| Friday, March 31, 2006 |
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| Every year when April comes, so does my mucus. That's the only thing I hate about the come of Spring. In addition to "leaking" nose, I have terrible headaches every morning after I wake up. This is due to the fact that my glasses power has increased; I couldn't see clearly anymore when I close my right eye even when wearing glasses. Yeah, I have lazy left eye symptom. But there's nothing I can do before I return home because getting a new pair of eyeglass in the US is way too expensive. No money too. Haih..the headache & selsema is killing me. Because of that, I have no mood to write/blog until I feel better again. Jaa, mata ne. |
| posted by efarina @ 11:46 AM |
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| Sunday, March 26, 2006 |
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I watched an Indonesian ghost story, "Di Sini Ada Setan", with my girlmates last Friday. It has plenty of scary moments especially during the last 30-45 mins of the movie. But ape yang tak bestnye is that the ghost has the same name with me! Though spelled Eva, the right way Indonesians pronounce it is Efa. Imagine how weird I felt. This is my first time encountering a character on a movie having the same name as me. Nama hantu plak tuh! Yikes.
So many things happened this weekend, so there'll be lotsa pictures in this entry. First off, let's start with the most important event: the wedding of Ali & his pretty bride Sarah.
How much cuter can they be?! I wish them a happy marriage life. The wedding was actually yesterday but the cake eating ceremony took place today at Kak Ani's housewarming party. Next...
Intercultural Night 2006 held on Thursday night. Whalla...this year we have a male bellydancer! From left above: Thai traditional dance, UW breakdancing, Korean drum team (which was superb), Cuban salsa dance, bellydance(very entertaining) and African dance. Too bad I miss the Indian dance.
Finally, random pictures of Kak Ani's open house and Intercultural Food Fair. Malaysia opened a booth this year, hence the traditional clothing and the takraw demo.
Click on the pictures for an enlarge version. |
| posted by efarina @ 8:22 PM |
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| Thursday, March 23, 2006 |
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Alrigghty. Here's a photo compilation of my time in New York with my two friends. There're more in my PC but I am too lazy to upload them. I've only uploaded ones from my camera to fotopages but they are only a few. I was in the more-excited-to-shop mode rather than taking pictures. Yewnee & Pial did more phototaking after I left for Madison. Maybe next time when I go to NYC again I'll snap more. I talked to my Indonesian friend Chilwin this morning and couldn't agree with him more that NYC is a nice place to visit but not to live in. As much as I enjoy the shopping, the city is just too much for me to take. Everything is very fast-paced and crowded, I wasn't much awed by the idea of living there. On the contrary, Chicago and Melbourne, in my opinion, are two of my most favorite cities. The city as just as big and as busy, but everything in these cities seem just about right..the pace, the crowd. I don't mind living in Tokyo either. I love the culture and the vibrant lights. |
| posted by efarina @ 2:20 PM |
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| Wednesday, March 22, 2006 |
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Don't look at my ugly feet. Look at my new-bought skimmer at Century 21. Cute tak? Hahaha...trying to advertise my most favorite shoe at the moment. Love it, love it, love it. Can't wait till it get a lil bit warmer before I can wear them. I've also ordered my custom mandarin colored iPod silicone cover with Japanese scribbles for the screen so hopefully it'll arrive soon.
Less than 2 months to graduation. Yikes..I am getting anxious! As much as I am happy not to be doing any studying anymore, I just couldn't imagine myself not having a student life. Have been a student since I was 6 years old! Not helping to ease my anxiousness when I received an email from my university to attend Countdown to Commencement and just today another email from my mom fowarding me info about 30 top companies in Malaysia. Haih...mahukah mereka mengambil saya bekerja? But I'm glad she sent the email to me. I am hoping for my mom to look a job for me instead of me looking for one. The same case for me hoping for my mom to look for a husband candidate for me instead of me who will never be able to find one. I am all in for an omiai kekkon...yeah, right. |
| posted by efarina @ 11:43 PM |
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| Tuesday, March 21, 2006 |
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I am so in love with ballerina/skimmer shoes right now and Keds have just the hottest collection(picture above) perfect for spring and summer. I may be getting all of them in the picture, or maybe at least 3 of them to add to one collection that I already have from Lulu Guinness(which I get for only $40 to original price of $98 at Century 21 New York). Sheesh, I am so excited...hahaha. But my account will sure go down the drain again because each pair of shoes cost $30-$50. But lantaklah since I am so obsessed with them now. This must be due to my current addiction to Goong again. The Bigungmama just look so cute in that skimmer shoe she is wearing.
Yesterday, I bought myself a white 30 GB iPod video. I am seriously giving in to all my indulgence to shopping since my trip to New York that it is becoming a disease. I can't stop buying things! But whaddahell...I haven't shop since last year October, which is definitely not me. And I really need an external storage since my Goong 700MBx24 files is eating up my hard disk space. And I don't want to burn 24 copies of CDs either. Plus the iPod will be helpful for me to transfer files from my desktop when I buy my Fujitsu notebook next month. So...yatta! Long live Keds skimmers, iPod and Fujitsu! I love Kimura Takuya sejuta kali seribu!
*Okay, that last line is definitely tak berkaitan* |
| posted by efarina @ 12:37 AM |
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| Wednesday, March 15, 2006 |
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Living in New York is ruining my bank account! I said I didn't want to do shopping, but I did. And a lot. Plus, with my best friend besides me who is a crazy shopper, the shopping activity just becomes a lot more fun. Plus, average of $15-$20 is spent on food everyday, memang bankrupt larr after this. I've spent about half of what is left in my account already and I haven't even go to all the important places yet. The only places that I have been to is Chinatown & Times Square. I wonder if I will have anymore money left by the time I go back to Madison.
My friend and I went to watch an off-Broadway show yesterday called My Music Teacher. A play about a love affair between a music teacher and his student. It was a mix of a weird an enjoyable play, I might say, though I could barely catch what the casts were singing because they kept singing in opera-tone voice. I am wishing to catch a Broadway show like Beauty & The Best or The Light Piazza or Spamalaot but tickets are selling fast like hotcakes, and I don't have much time either, so we'll see. If not, I'll settle with Comedy Club this Friday night.
As of today, it is my relaxing day at home! |
| posted by efarina @ 8:55 AM |
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| Friday, March 10, 2006 |
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KLCC Fuel Price Hike Protest Round 2. Below are some links I found regarding to today's topic. Eee...scarylah. But necessary? Entahlah, I'm not in Malaysia right now, so I don't feel the heat as much. Still, an interesting scenario to look at.
Jeff Ooi
Shagadelica
myAsylum2
This one right here has a video which is a must-watch and must-listen.
Here's a reading on Protest Round 1.
myAsylum1
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| posted by efarina @ 10:31 AM |
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| Thursday, March 09, 2006 |
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There is a beautiful black Beetle parked in front of Regent. Plus that with my love for Goong in which the vehicles are sponsored by VW, I'm totally obssessed on wanting my own VW car. Not that I can afford it... but anyway nothing is wrong with wanting something. Sheesh, I want one of each!! From top left clockwise: VW Jetta, VW Golf GTI, the famous VW Beetle and VW Passat. Aren't they beautiful?
Two more days to New York. I hope my check arrives by Saturday morning. If not, yikes, no money at all to spend in New York. Yesterday, I went to pick up my 4 free movie tickets for Wisconsin Film Festival. I choose to watch Sympathy for Lady Vengeance & The President's Last Bang(Korea), The King(USA, actor Gael Garcia Bernal!) and In the Battlefield(Lebanon). Hope of all to be excellent and enjoyable movies. I also went to the library and borrowed two books: Giants of Japan and What Life Was Like Among Samurais and Shoguns. This is part of my own effort and interest in history and East Asian Studies. I can no longer take classes about them so I guess I'd better read on my own. I plan to start with Japan, then move on to Korea and Great China. Perhaps after that I can start learning the history and culture of South East Asia. Now, if only I have more time to read... |
| posted by efarina @ 4:12 PM |
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| Tuesday, March 07, 2006 |
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Malaysia is kinda in a small huru-hara now, isn't it? With the banjir, increase in oil prices, demonstrations at KLCC, reported MAS losses of billions and whatever more that I don't know about. I finally got some small time to go reading and I come across this interesting article on Asia Times Online written by a research associate with Research for Social Advancement, Liew Chin Thong. There is also alink of an interview clip with Liew Chin Thong if you browse through one of the entries of Jeff Ooi Screenshot(link available at my squareOne! list. So here it is. It is a bit long but nevertheless interesting.
Malaysia: Abdullah's long honeymoon over
By Liew Chin Tong
KUALA LUMPUR - Hopes that Abdullah Badawi's nominally reformist government would shake up Malaysia's political status quo have started to fade about two-and-a-half years after he succeeded strongman Mahathir Mohammad.
February was a rough-and-tumble month for Malaysia's leader, one in which his reformist credentials were firmly brought into question. Abdullah was notably on the defensive after his February 14 cabinet reshuffle failed to dislodge Mahathir loyalists and promote younger reformers in his government.
His government also cracked down hard on the media, shutting one Malaysian newspaper and suspending two others temporarily after the publication of controversial cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed, eerily similar to the heavy-handed tactics Mahathir used to undermine the press and quell criticism. And Abdullah appeared to expend his last store of political capital when he reduced subsidies and hiked gasoline prices by 18%.
Until recently Abdullah, widely viewed as one of the world's more moderate Muslim leaders, had enjoyed a long honeymoon period. He was officially anointed Mahathir's successor in June 2002, and was finally handed the leadership baton in October 2003. In a March 2003 speech, at a time when many political commentators had written him off as a puppet transitional leader, Abdullah firmly established his reformist credentials by publicly distancing himself from Mahathir's spendthrift, monument-building ways and vowed that his government would work to root out corruption.
In that memorable speech, the premier-in-waiting cited the unfortunate combination of "First World infrastructure and a Third World mentality" as the "malaise" undermining Malaysia's global competitiveness - lightly veiled criticism of Mahathir's supercharged, and often controversial, economic policies. While crediting Malaysia for having one of the most stringent anti-corruption laws in the region, he said that "is not sufficient if we are unable to empower legislation with enforcement".
To Abdullah's credit, he followed up those tough words with tough actions, positioning himself as a transformational rather than transitional leader. In the months leading up to the March 2004 general election, Abdullah galvanized reform hopes when his government charged with corruption then land and cooperative development minister Kasitah Gaddam and a former managing director of a state-owned steel company, Eric Chia.
The government also announced in 2004 that some 18 other cases involving prominent personalities were being investigated by the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA), and the "National Integrity Plan" aimed at reducing corruption was launched with great fanfare.
Widely portrayed as a pious Muslim from a family of prominent Islamic scholars, the soft-spoken premier captured the national imagination that sweeping change was imminent when he initiated a royal commission to make proposals on police reform, a plan to improve the transparency and performance of state-linked companies, and a commitment that future government contracts would be distributed only through open tender.
The Federal Court's release in September 2004 of imprisoned former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim, who made the mistake of challenging Mahathir's hold on political power in the wake of the 1997-98 regional financial crisis, indicated that Malaysia was clearly headed toward a more liberal era under Abdullah.
Indications were that the general public approved. Abdullah's ruling coalition won the 2004 elections with the second-highest popular mandate in history, which yielded a commanding 92% control of parliament. His party resoundingly trumped Parti Islam se-Malaysia (PAS), which holds sway in the country's north, and Abdullah's landslide victory was seen as popular approval for his brand of moderate Islamic rule.
But Abdullah's reform movement arguably lost momentum in late 2004 with the defeat of his allies - including three of his reform-minded cabinet ministers - during United Malay National Organization (UMNO) internal party elections. The refrain then from Abdullah supporters to those who were not satisfied with the speed and direction of reform was that the premier needed more time to consolidate his political base.
The nearly three decades of Mahathir's rule resulted in a cohort of old-style politicians, with the premier personally defusing internal competitions within UMNO and openly rewarding loyalty over competence. Most of those politicians have a vested interest in politics as usual, and they are widely viewed as antagonistic to Abdullah's reform drive.
Many observers were taken aback by the re-emergence of so-called "neo-Mahathirists" and the dearth of new, young blood during Abdullah's latest cabinet shuffle. Indeed, expectations of a major political overhaul that would have replaced Mahathir's old cronies and appointed younger pro-reformers clearly failed to materialize.
Analysts cite the re-emergence of former agriculture minister Effendi Norwawi, who was elevated at the request of the coalition's powerful Sarawak United People's Party, as one clear example of a resurgent old guard. Similarly, Abdullah has found it difficult to remove heads of UMNO's coalition partners, which explains the continued presence of the controversial Works Minister Samy Vellu, 70, also seen as a defender of the status quo.
Moreover, known Mahathir loyalists, including former federal territories minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor and Deputy Information Minister Zainudin Maidin, made surprising comebacks. Both of those men were appointed by Mahathir in his November 2002 cabinet shuffle to avoid a lame-duck fate after he shocked the nation, and the world, during a teary-eyed national address when he unexpectedly announced his intention to retire that year.
Mahathir's actual influence on the day-to-day running of Abdullah's government is minimal, government insiders say. Yet his way of running the business of government - which Abdullah vowed to change - is still entrenched and strongly influences the policy process.
Abdullah now presides over a cabinet room packed with ministers who have accumulated plenty of baggage as a result of their long tenures without independent scrutiny. It is not surprising, then, that they are loath to open up the reform floodgate, which could lead to probes into their past records. In the course of protecting their own interests, they have also ensured that many of Mahathir's suspect policies will not be subject to backward-looking investigations.
Indeed, it appears the "neo-Mahathirists" are effectively protecting their interests against uncomfortable scrutiny. International Trade Minister Rafidah Aziz, 63, is one such politician who, though she has fallen out openly with Mahathir, has made clear her aversion to Abdullah's reform program. Last year Rafidah emerged unscathed from alleged corruption involving the approvals for imported cars, a story that had surprisingly made headlines in Malaysia's media.
Until now, a freer, more scrutinizing local media was seen as one of the hallmarks of Abdullah's more liberal administration. Malaysian newspapers are still regulated by stringent laws that require annual renewal of their licenses, and the internal security minister has discretion to revoke permits for arbitrarily defined reasons. Malaysian media companies are owned mostly by individuals and corporations with strong connections to the ruling elite.
Even so, media practitioners, members of the opposition and even some dissident groups agreed that the space for political discourse had expanded considerably under Abdullah's watch. That honeymoon period, however, has come to an abrupt end. Two top editors of China Press were removed by government authorities in January for wrongly identifying as a Chinese national a Malay woman mistreated by the police.
Meanwhile, a witchhunt of newspapers that reprinted caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed has undermined Abdullah's professed commitment to media freedom and brought down international criticism on his government. Clamping down on the three newspapers was intended to shore up his popularity among Muslims and demonstrate his government's willingness to defend the Islamic faith.
This was followed by the squabbles between the seemingly more open-minded Abdullah lieutenants at the New Straits Times, the country's oldest paper, which is known to be run by UMNO, and the newly appointed Information Minister Zainuddin Maidin, whose background is more in propaganda than in straight news.
Zainuddin led the chorus calling for the New Straits Times to be punished for publishing a syndicated cartoon, notably not part of the 12 condemned Danish caricatures, a decision by the newspaper that hinted that drawing caricatures of the Prophet was a permissible act.
Mahathir weighed in that the paper should be allowed to continue to publish while its editors should be suspended for two or three months, and a cabinet meeting chaired while the premier was overseas by a known "neo-Mahathirist", Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, resulted in a threatening letter to that effect being sent to the newspaper.
But perhaps most worrying to Abdullah has been the furor surrounding his government's decision to hike fuel prices. UMNO's main constituency is the ethnic-Malay lower middle class, and while criticism of cabinet shuffles and media freedom are often dismissed as normal cut-and-thrust elite politics, fuel-price hikes have hit Abdullah's main supporters where it hurts - in the pocketbook.
The recent 30-US-cent gasoline price hike - the highest in the country's history - outraged nearly everyone. Pump prices have rocketed from RM1.35 (36 cents) to RM1.92 (52 cents) a liter, a whopping 42% rise, since Abdullah took office. Global market forces are pushing up fuel prices everywhere, but many Malaysians believe that as a net fuel exporter, the government has the room to temper price hikes and that subsidized fuel prices could give the country's exporters an important competitive edge.
But it is apparent that Abdullah doesn't see it that way, and his political popularity has taken a hit as a result. Malaysia's economy grew modestly at 5.3% in 2005, compared with 7.1% in 2004. But with the fuel-price jump, the threat of inflation and a decline in domestic consumer demand will arguably put pressure on overall employment and economic growth.
A hastily arranged television briefing by the deputy prime minister, who asked the people to "change their lifestyle", failed to assuage critics and instead backfired. As discontent mounts over the policy, Abdullah has since conceded that it was an unpopular but necessary decision.
And so the record numbers of Malaysians who voted for his promise of a more reform-minded government are increasingly being disappointed. And it is unclear how an embattled Abdullah will deal with criticism of his nominally reformist government. So far, however, the signs don't look good.
Credits goes to Asia Times Online.
When Mahathir announced his resignation, I worry this kind of day will come. Mahathir power is after all hard to beat, isn't it? He receives my unyielding respect. I wonder how Pak Lah is going to handle his reformist government issue. He seemed like such a nice, sweet man when I first met him that I feel a little sympathy towards him. I wish him the best and hope he will handle these criticisms well. |
| posted by efarina @ 10:33 AM |
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| Monday, March 06, 2006 |
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| Sometimes I wish I have more time to read, like I used to when I was in school. Now it is always Statistics, Japanese, more Statistics and more Japanese. My free time is filled with work, resting and watching my series, which is a must to release my pressure and to improve my pace on mastering this language I am studying. Itu pon now I don't really have time for it anymore since I am always tired from working I ended up sleeping instead. I don't even know what is going on in the world out there anymore I envy those people who has so much knowledge about different things that is and has been happening be it about current events, sports, politcs and trivial gossips. I don't even know what movies are in the cinemas right now. Pretty pathetic for a student who is studying overseas, deshou? Supposed to be a smart all-rounder student but I am not even good at what I am studying right now. So much for being the best daughter in the family... I wonder where do other people find the time to read because I seriously have none. Hmm...maybe I should stop bloggingkah so I can use that time reading instead? Still not enough time, I believe. Haih... I wish I was born a better, richer person with IQ of 200 and a Chinese Muslim instead of a Malay. |
| posted by efarina @ 7:14 PM |
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| Sunday, March 05, 2006 |
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 Look at this. Aren't they cute? I want them but don't know where I can buy them. Hopefully I will be able to find similar necklaces when in New York. But it'll be better if someone can give them to me as a birthday present :p.
Today it snowed like crazy again. The bad thing is I had to walk all the way from Langdon to Regent in the heavy snow after work since the all bus weren't running sometime after it started snowing. Gila aper? That is the second time this winter. What if I were at the mall? How do I go back then? Crazy Wisconsin weather. And next week's Spring Break! Feels like winter... |
| posted by efarina @ 6:40 PM |
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I called home today and my dad told me he's going to Bangkok with my brother this Monday for a week. It's "the men" outing to the pleasure city Bangkok. Nie yang aku nak mengamok dalam Bahasa Melayu nie! Dulu, when I bising-bising wanting to go to Bangkok, no one listen to me and gimme so many excuses but now?! What's not to love there. I want to see everything of Bangkok, the floating market, the temples, the Grand Palace, the people, the culture. But unfortunately, the men at my home decided to go together, leaving the women who have to go to work and school and me who's stuck in US. Tertekan, beb. In addition to that depressing news, my mom told me our Honda Civic which I love to drive so much have been stolen!!! Double jaw drop. Stupid thief. Do you know how many sweet and bad things have happened in/to the car while I was it? That was the first car that I drove after I got my licensed, and that was the car that I drove on a night when my friends and I "nearly" kena pergi balai polis. Sheeshh....talk about unfortunate event.
Alrite, time to let out the stress.
 Another picture of Ji Hoon. The kind of man that I might just fall for on first look in real life. And I indeed am falling right now, if only he's a UW student :p. I have such weaknesses for tall men who looks hot in glasses. Come to think of it, all the men I have crushes on in real life are tall and wear glasses. Except for Tim Fung. But I bet he'll look just fine in glasses. Kenape yer? I bet it is the father/mother-influence theory again. I read some time ago in Reader's Digest that when one choose his/her partner in life, he/she will tend to like someone who has at least some similiraties to their parents. So men naturally will like someone who has certain qualities as their mother and the same applied to women too. A theory that I find hard to refute. For instance, how I don't like men who wear ties all the time and my fathers hate wearing tie too. My father knows many things about the entertainment industry(I guess he learned all that during his office gossip session) and how I am attracted to men who has talents in entertainment field. What do you think? The same thing apply to you?
Arghh...tomorrow gotta wake up early for work again! Bummer. Can't wait for next work Spring Break. New York, New York! |
| posted by efarina @ 1:07 AM |
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| Thursday, March 02, 2006 |
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I've decided to put up a shoutbox as a test. My guestbook is getting pretty annoying with its server down, unable to delete messages and other whatsoever problems. I'm pretty sure my blog doesn't have many readers and there won't be much messages either but ape-apelah, I'm just trying it out for the moment. Perhaps it provides more convenience than my guestbook.
So....what's happened to Britney Spears nowadays? Ever since she gotten married, she has lost this pop princess aura and with her ongoing fashion faux and personal problems, who knows where she'll end up. She shouldn't have gotten married an a young age, especially during her rising years and furthermore to that garbage Kevin Federline. Though I am no big fan of Britney, I do love some of her songs. C'mon...what's not to like in songs like Toxic, I'm A Slave For You and Overprotected? I thought that they're pretty catchy and sexy, Toxic especially. Definitely an ear catcher for pop lover. Not liking the person doesn't mean she sings bad songs, rite? But I do know one person who is a hardcore Britney fan. I don't know whether she still likes her, but she sure did back then. And that person is none other than my adorable and 'gila' youngest sister. Dearest youngest sister, do know that I pray hard for you to become a model or a stewardess when you grow up and become prettier than Britney...hahaha.
I think I am becoming blind. While I can still pretty much see what's written on the blacboard, I find it hard to recognize at the picture cards use in my Japanese class. And my eyes get painful easily nowadays. Should I start eyeing on those adorable emo/rimmed glasses which is so "the bomb"? :P |
| posted by efarina @ 7:54 PM |
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