lovely food over so I didn't have to cook! (pssst! keep it coming! heehee)And thank you, YES! YOU, for the lovely wishes, cards, and messages that you always send me...it truly makes my day!A BIG THANK YOU to Richard - in advance! - for holding down the fort when I go away on maternity leave!!! You are BRAVE, my friend! May the Force, bladibla bladiblaa bla blaaa....!
Wow! I walked into the studio this morning and there were hampers EVERYWHERE! Thank you, God, for all the abundance in my life.Thank you to the lovely people at Parenthood Magazine, Hamil Magazine, Johnson & Johnson, Pigeon, Revlon, Wyeth, Palmer's Cocoa Butter and Garden of Eden. I feel so pampered! Oh, and thank you Nila, for delivering the hampers when I couldn't make the Spa Party!Thank you, Mr Boon of Patchi in Bangsar Shopping Centre for the lovely Patchi chocolates!Thank you to Chilli's in Bangsar for not charging a fussy pregnant lady for a soggy Ranch Burger!Thank you to the lady who let me withdraw cash at the RHB atm in BSC ahead of her because I looked tired standing in line!Thank you Allie for sending me your maid to clean my kitchen and water my garden when Joy took off, and also for sending all that lovely food over so I didn't have to cook! (pssst! keep it coming! heehee)And thank you, YES! YOU, for the lovely wishes, cards, and messages that you always send me...it truly makes my day!A BIG THANK YOU to Richard - in advance! - for holding down the fort when I go away on maternity leave!!! You are BRAVE, my friend! May the Force, bladibla bladiblaa bla blaaa....!
15th post
season for pink booties
Congratulations to Angelina Jolie, Faye Wong and Gerri Halliwell....seems like it's a season for baby girls this spring! Hmmmm!I've not much to report, just generally pissed off about the traffic situation in town, especially in Sg Buloh (they've cut off access to the Sierramas bridge off the Sg Buloh toll plaza). I was actually the last car to access that bridge on Saturday afternoon....I put on the waterworks...actually cried like a baby, begging the roadwork guys to let me through when they started barricading the bridge...It helped that Milo was screaming in his car seat as well....They let me through but not the Mercedes behind me. Motorists have to now do a chronic u-turn down the road but this will take hours. Believe me. The traffic is backed up from Damansara Damai, Sri Damansara, etc!What to do lah - I'm getting as much info on home births as I can on the net, in case of an emergency. I better get to know my neighbours better...find out who actually has a medical degree and might know a thing or two about delivering babies!On a fantastic note, my friend and neighbout, Allie, has hooked me up with a GREAT temporary housemaid...she's a dreamboat! Milo is in love with her and she's so cheerful and helpful and SMART, it's great!....I hope we can keep her! The new baby's nanny will be arriving in mid June, so no shortage of help there. This is where all our gaji is going to nowadays! That, and petrol, since we have to travel a hundred miles to do u-turns anywhere.Pokailah, pokai...but happy, tak pe...kan?
Congratulations to Angelina Jolie, Faye Wong and Gerri Halliwell....seems like it's a season for baby girls this spring! Hmmmm!I've not much to report, just generally pissed off about the traffic situation in town, especially in Sg Buloh (they've cut off access to the Sierramas bridge off the Sg Buloh toll plaza). I was actually the last car to access that bridge on Saturday afternoon....I put on the waterworks...actually cried like a baby, begging the roadwork guys to let me through when they started barricading the bridge...It helped that Milo was screaming in his car seat as well....They let me through but not the Mercedes behind me. Motorists have to now do a chronic u-turn down the road but this will take hours. Believe me. The traffic is backed up from Damansara Damai, Sri Damansara, etc!What to do lah - I'm getting as much info on home births as I can on the net, in case of an emergency. I better get to know my neighbours better...find out who actually has a medical degree and might know a thing or two about delivering babies!On a fantastic note, my friend and neighbout, Allie, has hooked me up with a GREAT temporary housemaid...she's a dreamboat! Milo is in love with her and she's so cheerful and helpful and SMART, it's great!....I hope we can keep her! The new baby's nanny will be arriving in mid June, so no shortage of help there. This is where all our gaji is going to nowadays! That, and petrol, since we have to travel a hundred miles to do u-turns anywhere.Pokailah, pokai...but happy, tak pe...kan?
14th post
An end to Joy
Alas, Joy is no more. I'm not talking about joy - happiness, joy...that, we have plenty of, now that the lunatic psychopath maid of ours is gone. I'm talking about JOY the Maid...she's gone.
To make a verry long story short...she tried to run away on Sunday morning, while we were out, but our security staff stopped her, called me on my mobile phone and detained her there until we came back. Champion!!! I'm kind of sick repeating the story, so the long and short of it is - we packed her up and sent her back to the agency camp pronto - with threats to stop off at the police station on the way there!
This ungrateful woman had planned the whole thing...my neighbours had seen her consorting with some other maids in the area...and because she doesn't have Sunday leave, she must have 'pakat' with them to ciao that morning (because they must have leave to go out to church), when we normally go out for breakfast. Among the things she had done was hijack our Telekom Malaysia house phone bill and a letter addressed to me from the maid agency containing her immigration work permit (blue-card). She did the first to cover her tracks as she was making calls to the Fillipines and a local 016 number (I went to TM Shop to get an itemised bill), and she obviously had no intention to be a housemaid for long if she had planned to steal her permit and run.I am just SO GRATEFUL that our security staff are so on the ball and quick acting. We sent them a commendation letter and a huge goodie hamper for a job well done! Their actions saved us a lot of problems and headaches. You know, sometimes you hear horror stories about security guards stealing, helping maids to run away, etc, but our guys are really good and take pride in their job. That's seems rare these days, considering what I just went through.
Anyway, the search is now on for a replacement maid...again.
Drama, drama...
Alas, Joy is no more. I'm not talking about joy - happiness, joy...that, we have plenty of, now that the lunatic psychopath maid of ours is gone. I'm talking about JOY the Maid...she's gone.
To make a verry long story short...she tried to run away on Sunday morning, while we were out, but our security staff stopped her, called me on my mobile phone and detained her there until we came back. Champion!!! I'm kind of sick repeating the story, so the long and short of it is - we packed her up and sent her back to the agency camp pronto - with threats to stop off at the police station on the way there!
This ungrateful woman had planned the whole thing...my neighbours had seen her consorting with some other maids in the area...and because she doesn't have Sunday leave, she must have 'pakat' with them to ciao that morning (because they must have leave to go out to church), when we normally go out for breakfast. Among the things she had done was hijack our Telekom Malaysia house phone bill and a letter addressed to me from the maid agency containing her immigration work permit (blue-card). She did the first to cover her tracks as she was making calls to the Fillipines and a local 016 number (I went to TM Shop to get an itemised bill), and she obviously had no intention to be a housemaid for long if she had planned to steal her permit and run.I am just SO GRATEFUL that our security staff are so on the ball and quick acting. We sent them a commendation letter and a huge goodie hamper for a job well done! Their actions saved us a lot of problems and headaches. You know, sometimes you hear horror stories about security guards stealing, helping maids to run away, etc, but our guys are really good and take pride in their job. That's seems rare these days, considering what I just went through.
Anyway, the search is now on for a replacement maid...again.
Drama, drama...
13th post
labour party
I had my first labour anxiety dream last night. I dreamt I had to give birth in a government hospital in JB...I don't know what was more disconcerting, the fact the I was in a govt hospital or the fact that I was in JB!Now, now...don't get me wrong. I have absolutely NOTHING against govt hospitals or whatever (or JB for that matter), but having been going to my regular joint, it was a bit of a shocker lah. Yes, it was only a dream, but you know how dreams can seem SO REAL? On top of all that, I don't have any recollection of why/how I came to be in JB, all by myself! In my dream, I couldn't locate my husband, though I had an inkling that he was frantically looking for me! I was about to pop....screaming for an epidural, wondering why they hadn't given me an enema (!) yet, and where the heck the attending doctor was!Then the anesthesiologist (sp?) came and gave me a shot in the back, but the drugs were not effective, and I needed the loo, and there was only a squat toilet....ai yoh....talk about high anxiety. And the dream went on and on...well, you know how it goes.I was actually relieved when the alarm went off at 4.29am and put me out of my misery!I am so unprepared to have this baby. I haven't packed my hospital bag, I haven't got an extra crib (Milo refuses to go into his junior bed and is still using his cot), I haven't bought enough newborn nappies, I haven't finished reviewing my Gina Ford "Contented Baby" book, I haven't dug out the breast pump and sterilizer! Aaaaaaaaurrrrghhh! I haven't made space in the wardrobe for the new baby's things...it's (no gender hint here!) things are still folded in a laundry basket in the upstairs hall! Poor baby! Mummy is soooooo tired! Everyday I plan to start putting things away into the wardrobe, cleaning the sterilizer/breast pump/bottles, but that would involve telling/supervising Joy (which is another fatiguing exercise in itself) what to do...but when I get home, I just want to nap! Got to get a move on....I am, though, looking forward to the Parenthood/Hamil magazine party next weekend! They've organised a spa-bash for celebrity mums-to-be, and it promises to be a lot of fun. Funny how I think I can find the energy for that, eh....?
I had my first labour anxiety dream last night. I dreamt I had to give birth in a government hospital in JB...I don't know what was more disconcerting, the fact the I was in a govt hospital or the fact that I was in JB!Now, now...don't get me wrong. I have absolutely NOTHING against govt hospitals or whatever (or JB for that matter), but having been going to my regular joint, it was a bit of a shocker lah. Yes, it was only a dream, but you know how dreams can seem SO REAL? On top of all that, I don't have any recollection of why/how I came to be in JB, all by myself! In my dream, I couldn't locate my husband, though I had an inkling that he was frantically looking for me! I was about to pop....screaming for an epidural, wondering why they hadn't given me an enema (!) yet, and where the heck the attending doctor was!Then the anesthesiologist (sp?) came and gave me a shot in the back, but the drugs were not effective, and I needed the loo, and there was only a squat toilet....ai yoh....talk about high anxiety. And the dream went on and on...well, you know how it goes.I was actually relieved when the alarm went off at 4.29am and put me out of my misery!I am so unprepared to have this baby. I haven't packed my hospital bag, I haven't got an extra crib (Milo refuses to go into his junior bed and is still using his cot), I haven't bought enough newborn nappies, I haven't finished reviewing my Gina Ford "Contented Baby" book, I haven't dug out the breast pump and sterilizer! Aaaaaaaaurrrrghhh! I haven't made space in the wardrobe for the new baby's things...it's (no gender hint here!) things are still folded in a laundry basket in the upstairs hall! Poor baby! Mummy is soooooo tired! Everyday I plan to start putting things away into the wardrobe, cleaning the sterilizer/breast pump/bottles, but that would involve telling/supervising Joy (which is another fatiguing exercise in itself) what to do...but when I get home, I just want to nap! Got to get a move on....I am, though, looking forward to the Parenthood/Hamil magazine party next weekend! They've organised a spa-bash for celebrity mums-to-be, and it promises to be a lot of fun. Funny how I think I can find the energy for that, eh....?
12th post
my salad daze...
Oh those halcyon days of old...
Do you ever find yourself reminiscing and longing to go back to more innocent times....? I sometimes find myself thinking about my boarding school days - not with so much longing to go back and relive it (hell no), but just because I was doing my taxes the other day and wished I was a kid again.
My days at Tunku Kurshiah College in Seremban seem like a different life altogether. I remember wondering if we'd ever get to leave the place. I had fantastic, dedicated teachers (of the old school variety), and some that scared me sh!tless.
My favourite teachers were:
The late Mrs Sarojini Gopal - English, English Literature. She was supportive, widely read, encouraging and kind, and was never condescending. She treated us like ladies, mind. She was the closest we got to Mallory Towers! She was the best!
Ms. Vicky - Head Warden, English, Phys Ed. She had a killer wit and a funky floppy hat. She treated me always like a had more than half a brain, which I really appreciated (considering..haha).
Mrs. Ho - Music. She looked liked a cross between Meryl Streep and Yoko Ono, she was BRILLIANT! We learned all the lyrics to the classics: Vaya Con Dios, Greensleeves, Woman is Fickle, etc. She's a treasure to the profession.
En. Ahmad - Math (the only half decent looking young man teaching there!). He said something funny to us one day at a sports meet when we were teasing him about a certain young shop girl at a stationary shop in town - he said, "We are just platonic friends. Go ask Shazmin what that means." Hahaha!
Ms. Rebecah - French. She inspired glamour in all things French, even Malaysian made croissants!
En. ??? - Art (he was flamboyant and oh so arty!). I can't, for the life of me, remember his name! I studied pottery and clay work and 'tried' to paint, but that was futile. We had a lot of fun in his class and he was a cool old cat. Was it Encik Malik???
The teacher that scared the bejesus (sorry! this is a tad ironic seeing her subject) outta me was Pn. Fatimah - Ugama! I used to practice my disappearing act in her period. I'd sit at the back, blending in with the wall. I'm sure she was a lovely person, but the subject itself filled me with high anxiety (remember the movie starring Mel Brooks? It was EXACTLY like that)...her favourite thing was to ask us indiviually, to recite random Quranic verses from memory, and she was damn garang. Maybe I should have had some kind of system, but I was hopeless at this and suffered for it. Mind you, the subject itself was fascinating, but I don't do rote learning very well, especially when my eternal soul was constantly being threatened to damnation and my spirit crushed with debilitating embarrassment four times a week for 50 minutes! Talk about dread. These days, the only thing that feels remotely like that is when the credit card company calls!
One of the first things a young person learns when they are shipped off to school is the importance of being flexible, because one has to be flexible in order to convincingly pull off the appearance of conformity. It's just that, living in a commune, you just had to conform a bit laah, if not, sure your life not worth living one...despite your own familial upbringing, personal tastes, spiritual beliefs and political opinions (I was an inspired Marxist then), you had to find that little niche to fit in.
The whole Sekolah Berasrama Penuh experience hit me like a ton of bricks, but the outcome was a good one: a better understanding of how to get along with people from all walks of life. It honed in me a keen observer's eye. I would sit on the edge of numerous popular cliques...watching and learning about The Human Condition. There was the rich KL girls' club, whose members were popular because they were trendy, spoke good english, listened to Depeche Mode, had LA Gear trainers and used bedak badan from Mothercare (?!) or Marks and Spencer. Then there were the holier-than-thous from up North, who actually admonished me once for drinking my Coke straight out of the bottle because it was 'unIslamic' (huh?)...[I'm sniggering now that I remember this incident]. I also remember the horde of sporty girls and the brass-band-obsessives...fun and perky girls. There were the rebels-with-a-cause, too...whose mission in the 5 years at TKC was to sneak out of school and hook up with the boys from SDAR (yikes). And yes, the DEBATORS (is it 'debaters'?)...who could forget? Who can remember?! They were SO SMART and INTELLECTUAL [sniggersniggersnigger], so high achieving ( I was elected President of the English Debating Society one year - but nobody remembers why as I never once debated! Haha!)!.(gee, you people reading this, please know I'm being sarcastic, yeaaa?). Waaaaaah....and I was friends with all these girls, though not a card carrying member of any of their sororities. My friend S and I were like two wandering misfits, manouvering our adolescent selves amongst these various factions, trying to make sense of it all, and not laugh in anybody's faces. I'm glad I found in her a kindred spirit and a friend for life (our children are born in the same year even).
Well, funny how looking back at one's schooldays can fill one with many mixed emotions. I miss the silly fun, the serious anxieties - like Ugama period (no, not really!), the drama and politics of girlie-teenage friendships, the thrill of young RMC/MCKK visitors (hey, I'm normal), the wonderful and dedicated teachers, the horrible exam prep. Nothing like teen angst. I'll take teenage angst against fiscal angst anyday!
Oh those halcyon days of old...
Do you ever find yourself reminiscing and longing to go back to more innocent times....? I sometimes find myself thinking about my boarding school days - not with so much longing to go back and relive it (hell no), but just because I was doing my taxes the other day and wished I was a kid again.
My days at Tunku Kurshiah College in Seremban seem like a different life altogether. I remember wondering if we'd ever get to leave the place. I had fantastic, dedicated teachers (of the old school variety), and some that scared me sh!tless.
My favourite teachers were:
The late Mrs Sarojini Gopal - English, English Literature. She was supportive, widely read, encouraging and kind, and was never condescending. She treated us like ladies, mind. She was the closest we got to Mallory Towers! She was the best!
Ms. Vicky - Head Warden, English, Phys Ed. She had a killer wit and a funky floppy hat. She treated me always like a had more than half a brain, which I really appreciated (considering..haha).
Mrs. Ho - Music. She looked liked a cross between Meryl Streep and Yoko Ono, she was BRILLIANT! We learned all the lyrics to the classics: Vaya Con Dios, Greensleeves, Woman is Fickle, etc. She's a treasure to the profession.
En. Ahmad - Math (the only half decent looking young man teaching there!). He said something funny to us one day at a sports meet when we were teasing him about a certain young shop girl at a stationary shop in town - he said, "We are just platonic friends. Go ask Shazmin what that means." Hahaha!
Ms. Rebecah - French. She inspired glamour in all things French, even Malaysian made croissants!
En. ??? - Art (he was flamboyant and oh so arty!). I can't, for the life of me, remember his name! I studied pottery and clay work and 'tried' to paint, but that was futile. We had a lot of fun in his class and he was a cool old cat. Was it Encik Malik???
The teacher that scared the bejesus (sorry! this is a tad ironic seeing her subject) outta me was Pn. Fatimah - Ugama! I used to practice my disappearing act in her period. I'd sit at the back, blending in with the wall. I'm sure she was a lovely person, but the subject itself filled me with high anxiety (remember the movie starring Mel Brooks? It was EXACTLY like that)...her favourite thing was to ask us indiviually, to recite random Quranic verses from memory, and she was damn garang. Maybe I should have had some kind of system, but I was hopeless at this and suffered for it. Mind you, the subject itself was fascinating, but I don't do rote learning very well, especially when my eternal soul was constantly being threatened to damnation and my spirit crushed with debilitating embarrassment four times a week for 50 minutes! Talk about dread. These days, the only thing that feels remotely like that is when the credit card company calls!
One of the first things a young person learns when they are shipped off to school is the importance of being flexible, because one has to be flexible in order to convincingly pull off the appearance of conformity. It's just that, living in a commune, you just had to conform a bit laah, if not, sure your life not worth living one...despite your own familial upbringing, personal tastes, spiritual beliefs and political opinions (I was an inspired Marxist then), you had to find that little niche to fit in.
The whole Sekolah Berasrama Penuh experience hit me like a ton of bricks, but the outcome was a good one: a better understanding of how to get along with people from all walks of life. It honed in me a keen observer's eye. I would sit on the edge of numerous popular cliques...watching and learning about The Human Condition. There was the rich KL girls' club, whose members were popular because they were trendy, spoke good english, listened to Depeche Mode, had LA Gear trainers and used bedak badan from Mothercare (?!) or Marks and Spencer. Then there were the holier-than-thous from up North, who actually admonished me once for drinking my Coke straight out of the bottle because it was 'unIslamic' (huh?)...[I'm sniggering now that I remember this incident]. I also remember the horde of sporty girls and the brass-band-obsessives...fun and perky girls. There were the rebels-with-a-cause, too...whose mission in the 5 years at TKC was to sneak out of school and hook up with the boys from SDAR (yikes). And yes, the DEBATORS (is it 'debaters'?)...who could forget? Who can remember?! They were SO SMART and INTELLECTUAL [sniggersniggersnigger], so high achieving ( I was elected President of the English Debating Society one year - but nobody remembers why as I never once debated! Haha!)!.(gee, you people reading this, please know I'm being sarcastic, yeaaa?). Waaaaaah....and I was friends with all these girls, though not a card carrying member of any of their sororities. My friend S and I were like two wandering misfits, manouvering our adolescent selves amongst these various factions, trying to make sense of it all, and not laugh in anybody's faces. I'm glad I found in her a kindred spirit and a friend for life (our children are born in the same year even).
Well, funny how looking back at one's schooldays can fill one with many mixed emotions. I miss the silly fun, the serious anxieties - like Ugama period (no, not really!), the drama and politics of girlie-teenage friendships, the thrill of young RMC/MCKK visitors (hey, I'm normal), the wonderful and dedicated teachers, the horrible exam prep. Nothing like teen angst. I'll take teenage angst against fiscal angst anyday!
11th post
happy mother's day!
Ok, ok. I'll stop whingeing about Joy, already. I know it's bloody, buggery boring. My sister pointed that out to me yesterday when I called her. She said it wasn't "nice". [I've got a shamefaced snigger coming on as I'm typing this!] Poor woman (Joy - not my sister) not even online to defend herself and what have you.So today, I want to wax nostalgic about what a brat kid I was growing up and the kind of mother I am today. This was also brought on by the conversation I had with my older sister. Apparently (though not apparent to moi at the timelah) I was very petulant and spoiled - having been the 'youngest' one for 7 years before my little sister came along. You couldn't ask me to do anything without me pouting or worse ('talkback' would be an understatement, I am in the 'talking' business you know). I always thought others (namely my immediate family members) were either ganging up on me or ignoring me (middle-child syndrom, no doubt). But I had my lovely traits, too. I wasn't too selfish and I was emphatic towards those less fortunate, but I was very impatient (still am!) and could be quite gluttonous (especially where fried potatoes and hari raya shoe shopping were concerned).I was naughty, rebelious, sulky, impertinent, stubborn and so much more. I wonder if I've got all this to look forward to with Milo. How's he going to be with his little brother / sister? Is he going to bully them? Occasionaly bonk them on the head with a hard object, too? Am I going to be too exhausted to referee? Will I hop after my brood with a wooden spoon just like my mother did? I'm already an old pro at yelling (I'm sure my neighbours can hear me up and down the street)! My mother was a full-time MOM (with 2 toddlers spaced out 12 months between them) of five (with no hired help, mind) and it's funny how I never noticed how tired or fed-up she looked whilst growing up. Not that she was exactly a picture of serenity either, but she just got on with it, whereas I b!tch and moan a fair bit, online and off. I have a workplace to escape to for half the day, where my poor mum was stuck with the lot of us at home. Hats off to her, this Mother's Day. I totally see her in a shining new light now that I'm a mother myself. If I can be half as good, patient and creative as she was/is...my kids may just survive their childhood!!!
To all Mamas this Mother's Day...YOU ROCK! Have a good one! - get the hubs to take the kids off your hands, get a spa treatment and full body massage and treat yourself to a nice HUGE decadent slice of CAKE.
In the famous words of Amber Chia in the Gintell ad: "Mamarrr...you'rrrre de Berrst!"
ps:...and if you can find it in your hectic schedule to read an entertaining, mindless piece of chic-lit, I found "The Rise and Fall of a Yummy Mummy" quite a good read. Enjoy!
Ok, ok. I'll stop whingeing about Joy, already. I know it's bloody, buggery boring. My sister pointed that out to me yesterday when I called her. She said it wasn't "nice". [I've got a shamefaced snigger coming on as I'm typing this!] Poor woman (Joy - not my sister) not even online to defend herself and what have you.So today, I want to wax nostalgic about what a brat kid I was growing up and the kind of mother I am today. This was also brought on by the conversation I had with my older sister. Apparently (though not apparent to moi at the timelah) I was very petulant and spoiled - having been the 'youngest' one for 7 years before my little sister came along. You couldn't ask me to do anything without me pouting or worse ('talkback' would be an understatement, I am in the 'talking' business you know). I always thought others (namely my immediate family members) were either ganging up on me or ignoring me (middle-child syndrom, no doubt). But I had my lovely traits, too. I wasn't too selfish and I was emphatic towards those less fortunate, but I was very impatient (still am!) and could be quite gluttonous (especially where fried potatoes and hari raya shoe shopping were concerned).I was naughty, rebelious, sulky, impertinent, stubborn and so much more. I wonder if I've got all this to look forward to with Milo. How's he going to be with his little brother / sister? Is he going to bully them? Occasionaly bonk them on the head with a hard object, too? Am I going to be too exhausted to referee? Will I hop after my brood with a wooden spoon just like my mother did? I'm already an old pro at yelling (I'm sure my neighbours can hear me up and down the street)! My mother was a full-time MOM (with 2 toddlers spaced out 12 months between them) of five (with no hired help, mind) and it's funny how I never noticed how tired or fed-up she looked whilst growing up. Not that she was exactly a picture of serenity either, but she just got on with it, whereas I b!tch and moan a fair bit, online and off. I have a workplace to escape to for half the day, where my poor mum was stuck with the lot of us at home. Hats off to her, this Mother's Day. I totally see her in a shining new light now that I'm a mother myself. If I can be half as good, patient and creative as she was/is...my kids may just survive their childhood!!!
To all Mamas this Mother's Day...YOU ROCK! Have a good one! - get the hubs to take the kids off your hands, get a spa treatment and full body massage and treat yourself to a nice HUGE decadent slice of CAKE.
In the famous words of Amber Chia in the Gintell ad: "Mamarrr...you'rrrre de Berrst!"
ps:...and if you can find it in your hectic schedule to read an entertaining, mindless piece of chic-lit, I found "The Rise and Fall of a Yummy Mummy" quite a good read. Enjoy!
10th post
a real killJOY
The Rack of Lamb Cookout was a lot of fun and we'd like to wish everyone who had a hand in making it a success a BIG THANK YOU!!! They are the Picolo Mondo team, the Mix promotions team, the Mix Roadrunners, and the fans that showed up! You guys are The Best!Ok, so now...the drama......I brought Joy, my maid, to the event to watch over my son...who was relatively well behaved throughout the whole thing...Daniel was briefly there as well but had to bugger off early to organise something at home.
Well, I think that's the last time I bring Milo to an event without my husband's full presence because I found myself unfocused and worried the whole time. It seemed that every time I looked over, Milo was scampering away from Joy - she was so sloooooooow to catch up to him! And he was just a few feet away from the busy traffic of Jln Bukit Bintang!!! Worse, when we went to Lot 10 to get the car...we had to go down the escalator and she almost let go of his stroller and he almost fell!!! Can you imagine my HORROR? Other things that annoy the sh!#! outta me about Joy: 1-when she strolls Milo out of my sight when we are in a shopping mall2-when she lags ten feet behind me while walking anywhere (so lembab! I can speedwalk and I'm 8 months heavily pregnant!)3-how she tunes out mentally when we are all out for lunch/dinner. I mean, we're at the same table! She acts stoned or what - I don't know if she's quite 'there' or not....is she trying to become invisible? We're not that bad....It's bad enough that nowadays I have absolutely no mood to bring her out with us, or treat her to a day at the mall. It just gets my blood pressure up.
Honestly, I don't know how she's going to be able to handle a newborn baby. I'm WORRIED. I only get 2 months off! I mean, she's great at cleaning and light babysitting (ie. in the house and at the playground)...but even Daniel has made me promise to never leave Milo alone with her. Looks like we may have to fork out a bomb to send the baby to nursery with Milo during the day. Is there no end to this?! (-money going out the door)!?? On top of everything else...she's been hanging on the phone while we're out. I suspect she's also been going through our things. I noticed that several boxes have been 'disturbed' in my walk-in closet. Looks like she and I will have to sit down and have another Little Talk again.Will this never end? I'm just a perpetual ball of grumpy bollocks these days...
The Rack of Lamb Cookout was a lot of fun and we'd like to wish everyone who had a hand in making it a success a BIG THANK YOU!!! They are the Picolo Mondo team, the Mix promotions team, the Mix Roadrunners, and the fans that showed up! You guys are The Best!Ok, so now...the drama......I brought Joy, my maid, to the event to watch over my son...who was relatively well behaved throughout the whole thing...Daniel was briefly there as well but had to bugger off early to organise something at home.
Well, I think that's the last time I bring Milo to an event without my husband's full presence because I found myself unfocused and worried the whole time. It seemed that every time I looked over, Milo was scampering away from Joy - she was so sloooooooow to catch up to him! And he was just a few feet away from the busy traffic of Jln Bukit Bintang!!! Worse, when we went to Lot 10 to get the car...we had to go down the escalator and she almost let go of his stroller and he almost fell!!! Can you imagine my HORROR? Other things that annoy the sh!#! outta me about Joy: 1-when she strolls Milo out of my sight when we are in a shopping mall2-when she lags ten feet behind me while walking anywhere (so lembab! I can speedwalk and I'm 8 months heavily pregnant!)3-how she tunes out mentally when we are all out for lunch/dinner. I mean, we're at the same table! She acts stoned or what - I don't know if she's quite 'there' or not....is she trying to become invisible? We're not that bad....It's bad enough that nowadays I have absolutely no mood to bring her out with us, or treat her to a day at the mall. It just gets my blood pressure up.
Honestly, I don't know how she's going to be able to handle a newborn baby. I'm WORRIED. I only get 2 months off! I mean, she's great at cleaning and light babysitting (ie. in the house and at the playground)...but even Daniel has made me promise to never leave Milo alone with her. Looks like we may have to fork out a bomb to send the baby to nursery with Milo during the day. Is there no end to this?! (-money going out the door)!?? On top of everything else...she's been hanging on the phone while we're out. I suspect she's also been going through our things. I noticed that several boxes have been 'disturbed' in my walk-in closet. Looks like she and I will have to sit down and have another Little Talk again.Will this never end? I'm just a perpetual ball of grumpy bollocks these days...
9th post
pukevomit's out!
Good God! Thank heavens Paris Bennet is finally OUT!I can't stand the little chipmunked-faced strutter! Yes she could sing, but she was SO ANNOYING TO WATCH.What was it about Paris that put me off so much, you ask? Well, she was damn mengada-ngada, for one. The way she gushed, "Thank You!" to everything, the way she danced, the way she smiled, they way she wore her hair - even her wardrobe was annoying! But the worst thing about her was the way she talked.I mean, come on lah. If you can have such a strong, deep voice singing, don't tell me your normal talking voice is so like that one! She was so putting it on. Did she think it upd her 'cute factor' or what? Well, she's not cute in any literal or figurative sense if you ask me, so this act was just (as Simon put it) pure indulgence! puke vomit. reeeetchhh!My Idol finalist prediction: I'd have to say Kat and Chris, to be perfectly honest...even though my heart is with Elliot and Taylor. I think Taylor and Eliot are the better performers/singers, but I think the American voters will vote for eye candy or rockballs (?). We'll see if I'm right.In other news...I'll be bringing my little monkey, Milo, to the Rack of Lamb Cookout on Saturday to watch Uncle Richard dessecrate what is probably copious amounts of otherwise perfectly good meat. I hope he (Milo, that is) doesn't get overly excited. That said, I hope Richard doesn't get overly excited! He might just burn something! Since my husband is going to be quite busy organising a party at Chez Kraehenbuehl for later that night, he may not be there, so I may have to bring Joy and her dentures to watch over Milo. I hope she doesn't break her teeth (again). If you feel like you know her so well from all my blogging, well come on down and get a good look (teruk kan, I ni?). Sorrylah, I forgot, this ain't the zoo, though it may turn out to be a three-ring-circus!Have a great weekend! Baaaaa-aaaaa-aaaa!
Good God! Thank heavens Paris Bennet is finally OUT!I can't stand the little chipmunked-faced strutter! Yes she could sing, but she was SO ANNOYING TO WATCH.What was it about Paris that put me off so much, you ask? Well, she was damn mengada-ngada, for one. The way she gushed, "Thank You!" to everything, the way she danced, the way she smiled, they way she wore her hair - even her wardrobe was annoying! But the worst thing about her was the way she talked.I mean, come on lah. If you can have such a strong, deep voice singing, don't tell me your normal talking voice is so like that one! She was so putting it on. Did she think it upd her 'cute factor' or what? Well, she's not cute in any literal or figurative sense if you ask me, so this act was just (as Simon put it) pure indulgence! puke vomit. reeeetchhh!My Idol finalist prediction: I'd have to say Kat and Chris, to be perfectly honest...even though my heart is with Elliot and Taylor. I think Taylor and Eliot are the better performers/singers, but I think the American voters will vote for eye candy or rockballs (?). We'll see if I'm right.In other news...I'll be bringing my little monkey, Milo, to the Rack of Lamb Cookout on Saturday to watch Uncle Richard dessecrate what is probably copious amounts of otherwise perfectly good meat. I hope he (Milo, that is) doesn't get overly excited. That said, I hope Richard doesn't get overly excited! He might just burn something! Since my husband is going to be quite busy organising a party at Chez Kraehenbuehl for later that night, he may not be there, so I may have to bring Joy and her dentures to watch over Milo. I hope she doesn't break her teeth (again). If you feel like you know her so well from all my blogging, well come on down and get a good look (teruk kan, I ni?). Sorrylah, I forgot, this ain't the zoo, though it may turn out to be a three-ring-circus!Have a great weekend! Baaaaa-aaaaa-aaaa!
8th post
Agensi Pekerjaan Shaz!
My friend Kat called me up in a frenzy last night."Shaz! How aaah?!! Do you have any maids I can hire? I had to send mine packing!"Aku ni taukay maid, ke?"What happened?!!""I came home unexpectedly at lunchtime and the maid was in my room, leaning against my bed, on the phone with her pants off! And my [2 year old] daughter was on the bed, playing.""Whaaaat!""Yaaah! Anyway, I'm freaking out now coz I need somebody immediately, bla bla blaaa..."See. Macam-macam ada, just like the ASTRO promo on tv. My poor friend Kat is quite pissed, because she was really happy with her maid all this while, since joining her household 6 months ago. She thought the sun rose and set with Marta! Just goes to show, doesn't it? While we complacently think all is well at home, other things are happening! And if you entrust your little ones to your maid, lagi best. Something to chew on.
Have a good weekend.
My friend Kat called me up in a frenzy last night."Shaz! How aaah?!! Do you have any maids I can hire? I had to send mine packing!"Aku ni taukay maid, ke?"What happened?!!""I came home unexpectedly at lunchtime and the maid was in my room, leaning against my bed, on the phone with her pants off! And my [2 year old] daughter was on the bed, playing.""Whaaaat!""Yaaah! Anyway, I'm freaking out now coz I need somebody immediately, bla bla blaaa..."See. Macam-macam ada, just like the ASTRO promo on tv. My poor friend Kat is quite pissed, because she was really happy with her maid all this while, since joining her household 6 months ago. She thought the sun rose and set with Marta! Just goes to show, doesn't it? While we complacently think all is well at home, other things are happening! And if you entrust your little ones to your maid, lagi best. Something to chew on.
Have a good weekend.
7th post
Is this a problem???
Let me just say, firstly, you all have been wonderful, with advice for me regarding my new maid. The very fact I have this space to discuss her is a godsend! Heaven knows I can't b!#ch about her to my husband...the last thing he wants to talk about when he gets home from work is what the maid did or didn't do that day...and I know I'm not the only wife on the planet with this problem!OK....here's the new problem...or is it? Joy told me yesterday that her long-lost cousin, whom she hasn't spoken to for years, called up the house while I was out. This person had apparently gotten our number from Joy's relatives back home when she called up there. So they chit-chatted and this woman is apparently working for a family in KL somewhere....Here's where I see a potential problem...call me paranoid but...Joy told me she hasn't any friends or relatives working in Malaysia...I'm worried they'll start exchanging notes and scheming (I am paranoid!)...I'm worried that this cousin person will teach her to start demanding her weekends off, or worse, run away to make more money as a freelance cleaner or PROSTITUTE! Good GOD! Joy seems pretty innocent so far....I mean, she didn't even know what chicken nuggets and 'air-con' meant! I bought her an Oxford Malaysian Learner's Dictionary to improve her wordpower and communication skills, "Cooking For Expats" so she can pick up some proper hygiene and cooking terms and techniques (she didn't know what SCRUB and PEEL meant!)...(btw, this book is brilliant for your domestic help who can read English, it is so basic and technical (with colour photos), and the recepies are easy and foolproof!). Joy is slowing fitting in here, and I'd hate to see her developing bad habits or a bad attitude. Even Milo seems to be appreciating her more these days, so we're happy with the progress she's made in our home.What should I do? I need the phone to be accessible so I can call her up during the day, and she can call me if there's an emergency. I can tell her all the outgoing numbers will be on the bill every month to deter her from phoning out. But I can't barr calls from coming in (or can I???), and I gather her cousin has quite a bit of freedom to come and go, and maybe even her own handphone. She may be calling Joy up all the time now, when I'm at work/out. This sucks lah! And another thing I wanted your feedback on is this...the TV. I know there are some havoc Phillipino serials on during the day (and by now, I'm sure the cousin has told her about them) on TV2. Should I allow her to watch them, if/when her house chores are done? I actually don't mind that...as Esther (my old maid) watched them. Joy's usually done with her chores by lunchtime....but still, I don't want to spoil her. At least Esther had other outlets for her boredom - she read novels or did the Sudoku puzzles in the paper. I just feel that it's a little early (she's not even been three weeks with us yet) to be giving out treats at this point, though I'm generally quite pleased with her work and progress so far. I don't want to start anything that will eventually prove to be my own headache later on!How laaaah?!!
Let me just say, firstly, you all have been wonderful, with advice for me regarding my new maid. The very fact I have this space to discuss her is a godsend! Heaven knows I can't b!#ch about her to my husband...the last thing he wants to talk about when he gets home from work is what the maid did or didn't do that day...and I know I'm not the only wife on the planet with this problem!OK....here's the new problem...or is it? Joy told me yesterday that her long-lost cousin, whom she hasn't spoken to for years, called up the house while I was out. This person had apparently gotten our number from Joy's relatives back home when she called up there. So they chit-chatted and this woman is apparently working for a family in KL somewhere....Here's where I see a potential problem...call me paranoid but...Joy told me she hasn't any friends or relatives working in Malaysia...I'm worried they'll start exchanging notes and scheming (I am paranoid!)...I'm worried that this cousin person will teach her to start demanding her weekends off, or worse, run away to make more money as a freelance cleaner or PROSTITUTE! Good GOD! Joy seems pretty innocent so far....I mean, she didn't even know what chicken nuggets and 'air-con' meant! I bought her an Oxford Malaysian Learner's Dictionary to improve her wordpower and communication skills, "Cooking For Expats" so she can pick up some proper hygiene and cooking terms and techniques (she didn't know what SCRUB and PEEL meant!)...(btw, this book is brilliant for your domestic help who can read English, it is so basic and technical (with colour photos), and the recepies are easy and foolproof!). Joy is slowing fitting in here, and I'd hate to see her developing bad habits or a bad attitude. Even Milo seems to be appreciating her more these days, so we're happy with the progress she's made in our home.What should I do? I need the phone to be accessible so I can call her up during the day, and she can call me if there's an emergency. I can tell her all the outgoing numbers will be on the bill every month to deter her from phoning out. But I can't barr calls from coming in (or can I???), and I gather her cousin has quite a bit of freedom to come and go, and maybe even her own handphone. She may be calling Joy up all the time now, when I'm at work/out. This sucks lah! And another thing I wanted your feedback on is this...the TV. I know there are some havoc Phillipino serials on during the day (and by now, I'm sure the cousin has told her about them) on TV2. Should I allow her to watch them, if/when her house chores are done? I actually don't mind that...as Esther (my old maid) watched them. Joy's usually done with her chores by lunchtime....but still, I don't want to spoil her. At least Esther had other outlets for her boredom - she read novels or did the Sudoku puzzles in the paper. I just feel that it's a little early (she's not even been three weeks with us yet) to be giving out treats at this point, though I'm generally quite pleased with her work and progress so far. I don't want to start anything that will eventually prove to be my own headache later on!How laaaah?!!
6th post
RED HOT spice for married life!
Today I rocked my husband's world, joe, don't play play. And all I did was get a manicure! I went to Midvalley to pick up Joy's mended dentures (refer to old blog on that one) and they hadn't arrived yet so I had time to kill. I decided to get the spa mani/pedi-cure special at JJNails (they are very nice there) because I didn't feel like trolloping the mall with a cramp in my side (I think the baby's having a massive growth spurt!) and my feet needed some TLC. Oh! By the by....remember the little toe that almost came off in my horrific freak accident 2 months ago??? It's all better now, thanks all for your concern! It still tingles when you touch it, and it's numb most of the time, but I can live with that. And so....I got the dead skin shaved off my heels and my nails painted a bright, fire engine red! Whoooohoooo! It was the first thing Daniel noticed when he came through the door. You'd think I'd completely let myself go, the way he drooled over them. Haah! In my hectic life, where got time to do my nails, all?!! But nevertheless, I'm glad he: a)noticed, b)appreciated them, c)encouraged me to do 'this' more often! So ladies, what can I say? It's them little things in life, eh?
Today I rocked my husband's world, joe, don't play play. And all I did was get a manicure! I went to Midvalley to pick up Joy's mended dentures (refer to old blog on that one) and they hadn't arrived yet so I had time to kill. I decided to get the spa mani/pedi-cure special at JJNails (they are very nice there) because I didn't feel like trolloping the mall with a cramp in my side (I think the baby's having a massive growth spurt!) and my feet needed some TLC. Oh! By the by....remember the little toe that almost came off in my horrific freak accident 2 months ago??? It's all better now, thanks all for your concern! It still tingles when you touch it, and it's numb most of the time, but I can live with that. And so....I got the dead skin shaved off my heels and my nails painted a bright, fire engine red! Whoooohoooo! It was the first thing Daniel noticed when he came through the door. You'd think I'd completely let myself go, the way he drooled over them. Haah! In my hectic life, where got time to do my nails, all?!! But nevertheless, I'm glad he: a)noticed, b)appreciated them, c)encouraged me to do 'this' more often! So ladies, what can I say? It's them little things in life, eh?
5th post
Living Coffee with the most annoying man on TV
Paul Basset has GOT to be the most annoying man on television. How he got a half hour show on Discovery Travel and Living about making coffee (for god's sake!) is beyond me. There he is, with headache-inducing camera angling and his unshaven, unwashed, flabby mug on tv every tuesday night at 8. Bad enough there's nothing good on the telly on tuesday nights, still we always hope there's a decent rerun of something interesting on chanel 11. But nooooo...there's this Aussie clown trying to do Jamie Oliver, with coffee!
Eeee ye. So slappable.
Anyway...you all wrote in and said if I was going to complain endlessly about this picture (above) I should change it. Well, I would if I knew how to! As it is, I can't even upload my latest photos to show you guys on this blogsite! Milo's almost 2 and I still have his baby pictures in the gallery. He looks very different now, like a right proper little boy, complete with his Swiss Army haircut and row of gleaming teeth. When he's old enough to understand, I'm going to get Joy to take out her dentures and show him what happens to little children who don't like to brush regularly! Muuuaahahahahahaaa!
I can't believe he'll be a big brother soon. Frankly, as sweet as it is...I do get a bit worried.he's rather rough. He'll throw things at the baby's head, I just know it. He took Daniel's laptop and hurled it onto the floor just last weekend. He loves to throw things at people's heads. Can't imagine where he picked that up, it's not like he sees his mum hurling pots and ceramic horses at anyone at home. He got Joy smack between the eyes with a giant Lego this morning. Champion! What am I going to do with this rugrat? Maybe I should invite Paul Basset over for a cup of Nescafe and arm Milo with an arsenal of little plastic toys! Heeeheheeeee! That would be too cool...
Paul Basset has GOT to be the most annoying man on television. How he got a half hour show on Discovery Travel and Living about making coffee (for god's sake!) is beyond me. There he is, with headache-inducing camera angling and his unshaven, unwashed, flabby mug on tv every tuesday night at 8. Bad enough there's nothing good on the telly on tuesday nights, still we always hope there's a decent rerun of something interesting on chanel 11. But nooooo...there's this Aussie clown trying to do Jamie Oliver, with coffee!
Eeee ye. So slappable.
Anyway...you all wrote in and said if I was going to complain endlessly about this picture (above) I should change it. Well, I would if I knew how to! As it is, I can't even upload my latest photos to show you guys on this blogsite! Milo's almost 2 and I still have his baby pictures in the gallery. He looks very different now, like a right proper little boy, complete with his Swiss Army haircut and row of gleaming teeth. When he's old enough to understand, I'm going to get Joy to take out her dentures and show him what happens to little children who don't like to brush regularly! Muuuaahahahahahaaa!
I can't believe he'll be a big brother soon. Frankly, as sweet as it is...I do get a bit worried.he's rather rough. He'll throw things at the baby's head, I just know it. He took Daniel's laptop and hurled it onto the floor just last weekend. He loves to throw things at people's heads. Can't imagine where he picked that up, it's not like he sees his mum hurling pots and ceramic horses at anyone at home. He got Joy smack between the eyes with a giant Lego this morning. Champion! What am I going to do with this rugrat? Maybe I should invite Paul Basset over for a cup of Nescafe and arm Milo with an arsenal of little plastic toys! Heeeheheeeee! That would be too cool...
4th post
Well, it's week 2 now with Joy in our home and I am happy to report that there's been a SIGNIFICANT improvement, both in her work and her disposition. It took a lot of patience on my end, and reminders that she doesn't see even half of the things she has to deal with here back from where she's from (eg. vacuum cleaners and chicken nuggets!). Sigh....well, patience has never been one of MY finer qualities, so everyone's learning something from this experience!I came home one day last week, and seeing how my lovely wooden blinds were all knotted up and twisted, how the plastic bin liner wasn't properly lining the garbage and trash bins, how there were no fresh bog rolls in the loo....I just lost it. Completely balistic, I went! It was an accumulation of the stress I was feeling all week with her, so I called her up to my room to show her (again) how things were to be done, how I wanted everything back in its rightful place after she's dusted (she loves to pile things up into a corner - any corner!), etc. it was one long schpeel. Then I got personal. I asked her what her problem was. It took a while but I found out her dentures needed mending, so that's why she wasn't talking much or smiling - she was embarassed and her teeth kept falling out! I told her this was a small problem that can be fixed - and she needed to communicate with us more because we are not robots living in this house and I don't want doom and gloom when I come home everyday. I also don't want to be ignored in my own home, with her wandering around the house like a ghost. She also has this tendency to not say please, thank you, good morning, good night, etc. I mean, how am I going to teach my kids manners when the maid is so gruff and clueless. I told her what we expected from her, not just work-wise but as a person living with us in our home.
I guess what it boiled down to was a clash of expectations and culture. I expected someone like Esther who was so cheerful, polite and efficient - Joy, I guess, expected to be treated like a slave by a cruel slave master (?!!); to just do work, keep her head down, keep out of the way, don't talk, don't complain or the boss will beat the living crap outta you, starve you or yell at you. Huh. Anyway, the talk seemed to do the trick, she's not glum anymore and is actually being friendly with all of us. Her housework's improving, though I still need to show her how to do things properly. I don't mind, as long as there's some cheer in the house.What of Esther? Well, she's on standby...but at the end of the day, the demand for her level of experience and perhaps a family willing to let her off on the weekends may be her choice finally. She knows we need someone full time. Let's see how Joy works out, shall we?
I guess what it boiled down to was a clash of expectations and culture. I expected someone like Esther who was so cheerful, polite and efficient - Joy, I guess, expected to be treated like a slave by a cruel slave master (?!!); to just do work, keep her head down, keep out of the way, don't talk, don't complain or the boss will beat the living crap outta you, starve you or yell at you. Huh. Anyway, the talk seemed to do the trick, she's not glum anymore and is actually being friendly with all of us. Her housework's improving, though I still need to show her how to do things properly. I don't mind, as long as there's some cheer in the house.What of Esther? Well, she's on standby...but at the end of the day, the demand for her level of experience and perhaps a family willing to let her off on the weekends may be her choice finally. She knows we need someone full time. Let's see how Joy works out, shall we?
3rd post
So. Our new maid arrived on Monday. Let me just say this; she looked NOTHING like she did in her picture. I feel cheated...like an online dater! She was plump and jovial in her agency photograph.the woman I took home with me was gaunt and sullen. She must be feeling terribly homesick, disoriented and scared. We have been trying to cheer her up and make her feel welcome and comfortable, but I don't think she's appreciating the effort. Give her time, yes I know.
The thing is, I realise I'm also perpetuating my own problem here.as I'm comparing her (let's just call her 'Joy', I just LOVE the irony) to the housemaid I had before, Esther - who was a dream come true. Esther joined our household 2 months prior to Joy arriving as we were desperate for the extra help. She proved to be a cheerful, industrious girl - what we appreciated the most about her was that she knew what had to be done, when to do it, when to disappear and when to reappear.AND, she always had a smile on her face! Yes, she had a few annoying habits too, but we could overlook those as she was great with Milo and he actually liked her (he doesn't just like anyone, you know). She really made an effort with him, and as a harried mum, I totally appreciate that. Joy, on the other hand, has to be told (more like prodded!) to do this, and then this, and then this..and I'm mentally exhausted trying to organise her, the house, my son and dinner! And because Joy looks so manic depressive and scary, I don't dare leave Milo with her for even 5 minutes - which defeats the purpose of having her in the first place as he's basically the reason we decided to hire a maid to begin with!
I know it's only been a week and we should give the poor woman a break and let her settle in.she's getting accustomed to how our household is run. Maybe, pray god, she'll PERK UP sometime soon. We let her call home to the Phillipines and she was very happy. But that lasted all of 5 minutes.
I am seriously looking into sending her back and getting a permit for Esther, who's keen to rejoin our family on contract. But according to experienced friends, this can potentially open up another can of worms. You see, Esther has been in KL for a while now, and is savvy to The Ways of the World (ie. through the eyes of an illegal foreign maid). She has many friends, contacts and a handphone (which, I must say, rings constantly). Who's to say she's not going to use me to get a legal working permit, and then do a runner after that, if offered more money to work elsewhere? I'm in a quandry.
I feel my whole life lately revolves around this issue. I went to buy panadol the other day and got into a 30 minute conversation with the pharmacist at Guardian about Phillipina maids! My neighbour came over for a drink and I ended up picking her brain on this dilemma. I NEVER ask my mother for advice, but yesterday I called her up and asked her what to do.
Now I'm going to ask YOU for your input and advice. Drop me a line, click on the 'post a message' icon above and do it now!!! I'm desperate![And before you all bang me for having too high of expectations and being impatient, etc. let me tell you I'm a VERY fair 'boss mum' and Esther cried to stay with us because we treated her so well!]xox and looking forward to your posts!Shaz
The thing is, I realise I'm also perpetuating my own problem here.as I'm comparing her (let's just call her 'Joy', I just LOVE the irony) to the housemaid I had before, Esther - who was a dream come true. Esther joined our household 2 months prior to Joy arriving as we were desperate for the extra help. She proved to be a cheerful, industrious girl - what we appreciated the most about her was that she knew what had to be done, when to do it, when to disappear and when to reappear.AND, she always had a smile on her face! Yes, she had a few annoying habits too, but we could overlook those as she was great with Milo and he actually liked her (he doesn't just like anyone, you know). She really made an effort with him, and as a harried mum, I totally appreciate that. Joy, on the other hand, has to be told (more like prodded!) to do this, and then this, and then this..and I'm mentally exhausted trying to organise her, the house, my son and dinner! And because Joy looks so manic depressive and scary, I don't dare leave Milo with her for even 5 minutes - which defeats the purpose of having her in the first place as he's basically the reason we decided to hire a maid to begin with!
I know it's only been a week and we should give the poor woman a break and let her settle in.she's getting accustomed to how our household is run. Maybe, pray god, she'll PERK UP sometime soon. We let her call home to the Phillipines and she was very happy. But that lasted all of 5 minutes.
I am seriously looking into sending her back and getting a permit for Esther, who's keen to rejoin our family on contract. But according to experienced friends, this can potentially open up another can of worms. You see, Esther has been in KL for a while now, and is savvy to The Ways of the World (ie. through the eyes of an illegal foreign maid). She has many friends, contacts and a handphone (which, I must say, rings constantly). Who's to say she's not going to use me to get a legal working permit, and then do a runner after that, if offered more money to work elsewhere? I'm in a quandry.
I feel my whole life lately revolves around this issue. I went to buy panadol the other day and got into a 30 minute conversation with the pharmacist at Guardian about Phillipina maids! My neighbour came over for a drink and I ended up picking her brain on this dilemma. I NEVER ask my mother for advice, but yesterday I called her up and asked her what to do.
Now I'm going to ask YOU for your input and advice. Drop me a line, click on the 'post a message' icon above and do it now!!! I'm desperate![And before you all bang me for having too high of expectations and being impatient, etc. let me tell you I'm a VERY fair 'boss mum' and Esther cried to stay with us because we treated her so well!]xox and looking forward to your posts!Shaz
2nd post 2006
I was quite bored the other day, and couldn't possible wake my pretty little boy up from his nap to entertain me, so I decided to google myownsweetself. I was amazed that stuff written about us/me from ten years ago is still floating around in cyberspace. It's downright creepy! You guys remember the "Walk Naked" incident from the late '90s??? Well, that's still there if you're interested in reading about it.
And the photos! Don't get me started.
There's one of me looking anorexic from 1998 - late 1999.
7kg heavier in 2000.
Positively ROLY-POLY in 2001! (like Pierce Brosnan's wife Keely Shaye-Smith, but not HALF as attractive!)
Back down to the cengkung Twiggy look in 2002 (a reaction to seeing photos of myself that year, no doubt).
And looking fairly normal weight at my wedding in late 2003.
It's like Oprah's fat-slim-fat trip through the years..!
Of course, look at me now, and it's like a big shocker ('big' being the operative word here!). I started off this pregnancy heavier than I was supposed to, but these things happen I guess. I had a neo-natal check-up yesterday and everything looks great (oklah, apart from the cellulite on the back of my thighs): normal blood pressure, blood sugar's great, baby's growing its bits and bobs perfectly. I'm really pleased! You know, like anyone, I have down days when you feel really DUMPY and uggs, and you wish there was a miracle cure for the YUCKYUCKs. But generally, I'm happiest with my looks, body and shape when I'm pregnant. Is that weird? Is it a form of DENIAL, that perhaps, pregnancy is an excuse to have a wider spread at the back and bump up front? It's true that your skin takes on a firm suppleness, what with the usual flab being filled out and all.It's all lovely really. Don't get me started on the chimichangas!!!!! (ie. it's boobies to you plebians lah). They are absolutely LUSH, thank you very much.
I'm frantic at the prospect of them deflating like two flacid, rubber baloons once the breastfeeding stops. And then, that's when the trouble starts: you've got thunder thighs, thick arms, a flabby tum, a squalling infant, and no excuse to be looking like you do, COZ YOU'RE NOT PREGNANT ANYMORE! WAAAaaaaaah!
Hahaha..acah aje..I'm ok about it lah, as long as my hubs remains the supportive, laid-back, loving character that he is.
[But that said, I'll be looking out for a work-out partner/drill sargent/motivational guru/weigth-loss hypnotherapist/free slimming treatments, etc once this bubba's born!!!!]
Watch This Space. Baby due late June.
Ta for now! Got to defrost the pizza.
xox Shaz
And the photos! Don't get me started.
There's one of me looking anorexic from 1998 - late 1999.
7kg heavier in 2000.
Positively ROLY-POLY in 2001! (like Pierce Brosnan's wife Keely Shaye-Smith, but not HALF as attractive!)
Back down to the cengkung Twiggy look in 2002 (a reaction to seeing photos of myself that year, no doubt).
And looking fairly normal weight at my wedding in late 2003.
It's like Oprah's fat-slim-fat trip through the years..!
Of course, look at me now, and it's like a big shocker ('big' being the operative word here!). I started off this pregnancy heavier than I was supposed to, but these things happen I guess. I had a neo-natal check-up yesterday and everything looks great (oklah, apart from the cellulite on the back of my thighs): normal blood pressure, blood sugar's great, baby's growing its bits and bobs perfectly. I'm really pleased! You know, like anyone, I have down days when you feel really DUMPY and uggs, and you wish there was a miracle cure for the YUCKYUCKs. But generally, I'm happiest with my looks, body and shape when I'm pregnant. Is that weird? Is it a form of DENIAL, that perhaps, pregnancy is an excuse to have a wider spread at the back and bump up front? It's true that your skin takes on a firm suppleness, what with the usual flab being filled out and all.It's all lovely really. Don't get me started on the chimichangas!!!!! (ie. it's boobies to you plebians lah). They are absolutely LUSH, thank you very much.
I'm frantic at the prospect of them deflating like two flacid, rubber baloons once the breastfeeding stops. And then, that's when the trouble starts: you've got thunder thighs, thick arms, a flabby tum, a squalling infant, and no excuse to be looking like you do, COZ YOU'RE NOT PREGNANT ANYMORE! WAAAaaaaaah!
Hahaha..acah aje..I'm ok about it lah, as long as my hubs remains the supportive, laid-back, loving character that he is.
[But that said, I'll be looking out for a work-out partner/drill sargent/motivational guru/weigth-loss hypnotherapist/free slimming treatments, etc once this bubba's born!!!!]
Watch This Space. Baby due late June.
Ta for now! Got to defrost the pizza.
xox Shaz
1st post
(this was sometime in early March 2006)
Hi all. So Mandisa got voted out last night. What's up with THAT lah!??!???? I was so beside myself! I was hoping Paris Bennet would get booted; yeah she can singlaah and all that, but she's damn annoying to watch. She's so smug, you just want to wipe that look off her face.I just don't know about American Idol anymore....I used to wait for it with baited breath (yeah, I have no life), but these days I find myself channel surfing halfway through it....especially on Wednesday nights when "Come Dine With Me" (Ch 11) comes on at 8.30. God, that show is so funny...people can get downright catty and evil! What I love about the show is that 5 total strangers get together and each person hosts a dinner party at their home each night (week) and they all give each other marks on the menu, food taste, overall ambiance, conversation, decor (!??), etc....this is done confidentially at the end of each episode (person with the highest points get 1,000 GB pounds). These people actually trudge through their hosts home, go through their closets and make snarky comments on their hosts' kids' photos! Yowzaa.I'm just an old voyeur, I love the conflict.And then aaah....I drag my tired, pregnant self up the stairs and go to bed at 9.15pm.That, folks, is what I [normally] do on any given weeknight.
xoxoxxxxxxxxxx!Shazzer wazzer
Hi all. So Mandisa got voted out last night. What's up with THAT lah!??!???? I was so beside myself! I was hoping Paris Bennet would get booted; yeah she can singlaah and all that, but she's damn annoying to watch. She's so smug, you just want to wipe that look off her face.I just don't know about American Idol anymore....I used to wait for it with baited breath (yeah, I have no life), but these days I find myself channel surfing halfway through it....especially on Wednesday nights when "Come Dine With Me" (Ch 11) comes on at 8.30. God, that show is so funny...people can get downright catty and evil! What I love about the show is that 5 total strangers get together and each person hosts a dinner party at their home each night (week) and they all give each other marks on the menu, food taste, overall ambiance, conversation, decor (!??), etc....this is done confidentially at the end of each episode (person with the highest points get 1,000 GB pounds). These people actually trudge through their hosts home, go through their closets and make snarky comments on their hosts' kids' photos! Yowzaa.I'm just an old voyeur, I love the conflict.And then aaah....I drag my tired, pregnant self up the stairs and go to bed at 9.15pm.That, folks, is what I [normally] do on any given weeknight.
xoxoxxxxxxxxxx!Shazzer wazzer
Hi there! Shazmin lives here now.....
I'm moving all my previous blogs from the MIX FM website here for all posterity.
Yeehaaa. Enjoy!
Yeehaaa. Enjoy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
