Dear MH370

Dear MH370.

You cease to exist in an air of mystery. After 17 days, we finally heard a concrete news about your fate. But that news also awaits further development.

On Monday night as me and the family were dining at a mamak restaurant, some friends on whatsapp said that there will be a press conference (pc) at 10 pm on TV1. We were just about to get up when I caught the pc on RTM Mobile. After sending my Bro In Law home, I asked hubs to race to the office to upload the pc on Facebook so the public can watch it.

The mamak restaurant was showing soccer highlights when the pc aired, so I was sure not many people were aware of it. At 10 pm, with adrenaline pumping I rushed to the office while my husband and son waited in the car.

My heart was beating hard, I felt sad but not as sad as the families and friends of the passengers and crews of MH370. I could only imagine what they felt when they first receive this news. I could only emphatize with them.

I was almost running to my office. The security officer in charge looked at me like i was barging on them like a bull.

As the press conference was short, like less than 4 minutes I was done in 15 minutes. I shared the link on Facebook and with my media social counterparts. After all was settled I went home.

The press conference. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrkYDtJ9phY

The press conference was short. Maybe the Prime Minister does not want to add more hurt to the families for the moment.

They said they will explain in the next press conference.

Husband drove us home with son watching Ultraman on Youtube. A baby who is oblivious to major national news. This event will be like a fragment of history in his just starting life.

I was thankful to husband for sending me to the office after a long day at work. I told him, I was very thankful that he understands my work and need to things like that.

When we got home, the press conference was blasted on all television channels. So we listened on to the reporter's elaboration this time. Some replayed the pc with Malay language translation as it was read by the Prime Minister in English.

Dear MH370

This morning all the radio stations carried on with the sombre air. My husband said, his friend commented that one radio station seem to air sad songs all morning.

In my heart, I felt a mix of emotions. I feel ok that I can go to work today and get to share news or contents about you that was aired, with people in the social media realm. Some people are more in tune with media social rather than mainstream media.

But..... I also feel sad that your fate is yet to be determined. Your loved ones are in a mix of emotions I guess.

As humans we will never knew when or where we will die. But to disappear into nothingness is a fear which I can never imagine.

Your families need to know where you all are, hope Allah will reveal your location as soon as possible.

My friends have been discussing this event since day one. One being a pilot even shared some knowledge he had about planes and such. Others are speculating based on evidence they think are credible. But in the end I only listen to the authentic media.

Dear MH370

Your mystery has given us humans all kinds of feelings. Most particularly how people act during a world event like this. i hope you will return to us soon. We miss you.

Flower Crown

So I was browsing for diy projects for the past 3 weeks and noticed flower crowns /   mahkota bunga. Some of the craftsters I found were inspired by Lana Del Ray's floral crown in the Born To Die music video.

Lana Del Ray

I'll show one of my finished flower crown when I make one.

You need more than RM1 now

When I was 4 years old I remember going to my house's grocery shop, which was a stone's throw away, to buy shredded coconut flesh (kelapa parut). A lot of Malay traditional delicacies (kuih) uses coconut flesh so I'd be buying coconuts almost every week back then. I remember one day skipping to the shop happily and suddenly I fell down, and my coins went out of my pocket and fell everywhere. I scoured everywhere for each coin and from that incident I remembered that shredded coconut used to cost 40 cents in 1986.

In 1991, when my sister entered primary school I was 9 years old and she told me her class mate has a RM1 daily allowance. I thought that was a huge amount considering that I was allocated 60 cents at that time. If we total that up, RM22 a month compared to RM13.20 has a huge difference between them. Her father must have earned more than RM1500 I think.

Since then RM1 has not just seen a lot of face lifts in its physical features, its value also continues to decrease. Imagine in 1999 a dad earns RM1000 which includes his over time claims while in 2013 the minimum wage of workers is RM900. Your RM1 today can't even buy a packet of drink. I usually spend RM1.80 to RM4 for my son if he wants something from the shop (usually 7 eleven where I get my monthly magazines). Wow, that rounds up to RM120 a month. If I have 4 children, I'll be spending RM500 on packet drinks and packed breads. Maybe I should start packing them lunch from now on.

Anyway, the last time I paid for something costing RM1 was when I took a bus to a location which can be accessed by foot in 15 minutes. As for food, RM1 can buy me 5 pieces of jemput-jemput, you know the mix of flour-onion-water-anchovy fried food which costs 10 cents each back in 1994.

I wonder what RM1 will be in vakue come 2020. I'll be 38 years old by then and if God permits will have 3 children, I don't think my children will be bringing RM1 only during that time. They need more than RM1 for sure.

No water means no dishes and no laundries

I thought that the water supply would be enough for us 3, especially as we didn't do laundry at home since Monday last week and we only bathed and used the toilet at night. No cooking too. We all just ate outside or order take aways but this morning there is virtually no water in my tank. I checked the water supply schedule and discovered that we should have water on Wednesday and Friday but... none. 

Luckily we had about a pail of water between me and my husband while I asked my son's baby sitter to bathe him this morning. Sighhh. If there is no water this weekend, how do we survive then? Bathe and do all our deeds at the office? 

I bathed a bit and brushed my teeth this morning because I work in an air conditioned office so I guess body odour won't be a problem. I planned to take a bath during lunch hour but this MH370 report kept me occupied and I think I'll take a bath in a bit later. Haha I smell ok in air cond so far, since no one said anything.

We dined at Old Town a few nights ago. I ordered roti canai (wheat bread which is hand tossed and ten fried on a flat pan) with honey+lemon juice. The waiter served them in plastic containers and presented to us while saying "no water so we brought it in these'.

So no water means more disposable containers being used. Heck, I also didn't wash my dishes for two days so far but I made sure there's no water in the bowls and cups. There's the threat of dengue fever these days. 

Two nights ago my husband ate a cup of instant noodles. I asked him, why he did not eat the ones in the packets. He said "no need to wash dishes ma."

Ok. That sounds logic for now.

Getting to know Japan through its fridge magnets

My husband went to Japan for a media trip recently. He bought a whole lotta fridge magnets costing between 100 and 350 yens (RM3.20 to RM11.20) for family and friends.

I kept this for myself. So cute.

Here's some of them.

 Here are a bunch of the same ones.

 It features a demure japanese woman in a kimono and traditional headdress.

A famous scene in Japan I reckon. 

I think that is Mount Fuji. 

A ninja on a shuriken.

Japanese kimono are beautiful but they say one costs a lot.

So a fridge magnet suffices as a souvenier I guess.

Japan fan. 

 Where are they heading to?

 This one is awesomeness. 

 Sumo!

 Mountain.

 A traditional building.

Is this mount Fuji?

Cute.

My husband said he just grabbed and paid for the fridge magnets. I think he already gave them all to his friends while I took some as gifts to my close peeps. It's a nice thing to bu these fridge magnets I see. If the fridge magnets are adorned with local elements rather than just words or generic themes like fish or beaches, they are interesting. I keep all my fridge magnets on the fridge door of course. I learned a bit more about Japan through their fridge magnets. 

My son's favourite fridge magnet is one from London gifted by my boss. It has a double decker bus and also Big Ben the clock tower on it. He often asks us (in his own pelat way) to unstuck it and pass it to him. He will take it and sit down while admiring the details on it. 

Hmm

I am doing number 7 to 10 the day after tomorrow. Today no idea ehehhe.

Anyway I feel bad today. Ok, somedays I can be such a biatch, some days I am angellike - but since everyday I am a mother and raising a human being, I have to be a bit of both while trying to lean on the angelic side :P.

So I am constantly conflicted... like forever conflicted. Aduhailaaa.

10 weird / absurd elements I saw in local drama - No 4 to 6

Number 4

Malay families are often depicted mingling while eating, whether it's breakfast, lunch, tea time or dinner. Of course we all Malaysians love makan luar, especially if it's under the skies on a clear day but... usually the scene during eating also involves discussion of important family events. I remember learning about basic eating ethics where we should only discuss really happy or tame subjects as to not disturb the eating atmosphere. But these people in drama they like to quarrel over food, so not good. Furthermore I think if one is to hold a grudge over someone, basically he who won't be eating at all with that hated face being i your face, right?

By the way I often found myself lazing around the TV when we are not doing anything mind boggling. Mothers would be lying on the floor with a huge pillow under her head. The  fathers would be sitting on his favourite chairs while the daughters or sons, would either be sitting entertaining the baby or lounging on the 3 seater sofa. Basically everyone is lying flat at day's end. I rarely see this normal event being depicted on TV. Maybe we all look a little lazy, but it sure feels good not having to fight the pull of gravity by lying on the floor completely flat.

What seems real in Malay drama are women going shopping while gossiping, yep I do that. Well, we are faraway from people we gossip about and we are doing things we love to death so it is very real.


Number 5

Students do basically everything except study. Students all over the drama world leads life like exams are non existent, and only their crushes and social life matters. 

Students who studied overseas have a bad grasp of English even after spending 4-7 years there. They don't need to have an accent but they should have a good command of that language.


Number 6

No one goes to the toilet. Except it it's a comedy or horror story. People often go to the toilet right after they got home, exiting a movie theater or at anytime. I guess characters in drama would just waste minutes of a storyline kot.

I think everybody knows people in the screen do not go to a toilet. In comedies, people go to the toilet because there's going to be toilet humour like the sound of farting like bombs following diarrhea or that after answering nature calls, you suddenly realize that there's mp water or toilet paper. While in horror movies, toilet is where you get killed, raped or assaulted.


I hope I can finish this by the next post.
Bye.

10 weird / absurd elements I saw in local drama - No 3

Number 3

A pious virgin nurse comes to a wealthy family's home to work as the private nurse of the matriarch. She takes great care to cover her aurat, only showing her face and her hands to males of her employees family. So one day, the matriarch's playboy grandson comes home for a visit. He bursts into the bedroom where the matriarch and nurse were chatting, the nurse upon seeing the grandson quickly hides because her hair was uncovered. She did not expect the grandson to come home that day.

After two accidental encounters where the grandson saw the nurse's hair and shy demeanour, he was taken by her. So one day he came home drunk and went into her bed and raped her. She ran away immediately following the incident.

The grandson's father who was the matriarch's only son, asked his son to marry the nurse because he thought his son will change his playboy ways by marrying the gentle, pious nurse he just deflowered. What???

The father promised the son that if he marries the nurse and redeem his god forbidden act, he will transfer half of their company's share to his son. Whaaaat???

The father and his wife went to meet the nurse's parents to propose for the playboy grandson. He explains that the playboy grandson's mother has long died and he was so sad that he sent his son overseas for studies since the son was a teenager. He told the nurse's parent's that he gave his son all worldly things like education and luxuries but failed to teach him the religious and moral parts. So he failed as he father. But he hopes that the son will change by marrying such a good person as the nurse.

So, the rich parents basically ask the nurse, the victim to forgive the rapist and show him the path to righteousness while completely ignoring her trauma of being raped by a complete stranger. Surprisingly the pious nurses's parents approves of the rich people's plans while completely subjecting themselves to the rich people's games. Whatt?

The nurse should just throw the playboy grandson to jail and find someone else honourable enough to respect her as a person.