Some people must sleep with all windows and doors shut, and curtains drawn to shut out all noise and light from the streets.

Myself, I actually enjoy having the windows open and curtains not drawn. I enjoy hearing the sound of the night… not total silence but just a type of silence where I know most of the world around me is asleep but there are a few souls out there still awake, driving their cars or working on their machines.

And the shadows playing on the ceiling and walls of my bedroom, cast from the streetlamps outside, give me a sense of peace and tranquility as I fall into a deep sleep.

*zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz*

One type of attitude of people that I cannot deal with is half-heartedness in doing something. If you decide to do something (it can be anything… to stop smoking, to spend less, to lose weight, to be a better driver, etc.), then put your whole heart in and do it as best you can.

I simply cannot stand people who say they want to do something, but let other things sway the path to their goal. But then if they are so easily swayed, maybe what they wish to do is NOT even their goal to begin with.

And if you can’t stick to achieving your goal (due to whatever reasons, except unless you’ve tried your utmost best), please do not complain that you’re not achieving what you set out to achieve. Because I firmly believe that if you really want to achieve something, you can do it. So if you choose to use excuses as reasons for you not achieving what you set out to achieve, sorry buddy, not acceptable.

We can’t make a change unless we ourselves acknowledge the problem and are motivated and committed to make a change.

This is what my ex-boss’ fiancee had to say about him, in a bridal contest that they entered :

Firstly, I cannot imagine my ex-boss being this sweet coz he definitely doesn’t show any inkling of it But then again, we’re not his fiancee, haha.

But in all seriousness, I do agree with her. It’s not about grand gestures and big fancy gifts. Women these days are perfectly capable of buying material things on their own. It’s the small, everyday things that matter. Things that may seem trivial but really do show that our partners’ sincerely care for our needs and well-being. And a man who knows how to care for his woman this way (willingly and without being asked to) is a keeper coz they’re quite rare to come by.

This is the guy who would, every morning, drive from their place in Sg. Besi to Jalan Tun Razak (near IJN) to drop her off and drive all the way to Shah Alam to get to work. And he still gets in to office before I do! But when we try to get him to drive out during lunch, he’d be the last to offer I think I know of more guys who are the opposite i.e. who treat their friends/colleagues a tad better than they do their partners.

I wonder what it feels like to be treated like a princess… hmmm…

I wish them both the very best in their lives together

I’ve always wondered how all these animal sayings came about.

…Busy as a bee…
…Ants in your pants…
…Bee in your bonnet…
…Bird’s eye view…
…Scaredy cat…

Honestly, who sat down and thought these up??

Anyway, life is so busy these days, time just flies by like “whooooossssh”!
It’s already mid October, 2.5 more months till 2012!!! Like, hellooooo??? Time, where did you go??? Come back!!!

Anyway, am still trying to keep up with time… and trying not to get to sucked up in everything around me.

Everyone appreciates some kindness and caring at certain points in their lives. And some may need help in certain situations in life.

I’m the sort where if I tell you I’m facing a problem, I won’t directly ask for your help (unless I’m really desperate). I work on the understanding that if you care enough and you’re sincere enough to want to help, you would offer. And this offer would mean the world, because it’s from the heart. Because to me, if you need to be told what to do in these situations, then the offer wouldn’t be from the heart, thus would seem less sincere. Actually, even sparing a thought by asking how I’m doing or how my situation is faring would suffice, coz I would most likely decline an offer to help if I can resolve it myself. But just by you asking me how things are, shows me that you care.

I’ve a good friend who’s really good at this. Whenever he hears that I’m not well, he’d call to check how I am and ask if there’s anything I need. And I’m still amazed and touched by his thoughtfulness each time he does. I’m ashamed to admit that I’m not as diligent as he is to do this, but because of him, I’m motivated to remind myself to be a bit more thoughtful, and hopefully making some progress to being a better friend and ultimately, a better person.

Dubai. Check.

Cambodia. Very soon. Check.

Singapore. Soon. Check.

Mount Kinabalu. Not too far away. Check

Sri Lanka. Perhaps. Confirmed. Check :)

China – Silk Road. Check

Singapore. Again. For F1. This weekend!

Throughout my 10+ years of work, I’ve had the good fortune of having great colleagues. We all work well together, have great teamwork, and we back each other up when needed. We are also truthful and honest with each other, because in our line of work, time is of essence and it does not pay to lie or cover any mistakes because they will come and haunt you and bite you in your arse when you least expect it.

So after having all these years of wonderful teammates, I guess it’s karma that I have to deal with a colleague who displays the following traits :

• Thinks he’s a know-it-all
• Imposes his opinion on others when someone has a different view from him
• Tries to push off work i.e. if he can get away not doing it, he will
• Didn’t pay attention during a critical meeting, which resulted in me doing additional work and him doing an about-turn on his initial decision (I find this so unprofessional and a display of total lack of integrity)
• Complains about everything at work but never giving solutions
• Has criticisms about everything and is so darn condescending when he opens his mouth

I started getting annoyed with his attitude a few months after he joined our team but after that incident in the meeting, I’d just about had it with him. Now, I only talk to him when required and minimize my contact with him because once I decide that I don’t like someone, I don’t bother being nice to the person because I think it’s fake and pretentious. I realize that it may not be very professional but if I can get my work done effectively with minimal interaction with him, I think it’s fine.

And just to reinforce that I’m not overreacting, I’m not the only person who has gripes about this person.

I hope I have the sanity to not blow up at him one day, after another one of his endless complaints/criticisms about something or other.

Last Friday, while heading out to lunch, my colleague and I saw a van backing out of its parking lot and we noticed a ginger cat dragging something small from under the van to the car parked next to it. At first, we thought the cat was chewing on a small mouse but as we looked closer, it was a kitten! It was barely the size of the palm of my hand! The mommy cat was carrying the kitten by the scruff of its neck to the safety of the underneath of another car. I left mommy cat some food that day, after checking with the vet that it’s ok to let them be as long as the mommy’s taking care of the kitten.

That same evening, a friend of mine (she’s an ardent dog rescuer) stopped her car just past a toll plaza to check on her car tyre, and noticed a litter of 7 puppies by the side of the road, without their mom in sight. She’s been back to feed the pups every day since then, waiting for her vet to give her the go-ahead to take them in while she tries to find homes for them.

My question is this : Why, of all people, did it happen to be ME who was walking past when the van was backing out of its lot and hence, noticing the mommy cat + kitten, and why did my friend so happen to stop to check on her car tyre at that spot at the moment, and then her noticing the puppies?

My theory is that the both of us, being hardcore animal lovers, have a subconscious thought in our mind on saving animals or looking out for animals in need, that we inadvertantly attract ourselves to situations where animals need help and somehow, we’re able to help them in every little way that we can. Of course, I’ve come across lots of situations where I couldn’t help and all I could do was say a prayer for the unfortunate animal that it be kept safe and out of harm’s way. But I’ve also encountered situations where I’m able to help and the animal was better off for it.

It actually breaks my heart each time I come across an animal that needs help… and it’s even worse if I can’t do anything to help. But I’m also glad that it’s me who come across them because I know I’d try my best to help, as opposed to most people who would just ignore them.

Sigh… I hope the mommy cat and her kitten are ok :-S

I observe people around me and I see an increasing number of people who are overweight/obese and find out more and more people getting lifestyle diseases these days.

I am also seeing a small but increasing number of people who are making lifestyle changes (for whatever reasons) to be healthier. This is very encouraging to see.

This week, the company has arranged for healthcare consultants from a reknowned hospital in KL to be at our office, to provide basic healthcare checks like glucose and cholesterol level readings, BMI and weight checks, and blood pressure readings. My results came out normal and so did Mich’s but 2 of our male colleagues’ results came out high on cholesterol and blood pressure, one is in his late 20s, the other early 30s.

While driving home from work that day, a thought triggered in my mind. You know the age-old marriage vow, “for better or worse”? I was thinking that these days, it should come with a disclaimer — for better or worse, as long as each party takes responsibility to remain in best health for both our sakes.

Before anyone starts yelling bloody murder and countering this with “when you get married, you must be prepared to accept all that your other half comes with”, think about it for a moment. These times are not the same as our parents’ times even, where most of the time, the relationship is rather one-sided with the husband playing the breadwinner role and making most of the decisions, and the wife being the homemaker taking care of house and children, and usually just accommodating the husband’s decisions. So in the event that the husband gets ill from damaged kidneys due to overdrinking or stroke from high blood pressure because of his diet, there is no question that the wife will care for him till death do they part.

I’m not saying that this doesn’t apply now (of course it does). I’m merely of the opinion that each party (husband AND wife) has to take responsibility to do all they can to keep in the best of health so that they minimize the occurence of lifestyle diseases and subsequently, the events that follow. I hardly think it’s fair when one party is doing all s/he can to be a little bit healthier while the other disregards it and doesn’t make an effort to do the same. Life is already hectic nowadays, what with work and kids and other activities. Do you really want to have to deal with diabetes and high blood pressure and heart disease?

In this aspect, I am very glad that both my parents understand the importance of exercise and maintaining a healthy diet because it takes off a bit of the worry that I would have if they were to do the opposite. Although my dad was (and still is, sometimes) the constant skeptic and cynic, and he used to give my mom a hard time whenever she exercised and when she made diet changes, he has come around each time when some health issue plagued him. He’s been exercising regularly and eating healthily for a while now (he’ll be the first person to chide me if I were to eat junk ) and I hope both of them will have many more healthy years to come.

I know I sound like a broken record but I can’t stress enough on people taking better care of their health. I keep a relatively active routine but even then, I have to deal with health conditions that are not lifestyle-related and there didn’t seem to be anything I could have done to prevent it, so all I can do now is to control it with medication.

The main point of my rambling here is that, there are many ways to have a healthier life. And there is no excuse whatsoever to get out of it because at the end of the day, it’s your life. You’re responsible for it, no one else.

Note : The medical conditions here refer to only those which are lifestyle-related.

Malaysians are finally waking up to the injustices committed by the current ruling government, thanks to wider access to alterntive news channels and also to the rising civic-consciousness of the people.

On 9 July 2011, there will be a peaceful rally from the city center to the King’s palace to deliver a list of 8 demands for electoral reforms to ensure fair and free elections. This rally is Bersih 2.0, the sister to its inaugural Bersih 1.0 on 10 November 2007, which directly or indirectly contributed to the opposition winning 5 states and for once in a long time, denying 2/3 majority to the ruling coalition.

I have never taken any interest in politics. I’ve always thought (and still do) think politics is the dirtiest “industry” with a bunch of greedy politicians out to fulfil their own selfish agendas. However, prior to the 2008 general elections, I was “woken up” because I started reading news from sources other than the mainstream newspaper (which are controlled by the ruling government), which then opened my eyes to so many disgusting and despicable things happening in my country, that we normal folks wouldn’t know about if we didn’t have access to these alternate news channels. But thanks to the internet and social media, unbiased and accurate news reports can now be accessed by a larger audience, which I think, is what’s contributing to the increasing civic awarenesss in Malaysian society today.

Also, prior to 2007, I was not a registered voter because I was one of those people who (due to my view of politics) didn’t think my one vote would be of any use to make any change in this country because (1) all political parties are the same i.e. out to fulfil their personal agendas so why should I even vote for any of them, and (2) heck, I’m less than a drop in the ocean so I won’t make a different anyway. But my view changed when the hubs educated me by saying that, yes, although it’s true that all political parties have their own agendas but it is better to vote for the opposition than not vote at all because at the very least, the opposition can be a check-and-balance to the ruling government so that they (the ruling government) will think a bit harder when they want to commit some hanky-panky. After thinking about that for a bit, I thought, that’s true. I can’t make a difference on my own but collectively, like-minded people like me can give the opposition a voice to challenge the ruling government and make them be more accountable for their actions.

So that’s where my perspective changed and I started taking more interest in how my country is being run and how my hard-earned tax money is being used. Of course, everyday there are things in the news that make me so angry that I wish I could just punch the daylights out of the idiots using my taxes but when I see/hear of Malaysians from all walks of life coming together to stand up against injustice and corruption, it makes me swell with pride, that there are people like me who do care about the state of our country and who are willing to suffer the consequences of standing up against the injustices forced upon us.

I will be the first to admit that (1) I don’t do enough, and (2) I am scared shitless of what could happen to me (or my family) if I were to be more involved. But my first step would be at next Saturday’s Bersih 2.0 rally. I am angry that the government is threatening harm to citizens who are just asking for fair and free elections. And I am angry that the government is succeeding in making me shake in my pants, anticipating what they are capable of stirring up in a massive rally of tens of thousands of people. The government is elected by the people (in fair elections, that is) and is supposed to serve the people and look out for the people’s wellbeing! But they are THREATENING us instead?! Where is the logic in that?!! This makes me so so angry when I feel unsafe to take to the streets in a peaceful walk to just ask for free and fair elections. That I’m afraid of what the police would do. That what the government would conspire to do, like plant instigators in the crowd to stir up racial tensions. Imagine that! I am afraid of the POLICE and the government!! What the hell??!!!! This makes me soooooooo angry!! The police is supposed to ensure citizens’ safety but now people are afraid of them?!! This just not make any sense at all.

Bersih 2.0 is not a political rally. If it were, I would think twice about going because I don’t openly support any political party. I will support anyone who is fair, free of corruption, and looks out for the good of the country and her people. If there is none, I will take the best I can get.

Bersih’s main objective is “to push for a thorough reform of the electoral process in Malaysia”. As far as I’m concerned, this is the cause I am supporting. The latest news on electoral flaws (just out yesterday) 152 voters sharing TWO addresses! 88 voters in one address and 64 in another. Like, hallo?! Does the Election Commission (EC) even check and validate registered voters against their addresses? I guess this proves that they don’t. But the one that sealed the fact that the EC is NOT independent nor impartial is when the EC chairman made a statement and accused Bersih of “championing an opposition party’s political agenda“. If the EC were really independent and impartial, it wouldn’t make such statements because this clearly indicates that the EC is for the ruling coalition.

The way the government is handling Bersih 2.0 is shameful and humiliating for us citizens. I hope the news is being spread internationally so that the world can watch how the ruling government is trying to stifle the rakyat from freely voicing their rights. Come 9 July 2011, I will walk with my fellow Malaysians to make a change in our beloved country, come what may. *yes, I’m still scared shitless but I’ll use the fear to drive me to do this*