Why Can't Female Teachers in Malaysia Wear Pants to Work?

Work pants or Long skirts for work?

One question I used to ask when I was still a school girl was Why can't female teachers in Malaysia wear pants to work?

I think it is some sort of a code of dressing left behind and still being practiced since the Colonial times. It has been more than 50 years since Independence, Malaysia. Time to relook and reconsider this dress code?

I remember fondly of the two years I spent as a Sixth Former in my pre-U days at St Joseph Secondary School in Kuching, Sarawak... The pride of La Salle in Borneo.  The female teachers are allowed to wear pants.

The term who wears the pants also mean who is in control and have a say in deciding stuff so I guess not being allowed to wear pants may stem from a lack of gender equality as well. That is a whole different topic altogether so I won't delve into that.

But hello it is 2016 already ... Mengapa guru wanita tidak boleh memakai seluar panjang sebagai pakaian rasmi semasa bertugas?

With the fiasco on social media last year concerning our national Gold Medalist Gymnast Farah Ann Abdul Hadi who won six medals including two gold at the SEA games focusing on the V-line of her leotard instead of her gold victory speaks volumes about just how petty and archaic-thinking SOME of my fellow countrymen are. So I rest my case.

All opinions are expressed from my own personal view which you may agree or not agree but each to their own. I would like to clarify that I come from a family of Teachers and headmistress and principals. My baby sister is still a teacher in a government national school. So I do know what I am talking about. You don't have to agree. #peace

Simply Siti New Perfume - Memoire

I was traveling in Air Asia flight and an elegant packaging I knew was a perfume box caught my attention as the steward and stewardess pushed the merchandise cart past me.

It was the new Simply Siti range of perfume - EDP (Eau De Parfum). Retailing for over RM70-RM80, the three scents were only retailing for RM59 EACH only on Air Asia flights

Being an ardent perfume lover, especially EDP, I asked them which is the best seller among the three and was recommended Memoire, 50ml. I took the chance and bought it. Hubby got himself 'Aura' perfume which is only RM17 on board for 100ml.

Here are the pix of the EDP. I love the scent, it is light and 'flowery', sweet and pleasant, not too heavy and just nice for day wear yet subtle enough for dinner functions. I will definitely try it again if the price is right!

P/s- Simply Siti is a brand founded by Malaysia songbird Siti Nurhaliza.

What It Means to be Malaysian to Me

I promise this will be a shorter post compared to the long posts in my blog.

Happy Independence Day, Malaysia! Technically, it is Malaya who is 55 years old, Malaysia as a country is only 49 years old, formed by Sabah and Sarawak in Borneo, Singapore (who then left about two years later) and Malaya (now referred to as Peninsula Malaysia). Malaysia Day is celebrated on 16th September. :-)

I guess I need to write an essay on what it means to be Malaysian in my opinion.

Here goes.

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE MALAYSIAN...

TO MY FAMILY: My late grandpa (who passed away at the age of 95 in 2007 a week before my weddding) always said: "Malaysia is a peaceful place. You can earn a living as long as you are hardworking." He came from China in the 1930s, when times are hard after the 1911 Chinese Revolution. He travelled with valid travel documents and settled down in Kuching, Sarawak, a state in Borneo, where he started his family and became part of the newly formed nation in 1963 through naturalisation - he was official "British" before 1963.

Same goes to my mom's parents, my parents' birth certificates showed "British" as their nationality as both my parents were born before 1963. British or no British, we are all Malaysians now. We are not even that state-centric anymore, we have relocated from Borneo to Peninsular Malaysia, my siblings and I have found non-Sarawakian
partners, we cannot afford to be state-centric anymore anyway!

TO FELLOW MALAYSIANS: Generally we young people (sweeping statement here, pardon me please) does not really bother about National's Day after we left mainstream education, where we had to line up and sing patriotic songs as well as the National anthem on a day before or after the actual public holiday in the spirit of Merdeka - in Bahasa Malaysia, the national language, Merdeka means - Independence (Free from Colonialism).

MY OWN TAKE:
The first time I was part of a National Day countdown was on August 30, 2005. I was still a reporter back then, I sat very close to the grand stand (main stage) where all the VIPs were at. By the time the countdown of 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and MERDEKA! was shouted by everyone at Dataran Merdeka - the place where Malaya's Independence was first declared and shouted by the first Premier, Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj - I tell you, I actually felt a lump threatening to choke my throat, I was moved. The feeling was surreal. Here I was, at the same venue where our forefathers fought for independence and with everyone shouting "Merdeka", and I joined in as well, it beats watching a game at the Stadium or shouting for your idol anytime, the feeling is totally different! I blogged about it on Friendster but sadly, it has died a natural death, so I lost all data and pics of that night.

TO THE WORLD:
The people globally usually refer to Malaysia as only Peninsular Malaysia and shorten our citizens' name to the MALAYS. That is from the olden pre-Independent days where Malaya was called Tanah Melayu, the Land of Malays. Paintings of South East Asia map labelled Peninsular Malaysia as Malay. Even when I went to Hong Kong and mainland China, they referred to us as Malays. Fine.

RACES/SOCIETY IN MALAYSIA
For the record, Malaysia is a multi-racial country with Muslim as the official religion while non-Malays can profess any religion of their choice. Malay is the majority, with about 60% of the population, the rest are the Chinese (Chinese descent, not China-Chinese), Indian (Indian descent from India, but not India-Indian), the indegenious people in Peninsular Malaysia like Sakai, Jakun, and also 26 ethnic groups in the state of Sarawak in Borneo (Iban is the majority) and 27 ethnic groups in the state of Sabah in Borneo (Kadazan is the majority) - the two states in Borneo comprises East Malaysia, separated by South China Sea from Peninsular Malaysia.

Inter-racial marriages, and even inter-religious marriages had turned Malaysians into a colourful potpourri. I promised a short blog post, so for more information, feel free to google up Malaysia.

One thing synonymous with Malaysians are its food.

FOOD, FOOD, oh glorious food.

It doesn't matter what style of cooking it is, the Malays will cook Halal (ALMOST equivalent of 'kosher') food, but in Chinese or Indian style, we will have Malay style Chinese Fried Rice, or Indian style Fried noodles, and even the uniquely 'Mamak' or 'peranakan' cooking which is the result of racial integration of mixed marriages. Oh, don't get me started on the food for rest of the ethnicities in Sabah and Sarawak, my homeland of Borneo.

Pix shows some traditional cooking (meat in bamboo over the fire) by my friend's mom during Gawai Harvest Festival in mid-year in Sarawak.


I will not be telling the whole truth if I say we are truly tolerant with each other. However, let me remind you that even in a close-knit family, there will be squabbles and disagreements, what more to say in such a diverse community like what we have in Malaysia? Whoever we vote for, be it pro-Government or pro-Opposition, we are all just Malaysian voters exercising our rights. At the end of the day, we eat the same food, breathe in the same air, stay in the same country.

We are far from Utopia but generally, Malaysians are peace-loving people and once you get to know us and we overcome our initial 'shyness', we are always ready with a smile and will render any help we can. Just don't provoke us or call us names as we pride ourselves in our rich heritage and languages.

Selamat Hari Merdeka to all Malaysians! *Peace be unto all of us*

You may be interested to read more: http://suesanctuary.blogspot.com/search/label/1Malaysia

Visit to Putrajaya - Government Housing Loan

My father-in-law is an ex-serviceman. Having served in the navy for about 22 years, he opted for retirement and qualified for a monthly pension from the government.

He took on a housing loan for his current house just before he retired and the loan was taken from the government at a flat rate of 4% interest rate. So the loan repayments were deducted from his monthly pension up till now.

His loan is supposed to be paid up by mid-2012. However, the deductions continued way past June and it's already August and September is coming soon.

Hence I drove him up to the heart of Malaysia's administrative hub - Putrajaya.

As an ex-reporter, I have traveled to Putrajaya on assignments/for events. However I don't exactly know where in Presint 2 is the Housing Loan Unit in the Malaysian Treasury under the Ministry of Finance. The Ministry of Finance comprises THREE HUGE BLOCKS.

Thanks to the spirit of 1Malaysia or maybe it's just the friendly security guard, he pointed us to the end of the block from where our car stopped to ask for direction. We parked at the open air parking (after going past BSN bank on the same side of the road).

One thing that we found lacking are proper signages. For that, they have well-informed security guards who gladly answered your queries and pointed you to the correct direction.

Some pix of our journey and the last pix is the contact number of all the relevant departments related to government housing loan. Hope it is of some help.

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri (Happy Eid) to all Muslims!

Malaysia is a multi-racial & multi-religious country despite its Constitution stating that it is a Muslim country with Islam as the official religion. We are free to believe and adopt any faith we choose.

I love the practice of asking for forgiveness on a New Year for the Muslims (the first day of the Muslim Calendar Month of Syawal). Happy Eid and I apologise for all my wrongdoings and trespassings in the past one year.

Kepada sahabat Muslim sekalian, Selamat Hari Raya Puasa, Maaf Zahir dan Batin!

I will make up for the food when I return from my China trip. Been scheduling my posts for the past few days as I am away till after the first two days of Raya (Eid!). My Muslim friends told me the celebration lasts the whole 30 days, a whole month, so I will feast on the delicious food when I return!!! Ketupat, Rendang, ayam masak merah, soto, etc... you can google them up for the mouth-watering images. *craving mode*

Some cute pix of a sales brochure of a hypermarket. They illustrations are just so adorable! Have a great celebration!!!

Hantu Gangster (movie) - A Light Take on a Dark Subject

I actually felt really moved when I listened to this song and pondered on its meaning, and thinking back of how far Namewee has come, from his student days (google up: Negarakuku) to his accomplishments today with many movies and accolades.

I know he is not popular with some sects of the society due to his vocal opinions, and I don't 100% condone his speech (can be futher filtered) but I actually feel proud our country has someone like him who dare to say, dare to do and dare to be himself.

Won't spoil the storyline for anyone but be assured the movie has a strong cast of heavyweight (famous) celebrities in Malaysia represented by the three main races in Malaysia (sorry Sabahans and my fellow Sarawakians, we are again, Dan Lain Lain - Others), for his second attempt after his first movie Nasi Lemak 2.0, Namewee has 'come of age' and I am sure he will only keep improving himself from this point on, provided he doesn't lose his focus along the way. Way to go, Namewee!

*For the record, Sarawak and Sabah are separated physically from Peninsular Malaysia by the South China Sea - Sarawak has 26 ethnicities and Sabah has 27 ethnicities, or maybe I miss one or two ethnicities there - Malaysia has more than 50 ethnicities, Peninsular Malaysia (Semenanjung) has THREE main major races. That's my only point of contention.*

Just in case you wish to view the review after the premier on Aug 9th, 2012, which included members of the public and some Malaysian celebrities:



You may be interested to check out this post on my take of 1Malaysia: http://suesanctuary.blogspot.com/2011/05/why-do-i-get-called-auntie-instead-of.html

To fellow Malaysians, do watch Hantu Gangster in the cinema, awesome movie! I admit I am BIASED. For a more neutral take on this movie, check out this review: http://poinkbox.blogspot.com/2012/08/hantu-gangster-polished-but-artificial.html

3M - Membaca, Mengira Dan Menulis (Bahasa Malaysia post) - Bagaimanajika anak anda lambat bercakap?

Sistem persekolahan di Malaysia berteraskan satu misi - iaitu murid-murid sekolah rendah (7 sehingga 12 tahun) seharusnya menghabiskan 6 tahun yang diwajibkan oleh undang-undang kerajaan Malaysia di sekolah dan kanak-kanak tersebut sepatutnya mencapai kemahiran asas dalam 3M, iaitu Membaca, Menulis dan Mengira.

Sebenarnya saya tidak begitu pasti sama ada mengira atau menulis yang ditulis dahulu selepas membaca, oleh itu saya menulis kedua-duanya sekali - sekali di tajuk dan sekali di perenggan ini.

Setahu saya, konsep 3M telah pun diterapkan dalam sistem pendidikan Malaysia sejak zaman 'Pelajaran' dahulu, sebelum semuanya diseragamkan kepada 'Pendidikan'.

Saya ingin berkongsi pengalaman dan beberapa anekdot (ringkasan kisah benar) berkenaan sistem pelajaran Malaysia, terutamanya sistem pendidikan sekolah rendah di Malaysia.

Bukan setiap pelajar yang berumur 7 tahun (pada 31 Disember tahun itu atau 1 Jan tahun seterusnya) yang melangkah masuk ke Tahap 1, iaitu Tahun 1 (Darjah 1) tahu membaca atau menulis. Walaupun rata-rata kanak-kanak dihantar ke prasekolah, masih terdapat segelintir keluarga yang tidak mampu menghantar anak-anak ke sekolah sebelum mereka diwajibkan untuk ke sekolah semasa berumur 7 tahun. Oleh itu, di sesetengah kawasan, para guru terpaksa menangani masalah jurang Tahap kemahiran 3M di kalangan para pelajar.

Saya masih ingat lagi, para guru menunjukkan rasa bangga apabila murid-murid 'pandai' menunjukkan kemahiran mereka menulis 26 abjad/huruf dan melafazkan semua suku kata tanpa cacat cela. Apabila murid membisukan diri, mereka disindir dan dikatakan 'bodoh' dan banyak lagi kata-kata yang seumpamanya. Apabila difikirkan balik, saya gerun merenungkan trauma/kesan psikologi ke atas murid-murid yang diketawakan oleh seluruh kelas kerana 'bodoh'. Para guru (bukan semua, segelintir sahaja) menunjukkan kepada kanak-kanak bimbingan mereka yang tidak mengapa sekiranya kita mentertawakan orang yang tidak dapat memenuhi kehendak masyarakat iaitu Tahap pembelajaran yang asas. Sekiranya lambat sedikit dalam penguasaan akademik, terus ditertawakan dan dikatakan 'bodoh'.

Mengapa tiba-tiba jer tergerak hati menulis artikel ni?

Sahabat baik saya, panggillah dia Puan A, berkongsi luahan hati tidak lama dulu. Anak lelakinya, N, masih tidak dapat bercakap dengan normal walaupun usianya sudah menjangkau 6 tahun. Puan A sangat risau bagaimana N akan menyesuaikan diri dengan persekitaran semasa melangkah masuk ke Darjah 1 tahun depan (2013). Beliau takut anaknya akan dihina hanya kerana anaknya lambat bercakap daripada kanak-kanak lain yang 'normal'.

"Percayalah, Sue, kami telah menghantar N ke klinik pakar kerajaan, macam-macam ujian dah dijalankan, anak kami normal, bukan autistik (autisme), hanya lambat bercakap jer. Ramai orang mengata yang kami suami isteri tidak menjalankan tanggungjawab sebaiknya sebagai ibu bapa. Kami pun tidak ingin N menjadi begini! Kakak N tiada masalah bercakap pun. Paling menyakitkan hati apabila orang menjeling anak kami yang mengeluarkan kata-kata yang tidak difahami seperti 'ya ya ta ta' sambil menunjuk sesuatu yang menarik perhatiannya. Lebih-lebih lagi salah seorang doktor pakar yang pernah kami jumpa seolah-olah menganggap yang anak kami, N, itu gila," keluh Puan A.

Puan A takut anaknya digelar 'bodoh' tahun depan di sekolah rendah. Sekarang, N bersekolah di tadika berdekatan rumah yang mempunyai cikgu-cikgu yang memahami keadaan kanak-kanak ini dan tidak menunjukkan rasa tidak sabar atau marah-marah terhadap kekurangan kemahiran bercakap N.

Saya rasa, walaupun minoriti, mesti ada kanak-kanak yang sebegitu rata-rata di seluruh dunia, dan ibu bapa mereka sudah tentunya berasa 'terperangkap' oleh keadaan yang di luar kawalan mereka.

Balik kepada kenangan zaman persekolahan saya dahulu, saya ingat ada seorang budak lelaki yang berpindah ke sekolah kami semasa Darjah 4, ini saya gunakan nama sebenarnya, Larry namanya. Larry berpindah dari kampung dan kami terkejut yang dia tidak tahu membaca atau menulis dan kami mentertawakannya. Hasil kelas pemulihan sehingga ke Darjah 6, Larry mampu menulis A-Z tetapi terpaksa menyebut suku kata secara berasingan sebelum menggabungkan dua suku kata menjadi satu perkataan, contoh ya "S-A sa Y-A ya, saya".

Menurut kawan-kawan sekelas, Larry balik ke kampung selepas tamat Darjah 6 dan tiada berita mengenainya selepas itu.

Sekiranya kita mementingkan hak yang setara untuk semua kanak-kanak dalam pendidikan supaya menjadi insan yang berguna dalam masyarakat, dalam kes-kes istimewa bagi kanak-kanak normal yang hanya 'lambat' tetapi tidak cukup lambat untuk dikelaskan sebagai 'slow-learner' yakni tidak dapat menyertai kelas PKBP (bagi kanak-kanak yang bermasalah pembelajaran), sesuatu haruslah dilakukan untuk kumpulan kanak-kanak 'perantaraan' seperti N dan Larry.

Sekadar berkongsi, bukannya untuk mentohmah sesiapa ataupun mana-mana pihak.

Anda mungkin tertarik untuk membaca hasil nukilan seterusnya:

I plan to translate this blogpost into English soon.

Why do I get called Auntie instead of "kakak" by a 20-year-old? 1Malaysia Dapat ke Tak direalisasikan?

I don't know why but a Malay woman my age (early 30s) would be called "kakak", which is the equivalent of "sister" by a young 20-year-old Malay but the moment they see this Chinese-descent-me of the same age as the earlier "sister", 9 out of 10 times, they will address me as "auntie" instead. That would be the equivalent of "makcik" in the Malay language - usually we reserve this for people who are at least 20 or more years older than the person who say it out of respect.

I understand that calling me "Auntie" is like bestowing me the respect that is much better than "Oy" or "eh" but I cannot stand it after some time and yes, I am irked!

BM (Bahasa Malaysia - Malaysian national language) post ahead.

Mengapakah saya dinaikkan 'pangkat' dan sekaligus, ditambahkan 'umur' saya hanya kerana saya seorang Cina dan bukan Melayu?

Memang betul nama saya Cina, ibu bapa dan seluruh keluarga saya Cina, bahasa ibunda saya di rumah Cina dan darah saya memang Cina, tapi darah saya berwarna merah juga, saya dilahirkan di Malaysia, tanah air semua rakyat Malaysia, malah, saya TIDAK PERNAH menghadiri sekolah Cina - ibu saya menghantar saya ke sekolah kebangsaan dan Bahasa Melayu merupakan bahasa formal pertama saya sementara Bahasa Inggeris bahasa kedua saya sejak kecil lagi. 

Saya membesar dengan memori mencuit hati selama ENAM TAHUN di sekolah rendah dengan kawan-kawan bumiputera di Sarawak, termasuk dua orang kawan Melayu dan seorang lagi lelaki Cina di dalam kelas saya. Saya masih ingat lagi, cara kami menyebut sukukata adalah dengan begitu bakunya sekali. Sa - Saaaaa Ya - Yaaaaa. Semua itu berubah dengan asimilasi masyarakat apabila kami masing-masing membawa diri ke sekolah menengah yang berlainan, dan percaya atau tidak, saya hanya mula bertutur Bahasa Melayu Sarawak, dialek unik negeri Kenyalang dalam Tingkatan Satu.

Bahasa Melayu saya adalah lebih 'mantap' berbanding bahasa ibunda saya kerana saya sekadar pandai bertutur Cina tetapi sebenarnya hanya mengenali beberapa patah perkataan setaraf budak Tadika kerana tidak pernah menerima pendidikan formal Bahasa Cina. Cina celuplah saya ni. 

Oleh itu, sila bercakap dengan saya dalam Bahasa Kebangsaan. Saya amat selesa bertutur dalam Bahasa Kebangsaan kita. Janganlah hairan jika anda mendengar pertuturan petahku, memang Bahasa Melayu bahasa pertama saya sejak kecil lagi, teman sepermainan saya semuanya bertutur dalam Bahasa Melayu, sehingga sekarang.

Tidak payahlah anda tergamam apabila ingin memasukkan saya ke dalam 'kategori kaum stereotaip' tetapi anda ragu-ragu sebab saya suka mengenakan pakaian tradisional Melayu seperti baju kurung dan baju kebaya labuh.

Apabila anda memulakan sapaan dengan Bahasa Inggeris, saya menyapa dengan "Apa Khabar?" "terima kasih" dengan tiada pelat langsung, tidak payahlah anda bertanya, "Eh, Cina ke Melayu?"

Selalunya, saya menjawab soalan itu dengan senyuman, sekadar bertanya balik "Mengapa? Penting ke? Saya orang Malaysia," selalunya mereka akan kebingungan.


Entahlah. Rasanya semangat 1Malaysia masih tidak dapat betul-betul dihayati sepenuhnya sekiranya kita masih di takuk lama. 

Malaysia bukan semata-mata hanya ada TIGA kaum utama! Bagaimana dengan kaum-kaum/etnik lain di Malaysia Timur?

Seperti mana kami di Bumi Kenyalang dan Negeri di Bawah Bayu mengenali yang Pulau Pinang dan Melaka pernah menjadi Negeri-Negeri Selat dengan Singapura, serta sangat jelas yang Adat Perpatih diamalkan di Negeri Sembilan, mengetahui yang Rantau Panjang terletak di Kelantan, adalah adil dan TIDAK KETERLALUAN untuk anda mengetahui yang Iban adalah kaum majoriti di Sarawak dan BUKANNYA Sabah, begitu juga satu lagi pengetahuan am yang kaum Kadazan berasal dari Sarawak, BUKANLAH, dari Sabah ba!

Untuk mengatakan Sabah dan Sarawak adalah tempat dan negeri yang sama, dan apabila dibetulkan, anda mengata "TIDAK MENGAPA" kerana anda salah anggap, Tidak Boleh dimaafkan! Adakah Johor dan Perlis negeri yang sama? Kerana itulah perbandingan jarak secara kasarnya di antara Tip of Borneo di Sabah sehingga ke selatan Sarawak.

Cukuplah leteran saya yang panjang ini. Nanti dikatakan saya ingin mencetuskan isu perkauman pula. Ini hanya rintihan hati dan keluhan naluri yang terpendam selama ini. Saya cintakan tanah air ini, kita sebenarnya tidak banyak berbeza, mengapakah perlu terus membezakan sesama sendiri dan mengkategorikan semua insan ke dalam acuan lama?

Majulah Malaysia mengikut peredaran zaman. Semoga doa ikhlas ini untuk mencapai Bangsa Malaysia yang aman dan betul-betul harmoni dan muhibah, termakbul juga suatu hari nanti.

Anda mungkin tertarik untuk membaca hasil nukilan seterusnya: http://suesanctuary.blogspot.com/2012/08/3m-membaca-mengira-dan-menulis-bahasa.html

A note on Sarawak 2011 State Election

In Malaysia, we have State Elections to elect assemblymen and Federal Elections (nationwide) to elect Members of Parliament.

The EC has announced the nomination of the state of Sarawak's State Elections on Apr 6th and the polling day on Apr 16th, 2011.

This is hardly a reflection, more like a personal note on Sarawak 2011 State Election from someone who is a nobody like me.

Anyway, let me give you a brief introduction on my voting experience from 2001 when I was 21 up till today.

When I was 21 (the minimum age of registered voters), and I could vote, the state election was held too near to my birthday in October and I could not make it in time to be in the voters list due to something that is out of my control - the creation of Sue by my parents, hence I missed 2001 state election.
- quote on 2001 State Election from wikipedia - The Eighth Sarawak state election was held on 27 September 2001 with nomination date on 18 September 2001. The state assembly was supposed to be expired on 18 November 2001 but it was dissolved by the governor of Sarawak 2 months earlier on 3 September 2001. - so it's so unfair they had to dissolve it earlier by two months and I would have missed it anyway, as at the tortoise rate they update the list, two months is still too little time for them to include my name in the voters' list, so never mind then, I still would have missed the 2001 election.

Then in 2004, I was already a registered voter (the patriot in me made sure I registered as soon as I turned 21), and just as fate would have it, I had to fly to Kuala Lumpur to take up a new reporting job and had to be uprooted and 'stationed' on polling day as it was the Federal Election (nationwide), with candidates contesting for Parliamentary seats. I couldn't abandon my reporting job in Kuala Lumpur back then to fly back to Kuching, cos I was attached to a beat of another constituency in Kuala Lumpur, so there goes my second chance to vote. So much for patriotism, huh? But the candidate I was rooting for in my constituency won. No prizes for guessing who (for those of you who knows I'm a patriot as much of a hopeless romantic).

Then in the last State Election that was in 2006, my mum and I flew back just to vote, and I felt I kinda 'jinx'ed it cos the candidate I voted for lost, no prizes for who I voted for. I vomited immediately after I voted, outside the compound of the school which is my polling station, I remember vividly like it was yesterday, I was down with food poisoning -- and call it coincidence if you like, out came all the Kuching laksa and kolo mee I had upon touch-down the day before and that morning -- and down went my candidate of choice.

Okay, so I'm staying in Kuala Lumpur, you may ask me why don't I change my voting constituency? I just don't fancy changing my voting constituency. The last time a friend and his wife did that, their name disappeared from their old constituency and never appeared in the new constituency so they are no longer registered voters as far as anyone is concerned!

So this time around, I'm gonna pass. Not gonna fly back just to vote, cos judging from the responses on fb among my friends who purposely wanna fly back just to vote, I think that will stir things up enough for us to watch the drama unfold through the mass media. Moreover, during that weekend, I'm going to be up to my neck with work and deadlines (this time around, I'm a lecturer, nope, not in political science but in Public Relations), and to give a very politically-correct response to the election this time around, let me gear up my Public Relations skills to give an acceptable answer:

Someone on facebook, a friend from my childhood years in Bau (a former goldmine town in Sarawak) asked about my comments on the impending election based on my past reporting experience - I kinda like what I typed in the comment box and it came from me, so I'm sharing it here:

"We have to remember not all politicians are bad, they are just different by their levels of commitment towards their 'fight' for the people. Once you join politics, you are bound to have some degree of 'taint', cos it's the same dirty pond we're talking about." -- Sue Tiong, 2011

I rest my case. :-)

A Trip Into the Past

I had a trip into the past - in the sense that I revisited the places of interest in my current city of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia as a trip down memory lane - only this time, I played tour guide.

I met up with a Filipina girl I befriended via a facebook application I am currently addicted to - (fluff)friends and she brought along a Thai guy she befriended via facebook (not the same application or rather, not any other application) - they are studying the same field - archeology.

She recently had to fly to Indonesia in some archipelago off Yogjakarta and her flight schedule is in such a way that she has to transit in Kuala Lumpur for a night before flying off. As her flight arrived just after noon at around 3-4pm, we made plans to meet up.

With only photos I've seen of her and she of me on facebook, I welcomed her at the KL Sentral station along with that guy, of course, whom she introduced to me. So started my 3-hour fully packed role as their tour guide around the metropolitan city.

I brought them on the LRT (train) ride to Petaling Street, or Chinatown. There they feasted their eyes on unconventional products on display and cheap bargains.

On the way back to the LRT station, we dropped by Central Market (arts and crafts complex) and took a peek into the arts and crafts there.

Then it was the ultimate visit of the night - the Petronas Twin Towers. It was already 8.30pm when we reached KLCC station, the stop where you get off if you wish to visit the Twin Towers.

There are four different entrances/exits of Suria KLCC (Kuala Lumpur City Centre - shopping complex) and I brought them to all four to snap away the night view of the towers, leaving of course, the best angle for last.

Both of them were in awe of the magnificent architecture and the lights accentuated the majestic structure. Pix for your eyes' viewing pleasure. ;-)