shabby blog

Showing posts with label reflections. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reflections. Show all posts

Thursday, March 4, 2010

My family is not from Mars, it's from another galaxy

My family is such a hodge podge of races. It's like a whole little global village happening there.
Let's start with my immediate family...

There's my mom who looks chinese thai even though she's not completely and my dad who could pass for chinese/a fair malay/philipino( the whole conundrum of races from the south east asian plate). Then there's my sister who looks chinese or chindian but is actually Indian inside. That's because she can amazingly pronounce words in a perfect, unperturbed Indian accent. Then there's my brother who looks( used to) Eurasian because of his dark brown hair and fair skin and sharp features. Finally there's me who feels all over the world( sometimes I can identify with the black psyche; we're all Adam's offspring...)- apparently according to my sister I am a cross between Pocahontas and a Navi( wth??)*rolls eyes* because I look like( as if it's a concession) a fair red indian native- Yay i get to talk to birds and animals and jump from random waterfalls and put freaking colours in the wind and make out with paraplegics in wheelchair while I'm blue and freakishly tall.

The race quota brims over in my youngest aunt's family. All her kids are adorable, fair, cheeky and under the age of 8( alarm bells should be ringing-there should be security council for these kids). The eldest looks Kazakhstan with a hint of chinese, the second one looks algerian, the third looks south east asian but with sharper features and the youngest looks like a puddle of white tofu; i.e eurasian/algerian. But they all have perfect Burmese diction and like Burmese food and curse in Burmese.

Then there's my grandma who's half thai-half chinese. But to me all i see is GRANDMA. She's like the template of what grandmas should look like. Round, old, quaint, very wise, much more observant than she lets on, cooks delicious food and a true patriot and very religious.

My late maternal grandpa looked like a classic Indian actor with sharp features and an aquiline nose and snow white hair and he spoke like a well bred Englishman until he bursts out in annoyance in a hail of Urdu (usually at me because no one can quite annoy and endear to him at the same time like me).

I have cousins who look Malay and can speak Malay but obviously aren't Malay. I have a purely Malay cousin brother in law who can kind of speak Burmese and has a little "Ballay" on the way.

I have a cousin who's dating a Persian girl and he could pass for middle eastern himself because he is tall( not to mention huge), fair and has those dark eyes and if he wore a turban he'd look like a perfect jihadist( sans the mane/hair/fuzz etc).

Cousins and aunts and uncles and goodness knows how we're related relatives all converge at one point, the mecca of potluck Burmese i.e; my Gran's house. Now you know why my sanity does not always toe the line. Who can when you have such strong, conflicting racial traits and genetic markers popping up everywhere around you and manifesting themselves in the form of your relatives? And i mean it not in a bad way ;)









Wednesday, November 18, 2009

The Greatest Play on Earth



Pull back the curtains
The stage is set
Hearts aflame, passions conflagrant
We're all unwilling players
Like pawns and kings and queens in a bloody
game of minds
Straws pulled in a preamble
to the greatest play on earth: Life itself
You're either a hero, the villain or the dead
You'll be lucky if you survive with your head

Surely love lost and gone
And starcrossed lovers spangled across
History's fabric would swear
That throbbing pulse on your sleeve it'd tear

Time and time again the same ghostly acts play out
With different actors and props
It fools you into thinking they're different
When underneath all the musk of sophistication and newness
It is dank and rank and mundane

Love is for some people, not so for others
Look at it from outside the blown glass pavillion
A mimicry of utopia played out in a pantomime
The jester who thinks mockery is flirtation
I belong to no one and yet yearn to find
that nook id call my own





Thursday, July 9, 2009

Past reflections



Wow this long sem break has been a whirlwind for me. Although i can't for the sake of drama say things like ive loved and lost, I could safely say that amongst many others, ive added to my list of human experiences: I've climbed and lived to climb some more hehe. Now that is some drama( i know sad but who cares to me it is drama worthy). I've had my share of ups and downs and holidays where i rotted away like a perpetual slug under a rock but this has been one of the better days...I hope Uni fares better for me. The things I did that ive always wanted to do these hols were:

1) Made cupcakes and baked chocolate cakes with mouthwatering icing(buttercream) for the kids. The joy on their faces and especially Baby Zara's choc smeared face lit with rainbow twinkles of effortless, pure happiness sent a bundle of serotonin shots running through my veins.

2) Rock climbing baby!! And I swear to God one day im gonna go deep water solo-ing. It's a cross between my two most favourite sports in the world: swimming and rock climbing( not to mention the constant companion in most of my endeavours, the adrenaline rush!).

3) Actually learned Arabic and Tilawah(like wow...)Great achievement for me considering that i have only the most basic, rudimentary skills in Quran reading.

4) I volunteered for a uni activity that was not grade related for once( breaking away from my inner nerd i call it :)): Mock trial scriptwriting. All the meetings followed up with raucous laughter and unexpected brainstorming sessions that proved fruitful really made me feel like i had a purpose.

5) Helped my aunt set up and man her jewellery stall at the klcc Annual International Jewellery Fest with great aplomb and finesse( ok i deserve that much amount of self flattery) along with my cousin. Ended up with a body of sore muscles but yeah the sense of accomplishment was there definitely and knowing me, i must have something to do otherwise I'd die of utter boredom and directionlessness.

6) And oh i've compiled an smashtastic playlist of lovely songs I've scavenged over the hols. I'm totally digging the Ghost Town soundtrack, especially John Mayer's Heart of life. It's so mesmerizing i keep playing and playing it and never get bored. I've done and Indie and Soul revival collection too. You don't need weed to get high or a caffeine fix. All you need is music and some imagination and wa-lah! U have your very own concoction of happiness in a bottle. Ok i sound really high now. I should stop before i ramble on about the meaning of happiness and i can feel a looong one coming.

7) And wait how could i forget? Ive actually managed to fulfill my social debts to my friends especially my bestest friends. They can't complain that it's like making a freaking appointment to get through to me anymore. Had fun fun fun and countless camwhore sessions and genuine only-we-know-what-the-hell-we're-talking-about-moments and laughing at the expense of people thinking we're total nuts. Ahhh...I'm glad i finally managed to meet up with dear Farah too. It's been so long since we last hung out and i love that girl. It's funny how sometimes Facebook proves itself useful and finds you a lifelong friend. But it was only for a really short while so that kind of leaves things hanging...anyhow at least i met her and that's good enough for me considering that she lives in Singapore and it's not everyday she comes down to KL.

P.s-Rest in Peace Mj.You were a flaming beacon of hope and musical creativity to a world gone to the dogs.
-Cheerio :D

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Visual Musings











I Love these from http://mila-loveology.blogspot.com/ For more whimsical,quirky,thought provoking musings check it out...

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Quotes that never fail to lift my spirits



"Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration."
"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."
~Thomas Edison (1847 - 1931)
Edison was a businessman and a prolific American inventor. Holding 1,093 U.S. patents (along with patents in other countries), he invented many devices during his lifetime. The ones that we are most familiar with, and which he is most famous for, are the phonograph and a long lasting light bulb.

"Eighty percent of success is just showing up."
~Woody Allen (1935 - )
Born Allen Stewart Königsberg, he is a well-known actor, jazz musician, comedian, playwright, writer, and American film director.

"It is necessary for us to learn from other's mistakes. You will not live long enough to make them all yourself."
~Hyman George Rickover (1900 - 1986)
Known as the "Father of the Nuclear Navy", he became the longest-serving active duty military officer in U.S. history with 63 years of continuous service.
What we say today:
"Learn from the mistakes of others."

"You will always miss 100% of the shots you don't take."
~Wayne Gretzky (1961 - )
Nicknamed "The Great One" Gretzky is one of the most famous professional Canadian hockey players in history. He won four Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers, as well as setting numerous hockey records during his career.

"Whether you think you can or whether you think you can't, you're right."
~Henry Ford (1863 - 1947)
Ford was the founder of the Ford Motor Company and is considered the father of modern assembly lines used in mass production. Ford revolutionized transportation with his invention of the Model-T automobile introduced on October 1, 1908. Horse-drawn carriages soon became a thing of the past.

"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination are omnipotent."
~Calvin Coolidge (1872 - 1933)
30th President of the United States from August 2, 1923 to March 4, 1929).

"What the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve."
~Napolean Hill (1883 - 1970)
Hill was an American author who was one of the earliest producers of the modern genre of personal-success literature. His most famous work, Think and Grow Rich , is one of the best-selling books of all time.

"A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step."
~Lao Tzu (Laozi) (6th Century BC)
He was believed to be a great philosopher of ancient China and is considered to be the father of Taosism (which is both a religion and a philosophy that advocates following the Tao or the way of nature.) It is still widely debated as to whether he was a real person or a mythical figure.

"I think therefore I am."
~Rene Descartes (1596 - 1650)
Descartes was a highly influential French philospher, mathematician, writer, and scientist. He is also known as the Father of Modern Philosophy and the Father of Modern Mathematics. Much of subsequent Western philosophy is a reaction to his writings.

"Energy and persistence conquer all things."
~Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790)
Franklin was one of the most important and influential Founding Fathers of the United States of America. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author and printer, satirist, political theorist, politician, scientist, inventor, civic activist, statesman and diplomat. As a scientist he was a major figure in the Enlightenment and the history of physics for his discoveries and theories regarding electricity. He invented the lightning rod, bifocals, the Franklin stove, a carriage odometer, and a musical instrument. (Source: wikipedia.org)

"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are."
~John R. Wooden (1910 - )
A retired American basketball coach with 10 NCAA National Championships to his credit while coaching at UCLA.

"Life is an echo. What you send out--you get back. What you give--you get."
"Worry is like a rocking chair, it will give you something to do, but it won't get you anywhere."

~Anonymous
You'll find that this "Anonymous" person crops up a lot. No one has been able to identify who this person really is.

"Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you too, can become great."
~Mark Twain (1835 - 1910)
Although best known by his pen name, Mark Twain, his real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. He was an American humorist, satirist, lecturer and writer and is famous for his novels: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

"A mature person is one who does not think only in absolutes, who is able to be objective even when deeply stirred emotionally, who has learned that there is both good and bad in all people and all things, and who walks humbly and deals charitably with the circumstances of life."
"In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our own responsibility."
~Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 - 1962)
Married to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, she was the First Lady from 1933 to 1945.

"Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakens."
~Carl Jung (1875 - 1961)
Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist, influential thinker, theoretical psychologist, and founder of analytical psychology. He explored the psyche by examining dreams, art, mythology, world religion, and philosophy. He believed that modern man relied too much on science and did not place enough emphasis on spirituality and the unconscious mind.

"Never think that you're not good enough yourself. A man should never think that. People will take you very much at your own reckoning."
~Anthony Trollope (1815 - 1882)
He was a successful and highly respected English novelist during the Victorian era. The British Broadcasting Corporation has made several television-drama serials based on his works.

"Some people believe that holding on and hanging in there are signs of great strength. However, there are times when it takes much more strength to know when to let go--and then do it."
~Ann Landers (1918 - 2002)
Landers ran a successful syndicated advice column for 45 years called "Ann Landers." In reality, her real name was Esther "Eppie" Pauline Friedman Lederer. Her identical twin sister, Pauline Esther Friedman Phillips wrote the famous "Dear Abby" column as Abigail Van Buren.

"Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely."
~Auguste Rodin (1840 - 1917)
Rodin was a famous French sculptor and artist.

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."
"Watch your thoughts; they become words.
Watch your words; they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.
Watch your character; it becomes your destiny."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)
Famous American author, essayist, poet, and philosopher.

"We often discover what will do by finding out what will not do; and probably he who never made a mistake never made a discovery."
~Samuel Smiles (1812 - 1904)
A Scottish author and reformer best known as a writer of self-help and biographical books on the achievements of "heroic" engineers.

"The way to develop self-confidence is to do the thing you fear and get a record of successful experiences behind you. Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved."
~William Jennings Bryan (1860 - 1925)
As an American lawyer, statesman, and politician, he was a three-time Democratic Party nominee for President of the United States.
You must accept that you might fail; then, if you do your best and still don’t win, at least you can be satisfied that you’ve tried. If you don’t accept failure as a possibility, you don’t set high goals, you don’t branch out, you don’t try - you don’t take the risk.
Rosalynn Carter

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