Deeper Conversations (figuratively, not literally) with Yuna

I am absolutely a fan of this local talented indie songstress! I was rooting for her endless during the Semi Finals for Anugerah Juara Lagu 2011 recently; and was ecstatic when both songs she performed was nominated to go through the finals in January 2012!

I have a couple of her original albums - Deeper Conversations & Decorate - and they were brilliant & superb; my companion during my endless journey to work every morning, & back home in the evening.

I got myself seats for the upcoming launch of her latest album "Terukir Di Bintang" in Jan 2012 - I can't wait & am ridiculously excited to watch her perform, hehe. I was really upset with myself for missing her earlier performance at the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra Hall in Sept 2011, despite it being prolonged to a 2-day performance (mental note to self: never procastinate to buy tickets to your favourite singer's concert, ever again! Just bloody get them else you'll end up mentally kicking yourself once you find out they're sold out. Lesson absolutely learned!)

These are the 2 songs that was nominated to the finals:

Gadis Semasa - love this brilliant song!

Penakut - this is definetely not an easy song to sing. Try it.

And my personal favourite - Deeper Conversations. An absolute lovely masterpiece.

"Is your favourite colour blue?
Do you always tell the truth?
Do you believe in outerspace?
And I'm learning you

Is your skin as tanned as mine?
Does your hair flow sideways?
Did someone took a portion of your heart?
And I'm learning you

And if you dont mind
Can you tell me
All your hopes and fears
and Everything that you believe in
Would you make a difference in the world
I'd love for you to take me to a deeper conversation
Only you can make me

I let my guard down for you
And in time you will too"

xoxo :)

Photojournal Blog: Snapshots of Mascara's Love Story with breathtakingly beautiful Paris

Beautiful monuments everywhere!!



Note: Me at Notre Dame Cathedral, one of the oldest church, completed in 1345 (right picture)





Absolute madness of people & vehicle traffic at the Champs-Élysées, & HRC Paris



The Eiffel Tower - love!! 

 

The Eiffel tower - standing tall & beautiful, day and night

 

Me at the top of the Eiffel Tower! Super gayat!



 

The Musee Du Louvre - my absolute favourite!



The historical collections in the Louvre, including the Winged Victory of Samothrace (bottom picture) -  It is considered one of the Louvre's greatest treasures, and since the late 19th century it has been displayed in the most dramatic fashion, at the head of the sweeping Daru staircase. The loss of the head and arms, while regrettable in a sense, is held by many to enhance the statue's depiction of the supernatural - taken from Wikipedia



The painting of Mona Lisa (Lisa Gherardini, wife of Francesco Giocondo)

- Leonardo Da Vinci  



This portrait was doubtless painted in Florence between 1503 and 1506. It is thought to be of Lisa Gherardini, wife of a Florentine cloth merchant named Francesco del Giocondo - hence the alternative title, La Gioconda. However, Leonardo seems to have taken the completed portrait to France rather than giving it to the person who commissioned it. It was eventually returned to Italy by Leonardo's student and heir Salai. It is not known how the painting came to be in François I's collection.

The history of the Mona Lisa is shrouded in mystery. Among the aspects which remain unclear are the exact identity of the sitter, who commissioned the portrait, how long Leonardo worked on the painting, how long he kept it, and how it came to be in the French royal collection.
The portrait may have been painted to mark one of two events - either when Francesco del Giocondo and his wife bought their own house in 1503, or when their second son, Andrea, was born in December 1502 after the death of a daughter in 1499. The delicate dark veil that covers Mona Lisa's hair is sometimes considered a mourning veil. In fact, such veils were commonly worn as a mark of virtue. Her clothing is unremarkable. Neither the yellow sleeves of her gown, nor her pleated gown, nor the scarf delicately draped round her shoulders are signs of aristocratic status (taken from & credits to http://www.louvre.fr)



Absolutely breathtaking!



I finally met Mona Lisa! :)




Me & The Wedding Feast at Cana (painting by Paolo Caliari, Veronese, 1563)



xoxo! 

Photojournal Blog: Snapshots of Mascara's London short visit!

Oxford Street - shopping yo! (But I did't. Oh except for a couple of winter sweaters at H&M)

The Borough Market (really nice, old, traditional English market), The Thames, The London National Gallery

HRC London, Ripley's Believe it or Not Gallery @ Piccadilly Circus

Piccadilly Circus - madness! Absolutely loved it! It's the English equavalent of NYC lively Time Square!

The Buckingham Palace - the building is endless! It has 775 rooms!

Me infront of the Buckingham Palace :) That balcony at the top spot above my head was where William & Kate waved to the massive crowd below on their wedding day.

Me & my UK media partners - Paul & Alex @ the Burrough Market. Look how tiny I am standing in-between the 2 tall lads :)

 



Me, Rhian & Alex. They were kind enough to bring me out to lunch at the Fish! Restaurant at the Burrough Market. I got myself some nice country-made cheese, Old Yorkshire chutney, and some crackers - courtesy to Rhian, Alex, & Paul :)



This London Underground day-travel pass got me around London endless! I hardly had any problems getting around, thanks to my map (no, not GPS - but a really handy printed London map!) & this blessed tube travel pass!

xoxoxo

Photojournal Blog: Snapshots of Mascara's Amsterdam trip!

Cold, foggy Amsterdam. Brrrrr!

Bicycles everywhere, HRC Amsterdam (a must!), Anne Frank Huis (my absolute fave!)

HRC Amsterdam again, Van Gogh Museum (another fave!), Rijksmuseum (majestic bulding!)



Nieuwe Spiegelstraat (the street for antique lovers!), The Flower Market, Madame Tussaud Gallery



The Aquarium (where I had dinner with my business partners), Amsterdam's Coffee & Gambling House :)

Amsterdam's sightseeing double-deck bus & famous trams, Amsterdam Central Station

Bicycles & more bicycles! No wonder the Dutch look as good as they do! They're doing cardios 24/7!

Beautiful buildings everywhere!

Red Light District. Wish I have pictures of the 'actual' attractions here. Didn't wanna take the risk tho :D

Me at Red Light District. It was a gamble to snap a picture here...teehee!

xoxo :)

5 years of warm hugs & butterfly kisses. Happy birthday, Kimy luv.

‎It has been a looooong, colourful journey since I first held him in my arms. His arrival into this world was accompanied with a loud, furious cry with flailing little fists in the air– as though he wanted the whole wide world to know that he is now here and that everyone had better be aware of that, or else. He was a beautiful, big, bundle of joy – and I mean ‘big’ as in literally; he weighed 3.93 kilos, all chubby arms and legs and pinches of baby fat almost everywhere.

That moment made 18 hours of painful labour worth all the beautiful things imaginable.

I remember the feeling of how everything seemed to stop and went still for a while as the doctor lifted him, announcing “It’s a boy!”. I insisted to stay half-awake for the C-section, I wanted to see with my own eyes the moment this beautiful life is being delivered out of me. This was the life that has breathed within me, this was the life that has taken comfort to the sound of my heartbeat, this was the life that I felt moving restlessly inside me.

Iskandar Hakimy bin Mohd Effandi. Now a tall, mischevious, playful lil boy who never sits still and entertains me every day with his endless chatter.

Today marks Kimy’s 5^th birthday – and I had everything planned. My original plan to personally attempt a birthday cake for him did not materialized, due to my unhealthy state of being and the limited time that I have due to the overwhelming office demand. And yes I was disappointed in myself for not being able to deliver something as simple as baking a cake. But nevertheless, I was determined to make him the happiest boy alive today, and so I bought him a big chocolate cake, prepared little party-packs for his friends in school, and persuaded his teachers to haul the whole class to a nearby McDonalds to celebrate his birthday. And as the party was finishing & I was busy helping the teachers cleaning up the tables, Kimy suddenly ran up to me, gave me a big, warm hug, stared earnestly into my eyes, and said simply,” I love you, mummy. You’re the best”. That made it all worth it.

5 wonderful years of warm hugs & butterfly kisses from my lil one. 5 adventurous years of laughter and joy, and little toy cars & bedtime stories. Happy birthday, Kimy love. You’re a gift sent from high above. Mummy ♥ you.

The Loss. How Fragile Life Is.

Today is a sad day.

The news of a friend's passing (Pedro’s friend, to be exact) this morning came with a shock which left me feeling numb. From what Pedro explained to me via a phone call this morning, arwah Kharis aka TSB was jogging this morning when he collapsed and fell unconscious. At this very moment that I am writing this post I am not sure of the exact cause of death, but what really shook me to the core was the fact that arwah was still very young, and everything happened so unexpectedly.

Takdir Allah memang kadang-kadang tidak boleh diduga. It makes me realize how fragile life is.

Arwah has a little daughter who is slightly younger than my lil Kimy, and I felt a sense of great sadness for the lil one, who might be too young to understand the reality of what’s happening. My thoughts and prayers go to the family on their loss, especially to the wife, and the little girl.

Several weeks ago, another friend of mine has lost her dearly beloved mother (whom I call Mak) due to a serious illness. Alhamdulillah I had the chance to visit Mak before her passing, but I was reduced to such feeling of humbleness as I observed the commitment showed by my friend as she devotedly took care of Mak, and the love that was so obvious as she patiently fed, showered, changed, and did almost possibly every single thing that was required to do to ensure that Mak was comfortable. At that point of time, Mak was too weak to move and was not able to handle anything on her own, and so it was really up to my friend to take full responsibility in caring for her.

For 2 months Mak spent her days in the hospital, had to be fed via the tube with liquidized food, and for that longest time too my friend took care of her mother diligently without fail. Nevertheless, Allah adalah penentu segalanya, Mak left and passed away on 26^th September 2011. It was the saddest day imaginable for my friend, and even I was overwhelmed by the sense of such sadness that swept over me, as I remembered how hard she prayed everyday to be able to see Mak back on her feet again.

I will never forget the experience of observing the love, commitment, and patience that I saw during the days when my friend devotedly took care of her mother. It was such a humbling experience, for which even I do not know whatever strength that I will still have within me if I were to go through the same situation.

Al Fatihah to arwah Kharis and arwah Mak. And my prayers to the beloved family on their great loss. And herewith I will always remind myself to cherish and love those who are important and dear in my life, while there is still time.

My Super Cheesy Beef Lasagna, yummmms!

As I have mentioned numerous times before in my previous posts, I have been extremely unwell as of late, which caused me not to enjoy my weekends as much as I usually do. It has been an endless tiring cycle of visiting the doc, gagging horrible meds, getting slightly better, and then getting unwell again. Just thinking about it gives me a pounding headache that I finally give up and resolve to think on more pleasurable things in life.

Interestingly though, in the midst of my chaotic health cycle, I have uncharacteristically spent my time in the kitchen poring over recipes (simple ones of course, I wouldn’t want to overestimate my limited capabilities in the kitchen) – and decided to try a few!  And I am not ashamed to say that I have managed to produce some edible dishes, did not burn the kitchen down, and Pedro is still alive and kicking after tasting some of my humble attempts.  (We do not count Kimy into this experiment as he still insists to maintain ‘nasi + kicap + telur’ and ‘maggie +kicap’ in his daily menu, God bless my son).

I recently made a home-made super cheesy beef lasagna which I successfully baked in my new oven (thanks to Pedro). I googled the recipe from the internet and found a simple one which I felt brave enough to try, credits to Kak Ida of http://www.koleksi1001resepi.com/. Since I am happy with the result, herewith I’d like to share the recipe with you (p/s: I made slight revisions to the original recipe in accordance to my own personal preference J ):

The Beef Sauce – ingredients:

Minced beef – amount depending to your preference, add more if you prefer a thicker sauce mixture

Butter - loads of this as well as I love the richness and intensity of the buttery flavour

Olive oil

Garlic, Large onions, finely chopped – I prefer to have loads of this, adds more taste to the sauce

Button mushrooms – thinly sliced

1 bottle of Prego Tomato-based Pasta Sauce – you may not need the whole bottle, depending on the amount required.

Seasonings – Salt, Pepper, Fresh/ Dry Basil, Dry Oregano

Note:

1.       Heat butter mixed with olive oil, sauté garlic and large onions until slightly golden

2.       Add minced beef according to your preference, stir a little until the mixture is incorporated.

3.       Add button mushrooms, and the pasta sauce. Stir until the sauce thickens and the mixture is well combined.

4.       Season with salt, pepper, herbs, or any seasonings of your preference.

The Cheesy Sauce – ingredients:

Butter – 3 table spoons

Plain Flour – 2 table spoons

Full cream milk – 3-4 cups

Grated cheddar cheese – 2-3 cups

Salt & pepper, to taste

Note:

1.       Heat 3 table spoons of butter, 2 table spoons of plain flour, and stir until mixture turns slightly golden and bubbles.

2.       Add 3-3 cups of full cream milk. Continue to stir, and leave the milk to simmer for a few minutes.

3.       Add 2-3 cups of grated cheddar cheese, stir until sauce thickens.

4.       Season with salt & pepper.

Pasta:

250g of packet dry instant lasagna sheets (amount needed will depend on the measurement of your baking dish)

Toppings:

1.       Grated mozzarella cheese – amount depending on preference

2.       Grated cheddar cheese – amount depending on preference

Lasagna Assembly:

Start the layering in your baking dish by spreading the meat sauce over the base of the dish, followed by a layer of the lasagna sheets. Cut or break the sheets to fit the shape of the dish. Spread another layer of the meat sauce, followed by a layer of the cheese sauce. Top with another layer of the lasagna sheets. Repeat the steps of layers, allow to at least 4 layers of each combination. Finally, sprinkle the combined mozzarella cheese and cheddar cheese.

Bake in oven for 35-40 minutes at 180’c, until cheese is golden and the pasta is tender. Set aside for 10 minutes to allow lasagna to cool off before cutting and serving.

And here’s the result, yumsss! Try it – it’s real simple, especially for kitchen-newbies like me!

Think First.Think More.Think Different.

ARE YOU ONE OF THE 'CRAZY ONES'?

"People with a passion can change the world....Those people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who actually do." - Steve Jobs.

"Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as crazy, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do."

Steve Jobs was one of the crazy ones. He'll definitely be missed.

Note: The one-minute commercial featured black-and-white footage of 17 iconic 20th century personalities. In order of appearance they were: Albert Einstein, Bob Dylan, Martin Luther King, Jr., Richard Branson, John Lennon (with Yoko Ono), Buckminster Fuller, Thomas Edison, Muhammad Ali, Ted Turner, Maria Callas, Mahatma Gandhi, Amelia Earhart, Alfred Hitchcock, Martha Graham, Jim Henson (with Kermit the Frog), Frank Lloyd Wright and Pablo Picasso. The commercial ends with an image of a young girl (identified as Shaan Sahota) opening her closed eyes, as if making a wish.

*video & text credit to youtube & wikipedia.

Ta-daaaaa!!

This is what happens when...

....I'm stressed-out!

....I end up listing down things that piss the hell of out me. Yes, apparently this is a channel for me to ease my annoyance at whatever it is that's irritating me at this point of time..

20 things that annoy me beyond imaginable:

1.    Stupid drivers on the road who drive a tad (NOT!) bit too slow on the right lane. And hit on the brakes every 5 seconds. And change lanes without indicating and took all the time in the world to change lanes. And then very, very slowly, found a parking space..and park crooked.

2.   People who are too lazy to think. And expect to be spoon-fed with information all the time. Your brain is there for a reason, people.

3.   People who take credit over someone else’s success & claims all the limelight. If it’s not your effort, not your sweat & blood – then it’s not ok for you to bask in the limelight.

4.   Bad combination of clothes – be it on me, or anybody else.

5.   Bad hair day. There is always that day when nothing goes right. It could be that one strand that kept sticking out no matter how religiously I waxed it down (my short-haired days); or how messed-up my hair becomes when I wear them long. It’s never a win-win situation.

6.   Ugly clothes in posh upscale boutiques. Seriously. I’m not an expert when it comes to defining the true art of fashion, but honestly not all collections available in these expensive boutiques are nice to look at. Somehow I think the expensive labels justify the ridiculously over-priced ugly pieces.  

7.    ‘Friends’ who backstab. In any imaginable way.  

8.   People who never say thank you for anything. You’re not God, your parents are supposed to teach you manners. Whatever good stuff that you get now are all based on God’s will, so be thankful. And say your thank yous when it’s due.

9.   Annoying, obnoxious, rude people who speak loudly anytime, anywhere, and oblivious of surroundings – and apparently thought that they are entertaining.

10. Socially inept people. When you make small talks, please ensure that you don’t offend the other party. I’ve known people who absolutely have no idea how to make jokes, attempted a few and ended up offending others. The sad thing is they absolutely have no idea that they’re acting offensive.

11. Squareheads that score the average of 4.0 in your university years and expect that everything in life is managed based on textbook theories. Go down the street and get a lil street-smart will you please.

12. People who prefer to stand too near to you, and intrude your ‘safe zone’ – eg when you’re queuing up for something, you can practically feel the person behind you breathing down your neck. I mean, is that really necessary? Are you familiar with the term ‘space’?

13. People who can’t sing or are tone deaf, literally – but love to display their ‘talent’ in public. Think public karaoke sessions. With off-tuned vocals. Sigh.  

14. Busybodies.

15. People who gatecrash. There is a reason why people invent invitations. And there is a reason why you’re either invited or not invited. If you are, yay! If you’re not, you can either choose to take offence, or accept the fact that you’re just not wanted there. Learn to understand that.

16. Bad host/ hostess. If you plan to host a party, a get-together, or a kenduri – please ensure that you’re capable of smiling and putting a face that actually shows that you’re happy to receive your guests. Pretend all you want but please make that attempt. It really is pointless if you invite the whole town, and yet when these poor people make the effort to come to your party, they are greeted with your unpleasant façade.

17.  Poyo-ness. That is my term for people who think that they are God’s best creations and are just too good to be true. With display of arrogance at its maximum in all imaginable ways. But with very, very minimal substance. If none at all.

18.  Insecure people who think that they are the center of the universe. Get a grip.

19. Foolish parents who never supervise their children in parties, get-togethers, or whatever social gatherings that require you to at least know where your children are and if they are behaving and not stamping on other children. You are responsible to ensure that your child knows how to behave, not other people's.

20. Dirty toilets. Unfortunately almost all public toilets in the country are unbearable. I will reserve the most crucial moment when I really can’t hold it in any longer, only then I will resolve to make a quick suicidal visit. Hold my breath and do the business real quick.

There. I feel much better now. Now let's get back to work.

Life's Lil Dramatic Decisions - Domestic Chores over Corporate Ladder

photo credits from google

It has been quite a while since I penned down my thoughts here. Have been dying to do so but my health was so bad as of late and I really need my dosage of deprived sleep for the past few weeks. Come to think of it I have been deprived of sleep for 32 long years – that’s how bad my sleeping habit is, as pointed out by dear Mr Pedro.

As we speak about this, I am reminded by my recent decision to turn down 3 great job opportunities from 3 really great organizations; a decision which I took much to my own surprise. As it is I am going through that love-hate relationship with my current job which usually ends up with me vowing to storm off the office and tendering my resignation the next very minute; but I am then reminded by my endless commitments & bills that I have to pay, and the fact that I do love what I do,  irritated or not.

The offers that came in were really good, and I was tempted to just take the challenge and accept the best from all 3. But when the time came for me to really decide, I was surprised of the fact that I actually hesitated. And I started to question myself – is this what I really wanted? I began to ponder on my priorities – and on reality. Do I really need this? All these processes of starting everything from zero - creating new networks, creating new first impressions, climbing that exhausting ladder to the top. Do I really have the energy to go through all that when I can hardly make myself survive my days in my current office? I currently have a good team and excellent internal & external network contacts built over years of partnerships, collaborations, most importantly, trust. And even with all that support (not to mention the fact that I am granted with the flexibility of making my own decisions) – I still groan & moan about my current job. How ungrateful we humans can be, sometimes.

And so after much hesitation, and deliberation, I finally made the big decision and declined all 3 offers.  For a moment I sat quietly and waited for that flash of regret where I’ll start panicking and begging to retract my decisions. But I didn’t feel any remorse. No regrets, no doubts, no misgivings. And that was when I knew I took the right choice. And as I ponder deeply into this, I realized that I have changed over time, and that I am no longer that girl who dreamed high and far in this crazy, corporate world. I still love what I do and I have years of treasured experience that have carved and built me the person I am now; however I now have other priorities in my mind. Like Kimy, for instance. And the urge to try other things – like writing, or cooking. I am known for my lack of skills in the kitchen (only!) – but I recently spent endless hours in the kitchen trying out recipes and found myself actually enjoying it very much. For the first time this year, I actually made some dessert for my mom & and MIL for our raya feasts – which I never in my life imagined I would ever successfully do before I reach my golden years. Good job, Hilda!

And my health – yes, the fact that I have been so unwell for the past couple of months, is really scaring me. The whole situation puzzled me so much as I don’t find anything wrong with me physically, but I have been feeling so, well, unwell. Endless feelings of exhaustion, lack of energy, and the fact that it takes weeks for me to recover from all these – have been a very frustrating experience. I am forced to take better care of myself – early bedtime, eat well (all meals – no diets ok?), no gym for the time being (doc advised me not to exert myself), and no office work after office hours (duh). Conclusion – rest and more rest! I feel officially 50 at the moment, when I am only 32-bloody-young-years-of-age! Sigh.

But things have slowly improved – especially after I exercised most of what the doc advised me to do and after gagging over some horrible medicines. And also after I made sure I don’t think so much about work, and focused my mind over more amusing things – like rambling endlessly in this blog, or trying out more recipes, or obsessing over the latest trends from the fashion magazines. Which also reminded me, yup, I really made the right decision when I decided to just stick with whatever I have now, and just be thankful with all the perks that I’m enjoying with my current job. You might say I’m complacent, but hey, a girl has a right to be complacent when she’s just too tired to take on more stuff on her plate.

Now if you’ll excuse me I need to google that pasta recipe which I salivated over while watching Masterchef US a few nights ago.