Chinese New Year Already???

Well, Christmas is supposed to last 12 days. Remember the song "The 12 Days of Christmas"? - or at least till 31 Dec. 2010 but what I saw at a local shopping mall yesterday pissed me off.

Chinese New Year deco on the ceiling

Chinese New Year greeting at the entrance!

I'm not a devout Christian, and I have never celebrated Christmas except this year. What I want to know is why the hell has this shopping centre begun putting up Chinese New Year (CNY) decorations and greetings when the festival is on 3 Feb. 2011? That's nearly 2 months ahead of time. Where is the respect for Christmas? Can't they wait till a week later to start their massive CNY promotions?

The same thing happens with other festivals. Our festive seasons are now highly commercialised that they have lost their true meaning and value, no thanks to such ignorant acts. Festivals equals major shopping spree at great discounts.

This is not the 1-Malaysia that we want. In fact, this has nothing to do with 1-Malaysia at all but has everything to do with profit-making.

Public Holiday, Huh?

I was driving to work this morning when I heard over the radio that our Prime Minister has declared tomorrow as a public holiday. The reason? Our soccer team has won the World Cup!!!! eh...no... not World Cup, but the AFF Suzuki Cup. I was like: "What the ****?"

Look, it's not that I don't like holidays, who doesn't? But is it necessary to declare one just because we've not lifted the Cup in 21 years? The only ones who "benefit" from holidays are the civil servants who don't have to serve customers or replace classes on another day. What if we had won the World Cup, I wonder? 

Seriously, if they want to declare a holiday, they should give us two days off annually for every major festival  but no, cannot do that as it affects productivity, right? Hmm...

Anyway, look on the positive side. We don't have to wake up early to work tomorrow. It's gonna be a long weekend, the highways are gonna be filled with vehicles, and major cities will be clogged with visitors.

N.B.: Malaysia lost 2-1 in the second leg, but in the first leg, they won 3-0. I don't think that's an improvement.. hmm...

Christmas Eve in Church

Christmas Eve was a meaningful event this year, as it was the first time in a few decades, I am attending the service. It wasn't as glamourous and glittery as it used to be years ago; there weren't any decorated lights or lighted pine trees unlike in other churches but then, Christmas is not about all these fancies. It's about the birth of Jesus Christ. We were entertained to some performances by the church choir who were dressed in modern white blouses and red skirts for the ladies, and red shirts and ties for the men. Gone were the white gowns with purple sashes that drape around the necks. Times have changed, but not the spirit.

Wesley Methodist Melaka Choir

The crowd wasn't as large as it used to be. I guess as time goes on, people - especially the younger ones - go to malls to see Christmas decos more than going to church. The elderly... are probably busy looking after their grandchildren.

Yup time has changed :)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

What Luck!

People don't believe in astrology, numerology, palmistry and geomancy. They don't believe there's such a thing as luck; they don't believe that our lives have already been pre-determined at birth, therefore you can't change it, but along the way, there's something called luck. Watch this video. He's unemployed for 18 months, walks into a McDonald to order his food, something caught his eye, then he became an instant millionaire. And he doesn't even play lotto or buy Magnum 4D regularly. How would you explain this phenomena if it's not luck?

Luck plays a part in our lives. If you have a loving family who understands your needs, that's luck. If you have a job which pays your bills, that's luck also. You're promoted though others are more senior than you - that's luck with hard work. Out of nowhere, a nice girl comes along and you two start dating. Isn't that luck, too?  Then there are people who keep having strings of good luck, so what? They were born under the lucky stars, I suppose.

There's nothing to be jealous about when people have luck. You have your own too. You don't have to rob other people's happiness as a result of their good luck just because you cannot enjoy the same.

You are LUCKY enough to be born, and to live in this generally peaceful country, not in a war-torn, poverty-stricken and calamity-prone one. Forget those recalcitrant politicians. :-)

First Time Christmas!

Christmas is just a week away, but I've already started celebrating - my first ever Christmas celebration in my entire life. I invited a few of my colleagues to my mini party. We had a gift exchange too. Well, I've to thank someone for making it a special event. Here are some photos taken on that night.

The door deco - simple but symbolic

My first Christmas tree - minus the snow

My friends: truly 1-Malaysians (Malay, Chinese, Indian)

Ze Cuisine - glorious food. Pot luck style.

Presents for everyone

The whole spread

Pretty baubles

Not champaign, but apple juice

It was a memorable night... hopefully, it won't be the last. Looking at how things go, I don't think it will. Thank you God. :-)

I Celebrate What, ah?

A few minutes ago, I met my boss at the elevator and the first question she asked me was: "Are you celebrating Christmas?"

Err... gee. It's kinda tough to give an immediate response because those who know my story also know that I went back to church - yeah, went BACK - only recently. Therefore, I'm not a Christian yet. Nevertheless, the answer I gave my boss was: "Yes... and Chinese New Year too." because I'll continue going to church.

Apparently, she was told that I'm involved in a Christmas celebration, and she thought that anyone (born in Malaysia) with an English name, by default, celebrates Christmas. Boy... was she wrong! I told her that some parents prefer giving English names to their children so that it's easier just to call by that name. You know how long and difficult some Chinese names can be sometimes, don't you? The other reason (which I didn't mention) is that some people have English names just to be glamorous, or want to be in the same "league" as their idols. These names don't normally appear in their identification card.

So, yes... I'm celebrating Christmas from 2010 onward... and Chinese New Year, too.

Well, now that's cleared. :-)

I Love You is Hard to Say

I was reading a fellow blogger's post recently, and I've this big question in my thick head. Is it so hard for us to say "I love you"? Oh no..., we can say it effortlessly to our girlfriend and boyfriend, but we can't seem to force it out of our mouths and say the same to our parents (or even to our spouses). In the same light, our parents don't know how to verbalize the THREE words.

My conclusion is simple: Most Asian families are not accustomed to being expressive in terms of showing their love to their offspring, but they certainly are expressive in an argument. It is still so damn bloody hard for me to say the word "LOVE" to my mom and dad as I feel so bloody awkward, but deep in my heart I know I love my parents though I do not explicitly show it to them by verbalizing it.

On the day my ex-wife's parents announced the divorce to my parents (we were both present), my dad gave me an earfull when the other party left, but he was kinda sympathetic. I felt so bloody guilty, I stood there and said to him: "Can I give you a hug?" My dad was speechless, he nodded his head, and I hugged BOTH my parents. Of course when that happened, my ex-wife and her parents were long gone. I have never given any of them a hug in my four decades of existence, and it took something so drastic to happen for me to do it. Yet, I still don't feel "nice" if I were to go home each day and hug them, so I don't do it. I want to, but I can't. Try as much as I can, I still can't.

Is it a sin? To me, it is not. Sometimes, what matters is not your action, but the content of your mind at the point of action. Do you really mean it?

I'm not putting the blame on anyone here, but if one day - if that day ever comes - I remarry and have a kid, I pray hard that I'll be a better parent, educate my child so that he/she not only loves, but know how to say "I love you" and mean it from the bottom of the heart.