It's that day again, the last day of the year.
It happens every year. The same old routine. People wishing others happy new year, people making new resolutions, people driving around in their cars honking everyone else, and people partying like it's the end of the world. It never changes.
I guess some things will never change.
Unless of course, if you win the lottery, or the Power Root instant millionaire contest, and be so rich beyond your wildest dream. Then things will change. For you at least. You won't be worrying about ushering the new year, or even having to work ever again. Why should you? You're rich, and you have money to burn. Let your money work for you.
Oh yes, things will definitely change.
But for the rest of us, it will be the same old routine. The same old job with a 2% pay increase for the new year. That is if you're still have a job. There will be some of us who's unlucky enough to be retrenched. Yes, the economy is not good. Companies are cutting cost everywhere. And that means cutting jobs.
Not a very good year ahead, you might think. And you may be right. But that doesn't mean the world has to stop revolving. Somehow, life will always find a way to be right again. It's the wheel of life, you'll be down sometimes, but most of the times, if you're lucky enough, and determined, you'll be on top. And you'll look down upon the world and thank the blessings that you have received, the roof on top of your head, and the food that you eat everyday. And most importantly, the people that makes your life bearable. Your family and friends. The stranger who said thank you for helping him out while he was in trouble.
So thank you 2008. Thank you for being kind to me. Thank you for blessing me with happiness and a perfect life. Well, it might not be perfect, but to me, it is one. Thank you for completing me, and thank you for making the world a better place. Well, it might not be the best, but it could have been worse.
Let's hope for better times, and better things to come in 2009.
Wednesday, December 31
Saturday, December 20
Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition
Let the music be my mood for tonight.
It's funny how you can never fall asleep when you know that you really have to get some sleep. Like the night before an important exam, or the night before your wedding, or even the night before your big trip that you have been planning for months. Of course, it's understandable if you do not get any sleep at all on your wedding night, as couples always do. Your wedding night is supposed to be magical, with plenty of exploring to do, plenty of whispers to share. But then again, you might just be too tired for anything, and sleep like you never slept before. Not that it's a disaster or anything, afterall, you have an eternity of nights to explore and whisper to each other.
It's weird how some people can be really outspoken in writing but act the opposite in the real world. It's like they have split personality, behaving in a certain manner at a certain time. Like a vampire ravaging the night for fresh blood but lies asleep and weak during daylight.
It's mind boggling the way the world works. You always see bad people live happily ever after, be very rich and prosperous, while good people get all the dirt and live miserably for the rest of their lives. It's like karma is working in an amusing way, making sure that bad things always happen to good folks, while good things keep on happening to bad folks.
It's like we're living in a twisted world.
Have you even wonder if there is a parallel universe? Where there is the same world, the same people, the same buildings, but with a different story. A totally completely different story? It's like an alternate timeline, another possibility for the road that was not taken, for the choices that weren't made. Like the movie Sliding Doors, where two possibilities existed when Gwyneth Paltrow missed the train. Both have different consequences, with different story. However, the two universe converge into one reality in the end, with different results.
Just like what the Monty Python boys always say.
It's funny how you can never fall asleep when you know that you really have to get some sleep. Like the night before an important exam, or the night before your wedding, or even the night before your big trip that you have been planning for months. Of course, it's understandable if you do not get any sleep at all on your wedding night, as couples always do. Your wedding night is supposed to be magical, with plenty of exploring to do, plenty of whispers to share. But then again, you might just be too tired for anything, and sleep like you never slept before. Not that it's a disaster or anything, afterall, you have an eternity of nights to explore and whisper to each other.
It's weird how some people can be really outspoken in writing but act the opposite in the real world. It's like they have split personality, behaving in a certain manner at a certain time. Like a vampire ravaging the night for fresh blood but lies asleep and weak during daylight.
It's mind boggling the way the world works. You always see bad people live happily ever after, be very rich and prosperous, while good people get all the dirt and live miserably for the rest of their lives. It's like karma is working in an amusing way, making sure that bad things always happen to good folks, while good things keep on happening to bad folks.
It's like we're living in a twisted world.
Have you even wonder if there is a parallel universe? Where there is the same world, the same people, the same buildings, but with a different story. A totally completely different story? It's like an alternate timeline, another possibility for the road that was not taken, for the choices that weren't made. Like the movie Sliding Doors, where two possibilities existed when Gwyneth Paltrow missed the train. Both have different consequences, with different story. However, the two universe converge into one reality in the end, with different results.
Just like what the Monty Python boys always say.
Friday, December 19
Last 16 draw
These are the draws for the last 16 of the Champions League:
It would be interesting to see Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho matching up again. Mourinho is still in his first season with Inter Milan, and would love to have a go at Ferguson again. Inter Milan is sitting comfortably on top of Serie A at the moment.
Liverpool's reward of finishing top of the group in the qualifying round is a date with Real Madrid. Real might be struggling in the Spanish League, but that doesn't mean it's going to be an easy task for Liverpool. But nothing that Gerrard and co can't handle.
Both Arsenal and Roma are struggling in their local league, and it would be interesting to see who would win this clash. While Chelsea will be reunited with Claudio Ranieri in the form of Juventus when the two teams battle it out for a chance to play in the quarterfinals.
The ties take place on February 24/25 and March 10/11 with the final on May 27 in Rome.
Real Madrid vs Liverpool
Chelsea vs Juventus
Arsenal vs AS Roma
Inter Milan vs Manchester United
Lyon vs Barcelona
Atletico Madrid vs FC Porto
Sporting Lisbon vs Bayern Munich
Villareal vs Panathinaikos
Chelsea vs Juventus
Arsenal vs AS Roma
Inter Milan vs Manchester United
Lyon vs Barcelona
Atletico Madrid vs FC Porto
Sporting Lisbon vs Bayern Munich
Villareal vs Panathinaikos
It would be interesting to see Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho matching up again. Mourinho is still in his first season with Inter Milan, and would love to have a go at Ferguson again. Inter Milan is sitting comfortably on top of Serie A at the moment.
Liverpool's reward of finishing top of the group in the qualifying round is a date with Real Madrid. Real might be struggling in the Spanish League, but that doesn't mean it's going to be an easy task for Liverpool. But nothing that Gerrard and co can't handle.
Both Arsenal and Roma are struggling in their local league, and it would be interesting to see who would win this clash. While Chelsea will be reunited with Claudio Ranieri in the form of Juventus when the two teams battle it out for a chance to play in the quarterfinals.
The ties take place on February 24/25 and March 10/11 with the final on May 27 in Rome.
Saturday, December 6
When fine is not good enough
So everything is not fine?
Things are not going the way you wanted them to be. Your life seems like a big hole, there's nothing concrete, there is no substance, there is no meaning at all. You grasp for something tangible, something real, but all you get is a shadow of your great self. Just a wisp of something you imagine you would be, and that's all you have.
Nothing more, nothing less.
So you seek deeper, you seek for your inner self. You seek for the meaning of life. You demand some answers, you demand justice.
But you don't even know the questions.
All you know, the answer might be 42. That's what the book says. The question is not important. You can travel the whole galaxy looking for the answer, but in the end, it will always be 42.
But that is besides the point.
Do you notice how people always ended up saying that they are fine when asked about their well-being? You ask them "how are you?", and most of the time, the immediate answer is "I'm fine, thanks". That's the simplest way to answer it anyway. No more explanation is needed, and you're not even sure if they were sincere when asking you in the first place.
The truth is, you're not fine. You are never fine. Things might be fine for a while, but in the long run, you always get back to where you started, which is nowhere. So how the hell do you get away from nowhere? You seem to be moving in circles, you can go a thousand miles away, yet you always return to the exact spot where you began. You seek for that place, for that piece of puzzle to complete your life, to complete yourself, and most importantly, you seek for something that means everything to you.
So in the end, what do you seek?
Extraordinary, and not just fine. But where do you find it?
Now that, is the question to the answer.
Things are not going the way you wanted them to be. Your life seems like a big hole, there's nothing concrete, there is no substance, there is no meaning at all. You grasp for something tangible, something real, but all you get is a shadow of your great self. Just a wisp of something you imagine you would be, and that's all you have.
Nothing more, nothing less.
So you seek deeper, you seek for your inner self. You seek for the meaning of life. You demand some answers, you demand justice.
But you don't even know the questions.
All you know, the answer might be 42. That's what the book says. The question is not important. You can travel the whole galaxy looking for the answer, but in the end, it will always be 42.
But that is besides the point.
Do you notice how people always ended up saying that they are fine when asked about their well-being? You ask them "how are you?", and most of the time, the immediate answer is "I'm fine, thanks". That's the simplest way to answer it anyway. No more explanation is needed, and you're not even sure if they were sincere when asking you in the first place.
The truth is, you're not fine. You are never fine. Things might be fine for a while, but in the long run, you always get back to where you started, which is nowhere. So how the hell do you get away from nowhere? You seem to be moving in circles, you can go a thousand miles away, yet you always return to the exact spot where you began. You seek for that place, for that piece of puzzle to complete your life, to complete yourself, and most importantly, you seek for something that means everything to you.
So in the end, what do you seek?
Extraordinary, and not just fine. But where do you find it?
Now that, is the question to the answer.
Sunday, November 30
A free lunch
I love Sundays. It's always sunny on Sunday. Maybe not all the time, but most of the time, it is sunny. Probably that's why the called it Sunday. Sunny day. And today was no exception.
And Sunday is always associated with lazy. Time goes on as slowly as possible. You wake up in the morning, yet it feels like it's not the time to get out from bed yet. So you laze around in bed, until it's afternoon.
And then you realized, you just wasted a whole morning.
But that's okay, because it's a Sunday. Sunday mornings are meant to be wasted. No point getting up too early in the morning, unless of course if you want to catch Justice League Unlimited on TV. But not me though, Powerpuff Girls are on all day long this weekend, so I got enough dose of cartoons to last me a week. So it's the bed and me, and my pillows.
Of course, come afternoon, you know it's time to get out of bed and hit the shower when your stomach starts growling. But there's nothing in the kitchen worth eating, except for some expired yogurt and leftover pizzas from last week. And you don't feel like eating out, can't really decide where to go, what to eat. It's such a hassle.
So what is the best thing to do? For me, easy. There's only one place: Carrefour Subang Jaya. Not only can you do your weekly grocery shopping at a low price (guaranteed, or they'll return back twice the difference to you, as stated on their walls), but you also get to sample a host of products, free of charge. All you need to do is grab a trolley, or a basket, and come in before 12 noon. The place is not that crowded yet, and there's enough food for everybody. Start walking the aisle. For me, I headed to the can section, where the soup stall is located. For starters, Campbell soup, hot from the stove. Next to the soup stall, Prego is there with their delicious spaghetti and sauce. And not for from there, a pretty girl is making fried rice with Seri Aji Thai Fried Rice. Walk around the corner, and you'll find TC Boy tuna sandwiches waiting for you.
Need a drink by now? Head to the drink section, there are plenty to choose from. There are Milo, Soyabean, Yogurt drink, Sprite and even Anlene. Then you can have some mushroom with black pepper oyster sauce, grilled fish, and even fried tempura and some light snack such as twisties and rice crackers. And while you're eating all these, keep an eye on the mobile Nescafe man, who moves around with a Nescafe dispenser on his back, distributing a cup of hot aromatic Nescafe to shoppers.
Last but not least, don't forget the desserts, with different flavours of ice cream to begin with, and some dried prunes to help with your digestion. Then another ice cold Sprite to wash everything down, and you're set for the day. A good lunch, and most importantly, a free one.
And yes, one last thing, grab that one cup of Yogurt(to replace the expired one in the fridge), put it in your trolley, or basket, and head out to the cashier.
Such a nice sunny Sunday. Don't you just love it?
And Sunday is always associated with lazy. Time goes on as slowly as possible. You wake up in the morning, yet it feels like it's not the time to get out from bed yet. So you laze around in bed, until it's afternoon.
And then you realized, you just wasted a whole morning.
But that's okay, because it's a Sunday. Sunday mornings are meant to be wasted. No point getting up too early in the morning, unless of course if you want to catch Justice League Unlimited on TV. But not me though, Powerpuff Girls are on all day long this weekend, so I got enough dose of cartoons to last me a week. So it's the bed and me, and my pillows.
Of course, come afternoon, you know it's time to get out of bed and hit the shower when your stomach starts growling. But there's nothing in the kitchen worth eating, except for some expired yogurt and leftover pizzas from last week. And you don't feel like eating out, can't really decide where to go, what to eat. It's such a hassle.
So what is the best thing to do? For me, easy. There's only one place: Carrefour Subang Jaya. Not only can you do your weekly grocery shopping at a low price (guaranteed, or they'll return back twice the difference to you, as stated on their walls), but you also get to sample a host of products, free of charge. All you need to do is grab a trolley, or a basket, and come in before 12 noon. The place is not that crowded yet, and there's enough food for everybody. Start walking the aisle. For me, I headed to the can section, where the soup stall is located. For starters, Campbell soup, hot from the stove. Next to the soup stall, Prego is there with their delicious spaghetti and sauce. And not for from there, a pretty girl is making fried rice with Seri Aji Thai Fried Rice. Walk around the corner, and you'll find TC Boy tuna sandwiches waiting for you.
Need a drink by now? Head to the drink section, there are plenty to choose from. There are Milo, Soyabean, Yogurt drink, Sprite and even Anlene. Then you can have some mushroom with black pepper oyster sauce, grilled fish, and even fried tempura and some light snack such as twisties and rice crackers. And while you're eating all these, keep an eye on the mobile Nescafe man, who moves around with a Nescafe dispenser on his back, distributing a cup of hot aromatic Nescafe to shoppers.
Last but not least, don't forget the desserts, with different flavours of ice cream to begin with, and some dried prunes to help with your digestion. Then another ice cold Sprite to wash everything down, and you're set for the day. A good lunch, and most importantly, a free one.
And yes, one last thing, grab that one cup of Yogurt(to replace the expired one in the fridge), put it in your trolley, or basket, and head out to the cashier.
Such a nice sunny Sunday. Don't you just love it?
Thursday, November 6
Enlightenment
I have found the cure to constipation. Give me a Nobel Prize, give me an Olympic gold medal. I don't mind either. Not that I am constipated to begin with. My faculties are functioning well, thank you. An apple a day keeps the doctor away, or so they say.
I eat apples everyday, yet the doctor is always around. Can't seem to be far away from the doctor. Unless of course if I am a invisible, then I can hide from the doctor, and eat all the apples I want.
No, apples are not the cure to constipation. Nor are bananas. You might think they are, but they only work occasionally. Tennis players eat bananas during breaks, a bite at a time. Then they wrap it back up, and keep the banana in their bag. Not basketballers though. Basketballers drink Gatorade, with most of them preferring the orange one. Every timeouts, there's a cup of Gatorade in their hand. I love Gatorade, but 100 plus is cheaper here. So I drink 100 plus. I buy two bottles everytime I'm down in Carrefour, because that's the limit one can buy. It says so on the shelf: Limit two bottles per customer. Not that I'm complaining, because two bottles can last me for quite a while.
Unless of course if it's a hot day. There's nothing like a tall glass of cold 100 plus to quench your thirst. Or if I'm too lazy to eat dinner, like tonight. Never heard of anyone being too lazy to eat before. It's not like there's no food at home. There's plenty of food. But the act of getting the food and putting it in my mouth, well, I just don't have the stomach for it, literally speaking. Or come to think of it, I think I lost my appetite after taking that cure to constipation that I was talking about earlier. Not that I am constipated or anything, but I've already said that too.
So what is it that's so good that it can cure constipation, and also causes you to lose your appetite? It's available to you once a week, and it runs for about 40 minutes or so. Two words.
Ampang Medikal.
I eat apples everyday, yet the doctor is always around. Can't seem to be far away from the doctor. Unless of course if I am a invisible, then I can hide from the doctor, and eat all the apples I want.
No, apples are not the cure to constipation. Nor are bananas. You might think they are, but they only work occasionally. Tennis players eat bananas during breaks, a bite at a time. Then they wrap it back up, and keep the banana in their bag. Not basketballers though. Basketballers drink Gatorade, with most of them preferring the orange one. Every timeouts, there's a cup of Gatorade in their hand. I love Gatorade, but 100 plus is cheaper here. So I drink 100 plus. I buy two bottles everytime I'm down in Carrefour, because that's the limit one can buy. It says so on the shelf: Limit two bottles per customer. Not that I'm complaining, because two bottles can last me for quite a while.
Unless of course if it's a hot day. There's nothing like a tall glass of cold 100 plus to quench your thirst. Or if I'm too lazy to eat dinner, like tonight. Never heard of anyone being too lazy to eat before. It's not like there's no food at home. There's plenty of food. But the act of getting the food and putting it in my mouth, well, I just don't have the stomach for it, literally speaking. Or come to think of it, I think I lost my appetite after taking that cure to constipation that I was talking about earlier. Not that I am constipated or anything, but I've already said that too.
So what is it that's so good that it can cure constipation, and also causes you to lose your appetite? It's available to you once a week, and it runs for about 40 minutes or so. Two words.
Ampang Medikal.
Sunday, October 26
Invincible no more
It wasn't a pretty win, but a win nevertheless.
Come to think of it, it was a historic win.
Xabi Alonso scored the only goal that mattered to end Chelsea's 86-game unbeaten home league record and put Liverpool as the sole leader in the English Premier League. It was also Chelsea's first defeat under new boss Luiz Felipe Scolari, who took charge of the team at the start of the season.
Liverpool so far has signalled out their title intentions, by beating Manchester United, and now Chelsea in what might be a very close race to be the champion of England. Even Hull City is in the running at the moment, but it is still too early in the season, as Jamie Carragher puts it.
But to break Chelsea's long standing record, and at the same time to score your first goal at Stamford Bridge eversince Rafa Benitez is in charge, that must be something.
I hope it's a sign for more good things to come.
Come to think of it, it was a historic win.
Xabi Alonso scored the only goal that mattered to end Chelsea's 86-game unbeaten home league record and put Liverpool as the sole leader in the English Premier League. It was also Chelsea's first defeat under new boss Luiz Felipe Scolari, who took charge of the team at the start of the season.
Liverpool so far has signalled out their title intentions, by beating Manchester United, and now Chelsea in what might be a very close race to be the champion of England. Even Hull City is in the running at the moment, but it is still too early in the season, as Jamie Carragher puts it.
But to break Chelsea's long standing record, and at the same time to score your first goal at Stamford Bridge eversince Rafa Benitez is in charge, that must be something.
I hope it's a sign for more good things to come.
Saturday, October 25
Hull on cloud nine
A year ago, Hull City was playing in the English League Championship. Today, they are joint top in the English Premier League, albeit temporarily. Their bubble might burst anytime soon, but for now, they have won four straight game, and sit snugly at third with 20 points.
They are practically halfway to securing their top flight status with only 9 games played. 40 points are normally needed to be safe. With 29 more games to be played, it's considerably safe to say that Hull City will still be in the Premier League next season.
Nobody predicted that Hull will be doing so well so early in the season. Well, nobody also predicted that Spurs will be rooted at the bottom of the league searching for their first win too, but look at where they are right now. Until Juande Ramos gets the boot, Spurs will continue to struggle and might be in for a long hard battle of avoiding relegation. But that is another tale to tell.
Hull City meanwhile, keep on defying the odds and performing well playing away from home. So far they have chalked up wins against Newcastle, Arsenal, Spurs and their latest away win were against WBA. Their only blot so far were to concede 5 goals at home against Wigan.
The best part is, it's not that Hull played a totally defensive game. They do defend deep, but are also adventurous and can hold the ball for a long period of time. Their counter attacks are dangerous, and they have good players who are unselfish and pass the ball around really well. They also have a very good goalkeeper, Boaz Myhill, who made several good saves against WBA and has so far kept 3 clean sheets.
They will be entertaining Chelsea at home next Wednesday, and come Saturday, will be away at Manchester United. Most probably, they will lose both games, but my bet is, it won't be without a fight.
The tigers number one fan! How ironic!
They are practically halfway to securing their top flight status with only 9 games played. 40 points are normally needed to be safe. With 29 more games to be played, it's considerably safe to say that Hull City will still be in the Premier League next season.
Nobody predicted that Hull will be doing so well so early in the season. Well, nobody also predicted that Spurs will be rooted at the bottom of the league searching for their first win too, but look at where they are right now. Until Juande Ramos gets the boot, Spurs will continue to struggle and might be in for a long hard battle of avoiding relegation. But that is another tale to tell.
Hull City meanwhile, keep on defying the odds and performing well playing away from home. So far they have chalked up wins against Newcastle, Arsenal, Spurs and their latest away win were against WBA. Their only blot so far were to concede 5 goals at home against Wigan.
The best part is, it's not that Hull played a totally defensive game. They do defend deep, but are also adventurous and can hold the ball for a long period of time. Their counter attacks are dangerous, and they have good players who are unselfish and pass the ball around really well. They also have a very good goalkeeper, Boaz Myhill, who made several good saves against WBA and has so far kept 3 clean sheets.
They will be entertaining Chelsea at home next Wednesday, and come Saturday, will be away at Manchester United. Most probably, they will lose both games, but my bet is, it won't be without a fight.
The tigers number one fan! How ironic!Friday, October 24
Sorry ass Spurs
Yet another defeat, and rooted at the bottom of the league with just two points to show out of 8 games.
How worse can it get?
With a modest 4th place finish set for the year, the Spurs are surely not heading that way. They started the season on a losing end, and only got their first point away at Chelsea. After that game, manager Juande Ramos was still optimistic. The worst has passed, and it is time to move up the table. And so he thought.
A draw and 5 more losses followed, and to compound the misery, Spurs were outplayed and lost to Udinese in the UEFA Cup last night.
It doesn't take a genius to predict Spurs downfall. The arrival of Juande Ramos was thought to be a good sign to come. After all, he was the architect of Sevilla revival, and under his guidance, Sevilla went and win the UEFA Cup twice and did fairly well in the competitive Spanish La Liga. He also won his first silverware with Spurs when they beat Chelsea in the League Cup finals last year.
So it was understandable when Ramos predicted a top four finish. He has a good squad at his disposal, plenty of money to spend on new players, and the backing of the board. That's when everything starts tumbling down.
First of all, you don't sell your top strikers. Not only he sold off Robbie Keane, who with 15 league goals last season became the first Spurs player to score double figures in the Premier League in six consecutive seasons, Dimitar Berbatov also left for a greener pasture. Not that they could do anything about that, since Berbatov was really keen on a move to Manchester United. To fill in the void, Spurs bring in Darren Bent and Roman Pavlyuchenko, and both of them have yet to click playing together. Spurs spent £47.9 million on players like Luka Modric, Giovani do Santos, Heureolho Gomes and David Bentley combined. With that much money spent, it's amazing they are still rooted at the bottom when clubs like Hull City are flourishing well without spending half that much.
Players morale must be at a high time low in the dressing room. Recently David Bently vented out his frustration, with the result of him being omitted from yesterday's game. Jonathan Woodgate meanwhile warned his teammates not to repeat what Leeds United did in 2003.
Spurs are up against Bolton next, and their next two games will be against Arsenal and Liverpool. For now, their future look very bleak. Shebby Singh, a self-confessed Spurs fan, must be cursing in his sleep.
For once, I think he might fancy his chances of being the next manager of Tottenham Hotspurs.
How worse can it get?
With a modest 4th place finish set for the year, the Spurs are surely not heading that way. They started the season on a losing end, and only got their first point away at Chelsea. After that game, manager Juande Ramos was still optimistic. The worst has passed, and it is time to move up the table. And so he thought.
A draw and 5 more losses followed, and to compound the misery, Spurs were outplayed and lost to Udinese in the UEFA Cup last night.
It doesn't take a genius to predict Spurs downfall. The arrival of Juande Ramos was thought to be a good sign to come. After all, he was the architect of Sevilla revival, and under his guidance, Sevilla went and win the UEFA Cup twice and did fairly well in the competitive Spanish La Liga. He also won his first silverware with Spurs when they beat Chelsea in the League Cup finals last year.
So it was understandable when Ramos predicted a top four finish. He has a good squad at his disposal, plenty of money to spend on new players, and the backing of the board. That's when everything starts tumbling down.
First of all, you don't sell your top strikers. Not only he sold off Robbie Keane, who with 15 league goals last season became the first Spurs player to score double figures in the Premier League in six consecutive seasons, Dimitar Berbatov also left for a greener pasture. Not that they could do anything about that, since Berbatov was really keen on a move to Manchester United. To fill in the void, Spurs bring in Darren Bent and Roman Pavlyuchenko, and both of them have yet to click playing together. Spurs spent £47.9 million on players like Luka Modric, Giovani do Santos, Heureolho Gomes and David Bentley combined. With that much money spent, it's amazing they are still rooted at the bottom when clubs like Hull City are flourishing well without spending half that much.
Players morale must be at a high time low in the dressing room. Recently David Bently vented out his frustration, with the result of him being omitted from yesterday's game. Jonathan Woodgate meanwhile warned his teammates not to repeat what Leeds United did in 2003.
Spurs are up against Bolton next, and their next two games will be against Arsenal and Liverpool. For now, their future look very bleak. Shebby Singh, a self-confessed Spurs fan, must be cursing in his sleep.
For once, I think he might fancy his chances of being the next manager of Tottenham Hotspurs.
Friday, October 17
Only in Ampang
I was unfortunate enough to be home on a Thursday night and spent my time in front of the TV. And since there was nothing much to watch, I switched to NTV7 and saw Ampang Medikal for the first time.
A lot have been said about the show. Critics have been harsh, with no mercy spared. And I can't really blame them. The show simply lacked a lot of things. It's like it's been done for the sake of making a series about a bunch of medical interns living their lives. Something out of the ordinary, something new in the local scene.
The only thing new is how suck they can be.
The main character, Dr Siti, is the Meredith Grey of Grey's Anatomy. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm simply saying she is Grey because she narrates at the start and at the end of the show. Just like Grey. But that's the only similarities they have. Yes, Siti might have plenty of problems, especially when it comes to love, but her problems exist because men tends to fall in love with her.
And what's up with that? Everybody seems to be in love with her. Married men flocked to her like sheeps flock to grass. They know it's forbidden, they know they can't have her, yet they are still chasing her. I think in the hospital itself, there are more than two men vying for her love. And oh, she is engaged, if you're wondering.
Another noticeable bit about the show is the bad editing. One thing I cannot tolerate is the fact that I have to increase the volume of the TV to maximum to hear what the heck they are talking about. And to think that I have not gone deaf yet. It's bad enough that the acting sucks, there are noises in the background and at times, it is very hard to hear what they are saying.
And what's with the camera angle. Some of the scenes were shot haphazardly that you can't help but wonder if the cameramen were high on glue while filming.
The only thing I like about the show is the underlying theme, But the message come across badly. Yesterday's episode was about parents-children relationship. In one end, you have a mother who was about to give birth to twins. But due to complications, she has to choose one twin, while the other one will die.
Then there was Dr Maznah and her fight for custody for her son. Apparently her ex-husband is getting married again and moving to Australia and planning to take the son with him. And we also found out that the ex gave her something more than just the title janda. Apparently, he also left her a souvenir in the form of some disease.
Then there was Dr. Siti's father who was hospitalised in the ward. From what I can fathom, he is separated from the wife (most probably divorced) and Dr Siti never knew that he kept in touch with her mother. I don't think Siti has a relationship with her mother. From the looks of it, she hates her mother. And so she was angry when she found out that her father is on talking terms with her mother.
In the end, it's all about choices. See the similarities with Grey's Anatomy? I won't be highlighting that now, since this is only my first time watching.
More reason to make plans on Thursday nights now.
A lot have been said about the show. Critics have been harsh, with no mercy spared. And I can't really blame them. The show simply lacked a lot of things. It's like it's been done for the sake of making a series about a bunch of medical interns living their lives. Something out of the ordinary, something new in the local scene.
The only thing new is how suck they can be.
The main character, Dr Siti, is the Meredith Grey of Grey's Anatomy. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm simply saying she is Grey because she narrates at the start and at the end of the show. Just like Grey. But that's the only similarities they have. Yes, Siti might have plenty of problems, especially when it comes to love, but her problems exist because men tends to fall in love with her.
And what's up with that? Everybody seems to be in love with her. Married men flocked to her like sheeps flock to grass. They know it's forbidden, they know they can't have her, yet they are still chasing her. I think in the hospital itself, there are more than two men vying for her love. And oh, she is engaged, if you're wondering.
Another noticeable bit about the show is the bad editing. One thing I cannot tolerate is the fact that I have to increase the volume of the TV to maximum to hear what the heck they are talking about. And to think that I have not gone deaf yet. It's bad enough that the acting sucks, there are noises in the background and at times, it is very hard to hear what they are saying.
And what's with the camera angle. Some of the scenes were shot haphazardly that you can't help but wonder if the cameramen were high on glue while filming.
The only thing I like about the show is the underlying theme, But the message come across badly. Yesterday's episode was about parents-children relationship. In one end, you have a mother who was about to give birth to twins. But due to complications, she has to choose one twin, while the other one will die.
Then there was Dr Maznah and her fight for custody for her son. Apparently her ex-husband is getting married again and moving to Australia and planning to take the son with him. And we also found out that the ex gave her something more than just the title janda. Apparently, he also left her a souvenir in the form of some disease.
Then there was Dr. Siti's father who was hospitalised in the ward. From what I can fathom, he is separated from the wife (most probably divorced) and Dr Siti never knew that he kept in touch with her mother. I don't think Siti has a relationship with her mother. From the looks of it, she hates her mother. And so she was angry when she found out that her father is on talking terms with her mother.
In the end, it's all about choices. See the similarities with Grey's Anatomy? I won't be highlighting that now, since this is only my first time watching.
More reason to make plans on Thursday nights now.
Sunday, September 28
Gooners shocked
Arsene Wenger 12th year anniversary in charge of Arsenal was spoilt when his team was shocked by newcomer Hull City at the Emirates. Prior to the game, Arsenal was riding on a 17 months unbeaten record at home, with West Ham being the only team who has beaten them previously.
Now Hull City can proudly add themselves to the list, after a courageous display of football.
Arsenal led early in the second half when Paul McShane put the ball into his own net after a neat cross by Theo Walcott created havoc in front of the goal. But Hull replied soon enough, with Marcio Geovanni letting fly a rocket into the top corner from 30 yards. Four minutes later, Hull was in front when Daniel Cousin headed the ball pass Almunia from a corner.
From then on, it was Arsenal pushing and pushing for the equaliser, and even with four extra minutes of stoppage time, failed to score that important goal.
It's a famous win for Hull City, and must have been their biggest win in their 104 years of history.
Now Hull City can proudly add themselves to the list, after a courageous display of football.
Arsenal led early in the second half when Paul McShane put the ball into his own net after a neat cross by Theo Walcott created havoc in front of the goal. But Hull replied soon enough, with Marcio Geovanni letting fly a rocket into the top corner from 30 yards. Four minutes later, Hull was in front when Daniel Cousin headed the ball pass Almunia from a corner.
From then on, it was Arsenal pushing and pushing for the equaliser, and even with four extra minutes of stoppage time, failed to score that important goal.
It's a famous win for Hull City, and must have been their biggest win in their 104 years of history.
Saturday, September 27
Victory in Merseyside
Robbie Keane is still looking for that elusive first goal in a red shirt. And he was thinking that the omens might be good this time around. Liverpool was playing Everton, the 208th Merseyside derby for the two teams. And Keane has a good record against Everton. He scored a hat-trick against the Toffees back in 2003. And a few years back, the previous incumbent of the number seven shirt - Harry Kewell - registered his first goal against the team across Stanley Park.
But who needs Keane, when you have Fernando Torres supplying the goals. Keane was instrumental in today's game, but it was Torres who took the limelight again. He scored two goals in the span of 4 minutes in the second half to win the game for Liverpool. It might have even been a hat-trick, if his third goal was not ruled offside.
Everton barely had any shots on target, and they played with 10 men when Tim Cahill got his marching orders in the 80th minute for a late challenge on Xabi Alonso. Everton is still looking for their first home win this season, after losing their first two games at home.
In another match, Chelsea did what Liverpool failed to do last week by scoring not only one, but two goals against the hapless Stoke City. After being the man of the match in last week's game, Thomas Sorensen failed to repeat his heroics when Jose Bosingwa and Nicolas Anelka put the ball pass him.
Meanwhile, Manchester United was gifted with a penalty to break the resilient Bolton and Christiano Ronaldo duly scored his first goal in the league. Wayne Rooney added a second after coming in as a substitute. But it was a game for United to win, as they dominated the whole game. And Robbie Keane is not alone in his search for his first goal for his new club, as Dimitar Berbatov is yet to score for Manchester United.
Liverpool is up against Manchester City next in the league, and it will be tough preserving their unbeaten run with Robinho and Shawn Wright-Philips playing so well. But with Torres scoring again, and Keane desperate for his first goal, it would be an interesting match to watch.
But who needs Keane, when you have Fernando Torres supplying the goals. Keane was instrumental in today's game, but it was Torres who took the limelight again. He scored two goals in the span of 4 minutes in the second half to win the game for Liverpool. It might have even been a hat-trick, if his third goal was not ruled offside.
Everton barely had any shots on target, and they played with 10 men when Tim Cahill got his marching orders in the 80th minute for a late challenge on Xabi Alonso. Everton is still looking for their first home win this season, after losing their first two games at home.
In another match, Chelsea did what Liverpool failed to do last week by scoring not only one, but two goals against the hapless Stoke City. After being the man of the match in last week's game, Thomas Sorensen failed to repeat his heroics when Jose Bosingwa and Nicolas Anelka put the ball pass him.
Meanwhile, Manchester United was gifted with a penalty to break the resilient Bolton and Christiano Ronaldo duly scored his first goal in the league. Wayne Rooney added a second after coming in as a substitute. But it was a game for United to win, as they dominated the whole game. And Robbie Keane is not alone in his search for his first goal for his new club, as Dimitar Berbatov is yet to score for Manchester United.
Liverpool is up against Manchester City next in the league, and it will be tough preserving their unbeaten run with Robinho and Shawn Wright-Philips playing so well. But with Torres scoring again, and Keane desperate for his first goal, it would be an interesting match to watch.
Friday, September 26
Why did the chicken cross the road
Tell me if this is not funny! Got this in the mail, and thought I shared it with you all.
BARACK OBAMA:
The chicken crossed the road because it was time for a CHANGE! The chicken wanted CHANGE!
JOHN MCCAIN:
My friends, that chicken crossed the road because it recognized the need to engage in cooperation and dialogue with all the chickens on the other side of the road.
HILLARY CLINTON:
When I was First Lady, I personally helped that little chicken cross the road. This experience makes me uniquely qualified to ensure -- right from Day One! -- that every chicken in this country gets the chance it deserves to cross the road. But then, this really isn't about me.......
GEORGE W. BUSH:
We don't really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road or not. The chicken is either against us, or with us. There is no middle ground here.
JOHN LENNON:
Imagine all the chickens in the world crossing the road together, in peace.
BILL GATES:
I have just released eChicken2008, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your check book. Internet Explorer is an integral part of the Chicken. This new platform is much more stable and will never cra...#@&&^C% .......... reboot.
BILL CLINTON:
I did not cross the road with THAT chicken. What is your definition of chicken?
AL GORE:
Chicken shall not shit while crossing the road. This is for a green environment.
LEE KUAN YEW:
We have installed crossing lights at all traffic junctions. All chickens should follow instructions while crossing the road.
SAMY VELLU:
Gantry points have been set up. All chickens wanting to cross the road are advised to top up their cash cards first.
NAJIB RAZAK:
What chickens? I don't know any chickens... especially those from Mongolia.
ABDULLAH BADAWI:
We have to be fair to all chickens. Some want to cross over the road, some do not. ........ zzzzz .......zzzzzz ....... Now what were we talking about? Ah yes, chickens. We will form a Royal Commission to decide whether it is right for them to cross the road.
MAHATHIR:
Now even non-bumi chickens want to cross the road! How can they disrespect and disregard bumi chickens? We must be allowed to cross over first. It is our special privilege and no one can challenge that!
ANWAR:
We have enough chickens waiting to cross over in September.
SHAHRIR:
All foreign chickens are welcome in Malaysia but they must not cross over the road within 50km of the border.
BARACK OBAMA:
The chicken crossed the road because it was time for a CHANGE! The chicken wanted CHANGE!
JOHN MCCAIN:
My friends, that chicken crossed the road because it recognized the need to engage in cooperation and dialogue with all the chickens on the other side of the road.
HILLARY CLINTON:
When I was First Lady, I personally helped that little chicken cross the road. This experience makes me uniquely qualified to ensure -- right from Day One! -- that every chicken in this country gets the chance it deserves to cross the road. But then, this really isn't about me.......
GEORGE W. BUSH:
We don't really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road or not. The chicken is either against us, or with us. There is no middle ground here.
JOHN LENNON:
Imagine all the chickens in the world crossing the road together, in peace.
BILL GATES:
I have just released eChicken2008, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your check book. Internet Explorer is an integral part of the Chicken. This new platform is much more stable and will never cra...#@&&^C% .......... reboot.
BILL CLINTON:
I did not cross the road with THAT chicken. What is your definition of chicken?
AL GORE:
Chicken shall not shit while crossing the road. This is for a green environment.
LEE KUAN YEW:
We have installed crossing lights at all traffic junctions. All chickens should follow instructions while crossing the road.
SAMY VELLU:
Gantry points have been set up. All chickens wanting to cross the road are advised to top up their cash cards first.
NAJIB RAZAK:
What chickens? I don't know any chickens... especially those from Mongolia.
ABDULLAH BADAWI:
We have to be fair to all chickens. Some want to cross over the road, some do not. ........ zzzzz .......zzzzzz ....... Now what were we talking about? Ah yes, chickens. We will form a Royal Commission to decide whether it is right for them to cross the road.
MAHATHIR:
Now even non-bumi chickens want to cross the road! How can they disrespect and disregard bumi chickens? We must be allowed to cross over first. It is our special privilege and no one can challenge that!
ANWAR:
We have enough chickens waiting to cross over in September.
SHAHRIR:
All foreign chickens are welcome in Malaysia but they must not cross over the road within 50km of the border.
Thursday, September 25
Habeas corpus
When you were a small kid, do you spend most of your time in front of the TV? Or were you the type who goes outside and play with the other neighbourhood kids? I only ventured outside when I was 10 years old, and that was because we moved to a new town where the neighbours are friendlier and the kids are aplenty.
So I made new friends, and played all sort of games and did all sort of mischief with them. Cycled from east to west, and jumped into mudholes and streams. But I still have my regular dosage of TV, with cartoons always the top priority. I guess that's why I'm still hooked to cartoons even until now, life is just different without them. Of course, the cartoons nowadays are a whole lot different from the ones back then. There are more silly cartoons nowadays, and the jokes are a little harder to understand if you're a five year-old kid. Back then, the theme is simpler, with good always prevailing over evil, and there is always a moral in each episodes.
A was also hooked to Sesame Street back then. I just love Big Bird, Snuffy, Bert and Ernie (rumors have it that they are a gay couple), Kermit the Frog, Cookie Monster and Count Von Count. I think I learnt quit a lot from watching the show.
And you know how in each episode there is the word of the day, and also the number of the day? Well, if you read the newspaper and watch the news for the past week, you will notice that the word of the day for last week is habeas corpus. Personally, I have no idea what it means, because that word has never been the word of the day in Sesame Street. But you can always google it and find the meaning online.
As for the number of the day, that would be 47, because that is the number that the word habeas corpus appeared in the newspaper (The Star) last week. And I know this because I actually counted it.
What? You don't believe me? Well, feel free to count it then!
So I made new friends, and played all sort of games and did all sort of mischief with them. Cycled from east to west, and jumped into mudholes and streams. But I still have my regular dosage of TV, with cartoons always the top priority. I guess that's why I'm still hooked to cartoons even until now, life is just different without them. Of course, the cartoons nowadays are a whole lot different from the ones back then. There are more silly cartoons nowadays, and the jokes are a little harder to understand if you're a five year-old kid. Back then, the theme is simpler, with good always prevailing over evil, and there is always a moral in each episodes.
A was also hooked to Sesame Street back then. I just love Big Bird, Snuffy, Bert and Ernie (rumors have it that they are a gay couple), Kermit the Frog, Cookie Monster and Count Von Count. I think I learnt quit a lot from watching the show.
And you know how in each episode there is the word of the day, and also the number of the day? Well, if you read the newspaper and watch the news for the past week, you will notice that the word of the day for last week is habeas corpus. Personally, I have no idea what it means, because that word has never been the word of the day in Sesame Street. But you can always google it and find the meaning online.
As for the number of the day, that would be 47, because that is the number that the word habeas corpus appeared in the newspaper (The Star) last week. And I know this because I actually counted it.
What? You don't believe me? Well, feel free to count it then!
Wednesday, September 24
The songs in my head
It's amazing what some songs can do for you. Some songs can inspire, some can invoke certain memories and feelings. Some songs make you happy, some songs make you sad. And some songs, when inserted in the background of a scene on TV or movies, can really make a big difference.
Makes you wonder, if you can have a song playing in the background of every major events in your life, what would it be?
I have this weird habit of listening to the same song over and over again, until the words and tune get stuck inside my head. There are plenty of songs inside my head, playing over and over again. I guess that's why I don't need to stick those earphones into my ears to listen to music everywhere I go, because all my favourite songs are stored inside my head.
But if you think that's weird, there's more. There comes a certain time in my life, when suddenly a song will be played inside my head, with no reasons at all. And somehow, the song just complete the moment. Like I'm in a movie or something. Maybe I watch too much TV. Or maybe I imagine things too much. Or maybe I'm just plain weird.
I remember when I broke up with my ex a few years back, I had My Immortal by Evanescence playing inside my head during the break-up. And it was such a tragic, sad song that it almost drove me crazy. And nowadays when I listen to the song, I can't help but to remember that day. Not that it invoke anymore feelings, it's just a bittersweet memory.
And when I run, I have High by James Blunt playing in my head. Somehow, it is such a calm song and it provides the right rhythm for me to run. Yes, I know, I might be influence my the music video where a man was running throughout the song. But that's the song that transfixed me to keep running, even when my body is telling me to stop.
Other songs that keep on repeating over the years are Linger by Cranberries, Painting in My Mind by Tommy Page, Everytime by A1, Here With Me by Dido, Wherever You May Go by The Calling and You Were Meant For Me by Jewel. Yes, most of them are sappy sad songs, but that's because I'm a sappy sad person.
And because I'm in no mood for happy tunes now.
Makes you wonder, if you can have a song playing in the background of every major events in your life, what would it be?
I have this weird habit of listening to the same song over and over again, until the words and tune get stuck inside my head. There are plenty of songs inside my head, playing over and over again. I guess that's why I don't need to stick those earphones into my ears to listen to music everywhere I go, because all my favourite songs are stored inside my head.
But if you think that's weird, there's more. There comes a certain time in my life, when suddenly a song will be played inside my head, with no reasons at all. And somehow, the song just complete the moment. Like I'm in a movie or something. Maybe I watch too much TV. Or maybe I imagine things too much. Or maybe I'm just plain weird.
I remember when I broke up with my ex a few years back, I had My Immortal by Evanescence playing inside my head during the break-up. And it was such a tragic, sad song that it almost drove me crazy. And nowadays when I listen to the song, I can't help but to remember that day. Not that it invoke anymore feelings, it's just a bittersweet memory.
And when I run, I have High by James Blunt playing in my head. Somehow, it is such a calm song and it provides the right rhythm for me to run. Yes, I know, I might be influence my the music video where a man was running throughout the song. But that's the song that transfixed me to keep running, even when my body is telling me to stop.
Other songs that keep on repeating over the years are Linger by Cranberries, Painting in My Mind by Tommy Page, Everytime by A1, Here With Me by Dido, Wherever You May Go by The Calling and You Were Meant For Me by Jewel. Yes, most of them are sappy sad songs, but that's because I'm a sappy sad person.
And because I'm in no mood for happy tunes now.
Monday, September 22
The lamb has left the building
Well, not entirely true. The lamb is still in the building, just at another location. A better place, come to think of it. Because it has fulfilled it's destiny, which is to be at that other location.
And no, it's not really a whole lamb. It's just a leg of lamb. Roasted to perfection.
Have you ever eaten a whole leg of lamb the barbaric way? You grab it by the bone, and start biting and munching away, spreading grease all over your face, and spilling lamb juice all over your body. I have, a couple of times. But not last night though. Company, Ardy. Remember, we have company. So I carved my lamb nicely, used fork and knife to cut it into smaller pieces, pour some mint sauce over it, and chew on it with my mouth close. Such a waste to eat it like that!
It should have been eaten the barbaric way, that's the right way for it.
And if the leg of lamb was not enough, there were roast chicken, potato salad, coleslaw and baked pasta, just to complete the meal.
Picture perfect!
The star of the show
Gone in 10 seconds!
And no, it's not really a whole lamb. It's just a leg of lamb. Roasted to perfection.
Have you ever eaten a whole leg of lamb the barbaric way? You grab it by the bone, and start biting and munching away, spreading grease all over your face, and spilling lamb juice all over your body. I have, a couple of times. But not last night though. Company, Ardy. Remember, we have company. So I carved my lamb nicely, used fork and knife to cut it into smaller pieces, pour some mint sauce over it, and chew on it with my mouth close. Such a waste to eat it like that!
It should have been eaten the barbaric way, that's the right way for it.
And if the leg of lamb was not enough, there were roast chicken, potato salad, coleslaw and baked pasta, just to complete the meal.
Picture perfect!
The star of the show
Gone in 10 seconds!Sunday, September 21
Roadblock
If you watch The Amazing Race, you will know that a roadblock is a task that only one person may perform.
So what does a roadblock means in football?
Well, it is when Liverpool failed to win at home when playing newcomers Stoke City.
No goals, and just one point to show.
After spending the week on a high by beating Manchester United and Marseille, Liverpool was brought down to earth by the resilient Stoke City players. Having 76% possesion of the football and 19 corners, none of their players managed to find the back of the net. Well, Steven Gerard did, from a perfectly taken freekick, but his goal was disallowed because the linesman had an itch on his armpit, and accidently raised the flag to scratch the itch. The referree, seeing the flag being raised, disallowed the goal. It would have been Gerrard 100th goal for the club, but I guess his 100th goal would just have to wait for another game.
With 11 players behind the ball, Stoke City defended deep and well to deny Liverpool any scoring oppurtunity. Liverpool had 30 shots on goal, but most of them were from long range and out of target. Robbie Keane had a few good chances, but none really counted. He remain goalless for his new club, and suddenly the £20 million Liverpool paid for his services seems a little too much.
While everyone in the red shirt were pushing the ball forward, Pepe Reina was seen having a ciggarette and drinking a couple cans of beer while lounging in between his goalpost. Must be lonely with his defenders playing as midfielders, leaving him all alone at the back. Rory Delap occasionally threw the ball to Reina, but Reina was up for it and caught the ball easily. It's amazing that Reina didn't join the other Reds up front since he really had nothing much to do standing in between the goalpost. He might have been able to score the winning goal, since everyone else was just plain unlucky (except for Keane though, he was pretyy useless).
So there you go, a roadblock along the way. Would it matter? Probably so, if Liverpool is looking to win the title. Because dropping points while playing in Anfield against lowly teams would definitely come to haunt you later on in the season.
So what does a roadblock means in football?
Well, it is when Liverpool failed to win at home when playing newcomers Stoke City.
No goals, and just one point to show.
After spending the week on a high by beating Manchester United and Marseille, Liverpool was brought down to earth by the resilient Stoke City players. Having 76% possesion of the football and 19 corners, none of their players managed to find the back of the net. Well, Steven Gerard did, from a perfectly taken freekick, but his goal was disallowed because the linesman had an itch on his armpit, and accidently raised the flag to scratch the itch. The referree, seeing the flag being raised, disallowed the goal. It would have been Gerrard 100th goal for the club, but I guess his 100th goal would just have to wait for another game.
With 11 players behind the ball, Stoke City defended deep and well to deny Liverpool any scoring oppurtunity. Liverpool had 30 shots on goal, but most of them were from long range and out of target. Robbie Keane had a few good chances, but none really counted. He remain goalless for his new club, and suddenly the £20 million Liverpool paid for his services seems a little too much.
While everyone in the red shirt were pushing the ball forward, Pepe Reina was seen having a ciggarette and drinking a couple cans of beer while lounging in between his goalpost. Must be lonely with his defenders playing as midfielders, leaving him all alone at the back. Rory Delap occasionally threw the ball to Reina, but Reina was up for it and caught the ball easily. It's amazing that Reina didn't join the other Reds up front since he really had nothing much to do standing in between the goalpost. He might have been able to score the winning goal, since everyone else was just plain unlucky (except for Keane though, he was pretyy useless).
So there you go, a roadblock along the way. Would it matter? Probably so, if Liverpool is looking to win the title. Because dropping points while playing in Anfield against lowly teams would definitely come to haunt you later on in the season.
Thursday, September 18
Ezora revisited
I know this post has been long overdue. Blame it on the Teen Titans, they are all I think about and watch nowadays.
But better late than never, right? And I owe it to some people out there to tell them the ending.
After a grueling 60 episodes, Ezora finally said goodbye to Malaysia and fly to London to be with one of her love interest. Yes, she chose Adreen instead of Reza, after going from one man to another. It was a complicated relationship. Ezora married Reza, but later separated when Reza married Leeya. She then got together with Adreen, only because she pities him and wanted to help him out. But in the end, it was Adreen that she chose. I guess love is weird, in a twisted kind of way.
The fate of Leeya wasn't that good. Her plans to marry Badree backfired, instead she was beaten by Badree when he discovered that she knew about his plan to kill Madam Ezah. Yes, Badree choked Madam Ezah to death, and he now rots in prison. Meanwhile, Leeya rots in a mental institution. I guess the shock of being beaten by someone whom she was supposed to marry was too much for her to handle. But then again, the whole family is cuckoo, so it wasn't a suprise that Leeya followed suit.
Lisa and Josh were given a lifeline, when Johan surrendered himself to the police and admitted that he killed Ringo and Fendi. Lisa, who turns out to be Madam Ezah's grandaughter, turned a new life and chose Josh to be her life partner. Good ending for the both of them.
Amy, Fara's psycho sister, was foiled in her attempt to kill Adreen and Fara. It turned out that she was acting on the orders of Madam Ezah, and also pursuing a personal vendetta against Adreen. She could never forgive Adreen for marrying Sara instead of her.
Bob and Kak Ton patched things up after the discovered that the baby Karina was carrying was in fact Maniam's and not Bob's. In a funny twist, Karina gave birth to an Indian boy, much to the chagrin of Bob and Kak Ton. The fate of Karina remains unknown, most probably she and Maniam got together and live somewhere near Thailand. Kak Ton decided to adopt the baby, since she can't have one anymore.
Back to Madam Ezah, it turned out that she chopped up her daughter's bones to create an amulet of protection using the art of black magic to ensure that she is untouchable in her quest for power. Somewhat of a psycho, she manipulated and lied her way around people, even pretended that she has gone crazy when her past was revealed to everyone. While plotting for Ezora's downfall, she continues to use Ezora's kindness for her own good. In the end, she died with her eyes wide open, her face contorted in a shocked expression. During her burial, a snake appeared on her body, and the grave rejected her by spewing hot lava and boiling water. Okay, maybe not that, but something of that sort. A little spooky, I must say.
All in all, Ezora managed to entwined me to the couch for far too long than I expected. The series wasn't that bad, the plot was good with so many twists and turns along the way. The ending was kinda expected, but in the end, good always prevails over evil.
And I guess, that is the moral of the story.
But better late than never, right? And I owe it to some people out there to tell them the ending.
After a grueling 60 episodes, Ezora finally said goodbye to Malaysia and fly to London to be with one of her love interest. Yes, she chose Adreen instead of Reza, after going from one man to another. It was a complicated relationship. Ezora married Reza, but later separated when Reza married Leeya. She then got together with Adreen, only because she pities him and wanted to help him out. But in the end, it was Adreen that she chose. I guess love is weird, in a twisted kind of way.
The fate of Leeya wasn't that good. Her plans to marry Badree backfired, instead she was beaten by Badree when he discovered that she knew about his plan to kill Madam Ezah. Yes, Badree choked Madam Ezah to death, and he now rots in prison. Meanwhile, Leeya rots in a mental institution. I guess the shock of being beaten by someone whom she was supposed to marry was too much for her to handle. But then again, the whole family is cuckoo, so it wasn't a suprise that Leeya followed suit.
Lisa and Josh were given a lifeline, when Johan surrendered himself to the police and admitted that he killed Ringo and Fendi. Lisa, who turns out to be Madam Ezah's grandaughter, turned a new life and chose Josh to be her life partner. Good ending for the both of them.
Amy, Fara's psycho sister, was foiled in her attempt to kill Adreen and Fara. It turned out that she was acting on the orders of Madam Ezah, and also pursuing a personal vendetta against Adreen. She could never forgive Adreen for marrying Sara instead of her.
Bob and Kak Ton patched things up after the discovered that the baby Karina was carrying was in fact Maniam's and not Bob's. In a funny twist, Karina gave birth to an Indian boy, much to the chagrin of Bob and Kak Ton. The fate of Karina remains unknown, most probably she and Maniam got together and live somewhere near Thailand. Kak Ton decided to adopt the baby, since she can't have one anymore.
Back to Madam Ezah, it turned out that she chopped up her daughter's bones to create an amulet of protection using the art of black magic to ensure that she is untouchable in her quest for power. Somewhat of a psycho, she manipulated and lied her way around people, even pretended that she has gone crazy when her past was revealed to everyone. While plotting for Ezora's downfall, she continues to use Ezora's kindness for her own good. In the end, she died with her eyes wide open, her face contorted in a shocked expression. During her burial, a snake appeared on her body, and the grave rejected her by spewing hot lava and boiling water. Okay, maybe not that, but something of that sort. A little spooky, I must say.
All in all, Ezora managed to entwined me to the couch for far too long than I expected. The series wasn't that bad, the plot was good with so many twists and turns along the way. The ending was kinda expected, but in the end, good always prevails over evil.
And I guess, that is the moral of the story.
Wednesday, September 17
Frontpage: The truth behind the news
It's been a while since a really good local show surfaced on our TV screen. A few months back, we were treated with the out-of-this-world Ghost on 8TV. It was quiet since then, with the occasional TV3 dramas filling up my thirst for local dramas, but nothing good to shout about.Then there is the highly publicised medical drama, Ampang Medikal which is shown on NTV7. I am not going to say anything about that, since you can read all about it here.
And just when I was about to give up hope on our local scenes, Frontpage comes galloping around and my faith in local dramas has been restored. The first episode aired on September 7 and I have to say, it was so good that I can't wait for the next episode. And the next one was even as good as the first one, so now I look forward to my Sunday nights.
So what is Frontpage all about? It revolves around a group of investigative journalists who do whatever it takes to get a story. The best part about the story is each episode is based on actual news headlines that had appeared over the last 20 years. And I think the team of writers, led by Mira Mustaffa really outdone themselves with superb scripts for the show.
If you have yet to watch a single episode of Frontpage, worry not cause nowadays you can catch it online. And if you're at home on Sunday nights, remember to catch it on NTV7 at 9.45pm.
By the way, did I mention that Cheryl Samad is also in Frontpage?
Sunday, September 14
Is he worth £20 million?
Four games into the season, with no goals to show so far. Yes, it is still early to judge Robbie Keane, but with a price tag of £20 million, a lot of expectations are on him to shoulder the scoring load for Liverpool this season. And so far, he has done none of it yet.
The arrival of Fernando Torres last season really helped Liverpool in the scoring department. Torres justified the £26.5 million spent on him with a record breaking 33 goals in his debut season. And it didn't take long for him to get settle down in England, scoring his first English Premier League goal on his Anfield debut in a match against Chelsea. And from there on, he never looked back.
Keane has been playing in England for years now. He was with Wolverhampton, Coventry City, Leeds United and Tottenham in a career spanning close to 10 years. Of course there was that half season he spent with Inter Milan, but that was a big flop for him. He only survived a few months there with 9 games under his belt and no goal to show.
He might need some time to settle in and get used with Liverpool style of play, but with his experience playing in the Premier League, it shouldn't be long before he can get that first elusive goal. Liverpool is on track at the moment, winning 3 games and drawing one. But the icing on the cake was last night game when they finally beat Manchester United 2-1. It was their first league win over Manchester United since April 2004. And if they can keep playing on like they did yesterday, they might be one of the front-runners for the title this season.
It is still too early to predict anything. But there's no harm to have a little hope.
Picture perfect!
The arrival of Fernando Torres last season really helped Liverpool in the scoring department. Torres justified the £26.5 million spent on him with a record breaking 33 goals in his debut season. And it didn't take long for him to get settle down in England, scoring his first English Premier League goal on his Anfield debut in a match against Chelsea. And from there on, he never looked back.
Keane has been playing in England for years now. He was with Wolverhampton, Coventry City, Leeds United and Tottenham in a career spanning close to 10 years. Of course there was that half season he spent with Inter Milan, but that was a big flop for him. He only survived a few months there with 9 games under his belt and no goal to show.
He might need some time to settle in and get used with Liverpool style of play, but with his experience playing in the Premier League, it shouldn't be long before he can get that first elusive goal. Liverpool is on track at the moment, winning 3 games and drawing one. But the icing on the cake was last night game when they finally beat Manchester United 2-1. It was their first league win over Manchester United since April 2004. And if they can keep playing on like they did yesterday, they might be one of the front-runners for the title this season.
It is still too early to predict anything. But there's no harm to have a little hope.
Picture perfect!Thursday, September 11
Back to winning ways
It's good to see him winning again. Especially after he had such an unlucky year, losing the Australian Open in the semifinals, then trashed by Nadal in the French Open finals, and again losing to Nadal in that epic Wimbledon finals.
He finally got it right in the US Open. Seeded second for the first time in four and a half years, Roger Federer finally won his first major title of the year. And in doing so, he became the first man to win five Slams in a row at two different events, having also completed the feat last year at Wimbledon. No one had won five US titles in a row since Bill Tilden in 1924.
Federer dispatched sixth-seeded Andy Murray, the conquerer of the world's number one Rafael Nadal in the semifinals, 6-2 7-5 6-2. Murray went into his first Grand Slam final with a 2-1 lifetime record against the champ. But trying to become the first British man to win the US Open since Fred Perry in 1936, he never had a chance. He might have played the perfect game in his win against Nadal, but against Federer, he was out of sorts.
Federer hit 36 winners compared to Murray's 16 and he earned nearly half his points at net, a skill he honed while winning the Olympic gold medal in doubles. He only took one hour and 51 minutes to finish the match, which in fact was one of the easiest match he had on his way to winning the title.
In the semifinals, he beat Novak Djokovic 6-3 5-7 7-5 6-2 in nearly 3 hours, and had to rely on his strong servis game to hold onto his serve. He mustered 20 aces along the way, while limiting his errors to 28 compared to Djokovic's 47 errors.
The quarterfinals was also a close game, with Federer beating Gilles Muller 7-6 6-4 7-6 in two hours and 30 minutes. Muller, the big server from Luxembourg led the tournament with 128 aces but Federer managed on to win the match by limiting his errors.
He had his toughest match in the Fourth Round, where he needed three and a half hours to beat Igor Andreev from Russia in five sets, 6-7 7-6 6-3 3-6 6-3. It was a tense match where Federer had an error strewn game, committing 60 unforced errors but he made that up by hitting 66 winners to claim the match.
Federer's 56th career crown moved him into sole possession of second place on the all-time Slam title list, one more than Roy Emerson and one below the career record 14 won by Pete Sampras. Up next will be the Australian Open for him to equal Sampras 14 amazing feat. It won't be easy, but as long as he believes in himself, I'm sure he will be the greatest ever player in the history of tennis.
He finally got it right in the US Open. Seeded second for the first time in four and a half years, Roger Federer finally won his first major title of the year. And in doing so, he became the first man to win five Slams in a row at two different events, having also completed the feat last year at Wimbledon. No one had won five US titles in a row since Bill Tilden in 1924.
Federer dispatched sixth-seeded Andy Murray, the conquerer of the world's number one Rafael Nadal in the semifinals, 6-2 7-5 6-2. Murray went into his first Grand Slam final with a 2-1 lifetime record against the champ. But trying to become the first British man to win the US Open since Fred Perry in 1936, he never had a chance. He might have played the perfect game in his win against Nadal, but against Federer, he was out of sorts.
Federer hit 36 winners compared to Murray's 16 and he earned nearly half his points at net, a skill he honed while winning the Olympic gold medal in doubles. He only took one hour and 51 minutes to finish the match, which in fact was one of the easiest match he had on his way to winning the title.
In the semifinals, he beat Novak Djokovic 6-3 5-7 7-5 6-2 in nearly 3 hours, and had to rely on his strong servis game to hold onto his serve. He mustered 20 aces along the way, while limiting his errors to 28 compared to Djokovic's 47 errors.
The quarterfinals was also a close game, with Federer beating Gilles Muller 7-6 6-4 7-6 in two hours and 30 minutes. Muller, the big server from Luxembourg led the tournament with 128 aces but Federer managed on to win the match by limiting his errors.
He had his toughest match in the Fourth Round, where he needed three and a half hours to beat Igor Andreev from Russia in five sets, 6-7 7-6 6-3 3-6 6-3. It was a tense match where Federer had an error strewn game, committing 60 unforced errors but he made that up by hitting 66 winners to claim the match.
Federer's 56th career crown moved him into sole possession of second place on the all-time Slam title list, one more than Roy Emerson and one below the career record 14 won by Pete Sampras. Up next will be the Australian Open for him to equal Sampras 14 amazing feat. It won't be easy, but as long as he believes in himself, I'm sure he will be the greatest ever player in the history of tennis.
Thursday, August 21
When the holding gets tough
As expected, the Jamaicans are in the finals of the 4x100m relays. Both the men and the women. And they look good for the gold, barring any mishandling of the baton. Like what happened to the U.S. The Americans found out that they just couldn't handle the baton properly, the hard way.
First, the men dropped the baton. Tyson Gay just couldn't connect with Darvis Patton and he ended up empty handed. Tyson Gay will now leave Beijing without running in a final. He failed to qualify for the 100m finals a few days back. Then the women followed suit. Lauryn Williams now has two Olympic baton drops on her resume. She and Marion Jones had a slip-up in the 2004 Olympics, a blunder that cost the U.S. a gold medal. Not that it mattered though, since if they did win the gold, it would have been stripped anyway because of Marion Jones involvement with a certain drug.
It must be heartbreak for the Americans, who see themselves as favourites to win the sprint events. Instead, they keep falling short of expectations. For the first time in Summer Games history, the U.S. will leave an Olympics 0-for-6 in the sprint races: the men’s and women’s 100s, 200s and 4x100 relays.
Now Jamaica has the chance of emulating the 1984 U.S. sprint team, which went 6-for-6 in the Olympic sprint races.
Ops! I think I drop something!
You're supposed to hold it, not drop it!
First, the men dropped the baton. Tyson Gay just couldn't connect with Darvis Patton and he ended up empty handed. Tyson Gay will now leave Beijing without running in a final. He failed to qualify for the 100m finals a few days back. Then the women followed suit. Lauryn Williams now has two Olympic baton drops on her resume. She and Marion Jones had a slip-up in the 2004 Olympics, a blunder that cost the U.S. a gold medal. Not that it mattered though, since if they did win the gold, it would have been stripped anyway because of Marion Jones involvement with a certain drug.
It must be heartbreak for the Americans, who see themselves as favourites to win the sprint events. Instead, they keep falling short of expectations. For the first time in Summer Games history, the U.S. will leave an Olympics 0-for-6 in the sprint races: the men’s and women’s 100s, 200s and 4x100 relays.
Now Jamaica has the chance of emulating the 1984 U.S. sprint team, which went 6-for-6 in the Olympic sprint races.
Ops! I think I drop something!
You're supposed to hold it, not drop it!Wednesday, August 20
Lightning does strike twice
The fastest man in the world did it again. And it was as impressive as the first time.
Usain Bolt of Jamaica broke the world record by winning the 200m in 19.30 seconds, becoming the first man since Carl Lewis in 1984 to sweep the 100 and 200 gold medals at an Olympics. Bolt is also the first man ever to break the world records in both sprints at an Olympics.
He was way ahead of the other runners, but instead of slowing down like he did in the 100m race, he went all the way eyeing the old record of 19.32 seconds set by Michael Johnson in Atlanta in 1996. Churandy Martina of Netherlands Antilles was second, 0.52 seconds behind Bolt. But he was later disqualified because of lane infringement, together with Wallace Spearmon of the United States.
Bolt still have another event, which is the 4x100m relay. Jamaica is one of the favourite, with Asafa Powell also in the team. So far Jamaica has caught the headlines with the sprinters winning gold in the sprint event. The women won the 100m and 400m race, and they are also favourite for the 200m and the 4x100m relay.
Another new world record for Bolt
Bolt crossing the line way ahead
Usain Bolt of Jamaica broke the world record by winning the 200m in 19.30 seconds, becoming the first man since Carl Lewis in 1984 to sweep the 100 and 200 gold medals at an Olympics. Bolt is also the first man ever to break the world records in both sprints at an Olympics.
He was way ahead of the other runners, but instead of slowing down like he did in the 100m race, he went all the way eyeing the old record of 19.32 seconds set by Michael Johnson in Atlanta in 1996. Churandy Martina of Netherlands Antilles was second, 0.52 seconds behind Bolt. But he was later disqualified because of lane infringement, together with Wallace Spearmon of the United States.
Bolt still have another event, which is the 4x100m relay. Jamaica is one of the favourite, with Asafa Powell also in the team. So far Jamaica has caught the headlines with the sprinters winning gold in the sprint event. The women won the 100m and 400m race, and they are also favourite for the 200m and the 4x100m relay.
Another new world record for Bolt
Bolt crossing the line way aheadMonday, August 18
Who is Ezora?
So Kiah binti Dogol turns out to be just another makcik with a good heart. But that doesn't stop me from watching, since the end is near and the jigsaw puzzle is almost complete.
As it turns out, Edreen is not the son of Johan and Salmah the maid. Salmah the maid was caught in close proximity with Tony and they were married and had a son, which turned out to be Edreen. So Edreen is not the grandson of Madam Ezzah. In fact, Edreen has no blood relation to Madam Ezzah.
Meanwhile, Fara turns out to be the long-lost twin sister of Sara, the late wife of Edreen. Their parents went their own separate ways after the mother gave birth to the twins, and Fara went with the father while Sara went with the mother. The mother remarried and had a daughter, Amy, who turns out to be Edreen's ex-girlfriend.
To sum it up, Edreen had a relationship with Amy, wanted to marry Amy but was stopped by Madam Ezzah. Amy was heartbroken and she went overseas to heal her broken heart. Edreen then went out with Sara to heal his wounds, but ended up falling in love with Sara. They married without Madam Ezzah's blessing. Madam Ezzah then arranged for Sara to be killed, and she died in a car accident.
When Fara knew all these, she wanted to avenge her sister's death and infiltrated the family by pretending to be in love with Edreen, and working at the hotel. But she ended up being the loser in her own game, when she fall for Edreen and got into a pickle when Edreen, who was supposed to marry Ezora, chose Fara instead. This of course, infuriates Madam Ezzah, who wanted Edreen and Ezora to be married.
Edreen being a man, couldn't decide who to choose. He knows he's in love with Ezora, he's been in love with Ezora since the day he first met her. But Fara reminds him of his first true love, and that puts him in a dilemma. But Ezora is just marying Edreen as a sense of responsibility, when her heart will always be with Reza.
It was then revealed that Ezora might not be Madam Ezzah's granddaughter. For all we know, she might even be Madam Ezzah's daughter, since Pak Zaki and Madam Ezzah were known to have a relationship. And then there is the question of Lisa, who is not Ezora's real sister. Could Lisa be Kak Ton's daughter? We all know Kak Ton had a daughter once, although it has not been revealed yet.
Eight more episodes to go. Two more weeks. And all questions will be answered. Stay tune for more updates.
As it turns out, Edreen is not the son of Johan and Salmah the maid. Salmah the maid was caught in close proximity with Tony and they were married and had a son, which turned out to be Edreen. So Edreen is not the grandson of Madam Ezzah. In fact, Edreen has no blood relation to Madam Ezzah.
Meanwhile, Fara turns out to be the long-lost twin sister of Sara, the late wife of Edreen. Their parents went their own separate ways after the mother gave birth to the twins, and Fara went with the father while Sara went with the mother. The mother remarried and had a daughter, Amy, who turns out to be Edreen's ex-girlfriend.
To sum it up, Edreen had a relationship with Amy, wanted to marry Amy but was stopped by Madam Ezzah. Amy was heartbroken and she went overseas to heal her broken heart. Edreen then went out with Sara to heal his wounds, but ended up falling in love with Sara. They married without Madam Ezzah's blessing. Madam Ezzah then arranged for Sara to be killed, and she died in a car accident.
When Fara knew all these, she wanted to avenge her sister's death and infiltrated the family by pretending to be in love with Edreen, and working at the hotel. But she ended up being the loser in her own game, when she fall for Edreen and got into a pickle when Edreen, who was supposed to marry Ezora, chose Fara instead. This of course, infuriates Madam Ezzah, who wanted Edreen and Ezora to be married.
Edreen being a man, couldn't decide who to choose. He knows he's in love with Ezora, he's been in love with Ezora since the day he first met her. But Fara reminds him of his first true love, and that puts him in a dilemma. But Ezora is just marying Edreen as a sense of responsibility, when her heart will always be with Reza.
It was then revealed that Ezora might not be Madam Ezzah's granddaughter. For all we know, she might even be Madam Ezzah's daughter, since Pak Zaki and Madam Ezzah were known to have a relationship. And then there is the question of Lisa, who is not Ezora's real sister. Could Lisa be Kak Ton's daughter? We all know Kak Ton had a daughter once, although it has not been revealed yet.
Eight more episodes to go. Two more weeks. And all questions will be answered. Stay tune for more updates.
Sunday, August 17
The end of a hope
A few hours ago, the whole nation was hoping for our first gold in the Olympics. The signs were good. Lee Chong Wei is seeded second, and he played a solid game going through to the finals. But he is up against the world's number one, Lin Dan from China.
Can a Malaysian be mentally strong enough to win away from home?
We saw Venus Williams crumbled under pressure when being heckled by the big Chinese crowd. In the game against Li Na, she lost the handle, committing so many unforced errors and double faults on her way to the exit.
And the Chinese crowd can really be zealous and rowdy. They cheer on every mistakes you make, and disrupt your concentration so bad that you started to make more mistakes.
And that was what exactly happened to Chong Wei. He lost the first set tamely to Lin Dan, 12-21. From the moment the game started, Lin Dan was in control. He played a perfect game, ripping Chong Wei apart mercilessly.
The second set had the same story. Lin Dan raced to an 8-0 lead before Chong Wei finally got on the scoreboard. It ended as quick as the first set, with Chong Wei soundly defeated 8-21. All those expectations, all those hopes, in the end were too heavy for Chong Wei to carry on his shoulder.
Yet another silver medal. And another four years wait for our first gold.
Can a Malaysian be mentally strong enough to win away from home?
We saw Venus Williams crumbled under pressure when being heckled by the big Chinese crowd. In the game against Li Na, she lost the handle, committing so many unforced errors and double faults on her way to the exit.
And the Chinese crowd can really be zealous and rowdy. They cheer on every mistakes you make, and disrupt your concentration so bad that you started to make more mistakes.
And that was what exactly happened to Chong Wei. He lost the first set tamely to Lin Dan, 12-21. From the moment the game started, Lin Dan was in control. He played a perfect game, ripping Chong Wei apart mercilessly.
The second set had the same story. Lin Dan raced to an 8-0 lead before Chong Wei finally got on the scoreboard. It ended as quick as the first set, with Chong Wei soundly defeated 8-21. All those expectations, all those hopes, in the end were too heavy for Chong Wei to carry on his shoulder.
Yet another silver medal. And another four years wait for our first gold.
The World's Fastest Man
Manuel Uribe is no ordinary guy. The 42-year-old former mechanic, who has been bedridden for six years, stuffed his face with burgers, pizzas and fizzy drinks and his weight balloons up to560kg, which is a Guinness World's record.
The World's Fattest Man however went on an intensive diet and dropped down to 320kg, all in the name of love. He plans to marry his longtime girlfriend, Claudia Solis soon and wanted to be able to stand on his two feet while being married.
"We are a couple. We have sex, and in the eyes of God we are already married," he said. Exactly how he does it still remains a mystery, considering the amount of fat covering his private part.
While Uribe is busy gorging snacks and being moved around on his bed with the aid of a forklift, on the other side of the world, another man grabbed the headlines for being the world's fastest man.
Jamaica's Usain Bolt smashed his own world record on his way to an emphatic victory in the Olympic 100 metres final.The 21-year-old clocked 9.69 seconds to win the event and cap an astonishing rise to the top of his sport. No man had ever run below 9.7 seconds before, with Bolt's 9.72 set earlier this year the previous best.More astonishing even than his time was the fact that Bolt eased down and started to celebrate all of 15 metres from the line.
"I didn’t come here to run the world record because I am the world-record holder," he said. "I came here to win."
And win he did. It took him fewer than 10 seconds to run 100 meters but at least 10 minutes to complete his victory lap.
Up next will the the 200 metres race. If he wins the event, he’ll become the first man to capture the gold in the 100 and 200 since Carl Lewis in 1984. Without anyone as talented as Lewis around to challenge him in the 200, he might be competing against history.
15m to the finish line and Bolt already celebrating
See how far he left the competitors behind?Saturday, August 16
Proud to be Swiss
Roger Federer finally did it. He finally won a medal in the Olympics. And it is gold in color. And no, it wasn't in the singles.
Federer won the gold teaming up with fellow countryman Stanislas Warinka in the men's doubles tournament beating the Sweedish pair of Simon Aspelin and Thomas Johansson 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-3.
For Federer the victory was a moment to savor in a frustrating year. He lost in the quarterfinals of Olympic singles, his Grand Slam total has been stalled at 12 since last September, and his 41/2-year reign atop the rankings will end Monday when Rafael Nadal becomes No. 1.
But he’s now a medalist for the first time in his three Olympics. It must have been a big relief for the man who was untouchable at the top of the world for so many years. And I hope it is a sign for better things to come for Federer.
In the men's singles finals, Rafael Nadal will be up against Chilean Fernando Gonzales, the bronze medalist four years ago in Athens for his first Olympic glory. While Dinara Safina and Elena Dementieva will play for a gold medal in an all-Russian women's singles final. Dementieva beat a third Russian semifinalist, Vera Zvonareva, 6-3, 7-6 (3), and five minutes later on an adjacent court, Safina defeated Li Na of China 7-6 (3), 7-5.
In the women's doubles finals, Venus and Serena Williams will play Anabel Medina Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascual of Spain. The Williams sisters won the gold eight years ago in Sydney, but sat out of the game four years later in Athens due to an injury to Serena. They are back and raring for another gold to add to their collections.
The golden smiles
Federer won the gold teaming up with fellow countryman Stanislas Warinka in the men's doubles tournament beating the Sweedish pair of Simon Aspelin and Thomas Johansson 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-3.
For Federer the victory was a moment to savor in a frustrating year. He lost in the quarterfinals of Olympic singles, his Grand Slam total has been stalled at 12 since last September, and his 41/2-year reign atop the rankings will end Monday when Rafael Nadal becomes No. 1.
But he’s now a medalist for the first time in his three Olympics. It must have been a big relief for the man who was untouchable at the top of the world for so many years. And I hope it is a sign for better things to come for Federer.
In the men's singles finals, Rafael Nadal will be up against Chilean Fernando Gonzales, the bronze medalist four years ago in Athens for his first Olympic glory. While Dinara Safina and Elena Dementieva will play for a gold medal in an all-Russian women's singles final. Dementieva beat a third Russian semifinalist, Vera Zvonareva, 6-3, 7-6 (3), and five minutes later on an adjacent court, Safina defeated Li Na of China 7-6 (3), 7-5.
In the women's doubles finals, Venus and Serena Williams will play Anabel Medina Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascual of Spain. The Williams sisters won the gold eight years ago in Sydney, but sat out of the game four years later in Athens due to an injury to Serena. They are back and raring for another gold to add to their collections.
The golden smilesFriday, August 15
Fascination with holes
I was never a fan of Anwar Ibrahim. Please note the tense in that sentence, because it is meant that way.
To me, Anwar is just someone who is ambitious enough to challenge Tun Dr. Mahathir when he was the Prime Minister of Malaysia, and paid for his folly sulking in prison for a few years with charges so absurd only an idiot would believe that he actually loves ass. Well, whether he really did it with his step-brother that time still remains a mystery, but that is besides the point. The point is he was too ambitious and had his own grand plan that something had to be done to cut him short.
And so came the sodomy charges, and a few corruption charges as well.
But come on, I think almost everyone in politics are corrupt, one way or another. It's very hard to stay clean in politics. Anything that involves power and a lot of money is bound to be corrupted. And that is a fact, an undeniable fact.
Anwar is a free man again, and he is continuing his quest to become the next Prime Minister. But as always, he won't have it easy. Another sodomy charge follows suit, and this time around, his former coffee boy lodged a police report that he was sodomised by Anwar.
I do not know about you, but there is something fishy about all this. First of all, I think the boy is despicable. It looked more like consensual sex to me, and there he went lodging a report about how he was the victim, when all you know, he can always say no when Anwar wanted to do it. The man is almost thrice his age, and not like he was pointing a gun to him and asking him to bend over. There's definitely something rotten going on here, and I hope for once, truth and justice will prevail.
One thing for sure, I am now rooting for the boy to burn in hell.
On a related note, a man in Hong Kong had to call the police to try and free him after his penis got stuck in a park bench after he had apparently tried to have sex with the bench. Emergency workers took four hours trying to free the man after he attempted to use a hole in the exercise bench to masturbate in a deserted park after dark. Eventually they had to take him to the hospital with the bench's eight-foot-long metal base still attached to him after attempts to free him by draining blood from his penis failed.
Doctors said the 42-year-old was lucky to still have a penis after the embarrassing incident. Bet he won't be having anymore dates with the park bench. Maybe he can move on to that tree with the hole near the park. It could be another pleasant experience, depends on the size of the hole.
And how are these two related with each other? Both of them involved inserting a penis into a hole. Go figure.
To me, Anwar is just someone who is ambitious enough to challenge Tun Dr. Mahathir when he was the Prime Minister of Malaysia, and paid for his folly sulking in prison for a few years with charges so absurd only an idiot would believe that he actually loves ass. Well, whether he really did it with his step-brother that time still remains a mystery, but that is besides the point. The point is he was too ambitious and had his own grand plan that something had to be done to cut him short.
And so came the sodomy charges, and a few corruption charges as well.
But come on, I think almost everyone in politics are corrupt, one way or another. It's very hard to stay clean in politics. Anything that involves power and a lot of money is bound to be corrupted. And that is a fact, an undeniable fact.
Anwar is a free man again, and he is continuing his quest to become the next Prime Minister. But as always, he won't have it easy. Another sodomy charge follows suit, and this time around, his former coffee boy lodged a police report that he was sodomised by Anwar.
I do not know about you, but there is something fishy about all this. First of all, I think the boy is despicable. It looked more like consensual sex to me, and there he went lodging a report about how he was the victim, when all you know, he can always say no when Anwar wanted to do it. The man is almost thrice his age, and not like he was pointing a gun to him and asking him to bend over. There's definitely something rotten going on here, and I hope for once, truth and justice will prevail.
One thing for sure, I am now rooting for the boy to burn in hell.
On a related note, a man in Hong Kong had to call the police to try and free him after his penis got stuck in a park bench after he had apparently tried to have sex with the bench. Emergency workers took four hours trying to free the man after he attempted to use a hole in the exercise bench to masturbate in a deserted park after dark. Eventually they had to take him to the hospital with the bench's eight-foot-long metal base still attached to him after attempts to free him by draining blood from his penis failed.
Doctors said the 42-year-old was lucky to still have a penis after the embarrassing incident. Bet he won't be having anymore dates with the park bench. Maybe he can move on to that tree with the hole near the park. It could be another pleasant experience, depends on the size of the hole.
And how are these two related with each other? Both of them involved inserting a penis into a hole. Go figure.
Thursday, August 14
A first time
There's always a first time for everything.
I remember the first time I had sex. It seemed like an eternity ago. It feels like I've been doing it for a very long time, when in truth, most of the time it took place in my head.
Then there was the first time when I dived into the sea. I even played Uno underwater, and stayed below for almost an hour.
And James Blake has never beaten Roger Federer before. He has now, in the quarter-finals of the Olympics games. The No. 8-seeded Blake, a first-time Olympian at 28, was the lone U.S. male to survive the first round of singles. He had won only a single set in eight previous matches against Federer.
Roger Federer has never won an Olympic gold medal in the men's single tennis before. He won't now, no thanks to Blake. Come to think of it, he has never won any medals before in the Olympics. This is his third Olympics. He lost in the semifinals in Sydney 2000 while four years later, was ousted in the second round in Athens.
Winning the gold is one of his targets for this year. He has one more left, which is to retain the US Open he won last year.
But with the kind of slump he's in, it will be a tall order.
Come August 18th, Rafael Nadal will replace him as the new world number one. Nadal made it to the semifinals of the Olympics, and he will be facing Novak Djokovic next. Winning the gold will just be an icing to the cake to the great year he had so far. Winning the French Open, Wimbledon, becoming the world number one, and a gold medal. Perfect year.
Federer still has a chance to make amends in the doubles. He and Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland advanced to meet Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes of India in the quarterfinals. But if he played like he did today, there is little chance of him getting a medal at all in Beijing.
I remember the first time I had sex. It seemed like an eternity ago. It feels like I've been doing it for a very long time, when in truth, most of the time it took place in my head.
Then there was the first time when I dived into the sea. I even played Uno underwater, and stayed below for almost an hour.
And James Blake has never beaten Roger Federer before. He has now, in the quarter-finals of the Olympics games. The No. 8-seeded Blake, a first-time Olympian at 28, was the lone U.S. male to survive the first round of singles. He had won only a single set in eight previous matches against Federer.
Roger Federer has never won an Olympic gold medal in the men's single tennis before. He won't now, no thanks to Blake. Come to think of it, he has never won any medals before in the Olympics. This is his third Olympics. He lost in the semifinals in Sydney 2000 while four years later, was ousted in the second round in Athens.
Winning the gold is one of his targets for this year. He has one more left, which is to retain the US Open he won last year.
But with the kind of slump he's in, it will be a tall order.
Come August 18th, Rafael Nadal will replace him as the new world number one. Nadal made it to the semifinals of the Olympics, and he will be facing Novak Djokovic next. Winning the gold will just be an icing to the cake to the great year he had so far. Winning the French Open, Wimbledon, becoming the world number one, and a gold medal. Perfect year.
Federer still has a chance to make amends in the doubles. He and Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland advanced to meet Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes of India in the quarterfinals. But if he played like he did today, there is little chance of him getting a medal at all in Beijing.
Thursday, July 31
Roger, Roger, where art thou?
Roger: I'm still here, Ardy.
Ardy: Oh, thought you left already. So you want to tell me more about the game today? You needed three sets to get through your first match. Then, you lost for the first time in your career when you didn’t drop a game on your serve.
Roger: It's disappointing, losing without getting broken, but it's not the first player it has happened to, especially to a guy like Ivo.
Ardy: A tough lost, nevertheless. You were really unlucky in the third set. The buzz now is about you being replaced as the World's number one by Rafael Nadal. What are your thoughts on that?
Roger: I don’t care.
Ardy: Really? But it will mean the end of your streak of being number one for a record of 235 consecutive weeks. That is four and a half year which is one long record! I'm sure it means something to you.
Roger: Look, he’s doing well and I have done well in the past. This year was hard, I guess, with the start of the year. But nevertheless, I still think it’s been a good year. I just hope I can show it now at the Olympics and the U.S. Open.
Ardy: So you're looking forward to the Olympics then? I heard you were planning of boycotting it?
Roger: No, that was before. It's a tough trip we've got up in front of us now, going back to China and coming back to the (US) Open.
Ardy: Indeed it is. So are you saying these two tournaments will be the only ones you're concentrating for?
Roger: I'm looking forward for the next two tournaments. Those are really the ones that can make this season from a good one to a great one again. I hope I can manage to pull off something in the next couple of weeks.
Ardy: So how are you holding on at the moment? Eversince that epic finals in Wimbledon where you lost to Nadal, your game has been on a downward spiral.
Roger: So far it's OK. I guess I'll analyse and assess my game after the US Open. For the moment it's just all a blur. So many tournaments in a row, big tournaments in a row, it's hard.
Ardy: Well, all the best to you then. Hopefully You'll strike gold in the Olympics, and win the US Open again.
Roger: Thank you.
Ardy: Oh, thought you left already. So you want to tell me more about the game today? You needed three sets to get through your first match. Then, you lost for the first time in your career when you didn’t drop a game on your serve.
Roger: It's disappointing, losing without getting broken, but it's not the first player it has happened to, especially to a guy like Ivo.
Ardy: A tough lost, nevertheless. You were really unlucky in the third set. The buzz now is about you being replaced as the World's number one by Rafael Nadal. What are your thoughts on that?
Roger: I don’t care.
Ardy: Really? But it will mean the end of your streak of being number one for a record of 235 consecutive weeks. That is four and a half year which is one long record! I'm sure it means something to you.
Roger: Look, he’s doing well and I have done well in the past. This year was hard, I guess, with the start of the year. But nevertheless, I still think it’s been a good year. I just hope I can show it now at the Olympics and the U.S. Open.
Ardy: So you're looking forward to the Olympics then? I heard you were planning of boycotting it?
Roger: No, that was before. It's a tough trip we've got up in front of us now, going back to China and coming back to the (US) Open.
Ardy: Indeed it is. So are you saying these two tournaments will be the only ones you're concentrating for?
Roger: I'm looking forward for the next two tournaments. Those are really the ones that can make this season from a good one to a great one again. I hope I can manage to pull off something in the next couple of weeks.
Ardy: So how are you holding on at the moment? Eversince that epic finals in Wimbledon where you lost to Nadal, your game has been on a downward spiral.
Roger: So far it's OK. I guess I'll analyse and assess my game after the US Open. For the moment it's just all a blur. So many tournaments in a row, big tournaments in a row, it's hard.
Ardy: Well, all the best to you then. Hopefully You'll strike gold in the Olympics, and win the US Open again.
Roger: Thank you.
Wednesday, July 30
Kiah binti Dogol
I am perplexed.
Who is Kiah binti Dogol? This is the first time she appeared in my life, and for the life of me, I can't remember who she is.
Now, I know for a fact that she is a relative of Fara, the klutzy reporter who is trying to unearth the history of Madam Ezzah's crazy family. It is indeed a crazy family, what with cousins marrying cousins, mother killing daughter, son back from the dead seeking revenge. Complicated? Wait till you hear the whole story.
Madam Ezzah has two children. Johan, the eldest, had an affair with the maid, Salmah, and they have a son, Edreen. Salma, the second child, married Pak Zaki, and has a daughter Ezora. Salma later had an affair with Ringo, and Leeya was born. In the meantime, Mona, Salma's best friend married Tony and they have two kids, Badree and Joshua. However, Badree and Joshua could be anybody's son, since Mona was known to sleep around, even with Pak Zaki.
But wait, there is more.
Ezora then married Reza. Reza married Leeya. Ezora then left Reza, and got together with Edreen. They moved away and have a daughter, Aishah. Leeya, in the meantime, is sleeping with Badree.
Still not confused?
Ringo killed Pak Zaki. Johan, who was assumed dead (killed by Madam Ezzah), is back and roaming the streets with his booming voice and hat covering his eyes. Oh, and he sold his soul to the devil, hence the reason why he is back from the dead with black magic skills (he can disappear the moment you turn your back away from him).
Now, Madam Ezzah has a shady past. She was married twice, and is rich beyond measures. She is believed to kill both her children, so that she can inherit her late husband's estates. She kills anybody that gets into her path, and has no regrets for her actions. She's like Tony of the Sopranos, Michael Scofield of Prison Break and Hannibal Lectar of Silence of the Lamb.
But I think Madam Ezzah has met her match, in the form of an old lady by the name of Kiah binti Dogol.
With a name like that, Kiah binti Dogol is indeed the women everyone should fear. And yes, I know I said Ezora sucks, but with Kiah binti Dogol around, how can I stay away anymore.
Damn you, Kiah binti Dogol!
Who is Kiah binti Dogol? This is the first time she appeared in my life, and for the life of me, I can't remember who she is.
Now, I know for a fact that she is a relative of Fara, the klutzy reporter who is trying to unearth the history of Madam Ezzah's crazy family. It is indeed a crazy family, what with cousins marrying cousins, mother killing daughter, son back from the dead seeking revenge. Complicated? Wait till you hear the whole story.
Madam Ezzah has two children. Johan, the eldest, had an affair with the maid, Salmah, and they have a son, Edreen. Salma, the second child, married Pak Zaki, and has a daughter Ezora. Salma later had an affair with Ringo, and Leeya was born. In the meantime, Mona, Salma's best friend married Tony and they have two kids, Badree and Joshua. However, Badree and Joshua could be anybody's son, since Mona was known to sleep around, even with Pak Zaki.
But wait, there is more.
Ezora then married Reza. Reza married Leeya. Ezora then left Reza, and got together with Edreen. They moved away and have a daughter, Aishah. Leeya, in the meantime, is sleeping with Badree.
Still not confused?
Ringo killed Pak Zaki. Johan, who was assumed dead (killed by Madam Ezzah), is back and roaming the streets with his booming voice and hat covering his eyes. Oh, and he sold his soul to the devil, hence the reason why he is back from the dead with black magic skills (he can disappear the moment you turn your back away from him).
Now, Madam Ezzah has a shady past. She was married twice, and is rich beyond measures. She is believed to kill both her children, so that she can inherit her late husband's estates. She kills anybody that gets into her path, and has no regrets for her actions. She's like Tony of the Sopranos, Michael Scofield of Prison Break and Hannibal Lectar of Silence of the Lamb.
But I think Madam Ezzah has met her match, in the form of an old lady by the name of Kiah binti Dogol.
With a name like that, Kiah binti Dogol is indeed the women everyone should fear. And yes, I know I said Ezora sucks, but with Kiah binti Dogol around, how can I stay away anymore.
Damn you, Kiah binti Dogol!
Tuesday, July 29
The truth about men
Mothers out there, here are some words of wisdom to impart to your daughters.
1. Don't imagine you can change a man - unless he's in diapers.
2. What do you do if your boyfriend walks-out? You shut the door.
3. If they put a man on the moon - they should be able to put them all up there.
4. Never let your man's mind wander - it's too little to be out alone.
5. Go for younger men. You might as well - they never mature anyway.
6. Men are all the same - they just have different faces, so that you can tell them apart.
7. Definition of a bachelor: a man who has missed the opportunity to make some woman miserable.
8. Women don't make fools of men - most of them are the do-it-yourself types.
9. Best way to get a man to do something, is to suggest they are too old for it.
10. Love is blind, but marriage is a real eye-opener.
11. If you want a committed man, look in a mental hospital.
12. The children of Israel wandered around the desert for 40 years. Even in biblical times, men wouldn't ask for directions.
13. If he asks what sort of books you're interested in, tell him checkbooks.
14. Remember a sense of humor does not mean that you tell him jokes, it means that you laugh at his.
15. Sadly, all men are created equal.
1. Don't imagine you can change a man - unless he's in diapers.
2. What do you do if your boyfriend walks-out? You shut the door.
3. If they put a man on the moon - they should be able to put them all up there.
4. Never let your man's mind wander - it's too little to be out alone.
5. Go for younger men. You might as well - they never mature anyway.
6. Men are all the same - they just have different faces, so that you can tell them apart.
7. Definition of a bachelor: a man who has missed the opportunity to make some woman miserable.
8. Women don't make fools of men - most of them are the do-it-yourself types.
9. Best way to get a man to do something, is to suggest they are too old for it.
10. Love is blind, but marriage is a real eye-opener.
11. If you want a committed man, look in a mental hospital.
12. The children of Israel wandered around the desert for 40 years. Even in biblical times, men wouldn't ask for directions.
13. If he asks what sort of books you're interested in, tell him checkbooks.
14. Remember a sense of humor does not mean that you tell him jokes, it means that you laugh at his.
15. Sadly, all men are created equal.
Monday, July 28
A sad world
It's despicable.
The problem with reading the newspaper is there are always bad news and bad things happening around us. Nothing much that gives you that feel-good factor anymore. It's always some politicians doing this, another politician doing that, the Prime Minister saying that, some ministers saying this, and all sorts of unholy things.
Worse are the crimes and robbery reported in the newspaper. Murders are aplenty, robbers roam the streets while rapist and kidnappers are stalking the children. And these are the reported ones. I'm sure there are plenty more of unreported cases which are not highlighted in the newspaper.
But the worst of them all has to be this. How low can you be, to rob a children's home? What were you thinking? Easy prey? Loads of hidden cash inside? In the end, they drove away with the centre's van, depriving the home of its only mode of transportation.
I do not know about you, but reading such news makes me want to turn into the Incredible Hulk, and smash things up. But then again, I'm no hulk.
I'm not even close to being a Batman. So all I can do is rage away at home, while
imagining the things that I might do if I am indeed Batman.
Where is Batman when you need him?
The problem with reading the newspaper is there are always bad news and bad things happening around us. Nothing much that gives you that feel-good factor anymore. It's always some politicians doing this, another politician doing that, the Prime Minister saying that, some ministers saying this, and all sorts of unholy things.
Worse are the crimes and robbery reported in the newspaper. Murders are aplenty, robbers roam the streets while rapist and kidnappers are stalking the children. And these are the reported ones. I'm sure there are plenty more of unreported cases which are not highlighted in the newspaper.
But the worst of them all has to be this. How low can you be, to rob a children's home? What were you thinking? Easy prey? Loads of hidden cash inside? In the end, they drove away with the centre's van, depriving the home of its only mode of transportation.
I do not know about you, but reading such news makes me want to turn into the Incredible Hulk, and smash things up. But then again, I'm no hulk.
I'm not even close to being a Batman. So all I can do is rage away at home, while
imagining the things that I might do if I am indeed Batman.
Where is Batman when you need him?
Saturday, July 19
The heart of the matter
Quotes from last week's episode:Meredith: [narrating] In life, only one thing is certain, apart from death and taxes. No matter how hard you try, no matter how good your intentions, you are going to make mistakes. You’re going to hurt people. You’re going to get hurt. And if you ever want to recover... there’s really only one thing you can say.
Meredith: Where would we go?
Derek: Wine country.
Meredith: Wine country sounds like a couples' place.
Derek: Well, there's wine, there's country, and you wouldn't see any of it. We'd be in bed all weekend.
Meredith: Oh, a weekend of sex.
Derek: Now you're paying attention.
Izzie: Callie. Hey. Hi.
Callie: We have to talk.
Izzie: Okay. Um, about?
Callie: George told me.
Izzie: He told you?
Callie: Everything. Cafeteria, noon, you and me. Be there.
Izzie: What did you say?
George: Um, I didn't expect her to forgive me. I expected...rage, uh, bloodshed.
Izzie: No, she's saving all her rage and bloodshed for me. She's gonna kill me in the cafeteria at lunch.
George: No, she wouldn't.
Izzie: She breaks bones for a living, George. She's crazy.
George: No, she's not crazy.
Izzie: Well, she is if she thinks I'm not gonna put up a fight.
Norman: So is he the one you call, uh...McDreamy or, Mc, uh, Sleazy, or Mc, uh, wait a minute, what is it?
Meredith: Norman, we have labs to deliver.
Norman: Yeah.
Meredith: Labs and discharges.
Norman: Uh, this one's being discharged to hospice?
Meredith: When there's nothing else we can do.
Norman: So we have to tell someone they're dying?
Meredith: Don't worry. I'll teach you the protocol.
Norman: McSteamy! He's the one you girls call McSteamy.
Cristina: I'm not a bad resident, am I?
Meredith: Don't ask me. I lost a patient today.
Cristina: Oh, you killed someone?
Meredith: Lost. Literally can't find.
Cristina: Shepherd says I'm selfish and competitive. What the hell is wrong with that? I kick ass. I'm an excellent resident.
Meredith: I'm not. In addition to losing my patient, I also lost my intern. Turned around, he was gone. AWOL.
Cristina: See, what... what is wrong with these interns? We weren't like this.
Meredith: We were great interns.
Cristina: I was great. You were... you were good.
Izzie: What, I'm invisible now?
Alex: What do you want?
Izzie: So you hate me now, too. Well, join the club.
Alex: You and O'Malley? O'Malley!
Izzie: What? What is it that I did that is so horrifying? I fell in love, Alex.
Alex: He's married.
Izzie: Yeah, so? You're carrying a big ol' torch for Ava or Jane Doe or whatever it is that you call her, and she's married. So what gives you the right to judge what I do? Why do you even care?
Alex: You told me you weren't ready yet...after Denny... to be with anyone. And then O'Malley? O'Malley. And then you tell me like I'm one of your chick friends. Come on.
George: Callie...you can't...just forgive me. What I did to you...is unforgivable.
Callie: That's how it works. That's what "I forgive you" means.
George: No, see, I...I think it means you don't forgive me. I...you don't know how to talk to me right now. I mean, look, you don't...you can't even look at me. You're so angry that...I think the only way you can deal with me is to say you forgive me and...what, we pretend it didn't happen?
I...it happened. And you don't forgive me.
Callie: You're right. I don't.
Meredith: You can say anything to me.
Derek: I want to marry you. I want to have kids with you. I want to build us a house.I want to settle down and grow old with you. I want to die when I'm 110 years old in your arms. I don't want 48 uninterrupted hours. I want a lifetime.
(Meredith takes a step back)
Derek: Mm-hmm. Do you see what happens? I say things like that, and you fight the urge to run in the opposite direction. It's okay. I understand. I didn't, but now I do. I do...you're just getting started. And I've been doing this for a long time. Deep down...you're still an intern. And you're not ready.
Meredith: I'm not ready right now. But things could stay the way they are... And I can get ready. I'll get ready.
Derek: Things can stay the way they are. We can still meet in the elevator or the on call room. And maybe you'll be ready. And I'll wait. I'll wait until you're ready.
Meredith: Okay, then.
Derek: Yeah, but what if...what if while I'm waiting I meet someone who is ready to give me what I want from you?
Meredith: What if you do?
Derek: I don't know.
Meredith: [narrating] Forgive and forget. That’s what they say. It’s good advice, but it’s not very practical. When someone hurts us, we want to hurt them back. When someone wrongs us, we want to be right. Without forgiveness, old scores are never settled… old wounds never heal. And the most we can hope for, is that one day we’ll be lucky enough to forget.
Tuesday, July 15
The weak shall inherit the earth
I do not know about you, but one thing I cannot tolerate at all is a man hitting a woman. Or to be specific, a husband hitting his wife.
It's despicable. A cowardly act. Like a big bully in the school yard. Just because you are bigger and stronger, you think you can go around and hit other people. And just because you think you have the power over your wife, you can treat her like a slave, push her around and beat her up. But I'm getting ahead of myself here.
I am an avid follower of Kisah Benar(also known as Neraca). In case you have no idea what that is, it is a TV series showing on TV3 every Monday to Thursday at 1pm. Yes, I'm one of those fortunate ones who stays 5 minutes away from where I work. Hence lunch is always a home affair, with the bed and TV being my lunch partners most of the time.
Hence my addiction to Kisah Benar. I think I've watched almost every single episode of that series, to the extend of repeating them again, twice. Kisah Benar, as the name suggested it, is based on true stories, with some embellishment and exaggeration added in for some sugar and spice. Some of the episodes are plain ridiculous and stupid that you feel like smashing something after watching them.
Today's episode was one of them. It was about a man who treated his wife like shit and fool around outside with other women. To make matter worse, he was not working, so his source of income was from the wife. The wife always ended up late to the office, because she had to send their two kids to school, by bus. She has a car, under her name, but the husband drives it like he owns it. She almost got fired because of this, and practically had to beg to the boss to give her another chance. Then, after work, she had to take the bus and fetched the kids from school, while the husband happily talked to other women on the phone at home. There was once when the husband dumped her and the kids out of the car in the middle of nowhere!
One day, the husband was so desperate for money that he stole the kids savings. That was the last straw. The wife finally lost her patience, and a fight ensured. Of course she got beaten up, yet again. She finally told her brother (a tough macho guy) who came and paid them a visit, and beat up the husband to a pulp. He finally realised his errors, and apologized to the wife.
I think, women should not tolerate men who act like a barbarian, husband or not. Especially those who do not respect you, and feel all so mighty and powerful that they can do anything that they want. In the show, I think the wife should have bolted out of the door at the first sign of abuse. Granted that they have been married for 10 years, and have two kids. But what kind of a father is that? Won't you rather your kids to be fatherless than having an abusing one running around beating up everybody in the house?
That's the sickening part. I don't know which one I hated the most, the husband for being an abusive barbarian, or the wife for being a timid and ever-so-obedient wife. But that's the thing, in the real world, this kind of things do happen.
And to me, that is the most sickening part.
It's despicable. A cowardly act. Like a big bully in the school yard. Just because you are bigger and stronger, you think you can go around and hit other people. And just because you think you have the power over your wife, you can treat her like a slave, push her around and beat her up. But I'm getting ahead of myself here.
I am an avid follower of Kisah Benar(also known as Neraca). In case you have no idea what that is, it is a TV series showing on TV3 every Monday to Thursday at 1pm. Yes, I'm one of those fortunate ones who stays 5 minutes away from where I work. Hence lunch is always a home affair, with the bed and TV being my lunch partners most of the time.
Hence my addiction to Kisah Benar. I think I've watched almost every single episode of that series, to the extend of repeating them again, twice. Kisah Benar, as the name suggested it, is based on true stories, with some embellishment and exaggeration added in for some sugar and spice. Some of the episodes are plain ridiculous and stupid that you feel like smashing something after watching them.
Today's episode was one of them. It was about a man who treated his wife like shit and fool around outside with other women. To make matter worse, he was not working, so his source of income was from the wife. The wife always ended up late to the office, because she had to send their two kids to school, by bus. She has a car, under her name, but the husband drives it like he owns it. She almost got fired because of this, and practically had to beg to the boss to give her another chance. Then, after work, she had to take the bus and fetched the kids from school, while the husband happily talked to other women on the phone at home. There was once when the husband dumped her and the kids out of the car in the middle of nowhere!
One day, the husband was so desperate for money that he stole the kids savings. That was the last straw. The wife finally lost her patience, and a fight ensured. Of course she got beaten up, yet again. She finally told her brother (a tough macho guy) who came and paid them a visit, and beat up the husband to a pulp. He finally realised his errors, and apologized to the wife.
I think, women should not tolerate men who act like a barbarian, husband or not. Especially those who do not respect you, and feel all so mighty and powerful that they can do anything that they want. In the show, I think the wife should have bolted out of the door at the first sign of abuse. Granted that they have been married for 10 years, and have two kids. But what kind of a father is that? Won't you rather your kids to be fatherless than having an abusing one running around beating up everybody in the house?
That's the sickening part. I don't know which one I hated the most, the husband for being an abusive barbarian, or the wife for being a timid and ever-so-obedient wife. But that's the thing, in the real world, this kind of things do happen.
And to me, that is the most sickening part.
Sunday, July 13
What goes up, stays up
I was out getting my dinner at the friendly neighbourhood mamak when I was told that they have increased their price for most of their food. Being friendly and all, we chatted about the global price increase, and how its effect on the people.
Mee goreng used to cost RM3.00 and now it is up to RM3.50. A big increase, but this is because the price of yellow noodles has increased significantly. Roti canai is up 10 cents to 90 cents, while my favourite plain tea also share the same fate. But I don’t really blame them. Their prices are still considered cheap, if you compare to other places. Roti canai at 90 cents? Most places now are up to RM1.00, while their plain tea is RM1.10.
It’s disheartening to find this increase taking place before our own eyes. We read about it, and somehow we know that it is going to happen. It's a good thing I won't be spending my money to eat out anymore starting next month. With an impending move looming ahead, I'm looking forward to settling down to new routines, and habits. Old habits die hard, but then again, adjustment must be made or I might go bust in no time.
When I was in Semporna last weekend, I was shocked to discover that the drinks are costly over there. A normal glass of ice tea cost up to RM2.00. While drinks with milk such as Milo and Nescafe cost up to RM2.50. It doesn't help with the abundance of tourists swarming the place. It makes me wonder how the local survive down there. But I guess the expensive meals are reserved for tourists from out of town. The locals know where to shop and eat, and I was proven right when upon exploring, I stumbled into a goldmine, so to speak. Cheap delicious local food.
I've always make it a habit of not frequenting places that overcharges. There is a big difference between expensive and moderately priced, depending on the food quality and volume. And I think RM3.50 for a plate of Mee Goreng is still acceptable.
Another two weeks, then it's good home cook meals for me. Heavenly.
Mee goreng used to cost RM3.00 and now it is up to RM3.50. A big increase, but this is because the price of yellow noodles has increased significantly. Roti canai is up 10 cents to 90 cents, while my favourite plain tea also share the same fate. But I don’t really blame them. Their prices are still considered cheap, if you compare to other places. Roti canai at 90 cents? Most places now are up to RM1.00, while their plain tea is RM1.10.
It’s disheartening to find this increase taking place before our own eyes. We read about it, and somehow we know that it is going to happen. It's a good thing I won't be spending my money to eat out anymore starting next month. With an impending move looming ahead, I'm looking forward to settling down to new routines, and habits. Old habits die hard, but then again, adjustment must be made or I might go bust in no time.
When I was in Semporna last weekend, I was shocked to discover that the drinks are costly over there. A normal glass of ice tea cost up to RM2.00. While drinks with milk such as Milo and Nescafe cost up to RM2.50. It doesn't help with the abundance of tourists swarming the place. It makes me wonder how the local survive down there. But I guess the expensive meals are reserved for tourists from out of town. The locals know where to shop and eat, and I was proven right when upon exploring, I stumbled into a goldmine, so to speak. Cheap delicious local food.
I've always make it a habit of not frequenting places that overcharges. There is a big difference between expensive and moderately priced, depending on the food quality and volume. And I think RM3.50 for a plate of Mee Goreng is still acceptable.
Another two weeks, then it's good home cook meals for me. Heavenly.
Saturday, July 12
Let the truth sting
Quotes from last week episode:Meredith: [narrating] Doctors give patients a number of thing. We give them medicine, we give them advice and, most of the time, we give them our undivided attention. But, by far, the hardest thing you can give a patient is the truth. The truth is hard. The truth is awkward and very often the truth hurts. I mean, people think they want the truth. But do they really?
Meredith: Hey, I just heard. Welcome back.
Alex: Is it true? Really old guy woke up?
Izzie: He has a name.
Charlie: This time tomorrow, you can call me really dead guy.
Izzie: Guys, I don't think Mr. Yost knows who you are.
Charlie: Sure I do. That's Meredith. She and the brain doctor are always running hot and cold. And you're, uh, Alex. You still got a thing for that old patient of yours? I was semi-comatose, blondie. I could still hear you guys.
Izzie: Get a CT, a CBC and chemistries. Your kidneys may be working again, which may be why you woke up. That's good news.
Charlie: Oh, it just means now I got two things to do today, take a pee and die.
Izzie: Nobody's dying.
Mark: Do you ever feel old?
Derek: I'm young. I'm a fetus.
Mark: Nah, I mean you ever feel like there's gonna be a time when new techniques pass you by?
Derek: I'm a genius and a scholar.
Mark: Shut up.
Derek: Meredith isn't telling Cristina about us. And, well, she tells Cristina everything.
Mark: I thought you broke that off.
Derek: I meant to.
Mark: You think she's gonna want to get back together.
Derek: No.
Mark: You think she's gonna grow up and get all whole and...want a relationship.
Derek: I do not.
Mark: You're a bad liar.
Derek: You're old.
Mark: I'm just gettin' started, my friend.
Alex: I saw the whole thing, Yang. You can stop pretending.
Cristina: Oh, I'm not pretending. I'm sad. I'm very sad. Me so sad.
Alex: Maybe I should try it, see if I can get Grey to take my new intern.
Cristina: No. Hey, forget it. Sad is mine. Go find your own pretend emotion.
Cristina: Hey. I heard about really old guy. What's the matter? Couldn't find his LVAD wire?
Izzie: It was a coincidence, and he's still alive.
Cristina: Well, have fun with really old guy. I'm off to do Meredith's hemi-glossectomy.
Charlie: A person wants to die, you let them. It's polite.
Izzie: Not in a hospital, it's not. In a hospital, it's a lawsuit.
Charlie: I don't like you.
Izzie: Really? 'Cause I thought we were BFFs.
Charlie: You know what? Just for that, I'm dying right now.
Izzie: That might make you poop your pants, but it's not gonna make you die.
Charlie: Oh, damn it.
George: Izzie...
Izzie: What? What is there to say, George, I'm a blondie. I'm the other woman. I'm a bad '50s cliché?
George: No, no, no. We're not in this together.
Izzie: Wow. Great. Well, thank you for letting me know.
George: Hey no, no. No. You don't get to be mad here.
Izzie: Seriously? We said...
George: No, no, no, no. There is no "we. " It's just me. I'm the one who has to tell Callie. I'm the one who has to destroy her. This is not about you and me. This is about her and me. I'm ending a marriage to a wonderful woman. Me. I'm the one. It's not you. You... it's not something you just blurt out. It's not. I'll do it. I will do it. You have to back off and let me do it.
Izzie: I'm sorry.
Alex: I'm sorry I unloaded on you, Norman. You know how it is? Heat of the moment.
Bailey: Don't apologize to him.
Alex: What?
Norman: Oh, Dr. Bailey's right. It...
Bailey: Shut up, Norman. I'm not talking to you. He got in your way. He's been doing it all day, and when that happens...when an intern gets in the way of a resident...you're not doing what's best for your patient. Now you almost missed diagnosing that kid today because Norman here thought it was drugs. So don't apologize. He should be yelled at.
Alex: Dr. Bailey... he's as old as the hills.
Bailey: I don't care how old he is, Dr. Karev. He's still an intern, and interns are basically teenagers. We are not hard on them because it's fun. We're hard on them because this is a life-and-death job. They need to learn that. There is a reason why we have a pecking order in a hospital. It saves lives.
Meredith: You're damn right I know, surgery stealer.
Cristina: So, person-who-is-sleeping-with-Derek?
Meredith: How'd you know that?
Cristina: What, you think I'm too fragile to handle your sex life?
Meredith: Well, he did leave you at the altar. And I'm your person.
Cristina: How, by...by "protecting me"? That's not how to be my person. That's not what we do. You know that. I'm dealing. Okay? The best I can. So if you need to take care of someone, you're gonna need to take care of someone else. Okay?
Meredith: Fine. But you owe me a surgery.
Cristina: Yeah, well, you owe me sex details.
Cristina: What are we supposed to say? We didn't even know the guy.
Izzie: We ate lunch in here for a year. The least we can do is say a few kind words about him.
George: Me? He...he didn't snore too loudly...
Meredith: He, um... never complained. And he always took his meds.
Alex: Hardly ever farted.
Meredith: Alex.
Alex: Fine. Uh, he had 12 surgeries this year, and he...he lived through them. That's...that's impressive.
Izzie: Thank you, Alex. Cristina?
Cristina: Uh, I got to practice stuff on him...central lines and IVs...it was good practice.
Izzie: Um...Charlie, the truth is...you were a bastard. You were. You were mean and stubborn and just...a bastard. But you were a bastard who knew what you wanted. And you stuck to your guns and proved that if you want something badly enough, if you're...determined enough and patient enough, eventually it will happen. It will. And that gives me hope, so...thanks for that. Bye-bye, Charlie.
Meredith: [narrating] The truth is painful. Deep down, nobody wants to hear it, especially when it hits close to home. Sometimes we tell the truth because the truth is all we have to give. Sometimes we tell the truth because we need to say it out loud to hear it for ourselves. And sometimes we tell the truth because we just can't help ourselves. Sometimes, we tell them because we owe them at least that much.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
