Wednesday, June 29, 2005

A Woman Without A Man Is Like A Fish Without A Bicycle (Part Deux)

It's funny how the term "feminist" has been maligned and slaughtered to such an extent that women fear being labelled as a feminist instead of being proud to be one. This is really unfortunate. On the other hand. some have even taken the term "feminist" to the other end of the spectrum and use it to justify their hedonistic lifestyle, often filled with one-night stands and leaving a trail of broken hearts. They reason that since they are "fighting" for equality between the sexes, they can treat men the same way some men treat women.

By most accounts, I identify myself as a feminist. No, not the bra-burning, man-hating lesbian type but a feminist all the same.Image hosted by Photobucket.com One might question how I dare call myself a feminist when firstly I am a) married b) openly professes to being charmed by flowers and diamonds and extravagant dinners by my husband c) cooks and cleans up after him d)not actively participating in any earth-shaking convention or protests. Heck I'm not even an AWARE member. (I'm filing in the application form as you read this, maybe you should too!) But still, I call myself a feminist all the same.
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I believe in equality between the genders. I am against patriachy simply because I believe women have a great deal to contribute to the society and by virtue of this alone, their needs, strengths and views must be taken into consideration in any factor be it job application, the passing of laws, governmental restrictions or benefits etc etc, in fact in anything and everything. While some people (feminists included) take this to mean that in order to practise equality, women can no longer request, demand or seek privileges and/or consideration, I beg to differ.

My Muslim background has taught me that equality does not equate to identical. This concept may be hard to grasp, especially with the widespread perception that Islam supresses women. But if you would take a minute to consider this concept, I assure you will see the logic of it.
"The important point to be kept in mind about the Islamic concept of equality is that despite considering a man and a woman equal, Islam places them in different spheres of social set-up, according to their biological and natural capabilities, so that they work in their separate spheres and benefit the society accordingly. Contrary to this notion when the western concept of equality once admits that man and woman are born equal then it refuses to accept any difference between the two on the basis of their natural and biological aptitudes and capabilities. It tends to use both of them in the same capacity. This results in the fact that when a woman or a man tries to utilise her/his energies and natural inclinations in areas not meant for each of them; then not only the society suffers but both man and woman have negative effect on their personalities because of this misuse.
This is a fact and is neither degrading to man nor to woman. We know that a woman can conceive but a man cannot. It is neither shameful for a woman to conceive nor for a man not to do so. The very existence of human race depends on the fact that each one of them should proceed with what God has made them capable of. The duties assigned, to man and woman, by nature have their own importance individually. One cannot argue that to take care of a household is not important compared to running an office, or to raise children is degrading compared to trade or learning war techniques. All the roles played by men and women for the survival of collective and social system are equally important.
"
- Amin Ahsan Islahi(Translated by Amar Ellahi Lone) Read more here

The problem arises not because of the restrictions in Islam but because of the perception (propogated by the patriarch society, no doubt) that a woman's job of handling a household and bringing up and educating children is menial compared to a man sitting in a glass-walled office, wearing a three-piece suit barking orders to his staff. It is this long entrenched conjecture that is making women feel they too need to hold a high-flying job outside their home in order to validate themselves, thereby relegating their house-bound duties and child-rearing to paid help or juggle a superwoman itinerary and stretching themselves dry.

It is sad to see in this day and age of modern technology that we women still live our life according to the rules and regulations set up by men. We strife to meet their standards, whether in terms of physical appearances or achievements and constantly look to them for approval and validation. How many women do you know immediately put on their "feminine" voice and mannerism the moment a guy enters the room? How many women you know try to assert their "feminine-ness" when in front of a male specimen, cross their legs, pout their lips and flutter their eyeleashes ??

So while feminism in the first wave concentrated on gaining the right of women's suffrage, the second wave on inclusion of women in traditionally male-dominated areas and the third wave seeking to challenge and expand common definitions of gender and sexuality (ie including lesbianism) perhaps the fourth wave shall be to let women exist on their own right, for their own purpose, to make choices totally on their own accord and be judged solely by their own standards.

And in order to make it happen, we will have to make our own stand.

A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle

gloria steinem
You are Gloria Steinem. You are the McDonalds(tm)
of liberal feminism, though you used to expouse
some pretty radical ideas, you ended up working
the system. Because it's easier? Maybe. But
thanks for the only mainstream feminist
magazine and for heading one of the most
significant feminist lobbys in the history of
the US. We wouldn't be where we are without NOW
and Ms., as much as some of us are loathe to
admit it.


Which Western feminist icon are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Monday, June 27, 2005

Gentleman or "gentle" man?

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Are you man enough to carry this bag??

If you had read The Sunday Times yesterday, you'd have read the article about men who carry their wives'/girlfriends' bag for them. Apparently some men, in the name of chivalry, go around town carrying their other halves' bags for them, no matter if its a huge carry-it-all or a dainty little furry carry-on. Interviews with some of these seemingly alien men unearth some very "logical" reasons as to why they subject themselves to such ridicule. Apparently they think its the gentle-manly thing to do and they want to "free their partners' hand so she can do other things". One guy even quip that since they have to hold hands, the girl doesn't have enough hands to hold her bag so he helps her to do so.

I almost choked on the gulp of Milo I was drinking readign these men's sorry excuses. Absurd dun' u think? I mean I'd understand if its a heavy load like those bags with baby's diapers + milk bottles + etc etc but a tiny little sequinned clutch bag? How heavy can it be? What has happened to men nowadays? Have their balls shrink to such an extent they cannot see they are slinging mud to men everywhere by their actions? And what the hell happened to all the girls' backbones (and brains)?? Have all the women liberation movement all been in vain? What would be next? Would the men wear their partner's cardigan when she takes them off to show-off her new spaghetti strap? After all with one hand needed to hold their partner's hand, and the other to hold her bag, there would be no hand left to carry the cardigan. And heaven forbid the girl should want to carry it herself because she would need both her hands "free".

Ok ok I know there is nothing wrong with being chivalrous. And yes, I love it too when my hubby opens doors for me and pulls out my seat. But surely chivalry has its limits too. Carrying your spouse's bag in the name of chivalry seems overboard to me. Sure there are times when even I ask my hubby to hold on to my bag like when i'm going to the loo or if I need to straighten my hair/make-up/shoe etc. But that's only for a brief moment and only out of necessity. I dun buy that crap about "it shows the guy is man-enough because he is willing to be seen in public with a ladies' bag" If that is the case why stop there? If it makes you a "BIGGER" man to be seen in public with a ladies' bag, then surely you will be an "ENORMOUS" man if you were seen in public with a ladies' G-String?

I'm damn glad my hubby is not the kind who would do ANYthing and EVERYthing in the name of chivalry. He is chivalrous in just the right amount (just right for me anyway) and I dun think I can look at my hubby in the eye the same way again if one day he would offer to carry my pink frilly handbag for me to "free" my hand.

Friday, June 24, 2005

Two Less Lonely People In The World

TWO LESS LONELY PEOPLE IN THE WORLD

I was down my dreams were wearing thin
When you're lost where do you begin
My heart always seemed to drift from day to day
Looking for the love that never came my way


Then you smiled and I reached out to you
I could tell you were lonely too
One look then it all began for you and me
The moment that we touched I knew that there would be


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(chorus) two less lonely people in the world
And it's gonna be fine
Out of all the people in the world
I just can't believe you’re mine
In my life where everything was wrong
Something finally went right
Now there's two less lonely people
In the world tonight


Just to think what I might have missed
Looking back how did I exist
I dreamed, still I never thought I'd come this far
But miracles come true, I know cause here we are


(chorus)
Tonight I fell in love with you
And all the things I never knew
Seemed to come to me somehow
Baby, love is here and now there's......
- Air Supply -


It was a magical night. Russell Hitchcock and Graham Russell managed to make Singaporean audience shake their butt. And that's a feat!! (although the audience resisted initially but towards the end the audience stood up and shook their butts!)
The best part of the performance was when they sang in accoustic. That was really, really cool. And the best part for me was when they started singing "Two Less Lonely People In The World" and The Don put his arms around me, looked into my eyes and sang along. If I were ice cream, I'd melt into a puddle of water. We really enjoyed ourselves at the concert and looking forward to attending even more in the future. Graham was sooo right when he said we would be leaving the stadium with a smile on our faces and all of Air Supply's song swarming inside our heads.

After the concert, we stayed back and congratulated The Don's client on a wonderful performance and a successful venture. Despite a short chat, the crowd has still not dissipated so we took a detour to Stadium Waterfront. They really did a great job with that area. The lighting, water and general ambience makes it a really romantic place. The bridge looks amazing at night.
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It was a wonderful night. It would have been better if the next day wasn't a working day but alas! u can't have everything now can you ....?

Thursday, June 23, 2005

LOST IN LOVE

The Don told me on Monday to keep my Thursday evening free. (ie. no shopping after work and no girl's night out) He wouldn't say why but he said it with a gleam in his eye and a sly smile, making me instantly suspicious yet intrigue. I had a feeling he has more things up his sleeve. My darling Don is turning into a magician isn't he? He seems to have stuff up his sleeve all the time. Next, he'll pull a rabbit out of his sleeve, hehe. (or a diamond ring, preferably)

So anyway, every chance I get I prod and coax him to tell me what he had in store for me on Thursday but he wouln't let up. I tried every trick in the book - "I need to know where we are going so I can dress appropriately" to "Pleaseeee tell me for the sake of my fledging sanity where we are going. I can't stand not knowing!!" - but he just wouldn't say!!!

It was midnight last night, as we sat and chatted about the awe-inspiring seminar we had just attended conducted by Ms Wendy Kwek, Sprit of Enterprise Winner of 2004 when The Don suddenly blurted out that we were attending a concert tonight. The Air Supply 30 Years Concert. AND WE HAVE FRONT ROW SEATS !!!!! (4th row from the front is FRONT ROW enough for me!!!)

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When I first heard the super Duo was coming to Singapore for a one-night only probably last concert, I did mention to The Don that it would be lovely to go.
Yes, Air Supply is sooo not "our time" but we love their songs all the same. The Don mentioned that the promoter company that is bringing in the duo is his client and that he will see what he can do about getting good seats. And then, as usual, I forgot all about it. All until last night.

It seems the concert is a sell-out one. Tickets sold like hot cakes as soon as they were released and right now only single seats remain in all categories. It really helps to have my Don so connected. Makes life a whole lot easier to live, dun u think ? Either that or I'm plainly the luckiest gal in the world. Sure feels that way right now.

Thank you darling.....

Sunday, June 19, 2005

Birthday Of My Dreams

I still can't believe what a wonderful birthday I had. It was like a hollywood movie come to reality. It was surprises after surprises and just when I thought that was it, out came another surprise. It was definitely THE VERY BEST birthday I have ever had in my whole life.

I started celebrating on the Thursday, 16th June with my best friend Mahanom at Cafe Vienna @ Royal Scotts Hotel. The food was lovely as always and the company was of course, delightful. Birthdays are a bit of a festive occassion for M and I both and we try to do the same for our other friends. (although sadly they do not quite reciprocate but its ok we don't mind.)

My first surprise came very early on the mornin of my birthday.
My Dearest darling woke me up with a full breakfast tray he had lovingly prepared for me. Toast, eggs, a mug of piping hot milo and a couple of birthday kisses. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. It was a wonderful surprise so early in the morning and undoubtably the BEST breakfast I have ever tasted EVER!!!!

When I stepped into the office at 9.30am (late as usual) my colleagues broke into a birthday song for me. (a very off-key rendition) and started planning where to take me for my birthday lunch. We finally decided on Swensen's since I had already gone to Cafe Vienna (an office favourite) the night before and everywhere else was fully booked. Lunch was fantastic! I had Honey-Glazed Chicken, off their promotion menu and a quick verification of my NRIC earned me a Firehouse Sundae, on top of the Rasberry Crumble single scoop that came with my meal. Needless to say, the hours after lunch was spent trying to keep my eyes open.

2nd Birthday Surprise...
At 2.45pm, an elderly Indian chap walked into my office with a huge bouquet of flowers. My colleagues all went into a frenzy while my jaw dropped, speechless.
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Beautiful didn't even begin to describe the bouquet. There were stargazer lilies and pink roses and did I say that it was HUGE!!!! It was from Mahanom, my dearest, bestest friend. On her birthday in January, I stopped by her office with a small bouquet of pink roses and a book, and here she was, returning the favour, twice in size, with that huge bouquet, delivered.

3rd Birthday Surprise
At 5pm, my dearest Don came to fetch me as usual. From his smirk and his cunning (but enchanting) smile I knew he had something up his sleeve but when I asked where we were going he said we were going home. He did drive towards Woodlands and for a minute I honestly thought we were gonna have a quiet romantic self-cooked dinner (he cook of course) at home but when he missed the expressway exit for home, I knew where we were going ----> Across the causeway. The Don was his usual teasing self, stopping at various stalls in JB and pretending to look for a place to park at Stulang and at the Pantai Lido stalls. I knew he was kidding. At the very least, he would bring me to a restaurant, not some open air stalls. Usually, an occasion like this would mean a lavishly romantic dinner But he drove by the roads leading to Puteri Pan Pacific twice without stopping and twice he drove by Hyatt Regency too. I was beginning to get worried. Suddenly on the third time driving on that street, he turned into Hyatt Regency Hotel, JB. A-Ha, I knew my dearest darling would only give me the best. What more on my birthday.

Thank god no photos were taken during my birthday dinner because if there were, you'd see my mouth literally water. I had mentioned in passing to THE DON a few weeks ago that it has been some time since we had seafood. I had even forgotten all about it but apparently he didn't. Hyatt Regency was having a sumptious buffet of BBQ seafood that night. And I ate to my heart's content. Image hosted by Photobucket.comImage hosted by Photobucket.com
There were prawns, crayfish, crab, fish, mussels etc etc. on top of the usual buffet spread of pasta, nasi lemak and Hyatt's delectable pastries and cakes. (the white choc mousse cake was to die for !!!) I must have gained 5kg from eating that one night alone. Image hosted by Photobucket.com

THE DON cautined to keep some space in my tummy coz he said he said he had something else for me later, but it was too late. I was already so full that anything else thru my lips would surely mean throwing up. When we were almost done and down to our last round of the buffet (fruits) The Don suddenly said he didn't have eough Malaysian Ringgit to tip the valet and would have to leave me for a while. As you can imagine I was quite curious about this because The Don is a meticulous man and usually has everything planned down to the minutest detail but I had no alternative explanation. Besides, I had nothing to suspect as I was sure he had revealed everything he had hidden in his sleeve for one night. But BOY was I wrong.

Final Birthday Surprise.
My darling husband came back to the table with a key card to a room upstairs. It took all my willpower not to scream in ecstasy and create a scene in that fine dining place. I was totally taken off-guard. The dinner was good enough as it is. The room was beyond my wildest imagination.
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After the euphoria, my immediate concern was clothes, naturally, but my dearest husband had it all worked out. He had packed 2 days worth of clothes for us both on the sly.

It was a beautiful room, with sea-view and a king sized bed. (Sea-View King, I believe the room is called) When we draw the curtains, all we see is an extensive view of the Johor Straits and the Dataran Bandaraya Clock Tower. Our room was right in the centre wing so a look down gave us this view.
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Hyatt hotel rooms should be made strictly for married couples because there is no lock to the bathroom and the long bath has a window which opens up to the rest of the room. In essence, while in the bath, you will still get to enjoy the great view. And enjoyed it we did.
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In what was the finale to the surprises of the day, he produced a birthday cake for me.
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I couldn't take anything down my throat any more but who said cakes are just for eating..???

It was truly, truly the best birthday I had ever had.

ps: Thanks guys for the birthday wishes, the e-cards and the actual cards.

Friday, June 17, 2005

Another Year Older, Another Year Wiser????








Your Birthdate: June 17

Your birth on the 17th day of the month suggests that you are very lucky financially, because this date indicates a solid business sense.

Although you are probably very honest and ethical, this birthday enables you to be shrewd and successful in the world of business and commercial enterprise.

You have excellent organizational, managerial, and administrative capabilities enabling you to handle large projects and significant amounts of money with relative ease.



You are ambitious and highly goal-oriented, although you may be better at starting projects than you are at finishing them.

A sensitivity in your nature, often repressed below the surface of awareness, makes it hard to give or receive affection.






25 things to do before you are 25
1. Fall in Love. Oh yes!!! I am in the abyss of luurrve!!!
2. Ride a bicycle. I learnt when I was 6.
3. Swim. Eeerrr I can float.. that's close enuff right?
4. Kiss someone. Smoooochhh!!!!
5. Ride a motorcycle. Riding pillion half point??
6. Have a night out with your friends - just talking. I will always treasure those moments with my gal friends
7. Try alcohol (and realize that getting drunk is just not worth it.) Didn't have to try it to realise that its not worth it
8. Learn to play a musical instrument - at least try– All thru my primary n secondary school days, nothing gave me more pleasure than playing my cornet / euphonium
9. Play your favorite game for a whole day. My record with The Sims was 13 hours. STRAIGHT!!
10. Read "The Godfather" and "Love Story" Read both and lurve them both
11. Learn to cook. Its a joy cooking especially for the one you love but there's always more to learn everyday
12. Skydive.ARE YOU CRAZY???
13. Watch the sunrise.Many times, the best of which is the one that greeted us when we landed in Paris.
14. Resist trying smoking-you will thank yourself for the rest of your life. I have resisted and I'm proud to say my Don doesn't smoke too. I live in a smoke-free environment thank God!
15. Go to a rock show. Definitely been there.... to see Awie in concert some years back!!
16. Trek - Climb a mountain. Bukit Timah Hill can?
17. Smell a Rose. Looks like I'm gonna b smelling a whole bouquest today
18. Shave your head or grow your hair extra long. I think I had my head shaved on my 7th day of life and I grew my hair extra long in college.
19. Write a poem/song. I wrote many poems but none good enough for anyone else to see....hehehe
20. Drench yourself in the rain.I think I shld get 2 pts here coz not only was I drenched in a rain, I was half-submerged in flood waters
21. Eat the cheapest meal you can find.There was this one time I was in town and I realised I didn't have my cards. So I had to dig for coin and managed to scanvenge enough for a humble hamburger.
22. Gate-crash into a party.MMm.... and why would I do that?
23. Go regularly to the gym for at least three months.I have bought the clothes, the shoes, and even paid for the membership and I went twice only.
24. Learn your favourite song by heart.Oh yes... both lyrics and music score
25. Walk a mile - alone. Do you have any idea how long a mile is ? I wouldn't even walk 10m. Why would I when I have my Don on speed dial 1 and the taxi company on speed dial 2.

VERDICT----> 17 out of 25 done. Not too shabby huh? But I dun think I'm gonna be able to accomplish the rest even when I reach 40 except the gym perhaps... hehehe (I wonder when...)

Wednesday, June 15, 2005

Acronym Anonymous

I dunno if this is original but I got it off the comment box of Mr Podah posted by one cheecher Mr Sahul.

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In Singapore, the majority of us live in Highly Dangerous Buildings (HDB),
And most people have already got used to Paying and Paying (PAP).
Not only do you have to pay, you Pay Until Bankrupt (PUB).
If that's not enough, somebody still Purposely Wants to Dig (PWD) and get more from you.

So what more can you do when you are in the Money Only Environment (MOE)?
With the current Mad Accounting System (MAS), you are forced to Pay the Sum Ahead (PSA),
Which will leave some people Permanently Owing Some Banks (POSB).
And forced to live on the Loan Techniques Always (LTA) system.

When you fall sick and happen to be admitted to a Money Operating Hospital (MOH),
You might be able to use your Cash Prior to Funeral (CPF) fund.
If you are out of luck, you may meet doctors who Never Use Heart (NUH) to treat you,
And you will be Sure to Give up Hope (SGH).
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To help ease the traffic, motorists have to pay Cash On Expressway (COE).
If that doesn't help, they can always Eternally Raise Prices (ERP) on the roads.
If you don't own a car, you can always make a Mad Rush to the Train (MRT),
OR get squashed in a bus Side By Side (SBS).

Lastly, under all these pressures, there are not many places we can relax,
Not even the good old place we used to go because it has become
So Expensive and Nothing To See Actually (SENTOSA)!!!

Monday, June 13, 2005

Did u think I was Snow White???

Took the "Which SG Blogger are u?" quiz on Kenny Sia's Blog and this is my results. I especially like the question no 10 in his quiz. Go on try it.......

Congratulations shsuya, you are...




'PoiPoi' Apple Lim of verypoisonouslady.blogspot.com


You look like a stereotypical bimbo outside but its a different story inside. You're a nice, simple, proud and straightforward person who believes what you're doing is right. You don't change people, and you love them for who they are. Your primary goal in life is to be happy, next to being pretty. You have your detractors but you don't let them bring you down. You go out of your way to help others out even before they ask, and for that they love you.



Which Singaporean Blogger Are You?

Thursday, June 09, 2005

Pak Kuntet (the name tickles me)

When CSI ended on AXN at 10 last night, and nothing else worth watching was on, The Don and I looked to each other in question. A quick rummage through our VCD/DVD drawer turned up only one movie we havn't seen. The Indonesian horror (we thought!) flick 'KAFIR' (Satanic). (I dunno who bought it, nobody in my family particularly likes Indonesian films) Out of other better movies and a tiny curiousity of how bad the horror movie might be, we turned down the sofa into a sofa bed, brought out pillows and a comforter, dimmed the lights and sat to watch.

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It turned out to be much more interesting than we thought. And it wasn't a horror flick at all. Read the review here and here in Indonesian. It was a crappy movie as far as movie standards goes but the nature of the plot - black magic, flying corpse and bomohs kept us rooted to our seats. The "Kafir" in the movie, Pak Kuntet, was a guy who had special healing powers. Everyday, he sits atop this kiln of fire, and his (ape-looking) assistant will collect his sweat. It is this sweat that possess magical qualities and he cures people either by asking them to drink his sweat or to rub it on the affected area of their body. I noe!!EEUUWW!!!! Wait till you hear this part -----> When he decided not to "cure" people anymore and instead try to attain immortality, a huge group of villagers rushed to him to lick the sweat off his body. DOUBLE EEEUUWWW!!!!!!

Out of curiosity I googled the movie this morning and guess what, it was loosely based on an actual event in Kuningan, West Java and the launch of this film was met with protests from people in the area for putting their culture in a bad light. (read more here (sorry its all in Indonesian)To watch it on the silver screen may be fun but to know that the actual thing happened in real life. I feel shivers down my spine!!!

Tuesday, June 07, 2005

Overdue Meme

Sorry Maya, but between the guests and the sales, this is the first opportunity I have had since u tagged me.

1) Total number of books I owned

Woaah.. This is not a good question. I can't answer in numbers but when we packed to move my things into our new house, I had three big boxes of books. Till today they sit nicely in the storeroom, still in their boxes, I have yet to find a bookshelf that is not too huge yet able to store all my books.

2) The last book I bought

That will have to be during lunchtime yesterday at the book store near my office -
"Raising a Happy, Unspoiled Child" by Burton White

3) The last book I read:

Baby Trail - Sinead Moriarty
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4) 5 books that mean alot to me

There are a lot more than 5 books that mean a lot to me.But for the sake of brevity here's the 5 off the top of my head.
a)Forever - Judy Blume
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Read in 1989. A real eye-opener. My first foray in the ways of the birds and the bees. Honestly that was the first time I knew what actually happened during sex. (I was 9!!) I still remember the name the guy gave to his little friend hehe.

b) A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
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A gift from The Don in 1997. A real classic with 1488 pages. I finished this book in like 10 days of intensive reading. Its like a Hindi movie book-ified. A Hindu girl falls in love with a Muslim boy in post-colonial India. Rich history background and great style of writing. This was the book which first sparked my interest in writing.

c) Chocolat - Joanne Harris
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This book started my fantasy (still on-going) with all things French. After reading this book in 1999, I wasn't sure who I was gonna marry but I was sure I wanted to go to Paris for my honeymoon. And eat lotsa choolates. And I did.

d) Angela's Ashes, Frank McCourt
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Absolutely riveting. I hate the movie version, BTW. It does absolutely no justice to the beautiful memoir. I cried reading this book. The story of the orphan Irish boy and his siblings really struck a chord in my heart.

e) Road To Mecca - Muhammad Asad
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This book really knocked sense into my head. Its about Leopold Weiss, a son of a Jewish barrister and grandson of an orthodox rabbi who found Islam. He travelled extensively in Saudi and the Middle East and became known as Muhamad Asad. His description of the Kaabah makes you want to fly there to see It this instant.

5) Tag 5 people and have them fill this out on their blogs

Lisa
Adam
Musang
Sha
Ridj

Now rake your brains people !!!!!

Monday, June 06, 2005

Guests Galore

That's the secret of entertaining. You make your guests feel welcome and at home. If you do that honestly, the rest takes care of itself. - Barbara Hall

The Don and I have been having a continuos stream of visitors since Wednesday. First was my 5 uncles from Pahang, Malaysia, who are here on special invitation from Habib Hassan to attend the Hol @ Ba'alwie mosque. (a day to commemorate the passing of an important religious figure)They were supposed to arrive by 10pm on Wednesday but a minor glitch and the heavy jam at the causeway caused them to arrive at 3am. And as always happens whenever family members congregate, we yakked the night (morning) away till Subuh. The Don and I had only 2 hours sleep before we got up to leave for work the next morning. 4 of my uncles left that same night while one stayed behind to accompany the Habibs from Indonesia on their trip to Malaysia, for 2 other hols.

We were very glad they decided to spend the night at our house. Usually, whenever they come to Singapore, they will accept Habib Syed Ahmad Semait's invitation to sleep at his sprawling place in the East. This time, however, our they bit our bait and slept at ours. This is certainly one advantage of The Don and I having our own place.

Then, my cousin Kak Ida n Abg Wan arrived on Friday night. Again the horrible jam caused them to arrive at 5am, instead of the midnight hour as planned. They spent the weekend here and left on Monday morning. We brought the kids for swimming on Saturday and my cousin and I dragged our husbands to Robinsons for shopping on Sunday. My cousin spent a bundle on her children's clothes while I made the Don spend a lil' on more household stuff (you can never have enough!) and toys for the kids.
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As expected, The Don and I havn't had much sleep since Wednesday, especially since our guests seems to arrive at noturnal hours. And as a habit, everytime my relatives meet, we will chat into the wee hours of the morning. Sleep is such a time-consuming activity since we have so much to talk about and so little time. Still, despite the lack of sleep and the yawn-a-minute marathon, The Don and I were happy to receive so many guests at our place and we look forward to more guests in future. After all, as they say "tetamu itu pembawa rezeki" (dun ask me for the translation)

Wednesday, June 01, 2005

Rose, Rose I Love You

I think the flower bug has bitten me. These last 2 weeks alone I have spent $100++ on flowers of all kinds and vases of all shapes n sizes. Especially with my spanking new sofa and new coffee table, the house seems plain witout flowers. Due to time constraint, I havnt managed to make an arrangement out of them. Last night, for some reason, despite being entirely exhausted after my weekly mopping, I started bringing out all my flowers and all my vases and tried to make magic out of them.

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I think I did a pretty good job with the lilies. *beams*. As I did with my tulips, and peonies. (sorry no photos yet)And if that wasn't enough, during lunch today, I stopped by the nearby florist and ordered 2 more table arrangements, for my new coffee table and my bedroom.

I think my love affair with the flora has begun. Now my house is filled with flowers at almost every surface. Ooohhh ... how I love my flowers!!!!