HAPPY SUNDAY!

Well, I wrote about my morning, but today is definitely one of the happiest day of my life!!

I have no idea why. I woke up today with nature in my mind, I walked with nature, then spent my whole evening with nature. The following are the details:

So, after spending the whole afternoon reading the Sunday newspaper (and enjoying my chicken biryani lunch), my housemate Esther came out of her room and sat beside me. She prepared to do some reading for her assignment, while I got up and looked out from the balcony. I took a deep breath of fresh after-rain air. Oooh, it felt SO good. Suddenly I exclaimed loudly, "I'm so happy!"

"Wei, you saw your boyfriend izzit??" asked a surprised Esther
"Ha-ha, no la, I just feel so happy!" I answered.
"Why leh?" she asked.
"Dunno... I guess it doesn't take much for me to feel happy," I said with much content.

Well, it is true, really. Some people need material gifts to be happy, some people link success to happiness. Me? I just stare at trees on a beautiful day and feel so happy. (No, I'm not a Martian. A normal Earthling, if you please.) The weather today was just right, the sun was bright but cool, the air was fresh, the skies were blue, the clouds were white, the trees were green(lots and lots of trees...whee!) and the highway was quiet.

Esther joined me. We both looked out to the vast greenery that laid before us, our eyes gleefully lapping up the unending beauty of God's work of art. We had a fun chat too, over a cup off coffee. Its bitterness(I have a dislike for coffee) was somewhat sweetened by my sugary feelings (Okay, so now I am beginning to doubt my origins... Mars isn't that bad, is it?)

"I want to settle down in America," Esther said, somewhere in the middle of the conversation.
"Hey, I want to settle down in Canada! You come to Canada also la!"
"Ha-ha! Ya lo, ya lo! 20 years later then I call you to come for yam cha! Then we discuss lo, my children so big, your children also so big oredi, all go to university oredi."
"Ya, ya! then we also sit in the balcony!"
"Ha-ha! then discuss about 20 years ago, how we sit in the balcony and chit chat chit chat! Wow, so nice la!"

Wow, it would. Indeed, it would. We talked alot more, and then some. Gosh, what a beautiful day [its a beautiful day~~~by U2. good song]

Now I'm writing this blog with the beetles songs playing in the background. (~~oh bla-di, oh bla-da, life goes on oh! la-la-la-la life goes on~~)

PERFECT.

Right, my assignment is due Tuesday... Gosh, the smell of Cintan noodles is so good... perhaps I'll boil some...

Hmmm Mars...

...

(this post has been published with the consent and contribution of Esther. My regards to her.)

Stories For My Soul

I like reading Sunday papers. Especially The Star. They have a certain feel. They make you happy that u actually woke up THAT early on a Sunday morning, yet give you the same "lazy Sunday" feeling. Laidback, light and easy. Aaaaaaaaah...

I enjoyed today's paper, particularly because:
-I bought it from a jovial Indian man by the street.
-I had just returned from jogging with my housemates, feeling energized
-I devoured the news with tasty nasi lemak (well, that kind of kills the purpose of jogging; but then, I'm not one who wants to shed kilos for the sake of vanity, but for the sake of preventing further depletion of my stamina (MAPCU tournaments coming up!!! Gotta get my body up and going to win!!!))

Despite the heaps of news from the election fever (I am not going to comment because I might be shoved into the cells by the ISA), I welcomed the StarMag, the weekly lifestyle section.

I was drawn to the picture first, a tiny boy with colourful clothes sitting on a dull, grey blanket of rough pebbles. Then the words, "What is precious to you?...for one little boy, it was a pebble". Go, read it- StarMag, Sunday 9 March 2008, Heart & Soul , The important things in life by Balamohan Yugenderan. Although it is short, I am sure it would touch you the way it did me.

Then below that piece was the "The Gap" column, with today's article starting with "Why was I born with such dark skin?"- the writer's question to her mother.
It related to me, but the only reason being the colour of my skin. I have never had any problems with it. Perhaps it was my upbringing, and the people i grew up with. Nobody ever pressured me to be "fair". I wasn't affected by the myriad of advertisements of fairness products. Nor did my friends' endless complaints of their own skin colour affect the way i thought of mine. Yes, I do use fairness products only because my face is darker than the rest of my body(which I find quite unbalanced), and that the face has much less surface area to cover than body (cost-effective way). I am happy with the colour of my skin. In fact, I think it is beautiful. (No, I am not in denial and no, I am not perasan. Please.) Well, I guess my parents and siblings have taught me well; to appreciate what God gave me. At least, I have healthy skin that i can live in comfortably, and can enjoy 100% when out in the sun without having to worry about not having enough melanin to prevent skin cancer. Of course, I am not TOO carefree that I expose my skin to the midday sun!(Besides, the heat would give you crummy feelings :P)

Having said that, mornings are nice. Cool and breezy with just the right amount of sunlight. Gosh, I am full of happiness today(yep, despite the fact that I have an assignment due in two days which i haven't started).

Okay, I better get started on my assignment. After I finish the paper, that is. And after lunch. And after...

Love

Ah, one of the most discussed topic in the world. I was watching the video "All About Loving You" by Bon Jovi when I remembered that I made an unofficial promise to a friend to write about it. I will write in the form of answers to FAQs that I've received. ATTENTION!: These are only my opinions, and are not meant to offend anyone, nor to serve as a guide. If you would like to express your support or disapproval, by all means please do leave comments. Thank you.

(Another thing, I am not limiting my opinions to boy-girl love unless specified)

What do you think of love?
Love is undeniably the most passed-around emotion in the world(oh, come on, you do not hate everyone everyday do you? That would be SO VERY exhausting!) It is also undeniably beautiful. Well, I am struggling for words trying to describe love. it it THAT great!

Why do we need love?
I need love, for sure. And I am very fortunate to have endless supply of it! Well, I guess it's human nature that we need a sense of belonging and assurance. Love gives us that. It tells us "I'll never leave you," "You will find comfort in me," and "I will accept you as who you are," among others. It gives us hope when we are lost. It's an asylum for our soul. It just exists within us.
We are love.

Do you have a boyfriend?
No.

Oh come on, really?
Are you hard of hearing?

Well then,have you had any?
Nope.

Seriously?
Yes, seriously.

Why don't you have a boyfriend?
Well, there are a few reasons:
1. I don't feel the need to have one.
2. It never came to me. As in love. Not "invitations"...(At this point of my life, I'm not looking for love, like some (if not most) of the people my age are).
3. I've heard many of my friends talk about the pain of the first break up, seen them cry over broken first love, etc. I have somewhat made a notion that it is too energy-consuming if I were to experience break-up, therefore I avoid it. (Ha-ha!Prevention is better than cure, they say... :)
4. I find it very hard to trust people. Out of the 100 people that I know very well(I have just estimated that number), less than 10 people receive more than 60% of my trust. However, this does not affect the closeness I feel with people.
5. It's impractical. Enough said about that.
6. It's financially constraining. Calls, SMS, outings(dates), you name it- it would leave a hole in my currently very small pocket...)
7. I have a funny feeling that I might be less committed. There are other commitments in my life, I am not sure if I would commit to a relationship. Well, not fully, anyway. So, obviously, it would be very unfair to the guy.
8. I would feel like I'm "tied" to something. I wouldn't be free to do, act and speak whatever I wish to. Apparently, a girlfriend should be a certain way. BAH!
9. I might change. (I don't know where this came from...)
10. I love my life the way it is.


Are you scared of boy-girl love, then?
Oh, God, no. Come what may. But, I am definitely on my guard.Like i said, I'm not looking. I still haven't experienced that "tingly" feeling people in love talk about. Even if I do, I'd probably lay low on the radar. (Hmmm, my mind is indeed weird stuff...)
Then again, it seems to be a wonderful experience(at least according to my experienced friends and TV shows, anyway).
Perhaps I'm not ready.

What if someone you like a lot asked you out?
We'll see what happens when it happens. I guess I'll keep my mom's words close to me:
"If you ever fall in love, make sure he's your BEST best friend." Sound advice. (Well, that was after the statement "I can't do anything if you fall in love" accompanied by a disapproving look on her face. Ha-ha! Love you, mom. :P )

Well, that's about all the questions I can remember receiving. If you have questions, please ask me and I'll try my best to give clear answers.

To all my friends and family, thank you for being a love in my life. I appreciate and love you just the way you are. If you change, I well try my very best, to not only accommodate, but also embrace the new you.

MWUACKS!

Do I Act According To My Gender? Well, Does It Matter?

I really can't stomach the fact that almost every human has a typical idea about how a lady should act(many are also vocal about it). Please read the first sentence again if you had only males in your head. Yes, even females have this idea about how a lady should behave.

Come on! It is the 21st century! Gays and lesbians are getting married no more in secrecy(more and more people accept homosexuality), so why a heterosexual lady who, uh, "has an edge" becomes a scum?

Well, on the other end of the spectrum, it seems less "harsh". The remarks of "be a man" to, uh, "sissy" guys are limited to fathers. And perhaps high school bullies.

But for ladies, it seems that almost everyone- ladies, lads, aunts, uncles, etc give a disapproving look or remark if a lady so much so raises their voice a fraction of a decibel louder, or behave a teeny bit rougher, or sit in an "inappropriate" manner.

By now, you would have guessed that I am one of those ladies. I believe that behaving in accordance to unwritten laws is a GREAT barrier to personal development and self-satisfaction. When I am not in a skirt or extremely baggy shorts, i sit in whichever way makes me comfortable. Even in school(I was in an all-girl school for the past 11 years of my life sans last year), I was one of the loud ones. So what if i like to play Counter Strike? So what if I laugh a little louder? So what if I call a friend from across the room? So what if I hold a fighter's pose(referred to as "guarding stance" on Taekwon-Do) in public? (uh, maybe not in PUBLIC public, just familiar public... you know, the "public" in which the majority knows me well)

If I refrain myself from all these, I would not be me. A fake, if you please. I would also be frustrated with life. Take this equation:
Refrained= Not 100% myself= Not 100% happy

I am very happy being the way I am, and i will change for no one but myself.