It’s been awhile since I last blogged. I believe I had an entry for the birthday do we had for my precious but I had problems loading the pictures then I cant remember what happened.
Anyway, it was the school holidays recently and since our plans to go up north to Ipoh and Penang got cancelled, we decided to join a trip to Kuala Selangor instead. And I must say we went with very little expectations but came away from that trip totally awed!
The place is steep in in history and we had fun at the museums. We saw everything from an old Japanese bicycle, read on the lineage of the Sultanate and even visited a torture well. We also never saw as many monkeys coming at us ever before, they are certainly much friendlier than he ones at Botanical Garden. De Palma where we stayed also had loads of fun for us..although I shall not dwell on what happend to me that nite...errr...that part a bit eerie laaa....
Seafood was wonderful and cheap but of course the highlight of the trip was the fireflies. (well, the seafood comes in at a close second..ha ha...)
The berembang trees that lined the river were truly amazing, and it was completely humbling to see God's creation..trees and tress all lighted up like it was Christmas. Truthfully, it kinda freaked me out that we were actually on the boat, on the river in the dark of the night (but with lifejackets of course) but the excitement just blew me away. The night was full of stars that night and made my preious break out in Josh Groban's Starry starry nite. I honestly cannot remember the last time I saw a nite so full of stars...it was simply gorgeous...!! Who can see a starry nite living in KL, tell me?
Our program with the rest of the group ( asthmatic kids mostly) went well too and everyone had loads of fun that 2 whole days.
For those who have never had a chance to visit Kuala Selangor, you should! Did you all know that fireflies have a life span of only 2-3 months? And that Kuala Selangor is the only one out of 2 places in the world where we can actually view fireflies that way? The other place is in the Amazon..deep in the jungle where you would need to track miles and miles..I bet you didnt know that right...
Friday, June 22, 2007
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
A Fond Farewell
It is with much sadness that I note the passing of Loga of Alleycats. I grew up on their songs, and if you plant me in front of a karaoke, I can croon to their hits all day. And today a chapter is closed. And to think that he is still relatively young, but has made such an impact on so many lives..it is truly quite amazing.
If one were to reflect, Alleycats colored our local music scene without any need for scandalous stories. No news on drugs, messy divorces or other sensational attention grabbing headlines. How many local singers and actors can you think of that have managed to avoid unnecessary media attention? Alleycats just played good music and did their thing. And although they were not one of those stars who hogged the limelight all the time, I doubt they ever lost their fans.
As my husband aptly puts it – talk about national integration! Alleycats helped Malaysians achieve that with such ease…folks from all walks of life, irrespective of race and creed, hundreds of thousands loved their music, throughout the thirty over decades that the band has been around. Their gigs at PJ Hilton is something I remember well, being a PJ girl I used to go watch them play.
When I read what his mother had said; that she was not even in this much pain when her husband died several years ago - that was sad. Her husband had died of old age but to have this son of hers leave the family at this juncture of his life was a lot more painful for her. No parent should have to go through the trauma of burying a chlld, and although he’s a grown man of 54, I suppose his mother felt that tremendous pain.
An era has ended, Alleycats is never gonna be quite the same again. One Afro haired guy will be sorely missed.. He has indeed “pergi dulu” and he really has wished us all “ selamat tinggal, aku mengundurkan diri…”
If one were to reflect, Alleycats colored our local music scene without any need for scandalous stories. No news on drugs, messy divorces or other sensational attention grabbing headlines. How many local singers and actors can you think of that have managed to avoid unnecessary media attention? Alleycats just played good music and did their thing. And although they were not one of those stars who hogged the limelight all the time, I doubt they ever lost their fans.
As my husband aptly puts it – talk about national integration! Alleycats helped Malaysians achieve that with such ease…folks from all walks of life, irrespective of race and creed, hundreds of thousands loved their music, throughout the thirty over decades that the band has been around. Their gigs at PJ Hilton is something I remember well, being a PJ girl I used to go watch them play.
When I read what his mother had said; that she was not even in this much pain when her husband died several years ago - that was sad. Her husband had died of old age but to have this son of hers leave the family at this juncture of his life was a lot more painful for her. No parent should have to go through the trauma of burying a chlld, and although he’s a grown man of 54, I suppose his mother felt that tremendous pain.
An era has ended, Alleycats is never gonna be quite the same again. One Afro haired guy will be sorely missed.. He has indeed “pergi dulu” and he really has wished us all “ selamat tinggal, aku mengundurkan diri…”
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
A tough one....
As we were settling down at bedtime, he suddenly said, “I need to tell you something..” . Sure, I said.
He continued, “I don’t want to die” and although stunned I replied, everything and everyone dies, sweetie, but it’s ok.
Then he asked, “mom, what happens after we die?”
Phew, a tough one so I gave dad a slight nudge to signal “help me out here dear”.
Well, if we’ve been good and have done what Allah tells us to do then we get to see Allah and go to paradise, dad responded.
“What’s paradise?”, he asked. It’s a really cool place, his dad replied, where you can do whatever you want and ask for anything. What would you like to ask for? I asked
“Can I go on train rides?” Of course I said. You can even watch Playhouse Disney Channel all day long if you want. It’s a real magical place, we say.
“But mom”, he said, and with tears rolling down his cheeks, “will we see each other and be together again??”..Oh baby, I said and squeezed him real tight, of course we will…insyallah..
Next morning, he asks, “In paradise, can I be my own boss?” Sure, said daddy. “oh wow, then I can’t wait to get to paradise..!” (you see, sometimes he laments that we boss him around)
So there, the quizzical scenarios we get into with our son who turns 6 tomorrow.
How would you have handled that one, I ask you…?
He continued, “I don’t want to die” and although stunned I replied, everything and everyone dies, sweetie, but it’s ok.
Then he asked, “mom, what happens after we die?”
Phew, a tough one so I gave dad a slight nudge to signal “help me out here dear”.
Well, if we’ve been good and have done what Allah tells us to do then we get to see Allah and go to paradise, dad responded.
“What’s paradise?”, he asked. It’s a really cool place, his dad replied, where you can do whatever you want and ask for anything. What would you like to ask for? I asked
“Can I go on train rides?” Of course I said. You can even watch Playhouse Disney Channel all day long if you want. It’s a real magical place, we say.
“But mom”, he said, and with tears rolling down his cheeks, “will we see each other and be together again??”..Oh baby, I said and squeezed him real tight, of course we will…insyallah..
Next morning, he asks, “In paradise, can I be my own boss?” Sure, said daddy. “oh wow, then I can’t wait to get to paradise..!” (you see, sometimes he laments that we boss him around)
So there, the quizzical scenarios we get into with our son who turns 6 tomorrow.
How would you have handled that one, I ask you…?
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Happily Ever After
Three days ago, hubby and I celebrated 18 years of marital bliss – sometimes not-so-bliss. It’s been a long and interesting journey, certainly not always smooth, especially in the early years. At this point however, life is sweet and I feel truly blessed.
This afternoon I spent a long time talking to one of my best girlfriends. We’ve known each other since we were kids in primary school and when times are bad we try to be there for one another.
It’s been tough for her, feeling the strain and missing that love. Nope, no third party or anything of the sort, just some rough times. And boy, I know that feeling all too well, that disappointment, the resentment and just plain “I don’t feel like I wanna be nice to you although I still love you” kinda feeling.
It’s tough and the irony is although you desperately want it to work, you also just don’t feel like working at it because of so much anger inside of you. In the end, you need to somehow learn to forgive, accept your partner "seadanya" and then find that inner calm. Only then can you begin to re-nurture that relationship and start rekindling whatever that’s missing.
It’s never easy to get rid of all that anger because first you have to get rid of all expectations. I guess we need to appreciate that time changes a person and we have probably changed as well. It’s just always easier to see our partner as the one who has changed. And when these men in our lives do not live up to our expectations and we the do not end up having that castle we once dreamed of, then marriage kills the romance that was once a part of the courtship in the early years.
Yes, I had dreams dashed too, I expected more and the feeling of “how come I got the losing end of this deal and you got the better bargain out of this relationship” can sometimes cause you more heartache and inevitably shatters those expectations again and again. Maybe some of us od’d on romance novels - we all thought we were going to meet a guy, fall madly in love, be swept off our feet and live happily ever after. Aaah, that is soo not real, now we know better huh?. Hey, I thought I was going to be the wife of a rich successful doctor..look how that turned out. Would I have been happier? I don’t know - maybe I would in some ways. I would probably be able to afford a nice house, drive a cool car and get to spend his money – ha ha…! But then again, those are really material wealth aren't they..
Everyone tells you marriage is not about keeping score, but rather about doing little things that make the other’s lives happier and easier but at times when your love tank is running low, it’s not easy to remember things like these. I suppose some of us just have to rough it out and accept that even in the bleakest of times, there are lessons to be learned and love can prevail if we try to forgive and accept that happily ever after is truly over rated.
But am I happy now? Oh, you bet I am…
This afternoon I spent a long time talking to one of my best girlfriends. We’ve known each other since we were kids in primary school and when times are bad we try to be there for one another.
It’s been tough for her, feeling the strain and missing that love. Nope, no third party or anything of the sort, just some rough times. And boy, I know that feeling all too well, that disappointment, the resentment and just plain “I don’t feel like I wanna be nice to you although I still love you” kinda feeling.
It’s tough and the irony is although you desperately want it to work, you also just don’t feel like working at it because of so much anger inside of you. In the end, you need to somehow learn to forgive, accept your partner "seadanya" and then find that inner calm. Only then can you begin to re-nurture that relationship and start rekindling whatever that’s missing.
It’s never easy to get rid of all that anger because first you have to get rid of all expectations. I guess we need to appreciate that time changes a person and we have probably changed as well. It’s just always easier to see our partner as the one who has changed. And when these men in our lives do not live up to our expectations and we the do not end up having that castle we once dreamed of, then marriage kills the romance that was once a part of the courtship in the early years.
Yes, I had dreams dashed too, I expected more and the feeling of “how come I got the losing end of this deal and you got the better bargain out of this relationship” can sometimes cause you more heartache and inevitably shatters those expectations again and again. Maybe some of us od’d on romance novels - we all thought we were going to meet a guy, fall madly in love, be swept off our feet and live happily ever after. Aaah, that is soo not real, now we know better huh?. Hey, I thought I was going to be the wife of a rich successful doctor..look how that turned out. Would I have been happier? I don’t know - maybe I would in some ways. I would probably be able to afford a nice house, drive a cool car and get to spend his money – ha ha…! But then again, those are really material wealth aren't they..
Everyone tells you marriage is not about keeping score, but rather about doing little things that make the other’s lives happier and easier but at times when your love tank is running low, it’s not easy to remember things like these. I suppose some of us just have to rough it out and accept that even in the bleakest of times, there are lessons to be learned and love can prevail if we try to forgive and accept that happily ever after is truly over rated.
But am I happy now? Oh, you bet I am…
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