a friend in need, is a friend indeed

If there's ever one thing that I missed most after leaving KL (besides my family and those delicious food of course!) and move DownUnder, is the fact that I'm leaving behind all my friends too.

They're NOT just your average people whom you just greet your hi's and bye's to whenever you feel like doing so; these so-called friends are definitely more than that. Being brought up in a boarding school for most of my life teenage life, friends are like my extended family to me, my confidante, even my lifeline.

I could never imagine my how I could ever last this long in my life, if it wasn't for the constant sincere support of these beautiful people called friends, on top of the undying love I got from my family.

So when I finally moved here in Perth, one of the hardest fact I had to deal is not knowing anyone at all whom I could call friend. Of course, there were those kids in college whom I met nearly everyday, but I still find it a bit hard to get along closer to them, partially due to our slight age difference (most of them are fresh high school graduates anyway, thus we obviously have a totally different wavelengths in our thinking).

But then again, thanks to my dearest childhood friend, Faris, I do get my regular dose of close friendship connection whenever he flew into Perth in his flight duty. At least, knowing he'd be there for me no matter how hard my life could be here in such foreign place at times, gave me the strength to keep moving on.

So the past few years, other than the occasional visits from Faris, I had to merely content myself with these mere acquaintence from college, until early this year when I finally met D through one of those internet websites.

Right from the first time we met, we just clicked right away. I guess knowing that we shared so much similarities on the story of how we ended up in this country just gave us more reasons to get to know each other more. His sense of down-to-earthness also helps, especially considering how nasty fellow Asians (yup, he's Malaysian too, also with an Aussie partner) could be, whenever they encounter anybody with similar skin complexion as theirs.

I'm not sure why with such hostility from these people. They must be dealing some issues with their low self-esteem, or maybe they were just being territorial? Kosser betul ngan hadek2 nih. I totally don't have time for such games. But D was never like any of them.

The friendship between us just grows naturally, and what even better, we both LOVE Ning Baizura's earlier and recent albums to death. (Haha.. *blushes*)

Since he was always busy with work, and me with my studies, we could only meet once in a while. And everytime when we do meet, we always had such a great time catching up.

And then the hard bit came.

D has been dealing with some back pain recently, and even the trip to the doctor or physiotherapist couldn't make much difference. The pain finally gone after a while, only to come back, but this time even much more aggressive.

I only found out yesterday (since I've been a bit busy myself) that D had been taking off days from work, for the past 2 weeks, and had also been to the hospital to get some biopsy done on him. Apparently, the pain (in his lower back of his spine) that he had been experiencing all this while has started to show in the form of some swelling in one of his lymph nodes.

The result for his biopsy wouldn't be known until later next week, but the doctor only offered 2 possibilities:

• He could have been having some serious viral infection in his lymph nodes, OR
• There's a possibility that it could also be some cancerous problem (and THAT could be one big nasty news)

At this stage, there's nothing much that we, or rather he could do but to wait. It's really strange and totally emotionally hurtful when somebody you get along very well and closed to (despite only knew him/her for a such short period) had to deal with such traumatic experience.

At least, until the result comes out and all this sorted out, all that we could do is pray.

It's going to be a VERY long hard week for D, his partner T, and his family. And it'd be just as hard for us too.

I wish D great strength in dealing with this difficult time in his life. Just hang on strong there, mate.. We are all behind you for all the support that you need.

*HUGS*

Take care.

Grey's Anatomy

Watched the 3rd episode of the new TV series Grey's Anatomy last night, and guess what? I'm totally HOOKED!

I mean, if even at the 3rd episode, they still manage to catch our attention, the producer must have done something good, right?

Besides, I'm feeling SO OVERDOSED already at the moment, with all these excessice spin-offs which has been muddling the TV shows these days. After all the CSIs (original in Vegas; Miami; and New York) and Law & Orders (original, SVU: Special Victims Unit, Criminal Intent, and Trial By Jury), I thought enough is enough, and I'll just choose the BEST one only to watch.. [but hey, THIS is entitled to one blog entry of its own, I guess?!]

And having a change of pace in the thing I watch doesn't seem a bad idea at all. So that's where Grey's Anatomy perfectly come in place.

One MAIN factor in determining whether a TV show going to be a success or not, is by studying the characters in it, to see whether they're convincing enough and deserved our undying attention weeks after weeks of viewing. And THAT was what I've been doing these past 3 weeks!

***

The Medical Interns:

Dr. Meredith Grey
(Ellen Pompeo)
This lady is one helluva strong woman, although, at other times, I did catch a glance of her sheer desperation side, in her struggles to juggle her internship, the pressure of being the daughter of the famous lady surgeon (slowly unveiled through the episodes) in the same hospital, the wacky fellow interns, and of course the oh-so-essential love interest from the resident hunk, in the form of the Attending Surgeon, Dr. Derek Shepherd.

Being a strong-willed woman, albeit a little bit (not so much though) clumsy at times in her dealing with her life, Meredith IS a character everybody would LOVE to care for; therefore promising a strong fan-base for this great TV show.

Dr. George O'Malley
(T.R. Knight)
To quote from the official website from ABC, which gives a brief summary of the show: George O'Malley is the warm but insecure boy next door who always manages to do or say the wrong thing at the wrong time. In spite of his attraction to women, he's treated as "just one of the girls."

One of the girls?!! Haha.. Sessuattuh! As a matter of fact, in the first episode, as all the interns were changing into their uniforms, George were describing some people he met at a party and when he were given a funny look by the other interns for something that he mentioned, then he fumbled and quickly said something like, "But hey, I'm not gay.." Hmmm.. Very suspicious indeed.

Anyway, apart from Meredith, George is my next favourite character from the show. He's warm, down-to-earth, with the lovable (and huggable too!) boy-next-door personality.

What could he possibly offers in the future? Well let's just say, he could be hampering some deep love secret for his close friend Meredith, therefore creating a love-triangle between the characters.

And who knows, he could be gay too! [There's a hilarious scene in episode 3 when he had to deal with this issue.. hehe.. poor boy!] We just have to wait to find out more.

Dr. Cristina Yang
(Sandra Oh)
Sandra would probably be better known for her recent role in the critic's favourite movie "Sideway", which I still have yet have the time to see yet.. *sigh*

Anyway, in this show, Dr. Cristina Yang is the Queen of Ice. Heartless, hard-working Asian bitch (woohoo!) who couldn't care about what other people think about her, as long as she succeed in her goal in becoming a great surgeon. Despite Cristina's character being a tad bit cliched, it somehow gave a good balance to Meredith's in their journey in dealing with the medical internship.

The best bit was in the opening of episode 2 where Cristina making her way to Seattle Grace Hospital (that's where all the actions take place, by the way), riding a big [read: BIG!] motorbike. Hmmmm.. Could she possibly be the resident dyke? [Not TWO gay roles in a show?!! Is THAT even possible? Haha..] Butch femme?!

Or maybe, her icy heart just needs a little bit of thawing. And a little bit of warm loving?! You gotta love this girl too!

Dr. Isobel ''Izzie'' Stevens
(Katherine Heigl)
There's not much being shown yet about Izzie, yet in a few moments the she hog the screen, you can easily say that this beauty (she supports her medical studies by doing some modelling work.. Suh-weet!) has GOT brains too.. and a BIG heart (in a metaphorical way, of course) to boost.

Said to come from a poor family background, it's easily to be seen how she's fighting hard the passe judgement people normally says of beautiful girls, especially when the girls are blond, and the so-called lack in the brain department. And she working hard to prove these people wrong!

There might even be some back story earlier in her life (I really hope so!) on how she becomes so dedicated in her task.. which I'm sure would be inspirational. Who knows..

Dr. Alex Karev
(Justin Chambers)
The last friend (if that what you can call him) in THIS group of interns, Alex is your typical arrogant jock who everyone'd love to hate. VERY much.

Even Meredith and Cristina both share similar views on him. One time when they faced a prospect of having to share an elevator with Alex (while he kept on going being an arrogant prick that he is), the girls exclaimed, "We'd rather be a lesbian" and darted off to take the stairs instead. Hehe.. you go girls!

Alex probably got some major self image issue he had to deal with, but one thing for sure, the girls really know how to deal with this jock!

The Doctors:

Dr. Miranda ''The Nazi'' Bailey
(Chandra Wilson)
There IS a reason why she's called "The Nazi", and that's because she could really drill the interns. Miranda proves the fact that just because you a bit small in stature, that doesn't mean you can't hurt! Kecik-kecik cili api of sorts.

As a senior Resident Doctor, she's one tough lady, and very hard to please too. You'd definite won't want to fool around in her presence. Yet, despite the cold hard exterior, she's also a very compassionate doctor, dedicated in her roles to the patients, and training the interns.

Dr. Derek Shepherd
(Patrick Dempsey)
As mentioned in my earlier post, he IS the official resident hunk in the hospital. The object of affection for Meredith despite how hard she try to deny it herself.

As a new comer to Seattle Grace Hospital (he just got transferred(?)/moved from New York), Derek is just as fresh to the hospital's environment as the interns, and is slowly showing his credibility as the new Attending Surgeon. Not much has been shown of his background yet (it IS after all still up to episode 3) so any future revelations on this cute hunk would be truly appreciated. Hmmmmm.. chunk o'Hunk!

Dr. Preston Burke
(Isaiah Washington)
This other Attending Surgeon is probably the resident arrogant jock back in his internship days, and he still have a bit of that selfish arrogance still stuck up there in his head. Anyway, don't take that fully against him because Preston IS after all a very good surgeon still in his journey to the top.

He sees Derek arrival in the hospital as a direct competition to him, especially considering the fact that they were both the main contender for a job promotion there. And it seems that Preston would do anything to ensure that he gets what he aimed for!

Dr. Richard Webber
(James Pickens Jr.)
The last of the main roles in this series, Dr. Webber encompass the typical warm leadership role you'd expect from a Chief Surgeon. Serious at times, he also have some funny sides which were shown from time to time.

As the one overseeing the whole run in the surgery's department, he'd definitely have his hands full with the constant politicking amog his medical staff, and most importantly, the over-eager medical interns who'd always love to get noticed by him, in their training to become a good surgeon themselves.

***

The Verdict So Far:

It has only been 3 episodes, yet the future seems so bright. With tight writings and colourful characters, Grey's Anatomy can only promise great viewing for faithful TV viewers.

But then again, I'm might only saying all this because I'm still on rebound after my girls from Desperate Housewives left me (after their first season ended recently on Aussie TV screen). On the other hand, Grey's Anatomy could also be a great TV show to watch, and its strength would be shown even more as the first season's episodes evolve.

As far as the characters goes, what I wrote up there is only of my own observation based on the first 3 episodes, and we all know there's only so much they could squeeze in such short period. For more information on the background of the cast, you can refer here in the official (short) cast biographies.

One thing for sure, I'd keep coming back for more to watch the show every Monday nights at 8:30pm here in Oz. It'd also be interesting to see whether the show would slowly shifted from being a one- or two-main-character-driven series at the moment, to a full-fledge ensemble performance from all the strong cast.

The mad medical interns would definitely keep me entertain for that one hour viewing, and even educate me (whenever possible) of the stressfull wonderful world of student doctors, everywhere in the world.

And oh, to end this blog entry on a high note, Grey's Anatomy is also nominated for the 56th Annual Emmy® Awards, for 3 categories:

• Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series
• Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series
• Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series - Sandra Oh [Oh yeah!]

..and, they are also starting with the second season of the show in the United States of America, which premieres on their ABC channel on the 25th September 2005. More strong reason for me to watch and follow the show, indeed!

;-)

NB: All photos are courtesy of ABC Inc.

100 songs (meme)

I found this in someone's blog, and thought it was a pretty neat idea (Don't worry, nobody's tagged here. But hey, DO try it out, anyway!)

The Directions:
[1] Go to musicoutfitters and put your birth year into the search field [there's a "Search Our Site" tag at the top right hand corner of the screen].

[2] The first link is likely the top 100 songs of that year. Cut and paste that list here (in your blog).

[3] Bold the ones you actually like. Understand that the word "like" in this case means, at the very least, that you wouldn't immediately change the radio station.

[4] Pick a favorite and underline it.

The Results:
1973
[Top 100 Hits of 1973 / Top 100 Songs of 1973]

1. Tie A Yellow Ribbon 'Round The Ole Oak Tree, Tony Orlando and Dawn
2. Bad Bad Leroy Brown, Jim Croce
3. Killing Me Softly With His Song, Roberta Flack >> a real classic.. I LURVE!
4. Let's Get It On, Marvin Gaye >> class!
5. My Love, Paul McCartney and Wings
6. Why Me, Kris Kristofferson
7. Crocodile Rock, Elton John
8. Will It Go Round In Circles, Billy Preston
9. You're So Vain, Carly Simon >> who.. moi?
10. Touch Me In The Morning, Diana Ross >> because I was touched EVERY morning! Haha..
11. The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia, Vicki Lawrence
12. Playground In My Mind, Clint Holmes
13. Brother Louie, Stories
14. Delta Dawn, Helen Reddy
15. Me And Mrs. Jones, Billy Paul
16. Frankenstein, Edgar Winter Group
17. Drift Away, Dobie Gray
18. Little Willy, Sweet
19. You Are The Sunshine Of My Life, Stevie Wonder
20. Half Breed, Cher
21. That Lady, Isley Bros.
22. Pillow Talk, Sylvia
23. We're An American Band, Grand Funk Railroad
24. Right Place, Wrong Time, Dr. John
25. Wildflower, Skylark
26. Superstition, Stevie Wonder
27. Loves Me Like A Rock, Paul Simon
28. The Morning After, Maureen McGovern
29. Rocky Mountain High, John Denver
30. Stuck In The Middle With You, Stealers Wheel
31. Shambala, Three Dog Night
32. Love Train, O'Jays
33. I'm Gonna Love You Just A Little More, Barry White
34. Say, Has Anybody Seen My Sweet Gypsy Rose, Tony Orlando and Dawn
35. Keep On Truckin' (Pt. 1), Eddie Kendricks
36. Dancing In The Moonlight, King Harvest
37. Danny's Song, Anne Murray
38. Monster Mash, Bobby "Boris" Pickett and The Crypt Kickers
39. Natural High, Bloodstone
40. Diamond Girl, Seals and Crofts
41. Long Train Running, Doobie Brothers
42. Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth), George Harrison
43. If You Want Me To Stay, Sly and The Family Stone
44. Daddy's Home, Jermaine Jackson
45. Neither One Of Us (Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye), Gladys Knight and The Pips
46. I'm Doing Fine Now, New York City
47. Could It Be I'm Falling In Love, Spinners
48. Daniel, Elton John >> one of Elton's good ones.
49. Midnight Train To Georgia, Gladys Knight and The Pips
50. Smoke On The Water , Deep Purple >> rock on!
51. The Cover Of Rolling Stone, Dr. Hook and The Medicine Show
52. Behind Closed Doors, Charlie Rich
53. Your Mama Don't Dance, Loggins and Messina
54. Feelin' Stronger Every Day, Chicago
55. The Cisco Kid, War
56. Live And Let Die, Wings
57. Oh, Babe, What Would You Say?, Hurricane Smith
58. I Believe In You, Johnnie Taylor
59. Sing, Carpenters
60. Ain't No Woman (Like The One I Got), Four Tops
61. Dueling Banjos, Eric Weissberg and Steve Mandel
62. Higher Ground, Stevie Wonder
63. Here I Am (Come And Take Me), Al Green >> didn't UB40 do a version of this song too? Nice!!
64. My Maria, B.W. Stevenson
65. Superfly, Curtis Mayfield
66. Get Down, Gilbert O'Sullivan
67. Last Song, Edward Bear
68. Reelin' In The Years, Steely Dan
69. Hocus Pocus, Focus
70. Yesterday Once More, Carpenters >> *sigh* melancholy song, for one of those days.
71. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, Bette Midler >> it's Bette! 'Nuff said.
72. Clair, Gilbert O'Sullivan
73. Do It Again, Steely Dan
74. Kodachrome, Paul Simon
75. Why Can't We Live Together, Timmy Thomas
76. So Very Hard To Go, Tower Of Power
77. Do You Want To Dance?, Bette Midler
78. Rockin' Pneumonia And The Boogie Woogie Flu, Johnny Rivers
79. Ramblin' Man, Allman Brothers
80. Masterpiece, Temptations
81. Peaceful, Helen Reddy
82. One Of A Kind (Love Affair), Spinners
83. Funny Face, Donna Fargo
84. Funky Worm, Ohio Players
85. Angie, Rolling Stones
86. Jambalaya (On The Bayou), Blue Ridge Rangers
87. Don't Expect Me To Be Your Friend, Lobo
88. Break Up To Make Up, Stylistics
89. Daisy A Day, Jud Strunk
90. Also Sprach Zarathustra (2001), Deodato
91. Stir It Up, Johnny Nash
92. Money, Pink Floyd
93. Gypsy Man, War
94. The World Is A Ghetto, War
95. Yes We Can Can, Pointer Sisters
96. Free Ride, Edgar Winter Group
97. Space Oddity, David Bowie
98. It Never Rains In Southern California, Albert Hammond
99. The Twelfth Of Never, Donny Osmond
100. Papa Was A Rolling Stone, Temptations >> only because I like the version done by George Michael/Queen

The Verdict:
10 out of 100 songs. Not bad, I think. 1973 turned out a pretty good year for music too, I guess.

Now.. I wonder, what song topped the chart in Malaysia back in 1973?

let's get INSANE!! - because we can

This one is for a good cause.

Do you sometimes wonder, how come, when there's a certain new music album in the market, which has just been released, you looked for it high and low and you just couldn't FIND the bloodyfreakin' CD.

This guy's facing the same problem too, and the worst thing is.. the album he (and everyone else) has been searching for is HIS!

We certainly feel for you, brudder.. Blame the record company marketing people dude!

So, he is doing what any other Malaysian musician had never done before (at least to my current limited knowledge-lah), and he is literally re-inventing the term [inter]net-working to the max.

He's offering to distribute himself whatever amount of the said CDs/cassettes [of his debut album, "Fuuyo"] which he has in his possession, to anyone who is interested, and they can send the amount of money worth for the album directly back to him.

"... JIKA AWAK MAHUKAN ALBUM FUUYO AFDLIN SHAUKI, email direct kepada saya your full name and address anda ke selambakodok@hotmail.com selambakodok@gmail.com^ and write AFDLIN DAH HILANG AKAL! as the subject..."

Go and check his blog (click here) for further info.

Yes he might have seemed to lost his mind, but then who wouldn't? If you're in his shoes, you would have done the same too. I certainly would.

This is for the support to the local music scene back in Malaysia.

Just because one road is blocked, that doesn't mean we are completely trapped. There's always other ways to go around it.

And it's because we CAN!

*****

^EDITED 22 August 2005 : FUUYO banner added *fuiiyohh!* to the entry, sebab it looks kinda cute. Haha.. Oso can, wat?!!

^EDITED 25 August 2005 : because he changed his email, due to the unexpected explosive albums requests he had been receiving that the hotmail account couldn't handle(!). Now THAT's what I call HOT (hehe.. oooh, the irony of it!) Not bad, eh?!

:-P

frozen

Brrrrr.... it was bloody cold last night!

Woke up this morning, all curled in bed and wondering whether we had left the fridge door @#&% opened.

Nope. That wasn't it.

So I checked the Perth weather details over the internet this morning, and there it was:

1.4°C!!

Which was the minimum temperature in Perth Metro area, at 06:57am this morning.

Mak oiiiii.. sejuk gilerrrr!!!

Luckily my snugglicious Neil was there to keep me warm.

THAT, ladies and gentleman, IS the wonderful world of couplehood.
*squeee* ♥

;-)

hell hail.. yeah?!

Remember about the forecasted hailstorm I wrote last Friday? Well, forget it. It didn't happen at all, despite the heavy rain cloud detected on the weather radar. Buang karan jek menunggu. Come to think of it, nama nye pun FORECAST kan?! Maybe the temperature wasn't cold enough to turn the rain water droplets into ice.

Anyway, woke up this morning, and checked the weather forecast for the day:

FORECAST FOR THE PERTH METROPOLITAN AREA
Issued at 8:45am WST on Wednesday the 17th of August 2005 for today and tonight

FORECAST:
Severe Weather Warning issued for this afternoon and evening. Occasional showers, increasing early this afternoon with thunderstorms and hail. Fresh and gusty NW winds shifting S/SW this evening. Damaging squalls possible with thunderstorms.

Hmmm, alamat gerentilah I won't be going out today. Even to the local mart to buy some groceries. Or to the post office to get some stamps. And also to Subway to send my casual job application form (cari fulu$$$ skett lerr beb).. Suddenly, there's lots of chores for me to do! Meh.

I'm not sure whether the hail and thunderstorm would actually happen or not.. but it's good NOT to be out there, and just to stay in the comfort of our home, looking at the dark grey sky outside.

And just in case, maybe I SHOULD put out some buckets and pans in our backyard to collect those hails should it finally decide to come. You know.. to collect those ice water and keep it in the freezer. It'd be handy to serve them in the gin & tonic to any visiting guests. Haha..

:-P

the path we take in our life

I came accross a blog last week, where the writer finally decided to give up blogging, after having a hard time dealing with his sexuality.

You see, he just realised that he IS gay, but still in the process of swallowing the hard fact (no pun intended there, though!). So he decided to do the noble thing: stop blogging, stop getting himself surrounded with all these homos, and most importantly, he decided to follow what his family/religion told him the right thing to do - BE straight.

Don't get me wrong here. Coming out is a difficult process, and the outcome may varies from one person to another. And what made it harder is when there's family involvement in it, in terms of what they think is good versus what is bad for your life. I should know it because I had to go through the same process not so long time ago, and unfortunately it is something I have to deal with still, these days.

Anyway, I'm not gonna make any comments on the guy's decision, nor telling MY side of story here, but instead, I'm gonna post a touching letter, which I found from a blog I frequently reads.

This [anonymous] letter proves that despite how some family deals harshly to their kids homosexuality, there ARE other people who see things differently, in a much bigger perspective with a different refreshing point of view..

A Mother's Reflections

"Many letters have been sent to the Valley News concerning the homosexual menace in Vermont. I am the mother of a gay son and I've taken enough from you good people. I'm tired of your foolish rhetoric about the "homosexual agenda" and your allegations that accepting homosexuality is the same thing as advocating sex with children. You are cruel and ignorant. You have been robbing me of the joys of motherhood ever since my children were tiny.

My firstborn son started suffering at the hands of the moral little thugs from your moral, upright families from the time he was in the first grade. He was physically and verbally abused from first grade straight through high school because he was perceived to be gay.

He never professed to be gay or had any association with anything gay, but he had the misfortune not to walk or have gestures like the other boys. He was called "fag" incessantly, starting when he was 6.

In high school, while your children were doing what kids that age should be doing, mine labored over a suicide note, drafting and redrafting it to be sure his family knew how much he loved them. My sobbing 17-year-old tore the heart out of me as he choked out that he just couldn't bear to continue living any longer, that he didn't want to be gay and that he couldn't face a life without dignity.

You have the audacity to talk about protecting families and children from the homosexual menace, while you yourselves tear apart families and drive children to despair. I don't know why my son is gay, but I do know that God didn't put him, and millions like him, on this Earth to give you someone to abuse. God gave you brains so that you could think, and it's about time you started doing that.

At the core of all your misguided beliefs is the belief that this could never happen to you, that there is some kind of subculture out there that people have chosen to join. The fact is that if it can happen to my family, it can happen to yours, and you won't get to choose. Whether it is genetic or whether something occurs during a critical time of fetal development, I don't know. I can only tell you with an absolute certainty that it is inborn.

If you want to tout your own morality, you'd best come up with something more substantive than your heterosexuality. You did nothing to earn it; it was given to you. If you disagree, I would be interested in hearing your story, because my own heterosexuality was a blessing I received with no effort whatsoever on my part. It is so woven into the very soul of me that nothing could ever change it. For those of you who reduce sexual orientation to a simple choice, a character issue, a bad habit or something that can be changed by a 10-step program, I'm puzzled. Are you saying that your own sexual orientation is nothing more than something you have chosen, that you could change it at will? If that's not the case, then why would you suggest that someone else can?

A popular theme in your letters is that Vermont has been infiltrated by outsiders. Both sides of my family have lived in Vermont for generations. I am heart and soul a Vermonter, so I'll thank you to stop saying that you are speaking for "true Vermonters."

You invoke the memory of the brave people who have fought on the battlefield for this great country, saying that they didn't give their lives so that the "homosexual agenda" could tear down the principles they died defending. My 83-year-old father fought in some of the most horrific battles of World War II, was wounded and awarded the Purple Heart.

He shakes his head in sadness at the life his grandson has had to live. He says he fought alongside homosexuals in those battles, that they did their part and bothered no one. One of his best friends in the service was gay, and he never knew it until the end, and when he did find out, it mattered not at all. That wasn't the measure of the man.

You religious folk just can't bear the thought that as my son emerges from the hell that was his childhood he might like to find a lifelong companion and have a measure of happiness. It offends your sensibilities that he should request the right to visit that companion in the hospital, to make medical decisions for him or to benefit from tax laws governing inheritance.

How dare he? you say. These outrageous requests would threaten the very existence of your family, would undermine the sanctity of marriage. You use religion to abdicate your responsibility to be thinking human beings. There are vast numbers of religious people who find your attitudes repugnant. God is not for the privileged majority, and God knows my son has committed no sin.

The deep-thinking author of a letter to the April 12 Valley News who lectures about homosexual sin and tells us about "those of us who have been blessed with the benefits of a religious upbringing" asks: "What ever happened to the idea of striving . . . to be better human beings than we are?"

Indeed, sir, what ever happened to that? "

There IS hope in this world after all..

And by the way, in my opinion, the only way we could live our life to the fullest is NOT through what we thought other people might think of us, but rather, we fully accepting ourselves FIRST for all the perfection AND faults that we are. After all, nobody's perfect in this world anyway.

To kitjarnabangsar, whatever your choose to do in the way you live your life, I wish you all the best!

hazy shade of winter - The Bangles

I know for a fact that a serious case of HAZE has been occuring in the South East of Asia, or more prominently in the peninsular Malaysia. Apparently these past few days, the Air Pollutant Index (API) has even exceeded the dangerous level, beyond the 500 API mark!

What the..?!
@_@

Ironically, THIS is NOT a new problem. Years after years, the same issues keep on arising, ie. major haze problem due to the forest open-burning act in the neighbouring country.

Neighbour? I mean I thought neighbours are supposed to take care of each other, not choking us to death with some of their air-polluting deadly smoke?

If any one of my neighbour here start burning off rubbish out in the open, I would have tell them, You better put off that bloodyfucking flame you sonoffabitch, you. What are you, an idiot, or what? @#%&!! You muthafucka.

Okay. I'd probably be a bit kinder than THAT, and put my thoughts into a more respectable words. But you know what I mean.

To illustrate how bad the current haze situation facing Kuala Lumpur/Malaysia, check out the diagram below, in particular where it has been circled, which I got from a blog I happened to visit recently (thanks najib, hope you don't mind!):

The circle marks the dirty spot!

Eeeeeeewww.. Gross! *chokes and gasps for FRESH air!*

I just can't believe how all of you up there survive such horrible condition. I'm just glad that the air wasn't that bad when I was back in KL last month. Let's just hope that some rain would fall and clear up the air a bit there.

At least here in Perth/Australia, with ARE getting a lot of downpour, even as we're approaching the end of WINTER. And as I'm writing this up, there's a HUGE raincloud approaching the city from the west, pictured below (image courtesy of the Bureau of Meteorology, Australia):

It's raining Men Hail!

In fact, it's already drizzling constantly now, and we're expecting more over the weekend, complete with squally wind, hails and storm.

It might be wet and cold here in Perth. But at least we're not choked by the dirty haze, and I'm eternally grateful for that. I just hope everybody else in Malaysia, including my family and friends are coping well with their current unfortunate situation. Just hang on there mates!

of desperate housewives and mad medical interns

Gosh.. it seems like a lot of good TV show is finishing at the moment, here in Oz. First there was The Amazing Race 7, last week, and now it's the Desperate Housewives. I just hope that as winter's finishing, and the hot weather's approaching, we won't be bombarded with tons of sad horrible TV reruns as substitute shows, over all the commercial TV channels, like they always do.

Anyway, regarding Desperate Housewives, it's one of the recent hit TV shows nobody should miss! In fact, from my recent trip back in KL, they has just started with the first few episodes there, and I certainly did my civic duty of promoting the show -- voluntarily of course! -- to all my hadek2/kak vetz friends and my darling sisters at home too, like any good fanboy would have done.

*blushes and beams with pride* Teheeee.

Where it's just a new beginning in other part of the world, here in Oz, the show has come to its end of its first season. And ho boy.. what a ride it had been!

I won't disclose as much of what happened in tonight's final episode, but let's just say that even with all my initial assumptions of whatever had been going on (in the eralier episodes) in Wysteria Lane, proven right, they still manage to pull one helluva big surprise, even I didn't see it coming!

Hehe.. how's that for a teaser?

For all who haven't seen any of their episodes, now is just as a good time to join the girls' fun ride through Wysteria Lane. Perfect casting. The writings been great, and always neatly tied up in-between the weekly episodes. Besides that, there's always the eyecandy in the form of the sexy resident gardener (Jesse Metcalfe as John) and handsome plumber (James Denton as Mike Delfino) to keep all the girls (and THE grrls in some of us) happy too. *drools*

Oh, and don't forget the gorgeous girls too! Nicollette Sheridan as Edie Britt, Eva Longoria (Gabrielle Solis), Marcia Cross (Bree Van De Kamp), Teri Hatcher (Susan Mayer), Felicity Huffman (Lyynette Scavo) and even Brenda Strong (as the dead Mary Alice Young & narrator - not in picture), all played an equally important role in this fascinating TV show. At least THEY should keep the guy viewers happy too.

I'm going to miss my Desperate Housewives terribly, at least until the new season arrives next year.

I just wish we are living in such similar neighbourhood like theirs. Then all this waiting wouldn't be too bad. And not to mention the dreamy gardener and the plumber too.. Woof! *sigh*

***

On a brighter note, apparently all is not lost, even with season's finale of Desperate Housewives on Channel 7. I had a choice of turning off the TV (I DON'T think so!).. OR change to Channel 10, since starting tonight (right after the Housewives), they are showing ALL the repeats of Sex & The City, starting with Episode 1! Tempting indeed. Especially considering that I had NEVER seen the earlier episodes of the show.

Another choice is to just stick with Channel 7 since they have the premiere episode of the current hit TV show in America: Grey's Anatomy.

And after a quick deep thinking -- VERY quick, since I only have a few ad breaks in-between the shows -- I finally decide to stay with the new show.

Apparently this hot new TV show has been getting a great review in the United States, thanks to their mix style of drama and comedy thrown in all together, and fresh new faces in the casting too.

Tonight's pilot episode had a reasonably tight writing too, considering the crucial fact that they have to introduce all the main characters of the show. They are all basically a bunch of medical students just enrolling themselves in an internship program at a hospital, and as the story develops, we'd see the highs and lows in the mad lives of these desperate(?) medical interns.

As the main character, we have Ellen Pompeo as Dr Meredith Grey (hence the title of the show), as one of the interns, a strong-female lead character, which IS a refreshing change in a TV show these days. Also, we have the resident hunk in the shape of Dr. Derek Shepherd, played by the cutie-pie Patrick Dempsey, whom I swear looks like a sweet young version of Sean Penn, everytime he smiles.

He'd be Grey's love-interest for this show. Did I also mentioned that both of them had sex, right at the start of the episode, AND he's also the Resident Doctor in the hospital for the medical intern.

Oooh.. conflict of interest. I like!

The sex bit? How did it happen? You gotta find out about it yourself! I don't want to spoil the story here. All I can say is this show has just got a brand new fanboy here in Perth.

To simply (and quickly) describe the show: it has the kind of warmth and comedic pace of Scrubs, the drama and tension of Chicago Hope and ER, minus the gory bits -- thank God! -- (at least it was a bit less in the face) when it comes to the medical details part.

Not only I was impressed with the first episode, they even have funky music soundtracks all throughout the episode. Great start!

Now I just can't wait for more.

dvds!

On our WINDOW-shopping excursion to the Westfield Whitford City shopping mall (somewhere in the northern suburb) earlier today -- since it was such a lovely day for a drive --not only we were rewarded with finding a great food court -- they have SO MANY different food stores there, in one decently-laid-out eating space, a rarities at least here in Perth, -- but we had also succumbed ourselves in some impulsive shopping.

Random Food Place finding + impulsive shopping = NOT a healthy combination!

Anyway, at this HUGE shopping mall, we found out that they also have the JB Hi-Fi Store, where loads of CDs, DVDs, could be found at sometimes a very good bargain prices.

So I thought, Hey they got one JB Hi-Fi here too! No wonder all these suburban folks couldn't be bothered to go to the city when all sorts of shops could be found here. Meh. Why don't we have a quick check inside JB Hi-Fi, just before we leave dear? Big mistake that one.

Walking in empty-handed, when we walked out, we got ourselves a few copy of DVDs:

• Pedro Almodóvar's All About My Mother [Todo Sobre Mi Madre]
• The Third Man (featuring Orson Welles), a classic b&w film
• The Shrek Collection DVD Box Set (consisting of Shrek and Shrek 2)

I know. So much for our strong-willed persona. *cries in shame* Window-shop my ass.

At least we got them at a good bargain price, so it wasn't too bad.
Also, we ARE slowly building up our home DVDs collection, so that's good too I guess.
Besides, Neil has been wanting to buy them Shrek DVDs for ages, and now that we got them, I should probably start think of something else to buy him for his Christmas gift this year..

*ponders*

:-/

The Amazing Race 7

Finally, the wait was over.

I was talking about the hit reality TV show, The Amazing Race 7. The final episode for that season, was aired last nite over Channel 7.

Despite the initial spoiler whichI got about nearly 3 months ago, from some fellow blogger (or LiveJournalers, rather. Yup I was talking about YOU abdaziz! Hehe..), I still decide to follow the show whenever time's permitting.

I know, where's the fun in watching such show if you already know the winners, right? Agreed. Points noted.

BUT what better way to spend my wintry Thursday night here in Perth, when there's nothing much else are available on the other channels, other than to travel all over the world at a flick of a TV remote button, all while sitting comfortably on the sofa?

Anyway, the producer for this show is always reliable in providing some decent home entertainment, with their sharp and efficient editing process. And they've won a few awards (was it for the Emmy award?) for the best reality TV show in America too, for a few years in a row.

And I'm glad I watched the final leg of the race last nite. The final 3 couple-contestants, Ron & Kelly, Rob & Amber, and Uchenna & Joyce, really gave an all-out effort to get to the finishing line.

Despite the negative response given to Rob & Amber, by most people I know who watch the proggramme, I personally think that they were the best reality-TV villain ever performed on TV. The spice they added to the show certainly increased the sense of suspense to the avid fans of the show. And if they were to win the million dollar prize, I'd say they deserve it for their awesome effort. Well, most of the time it was Rob (he doesn't sound that bright, this fella) who did all the nasty job anyway.

But then again, as everybody in the world should have known by know (I really hope so, or else this would have been a MAJOR SPOILER for you too!)... they weren't the winner. Too bad.

And I swear I could hear a big cheer somewhere out there, from those who'd love to HATE them if they had won. Haha..

So, hats off to Uchenna & Joyce (my next favourite couple in this season) for being such a deserving team to win, after ALL the trouble they had to go through to stand on that final grand winners spot.

♥ Yay! ♥

Now I just can't wait for the show's next season's installment, and from what I found here.. and to quote it here:

The Amazing Race 8 (Family Edition) - Applications Due March 11th, 2005

.. it seems so promising already, no matter what that "Family Edition" was suppose to mean in the first place anyway. Bring it on!

Ruby's Last Dollar

Last nite we were invited to the season's premiere show of Black Swan's Theatre's Ruby's Last Dollar, at the Octagon Thetre, in The UWA.

It had been a while since the last time we got any invites to a theatre production, so I was quite looking forward for a night indulgence in a bit of art and culture, or so to speak.

For a quick run of the plot, the story revolves around Ruby Constance, former superstar dancer on the Tivoli circuit in Sydney back in the 50's and 60's, but now only left reminiscing her old glory days, in her twilight years, yet still looking as glamorous as ever in her bright ruby red (get it?) dress, with a matching pair of shoes to boost. All these, to the accompanying musical sound of poker machines (widely known as pokies here in Oz) in the background, in her local RSL Club.

You see, not only she's a has been, she's also a gambler.

How could a lady so successful in her younger days succumb to the hypnotizing world of gambling, you wonder? All THAT were unfold seamlessly through her strong vivid memories, which constantly appearing at the times when she'd rather be left alone, thus making her embark on a journey to her past, revisiting old stories which made her whom she is now.

Jacki Weaver, a house hold name in Australian acting circuit did a very convincing job, portraying the strength (as a survivor) , pride (of her old glory years) and fragility (in dealing with her sometimes hurtfull past) of Ruby, while Kirstie Hutton plays her younger self in the flashback segment.

Despite seeming to be a single-character-driven show, surprisingly there are supporting casts who had actually made the black comedy even so much more memorable.

The casting of Alan Dukes, Kate Mulvany, George Shevtsov, David James and the yummilicious Michael Tuahine , all in some multiple roles not only gave colours and textures to the play, they also provide the perfect background for Weaver/Hutton's Ruby character to grow, whithout detracting the main focus on Ruby's life from the audience.

I certainly had a truly great time watching the play, immersing myself in the delightful world of this former dancer in her dancing days, and slowly trying to understand the pains that might had caused her addiction to gambling.

The show was funny, sad, even hilarious at times, yet surprisingly so real; and to see Weaver's expression towards the end of her performance, when Ruby finally confronted her innermost painful memory, made the whole journey so worthwhile.

Ruby's Last Dollar is definitely a memorable show, performed by a great ensemble of casts. If you happen to be in Perth between now and the 20th August 2005, it's probably worth your time to join Ruby's trip down her memory lane.

I certainly enjoyed mine!

august birthday wishes

I just realized that August is such a busy month for me, especially when it comes to birthday wishes. Thanks to the constant reminders I've been getting through my emails, from my Birthday Alarm. Handy tools though, I tell you!

Somehow, I seem to know a LOT of people who were born in this month. Must be the roar in the Leos which I seem to be attracted to... friendshipwise, of course! Must be something to do with the astronomical allignments and compatibility between the Aquarian in me and the Leos. I don't know.

Anyway, first, there are my best of friends from high school: Zeen on the 3rd, Alfie (5th), and Teh (9th).

Then of course there's jazz whom I got to know through the blogsphere. Her's is on the 4th.

Best friend from college: Pinat, on the 8th.

The boys whom I got to know through my boogie-ing (haha) phase in Velvet, back in the good ol' days *sigh*: Kipi (14th) and Salleh (26th).

And the rests are: Hisham (18th), and Ida (22nd).

Hmmm.. that should cover the lots.

To ALL of you August babies.. ♥Happy Birthday♥ and I wish all of you all the best in your future!

They might not be reading this entry, but I'm sure they can feel the good wishes up-lifting them on their special day when it arrives. May the force be with you.
;-)

*BIG group hugs*

this AF thing

I was never a big fan of a certain reality TV show, like the Akademi Fantasia, as I had mentioned it here in my blog before.

I mean, I understand the objectives of such programme, in order to dig out the young singing/performing talents that might have hidden among the current generation of kids. What I just couldn't understand is the sort of fanaticism that comes with it, among the viewers of the TV show, which somehow overshadows the real important effort of un-earthing such great talents, IF there WERE any in the first place to start with.

In my opinion, as long as the judges had done a good joob in narrowing down the contestants during the preliminary rounds, then the latter part should be too hard to deal with. Unfortunately that doesn't always seems to be the case.

For most of the times, the producer seems to be just happy to rely on mere good looks, sans any singing talents at all. Of course when it comes to show like Akademi Fantasia (AF), or any other show for that matter, THAT's what seems to sell. Millions worth of TXT messages sent by these so-called fans, to ensure that their favourite singer stays in. Don't worry if he/she couldn't sing in-tempo, or sings out-of-tune, or didn't even have a nice personality to start with. If they're cute, keep them in!

Sad. But that's the truth which you can see, really happening.

In the current season of AF, based on my short observance during my recent trip back to KL, I was sad to find out that among all their contestants, there were only (at least in MY opinion) 2 or 3 of them (all girls) who really deserve to be there. There rest were only filler, to maximise the SMS-voting money-return potentials.

And then, there was also this Mawi phenomenon. He's an under-achiever whom many, well at-least a significant portion of the viewers, want to win the contest. I'm not sure why, but it must be in context of all this Malaysia Boleh chant, to prove that no matter what your background is, you CAN do it if you try.

A noble thinking indeed, but ONLY made sense if it really has substance.

I personally don't think Mawi was such a hot contestant to start with. His singing was just mediocre, and at times quite restricted to a certain style. And don't even think of mentioning the fact that he had sang out-of-tempo on a few occasions during the concerts.

On the other hand, there are others who actually GOT the potential, like the youngest among them all, Amylea, who deserves to win, but probably won't because she couldn't rake in the votes needed. LOT$$$ of them.

The funny thing was, even all my sisters had joined this Mawi-world (don't ask me, THAT's his favourite tagline) bandwagon. And not forgetting my Mom too *face-palms*, although she much prefers if he keep himself stay doing the qari (quran reciting) thingy, like any other Malay mothers would love their kids to be, rather than indulging in the so-called sinful life of the popstars. Oh the horror! ;-)

So even when I returned to Perth, I managed to satisfy my curiousity of what happened to the latter part of AFs, through the writings that I could find in the blogsphere. The musings from this person is my favourite, since it's always bias-ly entertaining (haha) and informative too. (Thanks fiebie!)

The latest news is that they are up to the final four contestants, which means the Grand Final is just around the corner. And as expected, Mawi's in; along with Amylea, Felix and Marsha (to loosely^ quote from fiebie, fighting among themselves for the first, second and third runner-up places!)

Frankly speaking, all is still not lost. What required now is some pro-active actions from the factions of voters who do NOT support Mawi.

(Hehehe.. sorry-lah Along, Angah and Usu.. I STILL don't think he's THAT good a singer! :-P)

It's a well known scenario that Mawi got the most number of supports in term of SMS votings. So the only way to deal with it, is for the remainder of the voters to group together, and decide which one among the three other finalists (being Amylea, Felix and Marsha) truly DESERVES to win, and concentrate voting on THAT person instead!

It's probably still a long way shot, but still worth trying, I think.

And of course, if you ask me, I still think Amylea is the best bet. But then, THAT might be the hidden fanatic side of me doing the talking. We'll never know!

AFundi AMYLEA!!

;-)

*****

^EDITED 3rd August 2005: Because this was what he really said in his entry..

"... At least ada jugak le 3 orang yang berbakat besar dalam AF tu akan memperjuangan tempat ke dua, tiga dan empat..."

Malaysia Boleh indeed!

reflections of life

Neil has been away on a work trip down south of the state for the whole day, since very early this morning, so it's nice to have him safely home, especially considering the bad wet weather he had to get through, during his flight coming back to Perth.

Of couse, he also missed tonight's episode of the Desperate Housewives, but that's NOT a big deal, as long as he do NOT miss next week's episode, which would be the season's finale for the year.

Anyway, getting to my point, while sitting down on the sofa tonight, resting from his tiring return flight trip, he also pointed out that earlier today, he found out that somebody who were from the same table as our's during last friday night's fund-raising dinner had passed away.

What made it even more shocking and sad, was the fact that this guy who died, he sat next to me at the dinner table. We had never met him before, but of course, as a courtesy in any dinner events, I indulge in a small dinner talk with him throughout the night.

He seemed like a very healthy guy his age, and was looking forward to go on a round-the world trip, starting in the next few days, with his wife who's also a political figure in the state. Only towards the end of the dinner that he had to leave the table early, and were told by his wife that he wasn't feeling well.

When Neil told me about his passing tonight, I was truly affected by the news, and the fact how fragile this life could be. It certainly made me think how important it is to pause once in a while in our hectic routine of daily life, and just look around to the people that matters in our life.

These important people might have been there all your life, but they won't be there forever. One day they're there, but the next thing you know, they'd be gone. Forever.

Just be sure never forget to tell all these people how much they meant to you, and how much you LOVE them. All the time.

Before it gets too late to do so.