The Memoirs of War

I just get back from my short journey to down south, Singapore for some Christmas celebration observation last 26th December. The trip went very well, although there is nothing much to elaborate about Singapore since the familiarity with Malaysia, in landscape and other thing. Back in my shore and my senses was awaken by two shocking news: the passing of Yamtuan Besar Negeri Sembilan and the onslaught of Palestinians by Israelis latest bombing on Gaza.

During the 5 hours bus journey from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore and on the way back, I managed to read almost the whole book (except the epilogue) of my latest reading food, Dispatches from The Edge: A Memoir of War, Disasters and Survivals by Anderson Cooper. While my emotion was touched, and my tears was flowing down my cheek, I just simply cannot tolerate war. Disasters is unpredictable (but some do) and you cannot do anything about it as it comes naturally, but war is clearly the definition of human craziness. I remember recalling the pictures of Pol Pot inhumanity in Cambodia during my primary school mission to Cambodia for some Muslim charity movement back in my school days. Being just nine years old kid, I was not ready for any barbaric torture to human being, ironically done by human. Reading Anderson Cooper's piece back on the bus, I realize I still not ready yet. And I believe everyone's out there as well.

Can you imagine the portrait of Palestinian kids and women in the midst of unstoppable bombings? Can you manage to live with that? The world has seen that terrorism is not the answer. People's dying out there. If the authority can trying their best to counter terrorism by preventing liquids on airplane, by doing nude check on airports and so many other ridiculous things, please stop the bombs on Palestinians. They deserve to live peacefully and happily like any other human race on Earth. The news reported that thousands have been killed, and more to come. What do you expect when you bombarded the city with tonnes of bombs and explosives, and people will stay safe?

Ironically, Israel starts to send medical supplies and the so-called helps to the people of Gaza with message sounds like 'Our bombs are not intended on public, but the terrorist'. Spare me some laugh. If the Hamas so-called terrorist is the main reason, then just point your focus to the suspected person. Why need the bombs and violence? If terrorism has any need to be countered by terrorism act, then I can see that this thing is going nowhere.

Dr.Mohd Asri has urge everyone around the world to stand your thoughts and reflect your ideas to stop the violence in Middle East. For God's sake, not just by being Muslim, but for everyone's right to live in this Mother Earth peacefully and happily, the bombing has to be stopped.

Life and How To Survive On It by Adrian Tan

I found this from one of my friend in her Facebook note and it totally move me inside out. I haven't heard any good and moving speeches for so long (except from Barack Obama or Tun Dr. Mahathir), so this one is one good motivational piece to think about.

This speech is by Adrian Tan, a Singaporean and a litigator, during Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University graduation ceremony. Read this until the end, relate it to your life and think.

It's going to be a bit lengthy but believe me it's a worth read.

Happy Friday y'all.

More info about Adrian Tan is here.

Life and How to Survive It

I must say thank you to the faculty and staff of the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information for inviting me to give your convocation address. It’s a wonderful honour and a privilege for me to speak here for ten minutes without fear of contradiction, defamation or retaliation. I say this as a Singaporean and more so as a husband.

My wife is a wonderful person and perfect in every way except one. She is the editor of a magazine. She corrects people for a living. She has honed her expert skills over a quarter of a century, mostly by practising at home during conversations between her and me.

On the other hand, I am a litigator. Essentially, I spend my day telling people how wrong they are. I make my living being disagreeable.

Nevertheless, there is perfect harmony in our matrimonial home. That is because when an editor and a litigator have an argument, the one who triumphs is always the wife.

And so I want to start by giving one piece of advice to the men: when you’ve already won her heart, you don’t need to win every argument.

Marriage is considered one milestone of life. Some of you may already be married. Some of you may never be married. Some of you will be married. Some of you will enjoy the experience so much, you will be married many, many times. Good for you.

The next big milestone in your life is today: your graduation. The end of education. You’re done learning.

You’ve probably been told the big lie that “Learning is a lifelong process” and that therefore you will continue studying and taking masters’ degrees and doctorates and professorships and so on. You know the sort of people who tell you that? Teachers. Don’t you think there is some measure of conflict of interest? They are in the business of learning, after all. Where would they be without you? They need you to be repeat customers.

The good news is that they’re wrong.

The bad news is that you don’t need further education because your entire life is over. It is gone. That may come as a shock to some of you. You’re in your teens or early twenties. People may tell you that you will live to be 70, 80, 90 years old. That is your life expectancy.

I love that term: life expectancy. We all understand the term to mean
the average life span of a group of people. But I’m here to talk about a bigger idea, which is what you expect from your life.

You may be very happy to know that Singapore is currently ranked as the country with the third highest life expectancy. We are behind Andorra and Japan, and tied with San Marino. It seems quite clear why people in those countries, and ours, live so long. We share one thing in common: our football teams are all hopeless. There’s very little danger of any of our citizens having their pulses raised by watching us play in the World Cup. Spectators are more likely to be lulled into a gentle and
restful nap.

Singaporeans have a life expectancy of 81.8 years. Singapore men live to an average of 79.21 years, while Singapore women live more than five years longer, probably to take into account the additional time they need to spend in the bathroom.

So here you are, in your twenties, thinking that you’ll have another 40 years to go. Four decades in which to live long and prosper.

Bad news. Read the papers. There are people dropping dead when they’re 50, 40, 30 years old. Or quite possibly just after finishing their convocation. They would be very disappointed that they didn’t meet their life expectancy.

I’m here to tell you this. Forget about your life expectancy.

After all, it’s calculated based on an average. And you never, ever want to expect being average.

Revisit those expectations. You might be looking forward to working, falling in love, marrying, raising a family. You are told that, as graduates, you should expect to find a job paying so much, where your hours are so much, where your responsibilities are so much.

That is what is expected of you. And if you live up to it, it will be an awful waste.

If you expect that, you will be limiting yourself. You will be living your life according to boundaries set by average people. I have nothing against average people. But no one should aspire to be them. And you don’t need years of education by the best minds in Singapore to prepare you to be average.

What you should prepare for is mess. Life’s a mess. You are not entitled to expect anything from it. Life is not fair. Everything does not balance out in the end. Life happens, and you have no control over it. Good and bad things happen to you day by day, hour by hour, moment by moment. Your degree is a poor armour against fate.

Don’t expect anything. Erase all life expectancies. Just live. Your life is over as of today. At this point in time, you have grown as tall as you will ever be, you are physically the fittest you will ever be in your entire life and you are probably looking the best that you will ever look. This is as good as it gets. It is all downhill from here. Or up. No one knows.

What does this mean for you? It is good that your life is over.

Since your life is over, you are free. Let me tell you the many wonderful things that you can do when you are free.

The most important is this: do not work.

Work is anything that you are compelled to do. By its very nature, it is undesirable.

Work kills. The Japanese have a term “Karoshi”, which means death from overwork. That's the most dramatic form of how work can kill. But it can also kill you in more subtle ways. If you work, then day by day, bit by bit, your soul is chipped away, disintegrating until there’s nothing left. A rock has been ground into sand and dust.

There's a common misconception that work is necessary. You will meet people working at miserable jobs. They tell you they are “making a living”. No, they’re not. They’re dying, frittering away their fast-extinguishing lives doing things which are, at best, meaningless and, at worst, harmful.

People will tell you that work ennobles you, that work lends you a certain dignity. Work makes you free. The slogan "Arbeit macht frei" was placed at the entrances to a number of Nazi concentration camps. Utter nonsense.

Do not waste the vast majority of your life doing something you hate so that you can spend the small remainder sliver of your life in modest comfort. You may never reach that end anyway.

Resist the temptation to get a job. Instead, play. Find something you enjoy doing. Do it. Over and over again. You will become good at it for two reasons: you like it, and you do it often. Soon, that will have value in itself.

I like arguing, and I love language. So, I became a litigator. I enjoy it and I would do it for free. If I didn't do that, I would've been in some other type of work that still involved writing fiction – probably a sports journalist.

So what should you do? You will find your own niche. I don’t imagine you will need to look very hard. By this time in your life, you will have a very good idea of what you will want to do. In fact, I’ll go further and say the ideal situation would be that you will not be able to stop yourself pursuing your passions. By this time you should know what your obsessions are. If you enjoy showing off your knowledge and feeling superior, you might become a teacher.

Find that pursuit that will energise you, consume you, become an obsession. Each day, you must rise with a restless enthusiasm. If you don’t, you are working.

Most of you will end up in activities which involve communication. To those of you I have a second message: be wary of the truth.

I’m not asking you to speak it, or write it, for there are times when it is dangerous or impossible to do those things. The truth has a great capacity to offend and injure, and you will find that the closer you are to someone, the more care you must take to disguise or even conceal the truth. Often, there is great virtue in being evasive, or equivocating. There is also great skill. Any child can blurt out the truth, without thought to the consequences. It takes great maturity to appreciate the value of silence.

In order to be wary of the truth, you must first know it. That requires great frankness to yourself. Never fool the person in the mirror.

I have told you that your life is over, that you should not work, and that you should avoid telling the truth. I now say this to you: be hated.

It's not as easy as it sounds. Do you know anyone who hates you? Yet every great figure who has contributed to the human race has been hated, not just by one person, but often by a great many.

That hatred is so strong it has caused those great figures to be shunned, abused, murdered and in one famous instance, nailed to a cross.

One does not have to be evil to be hated. In fact, it’s often the case that one is hated precisely because one is trying to do right by one’s own convictions. It is far too easy to be liked, one merely has to be accommodating and hold no strong convictions. Then one will gravitate towards the centre and settle into the average. That cannot be your role. There are a great many bad people in the world, and if you are not offending them, you must be bad yourself. Popularity is a sure sign that you are doing something wrong.

The other side of the coin is this: fall in love.

I didn't say “be loved”. That requires too much compromise. If one changes one's looks, personality and values, one can be loved by anyone.

Rather, I exhort you to love another human being. It may seem odd for me to tell you this. You may expect it to happen naturally, without deliberation. That is false. Modern society is anti-love. We’ve taken a microscope to everyone to bring out their flaws and shortcomings. It far easier to find a reason not to love someone, than otherwise. Rejection requires only one reason. Love requires complete acceptance. It is hard work – the only kind of work that I find palatable.

Loving someone has great benefits. There is admiration, learning, attraction and something which, for the want of a better word, we call happiness. In loving someone, we become inspired to better ourselves in every way. We learn the truth worthlessness of material things. We celebrate being human. Loving is good for the soul.

Loving someone is therefore very important, and it is also important to choose the right person. Despite popular culture, love doesn’t happen by chance, at first sight, across a crowded dance floor. It grows slowly, sinking roots first before branching and blossoming. It is not a silly weed, but a mighty tree that weathers every storm.

You will find, that when you have someone to love, that the face is less important than the brain, and the body is less important than the heart. You will also find that it is no great tragedy if your love is not reciprocated. You are not doing it to be loved back. Its value is to inspire you.

Finally, you will find that there is no half-measure when it comes to loving someone. You either don't, or you do with every cell in your body, completely and utterly, without reservation or apology. It consumes you, and you are reborn, all the better for it.

Don't work. Avoid telling the truth. Be hated. Love someone.

You're going to have a busy life. Thank goodness there's no life expectancy.

What Perfume Do You Wear, Mister?

I was surfing the web and browsing through some blogs and columns before my eyes settled down on one topics, the body odor or BO. Having the experience of riding the train to commute to work everyday, I must say that BO plays an important role in your self image.

One of my college mate, fQrl blog about BO and daily KL commuters life in his blog, which I found amusing and annoyingly true. Through out my observation on Malaysian men (from friends, family and acquaintances), there are few types of men when it comes to perfume:

1-The metrosexual type: Those who dare to invest in perfume, and look and smell good all the time, including after bed image. Gosh, do we have Beckham in our shores? The metros tend to have different type of perfumes, suits with different situation and function.

2-The homosexual type: While homosexuality and metrosexuality is categorized in two different entity (homo is sexually attracted to same sex, while metrosexual more towards image and well-groomed mens), but I can see both are relatable. The homos somehow I think is likely to experiment more in fragrances, as they can wear ladies perfumes to experiment with (which somehow I think the metros confined within mens fragrances, just my opinion).

3-The heterosexual type: I can see this category is subdivided into few others small groups of people. But most of them is either, not wearing perfume at all, not even a deodarant and minyak attar (this type of people who normally has BO and annoys fellow commuters and their friend without even realize it). On the other hand, there are people from this group who manages to stand out from the rest and at least use one type of perfume, from one specific brand and use it for the dear whole life. This type of men has potential to be metros, just they need sort of motivation (financially etc) to be so.

Ehem, I am better not putting myself under which category.

I was also stumbled across a site of Pheromons Institute, who sells human pheromons specifically to attracts mens or womens when you are using it. Okay, this is interesting. Attracts people just by natural odor, without you even know what kind of smell it is. Dare to give it a try?

Islamic Yoga

I was reading Rantings By Marina Mahathir, and I am so excited to see that this thing is actually existed in this world. All this while, we have been so offensive towards our own Majlis Fatwa, shutting our ears and pointing fingers, but as what I always said, never say no just yet.

Yes, Egypt does have Islamic version of yoga. Well, I do not specifically know what does Islamic version of yoga all about, but I guess it might change the philosophical side of Hinduism to more Islamic thoughts. For me, I am just interested in doing the pose, not the philosophical side of any kind of exercise (my Islamic faith alone would do, no need additional attributes of philosophy).

Since the yoga banned issue by Majlis Fatwa, I have received quite a few emails which I found a bit offensive. Most of them are just joke and prank email about 'What would Majlis Fatwa ban after yoga'. I am somehow feel a bit offended by this kind of so-called joke, it is not a joke for me after all. Even for yoga practitioner like me, it is very important that I am not against the fatwa or Majlis Fatwa itself. I am just feel that the exercise I have been practicing all this while is just in a physical form of exercise and I never chants or meditate in a Hinduism way, so I just keep doing it physically and not philosophically. Thus, I need to stress out that please respect Majlis Fatwa on whatever they decide and try to guide you, whether you are Muslim or not (especially fellow Muslims, obviously).

So what did I do? I read them at an glance and delete the email right away. If any of my friend or acquiantance read this post, please be informed that I do not want entertain any kind of similar email with that.

I need to continue studying, my exam is this Sunday, 7th December. Wish me luck, fellas.

40 Tips for Better Life

I know it has been too late to blog this piece out, because these are for 2008 (from what they say). But hey come on, better life is not specifically for 2008. It definitely can be applied for the dear of whole lifetime.

1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.

2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.

3. Buy a DVR and tape your late night shows and get more sleep.

4. When you wake up in the morning complete the following statement, ‘My purpose is to __________ today.’

5. Live with the 3 E’s — Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.

6. Play more games and read more books than you did in 2007.

7. Make time to practice meditation, and prayer. They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives.

8. Spend time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of 6.

9. Dream more while you are awake.

10. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.

11. Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, wild Alaskan salmon, broccoli, almonds & walnuts.

12. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

13. Clear clutter from your house, your car, your desk and let new and flowing energy into your life.

14. Don’t waste your precious energy on gossip, OR issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

15. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

16. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card.

17. Smile and laugh more. It will keep the nagative blues away.

18. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.

19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

20. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

21. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

22. Make peace with your past so it won’t spoil the present.

23. Don’t compare your life to others’. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

24. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: ‘In five years, will this matter?’

26. Forgive everyone for everything.

27. What other people think of you is none of your business.

28. Remember God heals everything.

29. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

30. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

31. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.

32. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

33. The best is yet to come.

34. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

35. Do the right thing!

36. Call your family often.

37. Each night before you go to bed complete the following statements: I am thankful for _______. Today I accomplished ____.

38. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.

39. Enjoy the ride. Remember this is not Disney World and you certainly don’t want a fast pass. You only have one ride through life so make the most of it and enjoy the ride.

40. Laugh when you can, apologize when you should, and let go of what you can’t change.

Some of the things sounds yoga-ish, but I strongly believe it is safe for us Muslims. Cheers for a better life, folks!

Yohji Yamamoto or Onitsuka Tiger?

I have been showering this blog with a stream of feeling to blog recently. I just came back from Jakarta, Indonesia for a short holiday trip with family and to attend my uncle wedding ceremony last Sunday. Still not fully recovered from the dust and polluted air of Jakarta, I am back here to spill some bollocks.

I will blog about Jakarta later, but before that..

I was in Senayan City Shopping Mall in Senayan, Jakarta which is located near my hotel where I stayed. And I managed to do window shopping (because as usual, I am dead broke) and found myself astonishingly glaring at few Yohji Yamamoto silver men sneakers to put into my wannabes list.

But I was actually looking for white shoes and a pair of white Onitsuka Tiger catch my attention too.

Yohji Yamamoto is too pricey, but they looks fantabulous. Silver is too hard for me to say no. Onitsuka Tiger on the other hand, is a must have.

Here I am, stuck between two shoes.

Hey where is my paycheque again?

The Fatwa on Yoga Ban in Malaysia

I am going to post this entry bilingually, in Malay and English.

Fatwa Council says yoga with worshipping, chanting is prohibited (updated)
By MAZWIN NIK ANIS

Fatwa Council says yoga with worshipping, chanting is prohibited

PUTRAJAYA: The National Fatwa council has declared that the yoga practice which involves three elements of physical movements, worshipping and chanting as haram (prohibited) in Islam.

Its chairman Datuk Dr Abdul Shukor Husin said although merely doing the physical movements of yoga minus the worshipping and chanting might not be wrong in the eyes of the religion, it should be avoided as “doing one would lead to another”.

He said yoga has been practised by the Hindu community for thousands of years and incorporates physical and religious elements and chants and worshipping, with the aim at “being one with God”.

“Because of this, we believe that it is inappropriate for Muslims to do yoga and the council has declared that practising yoga when it comes all together with the three elements as haram.

“We discourage Muslims to do yoga as a form of exercise because it will ultimately lead to religious worshipping and chanting which is against Islam.

“In Islam, one must not do things which can erode one’s aqidah or faith. Doing yoga, even just the physical movements is a step towards an erosion of one’s faith in the religion, hence Muslims should avoid it,” he told a press conference.

He added that the council had come up with an edict on yoga as the matter was brought up to them following growing concerns whether it would be against the religion if Muslims do the exercise.

Recently, a lecturer Prof Zakaria Stapa of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Islamic Studies Centre advised Muslims who had taken up yoga to stop practising it for fear that they could deviate from the teachings of Islam.

Shukor said the declaration of yoga as haram was done after serious and indepth discussions were made by the council members who met last month.

He added after studying the matter, including the history and purpose of yoga where the ultimate aim was to “be one with God”, the council decided that it was inappropriate for Muslims as it could affect one’s faith.

Asked if the decision would draw flak within the Malaysian community, including the non-Muslims, he said the ruling was only meant for Muslims and the rest were free to practise yoga.

“The fatwa (edict) is meant solely for the Muslims to follow. The non-Muslims need not question or debate about this because they are free to do whatever they wish. It is the Muslims who have to adhere to this,” he added.

Shukor said once the edict was gazetted, it would be up to the state governments on how they plan to implement and enforce the ruling as religious affairs come under its purview.

“Malaysia is not the only country which declare yoga as haram in Islam. Singapore and Egypt have come out with the same edict as well,” he said.

He said Muslims must be careful as to not do things which could erode their faith, adding the religion strongly advocates “prevention is better than cure”.

“There are many other forms of exercise that Muslims can partake especially when the religion promotes healthy living and lifestyle. Performing prayers for example is a good form of exercise,” he said.

I am one of yoga practitioner (well not an avid one, but I have the experience) and I started early of this year and I enjoy it very much. But unfortunately, I had to stop practicing yoga for a while, because of certain reason. Throughout my experience in practicing yoga, I never had any chants, mantras or Hinduism philosophy thought in any class I attended. All we did just stretching and breathing.

It is very clear and undeniable that yoga(Wiki:click) has its root from Hinduism. But to specifically say modern yoga practice is directly connecting to Hinduism, I am beg to differ. I am not here to object the decision of Majlis Fatwa Kebangsaan Malaysia (nanti aku dituduh murtad and melanggar hukum Allah plak, nauzubillah), but I believe every fatwas worth debates and intellectual, logical justification.

My concerns include:
1-Have the council check on modern yoga classes nowadays? In fitness centre or any modern yoga studio to be specific? I am pretty sure that there's no mantras, karmas or whatsoever or the so-called 'unification with God' is taught in class. Yoga class in Hindus temple is not considered as modern yoga classes, because I believe modern people who are not Hindus (especially Muslims) will not going to such classes (my basic assumption).

2-If yoga is prohibited, then what about taichi, qigong and other form of exercise which I believe has some roots of non-Islamic faith?

3-I have always look to Mufti Perlis, Dr. Asri Zainul Abidin for Islamic view and thoughts. He is one of the muftis (I believe he still is, although he has submitted the resignation letter), thus I believe he is part of Majlis Fatwa Kebangsaan and his opinion is matters. I am totally agree about his view of this yoga-banned fatwa.

4-They said Singapore and Egypt has banned yoga as well. I do not found this helping at all. Does that mean that Muslim can practice yoga when they are not in these countries (Egypt, Singapore and Malaysia)?

5-If faith and aqidah(Wiki:click) is the issue, why programs about mystical behavior like susuk(Wiki:click), bomohs etc. which definitely more faith and aqidah eroding in the mainstream media is not prohibited?

Just my two cents from my humble opinion.

Further reading about this issue, checkout:
Yoga Instructor Diaries
RantingsbyMM

Sawasdee Bangkok - Pattaya 2008

Me and my fellow friends has been planning to go backpacking to Thailand since God knows when. And the dream has been materialized last October, finally. So here is my Bangkok-Pattaya report, based on my observations, comments and experiences throughout the trip.

We made it from Bangkok on 24th October and managed to come back in one piece on 27th October. Apart from unstable political situation in Thailand (especially in Bangkok), we came in to conclusion that the trip must be go on since the flight ticket cannot be rerouted and refunded.

Contrary to popular belief, there's more to discover in Thailand than a-go-go bars, prostitution and fucking elephant.

For example:

1. Horrendous traffic problem in the heart of Bangkok

2.Awesome and tasty street delicacies, from sweets to deep fried bugs.

3. Convenience stores and ATM bank are everywhere.

4. Soothing and relaxing body massage.

5. Stuff in pink.

6. Forget the tuk-tuk. Opt for the huge and spacey Skytrain. Enjoy yourself with cool commercial break every now and then.

7. Surprisingly efficient transportation, for example inter-city bus service.

8. The jeep is the national car.

9. The most fabulous dessert on earth, Mango with sticky rice.

10. Hard Rock Hotel Pattaya Weekend Night Foam party. Rocks.

11. The train station name that is actually pronounced in a different way. Thai is a tonal language, don't expect you know the right way to pronounce anything unless you heard the local says it first (example: Ratchadamri and Nana Station).

12. Awesome cafe in the middle of heated and cramped Chatuchak Sunday Market. They have this Latin and cozy ambient with to die for deco.

13. Thai coconut drink in street stall. A must in hot and boiling day.

14. Muslim food stall in clock tower of Chatuchak Sunday Market. Definitely a must try, especially for Muslim travellers like me who always very strict in the food rule. Try the chicken briyani, infamous tomyam, and roasted beef slice. Yummy. I even drooling when writing this.

15. If you're traveling backpacking way and very careful about hygiene issues, go Lub D. They're the coolest hangout pad for backpackers ever existed on this Earth.

16. Shopping, shopping, shopping. Higher end crowd, go Ratchaprasong area, where Siam Paragon, MBK, and Siam Centre located. It is almost impossible to finish loitering around this area in one day.

17. Muslim Prayer Room is actually available in Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok. And surprisingly it is more comfortable and huge compared to the one in Kuala Lumpur. Ironic, it is.

18. I didn't have enough spare time to go to Jim Thompson house, which is near to my place of stay in Bangkok, but if you do have spare time, do not forget to visit the famous house of Thai silk.

19. Soi Patpong, Silom and Thaniya area. A bit dodgy image since it is the red light district of Bangkok, but believe me they are surprisingly safe. Go Patpong if you're into a-go-go girls, Silom for gay crowd and Thaniya is for Japanese crowd. It is the mini Shinjuku of Bangkok.

20. If you stay in Lub D, relax yourself in the lounge area, with LCD flat TV and collections of DVD. And yes, its time to mingle with fellow smelly backpackers.

21. Don't waste your time doing boutique hopping from Dolce & Gabbana to Louis Vuitton if you looks like someone who just came back from night market (flip-flops, straw hat, shorts etc.) because the staff is not as friendly as the one in KL and Tokyo.

22. Go buy Thai Silk Boxers with Chinese character prints. They're fucking good.

23. And go buy the funky unisex underwear in Chatuchak Sunday Market. They're available in different colors and funky Paul Smith kinda like design. And they're so cheap you feel like buying a dozens for your relative back home.

There's so much to tell about this great city. But what I missed the most is the people. Everything about Thai, the sweet people, funny-sounded but polite language, awesome food and great warm welcome is something we do not normally find in Malaysia, but I believe we're not that far. Maybe better at certain aspect.

The Change We Hope For

I know it is a bit late for this, but I can't resist myself from talking about it. Everyone in this world know about this, and of course, everyone talks about it. The United States of America finally has an African-American elected president for the first time. It is certainly a big thing for America, since racism is a long debated issue, and the new elected president, Barack Hussein Obama II is not white.

It has been a long journey for him, Senator Barack Obama, who represents Illinois, but born in Hawaii. It also has seen a tough competition from Senator John McCain from Arizona, who is more experienced since he used to serve for the army during Vietnam War. But Obama managed to win the vote of people of America, with a history of landslide victory, by winning some of the states that known to side with Republican before.

Winning the US Presidential Election does mean a lot of things for the one who wins. The President of US has the full power and authority to change the landscape and the history of the world. By that means Obama able to get the votes from the people because he tackles major issues facing the people of America like Iraq War, subprime credit slump, economic uncertainties, disciminacy against gay and lesbian, renewable energy, climate change and many more.

For us living on the other side of America, we do hope for the change to come soon. The change is not just having the first African-American president who has quite a global family and used to live in Jakarta during his childhood but also it need to be followed by actions, following the campaign that has been promised. It is indeed not an easy road, nor something we can predict in a click of time. But the need to give our mother Earth, the people who lives in this planet a fair chance to improve the critical situation is crucial. We have been living in issues like war, poverty, global warming, disciminacies, energy sustainability, and lots more for so long, let alone with the hassles of war against terrorism after September 11. It looks like just a simple saying, 'Make this world a better planet to live in' but it is actually not that easy. After a long wait, we are so desperate to see the better change to come.

Three Malaysian Students Get Panasonic Scholarship To Study In Japan - from Bernama.com

Three Malaysian Students Get Panasonic Scholarship To Study In Japan

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 6 (Bernama) -- Three Malaysian students were today awarded the Panasonic scholarships to pursue postgraduate studies in Japan beginning April next year.

Japanese Ambassador in Malaysia Masahiko Horie said the programme provided opportunities for excellent students from Asian countries to do research at universities in Japan as well as enable them to contribute for the development of their respective countries.

"I hope these three students will study hard and get good results and at the same time introduce their culture to the people in Japan," he said at the presentation of the scholarships to the affected students here today.

He said the programme also helped in fostering better relations between Malaysia and Japan and an opportunity for Malaysian students to learn more about Japanese culture.

"This programme offers not only scholarship, but also a lot of organised opportunities for students to communicate and mingle with the Japanese people throughout their stay in Japan," he added.

The three students awarded the scholarships are Muhammad Firdaus Anuar, of Universiti Tenaga Nasional, OOi Poh Sien (Universiti Teknologi Malaysia) and Pua Chern Hwui (Nottingham Trent University).

Firdaus will pursue studies in Sustainability Science at Tokyo University, Ooi in Biotechnology at Nagoya University, while Pua will take up System Design at the Tokyo Metropolitan University.

Also present at the function was International Trade and Industry Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

-- BERNAMA

Oh, I don't mean to boast this thing, but I think it is a pretty normal reaction when you get featured in the mainstream media. This is not my first time dealing with reporters, as I got experience when I was featured in The Star for an article about Shell Gourami Business Challenge in Langkawi, 3 years back. Mind you that it is not easy to confront bunch of reporters and tackling their tricky questions, but hey, at least I have tried. Some of weird questions thrown out to me during the interview are:

1. Can you tell me your CGPA? What is your current salary? Don't you feel regret to resign your job because of this Masters thingie?

2. Do you have handicapped siblings? Or your parents, perhaps? Our readers like this kind of stuff.

I must say that at certain point, I did feel insulted, but I think being calm helps you to control the situation much better. Talking about anger management.

Still have dream on becoming celebrity? No, thanks.

Updates and Snippets

It's been a while since Eid, and I know, there is too much to report right now. Let's have some snippets on updates that will follow (sooner or later, let's hope):

1. The Fatwa Council of Malaysia is banning yoga for Muslims. For more info, click here

2. I was away to Bangkok (and Pattaya), Thailand for backpacking trip and it was awesome.

3. I had submitted my application to University of Tokyo for next year admission of research student.

4. I was asked to give an acceptance speech tomorrow in front of Minister of International Trade and Industry, YB Tan Sri Muhyidin Yassin and fellow honorable guests from Japan for Panasonic Scholarship Award Ceremony. Yes, I am currently nervous like hell, and yes, I hate public speaking THAT much (but I'm trying to improve that)

5. I read Hanis Zalikha's blog and ready to list down my 'senarai kesyukuran' (list of grateful things?). And true, I am ready to blog in Malay. Be careful, be very careful.

6. I am so interested to blog more about sustainability and climate change (since I am going to be seriously involved in that field starting next year), but hold on, I am preparing before pulling it full throttle.

7. I am also interested to blog about The United States Presidential Election, but I do not know whether I have sufficient info for that matter.

8. So in a nutshell, give me time to read and be ready for the next post. We'll take it from there.

Till then.

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri

Hari Raya Puasa
Originally uploaded by Lye Hock.

I was trying to get pictures of ketupat and rendang from Flickr public database but seems no one would let their picture public for blog publishing. This is only what I got, a picture of ketupat lightings in The Curve, Damansara.

Aidilfitri (or sometime known as Eid-ul-Fitr, Hari Raya, Lebaran etc.) is all about celebrating the victory of Ramadhan, which happens a month before. It should be merry, full of colors, smiles and happiness. But unfortunately when it comes to celebrating Aidilfitri in Malaysia, most of the song I heard are melancholics. Broken hearts. Anak perantau tak dapat balik beraya. Sedih. Duka Nestapa. I always believe Aidilfitri should not be celebrated this way.

But anyway, just have fun folks. Some say Aidilfitri is for kids and not adults any longer (since the kids getting the money, and the working adults giving), but I believe the spirit is still there.

Wishing all my friends Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri dan Maaf Zahir dan Batin, wherever you are, London, Tokyo or anywhere else. Wish you a great celebration of Aidilfitri.

Will be away for a week. See you again after Raya.

Not Another Hari Raya Wishes

Having full attempt of eating like crazy in my company's Iftar gathering at Renaissance Hotel Kuala Lumpur yesterday, but as usual, my petite stomach capacity won't make it. Ended up eating most of the buffet dishes but with smaller amount, so I still take it as my personal victory.

Got my festival bonus cheque yesterday and not, I am not rich yet. It is just a little help to ease my Raya budget burden and to support a fracture pieces of my Bangkok trip expenses. Not even fulfilling my wish list.

But anyway, thank you very much Boss.

I have got few comments and feedbacks regarding my new wish list entry. Most of them positive anyway. Some recommends Sigma DP-1 as another options. But I am not too keen with the model since brand is not so well-known here and a bit pricey. But the picture quality taken by this gadget is certainly superb.

The verdict: Panasonic Lumix LX-3 wins.

I am currently listening to old, nostalgic tunes of Gloria Estefan, Dionne Warwick, Linda Ronstadt and Imelda Papin. Ahh, the good old days. In my reading list is A Backpack and A Bit of Luck by Zhang Su Li. And also Kodansha Kanji Learner's Dictionary. I have been spending too much time with Kanji lately. Hoping to finish the fiction sooner so that I can buy new books. In my mind I have Murakami Haruki's Norwegian Wood, Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Love in The Time of Cholera and some economic craps.

On another note, I am frustrated. Frustrated that my DVD of Iryu 2: Team Medical Dragon cannot be loaded to my DVD player. Not even my Macbook can play it. I just hooked up with the stories lately and really eager to know what happen next. Gotta go to get a replacement after work since I really need to know what happen to Asada Ryutaro and marvellous surgery team.

This suppose to be a Raya entry but I reserve it for a few more days. Wait folks.

-------------------
Update-25.09.2008

Return my problem DVD to Hiro yesterday after work and get a new one from different distributor. This one had no problem, but unfortunately I cannot watch episode 6 and 7. Too lazy and too tired to go there again for the same purpose. Straight away continue to Episode 8 and 9. Going to watch episode 10 today. Can't hardly wait. That drama is so damn good. I'm almost hooked up.

My Japanese class for JLPT 3 will start commenced this Saturday. Sigh. I am in desperate state of going to dermatologist. My allergic issue is killing me.

Ato de, folks...
-------------------------

My New Wishlist Entry: Panasonic Lumix DMC LX-3

Lumix LX3 Assessories
Originally uploaded by Nokton.

I know I have been drooling for so many other things, but this one is simply irresistible. While I am still grateful and absolutely still in love with my baby Casio Exilim S100 which I bought almost 3-4 years back, I am desperately need a camera that can take beautiful and significant images. Its not like my old Exilim not able to do that, but the 3.1 megapixel baby does have limitations.

Looking through sample of images on Flickr, list of accessories and the fact that LX-3 is a compact camera but able to capture SLR-ish quality of pictures make me even drooling more.

I have been hesitated whether to buy SLR or not due to the reason that I might not been able to keep up with the high cost of accessories like lenses and flashes, and plus having bulky camera in my hand is certainly not my likings. Thus, LX-3 is just perfect for me.

And yes baby, I want the Leica brown case as well to match my brownish iPod case!

On University Application

I surfed The University of Tokyo's website yesterday and found that the international application for Sustainability Science program for October 2009 admission has been opened. Found out that I am eligible to apply, I was quite confuse and email my sensei (professor) to solve my conundrums. As usual, he quickly reply (which is a very good thing, thank you for kindness, sensei!).

My problem is whether I should apply for the international admission for October 2009 since I am eligible for it and most importantly, no exam required (just merely from selection by paper). My sensei mentioned in his reply that it is quite difficult to answer my question now, since it still early to make any judgement. He said, I can certainly apply for both research student (kenkyusei) to arrive in Japan before April next year (requirement from my sponsor, Panasonic to attend the scholar ceremony in its headquarter in Osaka in April), and if my international admission application turned out successful, I can start the Masters course by October. The only problem is if the application is not successful, I cannot apply for the next intake, which is in April 2010. And certaily life will be upside down if that happen.

Definitely I am in the state of confusion today. Should I apply or should I not?

Crazy by Ne-Yo and Love Song by Khalil Fong is in my heavy rotation. Gosh, God knows its been ages since I listen to Chinese song. And Ne-Yo is fab as usual. That chap is genius, man.

--------
Update-19.08.2008

The Sustainability Program coordinator has replied my email. Seems like I am not eligible to apply for October 2009 admission since I am not Monbusho (Japanese Government) nor Asian Development Bank (ABD) scholar. What a confusing notice on their website. They should make it clear that applicants not sponsored by those two bodies should not apply.

It is almost clear that I still need to take the exam next year and sit for TOEFL. Hmmm.
--------

CHANGE by Kimura Takuya and Eri Fukatsu

I admit that I am not usually the trend follower. I tend to like things and styles that people normally dislikes. But it all took a different path for me when it comes to Japanese stuff. I often opt to like everything. And this includes their teen idol (well his age should not be treated as teen actually), Takuya Kimura (wiki)(later will be refered as Kimutaku) and the J-Pop queen, Ayumi Hamasaki (wiki). I remember I started to watch Beautiful Life (wiki) back in my boarding school days, which aired in TV3 on evening foreign drama slot. And I never failed to watch every single drama that has Takuya in it since then.


CHANGE (wiki; official website) is the latest Kimutaku drama that I watched, since his last appearance in Karei Naru Ichizoku (also a great piece fo drama). Similar to his previous appearance, CHANGE is basically focusing on Kimutaku's special career man character. While he had acted in almost every drama as the coolest person who had the coolest career everyone in Japan could think of (he has been pro-stylist, public prosecutor, ice hockey team captain, pilot, pro-car racer, Japan's big think-tank legend, and pianist) , there is certainly one more cool character he should try, which is the prime minister of Japan.

And it happens this time in CHANGE.

Kimutaku plays Asakura Keita, an elementary school teacher in Nagano who never had any interest in politics until one day when his father and brother (both MPs and active in politics) died in helicopter crash in Vietnam. The leader of ruling party, Kanbayashi Masaichi and his secretary, Miyama Rika later conceive the idea of appointing Asakura as the next candidate of local election in Fukuoka, replacing his father. Of course, he rejected at first approach but accepted the offer then, with condition that Miyama would give up on her choice if he losses in that election.

But it turned out that he wins. Kanbayashi, who realized the opportunity to use Asakura brand to fulfill his dream to becoming the next prime minister, try to promote the young and clueless Asakura to be the next candidate of prime minister election among other influential MPs. Due to his looks, fashion taste and decentness, he wins poeple's heart and nominated as the next prime minister without knowing that he is been using in dirty politic trap.

Although I strongly believe that life of Japanese prime minister showcased in CHANGE is certainly different in reality, but I like the fact that the drama tries to feature the other side of prime minister life which is after all, a normal human being. And I also like the idea that Kimutaku plays a decent character close enough that he is not influenced by other politic game, but keep the national issue as the first priority.

I personally keep relating the story line with local politic scene here in Malaysia (I watched CHANGE in the midst of Japan's shock of Fukuda resignation (wiki), and further call for Pak Lah stepdown), but I later realize that our local politic landscape is different story altogether.

• Wiki Info Box
  

Title (English): CHANGE

Format: Renzoku

Genre: Human drama, politics

Episodes: 10

Viewership ratings: 21.7 (Kanto)

Broadcast network: Fuji TV

Broadcast period: 2008-May-12 to 2008-Jul-14

Air time: Monday 21:00

Theme song: Miles Away by Madonna

Casts:


Kimura Takuya as Asakura Keita

Fukatsu Eri as Miyama Rika

Terao Akira as Kanbayashi Shoichi

Kato Rosa as Miyamoto Hikaru

Abe Hiroshi as Nirasawa Katsutoshi

• 
  

Quickies

I'm trying to change the layout of this blog since yesterday, and so this is the result. I finished my report last week and submitted it, leaving me now with all the freedom in the world since my boss back to UK. I don't know whether I like this new blog layout or not, somehow i feel it rather too Apple like and boring, but it seems cleaner this way (and the cool date in every post title rocks!)

Besides doing the layout, I'm also has been busy on wiki and updating the software in my Mac. I am suddenly interested to know more about denomination in Islam (Sunnis, Shiites and Salafis) and might doing a mini research on that. Things just get clearer when you start to know something that you been heard relentlessly all this while but you just don't have a slight idea of what it is.

I have also downloaded the new Ne-Yo album, Year of the Gentlemen and like few tracks innit (including the catchy Closer, of course). Will review about it later.

Book wise, currently reading A Backpack and A Bit of Luck by Zhang Su Li, a bit slow paced but hope to get the story soon. Hoping to finish it sooner, and start buying new books (my head thinking of Murakami Haruki, some Freakonomics and chic lit haha), although there's still few books left in my desk, untouched.

I might change the layout again today, so just bear with this one for the time being.

The Last Oil Shock: A Survival Guide to Imminent Extinction of Petroleum Man by David Strahan

I am not a fan on non-fiction and serious stuff in normal days. But when my eyes catch the glimpse of one red book in Kinokuniya in few months back, I know I need to get my thoughts on this one. Besides, I know I am not in my normal state of being so this one might be an exception.

So there goes my bargain.

The Last Oil Shock: A Survival Guide to the Imminent Extinction of Petroleum Man (pheww!)(website; amazon) is actually not really a heavy read albeit it is listed as non-fiction category. In bookshelf normally it placed among other seriously serious matter like Freakonomics and the Jack Welch series of ramblings. While I put a remark that it might not be a heavy read to you, it does have graphs, charts and theories to ponder upon your head while you read it. The main subject of the book is basically about the oil crisis of the world, the theory behind the reality of oil shock that could happen in our globe in near future (the author points out that it could be real soon), consequences and what we should do to get ourselves ready for it. Yeah, it sounds like a grad thesis for me at first, complete with references list and so on. Having myself graduating college with a scroll in engineering, it keeps me wondering why somehow I have problem understanding the technical concept mentioned in the book. But nevertheless, after few chapter, I managed to keep track and enjoy it a lot.

While the book specifically intends to remind the people of the world on how important to get ready real soon for the shortage of hydrocarbons (means that we should be in the state of panic by now), the author seems to act cool about it. There are few thoughts and theories regarding the oil companies exaggerate the oil production and prediction data just to cover up the truth, and yeah, they are all make sense. It getting me on my nerves to realize that the recent oil price hike is not necessarily domestic issues but of course, a global one.

While some people might think that hydrocarbons (petroleum, gas, coal and whatever contains carbons and useful) is basically covers your car fuel tanks everyday, it is actually more than that. The electricity, transportation, daily products, commercial heating/cooling and the list goes on, it just a nightmare to think that we are in shortage of oil real soon. Imagine living your life without electric, without transportation and many else. Sure enough, we'll be dead (or turning primitive again).

Not just the daily necessities and consumption, but the recent global warming and environmental issues also directly related to hydrocarbons. The excess of carbon dioxides in air is one of the main factor of global warming and that's the reason behind Kyoto Protocol. In conclusion, the world need to focus on how to be fully independent from hydrocarbons lifestyle (by renewable energy, sustainable society et cetera) so that we could handle the situation properly.

At the end of the book, the author suggests the reader on how to help to ease the oil shock (yes people, it is not merely the scientist, economist or policymakers job alone). Some of the good suggestions are:

a)Use your own shopping bags and stop using plastic (the time has come for us to get one decent shopping bag, a tote or whatever, be it by Tods or cheaper brands)
b)Use tap water instead of bottled water (not really applicable in Malaysia, utilities people, do something)
c)Get fit, lose weight (ride bicycle to work is said to be faster journey compared to driving your car, due to daily traffic problems)
d)Live within your energy budget (buy all the energy saving stuff, save on your monthly utilities bills)

Well there's lot more, but go read yourself. Mind you some of the book content inclined towards British folks, but since globalization has taken its place, we're after all in the same shoes.

The Blessed Month

Submitted my report this morning and now I feel liberated. Free like a bird. It's been a while since I use the internet facility in this office to the max (the real max I tell you :p), so then the time has come to do it now. I have a lot of things to share in this blog, but workloads resist my intention.

First of all, Happy Ramadhan to all Muslims in this world. Let us cherish this moment of blessed month. Personally, I really looking forward to Ramadhan, ever since I was a young kid. Surprisingly, not for Aidilfitri (The Hari Raya). I prefer the fasting month although it means to be hungry and restless all month long. I prefer this month just because the joy you feel in Ramadhan is beyond words. People buying foods in the evening for berbuka puasa, people go to the mosque for Tarawih and many more. Something you will not find in other period of time.

In Ramadhan every year, I used to perform my Tarawih prayer in Wilayah Persekutuan Mosque in Jalan Duta, Kuala Lumpur ever since I'm in secondary school (or college, which does not matter). Loads of people will flood the mosque every year, but ironically this year, it is not happen. Less people coming, only few cars parked, and of course smaller crowd. Looking smaller and smaller the crowd turned day by day saddening me, left my mind wondering why this happen? The current unstable political situation? Expensive fuel price?

This year would be my last year celebrating Ramadhan in Malaysia before I left for Japan next year. I strongly believe the Ramadhan would have different aura in Japan, certainly not as good in Malaysia, but I do hope the blessed month does have the magic anywhere else in this planet.

Forgive me God, for whom I am sinned.

Kaerimichi/帰り道(On The Way Home) by Crystal Kay

***
yuuyake ga machi wo somete
hitori aruku kaerimichi
natsukashii kaze ga fuki
kimi no koto omoidashiteru

aitakute aenai mama de
toki dake ga sugite iku no

* kirakira hikaru futatsuboshi yo
yurayura tooku michibiite yuku
kimi mo onaji sora wo miage
watashi no koto wo omou deshou ka...

yuruyaka na kono michi wa
kimi no moto e yuku no kana
itsudatte kimi no tonari ni
itai to tada inotteta

aitakute aenai mama de
yume dake ga kiete iku no

kirakira hikaru futatsuboshi yo
harahara namida koborete yuku
futari sugoshita hibi wo motome
kimi mo ano hi wo negau deshou ka...

unmei wa watashi to kimi wo meguriawasete kureta
sore na no ni watashi to kimi wa musubarenai no...

* repeat

hoshitachi ni kakomarete
hitori aruku kaerimichi
***

Kuala Lumpur is still raining. Sun ray did come and see us for a short while yesterday's evening, not long before rain poured down and melt the heart away with emotions.

I'd downloaded Crystal Kay's new album, Color Change! and as usual, it is good as what I am expected. I always thought Kuri's (Crystal nickname in Japan) R&B-ish voice would suit my mood very well, immediately after get my chance to hear the tracks. I won't comment more about the whole album, at least not yet before I blog about this one. One of my favourite track in the album, Kaerimichi/帰り道(On The Way Home) is haunting me badly since my journey back home from work yesterday. Well maybe, the song fit the condition at that time :p

It is quite rare for Kuri to sing any sort of Asian/Japanese influence tunes in her track in previous album, so I might say that Kaerimichi is one good try. And it is one good track too. Seems this one will be my on my heavy rotation this week (forgive me SPEED, I just excited about their reunion yesterday, but sorry, I got new song to hooked to :p)

On a more personal note, I'm going for Hatha Yoga class this evening. And gosh, I really in desperate need to organize my financial matter as soon as possible (car insurance deadline, Bangkok trip saving bla bla..). I'm on the verge to finish my current book (The Last Oil Shock: The Survival Guide to Imminent Extinction of Petroleum Man by David Strahan), which is quite surprising that I could finish reading it, since I'm always not a big fan of serious and non-fictional stuff. I wish to read more Haruki Murakami piece after this, so might blog about that one too.

Till then, have a good rainy Tuesday!

I Always Want They Get Back Together.

Kuala Lumpur was all gloomy the whole weekend and rain seems can't stop pouring down. As the emotion got carried away, I found myself in good, comfy sleep and the restless week has been greatly paid for.

My mind starts wondering when my iPod starts playing some random old tracks which yours truly almost forgotten way back. If my mind can't even tracking back the singer and the title, my emotion always able to draw and reminiscing the memories associated with the track. And that is why I always thought that is the magic behind music, it gives soul to your life.

And this time, the iPod plays Eternal Place by hiro, out of sudden, out of my lazy, rainy, gloomy Sunday morning.

And I remember very well, how I adore the four girls. They all grown-ups now, with more mature appearance. The girls are one girl J-pop vocal group, SPEED. That's where my interest in J-Pop started (not from Doraemon and anime like everyone else), when I was introduced by these girls by my Japanese teacher back at my boarding school days, Miss Akiko. I know it sounds uncool for guy to like girl bands, but I can't resist the fact that Spice Girls and All Saints was really a phenomenon back then in the West, and so did Japan.

My first encounter of SPEED was the track named White Love, when the music video was aired by Miss Akiko in Japanese audio room back in the year of 1999. I was so instantly hooked up and look for their album when I was in my outing in KL. And there I was, being the great fan. Until suddenly they decided to disband sometime in 2000 and it shocked everyone including me. When they said that they're going solo, I was easily come to conclusion that only Hiroko (now known as simply hiro) or Takako can make it, since only both of them steal the limelight. And seems I was correct.

Hiroko now works solo, appears as a lead role in one movie called Backdancers, and managed to have two solo albums, and somehow have a jazz band named Coco d'Or. She dated Hitoshi Matsumoto (well-known as Matchan, one of the two combination of popular comedian of Downtown), which is 21 years older than her at that time. Eriko, managed to come up with few albums and her solo career goes well until she announces that she was pregnant and going to marry his boyfriend, Shogo, vocalist of 175R. She then gave birth to Raimu Kinoshita in October 2004. Takako, appears in some commercial break, films and dorama, and still kicking until now. Hitoe, unlike the rest, start her art career in New York and live there since the break-ups. She is also getting her certification as yoga teacher.

They had their short reunion few times since they disbanded, but all of 'em never lasts. I was reading Mr. Swifty's blog this morning until I found out they reuniting seriously this time, after 5 years of hesitations and going solo. Some of the blogs I read does give some comment on whether they will make it big this time, since they are getting older (the Japanese entertainment industry really pays big deal with age and maturity, where older celebrity will be seen less popular except if you're in classic/enka genre and a comedian) and the music landscape has truly changed this time (they started mainly in R&B and pop genre, but no idea whether they'll stick with that concept now). But I do hope they remain as the old SPEED I know before.

Tell me how to live without your love
Hoshi wa itsuka moetsukitemo
Anata e no ai kawaranai kara
Shinjite ite eien no basho

Eternal Place by hiro playing endlessly in my mind. Some things are better left unchanged. And so does SPEED.

The Art of Letting Go

I started practice yoga last April and enjoy it ever since. I have always been interested in its style and always thought that yoga is not just cool, healthy and relaxing, but chic as well. And to tell you the truth, one of my aim in practicing yoga is to do scorpion pose (picture above).

Not until...

I received the news that my yoga club has financial and management problem, and will probably closing down. I was shocked, since I was just started and start to enjoy it very much. In addition to that, I have paid a lump sum of one year membership which cost me RM 1688. It's all started when the club was taking a week break from all classes, saying they're changing management and stuff. And not just a week. They continue had problems later on, with ever changing class schedule and more problems. Later I discovered from one of my yoga instructor's blog that the management has financial problem and haven't paid full salary to their stuff and instructors for months. To make things worse, some of my foreigner instructors had been evicted out from their apartment and their pay-check bounced. And my reaction of course, Oh.My.God, this is one damn big problem.

I was not aware of any sign of problem when I signed up four months before. I was also not aware that the rumors has been spreading in Chinese newspaper and some of TV cover ups. They even had problems with Ah Long (loan sharks) and some of the outlet has been splashed with red paint.

Miraculously, I was not terrified and overreacted. It's amazing to see myself who was always in state of panic to stay calm and able to judge and think correctly. I decided to hold and see what will happen few weeks after thank God, the club has been ordered by court to change its management, and good to see that their website is back and class schedule has started again.

I wish the new management all the best in managing their new baby. I always hope that yoga can be one of the medium for Malaysian society to practice new healthy lifestyle in addition to the rapid growth of health center and gym. I am hoping I can start practicing back at their center and maintaining it. It is not easy for ones to start a new hobby and maintained practicing it. But I hope I've given a chance to try.

On a more personal note, I started learning Japanese seriously by myself after years of interrupted focus on it. I started picking up Japanese by myself (from books, manga, songs etc.) but never thought of learning seriously. You can feel some level of difficulty learning it especially the kanji (Chinese character) and understanding some of intermediate level of grammar, but it certainly give no problem at all to me since I am learning something that I very look forward to. I really hope I can pass the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT/Nihongo Nouryoku Shiken) Level 3 this December and able to pursue my grad studies in Japan next year.

I am also thinking of editing the layout of this blog to start a new feel about it, but my burdening workload would slow the process. Hope this works.

Have a good week, everyone:)