Undilah Obama

Obama for President :)

Photos from barackobama.com/photos

Click here to see Barack Obama's position on issues

Deep water faith in the shallow end

I drove down to Johor Bahru over the weekend for a good friend's wedding. To accompany me on my climate-unfriendly solo trip, I popped into the player the Casting Crowns CD "The Altar and the Door". The song "Somewhere in the Middle" seemed to grab me with one of its lines -- deep water faith in the shallow end. It kinda struck a chord within me. How can I say my faith is deep when I'm only playing in the shallow end? I gotta go deep man.

Anyway, I listened to this CD all the way to JB, and all the way back. Yea, I was too lazy to change CDs and it was raining all the way, so I had to pay extra attention to the road and not fiddle with CDs. Well, I really liked the songs, so I was fine listening to it 10 times. :)




Somewhere in the Middle

Somewhere between the hot and the cold
Somewhere between the new and the old
Somewhere between who I am and who I used to be
Somewhere in the middle, You'll find me

Somewhere between the wrong and the right
Somewhere between the darkness and the light
Somewhere between who I was and who You're making me
Somewhere in the middle, You'll find me

Just how close can I get, Lord, to my surrender without losing all control

Fearless warriors in a picket fence, reckless abandon wrapped in common sense
Deep water faith in the shallow end and we are caught in the middle
With eyes wide open to the differences, the God we want and the God who is
But will we trade our dreams for His or are we caught in the middle
Are we caught in the middle

Somewhere between my heart and my hands
Somewhere between my faith and my plans
Somewhere between the safety of the boat and the crashing waves

Somewhere between a whisper and a roar
Somewhere between the altar and the door
Somewhere between contented peace and always wanting more
Somewhere in the middle You'll find me

Just how close can I get, Lord, to my surrender without losing all control

Fearless warriors in a picket fence, reckless abandon wrapped in common sense
Deep water faith in the shallow end and we are caught in the middle
With eyes wide open to the differences, the God we want and the God who is
But will we trade our dreams for His or are we caught in the middle

Lord, I feel You in this place and I know You're by my side
Loving me even on these nights when I'm caught in the middle,
caught in the middle

FunnyMoney

In the wake of the recent crisis rocking the US financial system, the government has decided to redesign the dollar bill as a gentle reminder to all...

My dream exchange rate:

RM1.00 = USD4.00

Hard Talk

Which is harder to say?

I love you

or

I am sorry

?

Guilty until proven innocent

Sorry folks, another political post.

I just read with incredulity the news about the police explaining the recent ISA arrests of the eminent blogger RPK, MP Teresa Kok and Sin Chew journalist Tan Hoon Cheng. The way I read it, the police are saying that these three are guilty until evidence can be found to prove that they are innocent. What the??!!!

And I'm ever bemused by the excuse given that May 13 could happen again. I quote the Deputy IGP who warned that "racial and religious unrest can be triggered over small matters and escalate into situations that are damaging and irreversible." That's right. That's why they should be going after UMNO lackeys instead of Members of Parliament and journalists.

Remember the advertisements for Sensodyne toothpaste? The scene with the lightning bolts zapping the poor fella's sensitive teeth as he ate ice cream? The toothpaste was formulated to cure sensitive teeth. Yeah, Malaysians need a good dose of it. There's still too much sensitivity going around even after 51 years of independence. For goodness' sake, how are we going to live in this globalized world if we're so hypersensitive? Every little knock seems to bruise. And it's an excuse exploited by BN politicians to divide and rule the country.

Malaysia is on a downward spiral. It's time to wake up. Don't be mesmerized by the melodious tunes played on the deck of the Titanic as she started sinking. No amount of sweet music could save her.

My prayer now is for the downfall of BN, especially UMNO. It would be good for BN to sit on the Opposition bench for a while. Give Pakatan Rakyat and Anwar a chance. Who knows? Maybe the same katak BN politicians will hop over to Pakatan... uh, which would not be good either, but what have we got to lose?

Crazy Little Thing Called Love

The old song says that “love is a many-splendoured thing”, but reality tells us that “love” can be bittersweet.

Through the medium of live theatre, touring theatre company Footstool Players explores the themes of love, courtship, marriage and family relationships in their new production Crazy Little Thing Called Love.

The play is a collection of sketches, a mix of comedy and drama, but all thought-provoking in some way in highlighting issues pertaining to relationships. There’s innocence, idealism, joy, humour, reassurance, hope, regret, heartbreak, sorrow, and more – everything that comes with that “crazy little thing called love”!

You’ll laugh, you’ll weep. But most importantly, you’ll also think – and perhaps also discover.

The play runs for approximately 120 minutes, excluding a 15-minute intermission, and is suitable for ages 10 to 100!

******

Come and watch me perform! Haha. Yea, right. I'll be one of the men-in-black scurrying around to move stage props in the darkness between scenes. I got roped in as a special forces replacement agent as the company is short of stagehands (the stage manager will be going overseas for a few days). But I'll be "performing" only in the debut show on 6th September and the following night.

I've had the privilege of sitting in and watching the past two rehearsals, and I must say that the production is very good. They practice really hard. Imagine rehearsals from 5PM to midnight. So, go watch CLTCL. They'll be touring a number of churches in September and October, and performing at KLPac in early November.

P/s. Try to spot me in the poster above. :)

Merdeka

Negaraku, tanah tumpahnya darahku,
Rakyat hidup, bersatu dan maju,
Rahmat bahagia, Tuhan kurniakan,
Raja kita, selamat bertakhta.
Rahmat bahagia, Tuhan kurniakan,
Raja kita, selamat bertakhta.

Selamat Menyambut Hari Merdeka!

Recharge recharge recharge

This space is due for an update... but in the meantime, I'll just tell you what happened at the finale of the Malaysian International Fireworks Competition.

Well, I got there at 9:45PM. I thought I would be late, since the show on the opening night started at 9:30. Anyway, a kind soul with hot wheels offered to drive to Putrajaya while I navigated. We left Amcorp Mall at 9:10PM and thanks to the wonders of modern toll highways and Malaysian speed limits, we were at the foot of Putrajaya Convention Centre in half an hour. If you're wondering which way we went, it was the NPE and KL-Putrajaya Highway combo. One way toll = RM1.60 + RM2.50.

We got to the Putrajaya Convention Centre through the back route at the southern end of Putrajaya. People were still milling around, which was a good sign that the fireworks wasn't about to start just yet.

We had to park a distance away from the vantage point at the lakeside. As I walked there, I switched on the camera... and the battery meter started blinking. In other words, dead battery. It couldn't even display the menu on the LCD screen. OK, I have another battery. So I switched the batteries... and whaddaya know, the other battery was gone too. Arrrggghhhh! I had forgotten to recharge the battery after running it dry during the World Vision 30 Hour Famine event last weekend.

I went around asking the other photographers nearby if they had an extra battery to lend me. There were only three other photographers in the vicinity. One guy was using Canon, so, too bad. Another guy offered me his spare battery, but it was for a different model (I think a D70) so it couldn't fit my D80. Another girl didn't have an extra battery. I was stuck with a camera, tripod, remote control and two dead batteries.

So I just stood there and watched the fireworks, for the first time without having to tinker with a camera. Then I realized that my mobile phone could take video! And so I recorded the last 11 minutes of the pyrotechnics on video. It's very low resolution, but better than nothing.

The fireworks were really good. Me thinks it was better than last year's finale. The profusion of colours and lovely patterns filled the night sky. It was a dazzling display of artistic chemistry and creative explosions. The musical accompaniment was heart-moving, or perhaps that was because I was standing just a few feet from the booming, oversized speakers.

In the end, I had zero photos to show, but I went home with videos! 10.9MB worth of low res video.

Moral of the story: Always recharge your batteries immediately after they run flat. But even if your camera batteries are dead, life goes on.

The real moral of the story: There are other more important things in life. So, this Merdeka, let's pray for justice and righteousness to prevail in the land. Pray for God-fearing leaders who will do right. May our nation be recharged with life and passion. Right now, too many people are jaded by the political machiavellianisms, perversion of justice and suppression of truth. It's time to change (repent). God bless Malaysia. :)

Pictures of the MIFC 2008 opening night here.

Mimpi Obama

I had another weird dream two nights ago.

I dreamed that Barack Obama was visiting one kampung (village) somewhere in Malaysia, and I happened to be there too. So I shook his hand.

Later on, my mom showed up too, and I told her I shook hands with Obama but she didn't believe me. Just then, Obama, who was mingling at a house across the road, turned around and my mom was surprised to see him there (yup, just like I told her).

Suddenly, Obama's bodyguards started rushing around. There was a commotion, and people were running down the street. I heard some sirens, and saw Malaysian policemen on their white police bikes coming down the road. Obama and his bodyguards were walking briskly in single file along the side of the road, in my direction.

Amidst the commotion, it appeared that the police were there to arrest Obama. I'm not sure if there were 15 police bikes, but the scene was getting too weird, so I woke up.

How rich are you?

I got this forwarded in my email. I don't know how accurate it is, but it's an interesting exercise. Try it. You might actually be richer than you think. So count your blessings.

Ctrl+Alt+Del

U.S.A.

This mighty nation evokes all sorts of feelings... I both like it and dislike it... a love-hate relationship.

I seem to have a lot of links with the US of A. My mom and dad both did their graduate studies there. My sister did her degree there. My two brothers are studying there now. I went to school there for two years when I was 11 and 12, when my whole family moved over to join my late dad who was in seminary there. I can still recite the Pledge of Allegiance, their version of the Rukunegara.


Why I like the USA

1. It's the land of the free... except in the airports.

2. It's probably the only country in the world where a citizen born of a foreign (Kenyan) father and local (American) mother, and growing up in another country (Indonesia) with a stepfather, can run for presidency. Yup, Obama, you have my vote.

3. The nation was founded on fundamental principles of liberty and justice. Whether or not the Constitution was based on Christian values is now being debated, but I'd say yes, it is. The founding fathers separated church from state, but they wisely did not separate God from state (see this).

4. It's where I learned the English (or American) language properly. I was taught pretty technical linguistic stuff even in elementary school. I read the dictionary for fun. I also lost most of my Mandarin there. Pity.

5. You don't have to fill in your "race" in official forms. Within two generations, most immigrants are effectively assimilated Americans regardless of their origin. Oh well, to some people this is a problem.

6. Innovation flourishes in the climate of freedom and openness. Americans have given us the Internet, Facebook, Google, Intel, Windows, etc. Oh wait, you have to pay for Intel and Windows.

7. They develop technology that changes the world... thanks partly to the thousands of other nationalities that conduct research in American universities and labs.

8. They are so patriotic.


Why I dislike the USA

1. They are the biggest debtors in the universe, yet live the most lavish lifestyle. The world economic system is overly dependent on this one nation. When they go down, everyone goes down. The US owes China trillions of dollars. It's mind-boggling.

2. George W. Bush... Many Americans think the universe revolves around them. They go round picking fights on other hapless nations.

3. Too many guns everywhere. But to their credit, it's still a relatively peaceful country even with all the guns. I can't imagine the chaos if guns were available over here.

4. Racism still exists albeit not officially nor overtly. African Americans got their right to vote only about 50 years ago. The legacy of slavery still haunts Americans.

5. The US is the biggest energy and resource consumer on the planet. It's obscene how much Americans use and throw away. Unfortunately the rest of the developing world aspires to attain that same standard of living. It's impossible. There's not enough resources on this planet to sustain the American dream for everyone. The European or Japanese model of development would be more sustainable.

6. Freedom is being stretched to its limits. With such freedom there is bound to exist both the good and the bad. Fundamental core values are being challenged. The definition of family and marriage is under siege by liberalists. But of course, there are Americans who are defending their core values and traditions.

7. They are overly reliant on technology. And remember, lots of that technology came from the military. You may not agree with military spending, but it's part of our technological and economic system. Everyone who uses GPS must thank the US Department of Defense for their satellites.

8. They are so patriotic.


The USA is paradoxical. So perhaps I shouldn't judge on the basis of "like vs dislike", for we all fall short at one point or another. Let he who is without sin cast the first stone. But I still believe in absolute principles and standards. On this note, I think the fundamentals of the USA are solid, but the implementation is getting shaky.

I must qualify myself by stating that I am commenting as an outsider, and I'm not an "expert" on American affairs. I must also say that I personally know some very friendly Americans. It's such a diverse nation that you are bound to find very nice as well as nasty people. But overall, they're nice. :)


This post was supposed to come out on the 4th of July... belated happy birthday to Uncle Sam. God bless America.

does not, but was

I found the following statement in today's Malaysiakini report:

However, the lawyer’s office clarified that "Arulampalam does not represent Balasubramaniam, but was just his representative."

OK, I'm not so good at the Legalese language, but this one left me befuddled... A does not represent B but was just his representative... ??? Perhaps they mean that A is not the official legal counsel/representative, but just a stand-in representative. Or it was another misquotation by the press.

Maybe they'll clarify tomorrow. Or maybe they'll issue another statutory declaration. Commissioners of oaths must be making good money these days.

Gajah vs pelanduk

There is a Malay saying that goes something like "gajah sama gajah bertempur, pelanduk mati di tengah" which, translated, means "when elephants fight, the mousedeer that is caught in the middle gets killed."

The way I see it, the present unfolding drama that is gripping the nation is a four-cornered fight between four big elephants:

1. PM/SIL
2. PM wannabe #1/Najib
3. PM wannabe #2/Anwar
4. PM wannabe #4/Ex-PM/Mahathir

And, ladies and gentlemen, we are the mousedeer.

But mousedeer are known to be smart, as portrayed in Malay folklore. Even Parameswara was impressed.

So, still got hope la. :)


*I refer to pelanduk and kancil both as mousedeer, though some people might argue that the two are not the same.

Sipadan Mabul

Sipadan Water Village, which is ironically on Mabul Island

Dusk

Sipadan Island

More pictures:

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

p/s I'm not a lawyer, but I think Malaysia won Sipadan from Indonesia for pretty much the same reasons that Malaysia lost Pedra Branca to Singapore.