My younger sister, Diane Chrissie will be getting married on 24 Dec (on my Bday). The wedding ceremony and reception will be held at my kampung home in Kg. Rani, Tenghilan. She grew up there with my grandparents.
My aunt from the States would be coming home, so are my cousins Sherwin, his wife Liz and their daughter Nicole. Carmen will have a new friend soon. I'm excited to meet them and I'm sure we'll be having / playing lots of music around the house this coming week.
I'm so happy for my baby sister....and our family is extending, which is great!
About the picture...Chrissie and her husband-to-be Joseph dressed in the Dusun Tindal Costume...I just loved that costume!
Something about the Dusun Tindal: One of the 40 ethnic groups under the Kadazandusun umbrella is the Dusun Tindal of Kota Belud. The people, mostly farmers, are concentrated on the Tampasuk area. In the olden days they were an animistic people. Nowadays they are monotheist and live very much in the mainstream of society. Their costume may well be one of the most colourful types among the Kadazandusun people. The blouse for this costume is long-sleeved while the skirt length is just below the knee. The blouse’s sleeves are slit from the elbow onwards. Although the base colour is black, it is intricately woven with colourful woven clothe. On the sleeves upward towards the shoulder red and yellow pattern cloth is sewn on. Two sashes are then placed across each other from the shoulder. Several silver coin belts are then placed around the waist up to the hip. This is followed by strings of beads. Over the neck are the silver pouches on chains and on the wrists are silver bangles. The men have similar costume except they wear trousers and the head dress, sigar. These costumes are precious to the Dusun Tindal and they will wear it only during special occasions like the Harvest Festival Celebrations and weddings. This Dusun Tindal bridal costume, along with the silver jewellery, weighs about 8kg and costs more than RM11,000.
We still have like 5 days to Christmas...and I don't feel much of that Christmas spirit just yet...well maybe a little..but I do love Christmas and I was already in the holiday mood since December started. I supposed to do some handmade Christmas cards but off late I've been a lazy bum to do any of that sort.
I love the fact that lots of Christmas stalls are up selling X'mas goodies / toys / gifts and X'mas tree ornaments. I bought myself and Carmen a dress to wear for my sister Chrissie's wedding on X'mas eve...so there goes my money...but I also manage to find a few cute stuffs...since I won't get my pay before X'mas...sigh:( so these are some of the things I liked and which I could afford to buy...at least for now..ha! (pity me). Cute colourful flowery hairclips, tiny pouch (to keep my coins) and a soft furry seal keychain.
And yes...I also did get my birthday and X'mas treat earlier on....a copy of 'Twilight' novel (I've started reading it already...just can't wait). My B-day falls on Christmas eve which is a good thing so I celebrate both my B-day & X'mas at the same time.
Nice, full of lights and colourful X'mas decorations were put up this year...especially in 1 Borneo Hypermall and Warisan Square...more or less lifted up my X'mas spirit. They even have cool musicians / live band playing Jazzy X'mas tunes and they are pretty good.
There are some things in my wish list this Christmas and I might need those for the coming new year i.e. new handphone, new shoes, new hairdo or dye my hair (?), a playhouse tent for Carmen etc (Santa dear, please hear me out, I think I've been a good mama this year..aiseh)...will blurt about it later.
Since it's Christmas soon...I would like to wish all of you a fun and great Christmas and a cool new year...so start listing your 2009 resolution and dream big!
I just love this Christmas cartoon illustration which I took from Debbie's last year's X'mas post...I really thought it's very funny and I chuckled everytime I looked at that naughty rabbit.
It was more than 3 months ago that we last had the SIE2008 (15-19 October), and I'm recalling back the fun times and memories....although those are one of the stressful moments for me this year. It will be my company's turn to chair the next SIE in 2010...but I'm gonna think twice if I'll still be around to help out...I'm kinda fed up of going through it again...and this will be my 5th time (since 2002). I had pretty great colleagues this year in SIE2008 and we worked together as a team just fine.
Here are a few of the memories through pictures.... The Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia came to officiate the Opening Ceremony of the SIE2008 There were nearly 400 booths at the expo, and some selling stuffs I liked..... With Fathi (photo above) from the Nigerian Booth (a fashion designer and she's pretty for a Nigerian) and with a young and flirty Governor of one of the province in the Philippines (photo below) With Louis, a Jazz musician, bag designer and entrepreneur from Nigeria....showing off one of his cool bag...I like! With the SIE babes....Mimie, Emilia and Melinda
After SO LONG, I've finally updated and put up these old,old posts (a few months back history). I just thought I should cos it's still part of my journal this year.
If interested, be free to read but if not...it's okay.
Well, there's a few happenings the past few weeks like one of Tamparuli's old shophouses were on flames (read friends Romeo and Lola's blog)....I feel weird because two days before the fire, I went to buy a double-sided tape at 'Kedai Ru Lim' the only book & stationery shop there..like suddenly after so many, many, many years (probably almost 10 years) that I never shop at Ru Lim. It's like a sign...going there for the last time. And there was chicken pox outbreak in my neighbourhood and my little girl Carmen got it...but thank God it's only a mild one that I could count her chicken pox blisters around her body, arms and legs only.
This morning I get to see the Powerboat Race...racing for the qualifying rounds I guess from a window outside my office. The Sabah 2008 F2 World Cup Powerboat Race starts today until the 14th. Spectators can come and see from the KK Waterfront and there's lots of tourist around right now...bah apalagi. I might also go and see it this weekend with my family.
And I got an SMS from the Kompleks Asia City (KAC) management that there's a Sabah Supermodel & Man Hunks 2008 Live at KAC's Event Hll at 2pm tomorrow, 13 Dec. If you want to see some hunks and drool at their body...why not...go check it out.
My anticipation to watch the much talk about movie 'Twilight' since its release was fullfilled yesterday afternoon. I didn't expect the movie to be that boring...too slow for me and the dialogues are lame. I heard some yawnings and few others leaving the hall before it's over. I know this is just the 1st part of the Twilight Saga...so it's okay. Some critics says that it's better to just read the book if you don't wanna waste nearly 2 hrs to watch it on cinema but of course....you also don't wanna miss watching the charming and sexy vamp 'Edward Cullen' acted by British actor Robert Pattinson. His eyes....his voice makes you wanna go Aaahh...scream! I prefered the character 'Edward's vampy look & mysterious stare' - Gorgeous...that's what the girls (the fans) go gaga about. We'll just have to wait for Part 2 - 4. Let me think again...it's actually a cool movie with cool soundtracks and I'm gonna buy the book for my X'mas treat but right now it's sold out(the author, Stephenie Meyer dreamt about it and turned it into a story - google more about it to know the story behind it)
Twilight's movie synopsis, trailers (I like both) and photos: Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) has always been a bit different, never caring about or fitting in with the trendy girls at her Phoenix, Arizona high school. When her mother Renee (Sarah Clarke) remarries and decides to move with her new husband to Florida, and Bella decides to go live with her father, Charlie (Billy Burke), in the rainy little town of Forks, Washington, she doesn't expect anything to change. Then she meets the mysterious and dazzlingly beautiful Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), a boy unlike any she's ever met. Intelligent and witty, his piercing eyes see straight into her soul. Soon, Bella and Edward are swept up in a passionate and decidedly unorthodox romance. Edward can run faster than any cheetah, he can stop a moving car with his bare hands, and he hasn't aged since 1918. Most importantly, he's a vampire. Like all vampires, he's immortal. He doesn't drink human blood (they're vampire "vegetarians"), which is rare among the vampire population. Instead, they go on regular "hiking" trips, where they feed on prey such as grizzly bears and mountain lions. For Edward, Bella is the thing he has waited ninety years for - a soul mate. But the closer they get, the more Edward must struggle to resist the primal pull of her scent, which could send him into an uncontrollable frenzy. And what will they do when James (Cam Gigandet), Laurent (Edi Gathegi), and Victoria (Rachel Lefevre) come into town and James sets his sights on Bella? Will true love prevail when Edward is forced to save her life and conquer his thirst? The true question is, When you can live forever, what do you live for?
Twilight Saga (Part 1 - 4) storyline (if you are not yawning yet):
Twilight (Part 1) In Twilight, Edward meets Bella Swan, a human girl whose thoughts he is unable to read, and whose blood smells overwhelmingly sweet to him. He fights a growing attraction to her, but after saving her life on several occasions, succumbs and eventually falls in love with her. Edward admits to Bella that he is a vampire, and that although he retains the physical body of a seventeen-year-old, he was actually born on June 20, 1901. His adoptive father, Carlisle Cullen, transformed him into a vampire in 1918 to prevent him from dying in the Spanish influenza epidemic in Chicago, Illinois. Carlisle instilled in him a sense of morality uncommon in most vampires, and central to his way of life is the refusal to consider humans as food.
However, Edward constantly warns Bella against being with him, perceiving her life to be at risk if she continues to associate with him. Bella's love and confidence in Edward's restraint cause her to ignore his warnings, even after she becomes the target of another vampire, James. Unlike the Cullen family, who are "vegetarian" vampires (committed to only feeding on animals), James regularly feeds on humans and will not stop until he drinks Bella's blood. With his family's help, Edward is able to save Bella from James' predations, but the question of how to assure Bella's continued safety remains an open one.
New Moon (Part 2) In New Moon, Edward’s fears for Bella’s safety intensify when she cuts her finger and is almost attacked by his brother Jasper. In an attempt to protect her, he convinces her that he no longer loves her, and moves away with his family, leaving Bella heartbroken. Edward finds it difficult to live without Bella, and becomes severely depressed at the prospect of an infinitely long and meaningless life. After he mistakenly learns from his sister Rosalie that Bella has committed suicide, Edward attempts to convince a group of Italian vampires, the Volturi, to kill him. Together with his sister Alice, Bella rushes to Italy and stops Edward before the Volturi can destroy him.
Edward explains why he left, and apologizes to Bella. She eventually forgives him entirely, and they continue with their relationship as though Edward had never left, with the exception that Bella has ties that cannot be broken with a werewolf named Jacob Black. Bella successfully seeks his family’s support on turning her into a vampire. While Edward is furious at the prospect, he later agrees to change her himself if she agrees to marry him first.
Eclipse (Part 3) In Eclipse, Bella agrees to marry Edward on the condition he will make love to her while she is still human. Edward eventually relents and agrees, on the stipulation it will only occur after they are married. The plot is driven by the machinations of the vampire Victoria, who, seeking revenge for the death of her mate James, is hunting Bella and creating new vampires to build an army. A grudging truce is made between the Cullens and the Native-American werewolf pack led by Sam Uley and Jacob Black, a friend of Bella's who was there for her when Edward broke her heart. However, the truce is endangered when Bella realizes Jacob means more to her than she thought. Ultimately, Edward accepts that Bella cares for Jacob and successfully destroys Victoria, and Bella acknowledges that Edward is the most important person in her life. Edward tells Bella that they may attempt making love before they get married, as he realizes that she spends too much of her life trying to please other people. However, she refuses his offer and says that she will do everything the right way: marriage, making love, and then becoming a vampire.
Breaking Dawn (Part 4) Breaking Dawn sees Edward and Bella marry. Bella becomes pregnant on their honeymoon, and the rapid growth of the half-human, half-vampire fetus swiftly impacts on Bella’s health. Edward tries to coerce her into having an abortion in order to save her own life. However, Bella feels a bond with her unborn child and insists on giving birth. Edward comes to feel love for the baby as well, after he hears its thoughts and learns that the baby loves Bella in return. Bella nearly dies giving birth in an emergency c-section, but Edward successfully delivers his daughter and then injects Bella's heart with his venom, healing her wounds by turning her into an immortal vampire. During Bella's painful transformation, Jacob imprints on their baby daughter, Renesmee.
After a vampire named Irina mistakes Renesmee for an immortal vampire child—a creation forbidden in the vampire world—the Volturi arrive to destroy the Cullens. Edward stands with Bella and their allies to convince the Volturi that Renesmee is not an immortal child and poses no threat to their existence. Once the Volturi leave, Edward and Bella feel free to live their lives in peace with their daughter.
At least it has a good ending!
Gorgeous pics of Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart (courtesy of fanpix.net):
I'm talking about CHARICE PEMPENGCO of the Philippines, a rising diva at 16 who became an international singing sensation because of her popularity from YouTube. She's such an amazing talent and I just adored her kind of powerful and soulful voice...so inspiring! She appeared and performed on Oprah and the Ellen DeGeneres Show this year. As usual I have GOOSE BUMPS all over me watching her sing...sumarat bah! I have here 3 of my favourite videos of Charice's performance (yes..singing my 3 fav songs)taken from YouTube and all I could say is WOW!
I too love singing so much and singing has been my passion when I was about 5...now I'm seriously inspired so I should practise my vocals more often. (aisehman..konon)
And again talking about gifted and amazing young talents....I'm also VERY proud of my cousin, Miclen LaiPang now 12, a professional violinist and considered a genius and should be in Oprah's list of "World's Smartest & Talented Kids". (Dui..ondos konon) Check out one of his great performance here:
Last Friday, went out to watch Madagascar 2 with some friends...this time my colleagues from the SIE2008 Secretariat. I laughed my heart out watching it...I feel it's funnier than the 1st one. And as usual...my fav character is King Julien (voice by Sacha Baron Cohen - the guy who acted as Borat in Borat....he really is a super talented comedian..period). And the music soundtrack is cool! Really enjoyed laughing today and had fun with the gang. Hey guys, look forward to more fun outings with you all before the year end okay!
My friends/former collegues of New Sabah Times and I had a get-together today at Mode Cafe, Kompleks Asia City to give Florieta a birthday treat...a belated one though. I bought her a slice of chocolate indulgence cake from Secret Recipe cos I'm a bit poor to buy her a nice cake at this time...hohoho (sorry ya Flo).
Anyways, glad to spend time and story-story with them cos we have not been meeting each other for quite a while....I really miss them and it was fun today. Yes girl...make a wish
I wanted to do this for quite sometime...that is treating myself something that makes me-self happy. And today I bought something nice and sweet for me....and cheap. This kind of stuff is so popular nowadays especially among the youngsters. After looking at those cute and colourful accessories...I just can't help myself even with my constraint budget...I went ahead to choose and match my own design. For sure...I'll come back to this cool stall for more next time. This little gift paper bag also comes together with the purchase. A good idea for a very simple gift to give to a friend...of course it should come from the heart for it's the thought that counts.
Very little is needed to make a happy life.
Five simple rules for Happiness: 1. Free your heart from hatred 2. Free your mind from worries 3. Live simply 4. Give more 5. expect less
This is SO SO yummy and tempting that I'm desperately craving for more of this wet butter prawns at BB Cafe....the best that I tasted so far.
I went out with Deb and her fiance last week to BB Cafe (Big Balabak Cafe...ha..just kidding) located at Beach Street, Gaya Street, Kota Kinabalu. That particular hot spot was abandon for quite awhile but then it was again transform to a whole new cool eating-out and happening place...one thing I liked about this place that there's a live band and the environment is actually not so bad.
I know for sure I'll be back for more of this wet butter prawns...sshhh.
My beloved grandma turned 80 last Friday, 7 Nov. It is God's blessing that she is still strong and wonderful person until today. But I felt so bad and sad...really bad and sad that we actually forgot about it and she reminded us only the day after. My cousin Joy-Joy who is living in the States was the first person to wish her a happy birthday. She said "Oyo...saya 80 tahun sudah yang kelmarin"..OMG what kind of granchild am I..how can I forget? (Budukang) Anyways, Deb and I quickly plan to do something about it...yes..we bought her a nice cake from Secret Recipe and that Saturday afternoon, we went to our kampung home in Kg. Tenghilan to celebrate her 80th birthday. Unfortunately my two brothers can't join us that day. But our mama is so happy today that we came home to celebrate her golden anniversary. My simple birthday gift for her...I specially handmade for her a birthday card and gave her Carmen's cutest photo and a nice Sarong which I bought from Pulau Langkawi. Carmen dancing for her great grandma. We love you mama and we always do.
Ya...I know it's the monsoon season at this time of the year and it's always raining. But I'm talking about a different kind of rain...it's Bi Rain as in Rain the so-famous-right-now Korean singer/actor. I admit I'm a fan of Rain (real name Jung Ji-Hoon)and I have a collection of some of his music albums, in fact I'm listening to his 4th album at this moment...and I'm MORE CRAZY about him...all over again (like a teenager idolizing a pop heartrob...silly of me...at this age?) I should just tell you why....
Actually, I just finished watching "Full House", a 16 episodes Korean romantic comedy drama (another of my Korean drama CD collection) that casts Bi Rain and Song Hye Kyo (she also acted in the other famous Korean drama hit "Autumn in my Heart" which I also have in my collection) last night...finally and of course...with lots of crying. It was previously shown on ASTRO. I just love them both acting together...secocok lah. I read from a source that the set location - the house known as the Full House was specifically built for this drama at a cost of about $1,000,000. I enjoyed watching it so so much...it is really a heart-wrenching drama that has warm and happy ending unlike 'Winter Sonata' and Autumn in my Heart'.
Anyways, check out 'Full House' synopsis and music soundtrack here: Full House stars Song Hye Kyo as Han Ji-Eun, a fun-loving, well-natured author that is tricked by her friends to go on a trip to China. On the plane she meets Lee Young-Jae, played by Jung Ji-Hoon (commonly known as Rain), an actor that has a hot temper and immature attitude. Since she is stranded in China without any money, she desperately asks Lee Young-Jae to help her out. Young-Jae was in love with his childhood friend, Kang Hye-Won, however, Kang Hye-Won is in love with a man named Yoo Min Hyuk. When Ji-Eun pretends to have dated Min-Hyuk, Young-Jae sees her as leverage to stop Min-Hyuk's supposed affection for Hye-Won, and he helps Ji-Eun return to Korea. When Han Ji-Eun returns, her house, nicknamed the Full House, has been sold by her friends. She finds out later that the house was coincidentally sold to Lee Young-Jae. In her desperate situation, she agrees to work for Young-Jae as a maid. Along the way they slowly fall in love, but Min-Hyuk also falls in love with Ji-Eun and Young-Jae still has feelings for Kang Hye-Won. How will it end? I recommend you watch this drama...its available for rental now by me.
And to add...here's my favourite music video of 'I Do' from Rain...forgot to mention he's a great dancer!
Congratulations Obama! Interesting...BARACK OBAMA, the first African-American President elected as 44th US President will be moving into the White House and he's related to a Sabahan...if you don't know that. Yeah...it's time of change and hope for America! I knew he would win.
