Purrs & Hisses

matters of the heart

2012-02-03T14:47:00.001+08:00

So, what are the symptoms of a heart attack? Many might think that it is just like in the movies, i.e. a person having sudden severe pain in the chest, followed by the clutching of the external area where the heart is positioned, and finally this person falling over.

Truth be told, the telltale sign might be as mild as the feeling of muscle discomfort. How do I know this? Well, my father suffered from this condition sometime back. As he is an avid golfer and is familiar with the feeling of muscle fatigue, he tried stretching it out which usually does the trick. But this time the symptoms persisted and my father got himself to a doctor straight away. He was shocked to discover that he was suffering from a heart attack!

Anyway, here are the warning signs of a heart attack...

Chest discomfort. Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts for more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back. The discomfort can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain.

Discomfort in other areas of the upper body. Can include pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw, or stomach.

Shortness of breath. Often comes along with chest discomfort. But it also can occur before chest discomfort.

Other symptoms. May include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea, or light-headedness.

-- Source: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/actintime/haws/haws.htm

Now, what do you do if you're all alone and suspect that you're having a heart attack? Well, a friend on Facebook shared this which I reckon is a truly priceless tip...

Let's say it's 6.15pm and you're going home (alone of course), after an unusually hard day on the job. You're really tired, upset and frustrated. Suddenly you start experiencing severe pain in your chest that starts to drag out into your arm and up into your jaw. You are only about five miles from the hospital nearest your home. Unfortunately you don't know if you'll be able to make it that far. You have been trained in CPR, but the guy that taught the course did not tell you how to perform it on yourself..!

HOW TO SURVIVE A HEART ATTACK WHEN ALONE..

Since many people are alone when they suffer a heart attack, without help, the person whose heart is beating improperly and who begins to feel faint, has only about 10 seconds left before losing consciousness.

However, these victims can help themselves by coughing repeatedly and very vigorously.

A deep breath should be taken before each cough, and the cough must be deep and prolonged, as when producing sputum from deep inside the chest.

A breath and a cough must be repeated about every two seconds without let-up until help arrives, or until the heart is felt to be beating normally again.

Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing movements squeeze the heart and keep the blood circulating. The squeezing pressure on the heart also helps it regain normal rhythm. In this way, heart attack victims can get to a hospital.

wise words

2012-02-01T00:07:00.002+08:00

"No one has ever drowned in sweat."

-- Lou Holtz

(retired American football coach, and active sportscaster, author, and motivational speaker)

you know you're growing older when...

2012-01-28T00:21:00.002+08:00

... you're absolutely hooked on this lately:

I mean, I never used to abhor it or anything, but I never really cared too much about Desperate Housewives before. So, why now?

The only logical explanation I came up with is that I've finally caught up with the issues brought forth in there, that now I actually understand where those women are coming from.

Sigh. I never thought life could get so complicated. Wasn't I brought up with a set of simple values and expectations? Where have all those simple, carefree days gone?

that one's for australia!

2012-01-27T13:30:00.000+08:00

Rafa and Roger weren't the only ones who pulled out phenomenal moves at Rod Laver last night...

mantera beradu

2012-01-26T11:09:00.000+08:00

The best of Malaysia and Singapore... Love this song.

"aku suka mengintai, pantang ditenung

berakhir pertelingkahan

dalaman pasti belum...

ijazah terbaik datangnya dari jalanan

dari pengalaman bercakar dan bersalaman

konflik motivasi, cuba meditasi

positif, yang benci jadi inspirasi pagi

peduli interpretasi basi...

awan mendung yang berarak

bawa tangis, bawa resah

rebah rindu yang terkumpul

semua gerak dan kalimat

semua janji yang terikat

lebur di sisiMu...

gagal merancang merancang kegagalan!"

-- Malique & M. Nasir

there is no "ego" in "team"

2012-01-26T00:28:00.003+08:00

So all that drama about Carlos Tevez not wanting to return to his current club, Manchester City, is costing him a crazy £9.3 million in fines and withdrawn loyalty payments!

I really don't get these football stars sometimes. You've been bought for an indecent amount of money, you earn a basic of £198,000 a week to do what you love, you've penned your name on the dotted lines, and still you wanna be all PMS-ey and go AWOL on your job?

Please. People are starving in the world.

The great Tevez vs Mancini showdown

the man of my life

2012-01-25T17:42:00.000+08:00

He gives me unconditional love like no other. He's always there for me, someone I can depend on no matter what. Most importantly, he's given me Life.

He is my Abah, and today is his day.

Happy happy birthday to my #1 man! Words can never express how much I love you. Thank you for everything :) Mmmuah!

Fontana di Trevi, Roma

it's about bloody time innit!

2012-01-12T23:57:00.001+08:00

love of my life

2012-01-09T08:54:00.005+08:00

I've always had a thing for hip hop. There's just something about the rhymes and beats that really touches my heart. And this song from Erykah Badu perfectly expresses my feelings towards this unique genre. Can't wait to catch her in-the-flesh next month!

"I met him when I was

A little girl, he gave me

He gave me poetry

And he was my first

But in my heart I knew

I wasn't the only one

'Cause when the tables turned

He had to break up

Whenever I got lonely

Or needed some advice

He gave me his shoulder

His words were very nice

But that is all behind me

'Cause now there is no other

My love is his and his is mine

A friend became the

Love of my life..."

running the world

2012-01-06T14:49:00.002+08:00

2011 has been a great year for me, particularly in my travels. It was the year where I said "hello again" to London, a place I used to visit so often. Also, I got to materialise my lifelong dream of stepping foot on the soils of Barcelona, Roma and New York City. And being able to run—and race—in these great cities was definitely the highlight of my visits. Alhamdulillah :)

17 MAY 2011, LONDON
My KL running kaki, Azhar, and I were fortunate to have my ex-schoolmate, Fiona, to take us on a "London By Foot" tour. We started our 11K run at Paddington and went through Hyde Park (passing by the Royal Albert Hall along the way), Green Park, St James Park, past the Big Ben and Buckingham Palace, towards the London Eye by the river, St Paul's, Millennium Footbridge, Shakepeare's Globe and finally ending our sesh just after the Tower Bridge.

Me, Fion and the London Eye

Me and Azhar on the Tower Bridge

Big Ben behind me

24 MAY 2011, ROMA
As fate had it, Azhar arrived in Rome on my last day there so I dragged him to the gorgeous Villa Borghese, the city's largest public park, for a run.

Me, Azhar and one of my twin nephews, Arman, at Villa Borghese

In front of a beautiful 18th century arc called Arco di Settimio Severo (I think)

Running in Roma's largest public park? Check! BTW I just love how Villa Borghese is shaped like a heart ;)

19 MAY 2011, BARCELONA
Got some precious 'me' time when I went for a solo run in beautiful Barça. The architecture truly blew my mind and I couldn't help myself from stopping so much during this short run all in the name of capturing this city's beauty on my camera.

Parc de la Ciutadella

Arc de Triomf

21 MAY 2011, LA PUJADA AL TIBIDABO
My very first overseas-, trail- and uphill-race. This had me running up Mount Tibidabo, the higest peak in Barcelona (that huge green monster behind me) with total elevations of more than 500m! Happy to have conquered 9.45km of undulating trails in 1:17:41. It was tough but totally worth it ;)

1 & 3 NOVEMBER 2011, NEW YORK CITY
Myself, Nana and Shanaz did a couple of training runs at the famous Central Park before the three of us ran the NYC Marathon.

Our first training 10K done five days before running the NYC Marathon

See how huge the park is?

6 NOVEMBER 2011, THE ING NEW YORK CITY MARATHON
My dream marathon in my dream city done during my dream 11/11/11 birthday month... and completed in my dream time of sub-5 hours :))) This was at the 10K mark in Brooklyn. Can you spot me?

Malaysia Boleh in New York!

2012, I wonder where you will take me...

*See the full story of my 2011 running journey in pictures here

my dream marathon: part 4 | “i've got a pocketful of dreams... and gu's!”

2011-12-31T12:08:00.000+08:00

“I’VE GOT A POCKETFUL OF DREAMS… AND GU’S!”

After months and months of anticipating, planning, training, raising funds, etc., 6th November 2011 finally arrived.

Nana and I pre-booked our 7am ferry to Staten Island (Shanaz went with her Autism Speaks teammates) where the starting line of the NYC Marathon was set up. This meant that I had to rise at an ungodly 5am even though my wave's flagoff time was at 10.40am.

The early-morning autumn weather was pretty unforgiving. Even with our thick hoodies—purchased just the night before only to donate to the biggest charity recycling drive in NYC by dropping off our unwanted warm clothings at the starting pens that morning—I felt like my ears and fingers were gonna freeze over!

Taking the ferry over to Staten Island. Sejuk!

Camwhoring on the ferry ;)

Bird's-eye view of runners exiting the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge
and entering Brooklyn. There were 47,438 starters in the 2011
race, the most in race history, and 46,795 people crossed the
finishing line, the most of any marathon in history!

Anyways, upon reaching Staten Island Nana and myself had to catch a bus to the marathon village, where we met up with Shanaz. We tried keeping warm by refueling ourselves with bagels, buns, and the like. And when the loudspeakers called for our respective waves, we hugged each other and bade our “good luck” farewells.

Soon after, the sound of Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” filled the air and off us Wave 3 runners went onto the first of five bridges, The Verrazano-Narrows, which took us from Borough #1 into Borough #2.

The minute we hit Brooklyn, I was overwhelmed by the amount of people all around. The New Yorkers came out in full force, which pretty much lasted throughout the five boroughs (#3 was Queens, #4 was The Bronx, and finally #5 was Manhattan, finishing in the beautiful Central Park). The support was nothing short of amazing… it’s like the whole city erupted into a big party!

Throngs of people crowded the streets handing out fruits, chocolates and the lifesaver for my sinus, tissues; the amazing street performances and cheers were endless. My favorites were Brooklyn—where screams of "BROOKLYN LOVES MARATHON RUNNERS" were in abundance—as well as Harlem for its multi-genre live music extravaganza and “YOU’RE THE SH*T!” posters that would put and keep a smile on any runner’s face :)

My favorite posters. Harlem.
(Photo courtesy of ING New York City Marathon)

Word.
(Photo courtesy of ING New York City Marathon)

This one made me chuckle!
(Photo courtesy of gothamist.com)

On a personal level, I’d never worked so hard for anything in my life. Fatigue set in early for me (KM 17!!) and though my whole body continuously begged for a break, I focused on eradicating non-running thoughts. Silly me forgot to wear a pace band, which was a blessing in disguise as this kept my mind active with ways to not stray too far from my targeted 35-minute-5K-chunks as well as limiting my walk breaks to only 100m per kilometer.

I also kept repeating the words from Alicia Keys’s “Empire State Of Mind” in my head, and they proved to be priceless mantras that kept me going. My favourites were …

“There's nothing you can't do 

now you're in New York, New York, New York…”

“These streets will make you feel brand new...

Big lights will inspire you…”

And especially “I'mma make it by any means,

I got a pocketful of dreams… and GU’s!” Hehe ;)

The ONLY time I posed for a cameraman, believe it or not.
This was very early on in the race in Brooklyn

The insane elevations throughout the NYC Marathon 2011 course.
Note that the second-highest bridge was at 24-26km. I basically
brisk-walked up the 130-or-so-feet-high Queensboro Bridge;
my only walk-break which stretched for more than 150m!

As usual, I got over The Wall at KM 32. Fortunately the second wind hit me, but unfortunately by this time my lower back, right hip flexors and left ankle were screaming for a good, long stretch break. The only thing that stopped me from doing so was my hunger for a sweet n’ sublime sub-5 finish in my dream city and birthday month. I knew that if I slowed down now, I would never forgive myself.

Before I knew it, I was at Mile 22 (note: I reckon following the markers in miles instead of kilometers makes it way less painful mentally!). Braced myself for the rolling elevations of Central Park and picked up speed. When I arrived at the Last Mile, I psyched myself up with a reminder of why I did 1,600m speed intervals during trainings. The “Last 800m” signage was my cue to sprint like I never sprinted before and the “Last 200m” mark was where I unfolded the Jalur Gemilang and waved the Malaysian flag high above me as I crossed the finishing line.

Last 250m! Getting ready to unfold the
Jalur Gemilang for my sprint to the finish :)

4:58:37! I did it! What an astonishing and emotional ride! Although this was my fourth 42K race (done exactly 11 months after my maiden Full Mary), never before did I wrap up the journey with tears in my eyes. Hell and back. Absolutely overwhelming.

A Personal Best by 42 mins at the 42nd New York City Marathon... That’s one minute faster for every km on average. The best (advanced) birthday present ever to myself. I never thought that I could run almost all the way for a Full Marathon. Okay, okay, so I actually did a combo of run 900m/walk 100m from KM 15 onwards, and pretty much resolved to brisk-walking for a whole klick when walkers were overtaking me on the godforsaken Queensboro Bridge (I’ve since christened it as Jambatan Haram Jadah, by the way!) at KM 22. But still.

What made it sweeter was that each step I took was dedicated to Shoe4Africa and its star effort at the moment: building the very first children’s hospital in Africa.

Some random person caught me while I was
sprinting to the finish. This total stranger turned
out to be a friend of Shanaz's sister's ;)

What an experience! My face says it all.
BTW the clock is showing gun time

At this point, I was holding back tears of joy.
Thanks for this color treatment, sweet mama Kash :)

So overcome by emotions was I that I held my
Malaysian flag up the wrong way =P

My G sistas and I each received flowers from a guy
called Pakwe (bukan nama sebenar) for our PB's...

... and we made it into The New York Times! ;)

One hand in the air for the big city! And the other hand in the air for everyone who was involved in this unbelievable journey of mine: My fellow OG’s, Captain G and Princess G (you ladies totally rocked it with your first sub-4:15 and sub-4:30 finish respectively! I’m still so very proud of the both of you!); Apprentice G and Glory2 G for burning the midnight oil to keep track of our progress; Heazry for being my #1 supporter; Kim and Rob for your hospitality in NYC and New Jersey; everyone who contributed to my cause; all the people who gave their endless words of encouragements; and last but not least, my parents and siblings for being so proud of me, and especially my Abah who partly sponsored my trip as a birthday present. TERIMA KASIH from the bottom of my heart.

So, there you have it. My dream marathon in my dream city done during my dream 11/11/11 birthday month... and completed in my dream time of sub-5 hours. I ♥ NY! :)))

my dream marathon: part 3 | “empire state of mind.”

2011-12-29T11:11:00.000+08:00

"EMPIRE STATE OF MIND."

Pejam celik pejam celik (a popular Malay saying which means “Before you know it”), the day finally came for me to pack up my bags. Destination: New York City, baby!

I opted for Qatar Airways which took me from Changi Airport to JFK via Doha. The great thing about Qatar is that the planes are super-duper new, and the seats are tres comfortable. And I was lucky enough to get my tickets on a promo price of SG$1,550 return. Pretty affordable if you ask me ;)

The crappy thing was that I had to endure a torturous EIGHT-hour layover in Doha’s tres sucky airport all alone. What made it worse was on that fateful day, the wireless internet over there wasn’t working. Thank goodness I didn’t die of boredom, for serious.

Anyway, almost 40 hours after leaving home, I finally reached Park Central Hotel where Nana and Shanaz were staying. I had to bunk in with them for four days (long story!) which was perfect for me to explore this unfamiliar city—that I've been dreaming of visiting since forever!—with friends.

The OG's very first shot together in NYC ;)

Times Square, yo!

Freezing my ears off at
the Empire State Building

Making like Lady Liberty ;)

We visited many places together: Liberty Island, Times Square, Top of The Rock. We had a blast camwhoring everywhere—even on the subway, which, consequently, made us miss our stop, hehe. And, of course, we did our final training runs at the gorgeous Central Park.

Everywhere the three of us went, our excitement only grew stronger as the whole city was filled with Marathon decos. They were EVERYWHERE. Even shops and cafes put up posters to welcome us marathon runners.

Pre-marathon training run at Central Park

The beautiful autumn leaves made me so happy :)

Posters such as this was
scattered all over the city

NYC really welcomes marathon runners

Lots of time (and money! hehe) was spent at the expo

Us with Bart Yasso, the man behind the 'Yasso 800'

The next thing we knew, it was time for us to collect our bibs at Jacob Javits Convention Center. I gotta say that it was the best racekit collection I’d ever been to. Even though they were expecting over 47,000 runners, the process was smooth and quick. As for the retail part, well, Shanaz, Nana and myself spent over 3 hours looking at and buying stuff. It was runners’ heaven, I kid you not!

I must, however, highlight that I’m not much of a shopper outside the sports stores. My sweetest non-running memory of NYC actually involves Food Glorious Food. I swear, every single day I ate as if there was no tomorrow! It’s a miracle I didn’t end up looking like pancakes, cupcakes or pasta at the end of my trip...

Speaking of pasta, I still can't believe that I actually stepped foot in Anthony Edwards's tres chic Upper East Side apartment. The actor was kind enough to host Shoe4Africa's pasta party in his private home, believe it or not. Running for S4A totally rocks!

New York Cheesecake Pancakes from IHOP. To-die-for!

Sprinkles's Red Velvet as well as Vanilla Cupcakes
are the best in the world

Pasta party for Shoe4Africa, the charity I represented
at NYC Marathon. Anthony Edwards (Dr Greene in 'ER')
was generous enough to host us in his private home!
Also pictured here are running celebs Toby Tanser
(aka founder & CEO of Shoe4Africa) and
Sally Kipyego (holder of various running titles)

~*~

Coming up:
I'VE GOT A POCKETFUL OF DREAMS... AND GU'S!

my dream marathon: part 2 | “train, forrest, train!”

2011-12-27T14:00:00.000+08:00

Part 2 | “TRAIN, FORREST, TRAIN!”

So I got through the first hurdle, which was to gain entry into the New York City Marathon 2011. Next up was a bigger challenge--to start the first of my three-month training during Ramadhan.

This wouldn’t be my first attempt at training for a marathon through the fasting month. Last year, I had to do the same in preparation of my maiden 42.195km race. Drawing experiences learnt from then, I opted to maintain the three-days-a-week running schedule consisting of one short (5-7km) + one medium (7-10km) run on the weekdays, and one long run (anything above 10) on either Saturday or Sunday. I also stuck to the suggested intensity level as best as I could: went ahead with the tempos and intervals so long as I didn’t puke =P Took it easy on the long runs, though; made sure I reached the prescribed mileage without caring too much about the timing.

Not gonna lie, I found it super-tough to keep the faith during this month. My only chance to run was late at night, i.e. 2-3 hours after breaking fast. Had to be very disciplined with food during iftar because if I ate anything more than oatmeal + eggs, then I’d definitely feel sick while running. But after going through 14-or-so hours of starvation, it’s not easy to refrain yourself from eating whatever it is that your tastebuds desired… especially if you love food as much as I do!

The run Celeste (pictured) and I will never, ever forget...

I gotta sidetrack here for a bit to tell you what happened during one of my training runs during Ramadhan. On this particular night, I had a friend, Celeste, with me. To cut a long story short, somewhere along the way we both inhaled a really foul stench right outside the Istana gate. I kept smelling it over the next four days while walking back from work as well but had no idea what it was. Can you imagine the horror Celeste and I faced when we found out that it was actually coming from a decomposing human body?!

Anyway, back to training. Other than the NYC Marathon, my second most-anticipated race for the year was the TNF 50K Duo Challenge. Set exactly three weeks before NYC Marathon, the 25K that I had to complete fit perfectly with my scheduled long run for that weekend. Plus, since the NYC route is far from flat, the trainings required to tackle the hilly TNF trail race was befitting. And living in Singapore meant that I could conveniently opt for the jungles of mystical MacRitchie as my training ground. Sweet :)

With my Sole Sisters, Endon & Linda, at MacRitchie

By early September, my weekly training schedule consisted of two runs on the road and one trail run. A tad worried about my lack of mileage on asphalt, come the last weekend in September I went into hardcore mode: added an extra session per week by doing back-to-back runs on weekends.

It started with my 24K trail run done on the last Saturday in September, followed by a 4K recovery run the next day. The following weekend, I did 14.5K’s of trail run at FRIM back home in KL on Saturday, then a 16.8K race at the Malaysian installment of the adidas King of The Road + 4K recovery post-race run on Sunday.

Whee! I love trail running :)

Goofing around with my Freedom Freaks mates

Planking on Bukit Timah!

My first climb up the nasty Steroid Hills at FRIM.
I've since renamed it Bukit Haram Jadah =P

On the third “hardcore” weekend, I did a 20-miler (my longest training run) on Saturday, and ran the Nike We Run SG 10K at recovery pace on Sunday. Finally, I completed my share of the TNF 50K duo challenge on the Saturday three weeks before NYC Marathon, and did another so-called recovery 10K at the NB Real Run on Saturday (my very first time participating in two races in one weekend!).

A very productive weekend ;)

Call me crazy but honestly I reckon that these double-trouble shots of runs on both weekend days helped my legs’ endurance tremendously during The Day.

~*~

Coming up: Empire State Of Mind

my dream marathon: part 1 | “i'm in.”

2011-12-23T15:45:00.002+08:00

Part 1 | "I'M IN."

The New York City Marathon. One of the five World Marathon Majors alongside Boston, Chicago, London and Berlin, and, arguably, the biggest marathon in the world. Just a year ago, this was but a dream that seemed absolutely out of reach.

Many have asked me the golden question: “How on earth did you gain entrance?” And a fair question this would be. For those not in the know, NYC Marathon is one of those that require sheer luck—you enter your name into a lottery and pray to the heavens above that it gets picked.

Perhaps I should have prayed harder because I wasn’t amongst the people who were ecstatic on draw day. My running BFF and fellow Original G, Shanaz (who got lucky in 2010), also shared the same fate but everything was about to change when our other BFF and final member of Original G, Nana, gained entry.

Nana, Shanaz & myself took this "gedik" photo at the

SG Marathon expo in Dec'10. This was the birth of The Gediks,

these days better known as "The G's" of Kuala Lumpur

which is now 7 members strong :)

Shanaz and I lamented the idea of Nana running NYC’11 solo as us three were really hoping to run it together. And so she suggested going down the charity route. We went through the list of charitable organizations on the New York Road Runners website, and each shortlisted a few that caught our eyes.

I initially chose about 8 different ones. After communicating with them, I felt a strong pull towards Shoe4Africa for one simple reason: I’ve always wanted to do something to help out the children of Africa, and this was the perfect chance.

The only thing, though, was that I had to raise a whopping US$2,500 in order to represent any of these charities. Shanaz and I were pretty nervous about this but we decided to just go for it since we had about 6 months to get it together.

I pretty much went straight into fundraising efforts. The first order of the day was to target some people on my Facebook list, and seek their interest and advice. Most of them gave positive feedbacks, citing that my cause of building the very first public hospital for children in Africa was something that they definitely would want to sponsor ;)

Also, I took advantage of the fact that I work for The Comedy Club Asia. Once a month, we bring international stand-up comedians to entertain hundreds of patrons here in Singapore. My director announced during some of our shows about how I needed to raise moolah to represent Shoe4Africa at the New York Marathon and this gave me almost half of the required amount.

The official badge for those who got into this year's race ;)

Slowly but surely, the dollars kept piling up and thankfully I hit my targeted amount within the stipulated timeframe. I must give a huge shout-out to my best friend and her hubs, Farah MK and Azmil, who were the highest contributors. I’m still so touched that you guys were generous enough to part with US$500!

Anyway, I eventually got a guaranteed entry invitation from Shoe4Africa, paid the US$285 registration fee (very expensive, I know, but worth every penny!), and the rest, as they say, is history.

~*~

Coming up: Train, Forrest, Train!

run forrest run

2011-12-03T15:51:00.001+08:00

It’s been 22 months since I last posted in here. The title of my previous post ironically relates to the main thing that has been occupying my time since then: races and running.

Now here I am, on the eve of my second anniversary. Just two years ago, I was freaking out at the thought of my very first race—10K at the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2009. What if I couldn't finish? What if I pass out in the middle of the course? All the “what if’s” only served as fuel to my fears.

Thankfully, I had my fellow Wildcatz Rose, Nyna and Nana to calm my nerves somewhat. At the time, Rose and Nyna were about to run their second Full Marathon, a distance I couldn’t fathom at all back then. Nana, on the other hand, made her trip down south to run her Half Marathon #2. These three ladies, who were the ones who inspired me to start racing in the first place, ensured me that I would be fine, and that I should just run and have fun.

And run and have fun was exactly what I did. The racing bug totally bit me that day, and the rest, as they say, is history.

A few steps away from completing my maiden race
(6 December 2010 @ StanChart Singapore Marathon)

Wildcatz reprezent. From futsal teammates to running buddies ;)
L-R: Nana, Rose, myself, Nyna
Taken right after my second Half Marathon
(18 July 2010 @ Ipoh International Run)

Nyna and I "ran as one" together-gether all the way from the 7km mark on my first Half Marathon,
and crossed the finishing line holding hands and all smiles :)))
(27 June 2010 @ StanChart KL Marathon)

*pic courtesy of http://qqlai.multiply.com/

Fast forward a year later—exactly one year ago today—I did what I thought I never would do: complete my very first Full Marathon at the StanChart Marathon Singapore 2010 in a sub-6 time of 5hrs 52mins.

The Euphoric Runfool =)
(5 Dec 2010 @ StanChart Marathon Singapore)

My precious: A year of running (Dec'09-Dec'10) in a snapshot.
That's a total of 11 races in 12 months, made up of
one Full Marathon, one 30K race, four Half Marathons,
one pseudo Half Marathon, three 10K races, and one charity 6K race.

Today, 30 races later, I’m mentally preparing myself for my fourth Full Marathon for 2011. Most people outside my running circle cannot comprehend why I am running tomorrow.

My original running mate, Ree (the person who was kind enough to accompany me on my "longest runs"—including chaperoning me to three races—back in the days when I was first starting out), said while I was huffing and puffing during my yucky 10K training run on Wednesday that perhaps I should have just ended my year on a high with my dream sub-5 finish at the NYC Marathon 4 weeks ago**.

Ree and I right before my pseudo Half Marathon.
It was supposed to be my first 21K race but ended
up being 18K's only instead
(29 May 2010 @ Sundown Marathon)

Maybe she's right, but in all honesty it's hard for me to resist running tomorrow since the Singapore Marathon 2011 marks my second-year racing anniversary.

And so I will soldier on, taking it one easy step at a time until I cross my fifth 42.195km finishing line just 12 months after my first.

May the force be with me!

~ * ~

**Coming soon: My Dream Marathon

my race against time

2010-02-03T23:11:00.008+08:00

And so I have arrived here, in a land I never thought I would ever call home. But that's exactly what Singapore is to me right now, and gotta admit it's been somewhat kind in my quest of finding greener pastures.

Now, allow me to keep you up to speed. I have joined the world of entrepreneurs, my business being juices and healthy food. Opening an eatery has always been one of my dreams, and so naturally I am very thankful for this opportunity which basically fell on my lap out of the blue.

Anyway, spent the first half of this week running around like mad trying to settle my settling-in issues as quickly as I possibly can. I'm rushing because I only have till CNY to handle all things start-up as my deadline for the start of operations is the 16th of February. Wow, I can feel my heart beating faster at the mere thought of it...!

So, let's see what I've done so far. Monday was all about them dollar dollar bills. Found out the hard way that even though there is a Maybank Singapore, it is in no way linked to Maybank Malaysia. This means that all the monies that I have in my account with the latter can't be transferred across the border. Sigh.

Moving along, yesterday was all about my Employment Pass. Part of the requirement is a medical check-up which included drawing my blood out. Plus, since I will be handling food, I had to also take a typhoid jab. Needles times two, boo! Thank gosh for the food-tasting I had with a possible supplier later. Absolutely delicious stuff she had for me. Mmm.

And today, I got my chiller showcase, fridge, industrial blenders and juicer delivered. These were carefully selected based on a painstaking research process and thought-provoking budget considerations. Let me tell you that they are far from cheap... especially if I start converting into RM! Cannot, cannot. That will just drive me insane, innit.

Pretty excited to try out all the juice and smoothie recipes, though. But they've gotta wait as tomorrow is gonna be a looooooooooooooong day at the F&B basic hygiene course that's a must for all who want to get into this line.

With that in mind, I better go freshen up and hit the sack. Talk again soon.

hello new year, hello new life

2010-01-29T14:01:00.006+08:00

I'm writing this amongst the Royal Mess that is my room. "Appalling" as my housemate described it. But, unlike other days/weeks/months, I have a very good reason for the atrocity this time around:

Relocation.

Come first thing this Sunday, I will be moving to another country. Not that it's that far away--it's just our Southern neighbors. But another country nonetheless.

Never thought that I would ever move to Singapore, but Allah works in mysterious ways. "God the great dramatist," as my Abah would always say.

Don't really wanna get into too much detail now, but yes, I am seeking greener pastures in foreign lands. Will tell you all about it soon.

It's back to pack-pack-a-packin' for me. Bluergh.

friends in futsal

2007-11-05T12:35:00.000+08:00

Okay, I'll say it: Sadly, I didn't make the cut for the first-ever international tourney for our first-ever national ladies futsal team. Loads of politics surrounding this--as with many other sports in Malaysia, sigh--but anyway am proud of my fellow trainees who did make it to the 2nd Asian Indoor Games in Macau recently.

Though our results were a tad scary (see below), but hey we gotta start somewhere! Plus we did draw into the tough group (read: Thailand, Iran, and eventual '07 champs Japan) so the fact that newbies-us did manage to sneak some goals past the more experienced teams is pretty good, I reckon.

Here're Malaysia's scores:

FIRST ROUND

Iran vs Malaysia 13-1

Thailand vs Malaysia 17-0

Malaysia vs Japan 0-5

SECOND ROUND

4th of A vs 3rd of B: Malaysia vs Philippines 2-5

3rd of A vs 4th of A: Iran vs Malaysia 17-2

In the final matches, Uzbekistan beat Vietnam 2-1 while the Japs overcame SEA giants Thailand 5-3.

I've gotta admit that we have a LONG way to go, but if we don't try then we'll never advance in the sport, innit.

Nways, below are some pictures of my fellow lady futsallers in action. Oh, and I'm proud to announce that my team, Sports Barn Wildcatz, had one rep in Raveena who also scored one for Malaysia against Iran. Yay her!

Back L-R: Mex, Aishah JB, Tom, Sasha, Kheeday, Raveena

Front L-R: Adik, Diana, Anies, Futsaller from Kelantan, Rhynnda, Futsaller from Kelantan

Back L-R: Futsaller from Kelantan, Tom, Zurl, Kheeday, Rhynnda, Raveena
Front L-R: Futsaller from Kelantan, Adik, Futsaller from Kelantan, Anies, Diana, Aishah JB

Malaysian skipper, Sasha, shaking hands with the Japanese captain

Sasha doing her thang versus the Filipinas! This girl is truly something, seriously

Raveena (pivot), Diana (left ala), Kheeday (right ala) and Adik (last man) in action against Iran

Raveena terrorising up front. She didn't score in this one, but she did put one at the back of Iran's net!

Diana letting one slip by the Thai goalie. Supporting her on the right is leading scorer for Malaysia, Sasha, who contributed 2 out of our 5 goals. The fifth was courtesy of Aishah Kelantan

incrediRoo!

2007-07-03T11:14:00.000+08:00

Was watching The Incredibles (one of my favourite cartoons of all time) again the other day and noticed the uncanny resemblance between Incredi-Boy aka Syndrome and Wayne Rooney...

... innit?

allium sativum

2007-06-06T11:45:00.000+08:00

… a.k.a. garlic.

Ah, few can compare to its sweet smell and taste. It’s a must-have ingredient in Italian and Chinese cooking, little wonder why.

I, for one, am a huge fan. My belief is that one can never have enough garlic in one’s food!

Okay, okay, so your breath and sweat might be slightly pungent after consuming a considerable amount of it, but trust you me, the medicinal plusses seriously outweigh this little calamity.

It is claimed that garlic can prevent a miscellany of life-threatening diseases, such as heart problems, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol (though its wonder might not work so well on people already with high levels of cholesterol).

Regular use of raw garlic supposedly also helps regulate blood sugar levels, improves the immune system, and have properties that will fight against the common cold and coughs.
Best of all, some studies have shown that garlic may also protect against cancer!

But, you know what? I digress. The point of this entry was actually to educate the world on a common misconception:

A “clove” of garlic does not mean the whole garlic bulb (proper term: “head”)—it refers to just one piece of garlic. Remember that the next time you cook...

left: a clove of garlic, right: a head of garlic

Oh, btw, if you’d like to enjoy the medicinal properties of garlic but can’t stand the smell, there's always the “odourless” pill options!

yet another incest case

2007-06-05T17:56:00.000+08:00

A MOTHER not only allowed her four daughters to be raped by their father and three brothers but also used a bomoh to cast a spell to get them to willingly become prostitutes, reported Harian Metro.
The tabloid said the four teenagers were forced to prostitute themselves to relatives and foreigners in Johor Baru.
They were also beaten, abused, and had spells cast on them if they refused to submit to their father and brothers.
One of the victims, known only as Wani, 19, said she started being raped seven years ago after completing her primary education in Ulu Tiram, Johor.
The teenage victim claimed that the mother had threatened to poison them if they resisted.
She said she was “cured” of her mother's spell after she visited a bomoh.
“Although I am now married and live elsewhere, I still get threats from my family,” she said, adding that in the middle of last year, her father and brothers broke into her house and photographed her while she was bathing.
They threatened to put the pictures on the Internet if she did not return home.
She said she had lodged eight police reports to protect herself.
-- thestar.com.my

Astaghfirullah! What is the world coming to? And the saddest and most eerie part is that more and more of like stories involve Muslims…

- 16-year-old boy rapes a goat in Kelantan

- father and grandfather raping their 3-year-old daughter/granddaughter

- educated and certified preacher raping his own daughters, resulting in three pregnancies and forcing the poor daughters to abort because “I don’t want you to give birth to my son-slash-grandson”

To say that things are getting rather sad is a disgusting understatement. You know, though I myself am not the most pious of Muslims and do not necessarily support hudud laws fully, I nevertheless reckon Islamic punishments for such hideous crimes should seriously be taken into consideration.

In this case, stone the wrongdoers to death... and make it be seen by the masses as an unforgettable reminder of one's doom should he choose to tread this damned path, I say.

During the time of the Prophet (saw) punishment was inflicted on the rapist on the solitary evidence of the woman who was raped by him. Wa'il ibn Hujr reports of an incident when a woman was raped. Later, when some people came by, she identified and accused the man of raping her. They seized him and brought him to Allah's messenger, who said to the woman, "Go away, for Allah has forgiven you," but of the man who had raped her, he said, "Stone him to death." (Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud)
Incest & Child Abuse
The Quran clearly outlines those with whom marriage is not permitted, we can extrapolate from it that any sexual relation with these would be unacceptable.
Surah an Nisa 4:23:
Prohibited for you (in marriage) are your mothers, your daughters, your sisters, the sisters of your fathers, the sisters of your mothers, the daughters of your brother, the daughters of your sister, your nursing mothers, the girls who nursed from the same woman as you, the mothers of your wives, the daughters of your wives with whom you have consummated the marriage - if the marriage has not been consummated, you may marry the daughter. Also prohibited for you are the women who were married to your genetic sons. Also, you shall not be married to two sisters at the same time - but do not break up existing marriages. GOD is Forgiver, Most Merciful.
This includes your foster parents, siblings and children.
Al Hasan reports: ‘If somebody commits illegal intercourse with his sister, his punishment is the same as for any other person who commits such a crime’. (Bukhari Vol. 8 pp 526)
Thus, these same laws mentioned above in cases of rape would be equally applicable, and incest can be prosecuted as a crime within the bounds of Islamic law.
According to Islam, all aspects of life, ie: the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual, are sacred and must be respected. No gender or relationship has been given the power or right to hurt or harm the other. Domestic violence, rape and incest are all violent and criminal abuses that are outside the bounds of what is permitted in Islam and there is absolutely no justification for it whatsoever.
-- lifted from: “Rape & Incest: Islamic Perspective”
http://www.crescentlife.com/articles/islamic%20psych/rape_and_incest_islamic_perspective.htm

it's back to bahasa malaysia

2007-06-04T13:45:00.000+08:00

Bahasa Malaysia will again be the official term to be used to refer to the national language. The Cabinet felt that reverting to the term Bahasa Malaysia would help inculcate a sense of belonging for all citizens irrespective of race, said Information Minister Datuk Seri Zainuddin Maidin.
Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said the move “is to show that the language does not belong to just one race.”
“This is for national unity,” he said.
-- thestar.com.my

Gee, you think?

You know, if we—from a nation that's turning fifty—are still ding-donging about the name of our national language, then how do we expect respect and credibility from the outside world?

While we're on the topic, why are we continually bastardising our beautiful language with ridiculous words such as "ras" (i.e. the translation of "race;" isn't it just disgusting?) when we already have the word "bangsa?"

And why, also, are we not speaking what I'd like to call "proper BM" by way of baku pronunciations? I don't know about you, but running around babbling in bahasa pasar is not my idea of an impressive national identity.

mawi shilling?

2007-05-31T14:15:00.000+08:00

LATEST NEWS – “SEKALI lagi Mawi atau nama sebenarnya Asmawi Ani mencatat sejarah industri muzik tempatan apabila wajahnya dipilih untuk dicetakkan ke atas wang syiling yang bersalut emas.

Mawi merupakan artis kedua di dunia selepas mendiang King Of Rock And Roll, Elvis Presley yang mempunyai syiling cetakan muka oleh Royal Mint.

"Memang sukar untuk mana-mana artis mahupun ahli politik di dunia untuk mempunyai wajah mereka di atas syiling.

"Untuk Mawi. kami menganggap bahawa susksesnya amat luar biasa dan patut diberi penghargaan," ujar Y. Ibrahim selaku wakil daripada Royal Mint ketika pelancaran Medalion Mawi di Bora Ombak Ampang baru-baru ini.

"Sememangnya tidak dapat kita nafikan bahawa Mawi mempunyai dinamiknya yang tersendiri berbanding dengan artis-artis yang lain.

"Oleh itu, setelah berunding serta melakukan perbincangan di antara kami dan pihak Royal Mint, kami bersetuju untuk mereka syiling berwajahkan Mawi," ujar Y Ibrahim lagi mengenai projek yang julung-julung kalinya dilakukan di Malaysia.

"Bukannya mudah untuk meyakinkan mana-mana pihak untuk mencetak wajah seseorang individu ke atas siling. Kami mengambil masa untuk mendapatkan kelulusan untuk projek ini," ujar Y Ibrahim lagi.

Ketika ditanya pemilihan mereka berdasarkan populariti ataupun pencapaian seseorang artis yang melayakkan wajahnya dicetak ke atas siling, Y Ibrahim menjawab, " Kedua-duanya penting dan pihak kami melihat bahawa Mawi mempunyai kedua-dua ciri-ciri tersebut."
Dengan keyakinan yang tinggi pihaknya terhadap Mawi, adakah mereka engetepikan kredibiliti artis-artis yang lain yang mungkin lebih senior serta sudahpun mengecapi penghargaan yang banyak daripada Mawi?

"Bukan niat kami untuk mebeza-bezakan artis yang lain di Malaysia dengan Mawi. Malah kami terbuka dengan idea untuk mencetak wajah artis-artis yang lain.

"Mereka boleh datang berjumpa dengan pihak kami jika mereka berminat untuk melakukannya," jelas Y Ibrahim lagi mengenai pihaknya yang tidak mempunyai sikap bias dengan mana-mana artis di Malaysia."
-- from mstar.com.my

What rubbish! Though I’m no fan of Datuk Siti’s, I reckon she would be a much better candidate than Mawi, for serious! And what about Tan Sri P. Ramlee?

When you read between the lame lines, you can decipher that: contribution has little relevance to us. Mawi was chosen because he’s loved by young girls and older women alike, and this target market would definitely spend money to get this "limited edition" item. So basically, profit was our utmost priority–we don’t wanna lose out on the monetary goodness of the tsu-Mawi!

the courts vs lina joy

2007-05-31T13:43:00.000+08:00

I’m probably going to get shot for this, but I need to spill my mind about the Lina Joy case.

You know, I’m a firm believer of Islam. Yes, admittedly I’m not the most pious of Muslims: I don’t wear a headscarf nor cover my aurat properly. I don’t pray five times a day, though I know I should. I have sinned in the month of Ramadhan. I have consumed alcohol and daging katuk (though I've never touched pork).

But at the end of the day, these are choices that I make. And at the end of the day, only Allah swt has the right to judge me, not anyone else.

Granted, I do know that each and every Muslim bears the responsibility to advise fellow brothers and sisters in Islam to repent and hurry back into the righteous path. My parents, for one, have ensured that I grew up with unending religious teachings, and would without fail lecture me about my not satisfying the daily must-dos.

As a child, I even got punished if I refused to listen and perform. Oh, how painful those canes/hangers/leather belts were on my skin! Even today, as I stand tall (ok ok, not that tall ;Þ) at 28, my mum especially would tirelessly preach the teachings of Islam to me. But they don’t punish me with any more than just words for they know that I am an adult who has the right to make my own choices, an adult who will later herself face the music for these choices.

So, what I really don’t get is when cases such as Lina Joy’s and Bibik Neo surface, the Muslims of Malaysia act out in anger and disgust. Even worse, they decide what the fate of those who have murtad should be.

Now, if these people are not of age, then I would understand what all the hoo-hah is about. Not just that, I would also agree that a certain amount of action should be taken to ensure that these not-yet-wise “children” don’t easily get derailed and change something as major as religion so blindly.

But in the case of Lina Joy, she decided to become a Christian at the age of 26 (or was it 36? It doesn’t matter anyway). Since then—she’s now 42—she’s been believing in the teachings of Christ. She managed to get rid of her Muslim name given to her at birth, but had her application to drop the word “Islam” from her identification card rejected.

My question is, if the woman has lost all belief in Islam and now lives and breathes Christianity, then why in the world should she be forced to live with having her former religion on her IC?

And why must everyone make such a big deal out of her case, anyway? What good is forcing her to insaf when evidently, any and every trace of the religion she was born into is long gone from her body and soul?

Let Lina Joy be, I say! And let others like her live—and die—in the peaceful bliss of the religion that they actually have faith in.

Oh, and hurry it up so they can marry, for goodness sake! We wouldn't want more sin in the world, now, would we?

let’s talk about love, baby

2007-04-25T14:49:00.000+08:00

This post is in response to something from a fellow blogger (and ex-colleague). A piece which questions what the notion of "love" means. I quote sikapitan:

"...am I correct in saying that love is something like a car? To keep you moving and heading towards your destination, you need the various parts of the car to perform its function. Sometimes you lose parts like side view mirror, or the wiper, or the seat cushions are all torn up, but the car still moves along, right? But what if you were to lose a tire, or if the engine is broke... should you still stay in the car or find another one?"
To that, all I can say is if it causes you major pain and agony, then there's little room for love.

To me, love is more like playing tennis doubles...

You gotta seek for and try out different partners because staying with your first pairing just might never produce winning results.

But don't dump before you've tried hard. Remember and realize that loadsa trial and error are needed in order to achieve immaculate understanding.

And it definitely requires good teamwork for you to score big, innit ;p

and… exhale

2007-04-23T13:28:00.000+08:00

Just when I thought my world was gonna crumble (read: Man U drew 1-1 with Boro at Old Trafford on Saturday), Chelsea made it possible for me to breathe again (read: The Blues failed to capitalize on the golden opp to close the gap to just one point, drawing 0-0 with Newcastle yesterday).

Obrigado, senhor Mourinho! ;)

~*~

Another Portuguese totally made my weekend. Cristiano Ronaldo, currently English football’s “hottest” winger, swept both the senior and junior Professional Footballers' Association “Player of The year” titles.

He who’ve also recently silenced all speculations regarding his exit from Man U by signing a five-year contract with the Red Devils.

Nós te amamos muito muito, número sete. :)

manchester united to play in kl on 27 july 07

2007-04-18T17:30:00.000+08:00

Woo-effin-hoo!!!

with soap, please!

2007-04-18T10:37:00.000+08:00

Was listening to Fly FM this morning (what can I say; am a Fly Gal, huhu) and something really caught my attention. See, they have a daily segment called “Fix It” where people would write in with a particular prob and PhatMan & RoBen (read: alter-egos of Phat Fabes and Ben) would try their very best to solve it.

Now, today’s predicament involved a dude who supposedly doesn’t wash his hands after doing his “bizniz” (read: tha shiznit, ya dig?). The sender of the email, a colleague of this dude's, also mentioned that he’s witnessed Mr Shiznit going about his routine straight after—hands filthy and all—doing things like eating nasi daun pisang (eew!) and even shaking people’s hands (double eew!).

Mr Shiznit got all defensive and shiznit and eventually told the sender to mind his bizniz as “it’s my own mouth that I hand-feed and thus it’s got nothing to do with you!”

I mean, what the hell kinda lame-ass excuse is that? I really don’t get it when people just don’t clean their hands after visiting the loo. Don’t they know how much bacteria and God-knows-what-other-filthy-beings lurk in such a place? Urgh, even the utter thought of it is giving me chills and goose bumps all over my body—dis-gus-ting la brader!

The thing is, you’re bound to touch something that doesn’t belong to you/is shared with all, i.e. the door, the phone, the computer, the lift buttons, other people’s hands, your girlfriend’s face…
So, please. Be considerate of others and WASH YOUR HANDS!!!

NOTE
Other scenario which should end with a good hand-cleansing action:
- After mopping/sweeping
- After touching/taking out the garbage bag
- After touching your pet
- After digging your nose/ears/whichever parts which I refuse to mention here
- After cleaning your nails
- After flossing/picking your teeth
- After sneezing/coughing
- After blowing your nose and wetting your fingers…

random thoughts

2007-04-12T16:05:00.000+08:00

Heard this please-save-water community message on Mix FM this morning. One of the lines goes like this:
"Use a bucket not a hose to wash your cup"

Is it just me, or do you find this thought extremely disgusting?

~*~

I am SO into the Beyonce and Shakira duet, "Beautiful Liar." Haven't seen the video yet, but I'm pretty sure it will be even hotter than just listening to the song.

Can you imagine how much ass-shaking will be involved? Crazy stuff.

"Beyonceee, Beyoncee... Shakiraaa, Shakiraaa"

~*~

Still finding it hard to believe that three out of the four semi-finalists for this season's Champions League are made up of English sides.

No disrespect to Liverpool, but the possibility of all the finals that concern my Red Devils will be a showdown between the EPL current leaders and the defending champ is truly exhilirating... but friggin annoying at the same time.

I bloody abhor Chelsea, urgh!

hot hot hot

2007-04-11T15:12:00.000+08:00

Dude! My long-time dream has come true: Mackers has finally finally brought over their yummylicious Hotcakes (pancakes they are, really).

As a child, I often walloped them whenever the family was overseas cuz hey, being Muslims it ain’t easy to find halal breakfast. When we’re back on home soil, I used to fantasise about sinking my teeth in those fluffy round thingies coated with their whipped butter and syrup.

Ah, the simple pleasures of life… now in KL. It’s about time, I say!

(btw you can also opt to enjoy them with sundae, mmmhmmmm…)

scintillating seven

2007-04-11T15:09:00.000+08:00

After a week of heartbreak (what with the 2-1 losses at Italy and Pompey respectively), my boys in Red proved to the world that they’re still champion material by cruising through to the final four of the Champions League last nite.

Though I set my alarm at 3am, gotta admit that the 2+ hours only of slumber prevented my eyes from staying open. But I finally crawled out of bed at half-time, and boy, is there a better way of losing sleepiness: The scoreline was FOUR-zero and the game was already half over.

How not to wake up?

And then the goals just kept on coming: Ronaldo’s second, Evra’s first-ever and Carrick’s first- and second-ever. But it’s not really the goals that made it blissful. It’s the quality of play—penetrative, adventurous, menacing.

I really like.

But in my joy and all its glory, I couldn’t help but feel helpless for such a high-caliber team that is Roma. To get your behind majorly whopped in such a manner in the quarters of the CL is way to cruel, if you ask me.

And some of the goals, gorgeous as they were, should have been easily saved by their goalie. It’s as if on this one somber night for Romans, Doni forgot one of the crucial basics of keeping—ALWAYS GUARD YOUR NEAR POST.

Whatever. I’m just happy that we’re still in the race. And even happier that my Red Devils managed to prove utterly and terribly wrong the notion that Italian defense is indestructible.

But curse Essien for stealing Chelsea’s victory in the 90th minute (another near-post blunder, sheesh). Now no Spanish team is left, urgh.

Oh, wait. Liverpool’s the favourite to advance tonight, innit?

Sikit latinos pun jadi lah ;)

who says music won’t make you money in this country?

2007-04-09T10:46:00.000+08:00

You know Fly FM’s “End Bits” contest which runs on weekdays in the Big Bang Breakfast Show segment? Well, for those not in the know, this involves the DJ playing a short snippet of the end bit of a song (hence the name) and you gotta guess which song it comes from.

For the looooooongest time, no one managed to come up with the correct answer and so the cash has snowballed to a whopping RM16,000!!!

I don’t know about you, but I reckon what we have here is totally INSANE stuff!

If you think you’ve got what it takes to walk away with that indecent amount of prize money, visit http://www.flyfm.com.my/bigbangbreakfast.asp#eb and go claim your cash.

Oh and if you do win, faster pay me the 10% royalty ya ;)

trouble, too, at the home front

2007-04-06T12:00:00.000+08:00

I’ve been thinking of the right words to express my feelings about the current state of our Malaysian futsal team for a week now, but I guess there’s no fancy way to say it so I’mma just give it to ya straight:

We are in serious trouble, mister.

Last week, my friends in the national squad battled it out at the bi-annual AFF championships in Thailand. This time, they were lead by local chap, Coach Bala (whom, I believe, was their trainer prior to the arrival of Silvio Machado in December’02).

Now, a little history lesson. We met the Thais in the last two AFF finals (2003 & 2005). Granted, we lost both of these matches but the goal difference were only a mere 4.

This time, though, we met our northern neigbour at the semis, and we <<>> 13-0.

THIRTEEN! And to none! Now this, ladies and gents, was the fact that I found truly hard to stomach over the past 7 days.

Sigh. I wonder what Lula (as Coach Silvio is known) has to say about this. All his hard work to lessen the gap between us and the Thais, and now it’s almost back to square one. It’s as if he never came. Sad, very sad.

But know what? Perhaps I should laugh instead. I mean, what the hell was FAM thinking? That by eliminating a Brazillian coach, a local coach can take us further?

Please don’t get me wrong. I am not one of those who glorify the abilities of foreigners and look down on Malaysians. But it is important for us to sedar diri if we haven’t sufficient knowledge nor experience in a certain field, for serious. It’s simple, plain logic, really.

I don’t mean to live in the past, but if someone can tell me how to better the fate of futsal in our country, then only shall I stop dwelling on the memory of a greatness that touched Malaysian futsal once upon a time, but have since been lost and greatly missed…

Prior to the Brazillian’s arrival in December 2002, what we thought was futsal was actually a bunch of footballers plucked from the outdoor fields and planted onto the smaller indoor courts. (Read: futsal knowledge=zero.)

So, what has the past 36-or-so months brought in terms of accolades to Malaysian futsal?

Under Mr Machado’s guidance, the Malaysian futsal contingent joined seven international tournaments, out of which a total of 31 matches were played. Our boys pushed themselves to three finals, losing to SEA’s big guns Thailand twice (AFF Futsal Championship 2003 & 2005) but more importantly, clinching their first-ever Champion title from rivals Indonesia in front of a beaming home crowd at the KL World 5s 2003 (Bowl category).

All in all, Lula and his boys battled their way to a total of 13 wins, 1 draw and 17 losses. Make that just 13 losses, since the other four friendly-match call-ups in Chinese-Taipei should not be taken into consideration. Why? Well, I’ve discounted the said games because our squad only had one weeks’ worth of training.

Since we’re on the topic, I would like to open eyes and dawn some realisation onto the less learned. In his three-year reign as Head Coach of the Malaysian national futsal team, Lula only got to train his boys for a collective amount of 6.9 months. That’s a shocking 19.2% out of 36 months!

Thus, how anyone can expect—or worse still, demand—huge successes when the resources are puny is beyond me. Think about it. You’ve got a team which is less than 3 years old, and you get only, what, a week or two max to train (which includes preparing your players both physically and mentally, and revisit as well as introduce new technical and tactical stuff) prior to a major tournament!

That, coupled with the sad fact that Malaysia has neither professional futsal players nor national/professional leagues—a vital avenue of keeping players’ forms up during off-season—I find it amazing that the national team has come thus far. As Faarhad Masraf, a fellow active futsal fanatic (who also coaches team Dinamix, made up of budding junior futsallers, as well as men’s club side, Samba FC) cites: “Before this, we were only third string in AFF [Futsal Championship] and always were being outclassed by the Thais and Indos. But now, the Thais can only score small-margin wins over us, and they know for sure that given a bit more time (and with proper guidance), we can overturn the tables on the Thais and even compete among the best in Asia.”

Let’s study a comparison between us and our northern neighbours, who, after years of building futsal in their country, have been dubbed the honorary title of “The Brazil of Asia.”

Thailand has its own pro- and semi-pro leagues. Malaysia has "liga haram" A lot of Thai players train in Brazil. We had one Brazillian coach coming here to educate and make ends meet with limited support. Thailand constantly has international friendlies, in their country and overseas. Here, we only have "exhibition matches" (which is a rare occurrence) as well as friendlies with the top “liga haram" teams. In Thailand, futsal is part of the curriculum in schools and universities. In Malaysia, futsal is known only to a select group of people.

You’d probably be thinking “well, the Thai national futsallers deserve all that for their proven successes.” But get this: even Indonesia, considered at par with Malaysia in futsal years, is going out of their way to inject more power into their national team. A month before this year's AFC Futsal Tourney, their first team was flown to Spain (or was it Brazil? either way, this is a big deal as Spain are the current reigning World Champs, and Brazil is regarded as one of the globe's best as well) to train and gain overseas exposure. And what do our boys get? Fourteen days of centralised training after months of inactivity. Well, Hallelujah!

Despite the hardship and lack of support, Lula fought on. With approval from FAM sans monetary allowance, Lula drafted and implemented futsal developments plans for various levels. Keep in mind that as national coach, he was only responsible for the national senior team. But the Brazillian was all too happy to go beyond his job scope, all in the name of ensuring that futsal—proper futsal, mind you—flourishes in our country.

With the help of other coaches, some national players and money dug out of his own pockets, Lula carried out programmes for the national Under-23, U-20, U-17 and even one called “Futsal For Beginners.” Other than that, he also shared his wisdom tirelessly with local club teams who seeked him out. Even small-fry ones like my ladies’ team, the Sports Barn Wildcatz, have had the honour of this great man gracing our training sessions. Slowly but surely, those who were monitoring the progress of their beloved game were both delighted and impressed by the kind of improvement that was unfolding before their very eyes.

In return, Lula expected nothing but commitment towards his cause; he wouldn’t even accept loot in exchange for coaching hours. It is this grand display of selflessness and fervour that earned him the adoration and respect of his players (who stuck with him despite receiving painful daily cursing and tongue-lashings) and many other devoted local futsal followers. It’s obvious that he does everything for the pure love of the game.

Why? Because Silvio Sergio Astor Guimaraés Machado, three-time Futsal World Cup winner, has pure faith in the talents that he’s seen in this country.

If only our own people have the same passion and belief embedded in them.

*Taken from my farewell tribute to Lula entitled “Still can’t believe it’s over” at http://sellyselina.blogs.friendster.com/purrs_hisses/2005/11/index.html

what’s with the ultra violence?

2007-04-05T11:57:00.000+08:00

Made sure I went to bed by 10+ last nite so as to not miss Man U’s Champions League quarter-final match.

Yes it is at 2+ in the AM, and yes I am a working chica, and yes since I got married I am awakened daily at 6+ by The Hub’s alarm clock, but hey, miss this glorious and rare chance of witnessing a grand clash between my Red Devils and Totti’s Roma side? Now that's a crazy thought!

And so up I was at the wee hours of the night, very groggy… and very heartburnt.

Plopped myself flat on my front with a cushion under my upper-belly (trust you me, the next time you suffer from heartburn or excessive gas, this is the way to go people! A pillow would do just as good) and watched in double agony as old boy Paul committed totally idiotic, totally unnecessary tackles. And my boys in white were forced to see Red.

While the pain in my tummy was subsiding, the torture on my tired eyes increased soon after with a weak deflected goal from Taddei. 0-1 down and we’re left with ten men?

I was thisss close to succumbing to the pain and switching the telly off.

But my tum-tum was still only half-better, so on I went with my “pillow therapy” (uhm, perhaps I should warn you that if you plan to relieve your ailing tummy this way, best do it in the bliss of solitude. Please, have mercy on other souls) wishful about both my own struggle and that of my Red Devils.

Wahey! Keeping the faith paid off when Rooney decided to end his CL goal drought in sheer composure and Man U leveled, thanks to the undisputable skills and speed of Ronaldo (please pleaseee don’t leave us next season..!)

Unfortunately, this joy was shortlived when Roma sneaked in another just six minutes later. Friggin Italians, urgh.

But hey, a 1-2 result away is not too bad I reckon, better than a 0-1 loss ‘cause that would mean we don’t have a precious away goal, which might make all the difference later.

And so my heartburn only converted into just a teeny weeny heartbreak for my team’s first loss since December.

Now, where’s the violence, you ask? During half-time there was a major fracas going on in the stands. I watched in complete horror as ugly scenes of Italian police wildly batoning the hell of some spectators were played. The post-show later revealed that it was just the Man United fans that were being “disciplined”—nada of them even lifted a finger to the Roma fans, even with the latter launching missiles over to the fans of The Sir’s side.

Today’s reports state that ten United fans are in hospital due to stab wounds (one on the neck!) and as many as 18 others are suffering injuries received during the nasty brawl which continued at the stadium.

Reminds me of the controversial AC Milan-Inter CL clash two seasons or so ago when goalie Dida got hit in the head with a firecracker, and the game had to be aborted because the fans got overly out of hand.

Sigh, seems this kind of embarrassing display (am talking Europe here) only happens in Italy, innit? Next time anyone goes there, I reckon the “Ultras” (as Italy’s footie hooligans are known) should be contained in a bullet-proof cage with huge signs that say “CAUTION: ULTRA VIOLENT ITALIANS!”

doing my bit for society

2007-04-02T13:06:00.000+08:00

Anyone who knows me would know that futsal and I are synonymous. And those who know me well would know that I truly believe we have tremendous talent in this sport that’s just waiting to be discovered and polished, if only Azalina would bloody well do something about it.

Well, to wait around for any menteri to actually practice what she preaches about "developing futsal at grassroot level" is like waiting for khinzirs to fly, for serious. And so to not waste any more time just hoping on our behinds, a few of my fellow Wildcatz plus a good futsal mate from Carroad ventured early on Saturday morning to SM Bandar Utama, with the objective of teaching some wide-eyed teenage chicas to play ball.

There were five of us, 29 of them, and only 12 balls. A rather dodgy equation, this we were fully aware of, but hey the show had to go on!

We started with the boring-but-vital basics—make sure your ankle is locked, use the side of your foot to pass, stop the ball with the sole of your foot, etc.

We let them get comfy with the ball and taught them very basic movement with it (We said, "Imagine that it’s your little sister; you gotta make sure that she’s always with you—don't let her get in front of you, nor behind. You gotta always be in control." Their response? "Ahh, we’ll treat it like our boyfriends." Cheeky lot!)

We tortured them a little (heh) with sprints. And tormented them (heh heh) by playing "monkey."

And finally, we divided them into four teams and watched while they went wild against each other.

Gotta say that all the delight and excitement on their faces more than made up for me having to wake up at ungodly hours that morning, for serious.

One-up to us—you ain't got nothin' on this, Dato'!

*Note: the obvious discontentment with the Sports & Youth Ministry stemmed from the cancellations of major sporting events in KL (namely the Asian X Games and especially the KL World 5s) for the lame-ass reason of "these events take up too much money; money that would be better off spent for developments at grassroot level." What development?!

disappointing

2007-02-13T10:51:00.000+08:00

Did you see Datuk Siti's outfit at the Grammy's? Though it was a lovely ensemble, I can't help but rant a little on it.

I mean, come on... Call me old-fashioned but when you've been given the rare honour of representing Malaysia at such a major international event, shouldn't you promote our very own beautiful batik and gorgeous, intricate kebaya?

After all, if we don't show off our heritage, who will innit ;)

the haze is going, the drought is gone

2006-10-29T01:28:00.000+08:00

Wayne Rooney gifted himself with the sweetest 21st birthday pressie by ending his goal drought in superb style. Contributing to Man United's first, second and final goal in tonight's 4-0 thrashing of Bolton, Rooney crushed the "fortress" of the Reebok and reminded his fans of that sweet victory in Europe when he made his first-ever appearance in a Red Devils shirt a memorable one by scoring a hat-trick.

Anyways. As they say, after a drought, it will usually flood. Hear hear! Oh, how good it feels to be on top ;)

mr big

2006-10-26T06:24:00.000+08:00

Does anyone remember them? Their hits included tunes like "To Be With You," "Green Tinted Sixties Mind" and my all-time favourite...

"Just Take My Heart"

It's late at night and neither one of us is sleeping

I can't imagine living my life after you're gone

Wondering why so many questions have no answers

I keep on searching for the reason why we went wrong

Where is our yesterday

You and I could use it right now

But if this is goodbye

Just take my heart when you go

I don't have the need for it anymore

I'll always love you, but you're too hard to hold

Just take my heart when you go

Here we are about to take the final step now

I just can't fool myself, I know there's no turning back

Face to face it's been an endless conversation

But when the love is gone you're left with nothing but talk

I'd give my everything

If only I could turn you around

But if this is goodbye

Just take my heart when you go

I don't have the need for it anymore

I'll always love you but you're too hard to hold

Just take my heart when you go

pride | stupidity

2006-10-13T16:53:00.000+08:00

I think it’s high time I break the three-month silence, and what better reason than to bitch about the idiocy of McClaren’s England.

Last Saturday, I witnessed as the world’s top individual football greats tremble against Macedonia. Three of the globe’s best midfielders were struggling for their right to shine in their area of expertise, and as the world knows, three’s company—Carrick was found wanting, Gerrard reduced to less-than-ordinary, and Lampard… well, I’ve never thought much of the no-skills-can-only-capitalise-from-a-deflection player, anyways.

Next up: a trip to Croatia. They with a vicious team who (1) have never lost on home soil, (2) have fans who will cheer them on and jeer their foes to the end, and most importantly, (3) were psyched up after seeing England struggle with Macedonia.

Of course, England failed. So easily, at that. Shapeless and in a shambles. I laughed my heart out while the so-called “world’s greats” fumbled and stumbled.

I could almost see the headlines of tomorrow. “Bring Becks Back!” it will shout. By those who wanted him out in the first place, no less. I mean, for serious, putting aside my undying love for the former captain, no one can deny that with Beckham back in the team, a whole world of difference it would make.

Why McClaren has omitted the ex-skipper is beyond me, really. There’s no great reason nor benefit for leaving him off the list. Heck, other than Lennon, Becks was the only one who performed at Germany’06, for crying out loud! Oh, wait. Here’s one: Stevie is an egotistical fool who refuse to have any association whatsoever with his predecessor’s favourite so he won't be caught dead following the latter's footsteps.

Fool, I still say, because as bad as Sven was, it took him a healthy four YEARS before his first defeat. As opposed to Stevie’s lame five MATCHES.

With that, allow me to throw this to you: if McClaren wasn’t English, and he’s displayed on a shelf side-by-side with Eriksson, would the powers that be even look at the former?

he says, he says

2006-07-13T18:02:00.000+08:00

Embracing this year’s World Cup as a fan of Argentina’s, England’s and Australia's, I was impartial as to which Blue force should lift the coveted trophy.

Okay, okay, being the sentimental fool that I am, I must admit that my preference was slightly heavier on Les Bleus seeing that it was Zinedine Zidane’s very last competitive match.

In any case, what it was that I truly hoped for was a grand finals clash that would leave a sweet, unforgettable aftertaste lasting for the next four years.

Unforgettable I got, yes, but so far from sweet. Zizou, pedigree and all, had his farewell match rudely truncated when he was red carded off the pitch at Extra Time. Zizou, extremely experienced and all, turned around and gloriously head-butted in the chest—much like a raging bull—the Azzurri’s Materazzi after some words were exchanged at high temperatures.

As soon as I saw that, I turned to my ever-so-loyal WC06 buddy that is my father, and said, “Being Italian, I am so sure that he must’ve said something very crude about either Zidane’s mother, or wife, or God.”

Today, my suspicions became facts. After days of staying silent, the (ex) French skipper has finally spoken.

'If I reacted that way, it is because something bad happened. Do you really believe that 10 minutes before the end of my career I would be able to make such a bad gesture? The provocation was very serious.'

'There was no tension with Materazzi before or during the match,' Zidane said.

'He just put his hand on to my shirt and I told him to stop. I told him that if he wanted it I could give it to him at the end of the match.

'Then he said very harsh words to me and repeated them several times. I left but then I went back towards him and things went very fast.

'The words he said concerned my mother and sister. I heard them once, then twice, and the third time I couldn't control myself. I am a man and some words are harder to hear than actions.

'I would have rather been knocked down than hear that.

'Afterwards I explained to the referee that I had been provoked, but my behaviour is not forgivable,' Zidane said.

The 1998 World Cup winner, who could even be stripped of his Golden Ball award as the player of the 2006 tournament, said: 'The reaction is always punished but if there is no provocation there is no reaction. The guilty person is the one who provokes.

During an interview with French television station Canal Plus, in which Zidane gave his first public comments on the incident, Zidane publicly apologised for being sent off but insisted he did not regret his actions.
'I reacted badly and I would like to apologise for it,' Zidane said.
'I would like to apologise because a lot of children were watching the match. I do apologise but I don't regret my behaviour because regretting it would mean he was right to say what he said.'

Materazzi, of course, denies saying anything of the sort.

'I didn't mention anything about religion, politics or racism,' he said. (earlier reports speculated that the Italian defender called Zidane "a dirty terrorist.")

'I didn't insult his mother. I lost my mother when I was 15 years old and still get emotional when I talk about it.

'Naturally, I didn't know that his mother was in hospital but I wish her all the best.
'Zidane is my hero and I have always admired him a lot.'

If whatever you're claiming is true, Signor, then fine. But if you are guilty of any of the above, then vafangkulo (however you spell it) to you!

Whatever the case, I hope FIFA takes this very, very seriously.

almost over

2006-07-09T11:25:00.000+08:00

Four weeks ago, I would laugh in your face if you said to me that the last four would be Germany, Portugal, France and Italy. Okay, okay, Germany wasn't such a shocker since host nations usually get the luck (by "luck" I also mean much help from the refs) to reach the semis, but Portugal, France and Italy?

Portugal isn't exactly the top five amongst the world's best footballers. France's display was close to pathetic in the opening matches. As for Italy, not only did they gift an own goal to the United States, they needed to fake a fall to win over Australia for crying out loud!

Having said that, they got their act together, started to get serious and taught a young Germany side a lesson they will never forget: that not only confidence but experience will get you through. And most importantly, the Azzurri did it in style.

As for the French, the start of their World Cup'06 campaign looked like they weren't thirsty enough to end their years of goal draught. Each and every match after, however, sucked less and less, and slowly but surely they pushed themselves to the quarters. But not even five-time and defending champs Brazil could stop them. And in the semis, Les Bleus persevered and stopped history from repeating itself when they overcame a vicious Portuguese side.

As much as I hate to admit it, as with many of Chelsea's succesful games, Claude Makalele played a vital part in keeping France's World Cup'06 hopes alive. And especially Zinedine Zidane, who's nothing short of inspiring. Despite the poor start to his final competitive season, the soon-to-be footballing legend rose to the occasion just in time to lead his compatriots to the finals.

I don't know about you, but I'd say our hearts are in for a great workout tonight when the two Big Blues clash.

May the best team win.

is this for real?

2006-07-05T14:20:00.000+08:00

If indeed it is, then shame on the scientists! But nah, it looks more like the experimental procedures only happened in Photoshop, innit...

all hope is lost

2006-07-03T13:28:00.000+08:00

I was reduced to tears, for serious.

Argentina--my Argentina--was robbed of all civillised decisions at their quarter-final clash with 2006 hosts, Germany. With all due respect to the latter, whose team has improved tremendously since four years ago, the Slovakian ref made it oh-too-easy for them to clinch the win.

Of course, Argentinean coach Jose Pekerman must also be held partially culpable for the loss. Removing two creative and influential attacking players in Riquelme and Crespo and substituting them for the defensive strenghts of Cruz and Cambiasso was nothing short of stupid, really. I mean, fine, Cambiasso is known for his goal-scoring capabilities, but only sporadically at best. And Julio Cruz? So what if Argentina was leading? Everyone in the world knows that a one-goal cushion doesn't spell comfort these days. And it's not like you're cursed with England's problems--you've still got terrorising weapons in Messi and Saviola, for crying out loud!

Anyways, I digress. What I really wanted to rant about was the ref. Could he have made it even more obvious that he was biased to the hosts? I'm not saying that the Germans didn't deserve to win, but I am saying that Argentina deserved more justice.

In my frustration, my father (who was on neutral ground) shed some light on me. "Do you think the fact that non-Europeans can never do well when the WC is held in Europe is sheer coincidence? The referees have been doing this for decades, my dear."

Take a moment and think about it. It's sick, yes, but it's the truth. Sigh.

That game was the last straw, and now I'm completely disenchanted with the WC2006. I didn't even feel anything when I saw England perish to Portugal, especially upon finding out that the ref appointed for that match was Argentinean. A commandable choice, indeed, given the long hate-hate history behind England and Argentina in the World Cup.

Someone call me when true fair play is back, please?

last 16

2006-06-29T18:31:00.000+08:00

... and now my rantings on the second round of the WC.

Germany deserved every bit of their 2-0 victory over Sweden. They're taking their promise to the world that they're now a force to be reckoned very, very seriously, and are a treat to watch.

Argentina and Mexico nearly gave me a major heart arrest with their psychotic performance. While I truly respect Mexico for their obvious improvements since that shameful game against Italy the last time (you know, the got-the-lucky-goal-so-let's-just-play-it-safe-for-the-rest-of-the-match-by-passing-the-ball-amongst-ourselves-in-our-half, sheesh!), I am even more elated that my favourite team has gone through.

England put me to sleep yet again with their oh-so-bosan display against Ecuador, but gotta admit that my hubby's free kick was a pure beauty.

Portugal and Netherlands, well what can I say? 16 yellow cards+4 red cards (tourney record so far, me reckons)=overflow of drama! Not gonna take any sides 'cause both were equally dirty.

Now, I've said this before and am gonna shout it again: THE REFS AT THIS TOURNEY SUCK! And no other game so far exemplifies this than the Italy-Australia clash. The red that caused Italy to have only 10 men was uncalled for. But more blatantly unjust was the 93rd-minute penalty awarded to the Azzurri, when it was clear that Fabio Grosso's tumble over Lucas Neill was no fault of the Aussie defender. I'm not saying that Australia deserved to win that match more than the Italians. I mean, so what if the former were more resilient, right? What I am saying is that the Socceroos definitely didn't deserve to lose in such a shocking manner. Boo.

Can't comment much on Switzerland vs Ukraine, because I didn't even bother watching this one. Which is mightaswell, since reviews said that it was a blah affair.

Happy to see that Brazil is getting their act together, upping their football levels a notch since their lacklustre 1st-round showing, but it was sad to see Ghana perish so easily after they impressively demolished the Czech Republic. Even sadder was them being so persistent with the (so-called) offside traps. Hello? Your opponents are only the five-time world champs. Of course they're not gonna fall for your lame tricks!

And finally, it's disappointing to see Spain add another chapter to their long history of underachieving as a national team. With that much talent, it's almost pathetic, really. All said and done regarding the French, I'm glad to see them coming on form only for sentimental reasons--it is Zidane's final competitive tournament, after all.

Tomorrow is Germany-Argentina. I sure hope and pray that the referees will not live up to their bad reputation of biasness. Come on-lah, ref, it really isn't that hard. You just gotta let the football do the talking.

totally super

2006-06-19T14:16:00.000+08:00

The 6-0 goalfest for Argentina/thrashing of Serbia & Montenegro was especially twinkling in my list—as well as Diego Maradona’s, who couldn’t contain his euphoria—of wonders, being that I am part Argentine (for serious). Each of the goals from Esteban Cambiasso (31st minute), Hernán Crespo(78'), Carlos Tevez (84'), Lionel Messi (88') as well as the double from Maxi Rodríguez (6’ & 41’) spelt sheer skill, talent and tactical greatness. Of course, the competitor part of me couldn’t help feeling deeply sorry for the Serbs for their humiliating defeat. How could I not, since we’re talking about a team which, in their whole World Cup 2006 campaign, only conceded ONE goal. Tsk tsk.

Of course, there was the shocking 2-0 demolition of the #2 FIFA ranked Czech Republic courtesy of Ghana. Ghana! The unlikely debutants whopping the asses of one of the biggest footballing forces of the world, simultaneously recording an impressive first win for an African nation at Germany’06. Great stuff.

Then there’s the amazing sweeping header by Alberto Gilardino, which gave Italy a short-lived lead over a determined-to-overcome-their-pathetic-0-3-start USA side. Before long, the Americans managed to level but not without the help of opposing defender, Cristian Zaccardo. And within 60 seconds of that bizarre own goal, the Azzurri found themselves one man short when Daniele De Rossi viciously tore open Brian McBride’s face with his elbow. USA followed suit—twice within a period of two minutes—and so it was 10 men in blue vs 9 men in white. Not to forget the controversial disallowed goal that almost gave the USA the three points they so desperately wanted. Phew! Such a huge dose of drama in just one football game, innit.

Brazil disappointed yet again with a mediocre performance. They were made to work very, very hard by Australia, who continued their brilliant display. To be fair to the Samba Kings, Mark Schwarzer was tested many a time, plus fantastic shots that were denied by the Australian woodwork. Having said that, however, the Socceroos also made sure to give Dida and his defenders major scares. In the end, experience prevailed over perseverance, and it was the yellow sea of Brazil that were celebrating the 2-0 result.

As for France, well, Thierry Henry gifted his sorry-looking team with a superb 8th-minute finishing, ending a long World Cup goal drought since Emmanuel Petit’s successful strike at France’98. Disappointingly, Les Bleus carelessly allowed Park Ji-Sung’s hard work to convert into a goal, ending the night with a 1-1 draw. Boo France, hooray Red Devils! (Btw for you less learned lot out there, Manchester United and South Korea national football team—both of which Park plays for—are associated with this same nickname. Talk about amazing coincidences, huh.)

What a wonderful weekend it was for footie lovers, indeed.

cannot kongsi raya?

2006-06-16T17:55:00.000+08:00

The Ulama Conference 2006 committee chairman said on Tuesday that the gomen should review “kongsi raya” celebs and open houses. Why? Because apparently, this concept is in danger of contradicting Islam and its beliefs.

The Star reported that “the ulama’s ruling followed the National Fatwa Committee’s decision that celebrating the festivals of other religions could erode the faith of Muslims and lead to blasphemy.”

Okay, first and foremost, I’m not even sure that Datuk Seri Harussani Zakaria was correctly quoted, given the biased nature of our press.

But, if whatever the papers have reported is true, then shame on you, Datuk Seri. Because thanks to you and like individuals, Muslims the world over are suffering the nasty consequences. Jeered for supposedly being closed-minded. And, worse still, tortured for supposedly being uncompromising in our ways.

Don’t get me wrong. I truly and utterly respect the rules of our religion. That we should steer clear of things that are syirik, like practicing black magic, believing in horoscopes, and attending Sunday school. These would shake our faith, yes.

But throwing “kongsi raya” activities in a country which prides itself of its muhibbah nation--God forbid!? I truly doubt so.

Having said that, however, I do have reservations about Muslims taking advantage of religious celebrations to party the night away. You want to go clubbing? Fine. You want to drink? It's your prerogative. But please don't lift those alcoholic beverages and say "cheers" to celebrate Hari Raya. Or cite "Bismillah" when you're breaking fast... with beer.

It is these kinds of display that are giving the ulama a cause for worry when it comes to us more liberal Muslims.

Anyways, I slightly digress. The point I was trying to make is that there's nothing blasphemous with "kongsi raya," as long as no religious taboos are committed.

After all, sharing is caring innit.

day 8

2006-06-16T12:26:00.000+08:00

England did an Australia. After a lacklustre 84-or-so minutes against a pumped-up Trinidad & Tobago side, Crouchie and Stevie G proved what exactly they're made of dangerously late in the game, when they scored a goal each for their country.

And my star of the night? Darling Beckham, who kept producing those beautiful bending balls that he's so famed for. Eh, I'm not saying this just because he's my hubby (yes, people, Posh is his second wife). But I reckon amongst a sea of bland English footballers last night, their el kapitan was the one who kept it alive for them.

I would also give snaps to Spurs's Aaron Lennon, whose fresh legs gave his team fresh hopes in the second half. And Rooney? Yeah, he played. Yeah, he did give England that sting that was so badly needed. But of course, since he's freshly recovered, he only managed to cause tiny problems to the opposition. In any case, welcome back, Wayne.

And tonight? Looks like I won't be getting any quality shut-eye. Just look lah at the fixtures...

21:00 ARGENTINA vs SERBIA & MONTENEGRO
00:00 NETHERLANDS vs IVORY COAST
03:00 MEXICO vs ANGOLA

Psychotic, innit.

day 6

2006-06-15T16:30:00.000+08:00

Spain made me a very happy camper when they blasted four goals to the back of Ukraine’s net last night. Only thing, though, this win was marred by am imbecilic move by the ref, who flashed a red to a truly undeserving Vladislav Vashchuk. Undeserving, I say, because the mild shirt-tugging happened outside the box. Plus, Fernando Torres didn’t even fall down. At most, it was a yellow card, for serious. Bad referee, bad bad bad.

Deeper into the night, I was delighted to be proven wrong. Silly me thought that the Saudi Arabia-Tunisia face-off would just cause yawns. How wrong was I! Both sides showed great skills, grit, and perseverance. Enough to make a 1-0-at-halftime match turn into a pumping 2-all draw at FT. Purely exhilarating stuff!

Anyways, round 2 of the group stage kicked off last night, with Germany pulling a late winner against bitter rivals Poland, who failed to get any goals in. And tonight, England will meet Trinidad & Tobago. Over in Germany, the kick-off will be while the sun is still up, and thus I bid Eriksson’s boys the best of luck as they’re going against a Caribbean side that’s unfazed by extreme heat.

By the way, it seems we might be able to catch Wonderful Wayne in ball-kicking action tonight. Sven has declared the young striker as “match fit” for tonight, defying the his team’s fitness coach’s opinion that it will be another week before Rooney is fully fit.

While I can’t wait to see Man U’s golden boy terrorise on the pitch, I reckon his national team coach is being ultimately careless and selfish about this. I mean, it will take only a slight trip for Rooney to get himself back in a rut (god forbid).

But worse, what if he kena kaw-kaw? It could mean he might never be able to kick a ball again.
And that, ladies and gents, would be a downright dirty shame indeed.

If that were to happen, the people of the world had better find shelter, because few is greater than The Wrath of The Sir…

senyum kangaru

2006-06-13T13:05:00.000+08:00

Australia kicked-off their World Cup campaign with a brilliant albeit chilling start last night, winning 3-1 over Asian football bigwigs, Japan.

The Japs, who secured a debatable goal in the 26th minute thanks to Shunsuke Nakamura, had their fans’ cheers and celebrations rudely truncated when they were careless to let one pass in the last 6 minutes of the game.

Obviously shaken and stirred, they allowed a second goal from Everton’s Tim Cahill just five minutes later. And disappointingly, yet another hit the back of the Japanese net courtesy of John Aloisi in the 92nd minute.

Granted, the Aussies seriously deserved their goals—hey, they had at least triple amounts of shots as compared to their opponents—but the Japs played really well. And elated as I am that my underdog Socceroos escaped with kangaroo smiles (OZ! OZ! OZ! Oi! Oi! Oi!), I’m also disappointed that the Japs were defeated in such a manner.

Oh, well. Can’t wait to see both sides facing-off against defending champs Brazil. For those who’re equally as interested, here are the fixtures for those games:

BRAZIL vs AUSTRALIA Monday, June 19 @ 00:00
JAPAN vs BRAZIL Friday, June 23 @ 03:00

wise words

2006-06-09T01:14:00.000+08:00

"It’s not always rainbows and butterflies
It’s compromise that moves us along"
-- Maroon 5

36 hours

2006-06-08T12:00:00.000+08:00

... away to the first match of this year's World Cup, woohoo!

For the benefit of my gila bola readers, here're the kick-off times for this weekend's fixtures:

Sat, 10 June
00:00 GERMANY vs COSTA RICA
03:00 POLAND vs ECUADOR
21:00 ENGLAND vs PARAGUAY

Sun, 11 June
00:00 TRINIDAD & TOBAGO vs SWEDEN
03:00 ARGENTINA vs IVORY COAST
21:00 SERBIA & MONTENEGRO vs NETHERLANDS

Mon, 12 June
00:00 MEXICO vs IRAN
03:00 ANGOLA vs PORTUGAL

Click here for full listings. Note that all hours reflected in there are in UK time. Add 7 hours to convert to local time.

Oh by the way, it's been reported that Rooney was all smiles after leaving the hospital in Manchester yesterday. Let's keep our fingers crossed that this means we'll be seeing the young lad in action soon enough!

living by your own words

2006-06-05T20:27:00.000+08:00

"Guilt is a strong emotion, to those that feel it. It's a potent learning experience and helps you stop repeating otherwise damaging overt anti-social behaviour if continued would definitely lead to ostracism, or worse.

I suppose when you are younger and don't have as deep an understanding of that there are repercussions to your actions that will affect others or yourself, if not now that most definitely later. Guilt is the realisation that such repercussions could have been avoided only if you hadn't screwed about half as much.

Realisation is such a strong word, which I believe many do not exhibit or experience enough in this world. People have a tendency to act and not care, not realise that they could have hurt someone or in fact just did.

This realisation, if taken positively, builds the foundation of supporting experiences necessary to live a happier life removed from avoidable bad experiences, because, well, you learned to avoid them by not doing them in the first place."

You know, you ought to remember your own words and live by them. perhaps then and only then will you stop hurting others with your "unthinking" actions.

Because you know, a heart that has been shattered time and time again, might be left with little strength to ever heal completely...

kau hancurkan hatiku

2006-06-05T12:59:00.000+08:00

ku katakan dengan indah
dengan terbuka
hatiku hampa
seperti nya luka
menghampirinya

kau beri rasa yang berbeda
mungkin ku salah
mengartikannya
yang ku rasa cinta

tetapi hatiku selalu meninggikanmu
terlalu meninggikanmu
selalu meninggikanmu

kau hancurkan hatiku, hancurkan lagi
kau hancurkan hatiku 'tuk melihatmu
kau terangi jiwaku, kau redupkan lagi
kau hancurkan hatiku 'tuk melihatmu

membuatku terjatuh dan terjatuh lagi
membuatku merasakan yang tak terjadi
semua yang terbaik dan yang terlewati
semua yang terhenti tanpa ku akhiri
-- peterpan

ada apa denganmu?

2006-06-05T12:45:00.000+08:00

sudah, lupakan semua
segala berubah
dan kita terlupa
dan kita terluka

dan aku, sifatku
dan aku, khilafku
dan aku, cintaku
dan aku, rinduku

ku tanya malam dapatkah kau lihatnya
perbedaan yg tak terungkapkan
tapi mengapa kau tak berubah
ada apa denganmu?

hanya malam dapat meleburkan
segala rasa yang tak terungkapkan
tapi mengapa kau tak berubah
ada apa denganmu?
-- peterpan

back in the saddle again

2006-06-05T11:03:00.000+08:00

Last Saturday, my all-ladies futsal team were in full tourney action after being inactive for a few months. And by inactive, I don’t just mean zero participations in tournaments. I mean, not even trainings. And, worst of all, for some of us no futsal whatsoever for over a month!

Anyways, gotta say that I had a really great time as we went into it with little expectations of winning (read: no pressure), but ended up earning the fourth spot… so, yay!

The bigger shock was us walking away with medals, big tins of MILO each as well as 500 buckeroos! Not bad for an invitational tourney with zilch registration fees, huh.

(This, just when our funds are running thin… alhamdulillah.)

Anywho, I’d like to say a big, fat muchas gracias to our lovely guest players: Chris (Jujubabez), Wann (Crony FC) & Zue (Just Daisies). It was a dream come true for me to kick balls with you girls, particularly Zue as I’ve always wanted to play alongside your talent.

Speaking of being elated, I was also pleasantly surprised that my team mate with the most powderful shot--but somehow tourney-shy, tsk tsk--finally come out of her shell. Cam ya INDAH GILAK bah main, baby dayak… Iboh lupa: “Agik idup agik ngelaban,” hehe :)

HIDUP BOLA!

brangelina & gwengavin

2006-06-02T16:55:00.000+08:00

Last Friday, my favourite funk-ay lay-day Gwen gave birth to a bouncing baby boy. Elated for Mrs Gavin Rossdale!

What I’m not too hot about, however, is his name: Kingston James McGregor Rossdale. I mean, come on. Kingston? So what would be his nickname, King? Ton? Stone?

But Gwen & Gavin ain't got nothin' on the entity widely known as Brangelina. Their baby girl, who also arrived last week, was christened Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt. I really don’t know what’s worse there. A first name that sounds like a Namibian house pet, or a surname that’s nothing short of snicker-worthy.

I tell you, these Hollywood peeps are so hungry for so-called “originality,” they overlook blatant stupidity, innit.

Jolie-Pitt! Jolly pitt! Jolly armpits! Nyeh nyeh nyeh nyeh nyeh nyeh nyehhh…

¡¡¡hola, hola, hola junio!!!

2006-06-01T14:09:00.000+08:00

June's finally here! Meaning, it's just days away till I get to stuff meself silly with shot after shot after shot after shot (pun fully intended) of footie fixes, awh-yeah!!!

reach semis, get sex

2006-05-31T10:45:00.000+08:00

If Ukraine's players want any, um, quality time with their wives and girlfriends during the World Cup, they better play awfully well.

According to a report in the Russian daily Sport-Express, Ukraine will have to reach the semifinals before its coach will sign off on any extracurricular activities.

When asked if he would allow his players to have sex with their wives and girlfriends during the month-long tournament, Ukraine coach Oleg Blokhin replied, "I would personally send my players to see their wives if we reach the semis."

Apparently whether they want to or not.

"Those who don't feel like it, I'll just drag to their wives," Blokhin added. "Take my word for it." -- FOXSports.com

That's motivation for you!

and the hits just keep on coming

2006-05-30T11:42:00.000+08:00

Yikes, looks like the plot thickens for Rooney. It’s been revealed that he might have a hidden hairline crack at the tip of his fractured metatarsal bone that couldn’t be detected via X-ray earlier—one that doctors say is “an injury that takes longer to heal”—and this could confirm his summer heartache.

Sven, however, remains positive, saying he’s got a “feeling” that Wayne will still play even though medical reports strongly suggest otherwise. In any case, the Swede has requested for an additional scan to be done earlier, so England fans would probably get to know what the deal is on June 7.

You see, FIFA’s deadline for registering players is June 9, and if the result of the planned scan on June 14 proves negative, then Sven would have to go to Germany with only three forwards in Michael Owen, Peter Crouch and young Theo Walcott. Not on at all, is it?

Anyways, if the scan on June 7 confirms Rooney’s no-go, then at least the England manager can go with Plan B—promoting Jermaine Defoe from his sub status.

Not to sound like a sour grape or anything, but even if Rooney’s foot heals according to schedule and he makes it for the 2nd round, there’s no guarantee that his fitness would be on track for a tournament as taxing as the World Cup.

Crappy, innit.

latest from england: rooney on course for germany

2006-05-26T19:13:00.000+08:00

Striker could even play in group stage
Wayne Rooney could play some part in England's last World Cup group match after scan results today suggested the striker could resume full training on June 14. A second scan will be conducted on that date to determine whether to give a definite go-ahead.

While the striker will miss the opener against Paraguay on June 10 and is unlikely to feature against Trinidad and Tobago on June 15, he could be available for selection for England final group game, against Sweden on June 20.

Woohoo!

Read the full article.

footie bit

2006-05-26T18:01:00.000+08:00

England lost 1-2 to a 10-man Belarus team last nite. Tsk tsk.

On the bright side, controversial unknown striker Theo Walcott performed brilliantly, consequently instilling a little bit of assurance to English camps disheartened firstly by Rooney’s untimely injury and then Sven’s shocking choice of frontmen.

Fans would be even more delighted to see that Spur’s winger Aaron Lennon, another uncapped player selected by Sven, was an even brighter star. And with Michael Owen showing undiminished strength, vigour and skills despite having to warm benches since his metatarsal broke last December, England’s World Cup dreams are still not over.

Other than that, I can’t believe how many great players might not be able to perform to their greatest abilities (or, worst still, at all) next month due to injuries. The latest to join this unfortunate list is AC Milan/Ukraine forward, Andriy Schevchenko. Sucky…

Well, whatever it is, I sure as hell am looking forward to this whole weekend that’s packed with international friendlies! For the benefit of you ballheads who’re interested:

Tomorrow @ 10.55pm Germany vs Luxembourg (live)
Sunday @ 1.55am Denmark vs Paraguay (live)
Sunday @ 4am Switzerland vs Ivory Coast (delayed)
Monday @ 1am Croatia vs Iran (delayed)

All matches are to be aired on Astro Supersport.

pay-to-pee loos in school?

2006-05-26T16:33:00.000+08:00

NST reported today that SRK Infant Jesus Convent in Johor Bahru is charging their primary-school students a fee of 10 sen to use the loo.

Their excuse? To recover the RM60K spent by the PTA presumably on upgrading the quality of the little kids’ rooms. Also, some of the teachers said that this move was needed in order to discourage the kids from hanging out in the new toilets. Apparently, “many students are excusing themselves from classes to go to the toilet. This is disrupting lessons.” During recess, however, admittance is free.

I think it’s ridiculous to make these little kids pay, especially if they’re like my brother and need to relieve himself ever-so-often. Hey, can’t blame him and others alike for having healthy bladders! Think about it. 10 sen is quite a lot of money especially if your whole-day’s allowance is just 50 sen.

And don’t even think of telling them to hold it in (which is what many of the students are reportedly doing) because hello, have you ever heard of batu karang?One parent revealed that some of these children were reluctant to drink a lot for fear of having to “go” at school.

How anyone—teachers, especially—can be so cruel to the little ones is beyond me, really.

Look, all they gotta do is be like my teachers way back when: have stringent rules about going to the toilet during teaching hours.

* No one could go without a pass, and each class only has 2/3 passes.
* Each pass only entitles you to be out of class for a maximum of 10 minutes, after which the teacher/prefects will go looking for you.
* Since we had more than one toilet, they were segregated, i.e. Toilet A is strictly for Standards 1 & 2, Toilet B for Standards 3 & 4, Toilet C for Standards 5 & 6.
* If any of the above rules weren’t adhered to, the guilty student will be punished, i.e. perform litter duties for a week.

As for getting back monies spent, heck, the PTA should just be more pro-active throughout the year(s) and organise various stuff that will bring about cash inflow like School Food Day.

At the same time, they can just be honest with the parents and write a letter out to them with the title “RE: Donations For The Betterment Of The School.” Yes, it will take a long time, but hey, so will collecting 10 sen from each kid!

if tomorrow never comes

2006-05-25T16:09:00.000+08:00

I totally adore this song. Think it's one of the most beautiful ever written. And corny as it seems, I believe everyone should live by its words. Because there is no worse feeling in the world than remorse, trust you me. So sing one, sing all, to the words "I Love You," to those who matter to us the most, today.

BTW, it's sung beautifully by Ronan Keating, even more so by Garth Brooks... and the best yet, of course, by my Elliot Yamin ;)

Sometimes late at night
I lie awake and watch her sleeping
She's lost in peaceful dreams
So I turn out the lights and lay there in the dark

And the thought crosses my mind
If I never wake up in the morning
Would she ever doubt the way I feel
About her in my heart

If tomorrow never comes
Will she know how much I loved her
Did I try in every way
To show her every day
That she's my only one

If my time on earth were through
And she must face the world without me
Is the love I gave her in the past
Gonna be enough to last
If tomorrow never comes

'Cause I've lost loved ones in my life
Who never knew how much I loved them
Now I live with the regret
That my true feelings for them never were revealed

So I made a promise to myself
To say each day how much she means to me
And avoid that circumstance
Where there's no second chance
To tell her how I feel

If tomorrow never comes
Will she know how much I loved her
Did I try in every way
To show her every day
That she's my only one

If my time on earth were through
And she must face the world without me
Is the love I gave her in the past
Gonna be enough to last
If tomorrow never comes

So tell that someone that you love
Just what you're thinking of
If tomorrow never comes

woot woot!

2006-05-25T12:47:00.000+08:00

Taylor Hicks aka The Dude With The White Hair aka Soul Patrol, has been crowned the new American Idol. Gotta say, I’m quite pleased that he beat Ms Katharine McPhee for the title.

Yay to pure, quirky talent. Nay to stereotypical Miss America types.

Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against the McPheever. In fact, she was the only girl that I fancied this season. (Okay, that’s a lie. I kinda also liked the young blacks chicas. No one can deny that they’ve got the voices, but hey, boring already lah their style!).

But my problem with Katharine is that she’s too pretty, too perfect to win. Yes, she’s the one with the “package,” but she’s too yawn-inducingly typical, yo.

But anywho, I’m elated that my favourite three were the final three. Just slightly disappointed that MY American Idol got booted last week. Yes, ladies and gents, Elliot Yamin was the one who did it the most for me.

Elliot's voice (oh that big, soulful voice—even more so than the Soul Patrol himself!) is nothing less than pure gold. Every time I hear him sing, I go tingly all over as my chest fills up with emotions. And when he serenades those jiwang numbers, my eyes would actually well up and I just melt away. I kid you not. That’s just about how powerful my darling Elliot is. As Paula said it to this funky white boy: "You pierce through the heart."

All this, and Elliot’s 90 percent deaf in his right ear. If you don’t call him amazing, I don’t know what is.

Wish Mr Yamin was the victor. Because, while Taylor entertains me, Elliot inspires me. Isn't that what an idol is supposed to do?

But oh well, as I’ve said before, with him out, Taylor’s definitely the next-best.

To me, anyways :)

12 days

2006-05-22T17:46:00.000+08:00

Yup, s'been that long since I last blogged. Do I have withdrawal symptoms? Nope. But I do feel somewhat disappointed in meself for not having done better.

Of course, no one can blame me, since work’s been totally crazy. Pressure pressure pressure. Awards awards awards. Is this what I’m expected to want to live, breathe and die for? Pathetic at best.

Yes, been moaning and whining about my current profession for yonks now, this I realise. But hey, I can hardly be held culpable for lack of trying to look for another one. Times are friggin hard, it’s next to impossible to get an interview for a decent job. Sure, I could sell meself short and just go for whatever that’s on the buffet line. But hey, quality does matter for future fulfilment.

Anyways, after a cruel month-long abstinence from futsal, I finally got some breathing space to go for training with my team mates. Man, that felt good. Kicking balls once more with my lovely Catz… sheer bliss.

Speaking of balls, it’s a mere 18 days to the world’s most anticipated Cup. SO EXCITE! All those sleepless nights and zombie-like days that await me—wouldn’t change it for the world! Well, perhaps for diamonds la, ha ;Þ

Which brings me to my latest fixation: ice. Yes, I’m ashamed to admit that I have succumbed to this epidemic that most ladies the world over are suffering from. But don’t worry, I’m still grounded. Am not expecting to be covered from head-to-toe with them (donch worry, bebé!). It’s just that I’ve been sorta forced to study the 4C’s and how to judge a good diamond, and gotta tell you, it’s bloody addictive! And not to mention, ridiculously expensive! How anyone can walk around with a rock that’s any greater than 0.7 carat with peace of mind in this crazy city is beyond me, really.

And you know what else is difficult for me to comprehend? The grand distance between meself and my dearest sister and her baby boy. Painful as it was, I had to say goodbye to two of the most precious people in my life as they seek for a new life on the other side of the globe where my brother-in-law is from. No more hanging out with the calming (though overly skinny! ;Þ) figure of hers, nor hearing the excited cries of “bapoo!” (that’s Razyn-talk for “lampu”). Oh how I miss you two so :(

Anywho. Loads more updates are due, yes, but it’s rare that I get to leave this godforsaken office when the sun is still up, no... so ta!

04:56

2006-05-10T04:55:00.000+08:00

Boss says it doesn't make sense that we're all still here, awake.

Go home, says he.

AYE!

03:52

2006-05-10T03:55:00.000+08:00

Dizzy.

plan b

2006-05-10T02:03:00.000+08:00

It's 02:01. I'm still in the office. And far away yet from getting the hell outta here.

At this time yesterday, I was staring at this same computer screen.

And on Sunday, was I spending quality time with my sister and her baby who will be migrating to Canada at the end of the week?

That's a resounding NO. I was here. Even a week before. Yup, on Labour Day weekend (makin' it the second year in a row). In this wretched place. Slaving away in the name of making money

... for the company, sheesh.

I need a new plan.

bumpy english terrains

2006-05-10T01:32:00.000+08:00

Latest news: Spurs is demanding for a replay vs West Ham after losing to the latter 1-2 last weekend. It’s a big deal because the loss also caused them a fourth-place finishing in the EPL, simultaneously perishing their hopes of playing at Europe next season.

Ten players from the Tottenham squad suffered from food poisoning on the eve of Spurs's last league game of the season. They'd requested for the match to be postponed by 24 hours so that their players could recover, but the Premier League people didn't have much of a heart by offering only a two-hour delay to kick-off.

'In being given no viable option to postpone the match other than a two-hour delay to kick-off, our players were denied the possible opportunity of competing in the Champions League, while our fans have been left with a sense of suspicion and injustice at the way subsequent events unfolded,' Spurs chairman Daniel Levy said in a letter to Premier League chairman Dave Richards.

'Clearly, our governing body put us in an impossible situation and gave a significant advantage to Arsenal in competing for that fourth position.'

Levy said his club had the backing of other Premier League (FAPL) clubs in requesting a replay.

And we thought all the action+drama in EPL'06 have ended!

~*~

My heart goes out to Darren Bent for his exclusion from England’s World Cup 2006 contingent. It’s mind-boggling how Sven can not choose Charlton Athletic’s Darren Bent, being that he’s the top English striker in the EPL!

Instead, we’ll be seeing young unknown Theo Walcott, in action. The Arsenal player who’s never even played for his club’s senior squad. And he’s got a plane ticket booked for Germany? Get out of town! (ha)

For England's sake, I'm praying for Rooney's super-speedy recovery.

so it's over

2006-05-08T18:22:00.000+08:00

United’s secured at second, with just one measly but grand point above the other red force, Liverpool. Meaning, we’ve just scraped past having to play the qualifier’s at Europe next season. Unless, of course, Arsenal win in Paris...

That’s another thing. Arsenal, though making history for themselves continentally, have had a nightmarish season at home. They only have the Almighty, as well as the mighty Thierry Henry, to thank for snatching fourth place from under the noses of an ill-fated Spurs side.

Though I ain’t no fan of the latter’s (nor the former’s, for that matter, HaH!), my heart goes out to Martin Jol’s boys who’ve been working hard at making the Gunners work even harder at earning a spot in next season’s Champions League… and were that close at ousting their North London rivals. Ouch.

And if it is to be that Rijkaard’s squad would end up lifting the cup on 15 May (fingers crossed), we know that the men in white would only be kicking themselves for the defeat to West Ham.

Well, whoever reigns as Kings of Europe, I suspect it will not make a difference to one French “king” in particular. Am sure many devout Gunners would shoot me down for saying this, but I’m gonna anyways: Thierry Henry will be bidding au revoir to Arsenal and saying ¡hola! to Barça. Drooool.

Come on, do you really think the striker’s gonna miss up on the golden opportunity to play alongside Ronaldinho and Eto’o? Hello!

Speaking of which, looks like it's a definite bye-bye for a certain Dutch forward for his Ruud walkaway. Tsk tsk.

world news

2006-05-03T10:11:00.000+08:00

Apparently, the guy who gave a whole meaning to the word "world" has done the expected.

Current Malay sensation, Mawi, has broken off his engagement to hometown sweetheart, Nordiana.

Shocking, innit. I mean, who would've ever guessed that all the riches and glam would change someone? That's totally unheard of..!

since we're on everything brazillian today...

2006-05-02T16:18:00.000+08:00

Donald Rumsfeld is giving the president his daily briefing.
He concludes by saying, "Yesterday, 3 Brazilian soldiers were killed."

"Oh no," the President exclaims, "That's terrible! That's horrible!"

His staff sits stunned at this display of emotion, nervously watching as the President sits, head in hands, visibly shaken.

Finally, the President looks up and asks, "How many is a brazillion?"

Hahah!

did you know >> brazil

2006-05-02T16:11:00.000+08:00

* is the largest and most populous country in South America, and fifth largest in the world.

* It spans over a vast area between central South America and the Atlantic Ocean, and borders Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname and the French department of French Guiana—basically, it neighbours every South American country save Chile and Ecuador.

* Its name came about from "brazilwood" (pau-brasil), a tree that was highly valued by early colonists.

* Since it was colonised by Portugal, Brazil’s official language is Portuguese. Spanish, however, is common at places where Brazil borders Spanish-speaking countries (heck, the whole of South America except Brazil has got Spanish as their mother tongue).

* There is such a thing as a mixture of Spanish and Portuguese, known as Portunhol/Portuñol.

* Football is the most popular sport. Other than the traditional gameplay, three other variations of the sport are widely practiced by Brazilians:

(1) futsal (the 5-a-side version),
(2) beach football (which originated in the beaches of Rio de Janeiro), and
(3) footvolley (a cross between football and volleyball that’s played on sand, where players can only use their head and feet to get the ball over the net onto the opponent's court)
-- source: wikipedia.com

brazillians on speed

2006-05-02T16:07:00.000+08:00

I was at the Nokia Defend Your Turf Grand Finals last Saturday.

A little background: For 6 weekends since late March, local futsal teams from all over Pen Malaysia battled it out to earn the right to defend our turf against the famed Boys From Brazil.

I must say that the level of futsal displayed by the 6 regional champs is nothing short of brag-worthy. And the thing that impressed me the most is that not only the boys from Selangor and KL showed the concept of “rotation” into their gameplay, but also those from Terengganu, Kedah, Penang, and Johor—albeit not too apparently.

At the end of the day, Mahsuri FT from down south were crowned national champions. This, of course, meant that they clinched the chance that every other team have been dreaming of—testing their skills and mettle versus the best ballers from the streets of Rio.

Of course, the super-speedy Boys are in a totally different league (to say that they were breathtaking is a seriously insulting understatement). And of course, our home side lost. Gloriously at that (12-0 to be exact).

But, heck, that wasn’t reason enough for the bad showing from the home crowd. They were cheering the Brazillians on (this, for a team who has beaten Asia's reigning champions Iran, for crying out loud!) but jeering the local boys.

Shameful. Tsk tsk tsk.

wise words

2006-05-01T18:17:00.000+08:00

I think that parents only get so offended by television because they rely on it as a babysitter and the sole educator of their kids.
-- Trey Parker and Matt Stone, South Park, Death, 1997

oregon man survives 12 nails to the head

2006-04-27T14:15:00.000+08:00

33-year-old meth user attempted suicide using nail gun, doctors say

PORTLAND, Ore. -- An Oregon man who went to a hospital complaining of a headache was found to have 12 nails embedded in his skull from a suicide attempt with a nail gun, doctors say.

Surgeons removed the nails with needle-nosed pliers and a drill, and the man survived with no serious lasting effects, according to a report on the medical oddity in the current issue of the Journal of Neurosurgery.

The unidentified 33-year-old man was suicidal and high on methamphetamine last year when he fired the nails—up to 2 inches in length—into his head one by one.

The nails were not visible when doctors first examined the man in the emergency room of an unidentified Oregon hospital a day later. Doctors were surprised when X-rays revealed six nails clustered between his right eye and ear, two below his right ear and four on the left side of his head.

The study did not say how long the nails were, and a hospital spokeswoman refused to release that information. A photo published in the study suggests the nails range from 1½ to 2 inches long.

No one before is known to have survived after intentionally firing so many foreign objects into the head, according to the report, written by Dr. G. Alexander West, the neurosurgeon who oversaw the treatment of the patient.

The man at first told doctors he had had a nail gun accident, but later admitted it was a suicide attempt.

The nails came close to major blood vessels and the brain stem but did not pierce them. The patient was in remarkably good condition when he was transferred to Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, where the nails were removed.

The patient was later transferred to psychiatric care and stayed under court order for nearly a month before leaving against doctors’ orders. -- msnbc.com

Perhaps this dude's survival wasn't affected by the nails because his brains were so fried from all the ice in the first place! ;Þ

chinese women busting out of small bras

2006-04-27T12:23:00.001+08:00

As diet gets fattier, bustlines expand as well as waistlines

BEIJING -- Bra producers have been forced to offer bigger cup-sizes in China because increased calorie consumption is busting all previous chest measurement records.

“It’s so different from the past when most young women would wear A- or B-cup bras,” Triumph brand saleswoman Zhang Jing told the Shanghai Daily from the Landmark Plaza of China’s commercial hub.

“You...never expect those thin women to have such nice figures if they are not plastic.”

The report, appearing on the daily's Web site, said that the Hong Kong-based lingerie firm Embry Group no longer produces A-cups for larger chest circumferences and has increased production of C-, D- and E-cup bras to meet
pressing demand.

The Beijing Institute of Clothing Technology released a report last week saying the average chest circumference of Chinese women has risen by nearly 1 cm (0.4 inch) to 83.53 cm (32.89 inches) since the early 1990s, the daily said.

This phenomenon, it said, was due to women eating more calories and taking part in more sports.

Similar growth in the average height of children prompted a rethink last year in Beijing on the height allowance for free bus rides. -- msnbc.com

Hrmmm, interesting...

an uninspiring tale

2006-04-26T18:51:00.000+08:00

I’m tired.

So very tired.

I wake up in the mornings, hoping to feel refreshed, but instead I feel exhausted. Sluggish. Lacklustre.

It’s been like this for the past God-knows-how-long. Got too much on my mind. Too much on my plate.

Before, at least I’d have futsal to take it out on. Now, though, futsal seems to be slipping away slowly. It’s just not the same anymore. Maybe it’s the environ around me. Maybe it’s me.

But the ultimate thing that’s bogging me down is definitely work. It’s been brainstorm after brainstorm, day after day. I thought I came here to write. Man, how wrong was I.

Can you imagine sitting around and squeezing your brain’s juices for a minimum of 5 hours every day on top of the daily chores?

It’s absolutely mind-numbing, absolutely draining.

I’m tired.

So very tired...

princess or pickpocket?

2006-04-21T18:44:00.000+08:00

I’ve never really been a fan of Tom Cruise's nor Katie Holmes's. I mean, I don’t not like them, but I don’t like them, either... you know what I mean. But the current hoo-ha on them, I simply can't resist.

Now, so everyone knows that Tom Cruise+Katie Holmes’s baby was born this week. Christened as Suri Cruise, the world wonders about this apparently unique choice of name.

Earlier reports say that Daddy Tom cited the clever double meaning behind “Suri”—“red rose” in Persian, as well as "princess" in Hebrew (the name’s supposed origin)—as the reason behind their choice.

Aww, how sweet, right?

Wrong!

It seems Hebrew speakers across the globe are raising their eyebrows at Cruise. They say that “Suri” has only two meanings: (1) A Syrian, and (2) a manner of shooing a female!

It gets worse:

"Hebrew expert Jonathan Went says, 'I think it's fair to say they have made a mistake here. There are variations of the way the Hebrew name for princess is spelt but I have never seen it this way.' Suri can also be translated into a Hindi boy's name, and it also means "pointy nose" in some Indian dialects and "pickpocket" in Japanese." -- theSuperficial.com

Oh me, oh my. I wonder how Mr Mission Impossible is gonna get himself and his family out of this mess...

ain't technologically handicapped no mo', yo

2006-04-21T15:43:00.000+08:00

Checkit:

Got me a brand-new celly
One that’s oh-so funky
Oh-so funky like me!
;Þ
Many call it the “twister,” as the keypad does an impressive twisting action to switch from phone to (2 megapixel) camera mode.

Twist a further 90˚ and the snazzy Nokia 3250 transforms into a music player, complete with play/pause, stop, forward and rewind buttons. One which comes with a 512MB MicroSD card, which means that my new phone is also my new mp3 player that can hold over 300 high-quality tunes (or circa 750 songs if I upgrade to a 1GB MicroSD).

Love the looks (surprise, surprise: though it comes in pink, green and silver, me who loves colour settled for the sleek all-black; go figure). Love the sound (music+phone=two of the most important stuff in my life). Love the brand (my motto: it's Nokia or nothing, hah!).

Could be less bulky, though…

Oh well. Can’t have everything, right?

More about the Nokia 3250 here.

my grand heartbreak

2006-04-10T14:51:00.000+08:00

Everyone who knows me will know darn well that I am very, very attached to my cell phone. I go everywhere with it (yes, even the loo ;Þ ), and am totally stupefied without it. In the words of my boss, “it’s like you’re velcroed to the thing.”

I’ve been using cellies since 1996, changed them not more than once every two years, so that makes it five different ones in total.

Being one of the few things that I cherish most in this whole wide world, I take great care of my phone, and am usually very careful with it. Call me a drama queen, but I seriously treat my phone like it’s royalty.

Why? Because my celly’s always been a dear, trusted friend. Always there for me through thick, thin and boredom. It’s been my saviour during emergencies, and has always provided comfort whenever fear kicks in for whatever reason. Heck, I can’t even get a shut eye unless I know that my celly’s right by my side, for only then will I get the peace of mind of being safe.

To cut a long story short, I can boldly say that what I have with my cell phone is an intense love affair.

So you can imagine how crushed I am right now that I lost my sweet Nokia 7610 over the weekend. Why? All due to a moment’s carelessness. Everything, lost, within a matter of minutes.

The shitty part is that I have loads of pictures in there that I haven’t managed to upload. Why? Because my PC at home’s currently so effed up, it can’t take much right now.

The shittier part is because of this, I have no back-up of my contacts. That’s circa 800 numbers in there, people. That’s ten friggin years of personal collection.

The shittiest part is, some of my fondest memories in the form of messages are in there. Almost everything that I’ve ever received and sent from/to my bebé from the first time we met. Not forgetting the other sweet stuff I got from time to time from other dear friends. Call me a sentimental fool, but these are (were) some of my most prized possessions in life.

My significant other tells me to not dwell over this loss, to just get over it, to just move on. It’s easier said than done, for serious… Especially since I don’t have the finances to get meself a new phone :(

I hate being technologically handicapped. I hate feeling so incomplete, so lost, so… dead.

roo who?

2006-04-10T14:38:00.000+08:00

Another bitter rival welcomed at the holy grounds of Old Trafford, another bitter rival beaten at the holy grounds of Old Trafford.

Not to mention, another outstanding display from young Wayne Rooney, the scorer of one and the provider of another in our 2-0 win over Arsenal last night.

May Man United continue to play brilliantly... and may Chelsea do the complete opposite, amen.

I leave you now with these great words...

Suave Arsenal no match for grand masters United

Arsenal must be developing a tax exile's taste for foreign parts. They could never make themselves as comfortable at Old Trafford as they had in the Bernabéu or the Stadio delle Alpi. Manchester United fully deserved this win that gives them a run of nine Premiership victories in a row. The visitors, following the midweek Champions League match, did wane in the second half here but United had made absolutely sure that they would tire.

It could all have gone wrong for Arsenal even sooner than it did. The fixture did not bedevil the referee as it has done in its unruly past but Graham Poll should still have left the ground with his mind churning. By then he would have heard all about his 43rd-minute error, when he failed to see that the defender Kolo Touré had palmed Wayne Rooney's shot on to the post with a dive that would have done credit to a goalkeeper. At least we now know why the Ivorian wears gloves. -- http://football.guardian.co.uk

brouhaha @ office

2006-04-07T16:36:00.000+08:00

It's Friday. Which means, people around the office are either much nicer because the weekend's a mere sniff away, or downright meaner since the weekend's still not here yet.

This morning, while negotiating with my eyelids to please, please stay open, a senior-ranking colleague came stomping in my direction. Thankfully, it wasn't me she was pissed off at but the new dude in the next cubicle.

Apparently, she overheard the latter's conversation with the IT guys, and was enraged at how impolite (F word and all) it was.

Senior Colleague: You new people have no right to speak in such fashion, much less use swear words!
New Dude: Hey, I wasn't cursing at the IT person, but at the situation!
Senior Colleague: It doesn't matter. Why must you be so rude about it?
New Dude: What is up with you people in this company? Why is everyone here so uptight?

Big mistake.

Senior Colleague: Well, excuse us, but we have values here!
New Dude: Who are you to talk like this to me?

BIGGER mistake. She's only the deputy head of one of the departments, and has served this company for God-knows-how-long.

I say, God speed, New Dude.

I also say, I ought shake hands with the new dude. Because thanks to him, my eyelids became scared shitless, and refused to misbehave anymore. Well, not until after lunch, anyways.

Anywho, if you found my war-in-the-office tale inspiring, then have I got some goodies in store for you below. Enjoy. But don't you dare for a second think that these great stuff were written by me (though I sure wish that I did come up with some of 'em!).

Creative Comebacks For The Workplace
1. Obviously you're unable to assimilate my stimulating concepts into your blighted and simplistic world-view.
2. I don't know what your problem is, but I'll bet it's hard to pronounce.
3. Any connection between your reality and mine is purely coincidental.
4. What am I? Flypaper for freaks!?!?
5. I'll give you a nice, shiny quarter if you'll go away.
6. I'm already visualizing the duct tape over your mouth.
7. I will always cherish the initial misconceptions I had about you.
8. It's a thankless job, but I've got a lot of Karma to burn off.
9. Yes, I am an agent of Satan, but my duties are largely ceremonial.
10. How about never? Is never good for you?
11. Who me? I just wander from room to room.
12. You're just jealous because the little voices talk to ME.
13. I'm out of my mind, but feel free to leave a message...
14. I don't work here. I'm a consultant.
15. I can see your point, but I still think you're full of it.

And my favourites...

16. I like you. You remind me of me when I was young and stupid.
17. I'm not being rude. You're just insignificant.
18. You sound reasonable. It must be time to up my medication.
19. I'll try being nicer if you'll try being smarter.
20. I'm really easy to get along with once you people learn to worship me.

Happy picking that fight :)

man utd will push chelsea "very close" -- beckham

2006-04-06T17:36:00.000+08:00

David Beckham has tipped former club Manchester United to push Chelsea "very close" in the race for the Premiership.

England and Real Madrid midfielder Beckham has watched his former Old Trafford team-mates reduce Chelsea's lead at the top to seven points.

And he told the Daily Mirror: "I think it can go all the way to the wire, I really do. You never know because Chelsea still have a seven-point advantage but I do think it is going to be very close because United are playing well.

"Their performances are great, they are scoring goals and they have so many players within the team who can get goals like Wayne Rooney, Ruud (van Nistelrooy) and (Louis) Saha. And they are all playing well.
"Chelsea have got a great team and a strong manager so we will see but I think United are on a roll and it's going to be much closer than people expect.

"I am really looking forward to seeing what happens."
-- soccernet.com

You and us all, Becks.

Oh, and whatever happens, however much Real is struggling, don't you fear. As I will always and forever love you, my darling hubby. Don't you ever doubt that ;)

and then there were four

2006-04-06T15:27:00.000+08:00

Well well well… Arsenal added an entry into their history books this morning when they advanced to their first-ever Champions League semi-finals.

Being a Man U fan, I have a love-hate relationship with this result. Hate it, due to obvious reasons—dengki lah, what else ;Þ On a more serious note, love it because I have a soft spot for English teams to do well at Europe.

Now, what I love-love is the fact that my favourite Spanish team, Barcelona, also booked a spot in the other semis. And great as they are, it wasn’t all cookies and cream for Barça, no way José (more apt if to sub this for “no way, Frank”, no?). Their opponent's a strong side, this season’s dark horse which bulldozed over Manchester United as well as Liverpool.

In fact, Benfica seemed a threatening force, which resulted in Barça kicking off looking somewhat nervous and shaky. And it totally did not help that in the fourth minute, Ronaldinho’s penalty kick was saved by Benfica’s keeper, Moretto de Souza who was as marvellous as he was yummy ;)

But Ronnie refused to dwell on this little slip-up. He started doing what he did best—terrorising his markers with his "macam tipu" skills—and eventually made amends by sending one home 15 minutes later. And just two minutes before full time was over, his fellow “Terrible Twin” sealed their victory with the final goal of the match.

Soooo... next up: Arsenal vs Villareal. And Barça vs Milan.

BARCELONA vs AC MILAN! It’ll be tough, as I’m sure AC Milan is all fired up to not carelessly let the title slip so easily through their fingers a la last season. But, hey, you can bet your ass that Barça ain't gonna go down without a tough fight, either.

People, we're in for some pretty explosive stuff here!

Anywho, my dream Champions League’06 Finals = Barça vs Arsenal. Of course, I’d want my boys Eto’o, Ronaldinho, Gio and Valdes to lift the cup. Heck, for such a great team, Barça’s record at Europe has been less than satisfactory—they’ve only emerged champs just once, way back in 1992.

But then again, Arsenal has never even gone beyond CL quarter-finals before this. So the sentimental part of me wouldn’t mind them being the successful side of 2006.

Wouldn’t mind that much, that is. After all, I am a Red Devil, you know!

wise words

2006-04-05T19:44:00.000+08:00

“Respect your rivals,

try to be as honest as possible

& enjoy as much as you can.”

-- Ronaldinho (World Footballer of 2004 & 2005)

on what constitutes ‘Joga Bonito’

See how truly legendary Ronaldinho is in the "Joy" Joga Bonito ad

2 bitters & a sweet thang

2006-04-04T19:52:00.000+08:00

Whoa. Can't believe it's April already. What did the last month bring?

Well, March was a bittersweet journey for me. Actually, more bitter than it was sweet.

First bitter issue in the month of March: work. The bosses are hiking up the stress levels, pressuring each and every member of my team to come up with award-winning creatives. The shittier part is, we have two bosses to go through—Ms Creative Director, and her big boss, Mr Executive Creative Director. And these two are as similar as night is to day, i.e. the former’s idea of a kick-ass idea is the latter’s yawn-inducer. And we gotta please both of them. Near-impossible task, people. Tension tension tension.

On top of that, I am still on contract. It’ll be two years come June. Meaning, I haven’t had any annual leave for almost 24 months. Meaning, whenever I go MIA, it’s on unpaid leave. Meaning, not only do I have to pay for my own medical bills, but when I’m on MC, I get zilch. Meaning, I think I’m shortchanged here.

Their excuse? Headcount issues. My take? My ass! I’m the only writer on my team, they obviously need me, and they can still hide behind this lame-ass justification? Puh-lease. Friggin cheapskates.

Anyways, on to my second bitter highlight en el mes de marzo. My true passion, futsal. My team have been working our butts off for this one particular annual ladies-only tournament, sponsored by popular TV show 3R. This year, the 3R tournament entered its third edition. You’d think that it could only be better than last year’s right? WRONG. To cut a super-long story short, the organisers of this year’s don’t give two shits about how far the local ladies futsal has come. We paid them for a futsal tournament, they gave us a triathlon instead.

The preliminaries were held at the usual futsal venue in Sunway. Prior to that, a manager’s meeting was held. Typically, this is an avenue for discussion between team managers/captains and the organisers. This time, however, it was more a one-way street—the organisers announced the way they wanted the tournament to run, and no worries nor suggestions were entertained.

Tournament day came, prelims played. Representatives from the last ten remaining teams (out of 60) stayed for the manager’s meeting. Again, it was a one-way communication. What’s worse, the organisers couldn’t even agree on a format, and were screaming at each other like little brats.

Worst still, the organisers announced that the ten finalists would not be playing futsal per se at the (so-called) Grand Finals, scheduled for two weeks after. Why? Because the organisers wanted to “showcase” ladies futsal to the public by having the Grand Finals at Berjaya Times Square. INSIDE Berjaya Times Square.

Meaning, the court size was a joke. Worst still, the rules were an even bigger joke. It was a mish-mash of sports… Borrowing the words of the Fly FM promo, “Made from 80% street soccer, three cubes of futsal, a little hockey, and voila!”

I kid you not. In the supposed interest of “protecting” the players, we futsallers were forced to play a game which we aren't familiar with. Kick-off the futsal way. The rest of the rules, follow street soccer, i.e. no entering the D, keepers can’t defend outside her D, keepers can’t throw in, oh, and kick-ins within close proximity only, a la like hockey. WTF?

On top of that, the intelligent organisers refused to pay extra to put upper netting. Meaning, they couldn’t give two cahoots about safety. I mean, come on, this is a game of ball. It don’t take no fortune teller to foresee that without upper netting, the ball might just bloody well go up so high, it’ll break something. Or worst still, some poor child’s head. But nooo, the organisers are too dense to think of such things. Anyways, halfway through our Grand Final games, organisers called for a short meeting with team managers.

“You guys have to keep the ball low. Please control your shots. Berjaya have warned us that if the ball goes over once more, they might just put a halt to today’s event. Please help us out, yeah, or else if anything breaks, we organisers gotta pay for it.”

The nerve! When we demanded “why didn’t you put upper netting?!” they just did what they do best—ignore.

Now you tell me. How are we supposed to play our usual game of futsal—the thing we’ve been working at for the past three-or-so years—with such restrictions?

And the golden question: how do they expect people to take our beloved local ladies futsal seriously when they witness such idiocy (i.e. a banner that says “Grand Finals of Ladies Futsal” but see us ladies playing, in the words of the ref, “like a bunch of piranhas attacking the ball”)? Very, very upsetting this.

Thanks gosh for my sweet thang au mois de marche. Can’t really get too much into this just yet, but let’s just say this wildcat has finally found a home that she's comfortable in. Purr ;)

ruud awakening

2006-03-30T13:45:00.000+08:00

After weeks of being sidelined, Manchester United's Ruud van Nistelrooy became the solo hero for his Red Devils side by scoring the only goal in his comeback game this morning (EPL face-off versus West Ham).

The good news is, the win put us 5 points clear of closest opponent, Liverpool. That, and we've got a game in hand.

The better news is, the win put us just 9 points behind current leaders Chelsea. And, we have one game in hand.

The gap's narrowing. Keep the faith, people. Gotta keep the faith.

GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED!

~*~

On a more sombre note…

Roman Abramovich's persistence in trying to add Milan's Andriy Shevchenko to Chelsea's payroll seems to have paid off, with reports suggesting that the Ukraine striker will sign for the Stamford Bridge club this summer.

Chelsea's owner has been courting Shevchenko for three years but had been turned down three times. However, the Russian billionaire appears to have made it fourth time lucky, with Shevchenko agreeing in principle to a four-year contract worth in excess of £110,000 a week.

Personal terms have apparently been agreed with the player and Chelsea have been assured that he is prepared to put in a transfer request to Milan.

The San Siro club value him at £35m but Chelsea would appear to be content—and wealthy enough—to afford such a fee, even on top of nearly £23m in wages which they would have to pay the player for his services over those four years. However, the £10m-rated Argentinian Hernán Crespo could go the other way in part exchange. -- The Guardian

How dare they! MY Andriy!!!

Sigh. If this is true, I sure hope that Chelsea will meet AC Milan next season, and the Blues will get their asses whopped… by Hernán Crespo, no less.

Hah.
HaH!
HAH!!!

my once true love

2006-03-27T13:45:00.000+08:00

I've always had a soft spot for rhythmic gymnastics.

How could I not, since I myself meddled in the sport for three years of my life. Unfortunately, due to the "sexy" nature of it all, I made the painful choice to quit when I was 12.

Let me tell you that not a day goes by that I don't wonder how different my life would be should I have chosen to fight on. Don't get me wrong, I do not regret my decision. I mean, some of the fondest memories I have are ones from when I was in secondary school, ones that would not have been created should I have kept the tight training schedule I had in my upper-primary years.

It's just that, how can I not stop to ponder over this ever so often when most of my friends whom I used to train with under the guidance of Ms Petrina Low went on to become this country's top gymnasts!

You've got that right. My alma mater, Convent Bukit Nanas (CBN for short), produced quite a number of legendary talents. Farrah Hani Imran. Farah Zelinah Kemal. And even Durratun Nashihin Rosli.

Yes, the same Durratun who dazzled her way on the dancefloor to become the darling of our Commonwealth Games 2006 contingent. The same Durratun who amassed a whopping four silvers, making herself the Malaysian athlete bringing back the most number of medals for our country.

Watching her strut her stuff on the idiot box, I must say how amazed I am at how far the sport has gone in this country. Full of pride and amazement, I am.

And for you people who reckon "playing around with a hoola-hoop, bouncing a ball, and twirling a ribbon is hardly a serious sport," well, reckon again. Consider the countless hours of training per week (try juggling a six-hour daily sweating session with studies), the endless injuries, the lack of life outside the gym...Oh, not to mention, the truly unforgiving diet to stay as stick-thin as possible but still have the energy and stamina to do all of the above!

Also, here's something for you to ponder over: for the four silvers that she's brought back from OZ, Durratun has pocketed over RM130,000! You see, under the National Sports Council (NSC) incentive programme, an individual gold is worth RM80,000, a silver RM40,000 and a bronze RM20,000. As for a team of no more than 5 people, the prize money will be split between the members.

If you don't call a RM130K cash incentive serious, I don't know what is.

Durratun Nashihin Rosli, I salute thee. Thank you for highlighting Malaysia on the world map of rhythmic gymnastics.

hooligans of the western world unite?

2006-03-23T12:15:00.000+08:00

Hmm, perhaps the 150-person-capacity temp prison (more info in my previous post) might not create too big a dent after all.

How can it, when you've got idiots in the thousands with the kind of stone-age mindset as exhibited below?

A chilling warning from fascists
ROME: The World Cup in Germany is set to become a battleground between fascists and Muslims, an Italian member of a new European neo-Nazi movement warned on Tuesday.

In a statement published by Italian daily Repubblica, the member of AS Roma's notorious ultras hooligan group claims neo-Nazis across Europe met in Braunau in Austria to plan attacks against supporters from Islamic countries during the World Cup in Germany from June 9 to July 9.

“We are united. For the first time we are talking and planning together, with the English, the Germans, the Dutch, the Spanish, everyone with the same objective. At the World Cup there will be a massacre,” said the Italian ultra.

“We will all be in Germany and there will be Turks, Algerians and Tunisians. The Turks, we can't stand them. In our country (Italy) there are not many, but in Germany, there are many of those guys there. They are Islamic terrorists.

“We will attack them. They are all enemies that need to be eliminated, just like the police." -- AFP

Sigh. It's depressing what the world has come to, innit.

go to jail. go directly to jail. do not pass go, do not collect $200.

2006-03-23T09:41:00.000+08:00

If you're thinking of putting your hooliganism caps on at this year's World Cup Finals, think again as you might find yourself being chucked away behind bars!

Cells a la those found in Hamburg’s main police station are currently being built in the German city. The makeshift prison, with a capacity of up to 150 prisoners, costs circa a whopping US$4.5 million!

A law has also been passed that will see footie imbecils being detained in the said jail for up to two weeks.

Super.

rampageous reds

2006-03-22T09:37:00.000+08:00

Liverpool hammered Birmingham with a jaw-dropping 7-0 scoreline this morning.

And it wasn't just some random game, people. We're talking about an FA cup quarter-final berth here, for goodness sakes!

It's total madness, I tell you. How the hell did Birm give away a freekick, and let Sami Hyypia—Liverpool's centre-back—head one home after only 54 seconds of game?

As if that's not mistery enough, the guys in blue allowed their goal deficit to double just over three minutes later.

And the rest, as they say, is history. One that's complete with an own goal at that.

For serious, were the Birm defenders even present at all? SEVEN-effing-ZERO surely doesn't suggest so, innit.

I'd kill myself if I were the manager, I kid you not. That is, if someone else doesn't beat me to it.

"Indeed, such was the misery of this thumping defeat that come the end Steve Bruce and not the Birmingham defence was most in need of protection. The Birmingham manager, sheltered by a significant police presence for virtually the entire second half, suffered the ignominy of an irate fan running in his direction before the interval. The supporter was belatedly stopped in his tracks though Liverpool most certainly were not." -- http://football.guardian.co.uk/

u, but still

2006-03-13T13:44:00.000+08:00

I went to watch The Pink Panther on Saturday night. Gotta say that Steve Martin is so funny it ain't funny! (hehe) Adored Jean Reno as well, but thought that Kevin Kline and especially Beyoncé could've done a little better.

Anyways, time for my gripe for the day ;Þ First and foremost, I just do not understand how some people can be so selfish as to keep on chitachattering throughout the movie. Yeah, yeah, this ain't anything new, but still. I mean, come on, how does one have complete disregard for other people's feelings? The whole point of splurging that RM10 or so is for us to enjoy the drama on the screen, not your real-life dramas! If you wanna do as you please, e.g. talk on your phone, hey, then allow me to do as I please, e.g. kick your behind so hard you'll be cursing and punching your own lips for misbehaving.

But you know what's worse than people stealing the limelight from the movie cast? Little people doing it. For serious, I have major issues with children who keep on talking, no, whining, to their mommies all throughout the show.

Children of the damned: Where is Pink Panther?

Mother of the damned: Pink Panther is the diamond ring... there, look, do you see it?

5 minutes later.

Children of the damned: Mommy, where's Pink Panther?

Mother of the damned: Pink Panther is the diamond ring, honey.

Children of the damned: Where? I don't see it, mommy.

Mother of the damned: You will see it later, okay?

3 minutes later.

Children of the damned: Mommy, where's Pink Panther?

2 minutes later.

Children of the damned: Mommy, where's Pink Panther?

Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther? Mommy, where's Pink Panther?

Arghhh! If you don't shut your big mouth I'mma stuff the goddamn Pink Panther up your... arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

Granted, the movie's rated "U," but it was a 9.35pm show, for crying out loud! Shouldn't your bloody little midget be asleep? Yes, I have no right to tell you how to raise your kid. But have some consideration for others lah, please! If you know that your kid is an annoying little twit who won't bloody shut his mouth, my advice is you keep him at home unless you don't treasure his life!

I am so gonna be considered mean after this post. But trust you me, I'm really not. Unless you do stupid things that would bring out the bitchiness in me.

Hey, it's a defense mechanism, alright!

quote of the day

2006-03-08T14:19:00.000+08:00

"Last season they saw the quarter-final on TV
and now we must do the same."
-- Jose Mourinho on his team Chelsea's exit out of Europe at the feet of Barcelona

sour portuguese grape

2006-03-08T13:37:00.000+08:00

Chelsea got booted out of the Champion's League by Barcelona this morning.

Even then, the former's manager, famous for his super-size arrogance, still insists that Chelsea is the better team. The Portuguese, who lifted the most rooted-for footballing trophy in Europe with Porto two years ago, insists that while Barça is a great team, they haven't managed to beat Chelsea when the latter had a full 11-man squad.

"For me the critical point was the result at Stamford Bridge. We were playing with 10 players for most of the first leg [when Barça defeated Chelsea 2-1]. I have not seen two games with 11v11 and we have not seen Barcelona win against us when we have had 11 players." -- Jose Mourinho (from soccernet.com)

Aiyoyo, Mourinho. Nobody—be it fans or foes—can negate Chelsea's greatness. Nor can anyone deny that you're one of the best managers in the world.

But what would indeed bring you closer to godly (as you have so openly proclaim yourself to be) is a display of gracefulness in defeat.

Besides, one is immediately deemed uncool the moment one screams out that one is cool, innit.

stripes are a girl's best friend

2006-03-06T18:27:00.000+08:00

This is so spot on, me reckons.

You Are Boyish Sexy
You're the kind of girl who gets along with all the boys.
Whether it's holding your own in a game of football...Or kicking some major butt while playing Xbox.
You hang with the guys easily, while still keeping your girly sexiness.

Take the "What Kind of Sexy Are You?" quiz

touchy touché

2006-03-06T14:04:00.000+08:00

I have this colleague at work, let's just call him Uncle.

Uncle is one of those dear, fatherly kinds. Everyone likes him, everyone respects him, everyone enjoys his company.

Everyone, including me.

That is, except for one thing which I feel downright uncomfortable about.

Uncle likes to touch. No, not in an OTG (orang tua gatal) manner, but let's just say that he's overly warm and friendly. You know, whenever he greets you, he'll put his hand on your shoulder or squeeze your upper arm, that kind of stuff.

Thing is, I am one who despises coming in contact with those whom I don't deem close to me. Especially not in an office, where professionalism should be the order of the day.

I know he means no harm, that his touches are clean and innocent. But still. Why must there be any touching at all?

And the thing that bugs me the most is: I am a Muslim.

So is he.

In fact, he's very knowledgable in religious matters. He prays five times a day without fail, performs the Haj yearly, the works. Granted, he's not an extremist, but it doesn't take a radical Muslim (nor a person with Islamic beliefs for that matter) to respect another's personal comfort zone, innit.

I'd hate to offend Uncle, but I know I gotta say something somehow. Any suggestions on how I can tackle this issue gracefully?

through fat and thin

2006-03-03T13:31:00.000+08:00

Confession: I am an avid listener of ERA.

A lot of my mates—most of whom are Malays whose first language is English—will give me a LOOK whenever I admit this this. With a wrinkly wince, they'll blurt out that they just can't understand why.

Well.

I am Malay.

I love Malay and Indo music.

And I am an ardent supporter of the local music scene.

So, why not ERA?

Anyways, I'm getting carried away from the whole point of this entry here. Calm down, o' mighty angst. Booyakasha!

Now where was I? Oh, right. I listen to ERA. And from time to time, I'll hear excerpts of advice from Dato' Dr Fadhilah Kamsah. For those not in the know, this man is a highly regarded motivational figure whose speciality is anything and everything on marriage and wedded bliss.

Today's tip truly caught my attention. The Dato' started off with this reminder, especially dedicated to all husbands out there:

You chose to marry her; don't you ever forget that.

As such, hubbies should accept their wifeys as they are. Stop complaining about her size 34 waist, and about how it used to be a sweet, tight 24". I mean, what, did you seriously think that she was going to stay young and slender (and for that fact, free of wrinkles) forever? Wake up and grow up, please!

The best part of Dato' Dr Fadhilah Kamsah's advice?

"Awak-awak tu, pinggang awak tu ramping ke? Nak isteri yang cun melecun, tapi awak tu cun melecun ke?"

Ambik kau.

But while I agree completely with our Dato' Dr. Love, that's not to say that you should take things for granted. Many people are guilty of becoming complacent when they've been with their partners for a considerable amount of time. Some even have the mindset of "We're married already, so why should I go out of my way to impress him with my looks? If he truly loves me, he should accept me in any condition."

Yes, it's true that he should love you no matter what, but is there anything wrong with maintaining your beauty? Muslim wives are even encouraged to beautify themselves whenever they're around their hubbies. Think of it this way, if you practice this, not only will you earn big brownie points with your man, but you'll also score some pahala along the way. It's a win-win situation for us women, really!

I'm not saying that you should deprive yourself of epicurean pleasures. Notice that I used the term "maintaining your beauty" and not "maintaining your weight," so please don't starve yourself silly for your man because trust me, it ain't worth it.

As for the men, the next time you wanna grumble about your queen's seemingly rounder behind and/or thicker love handles, look in the mirror first lah, brader. If instead of a six pack you see one "prosperous" pack, then perhaps tis best that you just bite your tongue ;Þ

wise words

2006-03-03T13:28:00.000+08:00

"Love should be free of all prejudices
—including matters of the weight."
-- yours sincerely ;)

the damned quarter pounder

2006-02-28T14:28:00.001+08:00

Damn, damn. Double damn.

I feel so darn pudgy right now, thanks to my lack of wisdom in choosing food for lunch. Yup, yours sincerely disgustingly stuffed her face with a Quarter Pounder, as well as medium fries and Vanilla Coke. What the hell was I thinking?

But I can hardly be held culpable for this idiocy. For serious, it ain't my fault, people. How does one stay strong when as soon as one walks through the Golden Arches, one gets seduced without warning?

Now come on, you can't possibly tell me that you won't falter after seeing the juiciness of that.

And you know what else seriously doesn't help? The scrumptiously salty scent of fresh French fries... It's tough, oi!

But just like with everything else in life, you gotta know your limits. A large meal?

Calories in Quarter Pounder
A quarter pounder with cheese, large fries & large shake contain about 1300 calories. To burn off the calories, take a brisk 5 hour walk.

Five blinking hours of walking? Am so patting my back for settling with just a medium meal.

But still.

I'm definitely going for kickboxing today, man.

Curse you, McDonald's. Curse you to bankruptcy.

~*~

Perhaps I shoulda just had this...

After which I'll be surfing high on my very own...

~*~

If these bad-ass big boys from Pulp Fiction couldn't resist the evil seductions of the Quarter Pounder and its other sinful fast-food friends, how could I?

Vincent Vega: You know what they call a Quarter Pounder with Cheese in Paris?

Jules: They don't call it a Quarter Pounder with cheese?

Vincent: No, they got the metric system there, they wouldn't know what the f**k a Quarter Pounder is.

Jules: What'd they call it?

Vincent: Royale with Cheese.

Jules: Royale with Cheese... What'd they call a Big Mac?

Vincent: Big Mac's a Big Mac, but they call it Le Big Mac.

Jules: What do they call a Whopper?

Vincent: I dunno, I didn't go into a Burger King.

Even weapon-bearing citizens in cartoonland have fallen prey to this evil of our world:

Lou: Well, at McDonald's you can buy a Krusty Burger with cheese, right? But they don't call it a Krusty Burger with cheese.
Wiggum: Get out! Well, what do they call it?
Lou: A Quarter Pounder with cheese.
Wiggum: Quarter Pounder with cheese? Well, I can picture the cheese, but, uh, do they have Krusty partially gelatinated non-dairy gum-based beverages?
Lou: Mm-hm. They call 'em, "shakes."
Eddie: Huh, shakes? You don't know what you're gettin'!

Hallelujah. I ain't alone in this predicament, no seree.