Triumph over Evil!

Truly, I am fascinated by Ms. Rowling's vast, deep and wonderful imagination. The characters
she created with Harry Porter is truly remarkable &  gripping!

I guess in life you will meet and encounter the likes of Harry Porter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.
Harry being the accidental hero, the boy who endured pain beyond imagination but still has the purity and goodness in him to do nothing but righteousness. 
Ron as most of us can also relate to, is most of the time meek and scared to face difficulties, yet to discover his true heroism but stumbles 
along the way with bravery to seek his true self. 
Hermoine not only uses her intellect but also her heart to think, living 
with the mantra of "impossible is nothing".

Through the series of her books, Rowling weaves her characters amicably into the storyline. You see them grow up, you see them fight 
internal struggles, you see them fight against all odds and importantly you see 
them triumph! Like most predictable heroic-storyline, the good always prevail over evil. While the concept is not new, I believe it is equally important to reinforce
in this day and age.

Everyday we hear more bad news than
good. Evil minds and hearts are more rampant than ever. Good, righteousness 
seem to fade behind evil. The bigger and stronger powers are bullying the 
smaller, meeker - leaving them defendless and easily over-powered.
It seems less and less people are interest to 
stand up and fight for what is right. 
Most of us are more confortable to hide behind our walls of safety -
playing the spectatorrather than taking the active role of changing one's fate.

Through it all, there are those brave enough to stand up to change fates. 
Some through littles gestures, some through years of preseverance, some through
outright battles:



1. Rosa Parks became the first African American to refuse to give up her seat to a white passenger in a bus. Her small action sparked national controversy but importantly demonstrated how a single refusal of giving in can change the course of history.



2. Mahatma Ghandi was the major political and spiritual leader of India that led the country to its Independence against British Rule. He resisted tyranny through mass civil disobedience, firmly founded upon ahimsa or total non-violence — which was one of the strongest driving philosophies of the Indian independence movement and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. 1 man with a simple act of non violence changed India's fate forever.



3. Malcolm X, a man that has been called many things: Pan-Africanist, father of Black Power, religious fanatic, closet conservative, incipient socialist, and a menace to society. Less of a hero
behind shadows of the great Martin Luther King, Malcolm X - self educated himself in prison,
chose to change his fate from a street hustler to an awakened political and spiritual activist.
Though his speeches and actions were considered controversial to many, he chose a far more
outward approach in speaking his mind and fighting his course.



4. And finally, the greatly revered His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama - Tenzin Gyatzo. A spiritual leader forced into exile by the new superpower of the world China who claimed 
Tibet to be a territory of China. 
His Holiness together with his closest aids fleed to India and resided there ever since. 
Living to true Buddhist teachings, His Holiness not for once approved of fighthings
and bloodshed against the Chinese. Instead, he has only preached love, 
happiness and harmony. He taught his fellow Tibetans to persevere and show utomost compassion to the Chinese in Tibet regardless what they 
have done to them. (I mean, this guy is seriously amazing!!!) 

There can never be triumph for the bad guys. Only good can prevail. And though it may take years, it is worth to believe in good and stick by it.
But till then, it is worth every single drop of blood to fight (passively, actively, indirectly) for what is right. Triumph then will be wholesome, complete and true.

Thank you Ms Rowlings for teaching these simple theories which are slowly being forgetten these days...
 

The right to defend myself..

2 years ago, I had an interesting "encounter" with someone dear to me. I was betrayed, very badly. At that point of time my world crumbled, I'd never imagined that person would ever harm me so badly.
The single most important bond of trust was broken - forever. The one thing I still thought I had with my family would change forever. I was very well aware that that moment would change all our lives forever and it was inevitable, un-reversable.

Back ten, I was very angry. I was very hurt. I spent endless nights thinking what went wrong and how could 
something like this happen. Though the person blamed everything on me, I ensured I'd reflected on what
she said to examine if it was true. It all seemd so twisted but at the end of the day, my fault of not, I had to pick up and rebuild my world, my family's (or what's left of it) world.

Fresh after the incident, I went to Denmark with my husband. He urged me to meet his
clairvoyant - Marriane. He said she had an urgent message to pass to me and I desperately needed healing. Now, I was shit worried that I would get into some gibbery, table banging, madly possessed women situation - but it was the total opposite! It was such a normal
"sighted" experience, everything was calm and soothing, she spoke normally and didnt shake or flipped her eyes upwards like what you would see on TV. 
Bizzarely speaking, I enjoyed the session so much. Importantly, I received an 
amazing experience that reduced me to tears! (literally sob like a baby!)

She connected me to my dad. Yup, my dad passed away so he's dead. And no, he didn't appear
out of thin air but he spoke to me through Marriane. She told me "your dad is here and he wants
to talk to you"...The moment she said that, I felt so much warmth and love in the room, as if
I went back to my childhood - the feeling having my dad by my bedside while he told us bedtime stories...I cant describe it I swear!  
I was so overwhelmed with emotions I cried and cried. (Imagine finally not having a conversation with your dad after 18 years!) Honestly at that moment I was still
skeptical so I asked questions no one else in this world except me and my dad - he knew the answers! (Freaky feelings started draining out of me, overcomed by awe and pure happiness)
He told me he was sorry. He was sorry for leaving us so early, he was sorry he couldn't give me the life he promised and importantly, he was sorry for what my sister has done to me...
The last apology meant so much to me I broke down even harder.

For the longest time I thought my dad had only 1 favourite daughter. She was the one  he confided in the most, he was the one that had the most, she was the one he saw as his real daughther. And to hear him say that he was truly angry at what she has done to me -
it finally changed the ways I saw things...

As I said earlier, I had blamed myself for causing this to my family. I had blamed myself for
aggravating my sister to act the way she did. But that day, when my father finally said all those
things, for once in my life - I felt I truly belonged to my family. I was never invisible.

The point I am trying to make here is, I can never change what has happened. But I am proud of the fact that I tried to reflect if I had caused all this. Surely I did in some ways, but I am dealing with the consequences, I am willing to move on.

I hope she too can... one day

Again, I have learnt that nothing in life is permanent. God gives and God takes back. Just remember to face it - no matter how hard it is. There can never be equal scores in life and there is no point to keep count - be the bigger person and ultimately the happier person

 

To be truly thankful...

A couple of years ago, I'd earned much lesser than what i earn now. Back then, I would still manage a mini shopping spree to reward myself once a month and holidays abroad. I was quite debt free and had more than enough for myself.

Fast forward to present day-  my debts are enourmous, I shop only during sale, I go for more expensive trips and inevitably, I have so much 
lesser to spend.

But money aside, we never know what and when is enough. We never know when to say
"It's ok, I'm quite happy with what I have"...most of the time, we look at others and envy their fortunes and good luck. As the famous Chinese saying goes "Yat kar ng che yat kar sze" - literally translated as one never knows what happens in another family.
It's so easy to want to be someone else, it's so easy to blame your current situation, it's so easy
not to see what you've got is so good compared to others.

Being so human, we always fall into the trap of wanting more. Though it is all fine to have a vision and not settle for status quo, 
I believe most of the time, we must also learn to be thankful for what we have. 
I would always imagine a situation if I was God (not trying to play God, excuse the pun!)
- I create beautiful things for all my children, I give them what I think it's best for them, I create
a world for them otherwise they will never have. But each and everyday, I hear them
complain and whine about all the things I had given them.
I think I would be quite pissed off if I was God. But as God is all omnipresent and overly-nice (maybe he's getting mean and pissed off these days with all the epidemics and catastrophes happening!) we are seldom punished for being utterly ungrateful.

There are times where He knocks you on your head and pushes you hard onto the ground.
There are times He raise you up and keeps you up high in the air
There are times where He smiles and laughs with you
There are times He nudges you to push on.

If only during all those times (if not every other day) we can remember to say "Thank you"...

Many Islands of Thailand

Thankfully, Peter works in the travel industry which allows us to travel to alot of places for free - most of the time, we are talking about excellent hotels and resorts.

Since Peter is still in Bangkok, my visits to him can be utterly boring if we would stay in the city forever. Pete would always arrange for a nice trip out of Bangkok secretly and surprise me later!
Bangkok's amazing geographical location allows the city folks to unwind at nearby islands and resorts - most of them only 2-3 hours away by bus! 

Here are two amazing locations:
1. Koh Samet: (my pick!)
- Nice local island which is still quite "virgin" to the rape of foreigners. Though many resorts are already built, you see more locals (Bangkok folks out there for a weekend break) than anyone else. Also, they still have beach bars all along the coast where you can chill listening to the sounds 
of the waves or just gazing at the moonlight! Also the island itself is has a forest reserve which
you can track around easily

Pete & I chilling by the beach at night!




2. Hua Hin:
It's funny how Scandinavian the town feels. I'd almost thought I was in DK with so many Danes, Swedes and Norwegians there. Again, Hua Hin is just a couple of hours away from Bangkok. Very much more developed compared to Koh Samet - as the government is really pushing for this destination to attract foreigners to buy homes, build their dream homes, etc. Honestly, it feels sort of like Phuket - minus the cheesy go-go bar girls or katois. The beach sucks - i mean seriously sucks! (close to PD standards if not worst) The plus point is there's so much to see, do around Hua Hin town that helps to distract the need to chill by the beach.
Anantara Resort is a must check out! Hilton Hua Hin is alright..


"Seriously, Asians shouldn't try to make Danish Pastries!!"

That building is where we stayed - mini villas, awesome!!
 
Bridges with little gazebos, lovely!

Guide to a funfilled wedding

Happy endings to weddings always starts with a painful beginning, trust me it's all 
worth it! 

1. Choosing the Man:Make sure he doesnt get cold feet, make sure he is useful, make sure he knows 
how to 
calm you down when you're freaking out about every single thing about your wedding. 


Man - my wife is freaking me out! She broke down crying when I told her Im loosing
more hair!


2. Choosing the Location:  Depending on your family and the 5 million other people
you need to satisfy - but putting that all aside, when you finally do find the place make sure the sales rep of the location/hotel/etc is reliable - better if she/he is a push over so you can negotiate for more freebies! Run constant checks on them to 
see if things are working out fine and if arrangements are made according to 
WHAT YOU WANT and not WHAT THEY CAN DO. Malaysians are exceptional 
to say "no can do" for everything before they even try! 
We chose a beach wedding - so be practical with your clothings! I blew my RM300 shoes on the sand and now i can't wear it ever again!  


Breathtaking!

3. Deciding who to invite: If you're bold enough not to be disowned by your
parents, avoid relatives and 5000 noisy children you don't even know from your wedding. Sweet talk your mum (easiest target),  promise a compensation-family-dinner after.
I opted for a very small wedding (according to Asian standards!) and we both invited
our closest dearest friends, not to mention people who knew how to have loads of fun!  


sober..

drunk

almost unconsious...

4. Avoid getting your husband's drinking pal as MC for your wedding:  
trust me, mine turned out to be quite a disaster! jokes you make when you're out
having a drink on the brink of getting drunk CANNOT BE ABSOLUTELY recycled
for weddings! Dirty jokes aside, lame comments and crude words can be fun at a birthday party but not at a wedding! 
Geez, I would have killed him if I was drunk enough! 


seriously, i looked like i was having fun with this MC, but look closer, i had a knife up my
skirt - - - owwwwww i can kill him

5. Have your husband surprise you: Now, laundrying your love story
(how you met,how you fell in love) is usually quite 'shy' for most Asians. But having
a totally sweet, romantic Gwai Lo husband like mine speaking his heart out about
his love to me and dedicating a 5 min speech to me I swear reduces any girl to
tears (not to mention spoiling your make up, but who cares!)


God, you created a fine man!! What piece of art!

6. And finally have fun with your guests!: As most Asians weddings will
have it, whenyou attend as a guest - usually you give your ang pow, sit down and eat
and bugger off. Peter and I decided to have fun with them and make them be a part
of the wedding. We played a simple game that got all the guest up on their seats
laughing, cursing and importantly having fun! And of course, if you're too broke
after all the wedding expenses and can't afford to pay for entertainment - get your
guest to entertain you!

doing the YMCA -  i must say it was most amusing to see Alex dance!

What a way to start of a great life with my husband!
A night to remember - 4th November 2006..





 

A stroll down memory lane..

Most of the time, when we have reflections of our past, we tend to lean towards the negative experiences we’ve gone through. Maybe its due to our programmed mind or our current status where things may not look as good as you’ve always imagined when you were much younger.

I was looking through some of the boxes I’ve stored away in the storeroom. I stumbled upon a stack of my certificates from school and college. Woo..what a ride it was down that memory lane!

I looked through my school’s certs – there is a huge stack of it, all my achievements in school as a prefect, Art Editor for my school magazine, English Literature club Secretary, House Captain & Treasurer, Squash Club captain, Netball representative, etc. Then there were my exam results – straight As for my PMR, 10 aggregate for my SPM.
It all seemed so long ago as I keep reminding myself that it has been exactly 10 years since I’ve left school this year.

My school years were the most uncertain yet beautiful years of my life. Uncertain because I didn’t know what would happen to me after school. I knew very well my mum couldn’t afford to send me to college or university due to our financial difficulties. But I didn’t want to end up as a waitress my whole life. (I was waitressing earning pocket money ever since I was 15) I envied my rich school friends who were so sure what they wanted to do. Their life were made even if they did badly in school. Their parents would be able to send them to study overseas and they would earn a proper education.

But whatever would happen to me? I knew I could be somebody worthy in my life. All I needed was a chance to prove myself. All I needed was a scholarship.

My chance did come. I won a scholarship to pursue my studies in Advertising at a local college called IACT. Back then I was waitressing at TGI Fridays and I got a call for an interview. I remembered having to take the day off and having a chat (very apologetically) with the store Manager. He looked at me sternly and said, “Well, I definitely don’t want to loose you, but I also definitely don’t want you to be a waitress your whole life. You better get that scholarship!”
And I did. I remembered getting the phone call and I screamed with joy! I finally got my chance. God was kind to me then.

I saw another stack of certs –this time it’s from my college. For 3 years I did my studies there, my results progressively improved. From a student with 2 A’s and 2 B’s, by the 2nd year I was cruising past with straight A’s. I told myself repeatedly that I must not throw my chances away. I have to do well. Interestingly, all my lectures had the same comment about me – ‘Very potential to do well in future’.

In present day, I don’t know if I would be considered a star employee as I was considered a star student back then. Sometimes I hate my job but today, I just remembered the long, hard and relentless journey I took to get here. There are times at work where you feel useless, de-motivated, dejected and lost. But then again, I cant be that bad since I’ve made it this far all by myself with nothing but grit, determination and fearlessness.

I will cherish my long walk back memory lane. It has reminded me who I am and WHAT I am made of – past to present!

True vision comes from the heart

I just saw an inspirational movie on Hallmark – a true story about a woman who went blind. She had to learn how to cope with her blindness and her life all over again. Though her life became very disheartening, her husband became her pillar of strength.

Not long, her husband contracted cancer and passed on. As if life was not hard enough for her to endure, her daughter met an accident and was critically injured. How tough can that be for her?

I see and feel her frustration. As if God made a bad joke on her, but He gave her back some happiness. She found a man who was in love with her since high school who then married her. She stumbled upon her talent in speaking – giving motivational speeches to students, old folks, blind folks, athletes, etc. She is now a renowned motivational speaker

She said, “True vision comes from the heart”. Someone I know once said that to me as well – my father. He himself was blind.
But through his blindness, he helped raised a family. Though he passed on when I was only 7, a lot about him influenced the way I think, feel and behave till this day.

Today, I feel lucky to be very much like the lady who got blind. Though I have my vision, I have learnt since young to see with my heart. To feel and to embrace beauty from within.

Along the way, life gets hard. Things don’t go your way and God throws challenges at you again and again. Just when you think things cannot get any worse, it does. I never understood why He made life so difficult for me, but slowly I’d realized why. He loves me very much – he wanted to teach me how to see light amidst all the darkness and evil. How to stay pure, hopeful and loving when everything around you seems to go against you.

All the hardship can’t be that bad. I have seen and lived to believe that things will get better. And it always does….

Bangkok Again!

Once in a while, you get a really nice break - importantly with really good friends.

Nicky and I have been planning for this trip since December. It took us alot of coaxing to finally get Nura to agree to join us!
Evidently, it was a great choice! It wasnt a breakthrough holiday - but one that 1 would remember. Some pictures!


 

Thanks! But it's not enough!

A few hours after a massive earthquake hit Yogyakarta, the whole knew about it. Within a few seconds, thousands of local residents are left homeless, orphaned and living in dire straits.
While thousands of us live comfortably with shelters (electicity, running water, air con, flat screen tv, water distiller, DVD players, water heater...u get my point) the victims cant even seem to find decent clean water to drink.

Yet, within days the world turns to salvage and rescue Yogya. Aids pours in from neighbouring countries, the West (being the faithful donors) sends money - the list goes on.. People are giving, Yogya receiving.

I always believe Malaysians to be very giving people. We never turn a deaf ear towards such needs. Collectively as Malaysians - we collect aid and pour in to our neighbours. I guess we are a developing nation and is blessed with few natural disasters. On the other hand, I believe alot of us remembers what is it like to be in need - poor and developing. 20 years ago, we received aid too.

Sometimes I meet certain people (mostly foreigners from the West) whom complains that what they have is not enough. Someone's daughter got upset with the person because she refused to send her daughter to a trip which costs USD5000. Her daughter refused to talk to her for weeks. In the end, she gave way and paid for her daughter's trip. Another person I know (not indirectly) is still living off his parents while he is in Asia to "learn the ways of the East". He is close to 35 years old. The funny thing is - both of them were very upset with their parents for not giving them enough.
It was thoroughly hard for me to understand that. What I ever had is not enough, but when you're given so little, you are thankful that you are getting anything at all.

Sometimes we forget how to value 'enough'. As humans we get greedy and demanding and never stop asking & receiving.

Funnily, it takes disasters like Yogya/Tsunami to make us realise how to treasure "Thanks! I think I have enough now!"

Bali Spirit

Dont know exactly the name of this figure, but its beautiful!
just a random temple me & Peter found along the way while we biked up to Ubud frm Kuta

Tegalalang - off Ubud, famous of its multi layered paddy fields! Breathtaking! View taken from a Japanese restaurant just by the hill









Sunset by Legian!











Entrance to temple.. 

Nice smile!

It's quite obvious now that i worship this man! Just wanted to share a nice picture of Peter taken in Goa - one of the hippy night market! 

All walks of people

In the short time given to us this lifetime, we meet all sorts of people. People that surprises you - in a good and bad way.
When we were all children, we could be friends with just about anyone. It was a matter to be proud of – to make acquaintances, to have friends you can brag about to your parents – a sign of social acceptance, maturity and acceptability.

In your world of bliss and endless playtime with your friends, you are rudely awakened from that wonderful feeling to find a nasty friend. She teases you; makes you feel sad, embarrassed or even gang up with others to not be your friend anymore! Wait a minute, you tell yourself. Friends are not supposed to do such things! Oh Boy they do! And they can be really good at it.

Slowly, your curtain starts to draw; you start to build walls around you. As the years go by, you meet more and more people that surprises you, disappointing how you’ve always romanticized the idea of a friend.

Not long, you only have a handful. People whom has stood the tests of time. People who has been with you through thick and thin. People you can trust whole-heartedly. They can then qualify to be your best friend, buddy, etc

You learn your first lesson in life from friends/people. They come in all different shapes and sizes. Avoid or confront the mean ones, stay close and cherish the good ones.

You then move on to the next phase of your life - you start to work. The quality of people gets almost immediately weirder! It’s like a zoo out there! These people amaze me daily.
From your past experiences, it tells you to stay away from the ‘evil’ ones. Somehow, they find their way to you. No matter how much you try to dodge them, they are everywhere. Constantly spreading their ‘evilness’, their bitterness to the world by commanding respect (not much given most of the time!), power (they best stay near the power generator if they’re so in love with it!) and supremacy. What is it with these people that they are so unhappy with their lives? Did they really have such a bad childhood? Maybe they got tortured really badly as kids? (I like to think that anyway!)

My husband to-be always tells me to stand up and fight against these people. I do make my stand but it disgust me to see the way they take on other people to make themselves feel good. They belittle others and make them feel insignificant to feel important in return.

How do you fight evil? Its not that we can settle this at the backyard and fight it in the mud! It’s not that I can complain to my mum or teacher to get the kid punished. We are dealing with adults here – who coincidently act like kids. Tough one, eh?

I don’t have the answer. I’ve developed too much Zen to fight them anymore. Still I don’t give up….
While scrutinizing ways I could administer courage to stand up to them, something interesting happened today. The ‘weak ones’ whom the ‘evil’ ones was torturing today taught me an interesting lesson.
They were being belittled in front of the whole world. They did put up a constructive argument, but of course evil will be evil. What can we do with such screwed up minds? Interestingly, they walked away gracefully and smiled at their silliness with beauty and charm. That moment seemed like a National Geographic moment, beautiful! It was classic – they smiled, said their thank you and left.
The amazing part of it all is – after that bad encounter, they didn’t even seem moved by it at all, and in fact they forgot about it the moment they left the room.

How shallow I have been to try to administer ways to counter them. I even secretly cursed and hoped that they will fall one day! But today, I learnt that the only way I will learn to have courage to stand up to them is to ignore them. Use my own power to suppress these evil people, make known to myself that they don’t actually exist and their existence is not worthy of my attention.
It’s not about being affected by them, as each time we are – they have won. We can win in our own ways if we just learn that we are all born different. The earlier we come to terms with ourselves, the happier we will become. And one way to start to be happy is to see through the evil in them…

It’s easier said than done. But I figured it takes more effort and energy from these evil people to do what they do to others daily than us to ignore them.

With Olivia Zhang, frm Leo Burnett Beijing. Cool girl, we call her the 'Model' since she has a hot body and beautiful face!










With Grace from Leo Burnett Hong Kong. Small, ambitious but highly capable girl! Very articulate and full of passion












With Ayako from Beacon Communications, Japan. The perfect personification of a true, pure Japanese girl! 

me trying out my new Nikon Coolpix S2, Causeway Bay - Hong Kong 

The moment we touched down at Lantau Island, the excitement mounted. All my days of watching Hong Kong dramas are finally realized – now I get to experience all the places you hear and see on TV = Wan Chai, Mongkok, Causeway Bay, Kowloon, Lan Kwai Fong, etc. Hong Kong (so far) is an exciting place.

Its less regimented than Singapore – there’s mess and chaos amidst their unbelievable planning and structure in buildings, roads, transportation; its far more realistic and competitive than Malaysia – people in the service industry greet you because you have to, not because they mean it; its also rather less trendy than the weird fashion sense you see on TV, those of which the HK singers and actors don on.

I somewhat feel at home but also not. I can fully understand Cantonese when they speak but cant as much articulate fully in Cantonese back to them without them detecting that I am not a local. Where I stay in Causeway Bay, you hear Bahasa being spoken very widely from all the Indonesian maids who works here. Interesting!

Every corner, there seem to be 1 million people buzzing around, talking, walking, and pushing. No one takes notice of other people but themselves. When we met with my colleague’s friend who has been working here, I was quite surprised the way he handled himself at a local restaurant. He was blunt, quite rude and very upfront – not a very Malaysian behavior. He rationalized that the Hong Kongnites (apparently, they hate to be referred to as Hong Kies) are quite pushy and aggressive people. The only way to get around them is to be like them. (Hence the saying, if you cant beat them, join them)

Slowly as my day passes by here, I start to see more and more of my fantasy being merged into a realistic, competitive, rude picture. It’s not picture perfect for sure but at least now its more real than Hong Kong dramas of glamour and fun.


 

How Deep is your Love?

Everyone tells me that long distance relationship is really difficult.
“How can you keep it up for so long?” (WHAT DO YOU THINK?)
“How do you communicate?” (PHONE, EMAILS, SMS, THANK GOD FOR TECHNOLOGY!)
“Don’t you miss him?” (DUH!)

Sometimes I get tired of answering that question. Most of all, I am surprised people are such skeptics towards long distance relationship.

My answer would always be the same. There are no secrets to making a long distance relationship work. The fundamental thing is: how much do you love your partner?

I don’t want to sound like a lost, love puppy. If you think about it, it is true. How much are you willing to sacrifice for the person you love? Would you wait for him/her for an undefined time? Do you have faith that 1-day you will be together?

Peter and I had this conversation while we were holidaying in Bali. The beauty of our relationship is, we never cease to fall in love with each other all over again each time we meet. It’s like meeting him for the 1st time, going out for our first date, experiencing things together all over again. While we talked about this, we also had some common friends who are going through some tough time in their relationships. They were close to getting a divorce; some already had one and moved on. We gathered that when our time comes, no matter how difficult it will get with us, we would learn to make things work. The point is, the harder it is for you to get something you want to so badly, the more you will cherish what you have.

I may be preaching the obvious, but practicing it is another ball game. Each day I look forward to endless sunsets on the beach with him, long talks about what we believe in, kissing for the 1st time all over again. Sure there is a big chance when the time finally comes for us we get sick of each other in 1 day, but for what its worth, its not happening now and it will happen to us!

1 week ago...

I have never been robbed in my life. My things got stolen before but never robbed. Exactly 1 week ago, (probably a few hours beyond this time) my house was broken into.

I woke feeling shocked, scared, worried, upset, angry - everything. Everyone calls to say really nice, comforting words. I had to get over it.

But i cant! Everyday at work, I am reminded how handicapped I am without my computer/laptop. My entire lifetime's work was in that machince. Yes, i did backup but apparently not enough!!

Why would people do such things? Are there not enough work out there? Why must people steal and rob from others? Do they not know the hard work other people put into earning decent, honest money? I cant seem to understand what these people think. How can one be so lazy, dishonest and unaware?? Dont they care about retributions?

I curse the robber(s) everyday. Not because they stole my things, because i didnt get to see their faces and personally kick their balls! Not wanting to sound vindictive - whether i can take them on or not, i really want to have the chance to give them a piece of my mind.
"Go get a job, your parents didnt raise you to be a thief!"

Argghhhh...Thankfully, i have posted the nice picture of me and my mum on this blog. As the damn thief took my digital camera as well, all my pictures are gone - India, Combodia, Denmark, Germany, vietnam, Thailand, weddings, holidays, etc....

this blog is not going to be sounding intellectual, etc. for once i dont have a point - just alot of frustration to vent out!

.....

Higher souls

Once a while, you meet certain people that totally blows your mind. I met one the first night i came to Bangkok. He is a friend of my client, practising to be a Buddhist Monk and has been living in Myanmar for the past few years. He is down in Thailand to meet his twin bother who resides in Thailand.

The experience was interesting. There are people you meet and you know you'll never see them again (because ur not bothered, etc), people you meet and the relationship grows and some people you meet once but enough to last a lifetime. There are only 2 people thus far who falls under that category:
1. Peter
2. This guy by the name of Martin.

Admist the chaos I'm going through my life right now, he rightly pointed out things about myself (after less than 1 hour talking to me) and spun me back into perspective about things. Spritual would be a very small word to describe him. He told me 2 things about myself:

a) I cant carry the world's problems on my shoulders, I have to stop worrying about everything
b) In relation to that, it's ok not to care sometimes

Those words may be uttered by anyone who knows me, but its the delivery of those words that got me really thinking. I know all that, but sometimes the burden i carry upon my own shoulders not only weighs me down but also blinds me. I must learn to let go. the debate/conversation lastest quite some time, but his mind is crystal clear and pure. So calm, so collected, so right

When I look at him, I wondered if the only way to achieve chastity is hiding one self in a monestery far, far away where luxury and materialism is unheard of? Is it then your mind, heart and actions will always be pure and untainted?
Or can it be a simple as being conscientious to achieve enlightment in every day life?

Maybe 1 day I would go up into the mountains and find myself again. But what's there to find if you cant live through yourself every other day where the challenges in life exist every moment of the day?

Mum & me in Bangkok. She came to visit while i worked. This one she had 1 too many drinks!  

Bangkok can shoot!

My friends thinks I draw with crayons and still cant fathom what I do. I’ve given up explaining to them as I have given up trying to understand what my Banker friend does as a Dealer or my other friend who is some sort of engineer in the oil and gas industry.

Been here in Bangkok since Thursday evening, having to shoot and post a commercial for our clients in Indonesia. So during meetings, its quite interesting to have a mix of cultures,backgrounds and nationalities - we have us the Malaysians, our clients the Indonesian, our other client the Dutch, our production house people the Thais. I have never produced a commercial out of Thailand before but I've heard enough commendable things about their quality of work and professionalism to get me really excited about producing this one!

To start off, I wrote a script for the client which was selected among 4 others. Its a simple board but the story in which it is told needs to be well done. We chose this Thai director who is a lady and a mother herself to direct the commercial since our future consumers are mothers. Contrarily to popular belief, producing a commercial out of Thailand is much cheaper than i thought. the value we got out of them so far - - im God damn impressed!

The shoot day was on Friday as well as Saturday. They had 2 X the crew we have in KL, but they have the most professional attitude Ive ever come across wiht any production houses ive worked with in my entire career. They dont waste time squabbling and yakking away mindless talks during shoot, they are always on their feet, takes less than 15 mins to set up the next shot. Amazing!

Then the director has the most polite way of arguing and disagering with us. She is firm yet very polite. She is also extremily detailed, she runs through with us each time she's finished with a shot and discusses with us thoroughly. Unlike the most Malaysian production houses which are quite happy to ignore your requests and do what they think best for the commercial.

Anyway, there are 3 points I'm trying to stress here:
a) Never underestimate the Thais
b) Malaysians needs to be kicked in the butt to be more progressive!

On point a) & b), we were producing 2 commercials back to back. Actually the 1st started off in November (with a Malaysian production house) and this one only started last month (with the Thai prd hse) The Malaysian one (which Im quite shy to admit) ran through countless problems and complications. Up till today, we still havent gotten it approved by the Vietnamese and Indonesian clients. As for this Thai-made commercial, Im quite sure it can be approved and go on air by next week.
With the Malaysians, Id almost puked blood having to deal with their inconsistency, unwillingness and change and lack of professionalism. Ive never had 1 single crisis as yet with the Thais, even if it did arise, it was made a very small matter that was solved on the spot.

Anyhow, I may be speaking too soon. This commercial may take a bad turn the next 1 week, cant be too sure.

Though the language barrier, the Thais really tries to understand and do their best for you. Its sad that Peter gets so upset with them when he works here. I suppose Im quite lucky to meet the really good ones here and they really explifies the best one can ask for. Maybe all we need to do is to look beyond the life of Pat Pong, show girls, bad language, loud Thai music, bad traffic, puzzled looks to see what's really beyond them. Truly amazing people, no wonder they have the best advertising in the entire region!