Basting Hot July- Priscilla, Pimms, Pools and Play-offs

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Sunday, 11th July 2010

Time Now :Publishing this

1940: and kick-offs for the World Cup is about to begin. I'm not much of a football fan but here's my best wishes to the two nations who've never raised but fought their way through to play the match of the year.



1300: Lunch and Movie 'Father's Day' with A & B

0930: Thanks to my GBF again for going to Tooting Bec with me. I've always wanted to go there but its more fun to go with some one.




Saturday, 10th July 2010
2200: Reach home

1800: Cranium again -the winners won the last round with the blue card 'Creative Cat'.


1730: The Pimmska comes out......it's never too early to drink:P



1430: Reach Kals - it's serious face-stuffing about to begin. It's boiling hot and the bbq is flaming


0700 Tower Bridge to Greenwich run - L's always rewarding us with OJs and Lattes. Good stuff

Friday, 9th July 2010

And so this weekend started with Priscilla, Queen of the Desert with L,V,Jo and Ji - thanks guys for coming out tonight. Such lovely costumes - am starting to fantasize wearing some glitter/feathers/big hair. I've found SUCH a theme song from MacArthur's Park - it has cake baking in it!

Racing for 'Everyone'

They moved like ants all over the brown hill - pink ants. As I approached, the pink ants transformed into ladies - ladies of all shapes and sizes - small, big, thin, not-so-thin, in all the shades of pink you can imagine. Slowly but surely they run, walked or jogged in undulating lines traversing the brown hills of Blackheath Common.

This was the 'Race for life' run by the Cancer Research Association of the UK. Every year since 2003, 50k men and women who've run the Race for Life have helped raise 5 million GBP in aid of cancer research.

Rita and I wanted to do a run together so we signed up for this one - a ladies only run - and ladies coming out to run is a whole different experience together.

It's non-competitive - every lady comes out to run for a reason. Each one has a little pink square piece of paper pinned on their backs stating 'I race for life for....' - filling in the blank space.

Some had pictures of their beloved friends/family printed on them -
'...Nat',
'...Grandma and Grandpa';
some stating '..for a cure for cancer'
'..Papa and all the Papas in the world'
'..my mom'

As you run, one can't help but think that everyone of these ladies have been touched by cancer in some way - whether through their families, friends, partners, themselves. How far-reaching are the effects of cancer - everyone knows someone who's had cancer.

And I thought of my own mom who survived it....and K's mom, Aunty Nora and all those who didn't.

What better way to help by this beautiful action of running (and raising money while running).

And so we run the race of life for...(the best one yet stated )'...Everyone'

Play Me I'm Yours

"What's the plan for the weekend then?" asks V, "You sure banyak activity wan"

I don't really plan my weekends nowadays till the 11th hour but it still gets filled up. These past few weeks were confined within London : parks, bbq's, gardening and a few random musical/theatre performances. I'm not one to run away for the weekend to a neighbouring country and London has plenty to offer which suits my austerity drive anyway.

Its liberating to finally walk out of the house without a jacket on - I could even wear sunnies:) Love the long days of summer too - sunrise at 4.30am, sunset at 9pm....lots of activities to cram within the day. Everyone seems happier in the summer - roses and lavendar bloom, a different variety of fruits appear on shelves.

I'd admit that summer weekends come fast and furious - another hot weekend forecasted this week end woo hoo!

Oat and Eggs

Ever tried microwaving oats and egg in the microwave? I'd highly suggest you not.

Have been stressed at work and planned to get into Heathrow at 6am the next morning so went to bed pretty early at 11pm. Skipped dinner and all since I just got back from frisbee at about 10pm. Must've have been more highly strung than I thought - woke up at midnight; hungry and worrying about Earned Value.

Breathing deeply and doing the 'Savasana' didn't help so I went to the kitchen to at least quieten my growling tummy. It was a debate between instant noodles or oats - didn't want to feel terribly full thus the oats won - microwaved a cup with an egg in it.

After a few minutes, took it out of the oven and stirred in some soya sauce. There was loud 'Pop!' and the whole thing exploded in my face.

It must have been an almighty blow-over as it was all over the floor, counter and ceiling. No matter that my shirt, face and hair had an instant oat-egg mask. Had to get on my hands and knees to scrub the floor and then climb the counters to clean the mess off the walls - at 1 am. If there's anyone feeling dumb and dumber at this time of night, it's me.

It's half one now and I'm still hungry.

Peckham Finishing School for Girls

I'll start with an analogy as I like them so much. London is like a lady decked-out in the latest togs; tight low-cut blouse and big branded handbag. From afar, she looks posh and loaded; come closer and you'll realise she's not a sweet-young-thing - closer to middle-age in fact but with all that bronzer on she's like a brassy potty beacon.

And so that's my first impression of London - no high-tea rooms, Royal Albert Hall Concerts and Burberry bag shopping - I came on a bus passing Croydon and saw a lot of coloured people.

Looking for accommodation in London is very educational in terms of Geography and Anthropology. Well-meaning advisors tell me -

East = Dodgy
West = Good
South = not good
North = better

So I found a place West - and realised I was practically in East Europe (other wise known as East Acton) Lots of Poles, Hungarians, Czechs etc. And so upon looking at the demographics, it roughly goes like this so I'm told:

North East - Vietnamese, African, Carribean
Central West- Middle Eastern, Indian
South East - African, Carribean
No English people live in London.

The commute to work was long and I didn't really like the Tube so against all the noise, I moved South East i.e. dodgy.

Telling my colleagues and friends where I live is a fun experience. My jingle goes like this,

Acquaintance: So where do you live?

Me: Oh, I live in the ghetto

Acquaintance: Really? Where's that?

Me:
Best answer - I live near London Bridge
2nd best answer - I live near Bermondsey
2nd least best answer - I live near Elephant and Castle
Worst answer(not recommended) - I live on the Old Kent Road

To be fair, I've lived where I live for more than a year now and I love it. I've never been stabbed nor shot-at. Though I've had to call the police a couple of times for being followed home and harrassed by a bunch of white kids. Otherwise, its not so bad.

So with great glee, I came across this BBC Programme entitled Peckham Finishing School for Girls: Four affluent girls from the countryside have their credit cards removed and given 6.50GBP a week to live on in not-so-posh Peckham - cluelessness will guarantee amusement.

I live 20 mins walk from Peckham which I do when I can btw - it's a nice stroll in a former canal through a park. Main reason: Peckham has a great library which opens Mon - Sunday.

Of Uniformity

Was off on the bus this morning a little later than usual as I had to run a few errands at the post-office before work. It always amazes me how a difference of a few minutes can quickly transform the density of the buses from 'lightly-squashed' to 'sardine-packed'. It was then that I realised that the additional unit of bodies were contributed by the school-going population of the city strata. I'm pleasantly surprised that the English schools still implemented the school uniform: boys in gray/black shorts and trousers, cardigans, long-sleeved shirt and tie; girls in blazer/cardigan, shirt, plaid skirts and long socks. (see M&S sales poster for uniforms)which brings forth my childhood images of Enid Blyton's schoolchildren i.e. The Naughtiest Girl in School, Malory Towers and St Clare's.



It would seem that the school uniform is still viewed as a positive method in instilling school ethos, discipline and pride in young people as encouraged by the Department of Children, Schools and Families (a UK Government agency responsible for issues regarding children up to the age of 19 until 2010). Although not all schools do it, there is encouraged implementation of uniforms for school children in England and Wales.

In Europe for example Germany, the traditional school uniform is never proposed in earnest but 'school clothing' such as t-shirts collections and set-clothing in a contemporary sense is often used.


And thus, the uniform is dying out as a perceived method of discipline - only implemented now in countries such as India, Sri Lanka, Japan, Malaysia.

Sweet William - 22 months

I brought my Sweet William over when I moved to Rolls Road in October 2008. It was still in the little pot which it was seeded in for a few months, the poor thing. It grew quite a lot as it was straining out of its perch so I hijacked one of the hanging pots outside my door (which had nothing it in - guess the previous inhabitant died) in hope that it would have a little place to grow.

It's been developing into this green mess. This is how it looks like outside my door -



And that's how it looks like every day, every evening and every morning, day-in, day-out. It blends into the background and every day life (sometimes I forget to water it). Occasionally when I come home from work I wondered if it was ever going to flower. It never did.

My surmise was that

a. it was still too young
b. the soil was infertile
c. the seeds are a dud

or maybe a combination of two or more factors. I mean, I still water it (and I give it more water than the other two plants outside the door which probably belonged to the previous tenants of the place just because it's mine) and sometimes I don't until I see it turning a little yellow and thirsty and then I hurry to the tap to get a little H2O and dump some water in the pot. I've even started seeding another little pot of Sweet William but that one died at my window sill because I forgot to water it.

So it sits there every day, every evening and every morning, day-in and day-out.
Until yesterday I noticed that it's been growing flowers (the sneaky little thing)!



I mean it's nothing like the picture on the packet which looks like this

but I'm happy for the flowers that it's yielding. I'm quite proud of my little Sweet William (Well done boy!). Despite them being tiny flowers I'm feeling pretty grateful. It's funny how life gives you a nice surprise when you least expect it to.

Now I have been harboring feelings for a certain person for about the same amount of time but that hasn't yielded any thing. Maybe

a. the relationship is premature
b. the conditions are not right
c. the seed is a dud

Should I take a lesson from Sweet William? But plants are not people and people are not plants. Maybe I should just grow plants instead - heck at least after 22 months, the plant yielded some flowers. Yeah, I'm picturing a little old spinster lady with her plants, baking cakes and scones and listening to sad Carpenter's songs like this one:



I'm doing all three pretty well now (heavens and horrors )... at this rate who knows what I'm capable of when I reach that age.

Rainy Days and Mondays - The Carpenters

Have been listening a lot to the Carpenters lately. I daresay Karen Carpenter's signature voice stands unrivaled to this day - bell-like, subtle but powerful. Such an unfortunate loss of a great singer but the duo's music still lives on after all these years.

Have chosen this song in conjunction with the rainy days in London befelling us.

Of Malaysia

"Malaysian politics" is like a big old building - it sits there too big to move, an eyesore, UGLY, painful but with very very deep foundations. You destroy the foundations and you destroy the building - for good but could possibly adversely affect the surrounding environment.

You could say I fit the stereotypical Chinese person who's apolitical and apathetic - I have very little knowledge on the going-ons on who's who and what's what, rarely read newspapers, watch TV or surf the internet on these issues. I have a scattering knowledge of cow's heads, castles in Klang, DVD sex-tapes and a Mongolian model being murdered.

Recent discussions and contact with some fellow Malaysians who are in the UK have emphasised 'Malaysian political' issues which intrigue me now than when I was in the country. Not sure why but maybe when we were back home, things were 'as it is', it was still possible to live without looking critically at the issues and how it was bleeding the nation.

It does take some time to come to a realisation that some of the things that are going on at home ARE disgusting, obscene and outrightly 'wrong'. Now how did that happen all of a sudden?

Anyeong Ha Se Yo

Read this article on the BBC news on life in North Korea. I wonder if it's really possible to mass-brainwash millions into happiness

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/newsnight/8701959.stm

Which reminded me of a conversation I had over drinks with my well-read colleague and she so happened to be reading a book on North Korea which jogged my memory on the one I read by Hyejin Kim entitled 'Jia'.

'Jia' is a part fiction-part autobiography of a little girl brought up as a dancer for the military regime in North Korea - her life, love and finally escape from North Korea into China. There are very few North Korean novels ( or any at all as this one claims to be the first to be published in the West) and I was very pleased to pick this one up while browsing the Peckham library. Highly recommended.

The Magnificent Obsession of Fred Lebow

Here's a striking story from a book called 'The London Marathon: The History of the Greatest Race on Earth' by John Bryan of Fred Lebow, one of the founders of the New York Marathon.

Fred Lebow was a fascinating and an energetic man, but when you met him you could be left in no doubt about his obsessive nature. He told me that at various points in his life he trained himself off regular meals and, in one particularly bizarre experiment, deliberately went without sex for a year to see what effect it would have on his body, his mind and his running.

He also set himself the target of competing in a marathon every month and confessed that a number of his relationships with girlfriends had hit the wall because of his running. Lebow became fixated with counting the number of miles he ran and logging them in a running diary. 'When I was living with one girlfriend,' he said, 'I set myself a goal to run 2,500 miles for the year. It was my New Year's resolution and maybe I was a bit obsessive about it.'

Towards the end of the year Lebow knew that he was getting close. On New Year's Eve he spent the day flying back from the West Coast where he'd been on business and on the plane he checked his running diary, adding up his mileage and concluding that he was 19 miles short of his total for the year.

'My girlfriend and I were off to a dinner party in Central Park West,' said Lebow, 'and when I got to her apartment around seven o'clock she had my suit and tie and shoes and all ready and she was trying on her evening gown ready for the party. But as soon as I got in I told her that I had just checked my diary amd I was still 19 miles short for the year. "I'll have to go and run," I said.'

Two hours or so later, after pounding his way around Central Park in the cold and rain and adding an extra mile just to be on the safe side, Lebow returned to find his girlfriend in tears. He got dressed and ready, fast. They made the party around 10 - too late for dinner but in time for the dancing and New Year resolutions. 'Way after midnight we both danced with other guests,' said Fred. 'Then later when I looked for her, I couldn't find her. Somebody said she went home.'

Unable to get a taxi at 2 a.m. in New York on New Year's Eve in the pouring rain, Lebow ran the couple of miles back to the apartment. When he got there, soaked and frozen, he found a suitcase in the hall outside her door, a bag with his running kit in it and an envelope.

'There was a long note kind of summing up our relationship, saying that she was kicking me out,' said Fred. His girlfriend had also added a PS. She had found his running diary, gone through it and added up his mileage. Fred had got that wrong too. It turned out that he had already run 2,531 miles for the year - over 30 miles more than his target. He didn't need to run at all that night.

Six months later the girl was married - but not to Fred Lebow

Hurt - Johnny Cash

I hurt myself today
To see if I still feel
I focus on the pain
The only thing that's real
The needle tears a hole
The old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything

[Chorus:]
What have I become
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

I wear this crown of thorns
Upon my liar's chair
Full of broken thoughts
I cannot repair
Beneath the stains of time
The feelings disappear
You are someone else
I am still right here

[Chorus:]
What have I become
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

If I could start again
A million miles away
I would keep myself
I would find a way

The legendary country musician Johnny Cash fought a lifetime of drug addiction before returning to Christianity. I didn't realise how popular he was in Sweden until I saw 'Hurt' being played almost every instance at the student cafeteria (Skogis) in Umea University. It's one of those dark songs which border the fine line of 'depressing' or 'deeply personal' depending on when you listen to it. Recommended if you know the story of Johhny Cash or have watched 'Walk The Line'

Tooting Horns

Oh well, although monetarily the promotion doesn't work out to much, nevertheless its heartening to be recognized for a job well done (although I suspect my line-manager really wanted me to have an iPhone since I whined about having one all the time and this is his way of shutting me up) For those who are curious to know what I do now, I came in as a lowly graduate in a British firm starting from scratch.

Not one to blow my trumpet, I'll let my ex-line managers and client do it for me here. Below is a compilation of testimonials which was submitted last year for the Women in Construction Starter Award (which I didn't win but unabashedly felt proud for)

My first line manager at the Shard, P.R.'s, testimonial

"Fiona has done an excellent job as Project Controls Assistant at the Shard where she has designed, implemented and taken responsibility for the timely issue of various dashboard reports, formal monthly Steering Group reports and other necessary reports. Through her approach and ability to work with others, she ensures that the reports are issued on time with consistent and quality data. She has been openly praised by both the T&T Project Director and the client for the quality of the Steering Group Report.

From a learning perspective, she has played a role in developing the project programme, and has learning on the job to use the software and understanding the construction process.

From an overall perspective she has very quickly become an integral member of the team, respected and relied upon by both T&T team members and the client"

My first client at the Shard, Mr B Ainsworth's testimonial (who so happens to be the man who constructed the Millenium Dome - now called The O2 ):

"I have rarely seen someone grip a task, shape it, own it and deliver a result that would shame many of those who have been in our industry for many years.

Fiona joined our team in July and since that time the quality, content and timeliness of the teams reports and dashboards have improved dramatically. She has understood the criticality of reporting /information on a major project and has demonstrated the patience and commitment required to gather the information from a large number of sources ensuring the output appears when promised. All this achieved with the disregard to how at times it eats into her own personal time.

In additional to this ‘day job’ Fiona took the task of collating, setting out and producing an information booklet/ quick guide to the project. The quality of this has led to our marketing department adopting the same, and its overall popularity means it is heading for its third production run. Fiona also has taken on a further task of creation and management of substantial sections of our developer’s programme, a not inconsiderable task when you consider this is a £ ¾ billion inner city high rise project sitting within one of the busiest stations in London.

I find Fiona always ready to assist and somebody I can always rely on for quality, understanding and speed of output and I look forward to seeing her develop inside of my team, to her benefit as well as that of the industry"

And finally from my current line manager A.T. at Gatwick Airport (whom I thanked upon promoting me)

"You are most welcome Fiona. You thoroughly deserve it. Keep up the good work (now you can buy an iPhone)"

Just when I thought it was too tough to handle, things do come around. I have my colleagues and team to thank who've all made this journey worthwhile.

The Promise - Tracy Chapman

I'm embedding this because it's the 4th time someone's told me about this rather beautiful song. It's not in my list of Tracy Chapman songs but since serendipity called, I cannot ignore her.

Little India Hot Spots in London

Had some great South Indian food last weekend with Thina and Taps in East Ham. We went to Saravanna Bhavan (the same branch as the one in KL) and was mighty chuffed to see 'Gobi 65' (deep fried spiced cauliflower) on the menu. It's my favourite item on the menu in the branch back in Bangsar, KL. Yin Li and I would go to the Saravanna Bhavan on Jalan Maarof after Ashtanga Yoga on Sundays and put back what we've burnt with yummy Indian.

The last time I had south indian was in Wembley. There were lots of shops there but the one we ate was Shiv-recommended Sanghamam (vegetarian). Very nice chilli paneer.

I also understand that Tooting would also be another good place for South Indian food.

Otherwise, rows of vegetarian restaurants can also be found on Drummond street near Euston station. Priti recommends Ravi Shankar, a vegetarian restaurant(mostly North-fare). There are a couple of Indian grocery stores there as well.

The other well-known restaurant would be Pakistani 'Tayyabs' in Whitechapel. Really crowded in the evenings especially on weekends and you'd have to bring ur own corkage as they don't serve alcohol.

Brick lane has tons of Pakistani and north Indian along the road but not sure how authentic they are as they seem pushy and 'touristy'

Went to Southall today as its on the way from Heathrow to Paddington. Lots of clothes shops and North Indian restaurants here. Blew my grocery budget off with spices in the big 'Quality' store - the biggest Indian grocery (aptly a'super-store')which sells everything you need to make for paneer, ghulab jamuns, kerala, bendi, chutney and whatever you name it. I wanted to get a crate of mangoes but it would be ridiculous carrying it all the way to Central London, on the way to dinner.

Being Malaysian, I recognize the symptom of obsessive-food exploration. Will sometimes find it hard to explain to non-Malaysians about this tick. Nevertheless I'm proud that we are so varied that appreciation of the spices and styles of cooking is in-built within us. Love live all the Malaysian bellies.

More English 'English'

More on English 'English'

Both buttocks = A complete arse

Raspberry = cripple (Ripple)

China = Mate (Plate)

Trouble = wife (and strife)

Taking the piss = Make fun of

Snake and Pygmy Pie = Steak and Kidney Pie

2 vs 4, Us = Me = Ridiculosity

2 vs 4

Had another game of ultimate last friday and it was just 6 of us on the field this time (2 pulled out at the last minute) 8 is a passable number but 6 is pushing it for a game and push we did. Anyway since it was Ian (aka frisbee king)we had to split it into 2 and 4. It was a pretty relaxed game, too relaxed as we found ourselves losing anyway (either the 2 were really that good, or 4 of us were really lousy or a combination of both). The windy conditions didn't make it any easier either and we called it a day to go for a nice dinner at Hare and Tortoise (where I dumped some banana skin at the door in protest of the long queue and Ali tries to chat up the waitress - although I don't think asking for something more expensive than what's in the menu would do)

Us = Me = Ridiculosity

You know things are getting ridiculous when people don't express their expectations and when you don't fulfill them, you've 'failed' somewhat.

And then you find yourself apologizing for something which is not entirely your fault.

You also realise that you were always alone in it from the start and begin to wonder how big have you built this castle in the sky.

She's Always a Woman - Billy Joel

To all my girls out there....

She can kill with a smile
She can wound with her eyes
She can ruin your faith with her casual lies
And she only reveals what she wants you to see
She hides like a child,
But she's always a woman to me

She can lead you to love
She can take you or leave you
She can ask for the truth
But she'll never believe you
And she'll take what you give her, as long as it's free
Yeah, she steals like a thief
But she's always a woman to me

CHORUS:
Oh--she takes care of herself
She can wait if she wants
She's ahead of her time
Oh--and she never gives out
And she never gives in
She just changes her mind

And she'll promise you more
Than the Garden of Eden
Then she'll carelessly cut you
And laugh while you're bleedin'
But she'll bring out the best
And the worst you can be
Blame it all on yourself
Cause she's always a woman to me
--Mhmm--

Bridge

CHORUS:
Oh--she takes care of herself
She can wait if she wants
She's ahead of her time
Oh--and she never gives out
And she never gives in
She just changes her mind

She is frequently kind
And she's suddenly cruel
She can do as she pleases
She's nobody's fool
And she can't be convicted
She's earned her degree
And the most she will do
Is throw shadows at you
But she's always a woman to me
--Mhmm--

Everly Brothers - Dream / Cathy's Clown

Vini came over and we sang to retro- hits (Are you Lonesome Tonight - Elvis, Jambalaya, Tie a Yellow Ribbon, Close To You - Carpentars etc.) which brought back memories of childhood when dad would put on his tapes in the yellow Ford station wagon while he and mom sat in front, me and sis would be at the back. He played all these 'then' hits, probably re-living his hey-days as a rocker, bowling champ, body-builder dude (he still keeps his Elvis bob till today) - me and sis were subjected to the 'oldies-but-goldies' the whole way through the car journey (sometimes repeatedly).

I grew to love these songs and had my particular favourites e.g. The Carpentars "Yesterday Once More", Cliff Richard's "Living Doll", "Evergreen Tree", Everly Brothers'"Cathy's Clown","Dream",(almost all in the record actually', Elvis "Devil in Disguise","Suspicious Minds" to name a few. When mom or dad parked the car and left me in it to run errands I'd reach over and 'touched' (which I wasn't supposed to) the tape player to fwd/rewind to my fave bits

Here's my favourite oldy-but-goldy band, the Everly Brothers singing my all time favourite "Dream" and "Cathy's Clown"

This Week in April

Well it's another month gone - salary's in.

I've been to 5 person's houses this month alone. Had 1 potluck in one, a big roast in another. Since last week have met quite a few new people (in life and in work)

Been sleeping late and neglecting exercise recently so that's the "not-good" bit. Get really cranky then.

Started playing ultimate which is the 'good' bit.

Worked in 2 airports - it's a time of change at work and am going to be moving from one to the other. Commute is really expensive and time-consumning but I look forward to the new development.

April was also the month of the London Marathon - quite exciting.

Celebrated Easter by playing for the church

Went on a mystery date

Finally went to Brighton with the girls and we had a lovely time.

Had some really good news from friends about
a. moving house
b. getting hitched
c. baby moving into 2nd trimester
d. found a boyfriend
e. Going home for good
f. coming back to the UK from home
g. changing career
h. buying a car


The weather is getting really warm now and I can't stand wearing a coat in the train. Now moving into the mid of the 2nd quarter of 2010 - you know you're enjoying life when it moves so quickly.

To all the Marathon Runners- Past, Present & Future

Tomorrow will be one of London's greatest days in the year, and probably one of the greatest in the sporting calendar- the Virgin London Marathon. If this is your first marathon, you'd been training for the past months now and have had your trial run around London.You probably have some sort of ailment i.e. sore knee, aching ankle or shints but what's more worrying is not the physical ailment but the risk of not finishing the race. For all you marathon runners, whether fledgling or veteran, the same feelings will be there: anxiousness, trepidation, excitement, anticipation. You've probably noticed that it has been a week now since they've put up signs on the road 'Road Closure for the London Marathon April 25 2010' Pubs are displaying free grub for marathoners - you start off on the Sunday morning on the DLR with the fact that the whole of London and the world will be cheering you on.

As a writer wrote "We're all involved in this somehow - we all know someone who's taken part - who's succumbed to, overcome, or been overtaken by, some guy dressed as a llama'

For all you london marathoners out there, past, future and present, whether running or not; the pain is temporary but the pride is forever.

God gives

Got a really nice message from Lat today

" I miss my friends. When I see some other gang sitting around, caring, slapping each other, their mischievous smiles switching to loud laughters. Though stranger to me, they represent a part of my life I lost somewhere. I miss my friends. I like you, love you all and miss you all"

I miss you all too! (to the Kajai gang) and also to Angie and the girls.

Getting nostalgic now with a few friends leaving the UK in the coming months. Especially being single in a foreign land, your friends tend to become your family here. There's also the realization that people are likely to move in and out of our lives quite frequently with London being such a transient city. (Am also coming to terms with the fact that some friends are also leaving Malaysia and I'd probably not see them for a very long time)

On another note, I spoke to my mum last week about Aunty Nora. Somehow I thought about her (funnily enough, mum was thinking very much about her too) She and Uncle Ibrahim used to come over and play golf with mum and dad, hang out at our place in the evenings playing 'pok-kuat', go on holidays together many years ago when I was a teenager (I remember the great East Coast road trip where a few families drove to Banting to Kelantan to Pahang, to Terengganu and all the way back to KL). I grew up, went to university, started working. But Uncle Ibrahim and Aunty Nora would still now and then come to play golf with mum and dad but less so. Unfortunately she is not here with us today as she's passed away a few years ago God bless her.It seems unreal that people move on from this earth but you'd expect to see them one day.

So the next time someone hurts or disappoints, makes us laugh or cry with happiness, we can comfort ourselves with this phrase:

"God doesn't give you the people you want, he gives you the people you NEED. To help you, to hurt you, to leave you, to love you and to make you into the person you were meant to be."

"Happiness is a by-product"

How ironic it is that in the pursuit of happiness, we become unhappiness in itself.

Unforeseen Circumstances

The station concourse was practically vacant this morning - the 3 coffee shops were open (WH Smith was shut - due to an electrical fault) and there were a few millers and airport workers grazing the floor.

Everything else seemed alright, the sky was blue, check-in counters open, bus transfers active on the forecourt, but passengers and travellers strangely absent. Felt like a scene out of a Stephen King movie, "The Longaliers" where a handful of plane passengers land in a mysteriously deserted airport from another dimension.

According to my colleagues, it would be chaos to fly, as the planes were all crazily parked all over the piers. On the flight information screens, all flights were shown as 'Cancelled' or 'Check with airline'(north-bound ones)

All this is due to a 200-year silent volcano with a funny name a few thousand miles away which decided erupt. It seemed strange too as the weather looked so nice outside; bright sunshine, blue skies and fluffy white clouds.

Work fun

My colleagues are a really funny bunch - we all have nicknames for each other (can't believe they're all propagated by 40 somethings)

Andy Tarrant - Commission Manager - Tarantula
Tim Chopping - Senior Planner - Choppers
Rita Dunauskyte - Planner (North Terminal) - Rita Skeeter (ala Harry Potter)
Steve Arnold - Planner (South Terminal) - Steve (:P)
Me - Cost and Programme Reporting - Psycho Ninja

There's a printout of an arrow with the word 'Blame' and it's pointing at me. I put up another one pointing towards Choppers.

Every once in a while, Rita and I would play a musical toy (which amy's given me) to entertain or annoy the others. When it's serious, it gets serious but when it's balmy, it's just really funny.

Quantifying the Intangibles

A friend of mine came up with the concept of quantifying friendship by 'points'. It all started off with a discussion on one of the concepts from Covey's '7 Habits" i.e. the EBA (Emotional Bank Account. If we counted utilities derived from the friendship in 'points' and these 'points' are stored in a 'friendship account', and as time passes, we'd have a steady input(or even output) in the 'account'. The higher the balance, the loftier your friendship status is; and the lower the balance, the lower the ranks you become amongst other friends.

How simple it is to give a measurement to an intangible by representation but cynical upon the friendship on that part.

Off to France: Strategy, project management, communication etc.

Off to France tomorrow for the Erasmus Mundus Conference. Thanks to Amy for letting me know about it and encouraging to apply. Surprisingly they've selected my and Hedi's theses paper for one of the workshops and I'd have to deliver it in a 30 min presentation.

Whilst preparing for it, I recalled the summer of 2009, I was in the AIG offices in Milan with the Financial Lines department - I've been there for 3 weeks - it was August and the weather was surprisingly cool. Ferragosto is a quiet period for the Milanese but the team in the office never has a dull moment. and Solaro, Florian, Antonio and a few of the other guys have been super-cool to me. They've put me on the IT system to vet some contracts, taught me a bit about underwriting some of the products i.e. PI (Personal Indemnity, Engineering, A&H. It's a whole different world of insurance compared to my professional experience back home.

Fast forward to the winter of 2009, I'm now in the AIG office in Stockholm. I'm working on the same systems again but it's in a quieter environment (Stockholms' offices are smaller). I'm on my own lap top in a hot desk (used to be owned by one of the staff who's on the Xmas hols) and everyone is quietly hunched over their desks. I'm next to the Financial Lines department again but not working directly with them as I did in Milan but with another department (Underwriting)- more data entry than anything. I feel the atmosphere is more relaxed and calmer but always an underlying TOD.

Despite what's happened to AIG, I still am amazed by my moving through 3 different offices in 3 different countries (paid a visit to La Defense in Paris to speak to Jon Noel, head of OOC too for a day). That's what I call a global company.

I owe my thanks to Ms Ariela Camis de Fonseca(Milan), Muhaini Musa (Malaysia), Aiken Yuen (Hong Kong), Berit Adolfssen (Stockholm),Dawn Cheyrouze (Paris). And for the theses writing, my partner, Hedi Yousefi-Zadeh and our supervisor (now Vice Chancellor of Sundsvall University, Sweden) Anders Soderholm.

Today I fly off to Bordeaux to share this experience.

A wound won't heal if you keep opening it up.

J, this is for you:

It's been 3 weeks now since 'the cut'. It was in anticipation of happiness; the reason for it happening but all it led to was a slice so deep that it really hurts. It really hurts doesn't it? We try to be brave and move on, but it's another thing to keep revisiting it. Wounded flesh takes time to heal - the only way to do it is to really leave it alone. Do other stuff, distract yourself, get busy, anything but get the injury hurt again. It may take a long time, a lifetime, but we need to heal - we owe ourselves that much. I have good news, consolation for you; the body is an amazing creation - it can, and it will.

(and that is for me too)

Ping Pong

Suddenly have an urge to play 'round-the-table' ping pong. Used to do it a lot back in Umea with the Swedes. We were about 7-8 people running around the ping pong table and seeing who'd be final champ. I wasn't bad for a start(must be my Chinese genes). Popped over to Sportsdirect and the bats weren't really expensive (about 2.50GBP). There's a club in Brick Lane that does that (The Young Offender's Institute - might pop by one of these days)

Springs

Spring 2010
16th March,22.50pm, Monday, London, Rolls Road
The weather is starting to get warmer - 10-12 C - is it me or is there less rubbish wind to seep into your coat and then your bones. It's starting to get brighter now - I walk to London Bridge station in broad light instead of the grey light. The dawn breaks at 5.30am now (I am awake by now usually) and I wonder if I should be happy or sad that the day has caught up with me. My coat is too warm now when it was not too long before that I used to chastise myself for not having layered enough. I know its spring when I see the flowers start to bloom on my morning walk - crocuses and daffodils especially. The purple ones look especially vibrant. I remember a conversation with a bunch of Europeans; I hadn't been abroad before and asked which seasons did they love the best. Most them said 'the spring' although I expected them to say the warm summer. Now I understand why; It's the feeling of new beginning, new hope that permeates the air.

Spring 2009
13th April, 9.48pm, Friday, Amsterdam, Stayokay Hostel Vondelpark
Pooped- I spent a total of 65EU and it's only been a day. Met up with Eleanor and Chew Ping this morning at the station and they were happy enough but it's now 8pm and we've just arrived to the pier on the ferry...12.50EU. Struggled to stay awake throughout the float but failed several times.

Met up with Boris after so many years and he still looks the same. He has a baby girl named Lisee now. What a big difference from the hazy crazy trainee days in Malaysia....he's a daddy now. Good to meet up with old friends.

Spring 2008
20th April, 4.50pm, Sunday, Umea Sweden, Fysikgrand 3H-101

Just came back from Skogis with Bimal. This Sunday was one of the more interesting Sundays of my days in Umea. I woke up at 9am which was rather early considering the party at Malin's (birthday)....ate breakfast and then fell back asleep again. Woke up at 11.45am again when Bimal called to tell me that we had an appointment with Anders at 1pm in the business school. Anders had been away for his new job as Vice-Chancellor of Sundsvall University. We had a nice walk to the uni in the new spring weather. Spring finally arrived on Tuesday mid-of-the-month with the sunny days and mysterious evaporation of the snow. The past few days have been blue skies and sunshine and birds singing in the trees

Spring 2007
15th April, 4.45pm, Milan, Parco Sempione
'Ty' in the park. Actually sandwiches, cornflakes to munch on, apples and orange juice. Jas and I are sitting on a blanket in the park. Haven't done this since Ela and her bf and I went to Ulus Parki in Istanbul. It was 2002.

Spring is here; the air is cool and the sun is shining. Green, green, green everywhere. Dark aquamarines, white daisies, purple flowers, birds singing...Italians are starting to come alive; families play ball; couples sunbathing in the grass. Far off, there's bhangra music playing (bhangra??) and drum beats, urgent, ushering the warm weather in celebration. I like best the daisies; dainty delicate things poking through the grass as if to say 'hello'. I used to think they were special since they were rare in Malaysia. Plucked them to press in books, later immortalizing them in my bookmark collection. Now they are everywhere around me; where there's green, there are the daisies. They never stand alone; if they did, it didn't look right. Two or three balanced in the picture and there was always a cluster; never a 'one'.

Ludivico Einaudi - I Giorni (The Days)

It was 12 plus in Rolls Road and here I was baking in the night (consequences of sleeping too much in the afternoon) Was tuned into the BBC Classic channel and this beautiful gem came on. Listening to this in the calm, in the clear and in the night came to me in a revelation that sometimes we are meant to find happiness when we least expect it even if it's only for a while.

Missy Higgins - Where I Stood

Kingmaker

The term is applied generally to a person or group that has great influence in a royal or political succession, without being a viable candidate

Happy Chinese New Year

Food, red, fireworks, food, friends

Stuff on my desk

Books:
Margaret Atwood's "The Year of The Flood"
The Economist's "Headhunters and How to Use Them"
Robert Pirsig's "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance"
Seibel and Khalisa's "A Woman's Book of Yoga"
Louis de Bernieres' "Birds Without WIngs"
Tash Aw's "Map of the Invisible World"
BBC Good Food's "101 Cakes and Bakes"
Rabiah Amit's "Kek Lapis Sarawak"

Stuff:
3 different ring binded notebooks - 2 big, 1 small
A big-button calculator
A blue plastic file full of papers and name cards
A blue-grey old Nokia 1101
A grey Nokia mobile phone (unknown model)
2 clear plastic file with bank statements, letters and stuff
A 160GB external hard drive
A pink bottle of rose water
A pot of vaseline (100g)
A small vial of Estee Lauder's 'Paradise'
A 400ml of baby oil from Tesco's (30% full now)
A plastic box of cotton buds
A bottle of tea tree oil toner
A pink bottle of rose water
A guitar capo (black)
An egg (musical one with beans in it)
A bottle of T3 Mycin
An empty oversqueezed bottle of Garnier's Skin Natural Long-lasting shine control moisturizer
A silver hole puncher
A small vanity mirror on a grey stand
A glass of water with apple cider vinegar in it
A mug of Christmas Tea with a teaspoon in it

New Romantic - Laura Marling

Christmas and New Year's in Sunny Malaysia

2009 has come and gone. This year had its moments - America's first coloured President,the passing of Michael Jackson, the economic depression in the UK, warmer than usual summer and finising off with sudden continuous snowfall....Pretty eventful.

Rushed back on the plane back home, not without sleeping in Stansted due to the delayed Airasia flight.

Good to be with Mom and Dad and Flo back home. Warm weather, sweaty pants, eat eat eat. Nothing like being anak emas again.

Big Sis Flo 'belanja me eat' Japanese and then took me to a cool Salsa place in Jln Sultan Ismail called Paradize Lodge.

Trusty Angie had planned an exciting Boxing day do and met some nice friends for a sing song session.



Met up with good ole friends for makan makan (Yin Li = Min sin at Jln Alor, Stan and Aretha = Loh Shi Fun, Hui Yee , A again and Amber = Siu Siu seafood, Kajai gang = steamboat,Vini+ChewP = home made cakes)



Shiv and Kal were the only ones who's meet up involved some phyical activity albeit the best kind = ultimate on Padang Astaka.




Then new year's with Angie with bbq and conteng - conteng baju(only she would think of such fab activities).



It was fun to be back - shopping , taking the LRT, eating, sleeping - driving my trusty little box-car, seeing the old Chinese uncles and aunties, ladies in tudung, pak cik-pak cik. Despite all you hear, Malaysia may be screwed up but it's home sweet home.

Promise Me - Beverly Craven

Why don't they make sad pop songs like they used to?

Lea Salonga's cover is not bad too.

November 2009, of Babies and Birthdays

There seems to be a recurring theme this month. A colleague of mine is an impending father sometime next week and a friend of mine announced that she's now an expectant mother.

Last week I attended a friends' birthday celebration and on the very same weekend I visited a mother who had just given birth to a baby girl.

Two dear friends' birthday will occur this week and the next.

September should be THE baby and birthday month but November seems to be the new September. Oh man, can't be going broke twice a year!

Mooncake Festival



I may be out of Malaysia but there’s still Malaysia in me which manifested itself in a few celebrations with friends. A couple of weekends back, J and Y initiated a Mooncake hot-pot and herded a few of us ‘eaters’ around a bubbling cobble laden with fishball, fish,prawn, dumplings, vermicelli, mussels, egg, etc.. It was an evening of eating and laughter, mooncakes, pomelos, funny-hornshaped-chestnut and all the things that makes the mooncake festival. Thank you guys!

Conker season and changing weather



The seasons are changing with the descent of the darkness (we’re losing 24 mins of daylight a day) and drops in temperature (averaging about 9-10 C now).

And in participating in a little British cultural tradition for autumn, B, T and I spent the Sunday in Hampstead Heath – a nice parkland north of London for the HH Conker Championships.

Aahh..the magical conker. Conkers have mystified me since my Beano and Topper reading days. In one of the Topper issues, was a story of a magical conker. Gosh –what the heck is that? - wondered my 9 year old mind…..I only found out last weekend.

The conker game is a traditional British schoolyard game where two parties try to ‘hit’ the opponents conker(horse chestnut). There are 3 tries where the one with the most hits wins but the ultimate victor is the one who manages to knock his opponents conker off its string. B, T and I had a go and lo! And behold! I had the magical winning conker:P

Diwali a.k.a Deepavali Feast



Frisbee freaks and a few friends had a great Deepavali celebration in A’s ‘Palace’. R and A went all the way by preparing the house with lights, Henna, Bollywood songs and best-dressed games (A+ for the effort guys!), everyone brought an assortment of delicious food and drinks and Kal provided the games. We even had a bit of Bollywood dancing (S leading the way). T mentioned that it was a little hard to feel the Deepavali spirit when she first arrived in London but this year we endeavoured to make it special with a bang! It was definitely a night to remember (especially when some of us missed the last train home)

Open Houses - the Malaysian Way

With Raya (aka Eid) month celebrations, went round to a few open houses in London. The concept of the 'open house' is a very Malaysian/Eastern custom - the home of the host is literally 'opened' to friends and family (and friends of friends or family of friends - you get the picture) at any time throughout the whole day. You'd have traditional food and cookies spread on the table buffet style and everyone is talking, eating and laughing - a strong sense of community permeates throughout the home.

This year I was fortunate to attend two at Lena and Richard's in Reading and at Hani's


Thank you ladies for your generous hospitality and warmth.

Open Houses

A Vista in the Kew


Was in and around a few interesting places London again for the past few weekends. Seriously, I wonder how I get into so many activities without my even trying. That's how it is with this city so much so that come Monday morning, I'm absolutely knackered and have difficulty dragging out of bed in the AM.

The Princess of Wales Conservatory


Two weekends back was the London Open House weekend- a spectacular event where 700 private buildings in and around London are opened to the public. In conjunction there were tours, walks and exhibitions to garner further appreciation and education of the architecture and landscapes of London. I managed to book two events i.e. the Tower Bridge Exhibition and the Architectural Tour of the Kew Gardens. But due to the timing, had to give away the former to A and B who had an interesting experience (A's account here) I had a totel blind 'date' to the tour as my appointed 'partner' had to go to York on a sudden emergency. But the company was just as pleasant nevertheless.

A Nice Old Tree

The Architectural Tour of the Kew Gardens consisted of the fundamental buildings in the famous Kew - a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Kew once belonged to the Royal family but was given to the people by Queen Victoria.It boasts the largest herbarium in the world with 7 million specimens and has the most comprehensive plant collections in the UK.

The Palm House


One of the most fascinating was the Palm House - the oldest and largest Victorian greenhouse to survive to this day with a Tropical atmosphere within. 'Palm House' because it was a status symbol then to have tropical palms growing in the greenhouse! The fact that it was built of curved glass in the shape of an ark attested to the ingenuity and artistry of the architect, Richard Turner. That was back in 1848 and still looks as intricate and imposing today.

Water lilies in the Water Lily House

Went to the Water Lily house too where they housed the giant Amazonian water lily plants and a myriad of water lily species.

The Davies Alpine House


I told a colleague of mine, J, about my visit to the Kew and he had a strange story to add. Back in the 80's, he was doing survey work on the upper floors of the Kew Palace. It was long work, looking under floorboards and measuring, and soon he and his colleague found that it was getting dark. His mate decided to get a Mars bar from the cafe downstairs and J was soon alone in the darkened rooms (it wasn't fixtured as the palace wasn't used on the upper floors. Only the first lower floors were used for the Museum). He carried on the work and in a few minutes heard the thud of footsteps of his mate walking about. He called out 'That was quick one!' but when he looked up, there was nobody there. Puzzled, he looked around but could see no one. It was but a few moments then that he broke out in cold sweat and hurried downstairs. His mate only re-appeared much later and J told him about his experience. Apparently he wasn't the only one to have heard or seen things in the Kew palace.

The Dutch House i.e. Kew Palace



Unfortunately due to having another appointment with a friend, i didn't manage to go to all the other sites e.g. the pagoda, herbarium and different gardens but it was an interesting experience. Think I'll paint a little green on my thumbs.

When September Ends...

Summer has come to past, the innocent can never last, wake me up when September ends....

I could only sing this appropriate song this month. It's past mid of it and in case you didn't think it; September is quite eventful - Ramadan, Open House Weekends, final concerts, school term beginnings. But it also means summer's end is nigh, with the light fading quickly (sunsetting earlier 3 mins a day), rainy weather and cold winds. Myself, moved a step into the 30's (aaaargh!)but got nice friends for consolation:)

Here are the highlights of the first weeks of September.

September Babies



The girls of the Shard each had birthdays in September so we celebrated it 'one-leg-kick' (Cantonese slang ) together by watching Pedro Almodovar's latest 'Broken Embraces' which starred Penelope Cruz. It was another good girly night out - had a gift exchange with interesting and beautiful gifts like a piggy bank, bubble gum machine, books on Dreams and an engraved box. After that it was a yummy Carribbean dinner with jerk chicken, ackee and salt fish. Happy Birthday girls!


Imperial War Museum

Paid a visit to the (free) Imperial War Museum in Lambeth North. It was very comprehensive and well-thought with historical representation of the wars of Britain ranging from the Middle East, West Indies, Far East etc. I visited it for the Holocaust exhibition (inspired post-Auschwitz) and was impressed with the perspectives curated on survivor accounts, interviews, photographs and physical items. Jiann wasn't very keen but nevertheless every time I go into a British museum, I never fail to appreciate the respect of knowledge the people here possess and how much effort has been put in to making the exhibits and displays interesting and interactive.


Birthday Party



Had a fab night with friends, flatmates and frisbee kaki chez moi. Thanks to Kai Ling for organizing this. I got very nice presents indeed, very nice. One of them being



a Fender acoustic guitar



Books: "Diary of a Manhattan Call Girl" by Tracy Quan and "By the Time You Read This" by Lola Jaye



Hairdryer: Per Una by M&S 2000watt

Thank you everyone for such a lovely and memorable birthday. Bless you!:)

p.s. Another very nice book from Jas arrived from Amazon today i.e. A Woman's Book of Yoga by M.Siebel and Hari Kaur Khalsa

The Thames River Festival



The Mayor's Festival on the River Thames is an annual festival held along the popular spots on the Thames with lots of events i.e. theatre, music, dance, a free boat ride on the Thames, stalls - all very happening. Paid me a visit and got on a jembe drumming workshop...what luck!

Thank You for the Music, ABBA tribute concert




Went for my first 'picnic' concert where we spread a blanket (despite the chilly wind) and enjoyed an evening-full of ABBA goldies. Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson were supposed to be present but only saw Benny onstage who played traditional Swedish folk music. Elaine Paige, Kylie Minogue, Chaka Khan, Jason Donovan, Marti Pello (lead singer of Wet Wet Wet) all belted ABBA schlager but it was glorious as Kal and I danced and sang the 70's on the field.

Krakow - Auschwitz

Took a trip to Krakow for the Bank Holiday weekend. Although I have many friends from Poland, I've yet to visit the country. I found the Poles very helpful and humble.

Krakow, the old capital of Poland, is a charming city on its own. Not as fairytale-like as Prague (though I felt a little deja-vu), the city is a grittier and tougher version of the old East-European city.


One of the main destinations for tourists like myself was the Wielicka Salt Mine about 30 mins away by tour bus from Krakow. Arriving in the city, Alden and I got rained out (bringing the British weather with us) so we took refuge underground - half a km below the surface with a maze of 300km tunnels. It was surreal and reminded me of the Derinkuyu underground city in Turkey but less smelly as the salt had absorbed moisture and odors. Of course with every structure above and below entirely of salt, one could not resist scratching the walls to have a taste. (sorry no pics as most of my photos in the dark are just rubbash)

Coming to Krakow would also mean a pilgrimage to the worst scenes in the history of mankind - the Auschwitz concentration camp. As Mr. Yap has blogged about it you can read our experience here

We also had a free guided tour from Andre from Traveller's Inn Hostel - a very nice chap who brought us around the Podgorze district. Podgorze was the former sanctioned ghetto during WWII by the Nazis coralling all Jewish Poles behind a wall. This was the location where Oskar Schindler set up his enamel and ammunitions factory and risked life and limb to save 'his' 1,200 Jewish workers.


Another interesting Polish phenomenon I've discovered are the 'milk bars' i.e. 'bar mlezcny'. A milk bar is the leftover remnants of the welfare state of Poland which offered subsidized cheap meals for workers with no canteens. Hence the food was very cheap but yummy nevertheless. It's name was derived from the fact that then, most of the food served was dairy and flour based i.e. 'pierogi' (a kind of stuffed dumpling) and pancakes.




Besides the walking, eating, taking photos, tours with the hostel guide and sharing a room with anti-fascist German students (coined-term 'Nazi Fighters'), it was a short, cheap and cheerful and I found myself culturally and educationally satisfied.

Summer Summer...

Haven't been blogging for the past few days....sign of me running around doing stuff and keeping busy before summer ends. Somehow life just kicked in as if the accelerator had been revved.

The highlights of the week were...

1. The PCON Picnic in the Park



Had a nice evening with the team in the park...D made her infamous carrot cake(or rather her daughter did)...extremely yummy and chewy. C's wife also contributed with a beetroot fruit cake thingy. It was good fun and a different setting compared to the boardroom presentations and everyone let loose with a bit of frisbee on the side too


2.MSPME 2006 Reunion



Finally we made it! (at least some of us did) 7 of us from the MSPME 2006-8 batch had a mini reunion in London last weekend. We were of course missing the other 19 who are all over the world or back in their home countries. J and V stayed over mine and we met up with H, N, A, and B for a picnic at Regent's Park. Although the moment have passed, we left a little footprint of the memory here at www.mspme2006.blogspot.com


3. At Hulya's



Had a very nice cooking class and lunch with H who showed me how to make dolma biber (stuffed peppers) which I was missing. Somehow the local Turkish restaurants don't have it on the menu...True to Turkish hospitality, H prepared a feast and it was enjoyed with gusto by myself and her housemate S. Cok guzel! Tessekkur ederim H canim!

4. Ultimate Frisbee Freaks



Got hooked on Ultimate when S introduced me to the Frisbee gang. It's fun, it's addictive, keeps your fitness level up with a fun-bunch of people and cost-free - what more could one ask for? We have a core team of regulars who keep the group running...thank you guys and gals for the sportsmanship and good times!

LOVE STORY (Taylor Swift) meets VIVA LA VIDA (Coldplay) - Piano Cello - by Jon Schmidt

Jon Schmidt's 7 year-old daughter loved Taylor Swift's song 'Love Story' so much that her dad covered this song with a friend.

Thank you Angie for sharing this - love it love it

The Scar

I have a scar on my upper lip. It's light brown about the size of a finger nail. I don't notice it until I face the mirror in the morning to brush my teeth and then I realise it is there, it is still there. I put Bio-oil on it every day and eat Vitamin E capsules (2 a day) in the hopes that it fades away.

I can look at it both ways:

I have a scar and I had been hurt.

or

I have a scar and I got over the hurt

Scars are a sign of health - the ability of the skin to repair itself from a wound. Scars are also mementoes of an injury - a past pain. There are the physical scars and then there are the emotional ones. That discomfiting memory of a harsh word and transgression, a betrayal. You don't realise it's there until something/someone triggers the emotion and then you remember. But then again, you are alive and well now and have survived it - thus a celebration is called for. I came across this passage which seemed appropriate:

"On the girl's brown legs there were many small white scars. I was thinking, Do those scars cover the whole of you, like the stars and the moons on your dress? I thought that would be pretty too, and I ask you right here please to agree with me that a scar is never ugly. That is what the scar makers want us to think. But you and I, we must make an agreement to defy them. We must see all scars as beauty. Okay? This will be our secret. Because take it from me, a scar does not form on the dying. A scar means,"I survived".'

~The Other Hand by Chris Cleave~

Jai Ho - AR Rahman and Pussycat Dolls