I never thought that I would say this but life is so peaceful without a mobile phone !
Well I do have a mobile phone but I have to use a local SIM card and the network sucks, so hardly anyone calls and practically no one texts. My Malaysian number is useless here, so that phone is buried under some clothes in my suitcase. The phone that I have now, sometimes I forget where I even put it. I do miss getting calls and messages from *important* people but most of the time I get unnecessary ones anyway - the ones that when I see their caller ID, I go "Shit!Leave me alone!"- but they're also the calls I have to answer. On top of that I used to have to constantly check if anyone had called or left a message - it was like a compulsive obsessive addiction that I had, to check my mobile phone every two minutes or so. I was like an addict going through the withdrawal syndrom the first few days without a proper phone line, but now I'm at peace.
Life is also upsidedown right now cause everyone drives on the 'wrong' side of the road! I still can't figure out which way to look when I cross the road so I just look both ways. The weirdest thing about driving on the wrong side for me is making U-Turns! It's actually not any weirder than all the other 'wrong' side driving like the gear box is on the right and the indicators and wiper sticks are mixed up but the 'wrong' side U-Turn just emphasizes how 'wrong' the driving is! Now, does that make sense? Probably not :)
Oh and how I miss Malaysian dining! It's not just the food - the food is only part of it. It's the whole package of driving out at odd hours to an open air mamak stall and having roti kosong or maggi goreng (with rats running near the drain or it starts to rain and you have to carry all your food into the shop).. oh yummy ! I'm not complaining about the food here because it's good Western and local food, but a Malaysian will always be a Malaysian. When people here ask me about Malaysia, the first thing I tell them about is the food. And they give me a funny look and say, "That much food, but you're not fat". And I tell them it's the beauty of Malaysian food :)
By : Anya
Wednesday 30 April 2008
Friday 25 April 2008
And the weekend starts...
Born to party, forced to work. That's how I would describe the people I've met in the Caribbeans so far. They work hard and party harder.
All week we were working hard on the project, putting in long hours at the office. Customer meetings, presentations, documentations, designs, budget, sales...so yesterday when everyone was ready to leave for the hotel around 630P.M. I was suprised but relieved at the same time. I was looking forward to a delicious, long hot shower and than just to curl up in the king sized bed under the covers and watch whatever's on TV. It's been so long since I've done that. So there I was, in bed, absolutely comfortable in my room with the remote control, bottle of water and phone within reach when the phone rang. The guys were calling me downstairs to the bar for a drink. I tried my best to decline but my laziness was no match to their power of persuassion. So in the end I agreed - just one drink.
So I dragged myself out of bed, changed into something decent and went downstairs. And so I discovered, weekends in the Caribbeans starts on a Thursday night :) My one drink became three and I had the most fun since I've arrived.
Today's Friday and all the guys came down late for breakfast, nursing a hangover. Among the recommendations for curing hangover was coffee and tabasco sauce. Even the pace of work in the office has dramatically slowed down. Well that suits me just fine, I already feel it's the weekend! :) So Lilo, I'm not jealous that your Saturday comes before mine;)
By : Anya
All week we were working hard on the project, putting in long hours at the office. Customer meetings, presentations, documentations, designs, budget, sales...so yesterday when everyone was ready to leave for the hotel around 630P.M. I was suprised but relieved at the same time. I was looking forward to a delicious, long hot shower and than just to curl up in the king sized bed under the covers and watch whatever's on TV. It's been so long since I've done that. So there I was, in bed, absolutely comfortable in my room with the remote control, bottle of water and phone within reach when the phone rang. The guys were calling me downstairs to the bar for a drink. I tried my best to decline but my laziness was no match to their power of persuassion. So in the end I agreed - just one drink.
So I dragged myself out of bed, changed into something decent and went downstairs. And so I discovered, weekends in the Caribbeans starts on a Thursday night :) My one drink became three and I had the most fun since I've arrived.
Today's Friday and all the guys came down late for breakfast, nursing a hangover. Among the recommendations for curing hangover was coffee and tabasco sauce. Even the pace of work in the office has dramatically slowed down. Well that suits me just fine, I already feel it's the weekend! :) So Lilo, I'm not jealous that your Saturday comes before mine;)
By : Anya
Monday 21 April 2008
This is a tribute ....
.... to all the good samaritans and angels I met in this past week.
I know they may never know I've written this, but I just felt that they deserved a more concrete expression of my gratitute than just mere 'thank you's' and 'muchas gracias'.
In Kingston, I met a couple of fabulous Jamaicans and a group of Malaysians. One of the Jamaicans took me out for a real Jamaican dinner (jerk chicken - similar to ayam bakar and Jamaican beer). It was so much more better than fine dining because this was the real deal and I had a wonderful time. It didn't hurt that he owned a BMW ;) and his family owns a yatch ;) And the Malaysians, it was just sheer pleasure speaking BM to them. They invited me over to their house for a home cooked dinner but because of my schedule I had to pass. But I promised I would see them again when I returned to Kingston next month. Although I was thousands of miles away from home and everything that I'm familiar with, I actually felt very comfortable in Kingston.
Then, during the weekend, I traveled to Honduras. My flight route was just crazy! Kingston - Montego Bay - Grand Cayman - Havana (Over Night) - San Jose - Honduras.
My flight departed late from Montego Bay and I arrived in Grand Cayman with barely enough time to go through immigration, pick up my luggage, run over to check in, check in again, immigration and security check again. I had to go to the front of every long line (the whole airport was infested with tourists :P) and give my most pleading look and ask the person if I could cut queue because I had to catch the next flight. Even though some were more reluctant than others, thank God for all these people who let me go through all this checkpoints! I made it just in time to board the flight to Havana. Phheewwww !
Once I landed in Havana, suddenly I really felt like a foreigner because everyone was speaking Spanish. But the immigration and airport officers were so helpful. They would come up to me and tell me which forms to fill (one of the forms asked for "date of bird" ;) ) and where to go. Although people were generally kind and helpful, I didn't like the atmosphere in the airport. There were so many security checks to get to the exit and they had dogs running around sniffing every bag. I may have been imagining but it just felt a bit unsafe. Once I got out of the airport, my taxi was waiting for me and we headed straight to the hotel. The hotel wasn't very nice but I slept most of the time till morning.
Morning came and I went down to the lobby at 5.15am to wait for my taxi to the airport. I waited..and waited... and waited ... but my taxi never arrived. I had to take a taxi myself to the airport but I had absolutely no Cuban currency ( didn't think of changing because I was only in transit). Anyway the hotel called another taxi for me and said I could pay in USD. The taxi driver was a jovial sort of guy but I was feel very apprehensive all the way to the airport (it was dark and I was a girl traveling alone - needs no further explanation). Once I got there, the driver said I had to pay him in Cuban currency. I have him a horrified and pleading look and told him I didn't change any money and the hotel said I could pay in USD. Thank God he didn't make a fuss. So I paid him (USD30 :P sob ~~ sob ~~) and was on time for check in and immigration.
Hours later, I've arrived in San Jose, Costa Rica. Much to my horror my phone could not roam in Costa Rica. I was so worried that my mother will worry on why I didn't let her know I've arrived. So I bought a calling card for USD10 to use the public phone. But because the instructions were in Spanish I had no idea how to use it. A very nice man helped me through the steps and left before I could thank him. But I don't know why, I dialed my boyfriend's number. And silly me, the moment I heard his voice I started crying. I was not homesick until that moment but I guess being in so many strange places and having to figure out things when everyone speaks a different language - his voice just felt like home. So anyway, I called him and told him I'm ok but I probably can't use my phone for a few days till I get a local SIM Card and to tell my mother all this.
Final destination, Tegucigalpa, Honduras. I made it out without any trouble, only to realise there was no one to fetch me. The airport was new but the town was poor and run down and I didn't dare attempt taking a taxi by myself to the hotel. So here I was in a strange land - with no phone line, no money and not knowing a word of what people were speaking. I went over to the information counter to ask how I could use the public phone, I wanted to call the secretary who had arranged my hotel and tranport. Suddenly a lady came up to me and asked if she could help so I told her my problem. And she tells me that she owns a shop named Ideas upstairs and I should go up and find a girl named Erica and tell her Ana sent her and that I could use her phone. Ana said it's not safe for me to take a taxi on my own and very difficult to call using the public phone. I found Erica upstairs, withdrew some money to top-up her pre-paid card and used her phone to call the secretary who informed me that there was a mix-up with the transport and she would make sure someone came to pick me up. I will be eternally grateful to Ana and Erica, that they were kind enough to help a total stranger.
So I've finally arrived at my hotel room ( the guys from Ericsson came to rescue me from the airport). I haven't even unpacked but I felt I just had to write this down. It was a very tough week but I also realised how blessed I am to have people help me all along the way.
Now I'm going to watch Las Vegas in Spanish ;)
Tired but safe : Anya
I know they may never know I've written this, but I just felt that they deserved a more concrete expression of my gratitute than just mere 'thank you's' and 'muchas gracias'.
In Kingston, I met a couple of fabulous Jamaicans and a group of Malaysians. One of the Jamaicans took me out for a real Jamaican dinner (jerk chicken - similar to ayam bakar and Jamaican beer). It was so much more better than fine dining because this was the real deal and I had a wonderful time. It didn't hurt that he owned a BMW ;) and his family owns a yatch ;) And the Malaysians, it was just sheer pleasure speaking BM to them. They invited me over to their house for a home cooked dinner but because of my schedule I had to pass. But I promised I would see them again when I returned to Kingston next month. Although I was thousands of miles away from home and everything that I'm familiar with, I actually felt very comfortable in Kingston.
Then, during the weekend, I traveled to Honduras. My flight route was just crazy! Kingston - Montego Bay - Grand Cayman - Havana (Over Night) - San Jose - Honduras.
My flight departed late from Montego Bay and I arrived in Grand Cayman with barely enough time to go through immigration, pick up my luggage, run over to check in, check in again, immigration and security check again. I had to go to the front of every long line (the whole airport was infested with tourists :P) and give my most pleading look and ask the person if I could cut queue because I had to catch the next flight. Even though some were more reluctant than others, thank God for all these people who let me go through all this checkpoints! I made it just in time to board the flight to Havana. Phheewwww !
Once I landed in Havana, suddenly I really felt like a foreigner because everyone was speaking Spanish. But the immigration and airport officers were so helpful. They would come up to me and tell me which forms to fill (one of the forms asked for "date of bird" ;) ) and where to go. Although people were generally kind and helpful, I didn't like the atmosphere in the airport. There were so many security checks to get to the exit and they had dogs running around sniffing every bag. I may have been imagining but it just felt a bit unsafe. Once I got out of the airport, my taxi was waiting for me and we headed straight to the hotel. The hotel wasn't very nice but I slept most of the time till morning.
Morning came and I went down to the lobby at 5.15am to wait for my taxi to the airport. I waited..and waited... and waited ... but my taxi never arrived. I had to take a taxi myself to the airport but I had absolutely no Cuban currency ( didn't think of changing because I was only in transit). Anyway the hotel called another taxi for me and said I could pay in USD. The taxi driver was a jovial sort of guy but I was feel very apprehensive all the way to the airport (it was dark and I was a girl traveling alone - needs no further explanation). Once I got there, the driver said I had to pay him in Cuban currency. I have him a horrified and pleading look and told him I didn't change any money and the hotel said I could pay in USD. Thank God he didn't make a fuss. So I paid him (USD30 :P sob ~~ sob ~~) and was on time for check in and immigration.
Hours later, I've arrived in San Jose, Costa Rica. Much to my horror my phone could not roam in Costa Rica. I was so worried that my mother will worry on why I didn't let her know I've arrived. So I bought a calling card for USD10 to use the public phone. But because the instructions were in Spanish I had no idea how to use it. A very nice man helped me through the steps and left before I could thank him. But I don't know why, I dialed my boyfriend's number. And silly me, the moment I heard his voice I started crying. I was not homesick until that moment but I guess being in so many strange places and having to figure out things when everyone speaks a different language - his voice just felt like home. So anyway, I called him and told him I'm ok but I probably can't use my phone for a few days till I get a local SIM Card and to tell my mother all this.
Final destination, Tegucigalpa, Honduras. I made it out without any trouble, only to realise there was no one to fetch me. The airport was new but the town was poor and run down and I didn't dare attempt taking a taxi by myself to the hotel. So here I was in a strange land - with no phone line, no money and not knowing a word of what people were speaking. I went over to the information counter to ask how I could use the public phone, I wanted to call the secretary who had arranged my hotel and tranport. Suddenly a lady came up to me and asked if she could help so I told her my problem. And she tells me that she owns a shop named Ideas upstairs and I should go up and find a girl named Erica and tell her Ana sent her and that I could use her phone. Ana said it's not safe for me to take a taxi on my own and very difficult to call using the public phone. I found Erica upstairs, withdrew some money to top-up her pre-paid card and used her phone to call the secretary who informed me that there was a mix-up with the transport and she would make sure someone came to pick me up. I will be eternally grateful to Ana and Erica, that they were kind enough to help a total stranger.
So I've finally arrived at my hotel room ( the guys from Ericsson came to rescue me from the airport). I haven't even unpacked but I felt I just had to write this down. It was a very tough week but I also realised how blessed I am to have people help me all along the way.
Now I'm going to watch Las Vegas in Spanish ;)
Tired but safe : Anya
Friday 18 April 2008
The Journey to the Caribbeans
The clock on my laptop says 18 April 2008, 12:09 AM. The clock on my mobile phone reads 17 April 2008, 11:09 AM. I honestly feel like I'm working in the office in the middle of the night when it's actually a bright shinning day in Jamaica!
It's been a long, looooong journey to get here but I've actually enjoyed every minute of it!
[Note to self : check feet for more tahi lalats tonight]
In the past 48 hours, I've flown accross half the globe. Experienced the thunderstorms of Malaysia, the cold winds of early spring in London and the Caribbean sunshine in Jamaica. But let me start from the begining - my first 13 hours flight from KL to London.
KL to London Flight
I was in a rush so I forgot to make sure I got an aisle seat for the flight (easier to go to the lavatory and walk about for a stretch). So I ended up with a window seat beside a couple with a baby and the first thing that I thought was, "Oh Crap, I'm gonna suffer through the flight with the baby screaming in my ears". But as it turned out, the baby was one of those rare kinds that slept through most of the flight and when he did wake up, was very adorable. And the window seat was a blessing in disguise because the skies were clear throughout the journey and I could see the landscape changing from Kuala Lumpur right up to London. When we flew over Afghanistan, the view of the mountain range literally took my breath away! It seemed like the mountains stretched out to the ends of the earth, as far as my eyes could see and their peaks were covered with snow. (My first look at snow). The striking contrast of the dark brown earth of the mountain agaisnt the white snow, for miles accross the earth is definately one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.
1 Night Stay in London
My Uncle picked me from the airport and we set off to his house which is about an hour away from Heathrow. I could hardly pay attention to what my Uncle was saying because I was too busy looking out the window at the scenery passing by. Oh I just love London. I grew up with Enid Blyton stories and later, novels, mostly English romances and classics and even the Shopoholic series. So UK has been a part of me for so long and to actually be there - I just wished I could stay longer but sadly I couldn't. Because : a. I'm broke and b. I had to catch the flight to Jamaica the next day.
London to Jamaica Flight
My first preview to Jamaican culture because the plane was full of them. And I reliased they're very expressive people. They call everyone either "Darling" or "Love" or "Lovey" or "Dear". Like when the lady behind me accidently bumped into me, she appologized saying "Oh, sorry Love". And when the pilot executed an execellent landing, the whole plane burst into spontaneously clapping and cheering. I found it so cool! I mean, in Malaysia, if the pilot lands badly, we'll all start complaining and if he does a good landing - so what, that's his job.
I haven't had a chance to explore the country yet but what I've seen so far is good. A hilly island town with houses all over the hill sides. To me, it's like if Kundasang was beside the sea. I haven't ate any of their local food yet unless I count this morning's breakfast at the hotel - weird bread, weird scrambled eggs, weird sausage and weird food. I hope my lunch will taste better than my breakfast!
So that's a summary of my journey so far. The pics will come soon :)
By : Anya
It's been a long, looooong journey to get here but I've actually enjoyed every minute of it!
[Note to self : check feet for more tahi lalats tonight]
In the past 48 hours, I've flown accross half the globe. Experienced the thunderstorms of Malaysia, the cold winds of early spring in London and the Caribbean sunshine in Jamaica. But let me start from the begining - my first 13 hours flight from KL to London.
KL to London Flight
I was in a rush so I forgot to make sure I got an aisle seat for the flight (easier to go to the lavatory and walk about for a stretch). So I ended up with a window seat beside a couple with a baby and the first thing that I thought was, "Oh Crap, I'm gonna suffer through the flight with the baby screaming in my ears". But as it turned out, the baby was one of those rare kinds that slept through most of the flight and when he did wake up, was very adorable. And the window seat was a blessing in disguise because the skies were clear throughout the journey and I could see the landscape changing from Kuala Lumpur right up to London. When we flew over Afghanistan, the view of the mountain range literally took my breath away! It seemed like the mountains stretched out to the ends of the earth, as far as my eyes could see and their peaks were covered with snow. (My first look at snow). The striking contrast of the dark brown earth of the mountain agaisnt the white snow, for miles accross the earth is definately one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.
1 Night Stay in London
My Uncle picked me from the airport and we set off to his house which is about an hour away from Heathrow. I could hardly pay attention to what my Uncle was saying because I was too busy looking out the window at the scenery passing by. Oh I just love London. I grew up with Enid Blyton stories and later, novels, mostly English romances and classics and even the Shopoholic series. So UK has been a part of me for so long and to actually be there - I just wished I could stay longer but sadly I couldn't. Because : a. I'm broke and b. I had to catch the flight to Jamaica the next day.
London to Jamaica Flight
My first preview to Jamaican culture because the plane was full of them. And I reliased they're very expressive people. They call everyone either "Darling" or "Love" or "Lovey" or "Dear". Like when the lady behind me accidently bumped into me, she appologized saying "Oh, sorry Love". And when the pilot executed an execellent landing, the whole plane burst into spontaneously clapping and cheering. I found it so cool! I mean, in Malaysia, if the pilot lands badly, we'll all start complaining and if he does a good landing - so what, that's his job.
I haven't had a chance to explore the country yet but what I've seen so far is good. A hilly island town with houses all over the hill sides. To me, it's like if Kundasang was beside the sea. I haven't ate any of their local food yet unless I count this morning's breakfast at the hotel - weird bread, weird scrambled eggs, weird sausage and weird food. I hope my lunch will taste better than my breakfast!
So that's a summary of my journey so far. The pics will come soon :)
By : Anya
Thursday 10 April 2008
Friendster - the best place to bring out the wannabe in YOU ;-)
This week i have been surprisingly 'active' in this blog...
And today i decided to be mean and B*tch :D
Topic of the day: The DON'Ts in Friendster
1. Do not add every other person on the planet earth just coz you wanna have a BIG list of "friends".
Unless you're mega popular (which in some cases, it's genuine), don't expect anyone to take your 500 'friends' seriously as YOUR friends. :P
2. Do not write "I do not add/accept random or unknown people in my list.. or the equivalent" in the Who I Want To Meet column; when CLEARLY you fail to practice it.
Reason: I once did an experiment and had a dummy account in Friendster and added a few 'selected' people in my list. Some were for personal reasons and some were just purely for fun spying purposes. And lo and behold, the ones that said "pls don't bother to add me if i dunno u" actually added me! HAHAHAHA...
FYI, i put a generic Punjabi name for my account and a fake d.o.b, fake location.. in short, fake everything! oh yeah, & i also did another cardinal sin of putting a celeb face as my profile pic. And yet.... people added me.. Jeez!
3. Do not post pictures of celebrities as your profile picture! Do you know there is something called the Copyrights Act?!!
I mean really, if you think you look as good/similiar as Ash Rai or Jessica Alba, do you really think you need to 'hide' yourself?
Note: Our beloved Bodoh Binti Ajaib has ALWAYS had an Ash Rai for her profile pic on Friendster for years! Last i heard, she 'accidently' deleted her Frienster account.. And yesterday, a lil birdie told me she has moved on to bigger & better things such as (gasp!) FaceBook.. Coz apparently Friendster's too low class for her.. Right.. (yawn!)
4. Do not have self-pictures lookin like a wannabe future modesl for Maxim, FHM or Playboy.
While at first i found it weird to have vain shots of yourself, now i think its perfectly normal.. I guess that is one way to 'bring' out yourself and have self-confidence. Heck, i have my fair share of silly vain shots too..
But again, with every good things, comes a limit.. And this case i mean limit as in:
Pictures say a thousand words, they say :) The last time i checked, Friendster was a social networking ground not P*rn wannabe stars breeding ground. Ahaks!
5. Do NOT put food picture on your friendster when it doesn't mean anything..
Like, the 1st time you ate at Chillies or Tony Roma's.. You ate a chicken chop dish.. SO??!!
*laugh your hearts out with the equally 'imaginative' captions..
On the other hand, it is OKAY to put picture of food/dishes if and only if:
a) its exotic food
b) you're overseas and the food is different
c) you ate cockroaches or something out of the ordinary (ala FearFactor)
d) a normal generic food dish, but you made it (yay, that counts for something)
e) a normal generic food dish, but you have a funny caption for it
6. Do not pose with pictures in the classic 80's pose such as these:
what is the user trying to tell us here? a) there is nothing interesing in the background if that's what she was trying to convey b) she is sitting at a dining table c) she is trying to say, this is how i sit? or d) hey look, i love taking pictures with no reason esp before i have my meal :P
7. Do not have stupid, meaningless names such as "Bad Boy", "Angel", "Sweetheart", etc...
Let's not forget that Friendster is a social networking ground and a place to meet and re-connect with FRIENDS.
Seriously, will having names such as Bad Boy get you anywhere? Might as well change your IC if you like that name so much :P
I know there a lot more of Friendster bloopers out there but i'm so tired of typing and 'researching' and need to get my arse to work now...
Clause (to protect my own arse here):
The owners of the case studies featured will not be revealed due to obvious reasons. No names has been mentioned and no indication of their names/profiles has been posted to protect their privacy. Also, as an added measure to protect their identity, faces of the case studies are not shown.
Peace Out!
- Margie the B*tch :D
And today i decided to be mean and B*tch :D
Topic of the day: The DON'Ts in Friendster
1. Do not add every other person on the planet earth just coz you wanna have a BIG list of "friends".
Unless you're mega popular (which in some cases, it's genuine), don't expect anyone to take your 500 'friends' seriously as YOUR friends. :P
2. Do not write "I do not add/accept random or unknown people in my list.. or the equivalent" in the Who I Want To Meet column; when CLEARLY you fail to practice it.
Reason: I once did an experiment and had a dummy account in Friendster and added a few 'selected' people in my list. Some were for personal reasons and some were just purely for fun spying purposes. And lo and behold, the ones that said "pls don't bother to add me if i dunno u" actually added me! HAHAHAHA...
FYI, i put a generic Punjabi name for my account and a fake d.o.b, fake location.. in short, fake everything! oh yeah, & i also did another cardinal sin of putting a celeb face as my profile pic. And yet.... people added me.. Jeez!
3. Do not post pictures of celebrities as your profile picture! Do you know there is something called the Copyrights Act?!!
I mean really, if you think you look as good/similiar as Ash Rai or Jessica Alba, do you really think you need to 'hide' yourself?
Note: Our beloved Bodoh Binti Ajaib has ALWAYS had an Ash Rai for her profile pic on Friendster for years! Last i heard, she 'accidently' deleted her Frienster account.. And yesterday, a lil birdie told me she has moved on to bigger & better things such as (gasp!) FaceBook.. Coz apparently Friendster's too low class for her.. Right.. (yawn!)
4. Do not have self-pictures lookin like a wannabe future modesl for Maxim, FHM or Playboy.
While at first i found it weird to have vain shots of yourself, now i think its perfectly normal.. I guess that is one way to 'bring' out yourself and have self-confidence. Heck, i have my fair share of silly vain shots too..
But again, with every good things, comes a limit.. And this case i mean limit as in:
Pictures say a thousand words, they say :) The last time i checked, Friendster was a social networking ground not P*rn wannabe stars breeding ground. Ahaks!
5. Do NOT put food picture on your friendster when it doesn't mean anything..
Like, the 1st time you ate at Chillies or Tony Roma's.. You ate a chicken chop dish.. SO??!!
*laugh your hearts out with the equally 'imaginative' captions..
On the other hand, it is OKAY to put picture of food/dishes if and only if:
a) its exotic food
b) you're overseas and the food is different
c) you ate cockroaches or something out of the ordinary (ala FearFactor)
d) a normal generic food dish, but you made it (yay, that counts for something)
e) a normal generic food dish, but you have a funny caption for it
6. Do not pose with pictures in the classic 80's pose such as these:
what is the user trying to tell us here? a) there is nothing interesing in the background if that's what she was trying to convey b) she is sitting at a dining table c) she is trying to say, this is how i sit? or d) hey look, i love taking pictures with no reason esp before i have my meal :P
7. Do not have stupid, meaningless names such as "Bad Boy", "Angel", "Sweetheart", etc...
Let's not forget that Friendster is a social networking ground and a place to meet and re-connect with FRIENDS.
Seriously, will having names such as Bad Boy get you anywhere? Might as well change your IC if you like that name so much :P
I know there a lot more of Friendster bloopers out there but i'm so tired of typing and 'researching' and need to get my arse to work now...
Clause (to protect my own arse here):
The owners of the case studies featured will not be revealed due to obvious reasons. No names has been mentioned and no indication of their names/profiles has been posted to protect their privacy. Also, as an added measure to protect their identity, faces of the case studies are not shown.
Peace Out!
- Margie the B*tch :D
Incomparable..
Sign of growing old: I have two wedding invitations for this weekend and yesterday a friend gave birth.
By: 'lilo
Wednesday 9 April 2008
Bodoh binti Ajaib
I couldn’t have thought of a better name myself. Thanks Margie! It suits her so perfectly.
3. She is clubbing. And she had to explain to me how happening Jalan Telawi Bangsar is. Yeah, I live in this hulu place and never been out to the city at all. Of course I don’t blame her. Her sweet bf actually took the trouble to take her to the place and enlighten her on how happening that place could be. N she is actually going to have dinner in Chillies! Can you believe that?? Oh my, oh my.. Isn’t she so lucky and happening to get to go to these places? Of course I have never had any colleague doing a farewell gathering in Chillies. The last I remember accidentally stepping into Chillies was, when my bf and I really don’t know where to eat once after work, we dropped by there.
Tuesday 8 April 2008
There is a gal in every man...
A friend of mine said something funny but true (in a way) yesterday...
We were talking about how some guys are sweeter to their Gfs and all and how some are just plain ignorant or maybe the 'don't give a rat A**' kind of type. Not that there is anything wrong with the latter. That's just how they are.. But being girls, i know for a fact that every girl somehow rather would love to have the former category for herself (agree?)
So anyway this guy, he said:
That is true to a certain extent i think.. :)
Think about it.. some guys are more 'soft' than the others.. and some are well 'soft' but refuse to show the world that side of them and in fact appear and force themselves to appear more macho than the rest of the pack.. Why i say that? Well aren't we familiar with those manly men that still go back to their mommys when something out of the ordinary happens or those that only cry to their partners or mommys...
Not that there is anything wrong in those actions too...
So anyway, you know how people always say "Behind every successful men, there is a woman"?
Now what i would like to say is, "Behind every man's rough exterior, there is a woman hiding"..*LOL*
Cheers!
-Margie
We were talking about how some guys are sweeter to their Gfs and all and how some are just plain ignorant or maybe the 'don't give a rat A**' kind of type. Not that there is anything wrong with the latter. That's just how they are.. But being girls, i know for a fact that every girl somehow rather would love to have the former category for herself (agree?)
So anyway this guy, he said:
That is true to a certain extent i think.. :)
Think about it.. some guys are more 'soft' than the others.. and some are well 'soft' but refuse to show the world that side of them and in fact appear and force themselves to appear more macho than the rest of the pack.. Why i say that? Well aren't we familiar with those manly men that still go back to their mommys when something out of the ordinary happens or those that only cry to their partners or mommys...
Not that there is anything wrong in those actions too...
So anyway, you know how people always say "Behind every successful men, there is a woman"?
Now what i would like to say is, "Behind every man's rough exterior, there is a woman hiding"..*LOL*
Cheers!
-Margie
Monday 7 April 2008
Stress!
Does this thing work? Well I doubt it. But I still feel like banging my head somewhere or, more satisfying will be to stab at a sponge or polystrene until there's nothing left.
Why the drama you might ask? Well here goes :
1. I've been working my ass off for people i.e project managers and customers who can't decide what they want
2. My boss saw me working late today and had to gall to ask if I'm hoping to receive some kind of award for it. I told him I wouldn't mind actually, if he was handing out awards :P
3. Received an SMS from my mother that the TV cable had somehow disconnected.
4. Received another SMS enlightening me that the TV cable is useless.
5. Yet another SMS that she's very angry at the TV cable.
6. All while I'm trying to make sense of three contradicting network diagrams for supposedly the same network.
7. Shit, I don't understand the new software feature the customer bought and expects me to design.
8. Oh, what was that? I'm supposed to give a presentation to them on how all the stuff they bought will magically turn into a fully functioning mobile network. Very nice.
9. My hair refused to be tamed today and was a curly mess. Two people asked what I did with it.
10. I had to miss my gym because I had to come home to make sure my mother doesn't start throwing things at the TV.
11. Only to discover that the cable had broke and was irrepairable.
12. Now we're hunting for the warranty card (I hope there is one).
13. So no TV tonight - had to miss ANTM :(
14. Mother made a face that possitively screamed "I'm all alone, I have to do everything by myself" when I said I can't be back before 6 tomorrow to send the computer for repair.
15. So now the computer is in my car.
16. No TV, finished the book I was reading - so I'm online again.
17. Pathetically venting out my frustrations to myself.
18. And I have a painful tight knot in my chest.
19. It's been there on and off for a month.
20. I know what it is and why it's there.
Should I hope tomorrow will be a better day? I don't know. So far 2008 has been very disappointing, what difference is another day going to make?
Not in a good mood : Anya
Weekend..
After a very long time, I had a great a weekend last week. Here are 10 reasons why I loved this weekend:
- Career fair: for once I was not looking for one, could proudly walk around and say no to everyone
- Post grad fair: got some expensive ideas to spend my time and feel less guilty
- Coffee bean: Pure chocolate indulgence and long long talk
- 27 dresses: Cheated on buying the ticket and made a fool of ourselves by entering the wrong theater
- Carls junior: Total pigged out moment
- Diamond shopping: It was absolutely unplanned, sweet and fun! Learned so much about diamonds and finally we got to try on a few! Though beaming with jealousy, but cant help feeling happy for my one sweet friend (at least I’ve met one guy who’s sweet :p)
- Definitely, maybe: no crime, no war, no tears, just pure love and laughter.. n he’s sooo cute!
- Baskin robins: crept it in to the cinema which gave an extra boost to the flavors
- Skirt: finally, got a chance to wear my new one
- My friends: and they need no explanation :)
The Kind of Friends I Have... (final)
Category 4: the ‘motherly or sisterly’ friends
I have 2 friends for this. Not surprisingly as the title suggests, both women :) naturally! One is a very dear tiny person with the biggest heart I’ve seen. She’s the epitome for patience and care. I can’t think of anyone as nice as her in my circle of friends.
But despite that, I (being the woman-jerk I am) have had few disagreements with her which resulted in us not talking for like a day or two. Not much but still.. I always find myself in disbelief when I think how can I do that to a person like her? But again, we GROW and we LEARN :P and maybe, the reasons were valid at that time but to think I can’t even remember the reasons now :P
I have 2 friends for this. Not surprisingly as the title suggests, both women :) naturally! One is a very dear tiny person with the biggest heart I’ve seen. She’s the epitome for patience and care. I can’t think of anyone as nice as her in my circle of friends.
But despite that, I (being the woman-jerk I am) have had few disagreements with her which resulted in us not talking for like a day or two. Not much but still.. I always find myself in disbelief when I think how can I do that to a person like her? But again, we GROW and we LEARN :P and maybe, the reasons were valid at that time but to think I can’t even remember the reasons now :P
She's doen't meet any us much anymore but everytime i pick up the phone to call her or meet her somewhere, i never feel like i've been apart or feel as if she has lesser care for me etc. She's one person i truly wish and hope will always stay the same. If i were to use 1 word to describe her, it will be SWEET!
And then recently I met another woman of this kind. She was really like my big protective sister when I was in Prague. She isn’t the kind that will open up to just anyone in a short period of knowing but eventually she did. Oh she was the 1st gal I kissed on lips before too.haha :P (more like a peck btw)
She’s the kind of friend, who when I said I really wanted to have a haircut, accompanied me after work to downtown to look for a salon that was open and actually affordable. The price for haircut in Prague is almost up to RM100-RM200. So there we were in a chilly evening going in and out of metros and mostly trams finding a decent place where I can get (a) a hairdresser who can converse in English, (b) within my budget and (c) a salon that was open!
In the end, there good ones we found we all closed or about to close :( So with our mission unaccomplished and 2 hours of walking up and down, defeated, we headed out to our favorite Thai restaurant and ate our dinner. We ended up yakking for hours and left the place as it was about to close.
Oh and btw, she is the one and only person I could have a ‘girl-talk’ while I was in Prague. Throughout the first 3 months there, I couldn’t really do that because (a) my one female companion was my housemate from hell, Rabbit, (b) most of my new found friends were all guys and (c) my own BFFs were far away.
Just not the same yakking bout the hot Latino in emails than in person. Facial expressions are numero UNO you know ;-)
To end my part of this "The Kind of Friends I Have... " series, i reached a conclusion:-
Life without any friends (regardless what category you have on them) is indeed DULL. So make friends not enemies.
"It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them."- Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Fate chooses your relations, you choose your friends."- Jacques Delille
"True happiness consists not in the multitude of friends, but in their worth and choice."- Samuel Johnston
and my fav:
"My friends are my estate."- Emily Dickinson
P/S: I know, I know.. making enemies seems much easier these days.. :P
-Margie
The Kind of Friends I Have... (part III)
Category 3: the like-minded+sarcastic+b*tchy friends
Usually for this category, one always meet these kind of friends from work or a course they attend or gym etc.
In my case, it is work. I’ve known quite a number of interesting (in a good way) people at workplaces. Some are younger and some are way older.
From the young ones, I learn all the cool stuff like where to hang out, clubbing scenes, b*tching work stuff and policies, general stuff etc.
Once I had a really really bad day and this one friend of mine took time off her work to lead me down to the pantry downstairs and just sat there while I poured my heart out to her. To me, it’s good to have 1 person from workplace where you can do that. I do the same for her too.
And best of all, it beats the crap out of having to figure who to lunch with etc. now when I have no plans whatsoever, I know I can just buzz her up or another person to have lunch with.
From the older ones, I learn a LOT of fact of life.. During my stint in Prague, I met quite a few of them. I learned a LOT in relationships, trusting partners, numerous career advice and life advice from these folks. My life literally took a different turn when I got to know them. I was more open to doing new stuff (i.e. hiking, clubbing till wee hours, dancing and actually enjoying it, hosting and attending parties etc)
And best of all, some of them are so nice that they actually ‘set me up’ to go (with them) to a Brazilian gig because they ‘found out’ that the hot Latino I had crush on will be going there as well. And how can I forget that one of them was the one who engineered the whole process of actually finding out his name and making him seat with us for lunch. In which I got to shake his hands and officially make way for more communications later *winks
Now friends like that, are useful indeed ;-)
-Margie
The Kind of Friends I Have... (part II)
Category 2: the “could have been best friends but ...”
Surprisingly 2 friends from the opposite gender makes the cut for this category.
One is a really cool, very mysterious, sarcastic ‘macho-istic’ man-jerk that I recently got to know. He is one person I can chat with for hours and never get bored. This very same person also is capable of unleashing the fury in me for all sort of inane things (which btw, I thought I had my temper under control once I broke up but then I realize it just went ‘underground’ for a while till another male-jerk emerged)
Yes, this guy is a jerk truly. But why I still consider him a friend and truly like him is because he makes no excuses for being one. He doesn’t pretend nor apologizes nor sugarcoats his words or try to console when you sulk.
It pisses me off when I come across people like this but then I realize that’s what he is. He is the epitome of “I am what I am, and I can’t care less what others think of me”. And here’s the best part, he is like that even with his own gf. So no pretence there :)
I greatly admire people with such a kick-a** confidence such as this person.
A note to myself: i have to end my 1.5 month long feud with him today by swallowing my pride (sob,sob) and making the 1st move to talk :P
Moving on, the next guy is not really a man-jerk, but a nice man. We are not really best of friends though. He is one person I missed out the chance of getting to know better when I could have. Being immature, years back for some rather inane thing, I got really pissed with him and for a over a year we didn’t communicate (well not properly anyways).
And when we finally did, it was more of a casual-far away kind of camaraderie. Over the years, we both have somewhat redeemed ourselves (more on my end I guess :P) and sometime last year I got a text after our phone conversation that said “I wished we got along like this earlier. Never knew I could talk to you for things like this etc…”
I can’t really recall the exact text he sent, but that was basically the gist of it. Made me feel stupid for sure but also all warm and fuzzy to know I’m not the only one thinking I lost out on a best pal. :)
-Margie
Surprisingly 2 friends from the opposite gender makes the cut for this category.
One is a really cool, very mysterious, sarcastic ‘macho-istic’ man-jerk that I recently got to know. He is one person I can chat with for hours and never get bored. This very same person also is capable of unleashing the fury in me for all sort of inane things (which btw, I thought I had my temper under control once I broke up but then I realize it just went ‘underground’ for a while till another male-jerk emerged)
Yes, this guy is a jerk truly. But why I still consider him a friend and truly like him is because he makes no excuses for being one. He doesn’t pretend nor apologizes nor sugarcoats his words or try to console when you sulk.
It pisses me off when I come across people like this but then I realize that’s what he is. He is the epitome of “I am what I am, and I can’t care less what others think of me”. And here’s the best part, he is like that even with his own gf. So no pretence there :)
I greatly admire people with such a kick-a** confidence such as this person.
A note to myself: i have to end my 1.5 month long feud with him today by swallowing my pride (sob,sob) and making the 1st move to talk :P
Moving on, the next guy is not really a man-jerk, but a nice man. We are not really best of friends though. He is one person I missed out the chance of getting to know better when I could have. Being immature, years back for some rather inane thing, I got really pissed with him and for a over a year we didn’t communicate (well not properly anyways).
And when we finally did, it was more of a casual-far away kind of camaraderie. Over the years, we both have somewhat redeemed ourselves (more on my end I guess :P) and sometime last year I got a text after our phone conversation that said “I wished we got along like this earlier. Never knew I could talk to you for things like this etc…”
I can’t really recall the exact text he sent, but that was basically the gist of it. Made me feel stupid for sure but also all warm and fuzzy to know I’m not the only one thinking I lost out on a best pal. :)
-Margie
The Kind of Friends I Have... (part I)
There are many kind of friends one meets in a lifetime…
I watched a movie last evening.. “Definitely, Maybe..” and it triggered something…
You see, in the movie the main character Will Hayes, falls (eventually!) in love with his best friend April Hoffman. And how they became friends is pretty ironic too. But this just goes to show that sometimes the best relationships CAN be built on friendship basis. Of course they are also some who believe (and validly so) that some friends should just remain as friends! Both ways, I find myself nodding my head vigorously.
Ok so why I decided to write this piece about friendship? I guess its because I feel like its long overdue of me to write this out and let it be known :P
Like many others, I too have my fair share of friends/pals/buddies. Excluding acquaintance, I figured all of my friends fall in 4 categories: (or maybe more but right now these is what i can think of)
I watched a movie last evening.. “Definitely, Maybe..” and it triggered something…
You see, in the movie the main character Will Hayes, falls (eventually!) in love with his best friend April Hoffman. And how they became friends is pretty ironic too. But this just goes to show that sometimes the best relationships CAN be built on friendship basis. Of course they are also some who believe (and validly so) that some friends should just remain as friends! Both ways, I find myself nodding my head vigorously.
Ok so why I decided to write this piece about friendship? I guess its because I feel like its long overdue of me to write this out and let it be known :P
Like many others, I too have my fair share of friends/pals/buddies. Excluding acquaintance, I figured all of my friends fall in 4 categories: (or maybe more but right now these is what i can think of)
1. the BFFs
2. the “could have been best friends but...”
3. the like-minded+sarcastic+b*tchy friends
4. the ‘motherly or sisterly’ friends
Category 1: the BFFs
My BFFs comprises a group of like-minded girls like yours truly. It is my personal belief that every girl should have a strong, tight 3-4 girls group as BFFs and every guy should have 1 BFF.
Mine are wonderful. They are not clingy (like the wannabe BFFs you see in some people, esp in high school), they are matured (way better than me), are intelligent and successful in their very own special way and most of all they are superb TOLERANTS! Why do I say that?
Because throughout the 8 years I’ve known them, I cannot recall anytime when they grumbled or got mad because I arrived late somewhere. And let me tell you this.. I’m ALWAYS late. It doesn’t matter that each time I go out or plan to out, I tell myself, I MUST not be late but somehow rather I end up being late..
So to me, that’s what BFFs are made of :) (of course, if they b*tched about it behind my back, I also know that it’s in their teasing sorta way. Nothing harmful there) :)
All in all, I am so GLAD I met them on my very 1st day at Uni. We have gone thru serious sh*t times, and hilarious (like the MOST!) times together. We don’t meet that often, but we don’t need to. Some of us are slightly ‘apart’ as compared to Uni life days, but nevertheless, we still are able to share the common mutual feelings on most stuff :)
-Margie
Friday 4 April 2008
Tahi lalat II
Urban Legend : ‘Tahi Lalat’
I was born with a tiny tahi lalat or mole on my right foot. It may not seem very significant but people in my culture have this superstition that a tahi lalat on the foot means the person will travel a lot. However I don’t think it’s logical or realistic to base the journeys of my life on a tiny little dot on my foot. Well whether it’s the power of the tahi lalat or powers from on high or the power of choices I’ve made, I realized that I have travelled relatively a lot. And it’s not like I look for travel, it just happens!
By the time I was 23, I’d already studied in 2 kindergardens, 3 primary schools, lived in more than 15 houses in 5 states and traveled to all the states in Malaysia. (Secondary school and university doesn’t count because they were one each). I’d also traveled to Singapore and Bangkok.
Then something weird happened. A second tahi lalat appeared under my left foot but I didn’t give it much thought. For some time after that, I was stuck in a mundane job that required no travels whatsoever but I did travel frequently to East Malaysia for personal reasons.
After about a year of total boringness, I joined a different company. And suddenly I was travelling to Cairo. I could hardly believe I was in the land of the great pyramids, the land of bible stories, that I was in denial my first three days there! Next it was Jakarta and Bandung. Now it’s going to be London, Jamaica and Honduras. Every time I travel, I get this scary-excited feeling. It’s that feeling I get when I’m on a rollercoaster that’s inching up the steep climb and I’m excitedly dreading the moment it will zoom downhill, making my stomach fly up to my throat. I’m excited because I’m going to discover new places and cultures and food and but at the same time it’s scary because I’m not traveling for holiday but for business. So basically it’s the same shit, different place, different time zone. But then again, it’s going to be an all expense paid trip (or shall I say shit? ;) So if things go wrong, I shall blame my two tahi lalats :))
By : Anya
By the time I was 23, I’d already studied in 2 kindergardens, 3 primary schools, lived in more than 15 houses in 5 states and traveled to all the states in Malaysia. (Secondary school and university doesn’t count because they were one each). I’d also traveled to Singapore and Bangkok.
Then something weird happened. A second tahi lalat appeared under my left foot but I didn’t give it much thought. For some time after that, I was stuck in a mundane job that required no travels whatsoever but I did travel frequently to East Malaysia for personal reasons.
After about a year of total boringness, I joined a different company. And suddenly I was travelling to Cairo. I could hardly believe I was in the land of the great pyramids, the land of bible stories, that I was in denial my first three days there! Next it was Jakarta and Bandung. Now it’s going to be London, Jamaica and Honduras. Every time I travel, I get this scary-excited feeling. It’s that feeling I get when I’m on a rollercoaster that’s inching up the steep climb and I’m excitedly dreading the moment it will zoom downhill, making my stomach fly up to my throat. I’m excited because I’m going to discover new places and cultures and food and but at the same time it’s scary because I’m not traveling for holiday but for business. So basically it’s the same shit, different place, different time zone. But then again, it’s going to be an all expense paid trip (or shall I say shit? ;) So if things go wrong, I shall blame my two tahi lalats :))
By : Anya
Thérapie..
Des 3 heures long thérapie de promenade dans un endroit saint appelé Mid Valley, menée m'à en la possession de ces choses :
i. Livre : Les hommes sont de Mars, femmes sont de Venus
ii. Le bleu changent le dessus de cou
iii. Livre : Mangez, priez, aimez
iv. Cardigan noir
v. T-shirt vert
vi. Dessus bleu-clair
Par : lilo de `
Thursday 3 April 2008
Life II
still sucks.
Despite the fact that I tried to have fun, go out and etc, life still sucks. It’s just not getting any better. Although I have realized the fact that I am not the only one who’s going through this shit, but trust me, it doesn’t help.
All I wanna do is get away from this life. I know it’s dumb to run away from a problem. But I just want to go somewhere really far, a place where there’s only strangers, a place with no Internet or phone services and spend some time there. It doesn’t have to be a place that’s gonna make me hip and happening; even if the place could make me appreciate whatever I have now, would do justice.
Dilemma..
Lately I have been hesitating if should or should not. After some serious thinking and analyzing the pros and cons, I have decided. I have to do it. I really need to. There is no other way to stop this urge in me, every night before I sleep and every morning when I open my eyes, this is what I think of. I can’t delay this any further till it affects me mentally. Maybe now is not the right time. But seriously, if not now, when? If every one else can do it, why not me? I dun see it as a sin; it’s absolutely pure pleasure. I have read somewhere that it would actually boost up your spirits, energy level and make you feel more confident. I need that, don’t I?
By:'lilo
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