I'm down

I'm down today.

It's a Friday, and Sis is arriving in 2 days, after which we will be having a grand old time touring London & Paris together with Popo & Sophie, but I'm still down.

I usually gruffly dismiss Popo's laments that Sophie is so cham - Cantonese for miserable and pitiful - when we leave her at the nursery. But this morning Sophie was especially distressed. She was literally screaming, bawling and kicking. She had never ever grabbed me so hard, and clung on to me with superbaby powers. She pleaded with her eyes and voice between sobs..."Mama, seak seak! Mama, seak seak!" (Cantonese word which we use at home to mean roughly 'love'). How can my heart not be submerged into the depths of the ocean like lead, and then be shattered into a thousand unidentifiable pieces? But is there an alternative? NO.

I have to be tough, and so does she, because there is no other way. We just have to make up for it when we are together: hug each other closer and tighter, laugh heartier and louder, talk more and longer, and play harder and sillier.

I *AM* funny!

Am I funny? Am I funny?

I have bombarded YL with this same question every now and then over the last few weeks. It was usually met with feigned ignorance and silence.

The reason I asked was because I finally recuperated from my embarrassment at having delivered a flat speech at my KL Toastmaster club's Humourous Speech Contest 6 years ago. I am now ready to take on the challenge again. (Actually, it's because I took my club's VP Education's declaration that it is mandatory for the club's officers to participate in the contest seriously. But that's another story.) And why not do it in London, surrounded by native English speakers with exquisite crisp English accents, a stiff upper lip and a well-known dry sense of humour? Yes, surely I will win them over easily with my Malaysian-flavoured speech, awkward body language, soft Asian voice and lame sense of humour?

I fretted and tore out my hair trying to think of a topic that would be funny without trying too hard, *and* meet the requirements of Project 9 (don't worry if you don't understand this; it's obviously TM talk). I practiced it on YL, who showed his support by not laughing at any of my lines. Yes, that certainly boost my confidence. It's now certain that I am headed for another 6 years of therapy.

The day came. It only really dawned on me that I have to BE FUNNY in a CONTEST two hours before it's supposed to take place, while in the office. I can give a speech, no problems, but I AM NOT FUNNY if my life depended on it. My body suddenly went limp and my heart tried to escape from the ribs that are holding it in place. At the contest, I drew the last spot. Of course I would get the last spot, watching the other contestants go out there and thrill the crowd while panicking over how much I suck compared to them. At least I did not have to go right after my club's expected champion and current serving President, C. He would be an absolutely tough act to follow. As expected, he was hilarious and I even forgot my nerves momentarily.

Long story short, the time came, I went up there, did my whole song and dance, and it was over. I rediscovered the joys of being able to breathe properly.

That is not the end of the story, though. When they named C as the runner up, a rush of fear washed over me. What the h*ll???? Who is the winner then? Erm....yes....ME :)

Now, on to the next level: Area level (which comprises of 6 clubs). This will be worth 10 years of therapy.

Coffee

SY: "Sophie, what are you doing?"
Sophie: "Make coffee!"
YL: "She's stirring much better now"
YL: "What else do you need?"
Sophie: "Milk!"

Sophie helps YL makes his daily cup of coffee whenever YL is on study leave. She knows the whole routine - add coffee powder, press the button on the kettle, let Baba handle the hot water because it is hot, stir, then add milk.

Burung Kakak Tua

Sophie can sing a few songs, but her best one is Burung Kakak Tua (an old Malay children's song, literally translated as "Old Sister Cockatoo"). Here she is, helping Popo with house chores and singing...

p/s If the video doesn't play here, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Iy61mP5ZAY

More inspiration to travel

YL introduced me to Michael Palin soon after our move to London. Being in the land of the BBC, Palin's travel documentaries are shown at repeated at frequent intervals, and I thoroughly enjoyed following him on his adventures in exotic lands. I am so envious because he has the most colourful and charming encounters. Of course, being supported by the BBC and being rather famous helps. According to the Adventure Travel in the UK, trips to Peru tripled after his visit to Machu Picchu (part of his itinerary in Full Circle) was broadcasted in the UK . His series on the Himalaya always brings a smile to my face as it takes me back to my trip to that part of the world in 2004. While stressful, it also opened up my eyes to the sleeping tiger that is India, and gave me a new sense of respect and awe for the people of the country.

Anyways, back to Palin. He has an understated sense of humour, a sharp wit, a fatherly and friendly kind of charm, and his commentaries are intelligent without being overbearingly so. You can't help but love him. (Hmmm....I probably shouldn't be gushing so much about another man - albeit a 64-year old one - in public. Damage control: YL, you're still my No. 1!) His new series of travel documentary, this time on Eastern Europe, is out, and I'm sending my No. 1 to him with 5 ready-to-be-autographed books and an assistant (thank you, Aunty Aileen!).

Sophie & Popo

Popo, as expected, is extremely attached to Sophie, and pampers her disproportionately compared to how she 'pampered' her own children (aka me, Kau Fu Chai & Yiyi). We had no slack. Just a teeny weeny bit off the line, and we would have got an earful. Actually, we still do.

Sophie looks to her Popo for backup whenever she gets into trouble with her Baba or Mama. Popo usually gives her the "don't-worry-I'll-come-to-your-rescue-as-soon-as-they-look-away" look.

Wedding reception

All the leng lui at the wedding reception

Not ours, obviously.

Christine & KM held their long overdue London wedding reception this weekend at The Gun, a cosy pub near our place. It was an intimate affair with close friends, good wine, excellent food and a yummy cake.

The big TWO

Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive"

...

I will survive,

As long as I know how to love,

I know I will stay alive,

I've got all my life to live,

I've got all my love to give,

And I'll survive

I will SURVIVE...!

We have survived TWO years (albeit with lots of help from Popo these last few months)! Just, oh, 19 more years to go... No problems at all...

We celebrated Sophie's SECOND birthday a few days earlier over the weekend with a very simple makan. The main focus here is the photos as proof that we did not skimp on marking her big day (will come in handy in our old age as emotional blackmail for more post-retirement pocket money from her...hehehehe). We sang her the birthday song and allowed her to blow out the candles though she was mostly rooted to the ground and kept gazing at the floor because of the number of Aunties and Uncles (7 in total) beaming happily at her.

Merdeka, Merdeka, Merdeka!

Merdeka, Merdeka, Merdeka!

Whoa! Getting a little too excited there, aren't we?

Sophie's first satay - guess she wasn't too impressed. Never mind, she'll be converted soon!

The Malaysian High Commission and several Malaysian organisations in the UK got together to organise the Malaysian Carnival over the weekend in conjunction with our country's 50th year of independence. And of course, you'll find us wherever there's the slightest promise of good Malaysian food!

It was a cool day, and the sun was cooperative - staying behind the clouds for the most part, but coming out for short stretches just to warm things up. Food was plentiful, Malaysian chatter was all around us in the air, and the raffles prizes were not too shabby at all (iPods! Wii! PS3! flight tickets!). The turnout was impressively in the hundreds, and the venue in Brickendonbury at the Tun Abdul Razak Rubber Research Center was idllyic, to say the least. A perfect day out!

After gorging ourselves silly over 4 hours on nasi lemaks, ayam perciks, satays, cendols, ais kacangs, kuihs, curry puffs, rojaks, etc, etc, (and I had pouted and huffed and puffed that I did not win yet another lucky draw/contest/lottery/anything to do with random luck), we left feeling thankful that 50 years ago our countrymen had toiled so that we have the opportunity to do this - "the freedom to live, the freedom to choose, the freedom to make friends, and the freedodm to prosper"*.

* quoted from Aunty Aileen