"I Was Distraught!"

I woke up yesterday’s morning feeling fresh though maybe a little nervous. I had a big day coming up. I had an ISO program for Senior Management staff and I was expected to MC and oversee the whole program. My boss was on a one-week vacation so I was supposed to shoulder all the responsibilities alone in this ‘all-important’ event.

But that was not the part that made me all uptight. Much of my anxieties are due to our YBhg Dato’ present in the program. I felt a little jittery.

So I came early in the morning. I prepared my opening speech, made sure the table tags and notes were properly in place, refreshments must be ready on cue and checked all the machinery. Everything looked perfect from the get go. I was pleased.

“This thing needs to be running smoothly”. I chanted.

But, O well what do I know?

Just minutes before Dato’ arrival, the white screen turned green on me. O uh! My alarm went off. I tried hopelessly tweaking here and there but it was not improved. At this very moment, there was no amount of "Greatest Love of All" can save my a** , only, gasp! God. So I just dismissed it as another ‘stupid machine acting up’ and hoped my audience can live up with it for half a day and never really notice it.

WRONG!

Then Dato’ took his seat and my worst nightmare realized in front of my own eyes and I shall know now the meaning of ‘stupid machine acting up’. The whole system bailed out on me – on cue of Dato’ arrival – Dammit!.

A thousand and one thoughts were coursing through my mind, and none of them pleasant. Akin walking on the death row, I called the tech support staff to help me out with situation ASAP. ("Right now!, or I killed your entire family!")

So, they came, they looked, touched it here and there and finally had an audacity to say this to me “ The projector is old and can’t be used anymore”. NOW YOU ARE TELLING ME THIS?!!

And after 15 agonizing minutes they brought me another supposedly new projector.

I thought the nightmare was over. NOPE. Still it didn’t work out.

During that split second, I had experienced an inexplicable skip of heartbeat and the only other sound I heard was Dato’ tapping his fingers on the table. I felt like my career here was numbered.

“O, I think it wasn’t the projector, maybe it's the cable” MAYBE?!!

Another sponger who wanted to take advantage of my easy-going nature? Was my life one big cosmic joke or what?

“ Can you give us a minute, we have to bring a new cable up here”

“Sure, take all the time you want and O, while you are at it, bring me an arsenic, will ya?”

I wish I were dead. I thought I was.



“I was totally distraught”

E=MC2: A Review of Some Sort

Some might say the last person on earth should ever review any Mariah Carey’s work is…err.. me. OK. I get it, I might not be the most qualified, bias-free, most objective reviewer around and the fact that I had been harassing our local music stores for her new CD for the past couple of months does not help either.

But oh well….here it goes anyway.

After the success of 2005’s “The Emancipation of Mimi”and a monster weepy hit comeback single “We Belong Together”, Mariah seems to have even more to mope about on this follow up with tracks like 'I Stay in Love', 'Last Kiss' and 'Bye Bye' but at the same time she didn't disappoint at all in a crazy beat department – ‘Migrate’, ‘I’m That Chick’, ‘Cruise Control’, ‘O.O.C’. The Grammy-winning singer-songwriter-producer comes off either like a chameleon (with a toned body) or a magician (in a better outfit) throughout this ‘secret rendezvous’. There's always ‘surprises’ for everyone.

So how does each track fair on it own?

1. Migrate
In this opener Mariah decided to cut loose – a beat-crazy track that turns up the fun and the funk. I guess it was an OK track but it’s no way as classic as her previous club thumper i.e Fantasy, Dreamlover, Honey.

2. Touch My Body
On the contagious first single, “Touch My Body”, Mariah engages in a sexy, near-offensive tease that easily will make anyone forget she used to sing ‘I’ll be there’ with her leather jacket on. Truth, I didn’t jump out of my chair the first time I listen to it. It so un-Mariah, it’s so out of character for her but it started to grow on me.

3. Cruise Control
Mariah and Damian are taking turns on the mike as the music shifts from raggae tinged hip hop to 80s inspired R&B pop. Definitely one of my favourite.

4. I Stay in Love
One of my MOST favorite tracks in the album. Simply smashing. I cried the first time I hear it, (and few other times after that). This is classic Mariah and if this is not out as a single soon, the world will be deprived - badly.

5. Side Effects
This one supposed to be Mariah’s most personal tune, but I don’t get it. Wait…na’ah…still don’t.

6. I’m That Chick
Other disco tracks don’t do much for me (hello, Kylie) but this one suprisingly rocks!. I suspect it would be one of many singles churn out off this album.

7. Love Story
Don’t care about it. Too generic. Skippable

8. I’ll Be Lovin’ U Long Time
Definitely not one of the worst tracks in this album and I like it because it has some 80’s R&B vibe about it. It reminds me of one of Whitney’s earlier hits. Kinda like it really.

9. Last Kiss
My advice: Listening to this gem is better for anyone going through a break up than a pint of Haagen-Dazs. Sound even better when you’re majorly bummed out. Since that smashing something single ‘We Belong Together’, the magic of Mariah and JD continues here and the two prove unlikely kindred spirits. With his assorted bag of tricks – the trippy rhythms, the spacey beat and her silky stuttery vocal technique, they feed off each other brilliantly. LOVE IT! LOVE IT! LOVE IT!

10. Thanx 4 Nothin’
This is nice but otherwise bland track. Maybe I’ll get back to this one later.

11. O.O.C
Another fast, cheeky track off E=MC2. Manage to accomplish what it was set out to be to. Loove it.

12. For The Record
Doesn't do anything much for me. Just a filler. Something I can do without.

13. Bye Bye
This second destined-to-be smashing second single has all the makings of a career- defining track for Mariah. It has universal appeal, great hook and anthem-like message. Not a second I have doubt that this one is gonna be huge. Bet on it.

14. I Wish You Well
The disc comes to a meditative,melancholy , gospel tinged, piano driven end which is tailor made for chilling out after all the clubbing is done. Those people who can’t seem to move on and still love ‘the old Mariah’, sweat no more, this will definitely make you happy. Cheer on, the ‘voice’ is back.

Rest assured, E=Mc2 has enough hit singles to last till next two years. Mariah will be around a loong time just as much the equation goes.

I don't do stars, but this one deserves a constellation of that shiny ones.

"All My Friends Are Doing it!"

At first I didn’t totally object the idea. I thought it was pretty cool. I mean, me going back to school, exams, assignments and all – it’s nostalgic, it’s exciting. “Come on, all my friends are doing it”, I psyched myself,“so far nobody died of ‘over-learned’, right?” Riiiigght.

Then, the application got approved and I suddenly realized what I have gotten myself into.

The clerk handed me over the file. The news was grim. Alien words like Sunday classes, credit hours, passing marks, were dropping from the sky like molten-lava rain.

O-oh, “I am so not ready for this”. This is the wrong time, and for the wrong reason (All my friends are doing it, pah!). But by that time, I knew there was no turning back.

So I put Whitney Houston’s pick-me-up classic, 'Greatest Love of All' on loop and I have this much to say:

"I will NOT do this to impress my friends or my colleague. I am NOT measuring myself to my friends nor that I am competing with anybody. I follow my own terms and I take no sh** from anyone".

I guess I am just sick with people asking me when I will do that, buy that, have this, just because everybody is having it or doing it. I am doing it my own way and it’s my life, darn it.

That’s why I should be ashamed if I am doing not this not for the right reason, that is for - none other than - me.

Still, I do hope this won’t be like one of my not-so-brilliant moments in the past. I don't have any regret and I won’t be critical for my past mistakes - I have my friends to do just that for me.

All my friends are doing it - let them be.

I just want to get this over with. God bless.

Tennessee

If I ever come across as a sad little piece of Mariah’s stalker to you, you are not really that far from truth as I have been holding my breath for this definitive, life-changing, must-see movie of the century.

Well, don’t feel guilty. You have every reason to feel sorry for me.

But help is on the way for me and my oxygen-deprived brain. So just hold on and be still heart - that is until April 12.

I just knew this movie would collect a dozen of Oscars next year (shoo-in for best actress, of course) like some people collect stamps.

You’ll see.

Bye Bye

Na'ah. I won't say anything. I said enough, You'd be the judge now! Throw me that hanky please. Sob! Sob!

Thank You To Someone

I know this is an old story but it has to be told. Two weeks ago, my friend, Hasmiron took a break from his studies in UK and so he was here in KL with us. (I think it would only fair if you guys read all about that on his blog cause, you know, due to its 'so-yesterday-news' tag, I don't want to sound lazy)

But that's not even half of the interesting story - he brought me (gasp!) Ally McBeal's DVD set of Season 1 for me. I was totally thrilled. Estatic even.

You see, Ally McBeal always have and still is one of my most - if not the most - favourite TV show, like EVER! So I spent a total 7 days to finish all of the episodes back to back - sorta Ally McBeal Marathon week. I simply couldn't put it down. It was like a mad rush but it didn't feel force at all. Maybe it's because I was too familiar with the jokes and one-liners and watching the DVD was like strolling down the memory lane for me. Yet here I was, still chuckled at the very same jokes I heard a thousand times before and got choked up everytime Richard spews his 'Fishism' at every opportunities! Priceless.

This is joy. This is like one of those pleasure in life or a little happiness I am glad to know about and I only have one person to thank for.

Thank you Hasmiron for this bit of a nice gesture. You bring tears to my eyes....of joy and gladness. The one I came to know probably a good 10 years ago.

Must..get..it..NOW!

Today is a very special day for me. Mariah Carey earned her 18th No.1 Hit on Billboard 100 and destroyed Elvis "The King" Presley's 50 years old record in the process. (Yes, with her first single 'Touch my body", you, boulder dweller!). So I was estatic. Still is. How could I not, hey! it's Mariah!

Usually I hate blogging about my idols - Mariah, Whitney or Taylor. It's tacky for heaven's sake, but this, this I can't possibly keep it to myself. So at the risk of sounding tired, I must tell you - I have spent hours and hours (and a lot of money) lately at the cyber cafe listening to Mariah new singles - over and over again on the Youtube. They have hits written all over them. Simply sizzling hot, sure-fire hits.

My favourite? Gotta be "Bye Bye". A monster, career-defining ballad a la "We Belong together" that really tugs in the heartstring . I am super crazy about this one. A masterpiece of it own class, probably since "Vision of Love" and I can't wait till it is out as an official second single. It's gonna be huge. Mark my words for it.

And so you also probably already knew Mariah will be a mentor and a guest judge on AI on 16th April and she probably will sing "Bye Bye" for the first time live and you can bet I'll be drooling all over the place for that debut performance. That's two weeks away.

Arghhh...this postponing, delaying and waiting business is killing me. Mariah, pleaseeee, out with the album already!! I don't care if your boobs are not fluffy or your hair isn't twirl the way it should be, just get that damn album out! Can you see how ugly it turned out for me now?

Must...get...E=MC2...NOW!