Half Year Ponder...

Time flies (these two words I use too often these days!) ... But really, 2006 has come to its half-year mark!!

Last year at half way mark, I did a resolution list of sort - SPG Challenge - on my rather new blog..

This year, my 2006 resolutions had mostly gone down the drain.. yet again. Sigh, I must be less ambitious so now I have only three resolutions which I aim to achieve:

1. To do my daily devotion and pray more
2. To sleep earlier and wake up earlier (which will suit my `new job' fine
3. Exercise more and eat less

Of course, there are many other `sub-resolutions' if there are such words to describe it. But knowing my discipline and self-control level, I jsut can't be greedy. These are the ones I want to start with.

But with WC still on till July 10th morning, I think no. 2 and 3. would not take off too well.. :p

Feel kinfa bored and restless being at home.. but this morning went out with dad to renew passport. Had a hair cut! Now hair is almost 2-3 inch shorter.. feel quite refresh! But won't post pix as I have such bad eye-bags.. :(

Oooooh.. tonite is THE match of the quarter-finals! Hope i'm alert enough to watch it. Can't believe I slept through The Bachelor final last nite!

So here's hoping it will be a good 2nd half year whereI really will improve myself in every aspect.. Will share more about my work once I get back to work.. Yeah, some changes looming...

Taking a Break...

Phew! We now have a two-day break from World Cup action before the quarter-finals are brought on! At least I could sleep longer tonight and tomorrow.

I am taking a few days break.. had not been sleeping well and feeling overwhelmed with work and other things on my mind. May be World Cup also had a toll on me.. anyway, almost finished all the work and will do the rest at home. Thanks to my doctor's MC.

Ever since I started following the Cup from 1986, this year seems to be the most exciting (besides 1986 itself with the football wizard Maradona) Why, there have been many thrilling games and some for the wrong reason. And look at the teams entering into Q-finals! ALL except one previous champions are now through and will be fighting it out. And the most mouth-watering game has to be between Argentina and Germany! Ukraine and Portugal are out-siders so to speak, especially Ukraine. But I think it's almost improbable for them to advance to the semi.

There have been lots of conspiracy theory by various columnists in the MM Sports pages. Quite entertaining to read.

With more than 50 hours to the Q-Final show-down, I shall present here a few photos of the road to Q-Finals featuring some of my favourite games and players. (courtesy of fifaworldcup.yahoo.com.)

Beckham the England`saviour'

Two magnificent French`botaks'
Messi who looks a little sloppy is hailed as the new Maradona! (and highly praised by the legned himself)Argentina `flying' high - what a kick!Ronaldo the record breaker - most no. of goals for a player in WC!

Celebrating with Kaka and Adriano
Totti sucks his thumb after the brilliant penalty kick
Buffon - the great Italian keeper who is also the most expensive in the world!
Italy celebrates!A goalie caught in action.

Jojo Turns 3!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOJO!

In just a few minutes time, our beloved `Monster Jojo' will be three!

He was the first dog we have since moving to this new place, and since our last dog Chubby - a fluffy German Spitz died in 1997.

I invested a lot on Jojo - time, energy, money.. he even completed the basic obedience course from MKA. But I feel kinda bad cause I think I've sorta neglected him a little when Jelly arrived.. Especially now that he has become an outdoor dog while Jelly stays indoor most time.

Compared to Jelly, Jojo is less feisty. However, he is `destructive' in the sense that he is SOOO oral - a trait of Golden Retriever I guess. He still chews on slippers and other things he wants to. He is still disobedient to certain extent and very stubborn in his nature. But at the same time, very manja.

Time flies.. he's a big boy now and I hope he will live happy and healthy for the remaining years with us.

Sweet `Autumn Wedding'

'Tis a Marriage Made in Heaven...




Congratulations to HL&CN! The sweet (and rather shy) couple got married at church followed by a lunch reception at a hotel. She looked lovely and radiant... and somewhat in a dreamy mood.. smiling sweetly all the time. He was a little jittery at first (you know in case things went wrong etc..) but wearing this grin that let us know he's over the moon...

From the speech CN gave, we could tell how proud and on top of the world he is for `winning' back an `intelligent, Christ-centred and popular' wife (think I didn't misquote him here..;P) And in return we know how this groom will pamper his bride with all TLC and his romantic gestures!

The theme of the wedding was `autumn' - as in the colour scheme.. the deco and wedding stationaries and accessories were all matching. It was indeed a lovely wedding from start to finish. With many rainy days lately, God provided good weather and there just a little drizzle in the late afternoon.. but by that time, it didn't affect the wedding and all of us anymore..

I was roped in as the usher coordinator for chuch and also helper at the lunch reception at a hotel. Everything went smoothly.. must say the bride is one of the, if not the most organised and administrative savvy person I've ever met. Not only that, she also designed, handmade and printed her own programs and down to confetti cases! Then, the beautiful flowers/bouquets and deco are done by our wedding co-ordinater Mrs L.A. Chuah who has all the flair for unique floral arrangements. Ok, not forgetting the beautiful and tasty wedding cake handmade by Mr `Fatboybakes', who was also the experienced toast-master with `words of gems' ;)

Over lunch, it was nice catching up with friends as sometimes we're just too busy to do so even in church and peer group meeting.. and our table, consisting of a few `loud' people and singers as well as loud singers (yours truly included) probably had beaten all the other tables in our mega decibles `Yam Seng' round!

Oh, I did take quite a bit of photos! But as the camera-shy bride (who never posted even one of her own photos in her now `wilting blog') prefers not to have their pictures posted on a public blog. So guess those photos will be for `private consumption' only.

But, but, I just have to post this big group photo of all our friends in the CCF (our peer group) - the place where it all started for the bride and groom, as well as our friendship... well, everyone looks small enough to be anonymous! ;)



HL, CN, will miss you guys when you leave for Hong Kong. And esp HL, who has been such a wonderful and supportive friend/sister-in-Christ ever since we met more than six years ago. On the other hand of course, I'm truly very happy for you both that you've found each other and starting this exciting journey of marriage together.

Without getting too mushy... So here's wishing you all the best! May God bless your life together and yeah, we'll soon catch up in HK! And over the Internet of course! ;)

Bon Voyage and Good Bye (just for a little while)!

My two Js' update

Before i get accused of turning this blog into a football blog.. let me get back to the theme of Jess' 2 Js.

Jelly went for a total `make-over' on Wed at a pet grooming saloon and not her normal pet shop. Yep, they specialises in grooming only! Pretty expensive but it was good result.. my dad, who picked her up was so pleasently surprised that he called me to say Jelly looked so beautiful!!

Well, some may beg to differ. She's very neat and smart looking now but she was cute looking with unkempt and messy fur. However, that was not hygenic.

Here I present the BEFORE and AFTER look of Jelly


Before: Getting set to go for her make-over


Two different `after' poses

And not forgetting Jojo, whose upkeep is rather fuss free and always wears the same look! ;) but he's a little on the thin side now.. poor thing. And he doesn't like to pose for photos unlike Jelly.


Jojo waiting for treats

Brava Italia & Argentina - the Blue Jerseys Rule

LOOK AT THE WINNERS!!
(ok, for 1st round at least and more to come!)




The `living legend' (at least to me) who gave me the reason to support Argentina since my first WC in 86.

Messi the whiz kid and dubbed the next Maradona




Superb goalie Buffon celebrating with his team mates


GOAL!!

Am happy! My two favourite teams - Argentina and Italy - are through to the 2nd round ie the last 16 teams!

These two teams have lots of supporters in Malaysia but somehow the people around me esp. male colleagues are totally not for them. It makes me more determined to support them! Not like it really make a difference to the results but hey, this is the beauty of World Cup!

After four consecutive mornings staying up till 5am - with no sleep before 3am either, i think the unearthy sleeping pattern is taking a toll on me! Sigh... I must admit that I'm not young anymore. I remember watching many matches in USA 94 and France 98 (with time differences) and matches shown in wee hours in the mornings.. but I was ok - just adjusted sleeping hours and lack of sleep didn't affect me at all!

But now it's quite different.. I suddenly felt so tired today - despite after sleeping almost 7 hours with a short interception of my home alarm blarring.

Anyway, I decided not to stay up for the 3am match ie Brazil vs Japan/ Poland vs Australia mostly also because I have an 11am assignment in the morning. and no way i could survive on less than 5 hours of sleep!

Well, at least my favourite teams had played and gone through.. i am happy. :D

For the sake of extra `entertainment' and `education' (to prove that some women do love and know about football) following is a g-mail chat conversation I had with a girl friend today. Ms Cheah a lawyer is also a footie fan and probably knows more than me though she couldn't watch many of the matches.

ee-tan: so have u been using that chart?

its very useful for me. ;)

go ITALY!!

Sent at 1:51 PM on Thursday

mayyoke.cheah: hi!

ee-tan: finally u here

mayyoke.cheah: yeah... have been faithfully filling it up every day :D

ee-tan: haha..

mayyoke.cheah: back from lunch

yumm

ee-tan: i also just had lunch

but still at home!

4 days watching 3am match1

DIE DIE

mayyoke.cheah: so nice... you watched again last night ah

Argies

ee-tan: of course, it was argentina! playing

but not as exciting la

mayyoke.cheah: i like Holland

ee-tan: cos both know they're thru to next round

i see..

so tonite Italy and Czech

mayyoke.cheah: i watched Portugal vs Mexico

sure u must watch!!

what time ah? will it clash w the wedding rehearsal?

ee-tan: phew. its 11pm.

sorry, it's 10pm

mayyoke.cheah: aiya

ee-tan: got mixed up with next week's!!

mayyoke.cheah: so u not going for rehearsal?

ee-tan: going. i am the usher head fpr church.. so just need to understand here and there.. :D

leave at 9:30pm in time home 10pm for hte match!!

mayyoke.cheah: just to watch football?... cheh...

ee-tan: why cheh

its ITALY playing la

and they need to win!

close call

mayyoke.cheah:i thot Italy already through to next round?

ee-tan: almost

not if czech beat them and ghana beat USA

mayyoke.cheah: I think overall Italy has best looking team :D

ee-tan: yeah yeah

and spain not far behind

did u watch enland's match? poor Owen!!!!

mayyoke.cheah: 3am... nolah

heard abt it on radio this morning

so sad

ee-tan: u know owen injured himself after 1 min!

broke his knee or something.. poor thing

mayyoke.cheah: cruciate ligament

out for 6 months

ee-tan: really!!

there goes his world cup!! :(

mayyoke.cheah: and he just recovered fr ankle injury

so unfortunate

ee-tan: if england gets to final.. poor him will feel so left out

i think joe cole is cool!

mayyoke.cheah: hahaha

better than david beckham?

ee-tan: cool as in can play well

beckham is cool as in suave

and plays well but not as fast as this crazy j.cole

mayyoke.cheah: got different style of play i think

ee-tan: yeah true

mayyoke.cheah: beckham good at crosses

but cannot dribble

ee-tan: beckham always taking free kicks. he's precise.

yep!

hey, so who u think or like to see play in the final?

mayyoke.cheah: who i like different from who i think will be in final

on current form it could be argentina vs germany

ee-tan: wah.. u and i think alike!

i was jsut telling my colleague that.

he thinks brazil is out of hte picture

i would like to see argie and italy but i know not really probable

mayyoke.cheah: yea brazil not impressive

ee-tan: (hey can i copy and past this coversation and put on my blog?)

hahahahaha

women footie chat

mayyoke.cheah: ha... serious ha

:P

ee-tan: just an idea but why not? ;)

mayyoke.cheah: hehe so we can show that gals don't only talk abt good-looking football players

ee-tan: oh but u did mention italy and i added spain!

haha but good looking is just a bonus

mayyoke.cheah: oops

ee-tan: it's the skills that count! right?

so i am quite impressed with most of the big teams minus france i think. brazil ok la.. not up to the standard.

mayyoke.cheah: of course... just look at anna kournikova...

i'm impressed with spain this round

i like their style of playing... very open and attacking

ee-tan: i think so far i like the matches better than japan/korea 2002 first round.. if i could still remember but not that memorable. maybe becos none of the big names are kicked out yet.

yeah spain is quite a nice `surprise' - i thought they couldn't win tunisia but they bounced back 3 1

mayyoke.cheah: seems to me like there are more goals this WC. Last WC the teams seemed more defensive

ee-tan: yeah..

hey, i am still at home

:p i gotta go

(but will save this conversation to be used..)

hahahaha

mayyoke.cheah: ok...

have a good day... cu later!

ee-tan: happy to chat football with a gal pal!

(have been doing it with guys..)

mayyoke.cheah: yea :D

ee-tan: some guys like one or two of my colleagues make fun of me! but others happy to talk..

hmm

ok la.. see u tonite

mayyoke.cheah: cu :)

More and More Owl-like

Am waiting for the England vs Sweden game to start... and what else to do but sit in front of my beloved p.c.? Have been checking/replying/tidying my three email accounts.. the most tedious being the work one. All sorts of emails come in there.

Have been sleeping at 5am three days in a row now! It even sounds a bit crazy to myself.. but giving myself the excuse that World Cup only comes once in four years.. so what's sacrificing a bit of sleep? Thank God I have such flexible work hours..

But I know this is not good for me who is already living an owl-like lifestyle.. habit is hard to break and when the WC is over, I might be sleeping even later!

Enough about sleep.. there are a few things in a mind since last few days.. Work related. It's quite a long story.. it involves some major decisions and shifting out of comfort zone, putting purpose before pleasure.. and most of all for God to open new doors.

At this late hours or rather early hours in the morning, I won't want to talk about it in details.. but suffice to say I'm not happy with the direction the paper is going.. it sucks (sorry can't be too loyal here) So, I am seriously considering to make a change, a transfer to somewhere else but not too far away. No, not quitting, since I already missed the VSS! (but that's beside the point also)

Will write more about this when things are actually happening...

Meanwhile, besides World Cup fever, am looking forward to the wedding of a dear friend and (former) fellow blogger this weekend! That will be a joyful occassion that I would like to blog about. :)

Time to rest a little before concentrating on the match. It will be nail-biting stuff as both are old foes and England had not been playing well against Sweden from WC history.. yes, i want England win of course.. after all, have spent a few years in that quite incredible (though not without it woes) country.

Oh, and there are Beckham, Owen and few other cute players.. haha, i mean good players of course. But Rooney reminds me a bit of Paul Gascoine of Italy 90 fame. A bit of a hooligan sort though its undeniable he has skills!

But England is not my favourite. I am all behind ARGENTINA!! Call it loyalty or blind passion.. I've been supporting the Argies ever since I first saw how the incomparable Maradona led the country to victory in Mexico 86. That was also my first ever World Cup. Time sure flies... but my ardent devotion to the Argentina World Cup team has never changed.

Yeah, I'm such a loyal person.. no wonder my favourite animal is dogs... they are the most loyal and devoted friends one can have. And i have two! :)

Update at half time: Yippee! England leading! Such an exhilarating game.. poor Owen got injured right at the start of the game. but we found another star - Joe Cole the unstoppable!

The Good and the Bad of World Cup

I am taking a break from my hiatus - if there is such a thing. Still very very busy but since it's Sunday after all, and before the starting of another crazy week, I shall just blog!

I have been thinking of posting on the topic of (what else but) World Cup - which I have been enjoying tremendously so far although only managed to catch less than half the games played.

I bet some people out there, especially certain species of the opposite sex, are wondering how football can appeal to women. Well, i also know of some women who really couldn't give a hoot about WC and even laugh at what is so great watching `22 grown men chasing one ball for 90 minutes'!

As a WC fan, though not a true blue football fan per se, let me give you a list of reasons Why World Cup is the GREATEST game on earth. Of course, these are just my humble, personal opinions. ;)

• Football IS exciting when it is played by top worldclass players representing the greatest football nations of the world.
  

• You get to root for your favaourite countries/teams in a highly competitive environment that sees them go through qualifying rounds beofre making it into the WC final 32 ; and then battling their way (if they get thus far) into the 2nd round, quarter-final, semi-final and final.

• Each match is unique - some much faster in pace or more ruthless, some many goals scored and some goals are hard to come by - you can watch three games in a row and they're ALWAYS different

• It's like watching a soap opera - as the matches have all kinds of drama from scoring a OG (own goal) to players being sent off to penalty kicks awarded and painful injuries.

• But, it is also a purposeful, highly disciplined game, motinored by strict referees, linesmen and the players must adhere to 1001 rules and regulations.

• I just love to see the different outburst of expressions and celebrations when a player score a goal! Such a delirium!
  

• There is this sense of nationalism - how players from different clubs around the world are playing for their own nation for patriotism (and some money too of course) and no longer the clubs which pay them millions.

• The players - we see the display of exceptionally talented skills and the comradeship shared on the pitch. And...I must admit that it is a perk when there are some good-looking, and well-toned players for us to feast our eyes on as well. ;)

• World Cup unites nations of the world - it transcends political and social boundaries and even political enermies have come together. People are brought together whether it is the teams and spectatles at the live matches in Germany or those watching on big screens and televisions all around the globe!

• World Cup fever is infectious and everyone talks about it! It is more precious because it comes only once every four years!
  

To be fair, I thought I should also list down the bad side of World Cup - and I think most people have some clue on this area.

• It is energy consuming and sleep disturbing, especially when in countries like Malaysia, the matches are played in the wee hours of the morning!
  

• As a result, our work productivity may be affected.
  

• Sometimes the matches may turn a bit ugly and violent (but so are movies and a fact of life)
  

• Watching WC may result in disharmony within family (if one or two persons are die-hard fan and others are not) and also causing noise pollutions to others
  

• Bookies will be laughing to the bank but betting and gambling are actually illegal and cause many to lose money.

Those are all I can think of now. By looking at the list, the PROs outweigh the CONs!!

So the verdict is .. World Cup still rules! Long live the beautiful game!! ;)

p.s. feel free to add on to the list of Good and Bad ...

Forced to take a blog break...

I feel I don't even have time to breathe...!!

It's another of those super busy week!! And in between am trying to slot in a few games of my favourite teams... (which means later nights!)

Sigh.. looks like I will have to take a hiatus in blogging.. hopefully not for a long while.

Oh, this is my shortest post yet! Record!! :p

Till then...

Let the Beautiful Game Begin!

FINALLY....! The day that million football fans around the world have waited for has arrived!

The FIFA World Cup 2006 is kicking off today in Germany.. and for WC fans, it will be a month of literally `eat football, drink football, sleep football'.

As i mentioned in a previous post, I don't claim to be a football fan per se but World Cup is something that gets me hooked every four years! You can't deny there's this buzzing excitement when the best players of every nation in the world comes face-off each other on the pitch. Nationalism still rules!!

Who am I supporting? hmmm.. will keep it a suspense for the moment but friends close to me will know anyway..

Still haven't decided to watch the opening match at home or at the MM World Cup party in Bangsar! but more likely the former, a bit too late...

So here's hoping there will be many memorable games!!

Jelly turns 2!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JELLY!



I am such a bad, forgetfull mommy! I should have posted this last nite and not like the last few minutes of her birthday! But actually I only remembered it's her birthday when driving to work and the radio had some dedications to people whose birthdays were today. When `June 7th' was mentioned, it suddenly hit me!

So.. (i know this might sound stupid to non dog lovers) I called mom and texted the maid to be nice to Jelly and give her special treats! I could only be home later at night as I have a dinner appointment with some old friends.. coincidentally also to celebrate a friend's birthday - belated.

Hmm.. what did I get Jelly? Since I've always pampered the two Js with treats and toys all the time.. I didn't go buy more stuff for her. Instead, I brought home a piece of `Marmite Crab' leg from our dinner! Yeah, we could not finish so I thought why not give Jelly a treat. Of course I washed it to get rid of the saltiness and then tore the flesh out.. Yummy... she loved it!

Here are a few shots of Jelly taken just! Isn't she a sweetie? ;) Again, i feel bad for she's due for grooming.. should have given her a nice fur-trim for her birthday.. guess it has to be belated present now!

Re-living Our Childhood

How many of these colourful cartoon characters can you recognise? ;)







Errr.. don't ask me. I still couldn't name most of them. I only knew the Powerpuff Girls - more like acquaintances - coz I didn't know their individual names! Oh, but now I also know Dexter and Mojo Jojo. :p

Yep! I went to watch Cartoonival! - presented by Cartoon Network at the KL Convention Centre last Friday.

A friend whose sis worked at the HK Cartoon Network was given some very good comp tickets. And since my godson was going too (and I must say ashamely that I had not seen him since last Dec) so I thought I should take this opportunity to meet him.



Our party consisted of 8 adults and 4 kids.. We had dinner at California Pizza and then adjourned to the show next door..

We had very good seats.. about six row from the front right in the centre.. The atmosphere was `foggy' (probably sprayed with dry ice) as you can see from the photos..




So how was the show? Well, it was for children alright! When it began, some of us were musing that we couldn't believe we were here watching this!

But don't underestimate the standard of a kid show. Cartoonival was a real colourful and well-done presentation. Beautiful and elaborate set.. cute fluffy cartoon characters.. and yeah, they were so adorable - especially the Powerpuff Girls and Dexter! Sure, there were lots of singing and dancing and prancing on stage.. but it was actually a musical with a (simple) storyline too.. it sorta grew on you.. and then there were a lot of interaction with the audience. You can see all the kids were having a whale of the time..seeing their favourite cartoon characters come to live!!

So, at the end of it.. I think all of us - kids and adults alike - had enjoyed ourselves! And I was thinking how much more I would have loved it if I were a kid!

Yep, it was definitely more entertaining than Grease the Musical (which was staged at the same venue just a couple of weeks ago) ! :p

p.s. Thanks Pat & Yvonne for the ticket, and Eric & Fiona for the dinner :)

Musing over `The Bachelor'

Would you compete for love for all to see? put yourself up alongside a group of the same sex to get the attention, affection and ultimately the wedding ring of a eligible opposite sex?

Am not a TV person but I chanced upon `The Bachelor' reality show over 8TV last week.. it was kinda interesting and I followed up the next episode just now. Was even having sms exchanges and commentaries with my colleague Terrina - we were guessing which two girls would be dropped! (and both of us only got half right)

But this program is just a bit weird to me.. I mean I could accept reality talent shows and those gruelling tests such as Survivor or Lost or even the heart-stopping Fear Factor. But pitting yourself for love and marraige is something else..

Maybe I'm conservative but can love be found over television reality show? when you're watched by millions and something so private and sacred (well, may no more in today's world) is reduced to just a race in a show.

And it's quite pathetic that a group of attractive, charming and smart women who seem to have it all would want to subject themselves to be selected like commodity. Ok, they probably get paid well and there seem to be nothing to lose but everything to gain.. imagine, getting yourself hitched to a good-looking, filthy rich guy who also appears to have the personality to boost.

I don't know how much of the show is scripted but from what I have seen from just two episodes.. emotions run high - there are jealousy, bitching, rivalry and ultimately heartaches and tears..

I know `The Bachelor' is not the first such show. I can recall this program (forgot the name now) when a woman got married to a millionaire but their marriage lasted like less than a month!

Call me cynical but I really wonder at the end when Andrew (the cute, rich bachelor) finds his bride, will they live happily-ever-after...

Ok, maybe I shouldn't even bother to read too much into it. After all, it's just another reality show that is made for profit and viewership. So, entertaining it sure is. I might not `approve' of it but I must admit I still like to watch and see which girl is dropped next week.

Haha, the irony of reality show...and the irony of viewers like me.