As Suanie Sees It

Tanggallll tiga puluh satuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu
Bulan lapannnnn lima puluh tujuhhhhhh
MERDEKA MERDEKA
Tetaplahhh merdekaaaaa
Ia pasti menjadi sejarahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!

Yes this is a Project Happy Malaysia-related post. Thing is, I’ve given this project more than a few days thought — of what I can/should/will write, and I am the first to admit that it ain’t easy.

It’s been nearly 5 years since I’ve left my home town to the hustle-bustle of KL. I only remember two incidents from my first week here — 1) I ordered chicken rice for lunch for 5 whole days because I didn’t know how to speak a word of Cantonese, and 2) I bought a useless Shin-Chan soft toy for RM10 from one of those charity-peddlers. Since then I’ve never eaten chicken rice for more than two days in a row, and I never again bought stuff I don’t need from anyone while I’m eating. How does that relate? No idea, just reminiscing.

I guess people-factor is the only important thing there is in whatever. Despite reports of crime and other bad shit, I’ve not personally experienced many bad things coming from other people — well except the other time when you-know-what and my LCD monitor was gone. But that was not a personal vendetta thing, shit happens and the same have happened to countless other people. I’m talking about the people you meet, the people you encounter. In fact the only bad memory I have of people is this Chinese taxi driver who turned sour-faced and talked to me rudely when he found out that my Mandarin is half-past six. You know, because I am Chinese so I must take pride in being Chinese and therefore my Mandarin or Cantonese or Hokkien or whatever things that define Chinese-ism must be solid, else I am shaming my heritage and ancestors, never mind that my IC states that I am Malaysian, not Chinese-Malaysian, not Malaysian-Chinese, just Malaysian. So he took it upon himself to berate me throughout the very unpleasant journey.

Other than that, there’s not much unpleasant incidents that stand out. Maybe because I am such a people-person when I want to be (ahem) and I can easily strike up conversations with random strangers. Of course there are the crooks and baddies, but you get the same sort of people everywhere you go. There will always be people who want to shortchange you, no matter where you are — KL, Singapore, Thailand, Australia, Africa, England, America, Timbuktu. Or even the people around you, if you happen to be rich and old and unfortunately produced scheming lying descendants.

But what makes Malaysia Malaysian? Forget about the stupid new gestures like salam-ing you with the hand over the heart (actually it’s the stomach). What else? You tell me — I am rather out-of-touch with what is happening over at the Ministry of Culture and what-not.

Is it the food? I read somewhere that the food defines the people. But that is too general, I think for these days you can get Malaysian food anywhere in the world. Apparently you can get better dimsum somewhere in the States, that is according to KY. When I brought my friends from Netherlands to eat satay, he went, “oh like we have never had satay before…” (don’t get me wrong, he’s a nice guy, it was just his usual semi-sarcastic manners at work).

We do have a wide variety of damn good local food. I don’t need to list them one by one, but you have the usual nasi lemak, char koey teow, roti canai normally included in our staple diet. You bring foreign friends around town and they ask you to bring them to sample local food, where do you go? Usually I am hard-pressed to answer, I really don’t know where to bring them. So I take them to Jalan Alor, to Petaling Street, to SS2 mamak, or McDonalds. Hehe.

Erm… how is this happy? I don’t know. I was talking about people, kan? Nemmain, deviation is the spice of blogs.

Hmm.. people… right now I am sitting at Starbucks looking at them. Got all sorts, different colours, all speaking one. That’s happy, isn’t it, to have people communicate… Well I’m happy, and it’s two more days to Merdeka and I don’t foresee my happiness being trodden anytime soon, so… Project Happy Merdeka ACCOMPLISHED!!!!!!

Yeah I cheated. Selamat Hari Merdeka, y’all.

I missed SOAP to tag along with Paul to test drive the Audi A4.

It is a damn nice car.

The Audi A4 we tested was a 2.0L; got auto and manual power combined, has a spanking built-in sound system, has lots and lots of buttons, has damn amazing sensors here and there, can go damn fast without the passengers feeling a thing, and is equipped with a spacious car boot to fit a Suan!

That’s really the extent of my knowledge about the car. Oh and it costs around RM280k… *shrivels and dies*

We drove around KL for a bit, then picked up Kiffer and Fireangel to go to Genting Highlands where we stopped halfway to have dinner.

After that it rained cats dogs and snakes. But going up to the top of the highland was not a problem at all! It was cruising all the way… at least for the passengers. Paul may feel differently because he was the one doing all the driving. But I’d like to think that we were good company…

We went round the First World hotel car park for ages and finally got a spot. Yay.

Rain stopped. Sat at Starbucks. Talked kok. Damn cold. Went back to car. Left carpark. Stopped by an open-air carpack. Took photos. Damn cold. Camwhored.

Came down. Kiffer puked, kesian. Went some place else to take photos of the car. I thought I saw a ghost. Might be just a really ugly person. Took photos. FA was model.

You’ll be able to see/read more when Paul posts his entry. Meanwhile here are three video clips to show you the prowess of the sound system. The tracks are Tiesto’s Love Comes Again, Traffic and Adagio For Strings. I heard new sounds in familiar songs. Totally pwning!

I damn love the car! Buy me one kthx.

Rather busy weekend coming up. You have a good one too.

Holey macaroni, check this out!

Jilted lover of kian-famous singer writes book on past relationship with kian-famous singer? (please note that I use the word ’singer’ liberally).

A first in Malaysia or not? Can masuk Malaysia Book of Records tak?

Should be a positive thing right? First comes the gossip, then comes the talent. After all aspiring superstars need assurance that the bitchiness is well and alive in Malaysia. Baru they want to be famous.

Ya it’s 2.40 am. I don’t know what I am talking about. But I know this for sure..

Mawisuxkthxbai.

KY wants to watch Snakes on a Plane because Samuel L. Jackson is just too cool. Horny found the coolest video clip on YouTube:

The following clip is mostly for Fireangel’s benefit.

I <3 YouTube.

Feeling rather down at the moment, but I’ve decided to spare you guys the deep dark gutters of my miserable grievances in my miserable existence. I’m humanitarian, me.

Merdeka Day is fast approaching, I’m waiting for Vincent’s initiative on what we are doing this year. Last year we had a fun time blogging in BM. My entry was Siapa Lebih Miang? which was rather well-received… ahem.

Speaking of Merdeka, I read an interesting article by Zainul Arifin titled When patriotism isn’t first instinct. He asks if displaying the flag is the only patriotic action we could muster these days. Seems that the younger generation do not relate to Independence Day, especially those who look upon it as only a holiday, aka time to rest at home, watch some tv, go to the various shopping malls, sleep till the following day…

At least that is what Merdeka Day means to me. I have not the least inclination to join the masses at the padang to re-enact Tunku Abdul Rahman’s joyous shouting decades ago. Don’t get me wrong, I love this country but I love me more. And I am of the belief that patriotism, like love is not a spoken thing, but more of a felt thing. Of course when the circumstances arise, I will like many of my fellow citizens rise to the occasion to defend this country… Someone slagged us off? Bla bla bla long argument, bla bla bla fu. But am I willing to die for this country? Hmmm… I’ll have to get back to you on that. Does that make me less patriotic? I don’t know. Would you do that? Would you die for your country?

I suppose the older generation would. For the past couple of years, I’ve hassled my grandmother often enough to get her account of life during the WW2 and the chaotic time before Merdeka. Tough did not even begin to describe it, she hinted more than once. She was upstairs in her father’s shophouse when the Jap soldiers killed her father downstairs. She was married off early to avoid being taken by them. My grandfather was ‘abducted’ and tortured by some overzealous people, no one knew where he was taken to, money was spent for information on his whereabouts and my great-grandmother brought two chickens to bail him out.

Things are definitely better. Just looking at opportunities for women; my grandmother is a housewife. During my mother’s time, you either become a housewife, a teacher or a nurse. Today, Malaysian women can CEO of whatevercompanyyoulike for all you want. I don’t know if it’s due to Merdeka or worldwide female liberation movement but I am happy that we changed with time, seeing that I can’t cook, I can’t teach and I can’t take care of myself, let alone taking care of other people.

Have goods will shine, no matter what your goods.

But come 31 August, I’ll still sleep in lah. It doesn’t necessarily make me less patriotic, because I know in my heart that we have a lot to love, to be thankful for and to celebrate. Just that I get sunstroke sometimes, you know…

Fuck la, my chair just broke. No mood liao.

Minor update:

Sms action with mom:

Me: evidence that I am too fat — my chair broke
Mom: HAHAHAHAHA.. poor chair.

Sigh with moms like these, who needs enemies?