Average Looking Mat

Checking in was a breeze. Impiana staff would call me Mr Gani, which is cool, if not for the fact that people have been calling me that for the past three and a half years. Looking for the room wasnt too hard either.

while checking out the rooms, i was recalling the ad for an Accounting firm. they posed the question of the importance of numbers, hence, entertaining the idea that, what would happen if numbers do not exist.

now, that's a chaos that no one wants.

i believe , people underestimate the importance of the invention of numbers. yes people, numbers are an invention. it is an abstract concept that was born out of our minds. nevertheless, this discussion is for another day.

after a few hours of 'freshening up', we set off to KLCC. this i believe is only the 2nd time that i have been there. even though the structure is impressive and unique, it seems to be like any other shopping mall from any developed country, albeit a top class one. it has almost everything, like most modern shopping malls.

what i like about KLCC is that, the cafes strip is lined up against and adjacent an enormous water fountain. now that is a sight to die for. consequently because of the enormity of the space, it is not as humid like the rest of Kuala Lumpur.

at about 630pm we met with her friend, Beh for dinner. upon being seated at Chilli's, i was surprised by the sight of a man lighting up.

ya, macam orang jakun...

it was that i havent seen indoor smoking apart from bars for a long while now. the last time was in Madrid, so many years ago. it took me awhile to get used to it. speaking of which, it took the food quite a while to arrive. we had ordered, Triple Play, Fajitas Nachos, Chicken Crispers and endless stream of Guava Fruit Juice...

Beh and Tiffy had a lot to chat about. Catching up i guess. not surprisingly, she spoke a lot about herself, like many others. i think she is a nice person. anyway...talking about oneself isnt really a problem for me, it is just an observation. most people carry on talking about themselves anyway. usually, they would only ask a question to next person just to highlight their own qualities and 'experience'.

what can we say about that, we have grown into an 'i' society.

i was a little bit disappointed in the end that i didnt learn more about Tiffy from Beh. so far, i havent heard nothing that hasnt already been said ...

Dinner ended... we went to watch Speed 2 aka Lake House...

Monday.

As i stepped out of the bus, Aeroline, my anxiety grew tenfold. standing in front of Corus Hotel at Jalan Ampang, the wait for my sayang has almost reached its optimum. my emotions were not keeping itself under the lids.

a mixture of love, regret, sadness were bellowing in my bosoms. my visible wrinkles are testament of that inner being. my eyes are a mirror to my soul.

35 minutes, 3 cigarettes, and many sighs have passed.

then, my mobile rang.

'yang, we are at the opposite side,' she said.

i rushed through the pavement, the bridge, and the pavement again. i tried not to walk too fast for fear of breaking into a fits of perspiration. (hey, i wanted to smell good when we embrace ok!) with my duffle bag i scurried towards the intended direction.

then, there she was.

peering out of a silver mercedes, those Ray Ban aviators. i thought, she must be the most beautiful sight i have ever laid my eyes on. in short, she was all that i have dreamt about these past few weeks.

and then we embraced.

she smells good. she looks good. she hugs pretty well. we gave ourselves pecked kisses. and then the rush of blood. the adrenalin rush of love and longing. it was cold and it was hot. yes, it was that incomprehensible.

'how are you?' she said

'i'm fine...' i said

'how are YOU?' i asked

'i'm good...' she answered.

then, we whisked off to Impiana Hotel.

On a cool day, it was the coolest thing to have happened to me.

Dear Customer,

Ted’s US House (Ted Baker's US website) is closed for refurbishment until further notice.

Ted realises that this is obviously disappointing, and offers his profuse apologies. Please be patient with us while we get Ted's ducks in a row, as Ted hates to have an untidy house.

Please see US Ted's store listings below. For a taste of Ted, why not visit our UK website at: www.tedbaker.co.uk.


We hope you visit us again soon.

Best wishes,

Ted

i wrote this to friend yesterday...

'i only remember the pain... sad to say. i try to conjure up some happiness but the surroundings and environment are not permitting... maybe i am blocking them subconciously. but i am not depressed or anything like that. it is just that i think i can be happier, and i know i am capable of being happier, which is sad.

ah well. i've had a long thought actually and the thing is, it is up to me to make new happy memories. that is the good things actually. what is in the past shall remain there. hopefully in time, the emotional attachment will cease to exist. they would be nothing but mere pictures on a postcard.

i see a silver lining.

to a new beginning...

luv
iwan'

since i got home, i have watched quite a few movies. this i can do because it doesnt cost as much. 7 bucks for a movie, not too bad at all.

i have watched (not in order of merit)

1-superman returns
2-thank you for smoking
3-pirates of the carribean, dead's man chest
4-world's fastest indian

i cant quite guage which is the better film, critically speaking, but Pirates of the Carribean being a Bruckheimer production, is definitely the worst. it is a good yarn, but if not for Captain Jack Sparrow, i think i would have fallen asleep. the first one was good because there was my other favourite actor, Geoffrey Rush. thank god, he will be back on the next installment.

the other three films are simply very well made.

Superman Returns.
you can never top Richard Donner's 1978 Superman. that is a classic, critically and commercially. however, that is not too say that Singer's version is not good. it is! most definitely. the story line is better. Characters more insightful. and he always brings that human element in his characters, be it Superman or Lex Luthor.

PS-isnt Lois Lane's partner the fiancee of Kirsten Durnst's Spiderman?

Thank You for Smoking
this film is hilarious! i enjoyed it thoroughly. on top of that, the performances from every actor is top notch. from Eckhart to Duvall to Holmes to Brody. i dont know why the Singapore censorship board was making such a fuss about it. it has nothing to do with encouraging people to smoke. it does however makes most Singaporeans do something they fear most, speaking. hmmm maybe that's why.

kudos to Reitman, the writers for making this such a memorable trip.

but remember this line.

'That's the beauty of argument, if you argue correctly, you're never wrong'

World's Fastest Indian.
what a bike!!!

i like this one for simply being inspiring. i am pleasantly surprised at its production quality, being a not so Hollywood production. (Roger Donaldson of 13 Days fame is a NewZ). well this movie isnt for the impatient, mtv generation. slow and long. dialogue based, (maybe you guys are fit for movies like 'Honey'). it is a journeyman movie... and it is one hell of a journey!!!

top notch script. top notch acting. top notch directing. but i am sure, it would be ignored by the academy.

NB-Burt Munro despite his age, gets to sleep with 2 women and charmed a transvestite. what a man! its all in the bike. you have the bike you get the chick dude.

the pang of loneliness always dawns on a least suspecting soul. unaware of it lurking around the corner, it pounces on your soul. first its a quite nibble, then it chews, but it stops short before feasting on it. instead, it takes a spear, a jagged one, and stabs you and the blade is turned. yet you dont die, because it does not hit your vital organ. but the pain becomes unbearable and that is when it strikes you, the pang of loneliness is engulfing your soul.

maybe it isnt a stab. maybe it is more of a - being skinned alive. you do not die but you live with the fear of death and the fire of pain. there is no place on your body that you could actually pinpoint the source of pain. it is just engulfing, too engulfing perhaps.

PS-i dont think i can utter enough 'i love you's to actually say how much i do.

Zizou.

The man of the hour, at least for me.

Zinedine Zidane was wrong to head butt Marco Materazzi. There is no doubt about that. Marco wasn’t wrong to taunt Zinedine Zidane. It is part of gamesmanship. There is no doubt about that. But it is wrong to vilify both. It would be both an exaggeration and a gross miscalculation. It happened on the field and let’s leave it at that.

As we speak, FIFA is holding an inquiry on both Materazzi and Zidane. If Materazzi is found ‘guilty’ of saying what was claimed, he should be punished. But if that happens then many others should be so too. On the other hand, for Zidane, if FIFA finds adequate reason to strip him of the Golden Ball Award, so be it. I believe in responsibility. Hence, if they have committed the crime then they should do the time. Face it and accept the decision gracefully. Let’s leave it at that.

In these troubled times, we are in search of that god. Funnily, in many parts of the world, we have eradicated the notion that there is a God. But in our own way, we still look for Him. As a result, they have come in many forms, from movie stars to sports personality. Many times we have failed and there are only a few times we have succeeded. Yet we still deny there is a God.

People have put Zizou on the pedestal of immortality whilst ignoring the fact that he is after all a man, a person, a being that is just like you and me. He is a person who makes many mistakes in the midst of all that success. He falls just like us and trudges on to face the day just like us. To put him on that pedestal of immortality is a stupid gesture because he is not a god. This is an admittance that we would like to believe that there is a god, yet we still deny, there is The God.

This denial has been maliciously taken advantaged of by people who claim to believe that there is a God. But they behave as if devoid of any faith. Because a person devoid of this belief will not be able to substitute it easily, except for the belief of Fear.

This is in no way a criticism for the faithless but a reminder as to how the world works right now. Zizou is not a god, but a man. Fear will always replace Faith for the Godless. And the Godful will only act as if devoid of faith intermittently. In short, my point is, let us no tget carried away with things. What is done is done. Let’s leave it at that.

When I got back, I was pleasantly surprised with what I saw on tv. it seemed kind of strange that the various other channels have been advertising on each other’s advertisement.

Nevertheless, there is something amiss. I am not going to drum up an argument for the sake of it. I am just doing my constructive best.

The thing is, I don’t see much of Suria or Central on 5 but we do get a lot of 8 going around. Well I think we do get enough of Suria for that matter, but not enough of the Tamil element.

Great Civilisations are judged in the way it treats its minorities. Though I truly doubt Singapore can truly be a great civilization (for no other reason other than its size), it can play its part as part of a greater civilization. I am sure, if we do it right, history will see us favourably.

For that, the great tv civilization is no different. Because if an alien, on a pit stop towards the Alpha Centarius, watches Singapore television, it will notice that the representation of minorities are almost non-existent. It is understandable that the drought in talent is a Singaporean reality, which means a talent in a minority community, even incorrigible. So that is given. In the meantime, to make up for that to at least broaden the perspectives of tv viewers especially on 8.

It is a way of showing to that there is more to the myopic world that you live in.

So stop this myopia dudes!

There aren’t many things that I’d like to say nowadays that isn’t laced with discontent. I would like to blame this unhappiness to the fact that I am in Singapore, for good, but I know, I can’t.

She is as a good a country as any other. Sure she has her bad points, the ones often ridiculed by western media and society but quite frankly there are good points. And those good points outweigh the bad ones. The only thing that I can blame fully without pulling my punches is the weather. This hot humid weather.

A friend of mine has a theory. The reason why Singaporeans aren’t so friendly, or rather seem unfriendly, is because of the sun. with the sun shining on one’s face every day, it is not a 21st Century revelation by any stretch. Has anyone ever noticed, that the inhabitants of Singapore (as opposed to Singaporeans, cause that would be discriminatory to the close to a million working immigrants here) look happier at night. Another reason for that on which I would pretend not to exist is the fact that it’s the end of a working day, so that I can have a bit more leverage on my quicksand argument.

One could argue that another tropical country like say, the Maldives are more friendly. To them I say, Oh please…, the Maldives, with all due respect, isn’t a country, despite them claiming to be one. A country (not to be confused with THE country) is a place where humans live side by side and yet ignoring each other. That is a country. And they gather once a while when an event like the World Cup is on. Plus, the Maldives does not have the one impetus that makes it less friendly, a concrete jungle.

Without a concrete jungle, there are more winds, more birds, more fauna and so on so forth, you know, all those Pocahontas singing in the forest kind of thing that made Captain Smith so randy that he didn’t know she was so ug… errr… not so exotic (don’t believe what Disney tell you). Plus I seriously think she was just a figment of a white man’s imagination. Has anyone ever heard of a Native American name such as Pocahontas? Shouldn’t it be White Eagle, Blue Sparrow, Red Bull, Silence of the Lambs or the likes? In any case, it doesn’t take a Singaporean much to get so worked up. Just give them a nudge, and all fury cometh.

Thank god it takes me more than that to get all worked up. Although admittedly, I would have liked to throw myself in a fits of frenzy sometimes with all those impatient people around me. Don’t get what I mean. Well try walking around Marina Mall on the weekends. Try to go through a lot of doors and you will get what I mean. But for now, I shall remain zen.