Monday, August 28, 2006

Old Mother Hubbard
Got stuck in the cupboard
Looking for her canary bird
But all she found was the bird's turd.

3:15 PM 0 comments hmm?

Saturday, August 26, 2006

I can't believe that I'm outdated in the world of Nightmare Before Christmas (NBX) merchandise. Today me and Boon were suppose to shop for a new handphone. Didn't find one because they were either too pricey or too ah-pek. So I guess I'll settle for his hp temporarily while Boon reawakened his bro's heavy-as-a-rock-killer-Nokia-weapon heehee

Enough of techie talk. Please allow me to introduce Pirate Jack to my current NBX collection by Neca. Jeng-jeng-jeng! Woohoohoo this is a special standalone edition by Neca and we found this by accident at Ultimate Toys in OneU.



No idea when this was issued and no matter that this is a pricey one. Now I have three incarnations of Jack Skellington as himself, Santa Jack and Pirate Jack. The latter appeared in a cameo in James and the Giant Peach (Roald Dahl's ingenuity) stop-motion movie directed by Tim Burton. Woohoo killer combo!

I checked Neca Online and found that NBX series 4 and 5 are coming out soon. Ahh temptation.... Guess who's gonna be in series 4? Jack as the Pumpkin King!



Makes sense to buy series 4 right? But they are pricey because you usually can't buy only one figurine, you have to buy a family of it. Decisions decisions decisions. Having bought series 1 and 2, I stopped there because I'm running out of storage space and money. Feifeipinky to answer your comment, my attention and loyalty has always been with NBX and NBX alone. The movie was just pure inspirational!

And oh! Did i happen to mention that I have a family of James and the Giant Peach collectibles? Pirate Jack completes it! heehee My display 'museum' will be ready when the time is right.

4:49 PM 4 comments hmm?

Thursday, August 24, 2006

loolian is one extradinee bunny
who sleeps with her mouth wide shut
and do you think it is funny
when she sniffs the air like a mutt?

or when she hops on two foot
instead of walking on four
oh she doesn’t care a toot
what you think about her fur

duped not by her angelic smirk
she just might be thinking thoughts
how to skin a (turkey called) Turk
coat feathers for robots!

I dedicate this nonsensical poem to my gal pals in Japan and S’pore. I figure something laughable might put a silly cheer inside the both of you. (: I can only imagine poorly how tough things are for the both of you. Sometimes we wonder out aloud, I am useless and nothing in this life. Everyone has a tolerance limit. Perhaps we, inadvertently think that by pushing ourselves beyond our limits, it will prove our worthiness to the world and ourselves. But if we do not push ourselves, how else would we know how far we could go? Perhaps, I’m a give-upper. Or maybe I’m just pausing in my life to smell the roses. I gave up my (lousy) job to freelance for awhile. It’s been two months since. Financial constraints will force me back into the rat race soon. I hate that. I don’t want to get too sucked in with materiality but yet I can’t survive on grass. I always believe in self-therapy. I cry to relieve stress. Try other means of self-therapy to suit your needs. For example, I once told a good friend of mine that running around in the streets stark naked past midnight helps.

I have been hoarding a secret. I want to write. And I’m trying. It was my 6-year-old ‘what I want to be when I grow up’ ambition. I hope it’s not just a passing fad, knowing how delusional I can get at times. Sometimes I have all these crazy or sad ideas, and I want to put them all on paper. Judging by my amateurish writing and inconsistent drive I might never get noticed, or gasp, published. But I’m happy. I know what I like. I finally know what I like. I’m contented for the moment to give my ideas a life. I’m happy to be under covers for the time being. Fame is like pointing a gun to my head, to puke-spew creativity. I credit the creative minds for igniting this inspiration in me. Enid Blyton, Roald Dahl, Shel Silverstein, Quentin Blake, Tim Burton, Bill Watterson – that ‘childish’ works require a certain amount of brave indulgence.

And this poem goes to Boon too. You have always believed in me. Oh, and I forgot to credit you for the wacky illustrations. What’s a story without a picture to make it richer? I apologise for purposefully feeling so exasperated with you when my hand phone decided to take a hike today. I was exasperated with my carelessness, losing two years worth of memories stored in the phone. I just want that back. You can’t rob someone’s memories, can you?

3:21 AM 0 comments hmm?

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Do you remember the little yellow bunny's advice in the bunny story I wrote about just awhile ago? Well, I did heed the bunny's advice and gave the bunny stars to someone special. And that someone special has been lucky ever since!

However, there was one thing that I didn't do, on purpose. I decided to keep one bunny star with me because I love her very much. Not the mushy kind of love, mind you, but the kind of love that your mommy and daddy has for you. And so Pinky bean continues to sleep on the pillow next to me every single night and I love her very much.

One fine morning, I woke up with a sneeze, a-tishooo! Something white and furry was tickling my nose, ah-ah-ahtishoo! Well, what could it be? Why good heavens! It's a big bobble of white fur that was tickling my face. And there lying on my bed is a bunny, not Pinky bean, but a real life-sized bunny. And since I'm talking about bunnies, I think it is wise to say that bunnies and rabbits are very much different. Bunnies are cute and rabbits are not! Well, just like how mice are cute and rats are disgusting. And there lying on my bed is a cute bunny, sleeping, with her paws tucked neatly above her tummy. I know it's a 'she' because all bunnies are actually girls. And yes, that makes all rabbits the opposite.

I tugged at one of her whiskers to wake her up. She stirred slightly and with sleep still in her eyes she yawned and looked at me. 'Are you my Pinky bean?' I asked with hope. She nodded lazily. And with a careful scoop, I lifted her high up in the air and whooped with glee! I finally understood what the little yellow bunny meant when she said it would be unlucky to hold on to the bunny stars. I cannot imagine 138 bunnies hopping around in my room!

By now, Pinky bean was feeling hungry. It was 9am and her tummy was making little ticking noises. I washed up as fast as I could and brought her downstairs. Thankfully mommy isn't around. I'll need to think of an explanation on how I got this little bunny.

'Would you like some carrots, Pinky bean?' as I stood in front of the opened fridge. And suddenly, Pinky bean wriggled out of my arms and said, 'Oooh, what is that heavenly smell?' I was too shocked to say anything because I think my bunny just spoke to me. 'Well, what is it?' she asked again excitedly. 'Uh, well, these are carrots. Would you like some?' I said in disbelief. She sniffed at the carrots and whined, 'No, not these. This is not the heavenly smell' and she pointed her paw towards a tupperware in the fridge. 'That!' she said. 'Uhm, those are durians. Would you like ...' Before I could finish my sentence, Pinky bean was already removing the tupperware lid and woffling down a few durians. 'Mmmmm, loo-lian! yumyum!' 'Uhm, actually it's called durians. doo-ri-ans' I said. 'Yay yay loo-lian loo-lian!'





And so today I found out that my little bunny star isn't that little anymore. She is 2.5kgs, slightly overweight by bunny standards and she loves durians. I decided to name her loolian instead and I love her every single bit!

The end.

1:20 PM 0 comments hmm?

Friday, August 18, 2006

1.0 carat Pavé diamond Hello Kitty® ring with ruby bow, yellow citrine nose and black onyx eyes.
Price: RM15,725.00


0.33 carat Pavé diamond Hello Kitty® ring with rose gold bow, yellow gold nose and black enamel eyes.
Price: RM4,400.00

10:59 PM 3 comments hmm?

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Yesterday a little yellow bunny hopped into my dreams and told me a secret. The little yellow bunny said that if I was lucky on the 13th night of the 8th month I would be able to see many bunny stars hopping around in the clear night sky. Bunny stars appear once in a gazillion years and they are luck bringers. The little yellow bunny wished me luck in catching them and gave me a bunny net.

And so on 13th night I waited with bated breath atop the mossy hill for the bunny stars to appear. And true enough, a little blue bunny hopped from behind a cloud into the clear night sky. And then there was another green bunny star, yawning away near Mr. Moon. And more bunny stars appeared everywhere in the clear night sky. Orange ones with long floppy ears, red bunny stars with fluffy white tails, brown bunny stars with long whiskers. And then there was this white bunny star sitting apart from the other bunnies. She was washing her perky ears with her paws and all the while her pink nose wouldn't stop wiggling. She sniffled and snoffled the crisp air and a gentle breeze blew a whiff of me towards her. Her perky ears shot up immediately and she turned toards me and sniffled at me intently.

I brought out my bunny net and caught her gently. She was smaller than I had imagined, no bigger than my pinky toe. She snuggled up to my palm and I called her, Pinky bean. I caught another 137 bunny stars and put them in a glass bottle.

They are indeed lucky, for the very next day I found my favourite pencil underneath my bed. The bunny stars continued to bring me luck in small ways everyday. And Pinky bean sleeps on the pillow next to me every night.

One night, the yellow bunny appeared in my dreams again. The little yellow bunny told me that it is not good luck to hold on to the bunny stars for a long time or they will become unlucky. The little bunny advised me to pass on the lucky bunny stars to someone special on the night of 18th. I thanked the little yellow bunny and promised her I will.

The end.

10:48 AM 0 comments hmm?

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

Singaporean gal said that when she saw a muffler she remembered about me uhm, my promise really, to knit one for her. Okie so I feel the weight of guilt already :P I’ll get to it uhm soon heehee... okie, yes I also owe a muffler to Japanese gal... uhm, do I owe anyone else anything??

So, anyway, just doing a mini survey to measure my popularity among my very tight knit of blog friends heehee. Leave your comments la...

10:24 AM 7 comments hmm?

Friday, August 11, 2006

... I don’t think any of us can speak frankly about pain until we are no longer enduring it. – Sayuri, Memoirs of a geisha.

I decided to watch the movie release before reading the book and this was a good thing because I was able to imagine better as I read. All of the movie actors embody the characters well and Gong Li’s portrayal as Hatsumomo, a jealous-embittered geisha is a lingering resemblance. I wonder if there was a possibility she was living out her a bitter rivalry against Zhang Ziyi in the movie who became director Zhang Yimou’s muse in recent years. No matter, Memoirs is an exceptional story with an abundance of dramatic flair as vividly narrated by Chiyo/Sayuri of her personal encounter as a fishing village girl turned geisha.

Geisha – flirtatious artisan and beguiling courtesan, hidden behind masked emotions. These are women entertaining powerful dignitaries for a living and having them eating out of their hands night after night. Talk about girl power. Metaphorically described, I’m amazed at the choice of words used to illustrate even the most mundane of events. The story does get draggy at times when every microscopic detail is brought to attention. The momentum picked up towards the ending of the book and I was sad that it had to end so soon.

I personally enjoyed the book out of my fascination towards Japanese culture. The Japanese, I find preserve their heritage very well and their generations are unashamed to embrace it. Written by a foreigner of Japanese culture, it is evident that a lot of careful effort has been invested to capture the insight of Japanese culture. Some of the facts have been refuted to be misleading though and it was highlighted by Mineko Iwasaki in her biographical account, Geisha of Gion, published 2003 after Memoirs in 1997.



Iwasaki was a prominent geisha herself during the 1960s in Gion and Golden had the privilege to speak with her while researching for his book. One of her main discontent was an issue which she felt was unjustifiably represented in Memoirs: the ceremonial mizuage. In Memoirs, mizuage was described as a ceremony where the geisha’s virginity is sold off to the highest bidder. Iwasaki strongly disagrees and reiterates that mizuage involves a coming-of-age ceremony, symbolically representing an apprentice becoming a full fledged geisha, and not losing one’s virginity. I believe both versions of the mizuage hold some truth, I think, since Golden’s Memoirs took place during the 1940s, before the enactment of anti-prostitution laws in 1958. Gion was the first geisha-related book I read and I wasn’t swayed by any bias account. In fact it urged me to read Golden’s interpretation of the flower and willowy world. Gion is told in straightforward manner littered with some light humour. Read it to complement Memoirs.



I read another account of a geisha by Sayo Masuda in Autobiography of a geisha. Her account didn’t paint a glamorous life of wealthy patrons and beautiful kimonos but a life forced into geisha for basic survival prior to the Second World War. She recalled that even the cat at the geisha house which she was sold to ate better than the village people where she came from. How do you escape poverty if not by embracing the one and only opportunity placed before you? This is the depressing narration of life as a geisha in the hot springs area.

All three books serve as introductory material of the Japanese geisha. It's time to turn my attention to something different.

2:04 PM 0 comments hmm?

Sometimes we lament why the worst of luck always befall upon ourselves. Sickness, perceived failures in life, financial worries, why-my-wardrobe-is-not-filled-with-pradas-but-pasar-malam-wears. There is a difference between those who lament about their misfortunes and not doing anything about it and those who lament and aspire to try make things less bleak. They call this, the passage of life. If you haven’t gone through any difficulties, than you haven’t live life at all. I agree and beg to differ as well. Adversities make us stronger, but even the mighty will crumble when hope is not within sight after numerous attempts of keeping up with hope. I blame it on fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of not knowing what to do next. Fear of acceptance. Fear of pain. Fear of dying. And then we read about other people who have it worse than ourselves. We feel better, or rather guilty of harping on our suddenly-minuscule problem. I wonder what does the person who has it the worst ever compares himself with? Perhaps he doesn’t compare at all but prays for a miracle instead. Hope resurfaces again that tomorrow will be better. Which brings me to ask, is hope real or imagined that we dupe ourselves into believing it’s real?

I have come to a conclusion that there are some things in life we can strive for to make life better e.g., being financially comfortable. But there are just some things that we can only run the good race and continue to live life until tomorrow never comes. The only thing left behind is a legacy of bravery and steadfastness in the memory of our loved ones. And a possible multimillion book/movie rights deal.

11:07 AM 0 comments hmm?

Tuesday, August 08, 2006

#2 Baybeats 2006, Esplanade Singapore

First time being in Singapore and for a reason - to attend Baybeats 2006, an annual gathering for local and international indie bands. It's quite a huge event and it's great that Singapore is a strong supporter of the arts scene. Ferns from Malaysia makes their first indie debut this year at Baybeats and I was excited to see them play live.





Ferns will be playing at the Starbucks series at Centrepoint, BU this 11 Aug 2006 at 8pm with two other bands. Do check them out if you have the time!

6:54 PM 0 comments hmm?

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

about physical attraction. Say no to boob implants.

humble. Egoistic people find falling in love tedious.

hard work. Be a couple and make love work.

about acceptance and respect. Freckles can be sexy.

Happy belated chinese valentine's! Since there are two 7th months this year, we should celebrate valentine's again on 31st August.

10:19 PM 0 comments hmm?