grammy

It was a pretty humbling trip back home this weekend as I went to help mom with looking after grammy for the "afternoon shift". Aunt Lily does morning and Aunt Lucina does night. Mom does the afternoon one.

As posted on facebook:

Today, I went with mom to grammy's house. Grammy is old now and can't really take care of herself. aunty Lily is looking after her there. She needs people to feed her, bathe her, etc... my job was to fan her with the super traditional rattan fan. The table fan/ceiling fan is just sooo uncool. Cool ya, grammy? My other job, when I'm not fanning her, is to apply eucalyptus oil on her temples and chest. She likes the minty feeling.

Grammy likes to hold people's hands/arms when she has nothing to do. Maybe she felt it was comforting. And warm. She says her fingers felt cold. She likes warm hands.

So while I was fanning her, she decided to reach out and hold my hands. OK, grammy, here you go, my hands.

I think she felt I was no good. She let go after 5 seconds and call for my mom. Because my fingers were not too warm and my wrists were pretty small. She didn't bother to reach out for my hands anymore after that. -_-

Oh well...


It was painful to see grammy because it was obvious she was suffering. Her actions, her words. I feel like it was how I felt when I'm sick, helpless, weak and in pain all over. Nothing is wrong - it is just the body weakening day by day due to age. sigh.

On the bright side, she has her own daughters caring for her. She hates strangers. Me too, grammy. :)

Earth Ox Year!

Chinese New Year has come and today is the 7th day already. 8 more days to go! My colleagues Presee and Maxine were abuzz with reading their feng shui and eating jam tarts. It is the year of the Earth Ox! And I'm born in the year of the Ox!

"Does anyone have a compass around here?!" screamed Max once she got hold of the Feng Shui book from Ms Nora.

"So how, face east? West?" Presee querried. Krishna and I look on curiously.

"I can be your compass!" I volunteered and promptly stretched out both my arms with my right pointing to where I remember the sun rised (and burn my backside) and my left pointing to the supposed west la.

"OK, let's see your Pak Kua first. Ox, 1985, earth OX, woman, ok you are number 9."

"Whoa, Max, you can change jobs!"


Anyways, it was all for the fun of CNY. When else you can indulge in people telling you what to do and how to do it.

Don't wear black!
Don't say "die!"
Don't freaking sweep the floor!
Wear red!
Light fire crackers!
Toss yee sang!
Eat prawns!
Throw orange into river!
Eat crazy seaweed called Fat Choy!
Don't buy books! (??)
...and many more...


It is fun although sometimes you struggle to make sense of things.

Anyways, some photos from this CNY!

Yee Sang with colleagues!

back home! visit to the organice farm - they have flowers! And did you know that the tiny tiny black seeds in the dragon fruits can each grow into that huge plant which produces the fruits? Yes, it starts with that one tiny tiny seed!

Wah! Kluang has a new shopping mall! We have Big Apple Donuts and Secret Recipe and PDI and Sushi King. Whoa. Anyways, bought these slippers to commemorate the year of the Ox.

First day of New Year at Grammy's place of course... some shiok sendiri photos...


Barbecue at my place with family!Man, it was fun. So much food, so much coke, so many chicken wings, toooo many pineapple tarts. Time for exercise! Moo-!

First timer - KTMB Sleeper Berth!

In a bid not to fight with thousands of people in the balik kampung spirit next week, I have decided to just spend a long weekend back home and chill in KL during Raya. So yesterday after work, I took the night train back! And I purposely chose the night train because I have always wanted to try the sleeper berths! Looks so interesting. Looks so fun. Looks like an experience.


I walked past a few coaches and saw a few people setting up their laptops and some having chats with their friends/family who have bought berths right opposite each other. This should be fun, I thought.


Anyways, first look:

My first thought was, "wow... like little cells..."

My little berth!:
Always always make sure you request for window seats (when purchasing seats) and make sure to request for lower berths(when purchasin berths) because I think it is a secret plot of the counter staff to make you suffer the aisle seat/upper berth if you don't specifically ask for otherwise.


Anyways, I brought along 2 books because I thought that it would be the best time for me to catch up on those books which I started but never finished!!

But how to read when there is not light? There is this very old, well-intentioned and well positioned reading lamp which doesn't work. It is just placed there so that people will remember that this old train once had people reading in its berths.

Look at the switch! So classic right? (with a dash of sarcasm)


See? Those with upper berths have to climb on this cold steel stairs. Very inviting.


On another matter, on my way into the train, KTMB staff gave me a Raya Goodie Bag. Whoa. Seriously. The drink and ang pow I can understand but one whole box of kuih raya?! Hmm... fishy...
Reminds me of this article in The Star which I read and HAD to laugh out loud. KTMB employees cooked porridge for passengers. I think after that Prime Minister took the KTM Commuter incident, they sort of felt the need to buck up. After, I repeat. After.

And right after I happily (free stuff, always happy) took my goodie bag, a buncha students from a local university decided to hand out survey forms to me to fill in. Some of the questions (to rate between strongly agree to strongly disagree) include:

1) KTMB staff are
a) Friendly
b) Courteous
c) Knowledgeable
d) Helpful

I mean, yesterday they were pretty much friendly, courteous etc... but please. I may not have the best memory around but kuih raya and a pack of soya bean milk will not help me to forget the times when I was not given good service!!!

And don't even get me started on the toilets! Because one of the questions asked about the cleanliness of the toilet. Very brave, no? Brownie points for confidence! :D


Anyways, let's focus on the berths,
So it was a pretty pleasant experience. The bed was not so bad. The sheets were clean. There were enough space. Though a person taller than 6 feet will want to consider the first class berths. My feet were almost touching the wall. I couldn't really kick around. Anyways, I didn't want to move too much because it was cold! They didn't include a blankey... only the extra sheet on top. So I had to pull the curtains to stop the cold air from reaching me but that would leave me in the dark so I couldn't read my books.

So I went to sleep.

The whole train was pretty silent when everyone has gone to sleep.


Don't worry. The KTM staff will go around and wake people up when they have arrived at their station. I had to resist my usual grouch and whine when woken up unexpectedly (especially by mom). At least they make sure you don't miss your stop. Good ya? OK, have to give some points here.

So, so Red

Last Friday night, I arrived in Kluang at about 11.10pm. I was tired and in a daze but I was having a nice supper with my family. While eating and gossiping and feeling like I was high, my phone suddenly buzzed. I received a message from my one of my ex-classmates. Looked serious to me so I read it twice.


"I hv a question.. If u focus on studying hard, getting gud grades, getting gud job & in the end, still find urself unsuccessful. Would u tell ur child 2 do the same?"

I scrolled down further to look for an answer in the SMS. I read it again and realised that it was not an inspirational forwarded SMS.

This got me thinking.


What year is it?! Am I thirty already??


Oh. Still 22 years old and counting. Phew. I didn't just miss out the estimated 8 years of my life.


I replied, "Are you drunk or are you on drugs?"

This is not like him at all. He is not the kind who would be drunk or be on drugs which added to my confusion.


"Ha2. I'm still sober. ;) jz curious ;)"

Oh. Phew.

At this point, I figured that he was doing a minor research after some soul searching and probably will blog about it. hmm. Must find out if he has a blog.

I replied, "How many ppl did u ask? Anyways, tell your child to do his best and follow his dreams :)"

Now I wonder if he already has a child. How old are we again? 22 right??


"Um, 10? Jz sum questions from my observations..;). sum even replied dunno how to answer.. ;) cheers and keep in touch.. ;)"

He kept on winking ;) so I felt compelled to ask:

"Is your girlfriend pregnant?"


To which he denied.


Anyways, I did my own little "survey" recently too. I randomly asked a few people (of different age, ideas, profession, tastes etc) if I should colour my hair blond. I just felt doing something to my hair.


Almost everyone said NO, BAD IDEA or JUST GO BROWN.

Only Murni, true to her Go For It nature, said WAH! YES!


Anyways, since majority said no to blond, I decided on Red. :) it is pretty harmless. I've seen people colouring red. You've probably seen it too. It is like red, maybe not, maybe is, only visible under bright light. OK-lah. Not too crazy right.


I went to this hair salon in Kluang which I go to if I ever go to one in Kluang called Shann. The guy who did my hair was this young dude with a patch on top of his head coloured white and the middle of the patch in bright yellow. Try imagining an egg prepared sunny-side up. But it is rather interesting to me. Like a little Canary has just decided to nest on top of this head. But still cute.

Canary boy (I say boy because I think he is very young. Prob 20 only) was very efficient and quick. Like an Italian waiter. Or like that crustacean in Finding Nemo that does the cleaning in the fish tank. Like, now you see, now you don't. I picked a colour that was not too obvious because it was my first time and chose to do highlights instead and he quickly set to work without further a do. I wanted to tell him to slow down even.

Anyways, my hair turned out really, really RED.


This photo is like a muted version. The real colour is unbelievably RED. I guess it is because my hair is very fine that it turned out redder than I have expected. Well, I actually liked it. Just worried about whether it will match my face, my personality and most importantly, because we were going to have a family steamboat dinner in my house, what will grammy say, what will aunties and uncles say, what will mom and dad say. oh-oh. I think I just did a boo-boo.


Anyways, there were also concerns about what my boss will say. My colleauges, whom I SMS-ed immediately after, said, "Don't worry lah."


The results was not like my previous brown highlights done at Toni & Guys. This is the difference between a RM100 highlight job compared to a supposed RM300 highlight job. T&G actually painstakingly chose tiny tiny bundle of hair to colour and even used different shades and took me 3-4 hours. But here, of course, they don't do it that way. I have bigger streaks which might look like patches if not careful. Now, I'm not sure if I should feel terrible or not. But I decided to like it.


Canary Boy gave a pretty good service and even did a very good job with the hair-wash. I mean, next time you go for a hair-wash, get a guy. Because they are stronger and give better massages and they don't (usually) have those dangerous nails scratching your scalp.

So I decided to like it. See how much a difference good service do to your organization? If the service is good, people are more likely to overlook the little glitches here and the little un-met expectations there. But if the service is bad, people will have loads to say to loads of people. Like this post.



On another note, I had durians!!

It has been a looong time.

My dad executing his skills.

Sticking to traditions, we sat/squat on the floor to eat durians.
I prefer the yellow-fleshed ones!

Me eating with a spoon and tiny bowl.

Benefits of eating with a spoon includes:

1) no smell on hands (which could last for days)
2) no transfer of germs from hands to durians to stomach
3) if the phone rings, I still can go pick up
4) no wastage of durian which normally will stick to all fingers

:D

It's Saturday again!

It has been a week and it felt like only 3 days have past. I have not even finished the chocolates from my grocery shopping last Saturday (que for applause). I also have not made much progress on my Big D (que for boo).

Time flies. That's good, I think. I mean, I do want to be young and carefree (and clueless?) forever but I'm happy that time moves so quickly. For now, that is. You won't hear me say this when I'm, like, 30 odd (*shudder*). OK, OK. Hold your imagination. Actually, I think you won't hear me say that I'm happy that time flies by next week.

Because I'm taking a few days off! Wheee!

Of course, primarily to join my cousin in celebration of her marriage in Malacca and secondarily, I can finally go back to Kluang and be the little clueless youngest in the family again! Even for a few days, I'm looking forward to it already. Also, I can finally see my eldest sister again after one year. Thinking about it is so blissful. No laundry. No dishes. No commuters. No long walks. Cleaner air. No staring at computers. No extremely early mornings. Cheap hairdressing. Unlimited chocolates. Food. Food. Food. Everyone will be asking me, "What would you like to eat today?" It usually starts with my second sister waking me up and asking me what I want for breakfast. Hohoho. "Daddy, I wanna go eat bak kut teh. Now, now." "Mummy, I want banana fritters. I prefer if they were crispy." Then, I will munch while I read magazines and books, listening to my family exchange stories and latest goss. All without caring about time.


These are times when I wish time will stand still for a bit.

I Love You, Mommy

-Mother's Day 13 May 2007-
Breakfast with mommy, daddy and sis Lisa @ Kluang Station before I left for KL

I love my mommy. And my mommy loves me. She has given me so much and done so much for me... including chasing lizards out of the way when they block my way to the toilet. And making excuses for me when my dad tries to make us go climb Gunung Lambak at 6.30 am in the morning. And she can really sew! And she can crochet. And she can cook really wicked food. And she bakes! And she regularly updates me on the world news. And on the latest news in and about home. And she takes my nonsense without questions. Even crocheting 2 sets of clothes for my little stuffed tiger, Mushroom.

Seriously, my mom is the best mom in the world!

pooh @ Kluang

Back in sunny Malaysia where technology has a meaning...

-(come on lah... together-gether lah) "C'est bizarre..."-

ahpooh has fit in perfectly well with my other pillows and bolsters and pigs. A conversation with Jiawei just after I touched down went like this:

Me: Look, my new bear!
Jw: Nice fur.
Me: I've already given him a name! It's ahpooh(just to add a dash of cheena).
Jw: Oh really?
Me: I named him on top of Eiffel Tower because I felt like it.
Jw: OK. Winnie the pooh. But his name is Winnie! Is it a male or female?
Me: No... His friends call him Pooh! Wait, Christopher calls him Pooh too! Anyways, mine is male.
Jw: No. They call him Winnie... That's his name ma.
Me: Then it would sound weird. "Winnie, come here!" Noooo. It's Pooh!

And the debate continues. I brought ahpooh back to Kluang for a short break. Thank goodness I have a book to refer to which I dug up from amongst the Agatha Christies (since I have nothing to do in very sunny ol' Kluang)...

-"For my little sister who still talks to her toys, Happy 15th Birthday!"-

My thoughtful eldest sister, Susan, got me this book for my 15th birthday. OK, not your average gifts for 15 year olds. Anyways, proof that he is called Pooh:

-Classic-

On the back of the book featured a conversation between Pooh and Christopher Robin.

"Pooh, promise you won't forget about me, ever. Not even when I'm a hundred." Pooh thought for a little. "How old shall I be then?" "Ninety-nine." Pooh nodded. "I promise," he said.
I'm still deciding what my conversation with ahpooh will be like.

Option A:
"How old shall I be then?"
"Seventy-eight."
Pooh thought for a little. "That's easier," he concluded.

Option B:
"Iz der.. howl olde sharl I be zhen?"
"Soixante dix-huit"
"Bizarre!"

Option C
"The honey here tastes weird"
"Of course! It has sugar syrup added."
"Oh, bother!"

Anyways, I just think Kluang is too hot at the moment. Nonetheless, I brought my new friend out to the garden to get some air.

-Bunga Raya+ahpooh-

-What I get when I wake up early-

-A pineapple, seriously-

No, seriously, there really is a pineapple growing in my garden! We get to eat it after what seems like years(actually 6 months). I ate it once and it is superbly sweet and fragrant. Can't wait to harvest this one. heehee. There are also sugarcane at the back but they don't look too pretty.

-The mother nature du jardin a.k.a Mom-

Mom likes it when I say her thumbs are the greenest around. I think gardening is very therapeutic for mom and occasionally, dad. "Your dad doesn't always clean up the grass he cuts!" says mom occasionally.

-Me!-

OK. Anyways, I'm really bored. I'll probably feature what I eat in Kluang next (not what I do because one doesn't do much in Kluang other than climb Gunung Lambak). I wish there was a One Utama, Cineleisure and Sunway Lagoon Themepark here.