Back to Reality... Bloody Reality

Dear Diary,

Today I spat at my son. Just when we were starting to bond, I had to screw it up. I couldn't help myself though... I got carried away with the scene and I forgot my lines; so I got a tad flustered and I was trying to enunciate and SPLAT! right on his nose. He didn't notice at first, not until I shrieked and went, "Oh my Gawd! I spat on you! I'm so sorry! SONNNNNNNNNN!!!!" Then he blushed and cowered when I tried to wipe it off. Sigh. But he was so professional about it. Picked himself up and continued with the scene, leaving me as the bumbling idiot. Ahhh.... my son.... I love my son.

On a more entertaining side, I decided to wish Them Boys & Deux a happy start to the new term and I was amused by the varied responses which I received. I'll share some:

• It's not my first day... my first day was years ago
• Aw dreads... hate it man... i got the start sch blues now... hahas thxs anyway :)
• Haha thank you? You too :) Don't kill anyone in school arh! Must be a good teacher :) haha
• Don't remind me :(
• Doubt I'll have one... dread it so much!
• HAHA BALLZ MAN. I can't wait to go to school. But I don't feel like going. What's wrong?
• No. It's always not great on the first day of school. I try.
• I loathe this day... I hate first days of sch... Cause it's the worst time to screw up
• I'm planning to pon sch and sleep

Cute aren't they?

Mmm... kitty's going psycho... she's licking my toes; I think she's hungry. Ciao.

Sharing is Caring

Sometimes one must really sit down and talk to your monsters. Get it all out... off of your chest... whatever. Just do it.

I feel so much better. I suggest you do the same too.

The key is to be honest to yourself. No holds barred... just tell it like it is... alright?

7-Eleven Game

I can't believe I forgot to mention this! Thanks Shu Yu, for your post!

I read in Lonely Planet that Taipei has numerous 7-Elevens spread across it. I mean, seriously, how many CAN you have? Boy were we in for a shock when we made our way to our hotel. In every street, there were at least 2! Some were situated right opposite each other. A rough estimate would be one 7-Eleven at every 300m. Even when we went up a mountain, there was one there! Our guide (one of our many) told us that Taipei has around 7000 7-Elevens. Yea.

I came up with a game, which I believe will take Taipei by storm. Play this, if you're travelling with friends. For every 7-Eleven you spot, smack your friend. It's that simple. Of course there are rules, like no premature slapping (you get smacked 3 times as punishment). Oh and it's a purely transportation game. Meaning, you can only play this game when you're on a bus, train, car, taxi etc.

MY GAME WILL TAKE TAIPEI BY STORM!!!

Dearest You...

I'm such a horrible friend.

I forgot your birthday.

Forgive me?

Taipei Spree

The pictures are on Facebook but below are my killings...

So the Journey Ends

I'm at the airport at this very moment. It's been an enjoyable 6 days here in Taipei. The pictures that I took will explain to you what I mean. But as much as the pictures can speak (my attempt at paraphrasing the a picture speaks a thousand words phrase), I can only rely on my memory to cherish the moments. My memory. Like that's ever reliable.

Greetings from Taipei

Yes, I brought my lappie with me and darling Leng managed to get me a cable. Note to self: It ain't wireless everywhere you go.

I'm enjoying myself over here albeit many reasons not to.

1. Almost impossible finding veg / Halal food
2. Majority do not speak English - quite a number do and are very approachable and very helpful :)
3. Signs and what-nots are in Chinese - I can identify the characters for fish and cow... but that's NOT ALWAYS helpful

I say it's good company and travel planning left to someone responsible!

The part of Taipei that we are in is right smack in the city so we've done and plan on doing some major shopping. We have been to some tourist attractions (nature, memorial etc) of course, but this isn't a cultural immersion trip but more of a return-home-with-a-hole-in-your-pocket trip. I have to say this trip is a good break. I'm so glad to be on this trip with Leng and her family. It'd be pretty dull to be going with a bunch of strangers.

Some observations about this place...

• Left side drivers - it's odd sitting on the right side of the bus, looking out of the window and seeing a driver (vehicle outside) next to you. Even odder, sitting on the left side of the bus, looking out and NOT seeing a driver (vehicle outside) next to you
• Train stations use coin tokens (like that in poker) and the trains have these sirens blasting to warn you that the train doors are closing
• EVERYONE obeys the rules here:

1. You cannot find dustbins on the streets at like every 50m or so BECAUSE you are expected to dispose of your trash at home. So you hang on to your trash till then. The streets are immaculate.
2. People here follow the rules of traffic and are very patient drivers. No honking heard since I stepped foot onto this land.
3. On escalators, you stand on the left and overtake on the right. Same case on the roads, or even when walking on the streets. It's an unspoken rule and no one seems to disobey them except for the tourists, of course.
4. Recycling is a huge thing here. Recycling bins are more abundant than trash bins and the locals do take their recycling seriously. They leave their homes with a bunch of bags, all sorted and wait for the melodic garbage truck to carry the bags away. Even when we ate at BK (I had fish), the patrons stood at the bins and sorted their trash. Everyone returned their trays; there was no sign or even staff wandering around cleaning tables.

• This is scooter land. A sizeable number here travels via scooter. I even saw a working woman in black pumps on a scooter.
• Not forgetting, the locals are very friendly, approachable, polite and obliging. They will come up to you if they notice that you are in trouble; no hesitation. If you ask them a question, they will politely answer you as best as they can. The customer service here is truly a gem.

What can I say, I like being a tourist here! I feel welcome and safe.

The Reader

One of the most beautiful movies that I have ever seen in a very long time. Apart from the multiple sex scenes, which were actually very tastefully done, the dialogue was well-crafted and it was well cast-ed.

I like how the writers did not try to explain the Holocaust or try to make the guards out to be monsters, like how all the other movies / documentaries would. This one showed that even the most ordinary of people under unfamiliar circumstances can perform the most dreadful of acts.

Because her character is illiterate, she does not comprehend the magnitude of her confession and thus gets sentenced to life imprisonment. After about 20 years, she teaches herself to read and write and when she attains this literacy, she understands her situation a bit more. I'm not sure if it's guilt or regret that causes her to take her own life but there was such beauty in the way the movie ended. It was sad but beautiful how she took her life just when she could finally read and write at age 56.

Now I must look for the book.

"Slide Away" right back at you

I absolutely do not believe in coincidences; everything happens for a reason. Recent events have however, caused me to wonder about this belief of mine. The concurrent events these past few nights have really got me wondering. Then again, because of that, I still have not gotten the closure which I seek for. Maybe they are but mere coincidences after all.

To be frank with you, I truly wish they weren't coincidences. That I am not misreading you. That the signs are all there. That you feel for me what I feel for you.

I need you to spell it out for me.

I love you, Ms G!

I received an sms about an hour ago that Ms G passed away. May her soul rest in peace. She was such an inspiration; never giving up and teaching us to fight for what we believed in. She will be missed dearly by all.

An Ode to Them Boys

I woke up this morning with a strong sense of longing for the past and that, my friends, is not healthy. I'm guessing what triggered this was when I returned to school yesterday to clean up my work area. I didn't feel sad, that at the end of the year, the clean up will be permanent. No, that was not what that got me feeling blue. In fact, I started to wonder about Them Boys and I actually started to miss them. More so than before.

The promises of keeping in touch and meeting up during the holidays... well you know, weren't kept but it takes two hands to clap, no? I miss our outings because we are all so comfortable around one another and so accepting of each other. I've never witnessed such maturity and compassion and I'm both proud and thankful to have been part of their formative growing up years.

I cannot deny that they are very special to me; after all, they're my first batch and it is 3 years of friendship. What strikes me the most is that the rapport which I have with them supercedes that of those which I have with other batches. I find this fact very odd indeed. The one and a half years together were definitely when our friendship was the strongest. We met up so often and we went through so much; I'm sure that strengthened the relationship. The majority of my fondest memories those years include them. That says alot, doesn't it?

Imagine, it all started over a deck of Duel Master cards. It was an event I unwillingly accepted to coordinate. I was bored baby-sitting them at VC Theatre and enquired what the game was about. The rest as they say is history. I can recall the series of events so vividly as though it happened only recently albeit it being 3 years ago. Like I said, Them Boys formed my most memorable memories back then.

We occasionally chat, sms and have bumped into each other on the streets but I long for a planned outing to relive those memories. I hope I'm not the only one in the group that feels that way though.

Well, you know what I am going to do, right? Open my box and rummage through the gifts, notes and what-nots from them. Heh. I'm so predictable. What's my moral here? Cherish the friendships of those whom you hold close to your heart. Try your best not to let squabbles strain the relationship. Remember to always be understanding and compassionate. One day, they might not be a part of your life anymore.