There Can Never Be Another Michael Jackson

On the morning of 25 June 2009, I switched on Mix FM while getting ready to go to work.

The station was playing a medley of Michael Jackson (MJ) hits. I thought it was unusual for a radio station to play a tribute to MJ so early in the morning. But I was happy because it's been a while since I heard his songs.

And then I heard the devastating news.

When Man in the Mirror came on, I sat down on my sofa and let it all sink in. I needed to convince myself that the news was real, that the King of Pop was no more.

Michael Jackson was an icon who made a tremendous impact on many people. Have you seen fans go frenzy at his concerts? Till this very day, only another individual and a band could command such fervour - Elvis Presley and The Beatles.

Ask anyone in their mid-20s and above if they can name at least one MJ song and I bet ALL of them will be able to. Such is the effect MJ has on pop culture and society. And that is why he deserves the title, 'King of Pop'.

I remember falling in love with Michael Jackson and Billie Jean as a kid when my dad bought me the 1983-1984 Grammy Award album with MJ on the cover. I still have the album.

MJ became more prominent in my teens with the release of Bad and Dangerous. I knew the lyrics to almost all his songs. My friends and I wanted to save the world when we heard Man in the Mirror and We Are The World. Such is the folly of youth.

In 1996 I went for his concert at the Merdeka Stadium. Watching the King of Pop perform live was a dream come true, although he was only 10 inches tall from where I sat.

I especially wanted to see how he did the 45-degree leaning forward stunt in Smooth Criminal. I still don't have the answer.

I always thought MJ revolutionised music videos. Before him all videos were dull and boring. He brought life, excitement and a whole new style of doing videos.

MJ's talent in song writing, singing and dancing remains indisputable. Founder of the moonwalk and many other signature moves, who could ever come close? God must have been generous for granting one person so much talent.

The day MJ died it felt as if life will never be the same again. He will always be remembered as the entertainer who moonwalked his way into my heart with his songs and moves.

There can never be another Michael Jackson.

Good News Day

Today is one of those days where only good news reign.

1) My mum has found a new home for Lucky. She was at the market this morning buying meat when she asked the butcher if he know of anyone who's looking for a puppy. And coincidently he happened to be looking for one! Looks like Lucky will have lots of meat to feast on.

I pray and hope that the butcher will provide her with a good home and shower her with lots of love. I miss that pup already ...

2) I helped a colleague who is in need of money get a freelance job at a friend's event this Saturday. The pay's not much, but at least it's something.

3) I found out from a MM2H (Malaysia My Second Home Programme) agent that my friend DM does not need to pay any tax when he imports his bike to Malaysia. It's a benefit for all MM2H visa holders who do not wish to purchase a tax free vehicle in Malaysia. Otherwise DM would have to pay extremely high import taxes, something like 300%!

4) And lastly, my friend Sue informed that her boyfriend proposed during a getaway at Cherating, Kuantan over the weekend.

I met up with Sue for dinner after work to hear all about the proposal and to see the bling bling. Lucky gal!

After dinner we dropped by at Aloha KL to celebrate the proposal and to finish Sue's JD before its validity expires.


It has been almost 4 months since I stepped into Aloha KL and I couldn't stop grooving to the music. Retro is my favourite!

Dinner Today ...

Oranges and vegetable soup ... I experimented by sprinkling some oregano leaves into the soup. It tasted different, quite good I must say.

Gonna spend the rest of the evening reading Bill Bryson's Neither here Nor there ...

Must finish this book before I start on No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy. This book was made into a movie and I heard it's a good one.

25 Things About Me

Here is an entry that I stumbled upon while rummaging through my list of unpublished entries laying idle in my Blogger account.

It was written about 3 months back because it was a fad on Facebook at that time. Thought I'd share it with you.

It's called '25 Things About Me'.

1) I despise anchovies. Eating anchovies for me is like a scene from Fear Factor.

2) I can live on potatoes, eggs, milk and cheese. Maybe I should get myself an Irish boyfriend.

3) Female is my favourite magazine. I buy it diligently every month.

4) Liars, rich people who belittle the economically challenged and people who litter puts me off tremendously.

5) I have never followed a tour group on holiday and never will.

6) I am a dog person. A cat cannot love you like a dog and a goldfish is just a goldfish.

7) I currently have 257 books in my collection and growing. Am planning to buy a nice big teak bookcase for my ‘babies’ soon.

8) I can’t speak any Chinese language or dialect properly, thanks to my Peranakan dad.

9) I am studying French not because I have a French boyfriend, or that I’m planning to nab one. I just feel it’s an asset to know many languages and I chose French cause it’s widely spoken in Europe.

10) I could climb a tree at age 2 because the mango tree in my house was my only companion when my mum was busy taking care of my new born sister. The mango tree is now gone and I’ve never climbed a tree since.

11) My car is older than me. Didn’t get rid of it because of its huge sentimental value – my dad drove my mum to the hospital in that car when she was going to give birth to me. The car is still solid and runs like the wind. I nickname it ‘Tiger’.

12) My favourite travel quote is “Travelling is like a book. Those who do not travel reads only a page” by St Augustine.

13) My goddaughter is older than me. She is expecting her first-born this August.

14) There were only 2 times I pissed in public. The first time was as a 2-year-old on Klebang beach, Malacca. The second time was in December last year in Laos. Cheers to many more public pisses to come!

15) Even though I celebrate CNY and Christmas, I prefer CNY. Maybe it’s because of the ang pows ...

16) I was a mega huge fan of New Kids on the Block in my teens. I used to scream and scream when they appeared on television until my dad would scold me.

17) I had a very bad case of acne during my teenage years.

18) I know every possible swear word in English, Bahasa Malaysia, Cantonese, Hokkien and Tamil.

19) I was inspired to study martial arts by watching movies that starred Jackie Chan and Jet Li. I think Wo Peng is the best martial arts choreographer.

20) Becoming fat is my second greatest fear after fear of God.

21) My goal in life is to get married and to become a kid manufacturing plant. Just kidding … My goal in life is to be happy and contented.

22) I think the best male pop/rock artists with the best vocals are Bono, Jon Bon Jovi and Rob Thomas. They can pull-off any note effortlessly.

23) My digestive system is ultra sensitive towards coffee. I don’t need to eat lots of fruits and vege to empty my bowels; just drink a cup of coffee and I’ll be sitting on the throne within half an hour.

24) Going to TAR College was the biggest regret in my life.

25) I swear a lot …

Argentina, Banana Leaf Rice & Malaysia

L to R: Oscar, Angie and Ruben

I met Ruben while on Bunaken Island last month.

To those of you who love to travel, Ruben is leading THE life - he's on a backpacking trip around Asia.

Like many Mat Sallehs who are mystified with the East and everything to do with it, Ruben spent 6 months in India studying meditation and yoga. In fact before coming to KL, he was in Malacca for 2 weeks studying wai tan kung.

During the Malaysian leg of his travels, Ruben's brother Oscar flew into KL to follow him discover the wonders of this multi-racial country. The brothers are from Argentina.

Whilst in KL, Angie and I brought them for a banana leaf rice dinner at Nirwana's Restaurant in Bangsar (where else! It's our fav banana leaf rice joint!).

I think everyone enjoyed their meal because this is how our table looked like after we had done justice to the rice, vege and chicken.

Whacked clean!

After dinner we continued sitting at the table despite a few people standing around waiting for us to scram (how evil we are!). We exchanged travel stories and about life in Malaysia and Argentina.

Ruben told us about the poor economy in Argentina resulting in many Argentinians moving to Spain to build a life there. Argentina became independent from Spain in 1810. So I guess that's why Spanish is the official language in Argentina and not 'Argentinian' as what some simple-minded folks would think, lol.

Btw, Ruben and Oscar were charged RM10 by an unscrupulous taxi driver to drive them from the Bangsar LRT station to the restaurant which is only about 1km away. That's daylight robbery!

We could have easily given them directions to walk to the restaurant. But we didn't want them to sesat (get lost) being foreigners who are not familiar with Bangsar.

Malaysian taxi drivers prey on foreigners to make a fast ringgit and the government ain't doing anything 'bout it.

Cookies From Macau

Today is a Monday and I need to update my blog. But I don't have anything interesting to share and I'm suffering from writer's block due to insufficient sleep.

So I'm gonna show you what my boss brought back from Macau for the folks at the office. She was on holiday there last week.

These cookies are made using green peas and are quite hard literally on the teeth - don't like. I think they are also available in Malaysia albeit packaged differently.

So that's my very short Monday blog post for you.

Where I'll Be in September 2009

After waiting for the right moment, I mustered my courage, said a prayer, stepped into my boss' office and asked.

The outcome? She approved my leave for this coming September.

So during that time my arse will be in 2 cities for 2 weeks. If you're wondering which 2 cities, let me give you clues.

The clue for the first city is this:


Clue for the second city is this:

Can you guess?

Lots of homework and planning to do.

Can't bloody wait !!!

Puppy for Adoption

Someone left a new-born puppy at the back of my house about 2 weeks ago.

When my mum found the pup, she could not decide whether to call her:

• 'Friday' cause she was found on a Friday; or
• 'Lucky' cause apparently the Chinese believe it's good luck to find a black dog.

In the end mum decided on 'Lucky' cause it sounds better.

Lucky is currently on a milk diet and she has grown into a chubby and active little mutt in 2 weeks.

Lucky asleep in her cage.

Lucky is so small I can hold her with my two hands held together like scooping water.

Look at those eyes ... How can you say 'no' to Lucky ...

Since my house already has a dog, my mum wants to give Lucky away to any family/person who'll be able to take good care of her.

If you would like to welcome this cute and adorable puppy into your household, kindly drop me a note at limseetyin@gmail.com.

Holiday Souvenirs for Colleagues

Souvenir stalls in Bangkok.

Do you buy holiday souvenirs for your colleagues whenever you holiday out of country?

Well I don't, and I don't plan to start because they'll expect it everytime.

But I've got a few thick-skinned colleagues who have the cheek to ask every single time I return from a holiday.

Come on ... I've already spent hard-earned money on the flight, lodging, food, ground travel, entrance fees, etc. And you expect me to buy holiday souvenirs for you? You can dream on, brother ...

These buggers have no shame at all.

I've heard of a case where a supervisor threatened his subordinates with poor appraisal scores if they didn't buy any holiday souvenir for him. His subordinates eventually made a report to human resources and he got into trouble. Why go through so much trouble for some stupid holiday souvenir?

The next time if any of my colleagues asks, I'm gonna reply, "Buying holiday souvenirs for you is not part of my job description."

Career in a Rut

Today is Monday, the start of another nothing-to-do-at-work week.

For the past couple of weeks, I've been literally shaking legs at work. Every morning I come to work, switch on the computer and surf the net till I knock off at 6.00pm.

This total lack of activity is driving me crazy!

I wonder why my boss decided to employ me in the first place. Does she need that many people in the department when almost all of us are lazing away?

I know I should be grateful that I have a job, especially in this economic climate where there's unemployment everywhere. But I can't help feeling redundant and stupid.

I feel that my skills and knowledge amassed through the years will deteriorate and wither away, leaving me incapable of performing up to expectations in my next role, wherever and whenever that may be.

I miss the adrenaline rush of planning and organising an event. I miss writing a press release and the satisfaction of seeing a high media value for a campaign I've worked on. I don't get to do all that in my current employment.

I think I seriously need to take a good, long, hard look at my career. To see where I'm heading in the next 5 years. And hopefully I'm able to salvage what's left of it.