just me myself and i: July 2006

Pearly & Dharm

Saturday, July 29, 2006

Books to get

My book list. Books that i would love to have / next in line to buy, in no order of preference.

1. The Harmony Silk Factory by Tash Aw, a Malaysian-born writer living in london. This first novel won him several awards and is said to probably be the most successful Malaysian writer in this era.

2. Sophie's World: a novel about the history of philosophy by Jostein Gaarder.

3. James Clavell's Shogun.

4. Coffee Tea or Me? the uninhibited memoirs of two airline stewardesses. I am been searching high and low for this book. Should've gotten it when i first saw it. Now can't seemed to find it anywhere!!!

5. Pearl S Buck's The Good Earth.

6. Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird.

7. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy.

8. Zadie Smith's White Teeth & The Autograph Man.

9. Minus Nine To One by Jools Oliver. Yup, it's the great chef's wife writing about her personal account of pregnancy and being a mom.

10. Bill Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything. The hard-cover special illustrated version looks rather interesting but it would be tiresome reading it.

11. John Steinbeck's East of Eden.

12. Salman Rushdie's Midnight Children & the much controversial The Satanic Verses.

But i must first finish reading at least half of the books that i've accumulated over the yrs. i have this habit of buying and keeping (hoarding) and only reading the books much later. Plus my shelves are getting full - no more place for new books!! Sobs!

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Mind ur road manners plz pt2

There is a dire need for part 2 cos i forgot to include those irritating motorbikes.

I don't like it when they arrange themselves all nicely in a row in front of me at the traffic light.

I don't like it when while driving i could see them passing me on my left and right. Aren't they supposed to just stick to one side of the road? Also applies to when they block my way by hogging the road.

I don't like it when they whiz in and out of the traffic, be it stationary or moving. But esp when stationary, they'll squeeze themselves in between cars, sometimes even scratching or touching the car. Rude.

I'm allergic to the sight of them without their protective helmets.

I cannot stand it when i come across the superbike convoy on the highway, going at high speed on the fast lane. They only got themselves to blame when mishap happens. No use crying over spilled milk. Nasi sudah jadi bubur.

They don't seemed to care about their live,.. they leave it to us to do the caring and looking out instead. Cos if accident happens most likely they would escape the blame. Sad.

And i've encountered a couple of scary instances of road bully on the bike turning back to chase after me (more mobile compared to a car). All because i'm a helpless girl and they cannot bow down to one. Of course they have some serious insecurity problem plus the need to believe that they are superior by making others feel small.

Motorcyclists would always be blacklisted in my books.

Mind ur road manners plz

Driving on our malaysian roads can be a nerve-racking experience. It is a disturbing experience not because of the arduous task of trying to get out of the way of potholes but due to the senseless driving. No wonder the risk of hypertension is escalating, mine too mind u - driving has always never failed to bring up my blood pressure. Poor me.

Kancils and other small cars would zoom in and out of the lanes. Hello u are driving a car not a bike. Get over it!

Kancils and other small cars (again) would drive extremely fast on highways. I wonder how the poor cars could take such high speed. Wobbly wobbly.

Now comes the tales of big ugly vehicles. They act like the king of the road esp on highways; couldn't care less about the other fellow road users... some would cut dangerously at the slow lane, while others drive at such reckless speed at the fast lane. Scary. More so when it is raining heavily.

I hate it when cars tailgate me. I mean gimme a break. Out of nowhere these cars would suddenly appear at my rear and follow closely, while i couldn't cut in yet into the slow lane. And when i'm finally able to cut in, they'll inch even closer! Uncivilised.

Me being a lady driver and all, still have to caci my fellow gender. The truth hurts. Some really have no sense of driving AT ALL!! A real nuisance and hazard on the road. But the best part, they'll be oblivious to the mistakes they made and will glare at u instead. Boiling boiling! And some would be driving big cars, while trying hard to look cool in that Gucci shades and a ciggie. But they seemed to forget that the important thing is to drive safe. Fuming fuming.

Of course guy drivers can be equally horrible too. Like when they made a mistake on the road, esp against the fairer sex. It is ALWAYS our fault! And they'll be so tak puas when u try to point out their mistake. Ego super big. Typical.

And then there's your everyday road hoggers. Slow coach but still wanna take that fast lane!

Almost forgot about those that cannot seemed to stick to their own one lane. Poor thing, lost the ability to measure.

Phew i'm finally letting it all out from my system. Hopefully tmr would see me driving more peacefully. Err.. doubt it!

p/s: i'm sure there are loads other examples but these are what i could think of at this moment. care to share?

Now and then

The morning show deejays were talking about the difference with our country then and now. Maklumlar, our merdeka day is just around the corner.

In my humble opinion, certain things of course are different now for the better, while others not quite...

We now have more rude and uncivilised road users.
People generally are also more rude, self-centred and selfish.
Crime rates are much higher now.
Education has gone to the drains. Most graduates cannot or don't have the confidence to string a proper sentence in English. A pity really. And then there's the story of major unemployment among graduates.
Oh, we have our own national cars. *wink*
Of course i'm thankful for pay tv.
At times the rich will only get richer and the poor will remain poor.
Credit not given when due, so pls don't complaint when the 'brainies' leave for greener pasture elsewhere.
But... we still do put on good national day shows / parades. *smiley*

*disclaimer: read it as it is, - there is no hidden meaning, tq.

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

For the love of books

How do i pick my books, a friend asked while tagging along at Kino. Well,...

1. Review in the newspapers, mags etc.

2. Fine stories that were made into movie (not the other way round). Most books are more satisfying than the movie except "Be Cool". Haven't watch the movie but tried reading the book.. wouldn't want to tread there again. *shudder*

3. Interesting / attractive book cover.

4. Good storyline.

5. Writers with good credentials, or those certain fav authors.

6. Credits given / awards.

7. Some translated books are excellent like Paulo Coelho's.

8. Recommendation from friends. A colleague recently suggested the author Terry Goodkind. She said her friend is an addict. A quick check at MPH tells me that TG is a fantasy writer (guessed as much). Not much of a sci-fi / fantasy kinda reader but planning to have a go at it.

9. Much hyped-about books such as Da Vinci Code, Harry Potter, LOTR etc.

10. Classics (esp those that were made into movies) like Vanity Fair, Pride & Prejudice...

11. Local / asian interest.

Hmmm... have i missed out anything???..

Sunday, July 23, 2006

My movies weekend

Was in a laidback lazy mood yst, as always actually.. and just felt like sitting back and feast my eyes on the idiot box for rounds of ch 40-42 movies. And that was just what i did.

Started with "Uptown Girls". Been wanting to watch this but finally got the chance. It's about this spoilt and childish Molly (Brittany Murphy) who had to work as a nanny to a young child, who acts like a grumpy paranoid adult. Dakota Fanning took on the role of the 8-yr old Ray superbly. What i love? The little piggie Moo (one would think Oink) that Molly saved from the cooking pot in Thailand. Hmm.. pigs make cute pets too... this Moo could even wag its tail! But the huge ones are a different story altogether!

After that it was "Raising Helen". Catched the last half of the movie the night before so now managed to watch the first half. haha. A young career minded women, Helen had to drop everything behind when her sister and bro-in-law died in a car mishap and she was entrusted as the guardian of their three kids. A good watch.

Then there's "Legally Blonde II". The 2nd time i'm watching it. Yes, i must have been real bored yst!! Love watching Bruiser and the other doggies, and of course the pink suits!!

And it was time to cuci mata with "House of Wax" or rather town of wax?!! Wasn't really as scary as i initially thought it would be. But certain scenes did get me on the edge of my seat. Then there was Chad Michael Murray... hehehe...

Happy bday to us!!

The yummy liqueur cake - berrymisu cake.. mixed fruits soaked in rum and brandy, layered with mascarpone cheese and sponge fingers (so the website said). Drool.. droooool...! Thanks Karen for the yummylicious cake!!

The birthday twins! Hmm.. i wonder which is the evil twin?! ;p

The birthday pressie!!??!

Althought i wasn't feeling well that weekend (thanks to the fever, flu, cough trio) i still had fun and it was one of the most memorable bdays ever! :p Wasted couldn't taste that black pepper crab orelse it'll be perfect!!! haha!!