Mystery of Shakila's Dream

6 July 2008

A bunch of us decided to showcase our vocal 'prowess' last Wednesday. So we gathered kat Red Box Sogo after Maghrib for that very reason. Memandangkan, masing-masing datang dari era dan 'genre' kegemaran yang berbeza, maka we coloured the night dengan a variety of songs. As for me, ada beberapa songs yang aku tengah belajar (Oh btw, aku ni memang kaki menyanyi). And ada a few new age Indon songs yang I quite like these days.

But, the highlight of the night came from En Sharil with his rendition of "Misteri Mimpi Shakila". Put it this way larr.... If you are a pregnant woman, most likely you dah bersalin by the time sampai chorus. The heartfelt performance by Sharil earned him the best performance of the night... but the mystery of Shakila's dream remains unsolved... ;-)

Another Eventful Week

5 July 2008

I'm having a slow morning today. After having browsed the latest online news regarding political scenes in this country, I come to a conclusion that I do not know who to believe at this point in time. So depressing...and so I blog!

This week has been quite eventful. I had a meeting with one of the head of states and had a chat with chief of a conglomerates operating here in Kl. I also took sometime off this week to run some errands, shopped twice in KLCC and sang my heart out at a karaoke joint with a few friends on Wednesday.

All in all, it has been a fun and expensive week (because of the shopping larr!!) for me. I always believe in 2 things..... 1) I must always wear good shoes - mainly for health reasons, and 2) I must always wear comfortable clothes (with matching colours, of course!)..haha... and so, I went to KLCC with one mission in mind. I wanted to get a good pyjama (to be exact "seluar tidur"). Shoes dah berlambak, so no need to buy a new one. I have a few 'seluar tidur' that I bought from British India, but they don't sell those anymore. I finally found exactly what I needed at the Marks and Spencer. They have the best quality loungewear under the brandname 'Autograph'. Boys, if you are looking for high quality 'seluar tidur', I recommend M&S. I bought a couple of shirts as well as almost the entire store is on sale.

My subsequent visit to KLCC pun buat aku terjebak shopping kat M&S, Zara and Timberland. I bought a leather bag from Zara Man which is big enuf for my laptop and documents, a casual shirt from each Timberland and M&S.

The retail therapy worked! Mission accomplished!

p/s will talk about Wednesday night out later.

Who's Your City?

1 July 2008

I love books. Unfortunately, I love buying more than reading. Over the past 1 week, I bought 11 books. Hajat tinggi menggunung nak spend time reading... tapi selalunya tak kesampaian. I am currently reading the first book from this batch, "Who's Your City? by Richard Florida". Other books include:

1. The Holy Grail of Macroeconomics
2. The Appeal
3. Gone to Ground
4. 6 Habits of Highly Effective Leaders
5. Love in the Time of Cholera
6. Unaccustomed Earth
7. The Front
8. Shadow of Power
9. Brida
10. The Undercover Economist

I'm dying to read "The Appeal" by Grisham. Maybe I'll start this weekend. Others will have to wait larr... Dah berlambak buku kat rumah yang belum bersentuh. Entah le bila nak baca...

Sentap!

27 June 2008

Sometimes after office, I walk to Sogo to buy stuff or just window-shop. And selalunya, di atas jambatan that connects my office to LRT Bandaraya ada beberapa orang peminta sedekah. One of them is this elderly sad looking lady who looks like someone foreign - she is definitely not a local. On many occasions, I have given her sedikit wang sebab kesian even though some of my colleagues said she could be part of a syndicate.

Two days ago, I walked all the way to Masjid Jamek Station coz I needed some exercise. And there she was (this lady) happily laughing away on a mobile phone. She was quite well dressed as well.

Hmmm... Kalau lah betul aku dah kena tipu dengan syndicate peminta sedekah... memanglah aku SENTAP! Tetapi aku belum serikkk....

Azam Baru....Eh! Azam Lama Yang Dibarukan :-D

15 June 2008

I just realised how unfit I was this morning. After a lapse of 3 weeks due to various reasons, the group finally got together for badminton. Mak ai! Baru main 2 sets, aku dah semput. Normally, I can last 5-7 sets. Hmm...macam mana ni? There's no 2-way about it... I just have to EXERCISE more. Dah 3 bulan aku tak turun gym macam dulu..... and now I'm paying for it. So mulai esok, I'll start my new exercise regime. Regardless of how busy I am (which often used as an excuse), I intend to go down to the gym at least 3 times a week (excluding weekend badminton). Jom!

Lepas badminton tadi, I stayed back to do some work. Dalam pukul 2 ptg, aku pegi lunch kat Maju Junction and subsequently singgah Starbucks for Ice Caramel Macchiato. Sampai balik office dah pukul 3 p.m. Buat keje sampai pukul 4:00 p.m., otak pun dah jammed. Lepas tu aku ambik cab ke Low Yatt, cari skin for my laptop sebab skin sekarang dah buruk. Takde yang berkenan.... Pegi Sg Wang pulak. Finally I settled on 1 design as an interim measure. Most likely kena custom-made baru lah cun.

[it took 3 people to put on this skin...kesian]

Balik rumah, tido jap coz terlalu letih from badminton. Now I'm wide awake... nak sambung keje sikit, layan baca some of the magazines that I bought yesterday sambil boleh tengok Euro pukul 2:45 pagi nanti. Wassalam...

[world news, interior design, gadgets and men's issues]

SATC The Movie

14 June 2008

I had just watched SATC The Movie. It was as long as 5 series episodes, but I truly enjoyed the movie. The movie follows the same format of the series with more plots and layers built in. For me, it was just fun and and witty. Bring your special someone to this movie and you'll be rewarded ;-D

Kristin Davis, Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kim Cattrall in New Line Cinema's Sex and the City - 2008

A Little Pleasure Called 'Shopping'

14 June 2008

A few of us are planning a trip to Indonesia to do some shopping as they have quite a large number of factory outlets. I sent out the following email yesterday to my colleagues and friends for their consideration...

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(excerpt of my email)

"Dear All,

HRH and a few the Court members are planning a trip to either Jakarta-Bogor or Bandung to indulge ourselves with a little pleasure called 'shopping'. This royal visit is scheduled to take place end July 2008. My initial thinking is for us to fly on Friday afternoon, 25 July (1/2 day off) and come back Sunday (27 July) evening or we can fly Saturday (26 July) morning and come back Monday evening 28 July (1 full day off). Should HRH feel an urge to meet her fellow highnesses (betul ke ni?), we may need to make some detour to places like Istana Bogor, Istana Merdeka and Istana Wakil Presiden. Otherwise, we'll devote our weekend to 'precision shopping'.

Following is a listing of various factory outlet shops in Jakarta , Bogor , and Bandung in Indonesia..."

I am all in favour of going to Jakarta-Bogor as it is closer to city centre. So far, I have received an overwhelming response. We shall see whether this trip will materialise... Fingers crossed!

Crazy Weeks

14 June 2008

The last 2 weeks had been crazy. On many occasions, I worked for more than 15 hours a day. Either bangun pagi at 4:00 a.m. or stay back kat office sampai pukul 10:00 p.m. or so. Penat gilerr! During this period, I attended a meeting chaired by PM, attended another meeting with a number of KSUs and at the same busy working on a project assigned to me on top of all my other daily work. Berserabut gila kepala bila fikir pasal kerja. Now, the project is more or less done. I can be normal again...hehe

Maybe I'll go out shopping or go to a movie today. Besok ada badminton yang dah 3 minggu sebab ada yang bercuti dan aku pulak busy memanjang. I really need some exercise. Memang rasa tak fit gilerr sekarang ni.

OK...i'm off to breakfast.

Wedding Invitations

31 May 2008

Banyak bebenor wedding invitations musim cuti sekolah ni. Aku ni bukan le rajin sangat nak ke wedding ni... not so much sebab aku ni "the most eligible bachelor" (perasan!!), tapi malas sebab wedding selalunya macam kelam kabut sikit. Lagipun I don't quite like tempat yang penuh sesak...agoraphobic kot.

So, what I normally do is just beli hadiah. Kalau dah tak tau nak beli apa, aku kasi gift voucher jerr... pandai2 lah korang beli apa yang perlu.


Hari ni aku quite free-mree. Kebetulan pula, ada satu wedding and ada gang yang nak pegi, so, aku gagahkan lah juga diri untuk pergi. Lagipun dah tuan punya badan sendiri datang jemput aku kat office. Tempat kenduri pun dekat je...

Time to go now....ciao!

Achieving Childhood Dreams

31 May 2008

I am currently reading "the Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch. Randy is a computer science professor who had recently been diagnosed with a terminal cancer. The Last Lecture talks about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of enabling dreams of others and seizing every moment that he has. Indeed, his lecture was aptly titled "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams"

I can't help but to reflect on my own childhood dreams. One of those dreams for me is to be a banker. I was once a recipient of a state level award. I was 12. Immediately after the award ceremony, Utusan Malaysia interviewed me on my achievements and on my career ambition. I told them I want a be a bank officer.

(oh dear!...time has changed!)

I have been working with my employer, a bank of course, for 10 years now... :)

(i keep this as bahan bukti that dreams do come true... kah-kah)

Change Product

27 May 2008

I finished my meeting late at about 8 p.m. today. As a result, I was no longer in a mood to go down to the gym. I left office at about nine after clearing some work.

Bergegas aku ke Sogo coz I needed to get some personal products. Products yang aku selalu pakai from C&E have been discontinued. So, I decided this is the best time for me to try new products. In less than 15 minutes, selepas dibantu oleh one of the salesgirls, I made my purchases.



I've also made an appointment for a treatment next month. All in all, it cost me RM610 tonite just to change to a new brand. Oh well! life is full of changes anyway! :)

An Operation and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Saturday, 24 May 2008

I just got back from an operation. Oh! Not the kind that requires cutting open a part of a person's body...Geez.... minta simpang. It was my laptop larr...It needed certain upgrades to boost up performance. Unfortunately, I could only upgrade its RAM from .5Gb to 2Gb. Instantly, I noticed huge difference in terms of speed. The entire process only took 15 minutes and cost me only RM160. Oklah.... not expensive. Lagipun the 2 technicians yang buat keje tadi were nice enough to give me some computing tips and guidance.



Sebelum aku ke Low Yatt Plaza to upgrade my laptop, aku dah janji dengan Hamid, Maya and Anis untuk lunch and tengok Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Tickets aku dah beli online and paid via Maybank2U. So convenient. For a premiere show at the BTS, it's RM17 per person + RM2 booking fee. We had lunch prior to the movie at Kafe Rasa Utara. Aku and Hamid had beriani ayam, while Maya and Anis had laksa and passembor, respectively.

I must say that the movie is entertaining enuf to keep me awake after such heavy lunch. Banyak lah part yang tak logic, but entertaining. For example, (and this was rightly pointed out by Maya) monkeys in the movie only attack the bad guys even though they also come in close contact with the good guys. Macam mana tu? Merepek betul. But anyhow, overall I give this movie grade B purely for its entertainment value.

"In 1957, Indiana Jones is thrust back in action, venturing into the jungles of South America in a race against Soviet agents to find the mystical Crystal Skull."

My second all time favorite movie...

19 May 2008

The Kite Runner

Semenjak aku beli 40-inch tv ni, aku asyik melekat kat rumah layan movies.... For the past two weeks, aku dah tengok Vantage Point, Enchanted and the National Treasure - Book of Secrets. While all these movies were very much entertaining, nothing beats the the spellbinding story of inseparable friendships that really swept me away and left me really 'sebak'.

"The Kite Runner" is a movie that everyone should watch. It has all the elements of family and friendship, betrayal and salvation, all beautifully weaved in this moving and provocative movie. The story about Amir and Hassan in the movie with their intertwined lives and fates is really a must see. Indeed, this movie has become my second all time favorite now after the Shawshank Redemption.

Currently Listening to...

19 May 2008

Kepada yang pernah mencuba mendekati hati ini...

Tapi Bukan Aku

Jangan lagi kau sesali keputusanku
Ku tak ingin kau semakin kan terluka
Tak inginku paksakan cinta ini… ii…
Meski tiada sanggup untuk kau terima

Aku memang manusia paling berdosa
Khianati rasa demi keinginan semu
Lebih baik jangan mencintai aku dan semua hatiku
Karena takkan pernah kan kau temui cinta sejati…

Berakhirlah sudah semua kisah ini dan jangan kau tangisi lagi
Sekalipun aku takkan pernah mencoba kembali padamu
Sejuta kata maaf terasa kan percuma… aaa…
Serasa ku t\’lah mati untuk menyadarinya…

Tapi bukan aku… uo..u…

Semoga saja kan kau dapati hati yang tulus mencintaimu
Tapi bukan aaaakuuuu…

Berakhirlah sudah semua kisah ini dan jangan kau tangisi lagi
Sekalipun aku takkan pernah mencoba kembali padamu
Sejuta kata maaf terasa kan percuma…
Serasa ku t\’lah mati untuk menyadarinya…

Berakhirlah sudah semua kisah ini dan jangan kau tangisi lagi
Sekalipun aku takkan pernah mencoba kembali padamu
Sejuta kata maaf terasa kan percuma
Serasa ku t\’lah mati untuk menyadarinya…

Currently Listening to...

19 May 2008

Bleeding Love

Closed off from love
I didn't need the pain
Once or twice was enough
And it was all in vain
Time starts to pass
Before you know it you're frozen

But something happened
For the very first time with you
My heart melts into the ground
Found something true
And everyone's looking round
Thinking I'm going crazy

But I don't care what they say
I'm in love with you
They try to pull me away
But they don't know the truth
My heart's crippled by the vein
That I keep on closing
You cut me open and I

Keep bleeding
Keep, keep bleeding love
I keep bleeding
I keep, keep bleeding love
Keep bleeding
Keep, keep bleeding love
You cut me open

Trying hard not to hear
But they talk so loud
Their piercing sounds fill my ears
Try to fill me with doubt
Yet I know that the goal
Is to keep me from falling

But nothing's greater
Than the rush that comes with your embrace
And in this world of loneliness
I see your face
Yet everyone around me
Thinks that I'm going crazy, maybe, maybe

But I don't care what they say
I'm in love with you
They try to pull me away
But they don't know the truth
My heart's crippled by the vein
That I keep on closing
You cut me open and I

Keep bleeding
Keep, keep bleeding love
I keep bleeding
I keep, keep bleeding love
Keep bleeding
Keep, keep bleeding love
You cut me open

And it's draining all of me
Oh they find it hard to believe
I'll be wearing these scars
For everyone to see

I don't care what they say
I'm in love with you
They try to pull me away
But they don't know the truth
My heart's crippled by the vein
That I keep on closing
You cut me open and I

Keep bleeding
Keep, keep bleeding love
I keep bleeding
I keep, keep bleeding love
Keep bleeding
Keep, keep bleeding love
You cut me open and I

Keep bleeding
Keep, keep bleeding love
I keep bleeding
I keep, keep bleeding love
Keep bleeding
Keep, keep bleeding love
You cut me open and I
Keep bleeding
Keep, keep bleeding love