August 30, 2007
[malaysia at 50] About two hours ago, Malaysia celebrated her golden anniversary marking 50 years of independence since the end of British colonial rule on August 31st, 1957.
Note: Malaysia was not created until September 16, 1963, when the Malaya states were joined by Singapore (briefly) and the British-ruled territories in Borneo - Sabah and Sarawak. But for all intents and purposes, Malaysians celebrate Independence Day on August 31st. Don't ask me why. We just do :-p
That was the day the joyful, triumphant shouts of "Merdeka, Merdeka, Merdeka!" (Merdeka means Independence in Malaysia) resonated throughout the nation as Malaya's first Prime Minister, Allahyarham Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al Haj stood on a podium at a specially built Stadium Merdeka in Kuala Lumpur raised his right arm and cried out those exact words. On that same day, the Union Jack was lowered from the flagpole at the Padang (now known as Dataran Merdeka or Independence Square) and the Malayan flag was raised.
His was a land of impenetrable jungles, small villages of wooden houses, rubber plantations and tin mines, genteel colonial cities with grand administrative buildings and rows of traditional shop-houses. Now it is a nation of skyscrapers and microchip plants, fast highways and sprawling cities where the government talks of Malaysia's role in biotech, or conference hosting or Islamic finance.
But nothing during the past 50 years has come easy for Malaysians. Independence was won amidst an occasionally vicious civil war with local communists. The 60s brought turmoil; a military stand off with Indonesia, the split in 1965 with Singapore, the race riots of 1969. There was paranoia in the 70s, recession and political repression in the 80s, a crash and unrest in the 90s, yet here Malaysia is today and it is doing all right.
From the IHT:
Economically, Malaysia has much to celebrate.
From a postcolonial tin-mining backwater in the 1950s, Malaysia has grown into an industrial state that exports semiconductors and other electronic goods and aspires to become a fully developed country by 2020.
It boasts the Petronas Twin Towers, the third tallest building in the world, and its new capital, Putrajaya, is a sprawling, leafy city of grand architecture, palatial ministerial homes and fantastically shaped bridges.
Only 5 percent of the population lives in poverty, down from 50 percent at independence.
The nation's political stability stems from a power-sharing arrangement that has kept the National Front, a coalition of Malay, Chinese, Indian and other parties, in power since 1957.
But all is not well...
Malaysia marks 50 years of independence this week as an economic success story with a worrying trend: a widening ethnic divide.
At the heart of the polarization is deep disenchantment among the minority Chinese and Indians over two issues. One is a long-running affirmative action program for Malays, a Muslim people that make up 60 percent of the population. The other is the growing influence of Islam, with the apparent blessing of the government.
Analysts warn that minority discontent could upset the ethnic peace that has been the bedrock of Malaysia's stability and economic prosperity. Ethnic Chinese represent 25 percent of the country's 26 million people, and Indians, 10 percent. About 5 percent belong to indigenous groups.
Race riots broke out in May 1969, but Malaysia has otherwise enjoyed five decades of generally peaceful ethnic relations. Malik Imtiaz, a prominent constitutional and human rights lawyer, says that reflects racial tolerance, not racial integration.
Entire neighborhoods, and sometimes towns, are identified with a particular ethnicity. The three groups rarely mix outside the workplace and know little about each other's cultures. In university cafeterias and shopping malls, young people tend to cluster by race.
Malaysia now is one of the richest nations in South-East Asia and is on the verge of ending absolute poverty. As a resuly many people are openly asking if the affirmative action laws favouring ethnic Malays are really still necessary.
The Economist is even more scathing in an article titled: "Tall buildings, narrow minds - After 50 years, Malaysia should stop treating a third of its people as not-quite-citizens"
There is much to celebrate. Living standards and access to education, health services, sanitation and electricity have soared during those five decades of sovereignty. The country's remarkable modernisation drive was symbolised, nine years ago, by the completion of the Petronas twin towers, in Kuala Lumpur, then the world's tallest buildings.
Yet there will be a hollow ring to the festivities. Malaysia's 50th birthday comes at a time of rising resentment by ethnic Chinese and Indians, together over one-third of the population, at the continuing, systematic discrimination they suffer in favour of the majority bumiputra, or sons of the soil, as Malays and other indigenous groups are called. There are also worries about creeping "Islamisation" among the Malay Muslim majority of what has been a largely secular country, and about the increasingly separate lives that Malay, Chinese and Indian Malaysians are leading. More so than at independence, it is lamented, the different races learn in separate schools, eat separately, work separately and socialise separately. Some are asking: is there really such a thing as a Malaysian?
And the BBC chimes in as well:
[T]he debate has shifted and many non Malays have taken the anniversary as an opportunity to ask what place patriotism has in a country that classifies its people by race, treats them differently according to their ethnicity and then when the flags come out expects them to all cheer with equal vigour.
The theme for this year's celebrations is "Malaysiaku Gemilang" or "My Glorious Malaysia".
I don't know about glorious. But regardless of what I think, Malaysia is and will always be home for me. But the reasons I left "home" 12 years ago are still the same today - a culture of entitlement amongst the majority Muslim Malays stemming from the preferential treatment given to them as enshrined in the Constitution. That is joined by the increasingly conservative face of Islam making inroads into daily Malaysian life. I, as a socially liberal out and proud gay Malaysian man, will probably never tolerate that lack of fairness and freedom in society.
So here I am in Washington DC... and I'm here to stay!
The bill for Malaysia's racial politics and policies will come due in the near future. But it's not all bad. Compared to our neighbors in South-East Asia, I'm sure my fellow Malaysians and I count ourselves lucky to have grown up in a politically stable country with racial harmony at the forefront (though with tensions simmering in the background).
Happy Birthday Malaysia! You look great from afar, and I love to visit from time to time.
As the tourism brochures say - "Malaysia, Truly Asia" :-) @ 13:58
August 29, 2007
[poor and uninsured] In the richest country the world has ever known, 36.5 million people live in poverty. That is almost 1 out of every 8 Americans. How is that possible? And how is it even fathomable that most of us, including those in the government, do not care?
12.8 mn children under 18 - 1/3rd of all poor people - existed in 2006 on incomes below the poverty threshold; 1.2mn more than 2000. What does it say about us as a nation of unimaginable excesses that millions of children are suffering on a daily basis. These kids are not in Africa, they are within our borders!
24.3% of black people live in poverty compared to 20.6% of Hispanics, 10.3% of Asians, and 8.2% of white people. The only silver lining to the report is that the poverty rate has dropped for the first time since 2000. But that silver lining only exists because the federal poverty rate for a family of four is $20,614. Can you imagine living on $20k with a spouse and two kids??
According to the same report, a record 47 million Americans (15.8%) do not have health insurance; 8.7mn of them are children.
On a slightly brighter note, the median household income in the US increased by 0.7% to $48,201, the highest in 5 years but still 2.1% below 1999. Median is misleading coz the disparity is huge - more than half of all household income was earned by the wealthiest 20% of the population (>$97k), while the lowest 20% made only 3.4% (<$20k). The only group for which earnings in 2006 exceeded those of 2000 were the households in the top 5% of the earnings distribution.
Asians had the highest median household income at $64,238; more than twice that of Blacks ($32k). Yay us :-)
Income ($52,057) was highest and poverty lowest in the East, led in both cases by Maryland ($65,144). Income ($43,884) was lowest and poverty (13.8%) highest in the South, led in both cases by Mississippi ($34,473).
Maryland edged out New Jersey as the nation's richest state, followed by CT, HI and MA. MS, WV and AR bring up the rear. The Washington DC metropolitan area is second richest measured by median household income (after Silicon Valley), with Fairfax ($100,318), Loudoun, and Howard maintaining their status as the nation's wealthiest large counties (>250k people). Montgomery and Prince William counties are also in the Top 10. All five suburban counties are north and west of DC. Another five counties are in the Top 10 of the wealthiest small counties - Arlington, Stafford, Calvert, Alexandria and Charles.
DC didn't look so good - median income was $51,847 which is above the national figure, but poverty far outpaced the national rate at 20%.
Super-rich, yet poor and without medical care. Sad, isn't it? @ 20:58
[baliwood] Hurricane Cuntina is sweeping back into town tonight. I give her, maybe, a Category 3 at most for now. Her potency needs to be re-established.
It would've been Cat 2 if not for this precious lil' IM I got from him today:
"when i saw the picture of you and David with the wooden dildo from Bali...my first thought was 'now that's what I call Baliwood' LOL!"
LOL, indeed! @ 13:25
August 28, 2007
[good riddance] I wanted to write about this yesterday and I started to but I was just so busy with work (and again today) it's not even funny. But AG Alberto Gonzales' long-awaited and much-demanded resignation yesterday continues to bring unimaginable joy to my heart, but it is so long overdue that I barely care anymore. He was and is and will always be irrelevant.
And history will remember and judge Gonzales as the man who never said no to torture and detention policies that violated US and international law. I can only hope that that judgement is as harsh as it is unequivocal. Like his boss, this man is despicable and he deserves nothing less.
In NYT's scathing "The House Lawyer Departs":
"Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has finally done something important to advance the cause of justice. He has resigned."
:-o
"When Mr. Gonzales was appointed, it seemed doubtful that he would be able to put aside his years as Mr. Bushs personal lawyer, which stretched back to the Texas governors office, and represent the interests of the American people. He never did."
"There was a more basic problem with Mr. Gonzales's tenure: he did not stand up for the Constitution and the rule of law, as an attorney general must. This administration has illegally spied on Americans, detained suspects indefinitely as 'enemy combatants,' run roughshod over the Geneva Conventions, violated the Hatch Act prohibitions on injecting politics into government and defied Congressional subpoenas. In each case, Mr. Gonzales gave every indication of being on the side of the lawbreakers, not the law."
"Mr. Gonzales signed off on the administrations repugnant, and disastrous, torture policy when he was the White House counsel. He later helped stampede Congress into passing the Military Commissions Act of 2006, which endorsed illegal C.I.A. prisons where detainees may be tortured and established kangaroo courts in Guant namo Bay, Cuba, to keep detained foreigners in custody essentially for life. He helped cover up and perpetuate Mr. Bushs illegal wiretapping programs, both in the counsels job and as attorney general. The F.B.I. under his stewardship abused powers it was given after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the name of enhanced national security."
And here's the winner:
"Mr. Gonzales will hardly be a tough act to follow, but the standard for the next attorney general should not be set that low."
HOT! I love the NYT :-D
Alberto Gonzales may have been the nation's first Hispanic attorney general, but he was clearly the worst AG ever. From USAT:
"...[Gonzales] began to confuse loyalty with duty. Gonzales, who entered the Bush orbit when he served as the then-Texas governor's general counsel in the 1990s, never understood that being the president's lawyer and confidant are utterly different from being the nation's top law enforcement officer."
"Bush's combative, bitter acceptance of Gonzales' resignation showed that the president didn't grasp the distinction either. Nor did Bush seem to understand what has long been clear, even to the president's Republican allies on Capitol Hill: His amiable friend wasn't just excessively loyal he was in over his head in a sensitive job."
The President could've just as easily wished him well and moved on from this sorry saga of "loyal Bushie" cronyism in is Administration. Instead, he took one more in a string of many cheap shots at the Democrats, blaming them for neutering his Hispanic lap dog. That just emphasizes Mr. Bush's sad and pathetic irrelevance in Americans' eyes today.
The same goes for his utterly inconsequential and incompetent Administration.
Another one bites the dust... Ashcroft, Rumsfeld, Rove, Gonzales...
From the Center for Constitutional Rights:
"Until we get rid of the entire cabal, which includes Bush and Cheney, that has engaged in torture, offshore prisons such as Guantanamo, violations of the Geneva Conventions and warrantless wiretapping, there is little to celebrate in Gonzales' resignation. Guantanamo continues, as does torture, wiretapping, secret CIA sites, rendition, and illegal trials."
Hear, hear.
Their legacies are a shame to humanity. Just over 500 days to go before the global nightmare is over.
01-20-2009 cannot come soon enough. @ 16:49
August 24, 2007
[fine, whatever] I love this!
9 WORDS WOMEN USE
1. Fine: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.
2. Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.
3. Nothing: This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine.
4. Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!
5. Loud Sigh: This is actually a word, but it's a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to #3 for the meaning of nothing.)
6. That's Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.
7. Thanks: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or Faint. Just say you're welcome.
8. Whatever: Is a women's way of saying F@!K YOU!
9. Don't worry about it, I got it: Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking, 'What's wrong?' For the woman's response refer to #3.
Let's see... #1, definitely! #2, not so much. I'm pretty quick at getting dressed and gelling my hair. #3, maybe though I usually just keep quiet rather than say "nothing". #4, probably but very seldom. Tony loves using #5 on me! Grrr. #6, not really. #7, haha definitely me!! #8 is like my chant. #9 is quite me, though I use it more at work than I do at home.
OMB, I'm a woman! Guilty as charged. @ 15:51
[cover up and tone down] Not sure if you guys keep up with news about entertainment in Malaysia (I know, how generic), but Gwen Stefani was recently asked to cover up for her concert in Malaysia. Those bloody muslims are so eff-ing conservative, I tell you.
So Brett sends me (and half the friggin' planet) this Dlisted.com article about Beyonce now running into the same problem that Gwen faced.
Beyonce is the latest performer to be asked by Malaysia to keep her ass covered and tone her show down. Most recently Gwen Stefani had to completely re-vamp her wardrobe in order to perform in the country and not face fines or death. Ok, just fines not death, but I thought death sounded good.
*giggle*
And Brett adds her own little zing to the article...
Why can't Kiat take advice from his own country...esp. at the beach! ;) Cover up and tone down!!! HAHAHA!
*giggles and fumes at the same time*
Bitches, all of you!
Just as an FYI:
"Malaysia's guidelines for public performances require a female artiste to cover up from the top of her chest to her knees, including her shoulders. Performers may not hug or kiss, and their clothes must not have obscene or drug-related images or messages."
Now you know why I left? The muslim fundamentalists are fucking everything up. @ 15:18
[silly willy] Sage advice from my officemate to his son before sending him off to college...
Don't be silly, Wrap your willy!
I love my irreverent co-workers :-D
I just had Ethiopian for lunch...
Soggy bread? *DENIED*
And it feels like Ethiopia outside as well, yuck. Still, better than 60s...
The weekend is here!!!
And they are making me work on Sunday, grrr.
WOE IS ME.
*rant mode off* @ 15:02
August 22, 2007
[weekend fun] The weather this past weekend was just amazing for DC in August, n'est-ce pas? It's almost hard to believe that it has been London-like outside the past THREE daysm, AND in the mid-60s. Bleagh.
Saturday and Sunday were both in the low 80s with low humidity, brilliant sunshine (except for late Sunday), and just absolutely gorgeous. Bliss. We didn't really do much except for walk around to eat, shop and just while away a perfect late-summer afternoon in a very, Very quiet city.
Saturday night, we headed to JR's - of course - for showtunes to meet Gary's mom (+ entourage) from Ohio and Brett's parents Nebraska. Yes, talk about Midwest overload. But bless their heart, they are such nice folks and completely immune to our drunk, irreverent, cunty selves. I think one of the moms is a lesbian and the other one's a PFLAG mom; can't remember which is which.
Anyho, after the "meet your 'rents JR's special", we hightailed it to Halo for Andy's birthday dinner. I can't believe he turned FORTY-SEVEN! He doesn't look it. We squeezed 8 people - Dusty, Chris/C, Tony, Mikko, me, Andy, Dan and Rob - into a standard Logan booth made for 4. Fetch.
And finally, we crashed Chris' house party which was a riot of drunk hot boys, raunchiness and debauchery (no surprises there :-D). I barely have any recollection of what happened that night (damn the delicious caipirinhas, LOL!), except for a certain revelation that made me quite uncomfortable. So I left... ... ... What? I don't kiss and tell :-p Why do you think my hair is so big? It's full of secrets ;-)
But I had fun, nonetheless.
[L] Dusty, Chris/Craig and Tony @ Logan Tavern for Andy's birthday
[R] Having cake and eating it too
[L] Not quite... but he's more than half that (and doesn't look it!)
[R] Drunk gay boys playing with fruit
So much so I found Aaron in my guest bedroom the next morning, LOL. It's now Sunday... We joined L'David and Dan for mimosas (yup, mimosas at 4pm...) at Dan's rooftop pool which was quite fetch in terms of eye-candy. I don't think I tanned coz it was kinda cloudy. And the water was freezing. But I already have a speedo tan line from Rehoboth that will make you blush so I'm good for the winter and into next spring.
I tan so well that I really don't get you pasty white bitches. Y'all just freckle. And when you *really* tan, you either turn Maine-lobster-red or your freckles join together to form blobs. It's too bizarre for words.
Aaanyho, after that we performed our shenanigans at Rick's before going to (boy) Brett's for din-din. Everyone in attendance had gone to a party the night before so we just continued the booze-a-thon. We hung out at his gorgeous deck for a delicious dinner of scallops/crab, pork and, well, TONS of booze (der).
So much so the host stripped in front of all of us :-o
Have I said too much? :-D No pictures, of course...
[L] I thought the reflection of the clouds off his shades was really cool
[R] Dan, Me and L'David in Rick's elevator (post-apartment shenanigans)
[L] I miss my BFF!
[R] Isn't she cute? And totally docile...
[L] Me and Dan...
[R] Aww, they look so cute together
[L] Bitch shaves his chest... eww nasty, LOL!
[R] The boys on Brett's dick, I mean, deck
[L] Brett, Tony, Dan and Mikko
[R] Cognac-guzzler (among other things that he guzzles...)
It's just another summer weekend in the City! @ 10:56
[spreen] I was telling all my bitches via e-mail that "I'm up to my spleen in (work) crap", and here are the responses I get:
"I didn't know Asians had spreens."
"i thought asians had their organs salvaged as a way to make $$ to feed the family...you still have a spleen???"
Spreens, LOL! Bitches :-)
Yes, we all really do have a hate-hate relationship. @ 10:07
[pink] Don't worry, bitches. I've got y'all covered. I think her e-mail's broken so I sent an urgent telegram instead to Mother Nature.
Dear Mother Nature STOP
Please bring the sun back STOP
Thanks STOP
Sincerely, Your (not-so-)lovin' DC bitches STOP
I hope she gets it soon coz it's the third gloomy day in a row and I've about had it.
I was barely able to wake up this morning coz, let's face it... gloomy days = stay in bed and sleep. But once I was up, I decided that nothing's gonna stop me from being summer-y today, so I wore a pink (long-sleeved, ugh) shirt and white pants to brighten up my day. I mean, why would anyone wear dark colors on a cloudy day to make it even *gloomier*?? It's summer for fuck's sake.
Plus it's Wednesday. And on Wednesdays, we wear pink :-p
P/S: Why am I alluvasudden getting random e-mails from equally random strangers on the Internet after posting a picture of a condom-covered wooden dildo from Bali?? It just goes to show that the Internet *is* for porn... You all are nasty :-D @ 10:04
August 20, 2007
[while rick's away...] ...the mice come out to play...
...in his apartment :-D
L'David being the good lil' Mexican gardener that he is... watering the plants as instructed
[L] Then the fun begins - "Look bitches... booze!"
[R] (Free) Happy Hour @ Rick's everybody!
[L] Hey, *I*'m sposed to be doing his laundry...
[R] Let's use his toilet...
[L] ...and his bathtub! (L'David trying to look chinky like me)
[R] Movie @ Rick's - Free booze and BYOM(ovie)
[L] Wall porn, yum
[R] Protection is very important, boys and girls
[L] Let's use the wooden dildo I bought for him from Bali!
[R] Drinking in bed!! (Yes, I'm glossing over the obvious X-rated material, so shut it...)
[L] It's John and Yoko! Well, more like Juan and Yoko...
[R] That was all we could carry
We're so juvenile. And I blame it on the dirty lil' (drunk) Mexican, LOL! @ 22:30
[wet shirt contest] Ugh, it's gonna suck like altar boys at a parish if it rains on my walk home today, coz Tony is out of town and I have no ride home, waa!
Plus, I'm wearing pink. So not pretty when it gets wet.
And it's bloody cold outside. WTF happened to summer? Bring back sunshine and 80s. Now.
P/S: Can you eff-ing believe summer is ending in TWO weeks?? @ 18:00
[bigger, better and looser] I sold space on here for a vodka-cran at JR's. Mmm-hmm, I'm a cheap whore :-D
Rick wanted me to blog this but I told her I would only do so if he bought me a drink... So, I have an IOU now for JR's from him, LOL!
Anyho, a little background: Rick wanted to get a tattoo with a bunch of chinese characters but he wanted me to verify what they said before he got 'em (coz, you know, these shady tattoo artists will sell you "Courage" when it really says "Fuckweed"). Like, I would eff-ing know what the chinese characters meant... I can barely write my own name, much less figure out "Respect" from "Pride" (yea, yea I'm such a banana :-p). Thank God for the Internet is all I'm sayin'.
I'd post the characters but that would defeat the purpose of seeing it tattoo-ed on his pasty white ass and, let's face it, at some point or another half of DC would get to see it there so I'm not even gonna bother; though I should be nice and post it here for you overseas folks but tough cookies... Yes, I said characters plural. Bitch is crazy, she wants to get a tattoo with, like, ELEVEN chinese characters. The air in Maine must be making her stupid.
So I decipher the characters for him and all that...
Rick:: so lil David says, "be careful the tattoo Kiat picked out for you"
and i said, "why?"
and he says, "it actually says 'nelly bottom with a tendency to flail wrists at Cher concerts'"
ROTFLMAO!!!!!!
Me:: Lol! Fetch
Rick:: that's almost blog-worthy
Me:: Almost
Rick:: LOL
but not quite
we did mention your name in it though..so it almost has something to do with you...
Me:: Maybe if you bought me a drink, lol
Will blog for cape cods
Rick:: To Kiat: Rick owes you one drink.
Mary, you need a tshirt that says that!
Me:: I need a tshirt that says a lot of things. That one comes in seafoam
Rick:: I thought that's what came out of you when you cum?
...oh wait, that's seaWEEDfoam
ROTFL! Bitch is bah-ack. Bigger (der), better and looser than ever.
Wait till she sees what L'David and I did to her apartment *EVIL ELPHABA CACKLE* @ 17:53
August 15, 2007
[planetai] Funny bumper sticker today on my way to work...
I Miss Pluto
*giggle*
As we all know, last year the International Astronomical Union decided that Pluto was to be recategorized as a dwarf planet; one of three currently recognized. One of the dwarf planets (Ceres) sits between Mars and Jupiter and the remaining one (Eris) is even farther than Pluto. As a result, there are only 8 planets left in the solar system, ending with Neptune. Or you can say that there are now 11 planets.
Does it matter? Does anyone care?
Did you know that in Greece, they still call the planets by their original Greek deity name - one of the Twelve Olympians or principal gods of the Greek pantheon - rather than the English/Latin version of the Roman deities? They are Hermes (Messenger of the Gods), Aphrodite (Goddess of Love), Terra (Goddess of the Land), Ares (God of War), Zeus (Leader of the Gods), Kronos (God of Time), Ouranos (God of the Heavens), Poseidon (God of the Sea) and Hades (God of the Underworld).
Damn Romans converted all the names to match the Roman-equivalent deity and that's how we call them today in most of the Western World. I mean, WTF? The word "planet" comes from the Greek word "planetai" (πλανηται) meaning wanderers. We should all be using the original Greek names...
Incidentally, in Chinese (also Japanese and Vietnamese), the five planets visible to the naked-eye are named after the five elements - water (Mercury), metal/gold (Venus), fire (Mars), wood (Jupiter) and earth (Saturn). The ones that were discovered much later were named after their respective Greek/Roman deities - King of Heaven, King of the Sea, and King of the Underworld.
No, I'm not bored. I'm just irritated with work and want to do something else besides work... @ 12:21
August 14, 2007
[old pics] Finally, pix from so two weekends ago, when - as if on cue - August ushered in blazing hot weather.
From two Thursdays ago at Circa for Rachel's deployment, ahem, going away (to N'Awlins) soirée, where the whole lot of us pounded mojitos till we couldn't see...
[L] Arun, Me and L'David @ Circa
[R] The super fetch Rachel!
[L] Rachel, Rob, Arun, Me and a table overflowing with empty mojito glasses
[R] Tony, Rachel, Me, L'David and Rob outside of Circa... trashed!
Can you believe the State Dept is sending her to N'Awlins because they totally low-balled the number of passport applications that would flood the system when the Terrorism Prevention Act was enacted almost THREE years ago?? State Dept peeps are getting "deployed" to stations across the US to do the dirty work of issuing passports because of the incompetence of our Federal Government who didn't have the foresight to anticipate that passport applications are gonna overwhelm the system. The backlog now is more than 3 months. THREE months to get a friggin' US passport!
And Rachel got caught in that mess. Totally eff-ing ridiculous. Do you know how long it takes for Malaysia - a Third World country - to issue a new passport? 72 hours. And for renewal? 24 hours.
The US Government is an embarrassment, I tell ya.
Anyho, we had a blast at Circa :-D
The next day, we got a surprise visitor in the form of E-Ling and Ameen from Boca! They were here to pay a quick visit to the Malaysian Embassy. E is like E-cstasy. She and I (plus Tyan, who's now married and living in KL) were BFFs back in our Uni days in Bristol. We used to do all sorts of shit together, and we even went to Majorca (Spain) together! She, Tyan and I were like sistahs.
But I had totally lost touch with E for, like, more than 10 years. Shocking. And now she's all married and living 2 hours away in Florida! Her arrival two Fridays ago was a complete shock but we rekindled our friendship in 4.2 seconds flat. We were back to our old selves in no time, getting along like a house on fire.
We totally winged it and went from drinks at our place, to more drinks (and some Korean food) at Mandu, capping the night off at Nellie's, a gay sports bar. Yup, you read that right. Nellie's. Like, OMB, could they have chosen a more (in)appropriate name for a gay *sports* bar?! ROTFL. We met tons of random 'mos, as you can see...
[L] Rob and Tony @ Mandu for yummy Korean food
[R] Jason (from LA) and Me - the black-haired bitches :-D
[L] Ameen, E, Me, Rob, Tony and Jason on her knees (as usual) outside of Mandu
[R] Troy (from LA), E and Me in a cab en route to Nellie's (yes, SO drunk!)
[L] Me, E and Jason @ Nellie's
[R] George (random 'mo #1) and Me
[L] Michael, E, Jeff (random 'mo #2), Me and Rob
[R] Phil (randon 'mo #3) and Me!
Love my E-cstasy long, Long time!
BTW, Nellie's is totally awesome. We ran into so many people there. The bouncers were a lil' intimidating (aka butch), but the patrons were super-friendly and the ginormous rooftop patio, complete with outdoor bar, was a-MA-zing! It was a scorchingly hot night but we were too drunk to care. We stood outside for more than three hours, pounding drinks and glistening from the super hot and humid night. If it weren't for its location on the edge of Shaw (aka the Moon), I would be there more often. Drinks were a little on the ex side but who cares when you can drink outdoors, right? The whole lot of us got totally wasted. E must think I'm totally a party queen but, in reality, well... I guess I am :-D My friends are evil, what can I say *giggle*
I can't wait to go visit her in Boca soon!
The next night (Saturday night, der... keep up :-p), we went to Ellen's house party.
[L] (Spence's) Meat is tasty, tasty! *giggle*
[R] Err, I have no idea who all these ppl are, LOL!
[L] Random 'mo, Ellen!, Me and Jason
[R] Troy, Jason and Me... one would think we're ALL from California ;-)
After the party, I hooked up with Brett and totally closed down JR's. Scandalous. And on Sunday, I was completely immobile. I know, so juvenile. But so much fun!
Can you believe I remember this much from TWO weekends ago?? I'm shocked myself. @ 21:55
[lagging] I have been crazy, balls-to-the-wall busy these past few weeks, gearing up for a major device upgrade here at work, hence the lack of things to write about. It's not like I have nothing to say. I mean, I have, like, 2 weekends' worth of pictures to put up and talk about! My lack of time (management) is terrible. Not to mention I have been a little stressed and super exhausted as well from all the brain activity; thinking is so overrated, I tell ya.
It should all be over by, oh, end-September :-o Yes, they are using me as slave labor at the office *giggle*
I need a vacation, LOL! @ 15:15
[i ♥ summer] The weather this past weekend at the beach was nothing short of perfect. The humidity was low, the temps oscillated between a refreshing 60s at night to an optimal-for-tanning 80s during the midday. Sunny. Gorgeous. Even the ocean temp - 74° - was ideal for a nice refreshing dip.
Well, there was one minor issue - the waves were HUGE. I didn't jump high enough for this one wave that towered above me, so I got smacked hard. I did a half-gainer, landed on my back and scraped it (to the point of bleeding), then got up and got smacked by a second wave coz I couldn't see at that point, did a full-gainer and landed on my knees with an assload of sand in my swimtrunks. I had so much sand crash into me, I *still* have sand in my ears till today. Fun. Not to mention the gallons of salt water I ingested while I was underwater. In fact, I'm still hydrating from all that reverse osmosis action.
But nothing, *nothing* - not even getting smacked by the waves twice - compares to the indignity of getting my hair wet!! I thought I was gonna have to sue the ocean.
I kinda waived that right when I went back for more. What? It was fun :-p Plus, there were tons of cute boys in the water. There's nothing more motivating than hot wet boys in skimpy swimtrunks :-D
Anyho, back to the weather... This week has started off a far cry from much of the past two weeks - the humidity has been super comfortable. I'm not even breaking a sweat walking to and from work in 80s weather. Like right now, it's 87° and 25% humidity. Totally awesome.
This is my Happy Meal: 80s and low humidity plus a side of sunny. I'm so ready to put an order in to Mother Nature for that. Anything else?
I ♥ summer. @ 15:10
August 9, 2007
[black hair, brown eyes] WTF, even my *friends* think we all look alike...
Evan:: bitch
Kiat:: Huh?
Evan:: at jrs?
Kiat:: Nope. Have to pack tonight.
Evan:: shit there is another asian up front.... Saw the hair thought it was u!
Kiat:: Rotfl
The funniest thing is, bitch was serious!
Seriously though, WTF is up with the whole black hair/brown eyes thing? Like, not just the majority of us. It's ALL however-many-billion of us. It's so ridick.
I know, I know... there are colored contacts and I can bleach my hair. Whatev. Too much effort. I'd rather celebrate my black-hair-brown-eye-Asianness than go through all that effort to look more "white".
I do like my white boys though... *giggle* @ 19:12
[minority rule] This new statistic is sure to strike fear in the redneck, bigoted, anti-everything, white trash communities in ever-changing America.
According to the Census Bureau, you pasty white bitches (not that I love y'all any less) are now the minority in one-tenth or 303 of the nation's 3,141 counties, up from 187 in 1990 and 257 in 2000. And the trend is accelerating. Moreover, almost 1/3-rd of the most-populouos counties in the country are already majority minority. Amazing.
Surprisingly, from 7/1/05 to 7/1/06, metro Chicago edged out Honolulu in Asian population, DC inched ahead of El Paso in the number of Hispanic residents and Houston overtook LA in black population. Hispanic gains were greatest (numerically) in metro LA, Riverside (CA), Dallas, Houston and NYC. Black populations declined in N'Awlins (no surprise), SF, LA, SD and NYC, but gained in Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, Miami and DC.
Asians increased the most in NYC, LA, DC, SF and Chicago. Funnily enough, all five are the only cities in the US that I would actually consider living in. OMB, am I a typical Asian in America??
It should be shocking that blacks are moving back to the South. The counties with the highest gain in blacks from 2000 to 2006 are in GA, FL, TX, NC, MD and VA. They were all part of the solid south and the Confederacy, where slavery then segregation reigned for almost two centuries.
Even more startling is Los Angeles County, the nation's most populous. SEVEN million minorities call LA County home; that's 1 in every 14 of the nation's minority residents. LA County had the most Asians (1.4mn), the most Hispanics (4.7mn), the most American Indians and Alaska Natives (150,000) and the most whites (2.9mn). In fact, LA County's minority population surpasses the *overall* population in 38 states. Wow.
Cook County (Chicago) had the largest black population last year at 1.4mn followed by LA County with 1mn. Miami-Dade county has the highest percentage of minorities at 82%.
Closer to home, only three jurisdications - DC, PG and Manassas Park - are majority-minority. The others are getting there fast.
Minorities rule! @ 12:05
[save the earth] Saw this bumper sticker on my walk to work this morning...
"More Trees, Less Bush"
Yay!
Yes, I walked to work this morning. In 91° heat index. I walked so slowly it was like I was wearing clogs. But I made it!
I cannot *wait* for the beach tomorrow. I need to work on my speedo tan some more! *giggle* @ 09:00
August 8, 2007
[restaurant week] My co-workers and I just got back from Restaurant Week lunch ($20.07 for three courses) at Ten Penh. It was decent enough. My expectations were tempered by the fact that it was Restaurant Week aka "let's serve mediocre food in hopes that they will return" Week. Not a fan of mass produced appetizers and desserts. They did let us choose any entree we wanted and it was nice. We also did Restaurant Week at Kinkead's on Monday and it was fa-bu-lous.
Anyho, we took the Metro back to the office and, OMB, it is *searingly* hot outside! 100° (38°C) - our first since last August - with a heat index of a balls-dripping and crack-sweating 109° (43°C)!! It was hotter than the devil's crotch and I was sweating like a whore in church!
We had the good sense of taking a taxi there but since we were bloated from a huge lunch which included dessert (coconut panna cotta, yum), we thought it best to "walk it off" by taking the subway.
Um, *so* not a good idea. It was stiflingly hot, the air was so humid and thick you could see it, the platforms were sticky and it was just disgusting all around.
Meltingly hot. I cannot live without A/C. Ever.
I rode the Julee Express home last night (one of my co-workers) and I think I'm close to booking a spot on tonight's shuttle! There's no relief tonight either coz the low is still going to be in the 80s.
Insane! @ 14:56
[90 at 9] The heat index was NINETY degrees at 9am this morning when I set off to work.
I was like, "this is eff-ing ridiculous". So I turned left walking out the door, going the opposite direction than I normally would... and hailed a taxi.
*giggle*
I have always thought about doing it, and have come close a couple of times (especially when it's unbearably cold), but never actually did it. Well, Tony's out of town and, um, I'm sorry... my job description does not include walking to work in a sauna. There was no way I was gonna show up at work with my Maybeline dripping down my face, come hell or high heat and humidity.
The taxi ride was kinda fun though. Dude had NPR tuned in so we listened to the juicy bits of last night's Democratic presidential candidates debating at the AFL-CIO (now if there ever was an acronym for "most useless and counter-productive organization on the planet"... I detest labor unions). Taxicab driver and I bitched about this year's candidates - Clinton or Obama? Or Edwards? How about Kucinich?
Um, Hillary '08 of course! It's time we had a female President.
And a black Vice-President :-D
Whatever it is, ANYone would be better than the war criminals we have right now running the country.
Yay! I love being feisty on a hot day like this. And hot it is going to be. The forecast calls for a high of 102° and heat index of 110° (43°C!). BTW, it's just about 10am and the heat index is already at 100.
It has been 90+ everyday since August began. The dog days are officially here! @ 10:11
August 7, 2007
[three nuns] OMB, this is funny as shit. Disclaimer: It's quite X-rated/NC-17.
Consider yourself adequately warned ;-)
Three nuns are waiting in line to pass through the gates to get into heaven.
St. Peter says that before they can get in, they must purify themselves by putting holy water on any part of them that has touched a penis.
The first nun walks up and says...
"I touched a penis with my finger"
So she dips her finger in the holy water.
The second nun walks up and says...
"I touched a penis with my hand"
So she dips her hand in the holy water.
And as the third nun walks up, a fourth one comes running up in front of her and says...
"If you think I'm gargling with that water after SHE shakes her ASS in it..."
ROTFL! That made me blush. @ 17:21
["we are ready"] In about a year's time, the world will bear witness to one of the greatest coming out parties of all time.
At exactly 8:08pm tomorrow - August 8th - in the capital of the most populous nation on Earth, the world will start counting down the final year before the start of the Games of the XXIX (29th) Olympiad in Beijing, China.
Even a year away, the excitement is palpable. From the AP:
"This has been called "Chinas Century," and the games will reflect the country's lofty ambitions when they open on Aug. 8, 2008 a watershed of sports, politics and theater set on a stage designed by China's communist government."
I have almost no doubt in my mind that the authoritarian Chinese government will do everything in their power to ensure that this will be the grandest Olympic Games of all time. If one has any doubt at all, just take a look at the brand-new iconic 91,000-seat National Stadium - a striking thoroughly futuristic centerpiece known as the "Bird's Nest". It's a mammoth mass of twisted steel beams, a radical design that melds tons of sharp edges - resembling silver twigs - into a smooth bowl that soars 300 feet above the spread of the Olympic Green below; located five miles due north of Tiananmen Square - the world's largest public plaza - and the Forbidden City.
And then there's the Watercube, home of the aquatic events. The building's design and its translucent, blue-toned outside skin make it look like a cube of bubbles. All told, Beijing is the site for 31 venues - 12 new, 11 under renovation, and 8 built as temporary structures. Most are located in four clusters in the north of the city. Five more venues for soccer and sailing are lcoated outside Beijing, and equestrian events will be held in Hong Kong.
Just like its economy, Beijing is putting on a no-holds-barred, balls-to-the-wall effort in spending $40 billion - in infrastructure alone - to throw a sporting-event-cum-coming-out party like the world has never seen. That's 10 times what Athens 2004 spent. And just to prove that China has the manpower to throw a party on this ginormous scale, volunteers already number 550,000 - one for every expected foreign visitor. The torch relay will include 22,000 torchbearers that will travel 85,000 miles across five continents, including the summit of Mount Everest.
And unlike Athens, the Beijing Olympics will almost assuredly be free of construction or scheduling woes. All the venues will be finished by year's end except for the Bird's Nest (by March 2008). They would've been done last year had it not been for the IOC's request for Beijing to slow things down.
"We Are Ready" is the theme song released for the one-year countdown. How appropriate.
I guess it's kinda understandable why I'm so ra-ra about these Games. I am, after all, mostly Chinese. Pride in the motherland runs strong.
The only question now is: If you build it will they come?
Trust me, you're gonna have multiple orgasms. @ 10:25
August 2, 2007
[holy shit] Check this out, the 8-lane, 1900ft-long Interstate-35W bridge in Minneapolis collapsed over the Mississipi River yesterday during the height of evening rush hour.
Shocking.
There are tons of bridges across the Potomac going from DC to VA. Another reason not to go to VA :-D (sorry, Gay-wee) @ 10:47
August 1, 2007
[get chinky with it] Jason's priceless response to the "Oriental Eye Exam":
i am sitting in the middle of a meeting pulling my eyes and everyone is looking at me funny.
ROTFLMAO!!!
The highs will be 95° and up for the next FIVE days. Welcome to August in sultry DC! @ 10:18
30 :: malaysia at 50
29 :: stfu
29 :: poor and uninsured
29 :: baliwood
28 :: good riddance
24 :: fine, whatever
24 :: cover up and tone down
24 :: silly willy
22 :: weekend fun
22 :: spreen
22 :: pink
20 :: while rick's away...
20 :: wet shirt contest
20 :: bigger, better and looser
15 :: planetai
14 :: old pics
14 :: lagging
14 :: i ♥ summer
09 :: black hair, brown eyes
09 :: minority rule
09 :: save the earth
08 :: restaurant week
08 :: 90 at 9
07 :: three nuns
07 :: "we are ready"
02 :: holy shit
01 :: get chinky with it