Self House Arrest

I noticed that I'm becoming a lot lazier and more and more introverted as I grow older. Five years back, I used to go out jalan-jalan at shopping malls on weekends without fail. Back then, I would willingly drive cross-city whether it is to meet up with friends or just go jalan-jalan. Every Saturday night, I will sure have the itch to go clubbing.

Nowadays, I hardly get out of the house. I'm bored of shopping complexes. I have nothing to buy and I dread the crowd. I hate trying to find a parking space for my car. And I can't remember when I last watch a movie. I can't remember the last time I went clubbing. Clubbing seems such a drag nowadays since those glorious Kylie days in Liquid. I hate the Saturday nite traffic in town, and I hate the smoke in the clubs. I hate the superficial patrons. Now, I fear that I'm losing interest in BodyJam.

This weekend, I am rather free, but I just feel somewhat lazy to get out and do something. I'd rather stay home and do nothing (except blogging about it!). I am even too lazy to want to go out and eat. I can't just stay at home all the time! I need to find a new passion in my life. But what?

The Sweet Escape!

OK. Well, according to some people who called for a ban of Gwen's concert, I had committed a big sin: I attended Gwen's concert last Tuesday nite. Apparently Gwen's costumes and stage performance were deemed too sexy for the Malaysian public. These people claimed that it was inappropriate for youths to mix "freely" and watch such an ungodly stage show. It was believed that attending the concert will cause moral decay among Malaysian youths. Unfortunately, for some reason God who is omnipotent could not stop the tour, so as usual the same group of people absolutely had the moral duty and responsibility to intervene and try stop the show on God's behalf. Phuh!


Poor Gwen!! I really did wish that she shouldn't have succumbed to such nonsense and resorted to explaining herself and justifying the sort of person she really was.

Gwen, we love you and we all know that you're a nice and responsible girl, and your music and show were just artistic expressions of a very talented musician and entertainer.

Gwen Stefani

The Sweet Escape Tour

Stadium Putra

21 August 2007

Fable and I had decided to purchase the most expensive tickets (RM385) in anticipation that we would get good seats and enjoy the show. After all, we loved Gwen and it wasn't like you get to see her live frequently. But by the time I bought the tickets last month, the front 25 rows were already taken up. Wah, so laku! When we were seated, we were somewhere in the middle of the stadium liao. We still got a good direct view of the stage, but because the chairs were all placed on the flat floor, our view was somewhat blocked by people seated in front. But it didn't matter really, because when the lights dimmed and music started, everyone got excited and stood up. And stand we did.... till the end of the show!! And oh, we also stood up for a few minutes before the show started when the Negaraku was played. A bit strange and out of place, but I suppose it was one of the guidelines that Gwen had agreed to follow. Whatever la.

The show was great although the sound system was quite a disappointment. Gwen's performance and showomanship were excellent, albeit no skin was exposed (she duly complied with the ridiculous regulations by wearing black leotard underneath her crazy costumes). The stadium was packed, full house. Everyone was on their feet, jumping and dancing to her upbeat songs which were powerfully delivered by her great vocals and supported by eight equally crazy dancers.

The audience was mad, the screams were deafening, bodies moving around to the beat of the music uninhibited; everyone was just simply having a good time. I was screaming/cheering and singing most of the time. It was almost like a screaming/cheering competition. There was this strange girl who came and sat on Fable's chair halfway through. At one point, she looked at me when I screamed, and she smiled and then she also decided scream! A few girls behind me screamed and screamed and when we exchanged glances, we all smiled, and screamed even louder as we all nodded our heads in approval. Such madness!

At one point, Gwen ran by the side and towards the opposite end of the hall where the audience at the back were. She mingled with the crowd and held her hand up to let the audience touch her. How awesome is that! Aiya, how lucky these people are, paid the cheapest and got so close to her and even got to touch her hand! Cheh! Very emm kam muoan. So jealous!!! She stayed there a while longer as she sang Cool.

We spotted quite a few celebrities/TV personalities from where we were: Alex Yoong and his wife (Arianna Teoh?), Marion Caunter, a few people who dressed up and looked like celebrities, and of course this lady in the picture below. No prizes for guessing it right!

It was an unforgettably beautiful experience. A blast! But some people did believe that the whole thing was indeed sinful and against their God's wishes. I can almost hear them waving their finger in disapproval and condemnation at all 10,000 of us: Absolutely immoral!

Whatever! It was nonetheless, a Sweet Escape!

Tamil Nadu

One of the best things about my work is that I get to travel to some of the places that most people wouldn't dream of visiting. (But that doesn't mean that I'm crazy about work! Who wants to work if given the opportunity?) This time round, I get to go to the city of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, India. Coimbatore is also called 'Manchester of South India' because it is also a textile city. Well, the site that I visited wasn't exactly in Coimbatore. In fact it is located about 85 km southeast of Coimbatore, in a very rural area. The landuse in the general area is agricultural, with main crops include coconut, maize, mango, sapotta (chiku), millet and rice. The general area is quite scenic especially the Anamalai Hills which form a magnificent backdrop for the site that I visited.

Close to Udumalaipettai town, there are hundreds on windmills on a relatively flat open land. It was awesome. What a sight! I've never seen anything on such an elaborate scale before! The height of each windmill is at least 3 times the height of a typical electricity transmission tower.

All the flying and waiting and queuing and security checks were horrible tough. I had to take Singapore Airlines to Bangalore. So that means that I hafta stopover and get a connecting flight at Changi. The airport security at Changi was terribly tight. I got scanned front, back, left, right, top, down, front again and back again..... I felt like a criminal... as if I had done something severely wrong. I nearly wanted to suggest sarcastically if they wanted me to strip right there and then, just so that they are 100% sure that I'm not carrying any suspicious metal or bombs. I don't kinda mind stripping actually.... since I do have some exhibitionist tendencies.... haha!

Then the bitch consfiscated my 120g tube of SKII face cleanser, which was obviously only about 25% left. She claimed that passengers are not allowed to bring any containers/tubes that are more than 100g or 100 ml. I pleaded to her and explained that it is an expensive item and it was obviously less than 50g left in the tube and that the overall total liquids/pastes in my hand luggage is obviously less than the 1 litre allowance. But the bitch responded coldly and indifferently. I know she's only doing her job, but this ruling doesn't really make logical sense. And what kind of world are we living in nowadays? Are we all so afraid of terrorist attacks? I blame it on God and religion.

The return trip wasn't pleasant either. The Bangalore airport is way too small to handle the large numbers of travellers. The check-in hall was full of people and their baggage that you almost can't figure out which queue is for which airline. It is almost impossible to move from one end to the other. I had to wait in line for almost an hour to check in. Then I had to wait again for immigration checks. Then another long queue for the security check. By then, it already time to board the plane. No time to rest! The most ridiculous thing is that between the departure gate and the aircraft, there are 3 more checkpoints that passengers have to go through. They checked for the security stamps on your hand-carry bags, for your passport, and for your boarding pass. I couldn't take it anymore, so I sarcastically commented to the airport staff "as if I will transform into someone else as I walked along the corridor between the gate and the aircraft". The staff then tried to explain something to me about security and procedure and blah blah blah.... whatever.

Gimme Love.Angel.Music.Baby

Countdown: Exactly 10 days from tonite, Fable and I will be jumping and screaming our heads off (we'll probably get banned by the authorities for not adhering to their rules). Well, I've been listening to Gwen's songs the whole day today just to get into the mood first! Haha!

Wah! In a span of less than 8 weeks, we're seeing another live concert again! But good la, this time is in KL, not need to go so far. Can take Star LRT! Can't wait can't wait!

Tagged!

Ok, I've been tagged by the gatal frog with a meme. I don't quite understand the meme concept, so I did a google, ended up at the wikipedia page, but still don't quite understand it. Whatever la. Apparently, these are the rules of the meme:

1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. List eight (8) random facts about yourself.
3. Tag eight people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them).
4. Let them know they’ve been tagged by leaving them a comment on their blogs.

Random facts? Hah! What random facts? Kinda very general. If it is about secrets or confessions, then very juicy la.... to read other people's secrets also. haha! Can I start a meme on this? "List 8 of your darkest secrets that will freak your mom out if she ever finds out."

Back to the current meme. I can do No.1 and No.2 la, but since I am new in this blogsphere, I have no one to tag liao. Can I tag someone at random? Is there an etiquette that I must follow in blogsphere? Ok, I'll just get on with the first two la.

%$*!+~&^=:?>'@-<#

Fact #1: When I was around 6 years old, I was laughed at and ridiculed by my neighbour (an older boy) when he saw me peeing by the drain just outside my house. No wonder I have a bit of an exhibitionist tendency... I haven't resolved the trauma of the humiliation and am trying to prove it otherwise. hmmm....?

Fact #2: I have never been romantically involved with anyone before. I wonder if I am capable of loving and be loved!

Fact #3: "Sunday morning up with the lark, I think I'll take a walk in the park, Hey hey hey what a beautiful day..." That was the song that I sang on stage in drag! Yes, I started quite young at 13 years old. Haha! But don't get me wrong, it was the ONLY time I was in drag. I suffered weeks and weeks of teasing from my classmates. They're just jealous I looked so beautiful! I wondered how I would look like in drag again now?

Fact #4: I had a very humble beginning when I first started working in my mid twenties. I had no phone (mobile nor fixed line), no car (or motorbike), no home computer (hence no internet) for THREE bloody long years.

Fact #5: My first cassette I bought was "Wildflower - Sandy Lam".

Fact #6: I weaned off the milk bottle only when I was in Standard 4! I didn't want to let the bottle go. Yes, I loved to drink milk, but maybe it was all about sucking something in my mouth. The bottle is about 7 inches long and a little less than 2 inches in diameter. Hmm.... I sure did start young!

Fact #7: I am such a homie kind of guy. And quiet too. When I was in school, I didn't go out to play or meet up with friends after school. What do I do then? I read and study la. I have such a deprived childhood. I don't have many friends then. So, now, I also don't have many friends. Maybe I don't really know how to socialize....

Fact #8: I am quite a gym addict. I get very upset if I missed my gym classes. Why? Because only in the dance class can I hiao and drama.

When Will I be Famous

I just realized, given that I spend more than 10 hours in the gym on a normal week, I should blog about it more often. Today, I was pleasantly surprised that the replacement instructor chose to do Bodyjam 37's bonus block: the jazz/rock block. Why was I pleasantly surprised? Well, because the usual instructors at my gym branch never, and I really mean, NEVER want to do this block. I don't really know why, but I guess, perhaps they don't like the jazz/rock combination, or perhaps it is dificult to teach because the moves doesn't really go hand-in-hand with the music on the later part of the block (which is rock).


I loved this block. And the fact that I haven't done it for almost a year (yes, it was first released around May/June 2006) makes me miss it even more! The first part of the block has a bit of rock-jazz retro feel, lots of jazzy-skipping moves and a difficult 360-degree spin in a count (or beat or whatever you call it). Wah, the turn is very challenging. I remembered it took me 2 classes before I knew how to spin, and I was overwhelmed by a sense of achievement when I managed to do it. The later part comprise a dramatic 'run" and jump. Very the drama one! Me likey! Just like me, the drama queen! In between the overall performance buildup, you gotta rock hard with the music. Here are the track listing:

When The Lights Go Down - Armand Van Helden
When Will I Be Famous - Bros
Flashing For Money (Sultan Club Mix) - Deep Dish vs Dire Straits
Pour Some Sugar On Me - Def Leppard
Don't Phunk With My Heart - The Black Eyed Peas
Welcome To The Jungle - Guns N' Roses

Bless the instructor that did it today!

My Gym Equation

Another Potential Assault on Maxwell Hill

Another piece of horrifying news today. The company that built the G. Machinchang Cable Car in Langkawi has proposed once again to build a cable car link from the Taiping Lake Gardens to Maxwell Hill (ie. Bukit Larut). The project was viable as they were trying to cash in on the success of the Taiping Zoo, which reportedly has 700,000 visitors per year compared to the Langkawi project which attracted only 100,000 people annually. At present, there is only 1 mode of transport up the hills apart from hiking up yourself: by the land rover. The thrill is all in the ride up and down as the land rover negotiates hairpin bends while trying to not hit on the unsuspecting joggers or going down the ravines.

Proposals to develop Maxwell Hill has met with great opposition in the 1990s by Taiping residents and conservationists. We don't need another Cameron Highlands or Genting Highlands or Penang Hill. In fact, Maxwell Hill is the only hill resort that has remained untouched and undeveloped since the early years. It is the only hill resort that you can look up afar and never spot a building, road or a landslide scar. All you can see from Taiping town at its foothill are thick dense tropical forest. Time and again, the Menteri Besar would give assurances that the hill will remain as it was. But this time round, it is on the verge on another assault by the greed of a profit-making company and possibly corrupted approving authorities. We all know that any kind on development, whether it is just a cable car or a small hotel, is damaging to the environment, particularly on the extraordinarily steep slopes in the area.

And I can recall that the company who proposed this idea doesn't really have a good record of maintenance either. During my last trip up G. Machinchang by cable car last year, I noticed that facilities have deteriorated quite significantly although it was only opened to the public less than 5 years. The wooden walkways has rotted somewhat, and the metal parts had rusted quited badly. This is Malaysian style maintenance and quality.

Why is it that in Malaysia, we always have to be building and building in the name of development? I am very sure, if Mount Everest were to be in Malaysia, some smart asshole will certainly propose to build a cable car and five-star hotels at the summit. And I'm also certain that they'd probably think of building a four-lane expressway up the summit as an alternative to cater to the needs of tourists.

I hope there is a strong opposition to this proposal. We, Taiping folks, do not want to see ugly towers and cable lines when we look up the hills. We just want to see green trees and unspoilt natural beauty. Leave us alone!

Burgers and Omens

I'm not big fan of burgers but I do have my favourite choices. For some strange reasons, in the past few days, I was gravitated to eat at A&W, but maybe because their outlets just happened to be conveniently located to where I was at the time: at the Jakarta airport on Thursday and the 1-U new wing this morning. I liked their Mozza burgers anyway, the one with a beef patty and bacon, so it didn't matter.

But the strange thing is that on both occasions, I ordered the Mozza burger, but I got the Cheeseburger instead. Hmmm.....?! Some kind of omens? I wonder....

The Constipation of Mimi!

Speaking of Mariah Carey, we all know she's quite on the larger size although her album cover pics are usually touched up to show otherwise. I really have to post this for a good laugh. I ain't a Mariah fan.... I just can't stand her antics, although I loved her first 3 albums, before she became overly mengada-ngada with her unnatural hiau-ness. Click on the image to read more about her yummicious songs.

Very Sensitive Malaysians

I was horrified! I hope Gwen is not going to appear in a simple grandma top and hipster jeans on stage! I paid good money for the show and I expect colourful costumes and grand artistic stage performance.

“She will abide by the Malaysian authorities’ guidelines to ensure that her show will not be offensive to local sensitivities,” the statement said. Under the official guide to performing in Malaysia, a female artist must be covered from the top of her chest to her knees.
No jumping, shouting or throwing of objects onstage or at the audience is allowed. Performers cannot hug or kiss and their clothes cannot have obscene or drug-related images or messages.

This is stupid. I remembered a friend once said that previously, Mariah Carey, during her tour in KL a couple of years ago, purposely wore a simple top and jeans throughout her show and made sarcastic remarks about her the regulations that she had to abide. I reckon people who are overly sensitive about this kind of stuff should just not come and watch at all and spoil the atmosphere for other people. Just stay at home and read the bible or koran or whatever else that you read.

An Eye Opener

I arrived back to KL safely, after having spent almost 11 days on site. This was my third trip to the site, and I was dreading it. I hate being away for long periods, especially for sitework.

The facility where I worked is located in northwestern tip of Java Island, facing the Java Sea. The nearest town is Cilegon, approximately 2 hours drive via freeway from Jakarta to the west. My colleague and I stayed in Cilegon. A car and a driver had been arranged for us to take us to the site, which is a 45-minute drive on a very narrow bumpy and dusty rural road. I really do not understand why these foreign investors would want to build their petrochemical facilities in such a rural isolated place with such poor public infrastructure.

Java island is not a typical tropical island paradise. It is overpopulated, and is home to 120 million people, with a population density of over 2,000 people per square mile! In comparison, Peninsula Malaysia has a population density of only 330 people per square mile. Land in Java island is scarce, and is mainly used for the cultivation of rice and minor subsistence crops. Paddy fields dominate the landscape.... and people live in very small houses made of wood, clay and straw. It is very depressing to see that these people are so poor, with so little to live on every day. The inside of their houses are probably fairly empty. Most adults are unemployed and they can be seen hanging around by the road side, gazing blankly at the passing traffic, waiting for time to pass them by, or engaging in minor odd jobs.

************

Why? Why is it that there are so many poor people who live in such a deplorable condition? Why, on the other end of the spectrum, are there filthy rich people? Why?

Is it because the rich have done something good in the past and thus are deserving of a good life? Is it because the poor was made to suffer because they have done something terrible in the past? But what about innocent children born into poor families? It seems to suggest that certain people are more deserving of a good life than others. But on what basis? Is this fair? Is this God's making? But God is supposed to be all-loving and good. From what I saw and realized, it appears as though there is no evidence of such. Dear God, why???