For Now

Mood: wooohoooooo Playing: Man of the Hour by Pearl Jam

Man of the hour is taking
his final bow
bye for now

I've had this song in my head for days. The guitar melody just sticks in your brain. I've been humming it around the house and found out it's pretty difficult to hum the low notes.
Anyways, this song is not so appropriate for this current situation, but the 'Bye for now' part is, so I'm just putting that song on for that part, not the 'final bow' part.(Insya-Allah)

I'll be going away on a trip tomorrow. We're all gonna go up north to Taufik's parents place.
As much as I hate to make Ilham cut class coz I'm afraid if he'll grow up thinking school is not that important, it's prolly the last time we'll be going home before the big move. After that it'll be awhile before we'll be going back again. I feel so guilty though. I'm actually making my kid cut class. I think I should write a letter to his teacher.

I was watching Oprah (as always) and heard something very interesting.
The American Psychiatric Association (or something) declared that 1 out of 25 americans have no conscience.
And thats not the interesting part. The psychiatrist on the show said that people are not born evil. Somehow sometime and somewhere in their lives, they just lost the ability to feel for another person. When parents don't show empathy to their children, Children learn that their feelings don't matter, therefore, other people's feelings dont matter.
Isnt that so sad???
But there's hope.
He talked about a guy who said that the only thing that stopped him from killing other people was his 3rd Grade teacher's voice telling him that "I see that there is a good person inside you, underneath it all". That statement stuck in his mind.
And there I was, thinking about the stuff I've screamed at my kids.. nothing degrading, I've always made sure of that.. but then.. a child's psyche is so fragile. Man. I better be more careful eh? I don't want to have to see one of them end up being a sociopath or something.

I remember the most hurtful thing anyone has ever said to me. He was a teacher at this english course we had to attend after our SPM. He was saying something about being an imbecile. And stupid me asked, "What's an Imbecile?" and he said, "Exactly". And just by the tone of his voice, I knew what the word meant, and I was *so* hurt. Actually, it still hurts.
Anyways, whenever that memory wafts in, I would think of one of the nicest things anyone ever said to me.
We were on a plane, on our flight to Los Angeles. I seldom talked to this guy coz I find his probing eyes and questions unnerving. And he said to me, "Joe, you know what, you have a liquid brain". I took it as a compliment and still does.

So, while I'm away, do tell me:
1. What is one of the most hurtful things anyone ever said to you?
2. What is one of the nicest things anyone ever said to you?

I'll be looking forward to reading it when I get back.

Bye. For Now...

---

Blog Comments


Posted by:ondeonde
Date: 03/31/05 at 7:30 AM (3d22h ago)
when is the big move for all of you?
have a safe journey.
hopefully, it's not the case for us (referring to the psychiatrist's statement), if we have a more meaningful purpose in life, such thing won't happen, insyaallah...


Posted by:famygirl
Date: 03/31/05 at 9:14 AM (3d20h ago)
so this means we're not meeting for lunch this friday?
have a safe and fun trip :)

1. many people have said many hurtful things and i try not to think of or remember any of them.
2. many nice things too, at the moment i can only think of the first time my daughter whispered "I Love You, Ibu" in my ear before she fell asleep.

Posted by: Papercup
Date: 03/31/05 at 9:33 AM (3d20h ago)
No 1: "I don't really want anyone to see me walking with you"
No 2: "You don't really have to worry about how you look, or what people think about you, because you already know all those people who care"

Quote No 2 was from my mom. I'm pretty sure your kids will quote some good stuff from you too one day. Have a nice journey.


Posted by:LoLlieS
Date: 03/31/05 at 9:33 AM (3d20h ago)
I can't think any bad at the mo..but I said pretty bad things to people that I really really regret. I am learning to tone down.

Posted by:sevenwaysfromsaved
Date: 03/31/05 at 11:41 AM (3d18h ago)
1."I'd like to go out with you, just not now." (Maybe that just hurts from an ex?)
2."You're a good person". That was just nice, because I have a hard time convincing myself that I'm a person most days....

Hmm those both came from the same source.


Posted by:+pizzofmine
Date: 03/31/05 at 12:34 PM (3d17h ago)
gee I can't remember both because I don't act according/based on what people say about me bad or good words... for they are just... words so I tend to forget it.

This Space just got haunted 3:)~>

Posted by: spasti (View Website)
Date: 03/31/05 at 7:18 PM (3d10h ago)
the good:"ok ok boleh!" said my father with his signature belly laugh when MM asked for my hand

the bad:"if u buy fr internet cheaper, u go n buy there.i cannot sell to u.why you low class ahh?"said the notorious shopkeeper at simlim(imbi plaza equivalent)

the ugly: "it's normal, it's a guy thing." justifying porn.

Posted by:zan
Date: 04/01/05 at 1:26 AM (3d4h ago)
there were many bad ones but i do not want to remember them although it hurts me deeply...now the good ones, they are just too many and i cherish them if they come from the ppl i love :))


Posted by: amysin
Date: 04/01/05 at 5:26 AM (3d28m ago)
Superb observation, kids are very fragile emotionally. I have not fully recovered from all the hurts in childhood tho I have passed 30. It was Mom who tormented me coz I cannot measure up to her expectations mostly in the domestic department. I was 13 at that time, the most hurtful thing was when she said, Harap muka aje cantik tapi...MALAS....

I was SO sad, it took a split second for me to realize that it was also one of the rare compliments she gave me. I was secretly delighted that she thought that I was pretty!

I am careful now, not to utter bad things to my children.


Posted by: karinraz (View Website)
Date: 04/01/05 at 6:22 AM (2d23h ago)
1) worst: \\\"Her dying wish is not full-filled because of you.\\\"

2) best: \\\"If I ever have a daughter, I hope she turns out like you.\\\"


Posted by:gartblue
Date: 04/02/05 at 3:50 AM (2d2h ago)
1) worst - "You're blunt !"
2) best - "You're blunt !"

BTW, have fun and drive carefully .. looking forward when you get back ..


Posted by:boredom
Date: 04/03/05 at 5:14 PM (12h40m ago)
i made this (http://boredom.modbl...gview&blog_id=536121) after reading this entry.

yeah, u should write a letter to ilham's teacher. then ilham will learn that he'll always need a reason if he wants to skip school. heh.

* MusH is MessY bUt HaPPy *

BOREDOM is..
a vital problem for the moralist, since half of the sins of mankind are caused by the fear of it.
Bertrand Russell, the Conquest of Happiness

Posted by:ondeonde
Date: 04/04/05 at 5:38 AM (16m26s ago)
hurtful things that ppl said to me - I chose to forget about it.
nicest thing - when my kids and their father say they love me..

The Contender and AR7

The Contender
I missed the first 2 episodes of The Contender. The first episode I saw was the one where Ishe beat Ahmed. (I was glad, coz Ahmed looked pretty arrogant, thought he was pretty to look at, and so was his girlfriend).
I am not much of a boxing fan. I find it violent and painful to watch. But watching The Contender made me see that the boxers as real people, with families, dreams and aspirations.
I was too young to remember what Rocky was all about, plus Rocky was a movie. Everything looked unreal and made up, coz you know it's a movie. On real sports events, you only see boxers in the ring, and seldom outside (unless they're in court or something) so you tend to not see them as real people.
Somehow The Contender has a tragic edge to it, and I'm not saying this just because Najai passed away (for whatever reasons.. but he did look a bit unstable on the show).
With Survivor, if you get voted out, you lose nothing. You get back on a plane, get back to your life, eating regular food.
With The Apprentice, you might even be better off (or not) with the exposure. Contestants that are fired get into a nice taxi with their resumes intact.
But with the contender, losign seems so final. It's like the end of their career or something. i wonder if it's just dramatized to be that way for ratings purposes, of if it's really that way in real life..

*damn*. I've gotta go. Someone's coming to the house to fix the gate.

Just a short note on AR7.
I am ashamed that The Rombers didnt stop to ask the brothers whether they were okay. Race or not, it is not polite.
The Karma police finally caught up with Ray&Deanna.. that's what u get for not helping an old woman with her forehead cut but her sense of humor intact ("We're collecting money for the Rhino Fund. And were not Lion".. was cheesy, but hilarious, given the situation)
Did anyone else think that Deanna got beat up by Ray? She looked all bruised and had trouble opening up her left eye or something.
My advise to Deanna: Dont date Ray. Ever Again.

gotta go!!

Happiness is..

Mood: wooohoooooo Playing: You Are by Pearl Jam

Forgetting how good your husband looks after 3 months of being apart and being reminded of how good he looks the first time you see him walking down the train station's stairs

Watching your kid's expressions the first time they see their father.

Watching your husband eat the lunch you cooked. 2 pinggan.

Listening to him tell stories in the dark till you fall asleep in his arms.

Waking up, and having someone else help you wake up the kids and get them ready.

Being able to go to taichi on time.

getting this email was not the epitome of happiness, but it was hilarious nevertheless:

Subject: Elisa ke?
Date: tue, 29 Mar 2005
From: F
cc:

Woi Elisa!!! Mentang2 dah 3 bulan punya....sampai gempabumi the whole
M'sia !!!!! Sakan betul !!!

Best Regards
F

sigh

Introduction to Anisish

Not to be confused with 'gibberish'

Anisish is a unique language spoken (and never written) by only one person in this world, namely Anis Suhaila Mohamed Taufik. It is, however, understood by a few people within the speaker's social circle, which includes her parents, siblings, grandmother (sometimes) and her acquaintences in Taska Salsabiila. Other dialects of Anisish has been heard to be spoken by several other members of the population outside the abovementioned circle, though in slightly different versions. It is interesting to note that these members of the population are usually under the age of 5 and could easily be understood by their mother.

The root language if Anisish is a combination Malay and English. The main discerning pattern is the replacement of the pronounciation of certain letters are replaced by other letters.

The K sound is most often than not, replaced with sh or tch, except when it's the last letter of the word, where it would magically be pronounced impeccably.
Therefore "Nak shopok" can be translated to "Nak Keropok" (Want a fish cracker), and 'Tchencin' is 'Kencing' (pee)

R is often replaced by y or not spoken at all. This is unlike Ihsanish, that replaces the Rs with either a W or a very soft rolling Rh. Examples of these are 'Beyak' (err u know what) and 'Shayot' (Carrot).

T and C are interchangeable. Sometimes, they are also replaced by the ubiquitous sh.
Examples:
"Hello Shat" (Hello Cat)
"Tat nak shopok?" (Cat nak keropok?)
"Shopok jenyan shitap" (Keropok dengan Kicap) (fish crackers with soy sauce)

D is somewhat a confusing letter in Anisish, since sometimes it could be pronounced clearly, sometimes it'd be pronounced as j, as with the case of the word 'Jenyan' (Dengan)(With). Somehow Anisish for 'Bonda' is 'Bonda'.

Anisish does whatever they like with the letter P. They may omit it whenever they like or use it to replace other letters whenever they like, as evident in this statement recorded a few days earlier:
"Shonjbob sharepang shonjbob parepang shonjbob.... sharepang!! ayayayayay..."

Anisish can be quite a confusing language for the unfamiliar, but it is easy to understand the speaker if you really pay attention to what they are doing and/or pointing at.
Sometimes if stories related to you in Anisish seems to boggle you, it might be smart and polite to just go "uh uh? really? That is *so* interesting!!". This would trigger a happy smile on the speaker and you might just be rewarded with an invitation to 'shiss' or do an 'eshimo' (which involves rubbing of your noses together).

---

why is it that when you try hard to look your best, a zit the size of kilimanjaro will always appear at the most prominent places?

Ernesto and James

Mood: 1 day till reunion!!!!! Playing: Hail, Hail by Pearl Jam

I managed to finish watching 2 movies last week, in several sittings because I have to babysit my nephew, and clean the house, and take care of my kids and stuff.

Anyways...

The Motorcycle Diaries
I often try to watch movies with no preconception, so that I dont create any presumptions. With the amount of coverage that this Academy Award Best Foreign Picture got, I thought I would end up being dissapointed because I would be expecting so much out of it. I was suprised.
I extremely enjoyed watching these 2 guys try to travel across South America in their beat up Norton 500, to see how they matured from hormone laden, fun seeking men into men with principle, commitment and compassion.
The cinematography was beautiful, the script was entertaining. There were sprinkles of funny moments thruout the movie. My favourite ones were these conversations:
in Cuzco where the boy said "These walls were built by the Incas, those walls were built by the Incapables, the Spanish"
and when they were denied food for not attending mass,
"I didnt know there was such a rule, I have never even seen the rule book" "If I saw it, I would probably eat it"
If you don't know yet, this movie is about Che Guevera. And watching the things he went through, the lessons he learned, the spirit he took from the experience of meeting the people during this journey and knowing what he eventually became, it made me wonder.
How many times have I been faced with injustice or hardships faced by other people and have just stood by and watched? I mean, I would rant about it for a few hours, days or even weeks after.. but how many times have I made the effort to try to make a change?
And I don't mean we should all go start a revolution or something. Just start small.. changing yourself, or your family or your community. Find something you are passionate about and try and do something about it.
This reminds me of Lance Armstrong who started the Live Strong yellow bracelets. He sells these bracelets for a dollar and all the money goes into research for cancer. Last night on Oprah (an episode which aired like in November last year), he had collected 35 million dollars!
Wow!
I don't think i can collect 35 million dollars by selling anything, but I guess I can start by being more sympathetic towards that lady with 3 kids that sits in front of my mom's house after every friday prayer.

Finding Neverland
Oh my god this movie...
It made me cry so hard. and I didnt even know why I was crying.
To tell you the truth, I only wanted to watch it because it had you know who. And because I heard it was good. And it was.
To say the story was touching would be an understatement. It just reaches out and grabs your heart. I didnt think I would cry at first, because I didnt cry at the sad moments. But actually it's those happy and beautiful ones that got to me.
It's an amazing story.
I'm gonna go search for 'Peter Llewelyn Davies' after this.


Menu for lunch tomorrow: Tom Yam Udang, Kailan ikan Masin, telur dadar and white rice.