Selamat Hari Merdeka!

Humble greetings from the office, to everyone! ...coz I don't follow Malaysian Calendar lar... working today :P

This is what I got myself yesterday. Hoo-boy!

And well... I didn't have enough time to charge up the batteries before I went for dinner with Ash, Joanna, and gang - up at Bkt Genting for some Thai fare.

The food was ok at about RM12pax... but the scenery would have been excellent if not for the sky being a tad too clouded.

But then again, I wasn't totally disappointed. Every sunset is unique after all.

I managed to notice a formation made by the play of light & shadows that shown through the clouds... It was a great big bird!

Its eye was the sun itself. The streamlined body and wings in flight were made out of the visible light passing through sparsely clouded areas. Pretty :)

Today, I've gone out again for another gathering. I think I wouldn't have gone out if it wasn't for Uma's great escape plan*...

* - ultra strict parents, she's the rebellious 24 yr old... who wanted to go on a secret date... prior to meeting back with the girls who will send her home in the evening

And so it went that I hosted Uma at my house for a short while (dad dropped her) - on the pretext that we'd go meet up with the other girls for some jalan-jalan at Gurney Plaza.

Well... we did go jalan-jalan... except without Uma... she came later lar... :P

All in all... a really fun weekend and an expensive one too. Sakitnya poket saya... but I'll get over it while I play with my expensive new toy.

Oh! Forgot to mention that I probably got mine at a real bargain from my dad's friend's shop.

With additional battery, upgrade to 256MB memory stick... + the camera bag & tripod that comes with the promotional package... I only paid somewhat short of 1.7K... huwahahahahahahahaha :D

Puteri Gunung Ledang

Having watched only Part 1 of the making of this movie, I'm already impressed.

Having gone to the website, I'm awed. It looks amazing.

For those in the dark, it's an epic based on an adaptation of a historical legend and a myth set in a bygone era of Malaysian History - the age of the Malaccan Sultanate.

Anyway, has anyone caught the MTV of this movie's signature song, "Asmaradana" - sung by none other than the leading lady Tiara Jacquelina...?

I find that the musical piece has a strong traditional Malayan/Indonesian (Nusantara) influence although it has been composed to attract the modern audience... terribly catchy, slightly haunting, and gee... I like it.

The dance cheoreography is also something to behold. It's so dynamic and ENERGETIC! These 2 words would rarely be associated to dances for traditional tunes but it sure works for this one.

Now, the golden question is, after all the hype and promo... will it live up to the expectations of movie-goers? We'll find out for ourselves soon enough... we sure will - just after the movie premiers on Merdeka Day, 31 Aug'04

p/s: I wanna see the movie, but I'm not nuts... not gonna step into any shopping complex on a PUBLIC HOLIDAY cum extension to SCHOOL HOLIDAT. I'll go watch it some few days or a week after it opens in the theatres.

Ah... IT'S GREAT to TAKE a LOOoooOoooONG BREAK!

But as they say, all good things must come to an end. Tomorrow it's back to work.

I had been on leave since last Thursday... which incidentally became day to settle all pending banking stuff. Great time to be in the banks tho' - all it took me was a 5 min wait in each bank before it was my turn to be up at the counter.

Been in KL since Friday. First thing I did after reaching the commuter station in Subang was to head to Carrefour's Burger King. A trip to KL just ain't complete w/o a visit to BK's!

On Saturday, I met up with Ling2 in the afternoon. We had lunch at TGI Fridays in 1U... loved my lunch and couldn't eat dinner after that.

Later in the evening I met up with Joce in town and followed her to her place in Mines... decided just to take up the offer of dessert since I can't take dinner...

By the time my bro came to get me from Mines... I was too poofed to give Kalamari (and gang) a holler to meet up over some kopi and football :P

Sunday was when I jalan-jalan(ed) around Bkt Bintang... and spent my last hour there by having a tiramisu and coffee at Dome. Did some people watching.

Monday afternoon was lepak and more shopping (lots more window shopping than purchasing)... at Sunway Pyramid.

Was happy that KY said he'd meet me there for coffee... coz basically all previous attempts of meeting up for the past 3 yrs ended up being cancelled because of time constraints by either party.

Later had dinner at Pizza Uno (Taipan) with dad and bro. Another splendid dinner! Mama-miAaaa... :)

On Tuesday, was supposed to be on the 2:30pm Plusliner express bus... except was told it's broken down :o

Ah well... free upgrade to the 3:30 Nice bus was nothing to complain about. I still get to arrive in Penang within the same time.

Today? Well... today was just a time for me to buddy up with my car. Went to get her a car wash, engine wash and a vacuuming. Oh yeah... pumped the tyres up too :P

Hmmm... have always intended to post this photo somewhere... :)

Had taken this one way back in yr 2000 when I was on a family vacation in Perth, Land of Oz.

Would bet that if anyone in my beautiful homeland dared to do this... it's off to the happy-land of life behind bars and plenty of interrogation.

Ooh... also would like to share a nice quote I came across recently

"I am only one; but I am still one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. I will not refuse to do the something I can do" - Edward E. Hale

Probably a good mantra when feeling like a helpless louse... because quite frankly...

A person with capabilities is never truely helpless unless they make themselves helpless via the destruction of self-pity, insecurity; lack of confidence, determination and a will to live.

The week past was one of blood, toil & tears... coupled with a wonderful weekend.

Blood, toil and tears???

Don't get me wrong. It was just that time again... QTR-END CLOSING. Yup. It means extra vigilance during the last 3 working days of the month (not going home before 8pm... avg 12-13hrs @ work) + accompanying my supervisor to come back to work for 1/2-day on Saturday.

How does one get through high-pressure days? Ok, I don't quite know the answer... but I get by. There were moments when my speech capabilities was equal to Ross Gellar (he takes ages to finish sentences)...

Definite indication of stress, no? Oh yes, it is! And it's quite frustrating when I couldn't seem to piece my words into coherent sentences.

But thankfully, there are some people who just know how to throw the right words back at me so that I can continue my train of speech. Just gotta LOVE them.

A WONDERFUL WEEKEND!

My 1/2-day in office wasn't bad... it was rather fun and relaxed in a sense... quiet office... a few other ppl coming in to pick up the last bits and pieces for the closing...

...and of course the capability to put up the speaker volume and letting tunes from my selected Yahoo Launchcast station blast away without having anyone telling me to tune down. >:)

After lunch, went to Baskins to stock up on ice cream. Would highly recommend the flavor of the month --> Far East Fantasy. It's a really delicious combination of lychee, soursop, and plum sherbet.

Btw, the color combination for this one is a really sweet combination of white, pale pastel pink and pale pastel olive green.

Later in the evening, went out to watch "I-Robot" with Jase. Superb movie! Interesting storyline... and somewhat a bit Alfred Hitchcock in a way. The Hansel & Gretel analogy was a nice touch to complement the plot. Genious!

Other things to appreciate were the animation & robotics... and not to forget... the nice Audi that Spooner (Will Smith) drives. Whether it is a concept car and/or animation in part... it sure looks spiffy ;P

Sunday: Woke up pass noon. MmmmmmMmmm... Nice weather to sleep anyway. It was raining from morning til sometime mid-afternoon.

Decided to go jalan-jalan at Gurney Plaza with mum in addition to catching a movie. Had my heart set in watching the Thai movie - "Beautiful Boxer". I was hooked since I first saw the trailer during my previous visit to GSC.

Based on the true story of Nong Toom Parinya Charoenphol, a kickboxer who wanted to become a woman, this is a truly worthy watch

In a nutshell, what made the movie interesting was how the story was artfully presented and filmed. You could follow the feelings and bond between the characters... while feasting on some of the most beautiful backdrops/sceneries

But the most important thing of all... was the message that was carried throughout the movie... "Follow your heart no matter what. Do what feels right for yourself, not others". :)

The story has a lot of heart in it... it really does... but that's just my thought. Go watch it if you haven't already done so and judge it for yourself! Maybe you'd love it as much as I do. :)