American Idol

Didn't care much for the soapy AI but watched it with the family all the same. But what was a true American ICON to me, this remarkable Jewish American pianist and composer born May 28, 1929 in Kansas City, Missouri. They aptly paid tribute to him (by having him play his compositions on stage) and his songs. One by one the medley of hits swept over me like a balm to my soul. Burt Bacharach, he and lyricists Hal David teamed up to write several hits of the 70's & 80's.
From (to name a few);
"What's New Pussycat?" (Tom Jones, 1965, from the movie of the same name), Make it Easy on Yourself, "(They Long To Be) Close To You" "Anyone Who Had a Heart" "Walk On By" "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me" "The Look of Love" "What the World Needs Now Is Love" and my favourite optimist song- "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" (B.J. Thomas, US no. 1, 1969, from the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid)
This song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1969.Bacharach also won the Academy Award and Grammy for Original Score for the movie. Grammy nominee Song of the Year. Yup 1969. Woodstock and Vietnam War.

Sigh....... they don't write songs like these anymore.
Thanks for the memories Burt, you are one true American Idol.

Did I say "snug as a bug....?

Yup. Starting with Eleanor she's snug as a bug in a rug........as are all of us actually. And actually not missing all that space we gave up at all. Except maybe Eleanor. But then....nothing beats liveable space!

Live -rpool

Liverpool took the FA cup on Saturday after a hard fought 4-3 victory over West Ham United in penalties. The score was tied at 3-3 after extra time and silver goals.Thus, the game went into penalties to decide the winner.

it was a great game filled with goals and controversies and one man,man -of-the match Steven Gerrard showed what a great player he was by scoring two priceless goals when Liverpool were down.


Guest blogger Jon

Mother's Day

Mother's Day
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mother's Day was originally conceived by social activist Julia Ward Howe during the American Civil War with a call to unite women against war. She wrote the Mother's Day Proclamation. The day now simply celebrates motherhood and thanking mothers. Mothers often receive gifts on this day.(?)
Back home, in our old 'new' home, we had a very sumptuous mother's day eve pot-luck dinner with all mothers of the immediate family accounted for.
Happy Mother's Day to Jamie's, Daniel's, Euvern's and Chyenne's mother, Justin's and Sean's mother, Theresa's,Maria's, Rose's, Agnes', Mike's, Julie's, Bernie's, Joey's, Jeffrey's mother, Jon's, Zane's, Summer's mother,and last but not least Owen's mother. Let's unite against war shall we?.

Like otter to water

He woke up feeling very tired this morning but Jon still went for water therapy, working out for almost an hour with hydro therapist Praba. Jon's frolics and sheer determination in the water has won him many fans down at the Bandaraya, Pantai Hillpark pool. For his hard work he was treated to nasi beriani at Mahboob for lunch.

Jumbo Strays?

What a sight! A pair of Malaysian elephants, mother and calf took a stroll along the East-West Highway near Banding, Kelantan. I'm familiar with this stretch having ridden my bike along this tarmac highway carved through lush and lovely ancient rainforest.
I am instantly moved by this story front paged by The Star on Monday. It must be said that we, humans are the strays here. It is their habitat we've encroached upon.

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2006/5/8/nation/14177929&sec=nation

April Showers

The month of April was a non-event for this blog of mine largely due to service interruptions on our internet connection and our wireless router giving up on us by refusing to route wirelessly. 

Then of course the pains of upheaval. Preparing to move house,thinking of packing, actually packing, repacking, moving, moving, moving, what seems to be loads after loads of furniture and boxes we're finally moved in, "snug as a bug in a rug". 

The entire episode seems to me like the picture I featured here, an uphill climb but any way you look at it, it's beautiful. 

Our old new home turned out quite beautiful. More on that later. 

Beautiful indeed, this picture of Mt. Kinabalu was taken by M'sian photographer, Louis Pang who reckons this is his best landscape shot of 2006. It is the best shot ever of Mt. Kinabalu I've seen. Up close or in pictures.

Harry Kewell, The Pride of Merseyside

Harry Kewell was the toast of Anfield yesterday after his second-half stunner sealed a hard fought 3-1 victory over Everton in a game which saw the European champions play without their talismanic captain,Steven Gerrard for over 70 minutes.
The game was a relative bore until Liverpool captain, Steven Gerrard was sent off for a second bookable offence.
What followed was a game controlled by Everton until an own-goal by Phil Neville in the first-half of stoppage time handed Liverpool the lead. The second-half started in brilliant fashion for the Reds as Luis Garcia scored a gem of a goal to give Liverpool an unexpected 2-0 lead two minutes from the restart. Tim Cahill pulled one back on the hour mark after a superb header past Reina to give the blues a lifeline. In a game filled with ill tempers and gruesome tackles, Everton's Dutch substitute Andy Van Der Meyde was sent off in the 72nd minute for elbowing Liverpool's Xabi Alonso. The reds dug deep for the rest of the game and almost went close to scoring a winner after man-of-the match Xabi Alonso's freekick struck the crossbar.The Reds's persistence finally paid off in the 80th minute when Harry Kewell let fly a 30-yard stunner to end the 203rd merseyside derby in favour of the Red half of merseyside.

report by,
Jon Gan(guest blogger)

7th heaven - A post by a special guest blogger.

Liverpool made it through to the semi-finals of the FA Cup in scintillating fashion after demolishing a woeful Birmingham city side 7-0 at St Andrews.It was a night when everything seemed to go right for the boys in red.
Sami Hyypia got the ball rolling in the 1st minute when he headed home a superb cross by Steven Gerrard. Peter Crouch made it 2-0 a minute later and added another before the break to end the game as a contest by half-time. Just when you'd expect Liverpool to sit back and defend their three goal advantage, the reds ran riot in the second half when previously goal-shy Fernando Morientes made it 4-0 on the hour mark.
John Arne Riise made it 5-0, 20 minutes from time with a 30-yard screamer that left St.Andrews standing in ovation. Birmingham's miseries were further compounded when substitute defender Olivier Tebily put the ball into his own net to make it 6-0 for Liverpool.
Djibril Cisse wrapped up a night to remember for the reds after his long-range strike squirmed under Maik Taylor's arms to end a night of misery for Steve Bruce's side.

report by,
Jon Gun(guest blogger)

Magnificent 7

Liverpool hits 7 past Birmingham in a goal frenzy last Tuesday at St. Andrews. What a routing! What a great margin.
Live Liverpool. Details? Check out my guest blogger up there!!

Fresh graduates bogged down by self-pity

My long standing view has been the Education system or lack of, in this country has done our youth a great disservice.

Pretty good pov by the daughter of a government servant made good.

Fresh graduates bogged down by self-pity

J Vernes

Published:  Mar 22, 2006 3:43 PM

⋅

Updated: Jan 29, 2008 6:21 PM

I refer to the letter Harsh realities facing fresh graduates .

I am the daughter of a simple government servant, who instilled in us the need to work hard and to keep on learning and growing intellectually. There are no prominent politicians, highly-connected families with power or money in my background. Yet today I hold a managerial position in a multinational. I, too, can speak from my heart about the reality of the so-called working world.

I recently had the opportunity to work with some fresh graduates on one of my projects. The majority of these students graduated in the areas of computer science, economics and science. Yet out of the almost 125 that I had under me from all over Malaysia, I can safely say that maybe only 10 of them could string a full sentence in English, let alone carry a conversation in one. Those that could were mostly from Sabah and Sarawak.

And before I am accused of being pro-Western, let me just say that when these students were given a free hand to converse in their familiar Bahasa Malaysia, their entire conversation was centred around who was their favorite person from Akademi Fantasia, what was Mawi's favourite food, how come Felix was given bad choices for songs, etc. Ask them about what they think government could do to help more graduates secure jobs and they stare at you blankly. Yet they are the ones that complain the loudest about the lack of jobs for them.

Go here > https://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/48727 to read about our country's woes. 

Bombay

Mumbai is the second largest city in the world. (Tokyo is the largest, by population density). It also has the most number of homeless squatters in India. Just gaze out your window on landing or take off, you will see the plastic sheet roofs and cardboard box-like shanties line the airport perimeter fences and they spread outward like a sprawling mound of dark brown boxes with equally brown zinc rooftops stacked very closely together, the occassional clothesline slash the box landscape. Vagrant children with yellow sand peppered hair rush to give unwanted assistance with your baggage and in the end they always complain about the meagerness of your tip. I suspect it is a well rehearsed ploy.

Our hotels carry grand names; Park Plaza, The Oberoi, The Taj President and the Taj Mahal- this grand architectural masterpiece that stands alongside the Gateway of India landmark is a proud testimony to British rule. One cannot be blamed for equating Mumbai as a dustier, older, mustier version of London. It does look that way. The old and new Mumbai are actually locked in an eternal embrace for the world to see. And see they are, as corporations rush in to see what opportunities this city, the financial hub of India, await them.

Travelling

"..travelling is like flirting with life. It's saying, I love you but I can't stay.....this is my station" quote from our inflight magazine on Jet AirLines.
There is a certain romance in travel so they say except it is so kosher. I travel to Chennai en route to Mumbai this week. Travelling always excites me and this time India is especially exciting and daunting. Now that I've landed in Chennai, I realise you never know what to expect with fast changing India. The domestic airport is buzzing with human traffic and infrastructure development is frantic in its grounds. But the quaint cream coloured taxis still give Chennai its charm.

Our 14th Anniversary

My wife of 14 years texted me this morning with these words; " Happy 14th Anniversary Darling. We've done 2 cycles of the 7-year itch. Congratulations!" Yes indeed. 2 cycles and a lot to show for it. On that note I decided to take my wife uptown to a quiet dinner for 2. So we splurged abit and it was worth every moment. It was fine dining bar none. Excellent wines- NSW Sauvignon Blanc & Italian Pouilly Merlot, Examplary service.There were no exchanging or renewal of vows, just a much needed plotting and charting of course for the marriage and the family. Nett nett we choose to live our lives, really live fully only then can the children follow suit. Living life fully has it's parameters and it is when living within it's parameters that one is truly free amd perhaps contented. Our wish is to have no wish at all. I love you very much my wife of 14 years thanks for sharing that lovely story of the 6 children with 5 wishes and here's to the 3rd cycle. Happy Anniversary Darling!

The 78th Academy Awards

Arguably the most influential body in Hollywood, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, showed the world it had a role to play in the betterment of society by awarding the best picture oscar to 'Crash' rather than much hyped 'Brokeback Mountain'. There are after all more important issues to address in this much misaligned world, namely; journalism and the search for the truth, racism and the idea of seperateness.
Diana Ossana, who shared the best adapted screenplay award with Larry McMurty for Brokeback Mountain, did it for me in her acceptance speech by saying; "The duty of art is to send light into men's hearts."
The world looks to Hollywood for entertainment and therein lies its responsibility to drive home the messages of peace, justice and unity.
In walking the talk, they gave Ang Lee the Oscar for Best Director making him the first Asian to be bestowed the honour. Good shot ladies and gentlemen of the Academy.

Books to read before you die

Just like the Christmas present I got- '1000 places to see before you die', this is a very interesting list of must reads.
So guys get these classics from your local librarian before you buy another paperback.


It was published over 40 years ago and its American author has lived as a virtual recluse ever since, but according to Britain's librarians, Harper Lee's To Kill a Mocking Bird is the book that everyone should read.
The Pulitzer prize-winning classic has topped a World Book Day poll conducted by the Museum, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA), in which librarians around the country were asked the question, "Which book should every adult read before they die?" The book, which has been a staple of schoolroom reading lists for many years, also came second in another poll released today on our favourite happy endings. It explores issues of race and class in 1930s deep south America, through the dramatic court case of a black man charged with the rape of white girl.

See List

Amex Red

When we launched Malaysia's first Amex Credit Card, it was silver and blue and very exciting, Hong Leong Bank achieved their entire years target in 3 months and our campaign won an award from Amex in New York. Now it's red for Amex, so refreshing for an old but gold brand.


Red Card for American Express

American Express is using various rich media formats to generate awareness of its new Red card, designed to raise funds for charity. The campaign has been created by Poke, and drives traffic to a dedicated microsite which simply delivers the information on how the card works and how to get it.

The Red credit card by American Express is part of a series of initiatives to support Product Red, a union of brands (Armani, Converse and Gap), people, ideas to fight against AIDS in Africa. Visit Joinred.com to find out more.

e e cummings

Watched a movie last nite and was introduced to the poetry of America's second most widely read poet (second to my favourite Robert Frost). Such deep declarations of love it's almost 'cheesy' but......



95 poems, 92

i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)
i fear
no fate (for you are my fate,my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)

Terena Tan

"I'll come back and see you real soon....." says Terena Faith Tan this morning before she boarded the 'First Coach' to Singapore. We spent a little quality time together, my niece and I just talking about the subject of travelling and taking good care of oneself. Just at that moment, I realised how nice if I could take a photo of her to capture that sweet innocence that is her. At the same time I also realised that sometimes we allow circumstance to overtake us and blur us to the beauty that is present around us.
She returns to Andorra next week, a beautiful little principality in the Pyrenees, her parents choice of living life purposefully.
I really appreciate you for what you are my darling Terena, and I promise to be a better uncle to you. Thank you for coming into our lives and thank you for loving us. Yes and I know we'll see you real soon.....

The Caricature Controversy

The Prophet Mohammad caricature controversy recently has brought into light so many things about Malaysia- her people, her newspapers, and most glaringly her politicians. It goes to show how lackadaisical the country has been run and how our current leadership has no clue or vision for the future of our country. There were so much mud slinging in the media and the ministries that the simple or complex subject of the caricatures were totally blown out of proportion and context for political mileage. But thank god good sense and clear thinking still prevails in the form of a letter to malaysiakini by TMF (don't know his real name) but I like to blog it here as one of the best pieces of common sense available on the controversy.



......."Over the years, I also have had several similar kinds of encounters involving my ignorance on religion of different faiths. But none got me into difficulty where I had to be punished, prosecuted, lose my job or business.

I may have been lucky. But the point is, should we punish and prosecute simply because we are offended, because the other party was ignorant or lacking in understanding or even truly insensitive? What does ‘deemed mocking’ mean? Does it mean unilateral interpretation without giving the so-called offending party the opportunity to explain the intent?

I believe that if we truly want others to understand and respect us, we must be confident in ourselves to be graceful and forgiving even though genuine offence has been committed against us.

A show of power to punish and prosecute is no more superior to a demonstration of confidence, strength and character to contain and forgive. Any responsible government which chooses to deal with the issue otherwise stands the risk of being viewed as politically motivated to mislead the masses."

Hear. Hear.

Transporter2

The children and I watched this action packed thriller on seperate occassions. Both times it made us go:" Wow! Papa/I must get this car". A good case of great product placement strategy with this particular target audience.
Wikipedia puts it-

Product placement(PPL) is a promotional tactic used by marketers in which characters in a fictional play, feature film, television series, music video, video-game or book use a real commercial product. Typically either the product and logo is shown or favorable qualities of the product are mentioned. The product price is not mentioned nor are any negative features or comparisons to similar products. Very generally, product placement involves placing a product in highly visible situations. The most common form is movie and television placements and more recently video games.
In movies, an early example of product placement is the 1949 film Love Happy, in which Harpo Marx cavorts on a rooftop among various billboards and at one point escapes from the villains on the old Mobil logo, the "Flying Red Horse".
A later but better-known instance of product placement can be seen in the 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, which helped launch Reese's Pieces from Hershey Foods Corporation. The film The Truman Show explores the idea of a 24-hour on-air reality television program funded entirely by product placement.
Product placement companies work to ensure that their clients’ products receive maximum screen time and exposure - whether it be the Nokia phone that Agent Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) uses on Alias, the Lacoste polo shirt that Alex Hitchens (Will Smith) wears in the feature film Hitch or the Rimowa pilot case Gil Grissom (William L. Petersen) carries as he arrives at crime scenes on CSI.

Golden Arches

Took Jon to water therapy this evening. He did much better this time. Being only his second time in the pool, he's taken to it like duck to water even the 'cold'. He worked hard at laps and exercises joining everybody else there. As reward for his hard work tonite, I allowed him to choose his dessert. He chose Strudels at Damansara Town Centre. He wolfed down a nice triple layered apple strudel washed down with a frothy teh tarik.As we settled in the Mini to begin our drive home, he asked for a burger. Specifically a Chicken McDeluxe burger with medium fries. So I happily bounce out of the car and into the store.
McDonald's service crew, as they are called, never fails to impress me. Their stores throughout Malaysia seem to carry out a consistent service manifesto that is so deeply embedded in their service culture it's remarkable. Simply remarkable. Same consistent smile, same courteousness, same liveliness each time every time. Come to think of it, I experienced the same consistent service in New Delhi, Tokyo and Frankfurt. The 'tudunged' young lady took my order with a lovely smile. Being the only customer at that particular time, she exchanged casual banter with the kitchen boys while making sure I'm was attended to with an assuring glance. When my order was finally filled, she passed me the bag and gave me a most cheeky but warm smile. I smiled back and as I walked out she called out; 'Please come again Sir' and I think how good McDonalds must make their customers feel all over the world. Tell me you didn't make a human connection at McDonalds?
Jon finished three quarters of his McDonalds meal. I'm loving it.

S4R Testastretta

THE “MONSTER SUPERBIKE” WITH TRACK-PERFECT PERFORMANCE
The legendary Testastretta engine now powers the leading street fighter motorcycle. Designed with the most experienced riders in mind, who expect the best in terms of technology, performance and componentry, the Monster S4Rs sets a new standard in the category, benefiting from all the experience gained in the World Superbike Championship.

I wonder how much more powerful this baby will be compared to the baby I already own. But the look still remain unmistakably Monster. A pure classic. I love my bike.

Faridah and Joe Hasham

The Gans decide to fulfill Jon's craving of 'Banana fritters ala mode' in the Buttery of The Royal Lake Club this evening after dinner. As we trooped up the stairs/gradient up from the lobby, papa gan spots a band of theatre-type individuals huddled at door of the buttery having a smoke. It was Joe, Faridah and Ari Ratos. Joe was taking copious drags from his cigarette. We exchanged pleasantries, hugs and kisses and everybody meets everybody once again. Jon clearly remembers them from the party at the Morton's, Zane vaguely and Summer hardly. But everyone's thrilled at meeting 'important'and 'famous' people.
Yup. Farida and Joe are famously important in our lives. Like beacons lighting our life's journey. From Jeff Orr's wedding reception at the same club, as exclusive invitees to Daryll Morton's poolside party and several other chance meetings, encounters with the two of them are always endearing no matter how brief. It is lovely to see Faridah allow Joe enjoy a smoke (and a few glases of wine apparently) again. Here's to life, Datuk Faridah and (Datin?)Joe,you guys live it so well.
Jon finished every last bit of his banana fritters ala mode, Summer and Zane devoured their banana splits while Mum, drove Popo to Bangsar Village looking for us. Miscommunication la.....

Sporting Weekend

As I sat in the hospitality suite at the 18th green, sipping Chardonnay and smoking a Monte Cristo No.3, I watched the golfing gladiators battle it out at the KL Golf & Country Club for the Maybank Malaysian Open 2006 title. These guys are really hard at work even though they were 'playing' golf. Hours, days,weeks and months of hard work seem to pay off as I watched the finishing flights of top players sweat it out as the noon sun beat down on them yesterday. The winner Charlie Wi from Korea pocketed US$300,000.+ and I 'm inspired to improve my game.

LIVERPOOL 1 - 0 MANCHESTER UNITED
Saturday 18 February 2006 12:30 , FA Cup 5th Round
PETER CROUCH WINS IT FOR REDS

Liverpool are through to the Quarter Finals of the FA Cup after a first half goal from Peter Crouch gave them a hard fought
1-0 5th Round win over Manchester United at Anfield today.
Yes.YES.Yes.!!! We finally avenged our defeat at Old Trafford recently and broke the 85-year FA cup jinx.
Liverpool. Live.

Alonso Out!

Rafael Benitez has ruled Xabi Alonso out of his plans for Saturday's FA Cup showdown with Manchester United at Anfield.
The Spanish midfielder was replaced during the second half of the Reds' midweek victory over Arsenal after picking up a minor injury.

Reds Clash

The only time United have beaten Liverpool at Anfield in the F.A.Cup was in 1960 when Bobby Charlton scored twice in a 3-1 win.

Luis Liverpool Lives

Garcia puts us back on track with an 89 min goal against Arsenal. Yes....
Hmmm... where will Henry go now?

Billy Joel

Just like visiting an old friend- I was reminded yet again of Billy Joel's genius by Jon today as he hummed the lyrics of Piano Man. All the words came back to me in an instant. Vivid and rich in its tapestry of music and song. A Russian Jew by birth, this son of an Italian immigrant made it a rags to riches story when he rose with his music in the streets of New York. His songs weave a canvas of life when he was a struggling pianist in the Piano Man.
And his loves in 'A scene from an Italian restaurant'

Ah..... why don't they write songs like these anymore.....?

Billy Joel - Scenes from an Italian Restaurant (Official Audio ...

www.youtube.com › watch

Lyrics

A bottle of white, a bottle of red
Perhaps a bottle of rose instead
We'll get a table near the street
In our old familiar place
You and I, face to face

A bottle of red, a bottle of white
It all depends upon your appetite
I'll meet you any time you want
In our Italian Restaurant

Things are okay with me these days
Got a good job, got a good office
Got a new wife, got a new life
And the family's fine
We lost touch long ago
You lost weight I did not know
You could ever look so nice after
So much time

Do you remember those days hanging out
At the village green
Engineer boots, leather jackets
And tight blue jeans
Drop a dime in the box play the
Song about New Orleans
Cold beer, hot lights
My sweet romantic teenage nights

Brenda and Eddie were the
Popular steadys
And the king and the queen
Of the prom
Riding around with the car top
Down and the radio on
Nobody looked any finer
Or was more of a hit at the
Parkway Diner
We never knew we could want more
Than that out of life
Surely Brenda and Eddie would
Always know how to survive

Brenda and Eddy were still going
Steady in the summer of '75
When they decided the marriage would
Be at the end of July
Everyone said they were crazy
Brenda you know you're much too lazy
Eddie could never afford to live that
Kind of life
But there we were wavin' Brenda and
Eddie goodbye

They got an apartment with deep
Pile carpet
And a couple of paintings from Sears
A big waterbed that they bought
With the bread
They had saved for a couple
Of years
They started to fight when the
Money got tight
And they just didn't count on
The tears.

They lived for a while in a
Very nice style
But it's always the same in the end
They got a divorce as a matter
Of course
And they parted the closest
Of friends
Then the king and the queen went
Back to the green
But you can never go back
There again

Brenda and Eddie had had it
Already by the summer of '75
From the high to the low to
The end of the show
For the rest of their lives
They couldn't go back to
The greasers
The best they could do was
Pick up the pieces
We always knew they would both
Find a way to get by
That's all I heard about
Brenda and Eddie
Can't tell you more than I
Told you already
And here we are wavin' Brenda
And Eddie goodbye

A bottle of red, a bottle of white
Whatever kind of mood you're in tonight
I'll meet you anytime you want
In our Italian Restaurant

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Billy Joel

Scene From An Italian Restaurant lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group