The straps, the heels, the print, the textures! The satisfaction of being able to adjust one's height! Ahh the pleasure that is shoe shopping.
So here they are. My miracle pills for reducing stress levels. Primavera had sales and I went ballistic. Bought three pairs, under a solemn oath of no more shoe shopping for this year.
Grey pointies with about 2 inches of heels, for formal skirts: RM69 RM34.50
Same shade with June x 2's green template! Had to buy it: RM78 RM39
Playful polkadots, been eyeing it for a while: RM58 RM29
RM102.50 is a small price to pay for my sanity. So happy sajalah, lugging the huge ass paperbag with 3 pairs of shoes inside. My precious-esssssss....
Meet the rest of the family:
Bought from the open-air market at Bugis, Singapore. Very comfortable and solid.
From Nose (I can never get the shop name). Not that comfortable la, still bites me.
First pair of Primavera, also at 50% off. Taught me never to buy Primavera shoes when there's no sales, 'coz they will mark it down sooner or later.
My all-time favourite, the Kickers that started the shoe madness.
OY! Why cut sini cut sana lah tu censorship board??
I am proud to announce that I can understand Sepet thoroughly. Many dialects wei! (And the subtitles suck man... )
I am going for a "kench". I know something happens to Jason later (thanks to reading too many reviews before buying the movie) so I'm trying to delay that moment.
Well, I didn't like the ending. It was rather... overly dramatic. The scene in the car, the crying and stuff? I mean of course lah I'd be weeping buckets (and I did weep buckets) when KF and I have to be separated, but what's with the mum crying as well? Hmm. But other than that, it was good. LOVE the little details put in. Love the music, love the script, love the snippets of background conversations. And Orked's Cantonese also not bad ya!
I can't decide between Mukhsin and Sepet though. Sepet would probably have won if it weren't for the ending. And I will totally buy Mukhsin when it comes out, if only to rewatch the cameo scenes of Jason and Orked.
I was going to blog about shoe shopping (for the ladies, you men already had your ABCDs) but it's getting late and I ought to retire to bed. Meeting up with the throat specialist tomorrow.
Barely two weeks after puking my guts out in a bus station in Singapore, I'm ill again. But this time it's pure, bad, luck. =( You remember the pesky little dancing bone from a certain Sanma Shioyaki I downed last Friday? I've got a throat infection from that and a fever to boot. Worst thing is we can't even tell if the bone is still lodged there or not, so if the pain persists I'm going to x-ray my throat next week.
Hmm. I'm going to gather my remaining unfried wits to continue working. Entering a state of meditation with a variation of an "after-thesis" chant:
A. Kadir Jasin provides an interesting commentary on why Najib is not going to challenge Pak Lah, and how Najib is different from Anwar, and how Pak Lah is stronger than Mahathir. Worth a read though it took me twice as long the time to do so 'coz of my C6 Bahasa Malaysia. Click here.
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JoyceTheFairy talks about her experience about refusing to bribe but bribing at the end anyway. I think it's meaningful about how strongly she felt about it though she relented. Many people just bribe without even blinking ok. My stand is with hers. NO BRIBING!!! Click here.
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Yo Jeff has just highlighted Aisya's case! Meh heh I broke it first (but he wins because of sheer might) Click here.
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And I LOVE SCRUBS.
ROFLMAO. I don't normally enjoy poo jokes but this is simply. Too. Precious.
p/s. I registered yesterday!! Damn easy procedure, just line up at the counter where they pay bills, then give the kind lady your I.C. She keys in everything, then prints the form out which you sign. That's it.
As a break from structuration theory and agencies, I'd like to share with you this video I found from Zewt, which I think is a brilliant local music production. So brilliant that I took half an hour off work just to translate it below.
Therefore, at the risk of terrorizing my aunt who reads this blog, may I present to you:
麻坡的华语
Muar's Chinese (Language) I'm not a hiphop kaki (fan), but I want to use hiphop's force To let you understand my feelings I'm not a [干炮鸡] (I don't know what this is - probably coz i'm not from Muar) But I'd like you to know that my turbo is also very powerful So I want you to stand here, sit down diam diam (quietly) Listen to me rap this song
I come from Muar I live in a street opposite Wetex There are many Hainan aunties inside but no kopi (coffee) This is not a big place, just a small town From the main street to [street name] and Jln Khalidi Outsiders think that Muar is interesting Because of the way we speak Sibeh (Really) powerful, sibeh strong, Innovative and adds a lot of other stuff
Besides the three major races and Menggali we have foreign workers from all over the world Many industrial areas around Very crazy during the weekends These foreign workers will all crowd into town To climb up the stairs to find prostitutes To buy pirated VCDs Or they will hug each other and do lanjiao (profanity) things You will hear many sounds, many different pronunciations Some of them even look a little geli (gross)
But the most symbolic is still Muar's Chinese (language) Because Muar people speak In a sibeh powerful way
*Chorus* Muar's Chinese (language), I feel sibeh proud of it, If you're unhappy about it I'll let you see my middle finger I don't like to act serious, I think I'm very cool Because I speak Muar Chinese
Repeat *Chorus*
Life here is very simple, When you're free you go and drink kopi Or go to Tanjung to feed monkeys And there is Muar Bridge to fish from There are few taxis in Muar but many aunties Carrying their babies and feeding them milk
I take you to disco There are little round pills After eating it I bet that you will shake till very late at night Then we can eat sio bee (a kind of dimsum) the second morning We can also go to Tanjung to practise Taichi with the old folks
There is no standard language, just local language I don't believe that you understand this concept If you do you won't go to KL to learn Cantonese Then believe that you have a big stick (Background: Diu (profanity) you!) You have to have self dignity You have to follow your conscience Don't be afraid because your culture is not defined
Teochew kueytiao, Hokkien fried prawn mee This is our style, our definition Say it loudly. This is Muar's Chinese
Repeat *Chorus*
If you come here, don't feel amazed to see sibeh many Proton Wiras on the roads Not because we are not creative It's because Wiras are cheap and they are easier to resell This is our pragmatism, this is our way of life And this is how we show our patriotism Don't doubt it, don't hide from it Listen clearly: I am talking about you!
After 11pm there is another curious scene You will see many ah kua's (transsexuals/transvestites) Airkissing you from the roadside They are very sexily dressed because they want to do your business But some have legs so thick That they can go kick penalty They have breasts and two balls Some of their penises can even become erect
If you stop, they will negotiate prices with you If you reject them, they will laugh and say you don't have balls (actually I think it's sperm, but that doesn't make much sense in English) You say that I am Cina Babi (Chinese pig) You're pantat mangkok kuih koci (got no idea what this means) This small place is built by Chinese (people) If you're that great, don't just make teh susu (milk tea) If you want me to say that you're great, Go to Parit Bakar to make furniture lah!
YKent and I are going to register as voters tomorrow! This is in response to Rocky's caution that those who wish to vote in the next General Election must register before the end of this month.
Thou shalt not deprive me of my voting rights!!!
I was going to do it anyway so tomorrow is as good a time as any. We're going to have breakfast then go to the nearest post office to perform the ceremony. Then we will proceed to complain, legitimately, about the government all the way home. Can't wait!
Here is what you need to know to register, nicked from this page of the Women's Aid Organization:
How do I register to vote?
You have to register to be a person on the electoral roll to ensure your right to vote during the elections.
You can now register to vote throughout the year at any post office, State Electoral Office or Mobile Registration in public areas. Starting from 1 July 2002, you can register to vote every day during working hours.
To be eligible, you must be a Malaysian citizen, at least 21 years old and residing in a constituency.
To register, go to any post office or the State Electoral Office.
Bring your identity card (IC) with you, and fill in Form A (Borang A), which has four sections. You will not have to pay for this form.
As proof of your registration, tear off the attachment in Section IV of Form A, and keep it with you.
This entire process should only take you about 20 minutes, and you will help to bring real changes to women's lives.
Important facts to know when filling up Form A:
Application's name should follow the name on the Identification Card. Use BLOCK LETTERS.
Include the correct Identification Card number:
New Identification Card Number
Old Identification Card Number
If the applicant does not have an Old Identification Card number, please state "NONE"/"TIADA" at the stipulated area/box.
The applicants' address should be the full permanent and contactable address (please state the postcode).
State the type of application; new application or application to change the address.
Get and keep the attachment of Section IV of Form A as proof of registration.
For further information please refer to the official page of the Election Commission of Malaysia, or the Suruhan Pilihan Raya Malaysia.
I don't want to do a review on it, rather I just want to gush about it like how I did when I called YJ right after the show, squealing, "You have to watch it! Ho Yu Hang's back is featured in it!" and how I told Wiun, "After the movie I just wanted to hug the person beside me and say, 'I'm a Malaysian too!'" or how I hopped around the kitchen while Wiun and YKent were preparing sandwiches and wouldn't stop distracting them with sporadic ejaculations of "It was great! You should watch it! It was so Malaysian! There are worse ways you can waste RM10 you know! Who wants to watch Sepet? Oi why so long one I haven't eaten since breakfast!"
Don't let me overrate it for you. I know sometimes it's just irritating when someone says it's so incredibly nice and you walk out of the cinema feeling cheated. These things are subjective and different people look for different things in a movie.
Enough with the subtle disclaiming!
The storyline was simple - that's what puppy love is all about. Carefree and slightly wistful when it ends. But the parts I really liked in the movie was actually the scenes secondary to the storyline, the bits and pieces that followed the development of Orked and Mukhsin's budding love. Orked's irreverent parents. Good-natured gossip from Kak Yam. The blackboard in Orked's room. Orked's defiant spunk and English accent. "Pencemar budaya". So many so many little things inside that make you chuckle, or slightly thoughtful, or go "Hey, that's Malaysia!"
There are so many media products out there, from the U.S., from the U.K., from China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, etc. Watching them gives me a slightly detached feeling, kinda like being an onlooker or an outsider. It's like watching through a glass into worlds where Devils wear Prada, or construction workers climb up bamboo sticks, or where all girls look the same and act stupid. Even some shows in Malaysia. I don't identify with that dunno-from-where accent. I don't get the slapstick humour (which made me lose all interest in local productions). And I definitely don't get that lobster suit you're calling a lizard.
But Mukhsin. I felt at home. I felt proud of it being shown in Berlin and winning. I felt proud of the community and family ties and multiple languages we have. I felt proud of identifying with all the symbols within that hint of Malaysia. Our culture. *beams*
OKlah maybe I haven't watched too many local productions to say only Mukhsin is Malaysian. It isn't. But this certainly restores my faith in local movies and please please please Yasmin Ahmad Tan Chui Mui Ho Yu Hang Amir Muhammad and co., make more movies and I promise I'll see them all! (And make all my friends go too!)
Other random jots:
The scene I loved the most was the dance scene in Orked's livingroom. The warmth penetrated my soul and my eyes welled up for reasons I don't know. It was comical, yet slightly sad. Maybe it was sad because such moments are so precious and once they are over, they are forever gone.
Tiny little gripes: a couple of scenes involving Chinese were a little fake. Didn't see much of Indians within.
She's doing something pretty meaningful, helping a little girl and her family out. The little girl, Aisya suffers from Fraser Syndrome - "her eyelids are completely fused together, her fingers are webbed, her hearing is impaired and her larynx partially shut" -quote from an article featuring her from The Star. Her father who's the sole breadwinner in the family has just recently lost his job, so the family's basically struggling to make ends meet.
I have a vague memory of reading that article on paper actually. Poor thing.
How you can help - you can help spread the message (if you're a broke and jobless student like yours truly) or you can donate some money (check out this article for more information) or if you're in the position, you can even hire Aisya's dad! I don't know, be creative!
p/s. Go watch Mukhsin. It is WORTH YOUR MONEY. More on this later.
Feeling so uninspired now. I've nothing to blog about - wait - I do have stuff to blog about. Stuff like YKent's dream of meeting God and God told him that his gf has not been born yet. His complex feelings of part-despair (of having to wait) and part-anticipation (of having a perky girlfriend 18 years from now) was hilarious. But I'm not telling it right because I'm uninspired so it's not funny now. Sigh.
I spent the day writing one measly paragraph. One paragraph with seven footnotes - I proudly told LL that it's a "Super Duper Condensed Paragraph", but it's still but one paragraph. What am I supposed to tell Prof? I don't think he'd be impressed by the fact that I christen my paragraphs instead of actually writing new ones.
Rehman Rashid's over-glorified rectum. His has to be the most talked about rectum of the century. I say let's just learn from his extensive vocabulary for our GREs and let it go. Seriously not worth the hoo-ha. I don't have enough of adrenaline to spurt every time someone gives me a virtual poke in the eye. Sticks and stones, babes.
I need a haircut. I need tomyam. I need KF to bring my souvenir back from Shanghai. I need more time. I need more blog topics. I need inspiration. I need to know what we're doing this Sunday bersempena harijadi JenHui since we can't bowl, she got snatched today, fell and got a couple of stitches on her hand (damn you snatch thieves! You know how long I took to come up with an original activity to do? Sidenote: JenHui's fine, no belongings lost, just lost a piece of her hand no biggie).
A wise man told me that I should be blogging for my own pleasure so I'm letting this post get past my QC and go live. Perfectionism schmerfectionism.
*Update* Suddenly remembered what I forgot to put in. The Institute has given notice two days ago that the "pass up or fail" deadline is on 30th March. Nice of them to notify two weeks prior. I mean, it's better than three days prior right?
I need cheese fondue and potato chips. I need sleep. I need a golden retriever. I need sun, sea and sand. I need a ghost writer. I need a monument named after me. I need better needs.
After being sick and appetiteless for the weekend, last night I decided to torch my throat with a healthy dose of tomyam. Wahahaha take that, you wimp! *throat shrieks, keels over and shrivels into a pea* And therefore, I woke up this morning without a voice, and have been rasping and coughing for hours at end since then.
I am unrepentant. Not a morsel of remorse. The tomyam was all worth it, and if I could do it again, I would.
Anyway, KF is on the plane to Shanghai now, and I am left with three major tasks to complete before he comes back from America (He flies to America this Saturday and will be there for about a month). I have got to: a) finish my thesis (duh!), b) take GRE and TOEFL to process my application for NUS and NTU, and c) start looking for a job in NZ.
I found out during my trip to Singapore that NUS's deadline is on 15th May instead of end of June as I originally thought. This means that the application has to be sped up - I have to start preparing for GRE and TOEFL, and write a good research proposal. All before 15th May. That's 2 months away!! *pant pant pant* The last time I sat for GRE, I naively went without studying for the verbal section. Not wise. Not wise at all. The first time in my life that I had higher scores in Math compared to English. What an insult!
But never mind. I've learnt through my mistake and have, during the weekend, bought THE book to read for GRE. Word Smart for the GRE by The Princeton Review. It is chock full of long, bombastic words that nobody ever uses, hence is quite perfect for GRE. I will, in the following few weeks, be peppering this blog with words like "paean", "jejune" and "picaresque". What fun!
This brings me a flashback to the good ol' days of Form Five when I was seated beside KF. I had just discovered my feelings for him and was trying to engage him in active conversation - by quizzing him with a dictionary. A typical conversation would look like this (translated to English from Chinese for your viewing pleasure):
"Hey hey, wanna know something cool?" Prods him with a finger. "Erm... what?" Looks up from his math homework. "Know what 'pusillanimous' means?" Waves the Little Oxford Dictionary. "Erm... no." Gives me a not-again-what-a-weirdo look. "It means cowardly!" Blissfully oblivious to his meaningful glance. "Who would say pusillanimous when they can say cowardly? Hahahahahaha..." "Umh." Looks back at his math homework.
Well, needless to say, my moves did not get me very far and he fell for a sweet charming girl who did not see the need to torture people with dictionaries. It took about 18 months for him to come to and realize the lovely person beneath the dictionary freak. Long story for another day.
Anyway, I have to take GRE. I'm aiming for the test date of 19th April, before which I will have to go through about 700 new words and revisit the horror of math. Though I don't remember the GRE math part being exceptionally hard. I just don't get why they need to grill us with all those vocabs that are hardly used anyway. Would I be using "pusillanimous" in replacement of "cowardly"? Maybe, if my motive was to confuse the person that I'm insulting. I don't think that's why I am enrolling for PhD.
Therefore I will be quite busy these days - aiming to finish the first draft (I know I have said this and busted myself so many times but just bear with me) by end of March, and studying for GRE at the same time. I'm also going to update my CV to get a job in NZ. University of Auckland, please hire me!
Well then, cheerio! Will not be updating as often unless interesting stuff happens (like if a Stampede of 8,000 Highly Agitated and Fictional Unemployed Female Bloggers happens, you bet your ass that I'll be on it)!
I've put up a small response to the Minister of Tourism's allegations of all bloggers are liars and out of 10,000 unemployed bloggers, 80% are women in the research blog.
I puked up all my lunch in probably the only unflushable toilet in Singapore. Sorry about that. But it was good to throw up before boarding the bus and I felt much better.
Basically the whole ride home was a blackout. Head was feverish whilst hands and feet were cold. The situation has reversed now and I have really hot hands typing on the keyboard.
Looks like the 7-hour sleep has worn out and I need to go lie down now. (It's been like, 30mins since I reached home!) I think my body has been telling me that if I don't chill, it will for me. OK fine. I can't string a proper sentence now anyway.
I'll let these people do the talking (and YELLING) for me.
This post is dedicated to all the women I know - my wonderful mum, my sister who's in college, women who have survived breast cancer, women who are struggling to raise four children on their own, girls who are in healthy relationships, girls who should stand up for themselves, girls who pretend to be dumb but in reality are not, strong women fighting for the greater good, lesbians and bi-sexuals, women of all body shapes, everybody.
So, at 9:43am, I find myself in KF's empty apartment, in Singapore, the land of kiasu's and excellent public transport. Found the keys in the [top secret hidingplace] and let myself in.
The trip last night wasn't too bad. Before I boarded the train, I did manage to finish Sections 2 and 3, but found the need for a Section 4, so the lit review is still... unfinished. Heck. I sent it to Prof W. anyway.
I read The Time Traveller's Wife in the train and some smatterings of The Undercover Economist. I've just got to the part (in TTTW) where [someone] is destined to die, so I'm just going to hold up a bit more to see if the book would rewrite itself.
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It's 10:44am, and tears are rolling down my cheeks. As they do, I feel a little amused that I'm reporting this on my blog. KF's keyboard feels slightly sticky in contact with my moist fingers.
I'm fine. It's just something I read in the book. Not gonna spoil it for you so I'm not telling what.
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11:27am. I am feeling dehydrated and hungry. I have finally finished the book and upon completing it I just threw my head back and wailed. For a good three minutes. I have since scrubbed my face clean and am trying not to think about the story lest I overflow again.
I am going to work on Project Room Makeover, through which I hope to transform my topsy turvy bedroom into something presentable. I am doing this so that I can say "In your face!" to sexist trespassers who can't stop marvelling at the state of my room because I am a girl. Does this mean that I can breed cockroaches for all they care, if I am a guy? (I don't. My room is untidy but clean.)
I am going to revamp my room, then go for a sex change operation. Sorry, KF. I gotta do what I gotta do.
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11:57am. I have finished drawing the floor map of my room, but I just found that the colour pencils that I brought (bought from some charity fund-raisers) are unsharpened wooden stumps with no Yellow but four different shades of Red.
I hope KF is coming back soon for I am famished.
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Back from lunch and it's 1:47pm. Am feeling awfully drowsy, will take a nap. I didn't sleep very well in the train last night.
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2:18pm and I'm up. Sleep did not come easily and certainly did not stay for long. I'm now reading about how some manufacturers actually spend more money manufacturing the "cheaper" version out of two similar ranges. Say there's Chip Fast and Chip Faster. Chip Faster was designed first, then extra effort was made to disable some features to make Chip Fast. It costs less to the manufacturer than to design an entirely new chip, and compels the customers to pay more for Chip Faster.
Am I making any sense to you?
Another example is why (according to The Undercover Economist) some airport lounges are crappy, because then people would pay for business class to be in the executive lounge. That's depriving the poor to give a pretense of luxury to the rich so that they would pay more.
Economics is interesting.
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Going to take a bath before the working people come back. 3:55pm now.
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6:27pm. KF is not home yet. I feel like a little baby bird waiting for its mum to bring back the food.
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6:35pm. Called KF and he's on his way back. This post is getting boring and I'll better end it before it plunges further.
Section 1 of my lit review is officially finished. The thorniest, head-banging-worthy-est part, although not executed to its perfection, is FINISHED. And I'd like to keep it this way please. (Not likely to happen 'coz it is still the first draft, yet to be crushed, karate-chopped and licked into shape)
Yesterday I trudged. Today I swagger. Tomorrow I will prance!
Oh dear. I have to preserve the energy to finish Sections 2 and 3 by today. Just wanted to share the elation!
p/s. The prancing part is due to an impulse trip to Singapore. Bought the tix yesterday and will be on the train tonight. More on this later.
I spent the last hour having lunch with my sis, who came back from a workshop on child abuse yesterday, and was determined to share all the morbid little stories and details she'd learnt. So exuberant was she that I suppressed the odd mixture of hate and nausea churning within, and gulped down the tasteless lunch whilst she chattered away.
Abused children who decide to tell get to relive their trauma at least 20 times telling the stories to adults who may or may not listen to them.
The story of the mum who couldn't stop crying when her son told her that he had been molested - until the son grew so fed up that he never told her anything else anymore.
Crooks that deserve a million deaths who go by a "standard procedure" of getting the parents' trust, the children's trust, and manipulation of innocent minds to save their [insert string of profanities] arses.
The complicated feeling of guilt of the children who convict the offenders - they may actually like the paedophiles, just not their actions.
The story of the pastor/priest who got sacked from church because he was caught molesting/raping (I'm not sure) the disabled and children. The case was hushed up for the church's reputation, and this bastard went out and opened a shelter home. And he is still AT LARGE because noone is speaking up.
So, if you know of any wrongdoings upon children (in fact - of any wrongdoings at all, but I'm going to be less ambitious and just focus on children) please listen to them. Support them. Then make the bastards sorry that they ever laid their hands upon them. (Legal means is preferred - as much as I would like to inflict bodily harm)
Grey pointies with about 2 inches of heels, for formal skirts: 
Same shade with June x 2's green template! Had to buy it: 
Playful polkadots, been eyeing it for a while: 
Bought from the open-air market at Bugis, Singapore. Very comfortable and solid.
From Nose (I can never get the shop name). Not that comfortable la, still bites me.
First pair of Primavera, also at 50% off. Taught me never to buy Primavera shoes when there's no sales, 'coz they will mark it down sooner or later.
My all-time favourite, the Kickers that started the shoe madness.
