As Suanie Sees It

If I really like a book, it will take me less than 3 days to finish reading it.

For example, Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code. Like everyone else, I later realised it was pretty much crap. But to give credit where credit is due, the book was gripping enough for me to finish it within 2 days.

I am a fast reader, even though I sometimes skip certain words and paragraphs and would go ‘huh what where’ when friends discuss a book. It’s a bad habit I’ve been unsuccessfully trying to change and finally I gave up. If I like the book enough I’ll read it again, more slowly the second (and third and fourth) time around.

Unless it’s Bill Clinton’s biography. I am sorry to report that it has been more than two months now, but I still have not reach the Monica Lewinsky story. Not even sure if it’s in it. It’s not that the book is uninteresting — I think Bill Clinton’s a charmer and I like his ideas on some things, but American politics can be draggy to read sometimes. Democrats, Republications, the entire US Senate and ruling procedures… it’s like being back in Form 6 and studying the Malaysian constitution and things you couldn’t care less about

My bro-in-law recommended that I read ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’. I saw that Sharizal has a copy and so I borrowed it. I hope to finish reading the book sometime next year

That’s why despite Sharon Bakar’s generous offer to lend me her copy of Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses, I am reluctant as for now because I know I will take a darn long time to read it.

For some reason, I’ve developed quite a fondness for Anderson Cooper. He’s so drop-dead gorgeous (to me), must be the grey/silver hair effect. I think I have a thing for older men, though Cooper isn’t that old. I read in some forums that even 16 year old girls and boys have crushes on him. No matter kids, you can love him all you like but at the end of the day, he’s coming home with me.

Hahaha, I wish

Anyway he wrote his memoirs, ‘Dispatches from the Edge: A Memoir of War, Disasters, and Survival’. MPH priced it at RM99.00. Kinokuniya is selling it at RM100.30. I am not about to spend over RM50 for a book, not even for Anderson Cooper so I guess I’ll have to wait for the paperback. Or rent it from Rent-A-Book. Or who reading this blog has a copy that I can borrow? :D

I’m re-reading Dale Carnegie’s self-help classic, ‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’ for the 20th time. I wish more people would read this book and apply its principles. Would make socialising a whole lot easier.

For the 1000th time, I don’t want to know everything there is to know about you, again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again x10000.

Phewww… that felt good.

No, not talking about anyone in particular.

I’ve read two of Adeline Yen Mah’s books, and they were about unwanted daughters. Quite sad, though I cannot relate to the stories. My parents could not be gender-biased even if they wanted to

Since my dad is the eldest son in his family, I always thought it was a pity that he did not have a son to continue the tradition, so to speak. Of course his younger brothers can and did have sons, but my dad is the eldest mah. You know how very traditional/conservative some Chinese families could be. In fact this preferential treatment is still very much in practise today. Ask your friends who have brothers, they may be able to tell you some stories.

But my dad begged to differ. He maintains that there is no difference between sons and daughters. His mother did not prefer sons over daughters, and he does not see any reasons why anyone should do that. Customs and traditions, yes but he thinks they are bollocks. Remember that my dad is a life-long atheist.

So while I cannot relate to Adeline Yen Mah’s sob story, I can very well empathise with her. It is utter bollocks to have fortune-tellers (unless you are in the profession itself, it is difficult to ascertain which fortune-teller is genuine or not) tell you that you must give away this and that son or daughter (but mostly daughters) because they bring you bad luck.

Nonsense. Bullshit. Horse crap. Ignorant dumb fucks who don’t deserve their children. Go jump into a river or three.

Hence books are great. You don’t need to go through some things to know that you have been very lucky, and there are many before you, and there will be many after you who will continue to suffer bad luck through no fault of their own. You didn’t ask to be born into this world, into a certain family, did you? So that wasn’t your fault, though I’m not saying that you should continue to wallow in self-pity, refusing to do something about it if you can. How? I don’t know, watch Oprah.

I didn’t need to be unwanted to know what it almost feels like, thanks to Adeline Mah’s powerful story-telling. In that sense, books are great. That was the point of me rambling on for so long.

I didn’t need to develop Neurofibromatosis Type II to have a glimpse of a patient’s life. Just buy Yvonne Foong’s “I’m not sick, just a bit unwell” for RM19.90 to read all about it.

I suspect the reason this post has such lack of direction is that I am so sleepy. Another working week starting tomorrow.

Jose Gonzalez’s Heartbeats music video below. Enjoy. Toodles.

I posted the invite to the drinkies thing late yesterday noon, so there were only me and FA (we were going to go there anyway), Kelvin and AP from a forum where I also posted an invite. Not bad lah hahaha… what, it’s not like I’m some award-winning actress

Beer casualties of the night — everyone as CARNEGIES NO LONGER SELL HOEGAARDEN DAMMIT!
Everything-fuck-up casualty of the night — FA. Sorry yeah

Thanks Kelvin!

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Me and FA were at 1U, gobbled up a quick lunch in order to make it for Yvonne Foong’s book launch.

Obviously no one was there, because as we found out the hard way, the book launch is TOMORROW.

Damn fucking noob sometimes, me.

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Then we went to a boutique and I tried on some ‘office’ clothes. One of the salesgirl handed me a long-sleeved dark blue raincoat thingy. I came out and exclaimed, “HF, I LOOK LIKE KEANU REEVES!”

That set off the entire shop laughing.

I didn’t know I was that funny.

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Jenn wrote a nice post, Money or respect?, go read it.

I think I am kinda failing at the TBTT campaign. Been quite busy and lazy to think of topics and angles to female empowerment, violence against women issues. Yah I know I can write one-liners and jokes or what not, but I kinda feel bad ‘cos this is something that I should be taking time out to do properly.

But then I am watching CSI: Miami now, and Horatio always respects women. So there!

A quick question to those who claim for mileage — do you claim for everything or do you make concessions? For example, you are supposed to go to Point A. However let’s say you are quite teh noob when it comes to .. uhm getting around. You end up in Point B, Point C, or even Point D before somehow managing to get to Point A.

In cases like the above, do you claim for Point A to Point D, or do you claim only for getting to and back from Point A? I am rather curious at how other people do it. For myself, I shave off the ‘getting lost’ part because I think it’s my and not the company’s problem if I don’t know the way? Someone change my perception?

By the way, the place I hate to go to the most is Glenmarie. Never could get it right.

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A quick question to those in the know — how do you KNOW how many people watch a specific TV show at a specific time on a specific channel? People like me channel-surf all the time, so how do you keep track to provide stats and figures to sell ad airtime at high or low prices? I’ve always always always wondered about this.

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June Tan needs help from bloggers and blog readers for her Master thesis, titled “Is blogging and effective tool for democratizing Malaysia?” In as much as I hate to have ‘z’ instead of ’s’ in demoratising, that’s her chosen spelling and she’s a really nice girl, so click here to answer a few questions.

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I’ve seen this on PPS a few times already, but I first watched it when Seb forwarded the URL to me in October. No harm in spreading the word, though I suppose most of us already know to death that models are air-brushed all the time. Seeing models and stars in real life and on print are two different matters. Trust meh

Click here to watch ‘Dove - Evolution’

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Yvonne Foong had her surgery, it was a major success She’s back in Malaysia and she invites you peps to attend the launch of her biography, “I’m not sick, just a bit unwell’ at:

MPH 1Utama / 3rd December 2006 / 3-4 pm; and
MPH Midvalley / 9th December 2006 / 3-4 pm.

If you can make it, why not head over to chat with Yvonne, wish her congrats and while you’re at it, buy her book There will be a Q&A session after the launch so if you have any burning questions you want to ask her, well here’s your chance lah.

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If you read The Sun yesterday, you’d have read the report on the esteemed MPs deciphering acronyms of DAP, MCA and MIC.

Bloody hell, eat full nothing to do is it?

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Happy birthday Pinky Me love you long time!

The reason I wrote the previous post was because I’d watched one of Oprah’s shows, where a ‘video girl’ came out to say that the girls you see in the hip-hop/rap videos are in actual fact very much disrespected. Won’t go into details, use your imagination

Yes Otto, it’s the industry indeed. Me, change the industry? I don’t think I can do that. Plus I would be a hypocrite because on many occasions, I do enjoy the music videos that I talked about. I don’t think I am that naive nor innocent, nor dreamy to know how the global entertainment industry works

Echo succinctly wrote,

I think its great that women now have the choice to “sing” and “dance” like the Pussycat Dolls, or heck even like Playboy Bunnies if that’s how they are so inclined, but I think it’s a sad day when that’s the only method that women are able to be valued in society.

On the big picture, it is rather sad that young kids these days are emulating the very idols they worship, values alike. So who takes control? The parents. But we know parents these days are too busy to teach their kids the very moral values they need. So who do they turn to? Big names, big stars, people on TV, magazines and those in public eye. When these stars fail, as they are bound to as they are only human, I only hope that kids are smart enough to make the right choice.

We really don’t need anymore sex tapes

You are quite forgiven if you think Kelis was talking about a proper milkshake. You know, like the ones in McDonalds. RM2.99 to make the kids and Suanie happy all day long. Okay, maybe 4 hours.

Then you put on your thinking cap and go, “Hang on, this is the musical era dominated by the likes of Beyonce and Pussycat Dolls and Sean Paul and Nelly and Snoop Dog. That’s not a proper milksha…. oh.”

When Aretha Franklin warbled about RESPECT some 40 years ago, I’m pretty sure she didn’t mean flashing your terribly-concealed jugs to get the attention and respect you want from the opposite sex. Or the same sex. Or green aliens with big friendly eyes. Or walruses.

I know it’s a demand and supply thing — sex sells, duh. We want more pretty faces. We want more boobs. We want more hourglass figures in skimpy clothing, preferably with pretty faces and nice boobs. The more we get, the more we want. It’s an insatiable, inexhaustible market that comes up with every possible angle to get your attention and hopefully, money.

Come up to Carlsberg, anyone?

Well, it’s business. Nothing wrong with business.

So when I write this topic, I may be biting off more than I can chew. Below is a conversation I had with my sis, just to give you a better idea of how difficult it is if you want to properly write about these kind of things.

Suanie: I am thinking of writing something about the sexuality movement today that supposedly empowers you as a female, using music videos as an example; the girls walking down the streets in mink coats and ignoring the men who whistle at them.
Sis: Ah… but then you are showing half your butt in the short shorts under the mink coat.
Suanie: Precisely.
Sis: I think it’s damn stupid. But I think they have no choice. Black women have to have so much attitude because all the black men have so much attitude.
Suanie: Yeah but why men don’t have to show their titties? People like Melissa Etheridge, no need to show anything.
Sis: Because they are ugly fucks with ugly titties hehehe. Melissa Etheridge probably doesn’t get paid as much in endorsements.
Suanie: But she gets respect. Cannot buy respect.
Sis: Yeah but respect’s not going to pay for your bling bling. But then she probably doesn’t wear much bling bling, doesn’t go with her look.

Have to think of this and that factors, that and this influences.

But my main point is, if they want to sing about being a survivor and I get all the boys in the yard and come push my buttons I dictate when and where and respect me biatch or I shove muh bling bling up uranus, the conflicting messages between the lyrics and images make it quite hard to take them seriously.

So at the end of the day, female empowerment konon.

Feel free to expound on this topic lah. Got to sleep now but will talk about it more in comments, that is if someone comments on it first lah.