I'm No Superman

Ho-ray, salju.

Selamat Menyambut Qurban Bayramm

I received a mail from my aunt today.

Before that, let me convey the fact that my grandmother
passed away a few weeks ago (while I'm here).

This mail surprised me a bit.

Because on my father's side we rarely talk
about emotions, and the knee-jerk reaction would be to keep
a stiff upper lip.

But I guess we don't really need to keep up the machinations,
do we?

I replied.

In good faith.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Fahmi Zaki
Date: Nov 26, 2008 6:10 PM
Subject: Re: just to say ...
To:

Mak Teh,

I am doing alright here in Kiyanly.

Right now is the onset of winter, and the temperature is decreasing,
although we still can find a few warm days. The peak would be in
December, with ambient temperature falling to minus
twenty-five. Work here will definitely be challenging.

I work at the edge of Caspian. If you'd view the map, you can find
Turkmenbashi (port). We're 30km to the north. I'll be working here
for two years (til end 2010) with the occasional home leave. Right
now I don't have my working permit sorted out yet, so every 30 days
I have to travel to Ashgabat and then Iran for the usual exit-entry
process to get another 30 days here. It's not a process that I enjoy.

Making friends here is relatively straightforward and easy. Here in
Kiyanly, there aren't a lot of locals. Instead, there are russians, azeris,
tartars, kazakhs, and whatnots. The common bind would be the
Russian language, so that's what I'm doing now, on the sides. It's not
exactly similar to any other languages I've learned, what with all the
Cyrillic alphabets. But it's nice to communicate with them
and they appreciate the effort and gesture.

As you might have heard last week, PM came to Ashgabat with the
delegates. There were talks about him coming to Kiyanly, but later did
not materialize. Gaddafi also came and I gave him my contact number.
But we did not meet up since he's in Ashgabat and I'm handling cargo
offloading here. Next time, maybe.

The culture here is pretty much bare. They celebrate birthdays,
weddings, new years, and a few others. Those are the major. Religion
here is practically eroded, save for Friday prayers and greetings. There
are quite a number of Malaysians here, so you can say there's some
element of homeland transplanted here. We'll be celebrating Eid Adha
in December by slaughtering cows and prayers.

For now that's about it. It's a pretty simple life here.

I hope everybody will feel better as time progresses.

You can view pictures of Kiyanly/Turkmenbashi at my photoblog

photoblog.com/anwarfahmi

Take care Mak Teh.

On 11/26/08, wrote:

Fahmi I hope you are doing well and in good health. we are ok here althoiugh, Tok's demise is affecting all of us. We are going through the natural process of grief Tell me about your work, friends and other things happening in your place now. subzero! Love Mak Teh

--
Used Off-office.
Fahmi Zaki
--
Used Off-office.
Fahmi Zaki

EFFIN' TAG.

Another one.

Well, I do need a reason, don't I.

Jom.

1. Do you think u are HOT?
Nemnoga (Not very much)

2. Upload a fav pic of you
See above. I can't get the f*kin' blog to upload properly.

3. Why do you like this picture?
Oh, so many ways to answer, so little time to type.
To cut things short, it's a fantasy really.

REALLY.

4. When was the last time you ate pizza?
Last night, actually. Thanks for asking.

5. The last song you listen to?
Oh Lately It's So Quiet - OK GO

6. What are you doing right now besides this?
Gmail, Wikipedia, review Planning Package, breathing, doing butt clenches.

Both cheeks. Impressive, huh?

7. What name you prefer besides yours?
I like the name 'Proximo', a character in 'Gladiator'.

Other than that, any name spelt using Cyrillic character immediately gets my vote.

8. People to tag Yap, Sal, Ila, James, Some

9. Who is no.1
I jam with this guy and a few others every now and then. Wicked bass skills, this guy.

10. No.3 is having relationship with?
Me (pandai aku susun).

11. Say something about no.5
Baru hilang teruna Sabtu lepas. A few times, I think.

12. How about no.4?
Dah enam ratus kali dia tukar kerja. Gaji dia sekarang enam juta.

13. Who is no.2 She's responsible for me and No. 3.

MENJADI MANGSA TAG YANG BERTALU-TALU

Kurang asam betui Some. Boleh dia tag aku ngan nama
penuh aku plak tuh. Terpaksa lah aku akur-slash-pasrah
(walhal lama tak update blog).

What if your ex said this to you?

1. Hi..how are you?
Not bad (I answer like this all the time)

2. Hey! You wanna go to the mall?!
You might as well strangle me.

3. I LOVE U
I have heard of something resembling this 'three words'
and frankly, it just disgusts me.

4. Do u want some cookies?
Unless it's Famous Amous, hell no.

5. Can you take me a picture?
What picture? They're just photos, after all.

6. Help me in my work?
I have heard of something resembling this 'five words'
and frankly, it just disgusts me..

7. Here's my gift to you...
I wouldn't know. Never had any.

8. Let's just be text mates
As opposed to mind-f**k buddies?(Open-ended answer, innit)

9. Do you want me to buy you an Ipod?
They're an abomination. No.

10. Let's sit together in the bus
Whoa there! Buy me breakfast first!

12. You're still pretty...
OMG

13. I still LOVE you! :
I have heard of something resembling this 'five words'
and frankly, it just disgusts me.

14. Can I visit your house?
Surprisingly, no. But you can buy me dinner.

15. Do you love me?
OMG. ROTFL.

tagged next:

1. Yap
2. Sal
3. Hana
4. Nina

IT'S AS IF TIME CAME TO A STANDSTILL

A close friend remarked that I haven't posted anything
in my blog for quite a long time.

It's true. I checked.

Well, it's not that long ago. But as the proverb goes, it
sort of becoming "a cough at the stairs".

I certainly wouldn't want to waste my coughs unnecessarily
at random locations, but it does hold water.

I've become indifferent.

Or do I care more and more?

I started writing (how pretentious do I sound now) about six
years ago, and back then I rattled off every vocabulary items I
knew in my posts.

Over the years (and, occasionally, through the woods) my fingers
decidedly became stiffer and stiffer, and I found it to be easier to
write less (read: sparsely) and leave the imagination to the readers
(more than one person?).

Did that work well?

Or did that work too well, such that I went crazy that slashed
my wri'ings to zero?

Nope.

I just didn't write.

TAGGED EDISI KEDUA (NASIB BAIK LA AKU BACA BLOG HANGPA)

Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.

Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.

Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.

Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

==================================================================

So I read some's blog, and I haven't read them in a while.

Apparently second wave of tag is coming, where you tell 7even facts about yourself, and
you tag others and let them know.

And then I read Yap's blog, and the guy freakin' tagged me!
(I'm honored actually, broseph)

I'm actually not very active in the blogging arena anymore (no reason to be, innit?) so,
I guess a good reason would be to participate in these 'viral' thingies.

So, here goes. (drumroll, please)

Fact number one:
I don't really buy stuff for myself. Also, I don't like to accumulate debt. So If I like something,
I use my credit card to buy it and settle the credit immediately. Crazy, innit?

Fact number two:
I'm really punctual. There have been instances where I left a friend who came late. I don't mind
if you're late, as long as you tell me ahead.

Fact number three:
I recently discovered that I hate the phrase 'comfort zone'. I don't know why, it makes my skin
crawl and make me want to punch something. Please, for the love of god, kill this abomination
that's known as, you know, 'c*****t z**e'. Fuck.

Fact number four:
I'm notoriously lazy. When you see me working, it's mostly machinations and trick lighting.
I'm kidding. But I wanna stress that I'm lazy (as if that's not enough)

Fact number five:
I'm usually clueless when it comes to girls. In fact, I froze whenever I encounter beautiful girls.
I'm not exactly single right now (I'd like to think I'm in the middle of something), but it's my Achilles' Heel.
I'd rather go to Iraq than woo a girl.

Fact number six:
I still don't know what 'angka bererti' meant.

Fact number seven:
I usually show tough love to the ones I love.

It's twisted, I know.

So. Seven people?

1. Some
2. Yap
3. Salhana?
4. James Fadzri MCKK?
5. Nina?
6. Hana?
7. Barack Obama

Yea, that's right.

CAN'T GET IT OUT OF MY HEAD

I heard this song on the way to KL from JB on Saturday.

Actually the strange thing is that I listened to the FM radio
at all. I never do, but I ran out of interesting CDs after 3 hours.

It's 'Aci aci bukak pintu' by P. Ramlee?

I'm not a fan of the guy's work, but some of his films are kind
of universal.

It also helped that ASTRO is rerunning the whole catalogue
to death.

I wonder who were the original singers?

But to an audiophile (not me) it's more than a simple song.
(is it about a horny wife?). The intro is nice to play on a guitar.

But the youtube videos are certainly helpful. Does YouTube help
breathe new life into Tan Sri's works?

I still can't get the song out of my mind. Enjoy.

==============================================

Aci aci buka pintu
Nana Balik hai pukul satu
Jangan takut burung hantu
Nana bawa tongkat semambu
.
Nana nana lekas pulang
Aci takut tinggal seorang
Belakang rumah ada jembalang
Mata sepet hidungnya belang
.
Aci aci jangan takut
Nana ada hai parang kontot
Hantu Syaitan semua kecut
Nampak parang gerenti cabut
.
Kalau nana bilang begitu
Baru senang rasa hatiku
Kalau datang syaitan dan hantu
Aci pukul dengan penyapu

TWO WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL.

By now, you must've heard about Jibam's demise, Che Mon's
predicament and current state of health, and the miracle that is
their offspring's survival with nary a scratch (well, he had a minor
cut on his left chest).

I've thought about writing something.

But I think it's better to pray to God for His mercy and hope for
the best for the future.

Amiin.

TWO WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL

By now, you must've heard about Jibam's demise, Che Mon's
predicament and current state of health, and the miracle that is
their offspring's survival with nary a scratch (well, he had a minor
cut on his left chest).

I've thought about writing something.

But I think it's better to pray to God for His mercy and hope for
the best for the future.

Amiin.

TWO WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL

By now, you must've heard about Jibam's demise, Che' Mon's
predicament and current state of health, and the miracle that is
their offspring's survival with nary a scratch (well, he had a minor
cut on his left chest)

I've thought about writing something.

But I think it's better to pray to God for His mercy and hope for
the best for the future.

Amiin.

BENDA YANG PALING SUSAH SEKALI NAK BUAT DALAM DUNIA NI.

Bodek diri sendiri.

How do you estimate your OWN current potential?

--
Be Kind...Rewind.
A Fahmi A Zaki

LAMA SIUD TAK TULIH

Yup. True dat.

--
Be Kind...Rewind.
A Fahmi A Zaki

KENAPA TERLALU MISLEADING?

I was a fan of SPACE COP GABAN (I guess on some
levels, I still am) and all the shebangs that
came with it.

Being young, naive (kinda redundant there) and
literally small, I lumped Gaban together with
SURIA PERKASA HITAM and ULTRAMAN (typical
awe-struck kid) and thought RTM1 was the best
channel in the world.

Strange as it sounded, I never had any of their
merchandise, except for one ultraman mask my uncle
gave me (I still have it though, it doesn't fit
anymore. I guess my ears got in the way).

So when I saw the Optimus Prime mask, I entertained
the idea of actually buying it. But since it's not
actually the ACTUAL Op's mask, just the character
from the movie, I let it go.

The Iron Man mask is cool, though.

A few days ago, I stumbled across my senior's blog
(5 years ahead) and his post contained an English
interpretation of SCG's theme.

I nearly choked when I finally knew what was it all about.

If you'd like to choke too, proceed as per below details.

Don't forget to have someone there, just in case you need CPR.

==============================================

Wakasa Wakasa tte nan da
Furimukanai koto sa
Ai tte nan da Tamerawanai koto sa
Gyaban! Abayo namida
Gyaban! Yoroshiku yuuki
Uchuu Keiji Gyaban!

Young…young…what is young
No regret
Love.. what is love..
Never hesitate

Gaban..good bye tears
Gaban…thanks for your bravery
Space cop Gaban..

===============================================

THE CAPS LOCK IS ON.

You're so impossible
Scream and moan it chills my soul
Don't wanna hear you got left behind
All those times you stayed up and cried
It's no lie
You did it to yourself
Like chewed up gum under my shelf
Don't look surprised
You must have know all along

It's just another love song
Another love song

It's never easy
It's not hard
When you've lost your mind
With you it's sleezy
Don't tell me your worries
I'm sick, I'll leave you blind
Now the time has come
To leave this love that's left you dry
No need to work this out
Cause you know there's no reason why

It's just another love song
Another love song

I never told you it would last forever
You can't hold this boy for long, dear
By the time you read my letter
Baby, I'll be gone

You're just another love song
Another love song

====================================

I don't know why, but lately I've been entertaining
this habit of driving, listening to a certain song on
the stereo, and playing a completely different song
in my head.

Do I need to distract myself that much?

I hope I don't crash.

ANOTHER LOVE SONG

You're so impossible
Scream and moan it chills my soul
Don't wanna hear you got left behind
All those times you stayed up and cried
It's no lie
You did it to yourself
Like chewed up gum under my shelf
Don't look surprised
You must have know all along

It's just another love song
Another love song

It's never easy
It's not hard
When you've lost your mind
With you it's sleezy
Don't tell me your worries
I'm sick, I'll leave you blind
Now the time has come
To leave this love that's left you dry
No need to work this out
Cause you know there's no reason why

It's just another love song
Another love song

I never told you it would last forever
You can't hold this boy for long, dear
By the time you read my letter
Baby, I'll be gone

You're just another love song
Another love song

====================================

I don't know why, but lately I've been entertaining
this habit of driving, listening to a certain song on
the stereo, and playing a completely different song
in my head.

Do I need to be that distracted?

I hope I don't crash.

THE OFFICE (US) IS BACK!

All of a sudden, everything is gonna be alright again.

Yeah!

--
An Ethiopian At Heart,
A Fahmi A Zaki

OH. NOW I UNDERSTAND WHY YOU SAY "TIPU"
WHEN I TOLD YOU THINGS ARE AS USUAL.

But, things have returned to normal, ya know.

Well, almost.

*Grinning*....

HALF-FOOT TUNA, THE WORKS

Saw a 'Subway' ad in the Star.

Damn, teringat plak time asik layan six-inch
tuna sub kat Hay St. dulu.

CELAKA SUNGGUH

Layan pulak aku benda facebook nih.

Hancus working hours.

No Title.

No content either.

Mostly void.

THE ART OF SLEEPING IN MEETINGS

It's monday.

C'mon.

BEING MISREAD

I had the habit of waking up early lately.
Being unable to sleep soundly, amongst all.

So, on the way to work, I'd stop a bit for
breakfast and got some newspaper to read.

It so happened that one day I arrived too early
and no newspaper I liked was around, so I bought
a copy of Metro and left it on the back seat of my car
after I finished.

Yesterday, as I prepared to get out of office with my
colleague at 8pm, leaving for KL, she saw the paper
and casually remarked,

"Eh Fahmi, sejak bile you bace Metro?"

"Takde, haritu I cari Star takde kan, so I beli je la
paper mane yang ade."

"Waa, Fahmi bace Metro laa."

Strange. Hmm.

Today, it happened again.

My housemate saw it when we were going for lunch.

"Biaq betui Mi, hang baca Metro? Gha gha gha."

I don't know if I should tell the reason or not to.

In the end, I laughed together with him.

I have to admit, I don't get it.

JUST HAPPENED TO STUMBLE ACROSS IT

I was watching 'Dan In Real Life', and of course,
Steve Carell being Steve Carell, he brings so much
awkwardness, bitterness and discomfort as he can
into his role as Dan.

I suppose in real life, we do have a lot of those
painful moments.

Yeah, but um, there's a scene where he's picking
up where his brother left off on a painfully simple, almost
chanting song about love. He's just strumming lightly
on the guitar, all the while trying to suppress the emotions
and finishing the remaining lines.

The song's called 'Let My Love Open The Door'.

I looked it up on youtube, and the original version's quite
alright, but I think the movie's version is more dearer.

I don't know if 'dearer' is the right adjective.

I guess it's better to check out the movie and,
well, form your opinion.

He he.

A TRIP I SHOULDN'T HAVE MADE.

I had set my mind on staying in JB this weekend, but
I guess impulse got the better of me.

9am.
The phone rang. It was Abun, wanting to know if anybody's
going to Casper's wedding. I was still in bed then, saying no
of course, but still I feel a bit guilty.

10am.
All dressed up, filled (car-wise, stomach-wise) and called up
Abun, apologizing profusely, and basically dragging his ass out
of bed to go. The thing is, I'm still in JB, and I'm unsure whether
we'd makeit in time.

12.30pm.
Arrived at Petronas kiosk, Bukit Jalil, and Abun's nowhere in
sight. He turned up at 1pm, with that lopsided grin of his. I was
furious he was tardy, but he brought a spanking new Vios, so I
forgave him in exchange for the driver's seat.

1.30pm.
Christ, this car's comfy. And steady too. I thought I was doing
110, when I looked at the speedometer, it was 150 ! It was nice
to catch up with Abun, though. You'd thought this guy was the
most boring person ever (well, almost all boring persons end up
in oil and gas industry), but apart from Enche' Fakhrin, he had
some stories to tell. He managed to spill his drinks between his
crotch, which was typical of Abun, but after a quick stop, the car
(and his attire) was stain-free. Abun just came from the MASA
field doing PLC troubleshooting (whatever that is) for 2 weeks.
He'd thought of asking his ex to come with
him to Ipoh (yes, you read it right), but got declined.

I was amazed at the funky situation this guy was in. Apparently,
they took a temporary time off from each other, all the while still
going out with each other.

Fucking hell.

But as he elaborated further on what's the challenge of his work
and how it interfered with his personal life, I realised that I had
the same predicament, the same symptoms, the same
lackasidal attitude. We exchanged opinions about changing jobs,
me working offshore and him wanting to specialize in
turbomachinery.

I seriously think Abun is going to make it. From the way he talks
about his job, I can see he's going to be very good.

2.50pm
We arrived in Ipoh. Using Abun's GPS, we tried to find Casper's
house.

3.30pm
We got lost using the GPS. But we found the house. Casper was
there, his face lighting up upon seeing us. We took some pictures,
catch-up on a few matters. It was great seeing him again.

And I heard some news, which made me say 'Wow.'

5pm.
Got into the highway, heading south. Of course, I poked fun at him
about his longtime crush in high school.

I guess he felt a bit uncomfortable. He told me he kept in touch
with her a few times, but what I heard shocked me to the core.

Someone already 'declared' first back then, and I guess she became
off the market at that time.

To this day, I don't get what 'declare' was all about.

But what shocked me further was the guy who 'de-clare-ed'. I haven't
imagined him at all. Wow. Well, I guess Abun was collateral damage.
From that point up until now, I guess the timing just wasn't right for
them. She was free, he was obsessed with another girl, he was free,
she got engaged to be married.

Well, tears dry on their own.

I 'terkesima' a bit, learning of the twist of the doomed, starcrossed life
of his. (Is it a template for me too? Fuck!) At the same time, I felt bad
for opening up the can of worms. I don't know, but the thing is, even
with all these fucked-up shit that's been going on in his life, he's still
somewhat upbeat about it (that's the spirit, Pare!) He still has his ups
and downs, which would've wiped me out, but you know, when your
head clears up, it's gonna be alright.

So, to brighten the mood up, I regaled the stories of how, in Ethiopia,
we chased down this wild boar with our truck. The boar was so stupid,
it kept running through the tracks until it was tired and decided to walk
instead, giving up on its fate. It was funny (I think so) and we laughed
a lot. So I told a few more stories, until time passed and suddenly,
we arrived at Jalan Duta Toll Plaza.

6.45pm
We got to the BJ Petronas, my car parked there. Did Jama' Qasar a bit,
and I decided to drive back to JB that very instant. My head's still
spinning over the news I heard earlier, I had no mood to be in KL
any longer. We said our goodbyes, me apologizing to him for protruding
too much into his life's story. I guess sometimes you bare your soul to
friends, sometimes you feel it is private and hope people won't pry too much.

As I drove, my head wanders. The speedo read 140,150 as my right foot
became heavier and heavier.The stereo played Winehouse, Audioslave,
QOTSA, 'Garden.

Nuthin' sticks. Nothing made me sing along or played air drums on the
steering wheel, or play scaleson the air guitar. Not even Mastodon.

I was the exact opposite when I was driving to KL this morning.

I was staring into nothingness and I guess my right brain did the driving.

10pm.
Skudai Toll. Rolled down the window, shut down the AC, the stereo,
as I inhaled the Ta'zim air.

I don't know if I'm gonna be able to sleep tonight.

Made a pit stop near the Dataran for some dinner. Got out of the car
a bit awkward, realising I've been driving non-stop for the past
8 hours. Fuck.

Then, as I drove down the flyover towards Blue Wave, I began
mouthing off,

"Where, oh where have you been, my love?
Where, oh where can you be?......."

without any music at all. It was ugly. I have to admit it. But
I managed to finish it.

Will it be the last song I'd sing?

I arrived at my room, unsure of what I've done, what I haven't
done or I don't know, whether I'd swamp myself with work
tomorrow purposely.

I guess I'd better hit the hay.

With my eyes wide open.

Will everything be alright tomorrow?

TAG?

There's a chain going on with 'tag' to link what you're
reading and who you're associated with online.

A friend tagged me, so I'd try to post something
resembling what they've done as well.

What websites do I surf?

Well, does it include porn?

1. Gmail, for obvious reasons
2. Ultimate Guitar, for the guitar tabs
3. Friendster, because I lack a real life
(I don't want to include Facebook because it sucks)
4. Meebo, no reasons at all
5. Wikipedia, my favourite

Whose page do I go to?

1. Some's page, sohmei at blogspot
2. Jendayee's photoblog of all things african
3. A photographer in Yemen, marvellous pics
4. Hana Ghazali's page, I lost her add but I think it's trulypeaches
5. Some's photopages, where I seethe with rage seeing
what he could do with a D40

That's it.

Finito.

Sweet Reunion, Jamaica 'n Spain.

Ahh..

Writing again.

It seems so fake to write about how busy
it is, when there is time to write about the
busy situation.

But yeah, it doesn't really matter, it'll all
work out.

I was really trying to capture some of the things
I wanted to say and tell ever since I left for the
airport, but I'd probably just procrastinate until the
next time I'm leaving for the airport, wouldn't I?

Nah..not it.

Well, weekends.

Weekends weekends weekends.

Time to start feeling agitated and travelling.

Again.

On The Left.

I hadn't been to Singapore in ages.

Well, the last actual trip was way back in 2000 or
2001.

Waaay back when I had nothing and living on a shoestring
budget. Yea that's right.

When I think of Singapore, I couldn't find anything that'd make
me want to go there. Seriously.

So, last night, when we just talked about going there, it's purely
just for sight-seeing and just get lost for the sake of it.

We departed around 7.30pm and literally got lost in Singapore
for three hours before actually arriving at some 'kutu' place for dinner.

To make matters worse, I had food poisoning immediately after
wolfing down my dinner. For eff's sake! I went to the loo at least
twice to expunge the cauldron that was brewing inside my stomach.

Man.

Then we went for some sightseeing. It's beautiful on the evenings, I can
tell you that, yes.

We went back to our hotels around 4am, seriously considering emergency
leave the following workdays, barely 4 hours away.

What happened between the sightseeing and our arriving at 4am, well
I guess it's just best left in Singapore.

But certainly the poisoning thing was the summit of it all.

Three cheers for diarrhea.

Technically, My Birthdate Is 14th February.

I might be on painkillers, but this is almost true.

Yeah.

I'm not celebrating Valentine in any other way except
this one. It might be a coincidence, but it's wonderful.

For this is the day, back in 1950 that the precursor to
my life was born.

Yep, my mom was born on that date in 1950.

So happy birthday mama. And by the way, your birthdate's
Valentine's too.

I Think I Lost My Headache.

I hurt my tooth a few days ago while eating a burger.

Which was strange, yet so apt.

The tooth was a bit unique, on the roof of my mouth
(langit-langit?). So a bit hard to reach, brush or floss
meant it was only a matter of time before half of it would
succumb to decay.

Well, the dentist, to my dismay, said the condition was too
bad, the tooth too far gone to be saved.

So, armed with what seemed like saws, shotguns, electric
chainsaws and cordless drills, she proceeded to hack my jaws
(with glee). I swear, for a moment she looked like the harbringer
of death.

Or harbinger. The auto-spelling said so.

Leaving the office with my left face numb, and a wicked headache
to boot, I swore I'd stay off food for at least half a day.

Doctor's order.

An hour la'er, I had a nice meal of laksa.

Followed by roti bakar.

Topped up with fries.

Life's good, even when your head feels like mush.

http://www.photoblog.com/anwarfahmi/2008/02/10/

Neil Gaiman's view on love.

Have you ever been in love?

Horrible, isn't it?

It makes you so vulnerable. It opens your chest and
it opens up your heart and it means that someone can
get inside you and mess you up.

You build up all these defenses, you build up a whole
suit of armor, so that nothing can hurt you, then one
stupid person, no different from any other stupid person,
wanders into your stupid life...

You give them a piece of you.

They didn't ask for it.

They did something dumb one day, like smile at you, and
then your life isn't your own anymore.

Love takes hostages.

It gets inside you.

It eats you out and leaves you crying in the darkness,
so simple a phrase like

'maybe we should be just friends'

turns into a glass splinter working its way into your heart.

It hurts.

Not just in the imagination.

Not just in the mind.

It's a soul-hurt, a real gets-inside-you-and-rips-you-apart pain.

I hate love.

That's like, wow!

Up until a couple of years ago, I always thought
that the phrase 'heavy metal' only referred to
the genre of music that I used to like.

I was surprised when I found out it also meant
'logam berat', as in a subset of the 'Jadual Berkala'.
(ala, belajar time Kimia dulu tu)

To me, the phrase is rather redundant.

Innit?

I Left My Heart In Places, Forgot Every One of Their Faces.

Looks like January and February are going to be unexpectedly
miserable sets of thirty days for me.

No outlook yet for March, but I'm certainly looking forward
to April.

Or May.

It's us, us, us and them.

There are days when you laugh so hard, so hard
that your head becomes light, and a feeling of
pleasure kicks in, all the knots in your back and
neck seems to just melt away.

There are also days, when you just chuckle a bit,
and you end up with a migraine. And a strained
back.

Darling, won't you ease my worried mind?

A cow walked into a jewellery shop and asked
the owner,

"You got any grass?"
"No, sorry"
"Okay" and it walked out.

The next day, the cow again went into the shop
and asked the same question, and got the same
reply.

This went on for the next couple of days, until the
owner, cracking under pressure and threatened
the cow as it came into store,

"If you ask about the grass again, I'll tie you up
and slit your throat!"

The cow ran away, and didn't return for a couple
of weeks. The owner went about his usual ways.

One day, the same cow came into the shop and
asked the owner,

"You got any ropes?"
"No"
"Okay, you got any knives?"
"Err, no"
"Okay......................................You got any grass?"

Love?

I haven't really noticed before, up until today, just
when I was about to go to work.

Wow.

I guess it's love after numerous sights.

Congrats, Masha.

Horoscope horoscope horoscope.

What's the outlook today?

Serabut Lagi.

Memang berghenjah-ghenjah.

What a can that was opened.

There's Something Missing, I Left It In The Duty Free.

I'm a bit surprised by what you wrote.

But I guess you have some things to say.

The same goes for me too.

Is it a conflict of interest of some sort?

Am I that distant?

Being boring and elusive "has served me really well".

The Bitter Taste Of Rain.
(Final Instalment In The Rain Trilogy)

It turns out water can get into your gearbox.

But the solution need not be the intervention of a
mechanic. You just have to wait it out for a day or two.

I was quite embarassed to find the car in running
condition, so I went to the garage anyways, and changed
the gearbox oil.

Total damage? RM25.

Ka-ching.

I arrived at site around 11.30am, the engineering meeting
just about to end.

Frick!

The Bitter Taste Of Rain (Part Two).

I tried for two days to get my car to move,
to no avail.

This morning, I gave up (pagi2 lagi dah give up)
and went out to find a mechanic.

Arriving, I opened the bonnet, the guy starting the
car and engaging the gears.

"Boleh je, bang?"

What?

The Bitter Taste Of Rain.

I left early yesterday for home, and mid-way
the rain came down quite heavily.

There was one section that had been cut off, the
flood was about two feet.

Being the 'Rambo', I went thru the road, and got
away with it albeit the car felt a bit sluggish.

I didn't think more about it until this morning,
when I tried to start the car.

It was fine, but I couldn't get it into 1st gear, even
after so many attempts.

Luckily, I got a lift to work, but I regretted doing
what I did.

Who Wants To Go To Pulau Rawa?