BORNEO ECO FILM FESTIVAL 2011

Before I even had time to promote it on the blog, its all done & dusted. The turn out was great,a mix of friends, tourist, locals. I feel like an over-soaked sponge dripping with info. Every night,despite mulling through a long sweaty day, Anton & I have a hard time getting over the buzz as we lay in bed with our pinkies twirled into the weeeee hours.

Great big shout out to Chris Chong, Ikhwan Rivai, Inanc Tekguc,Harun Rahman, Roger Munns Yasmin & Ekonights gang,Wong..what a humbling expererience to have professionals of their calibre to believe in our vision, Thankyou for dedicating your lives to telling somebody else's stories. Roger Wang, Hezekiah Asim, Kalina his lovely wife who literally moved liked the birds of borneo, Angelina Perete, Amir Yusoff for anointing our little festival with great fun & inspiring music. Agnes,Cede, Holly, Helen & Harry, Wendell, Rozie & my dearest Anton - I know I bitch alot about work..heheh but you guys were awesome to work with. Lastly all my friend's who came to support even though I know u didnt want to watch the films :0( - they seemed more intrested in raiding my Nacho stands.But it sure feels like we've won an oscar!

What an inspiring weekend! WOopie.

The justification of "Club 27"

Another amazing artist who make me bob my head like a cuckoo bird while typing is dead! which cuts my quirky music selection this much shorter. On such days I really just wanna punch a hole in my car radio.

"God, if you give Amy back to us, we'll give you Bieber & all 1.6 mill of his fans.'' - michelle lim.

A sure sign of a great artist is some one who can pull off a simple no frills, 4-6 chords, unplug session & making it just so painfully..painfully good. There's an alluring sense of darkness about her, from the smoky quality in her non-20th century voice, her confused outfit of choice, to her butt ugly ..sorry unconventional features. All good artist,from actors,singers,dancers to photographers.. have got what I call "Ostrich balls" - I mean have you seen the size of an ostrich egg!? do you know how much sperm it takes to fertilize that!? anyways yea,,, only ginormous GoNADs & guts can take you down the road less travel,in the likes of Corbain & Kravitz, Winehouse did not make it back.

Im sure you've heard choreographers,orchestra meastro's yelling " let it go ! just let it go!'' - now THAT's the nudge into the road less travel, where you no longer rely on technical know how and surrender all of your being to an intrinsic instinct. I dont know if its actually a good idea to be so real. It seems you loose footing in reality after awhile.. sorta like Natalie Portman's character in Black Swan..going bonkers!

Isnt' it strange how people get addicted to pain, Pain was design to be a warning signal.. Its quite tricky trying to pen this down.. I understand what it is emotionally.. but cant seem to term it correctly. In a nutshell people with the guts to feel every ounce of joy,sorrow,lust & pain around them look at the world from a very different perspective.

Im just sad that everyone seem to be digging out her drunk,drugged up acts & re-posting all over fb. Why am I even friend's with such idiots?! anyways...RIP Amy Winehouse.

Yellow Fever

For the first time in a long time I feel proud to be a Malaysian again.When you spend most of your life in foreign country, You almost forget where home really is & what it actually means to be part of a nation. I hardly take notice of what I was about to lose.

Its so easy to take things for granted, Sometimes we look over the "charade" thats happening on the other side of Malaysia & almost feel indifferent. As though its another scene from Cambodia,Myanmar.

Power came in a form of a one legged patriot, clad skimply in a pair of clutches & a yellow T.he marched on with such fervour & conviction it brought a tear to my eye. Such courage & determination that puts all of us sittin in our well air-conditioned rooms in shame.

Today I realise, even if I lose everything, I can pick up a fist full of soil & still claim ownership. Im deeply moved & inspired by those who fought for our rights today.

Good night folks.

If you are curious - www.bersih.org

or search youtube clips bersih2.0

CSsssI

Few days ago the SESB (local power co ) transformer in our area exploded.. apparently it was caused by a snake..which by now have blown into sushi size bits across the road.We had a bit of power cut. But luckily nothing major. We didnt manage to take pics of the crime scene but i did find a possible reason online. heh

Tipping the balance

Once upon a time, I thought I knew exactly what I wanted. Almost like a sea of over-saturated pictures spewed across the floor...in vivid living colours - Pro athelete, A design career, Artisanal baker,Writting music, singing riddles, building an empire of epic porportions fueled by a fiesty gumption that was me. Now, - Im just lost.

"Attention! Attention!, I want attention!" that is sorta my cry for help from god. Im throwing a fit inside, foaming by the mouth, convulting on the floor asking for a sweet treat quick fix. My head wants to get well. but my body is just confused.Suddenly I've forgotten what im good at, what im good for & everyone

seems to be talking too loud, Its like a hangover that never ends.

........................edited 2 weeks later.............................................

Now ALL THAT... was before i found out what was really happening, apparently its all the raging estrogens.just a rough patch people, eventually i'll mull through it & we'll be back on track for world domination. muau muaah muahahahhah~~~

Help me to help you!

Something weird & creepy is happening to my awfully stretched mind - I was looking for some good music & stumbled upon " Nobody but You'' by the wondergirls - acoustic version. ( If you haven't' heard of em - u must be living under the little rocks under the big rock im currently residing under ) anyways that's not the weird part.. the weird part is I actually clicked on it.. & was hooked! like keep looking for better repertoire of the same acoustic relay HOOKED! - first of all, I find pop revolting. Secondly, this is 1 of those songs that perpetually raped all the charts,clubs & possibly all korean restaurants for a Long looong loooongggg time. But I guess the catchy beats are simply too infectious.So im belting out " I want nobody nobody nobody nobody " while typing this.

Personalized service really takes 2 hands to clap.Yours & mine. Nooooo, just because you are paying for a service, doesn't mean you can act like a total smarty pants!( Needed the help of a good thesaurus to tone down the angst ) The fact is nice people get great service & no spit in their meals, & mean people..well you cant blame people for not wanting to be nice to you? Off course there's a vending machine who treats everybody equally. Even then, there are days when a machine is simply not reliable. So what you gonna do about it? give us a kick too?

You'll be surprise how evil some people can be. I understand impatience, ignorance,.. but superiority complex is something I refuse to accept. They snicker & make fun at my employee, making complains about virtually everything just to get a discount, call service staff names ..We do get people from all walks of life.

At the end of the day we are all humans, all it takes is an open conversation. we are all here to make your holiday a good one, Why spoil the fun for yourself ? mistakes are usually caused by minor misunderstandings. All we really want is to make your holiday here a memorable one. Off course we are saying this with the pre-requisite of a sincere team of service staff.When people show appreciation for what we do it make us feel good too, in return you encourage the service industry to flourish as individuals push themselves harder to please others.. so isn't' that good for all patrons?

But off course there's always professionalism - That's when you really feel like stabbing the sad bastard in the eye but all you manage was attempting a MEGAWATT smile causing temporary blindness instead.. I think Roses & Jo is probably way better in this department than me, that's why we keep em upfront.with all that said,The ones who deserves a kick in the butt, by all means! anyways night folks~

Disclaimer : PAGANAKANDII do not practice or condone spitting in meals, but we do occasionally employ the help of - "the ninja assassin chubba wubba black squirel"...PEW PEW KAPOW!

Angry Bird anthem.by Pomplamoose

This video reeks of my sentiment exact! So long folks i need to go crash into something..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UCm6uyzNE8&feature=topvideos_music

Keven the half naked photographer

Everyone, this is Keven. - welll his muscular back to be precise.

He's an amazing photographer. Took a few really nice shots of our duplexes,

pity I didnt get to meet the face infront of this back.

more of his works here - www.fox-fotos.com

Food for thought!

BRrr,What a ironic title, the thought of food literally makes me puke!
Both ant & myself caught a pretty bad stomach virus,was all curled up in painful pangs & sore joints for the past 2 nights. Ant suspect he ate traces of bird poop after wiping it off his forehead few days ago..haahaa but I can't seem to pin point down what's the cause of my case.

So anyways just when we thought we're doing better we decided to watch the Oscar winning docu film about the horrifying annual dolphin slaughtering in the hidden cove of Taiji, Japan.

Mental note to self :" never read/watch/listen/converse thought provoking materials before bed!"

The entire creative direction, cinematography & concept was ingenious. Oscar well deserved! way better than inconvenience truth. However on the contrary to most viewer's reaction, I actually understand & accept the brutality, the greed , the much propagated silly Asian pride & evilness of men ( is there even such a word that measures the degree of evil?evil is just evil right?anyways eviiillllneeess). The revelation of how little "in terms of physical action" I have done for the world that I once believed kept spinning in my head as I toss & turn all night.

Like Ric O'Berry said

" you are either an activist or you are inactive"

At some point in life, all of us die to melt into mainstream society, Everyone gets caught up in building a perfect little world encase with convenience, comforts. The amazingly effective emotional censorship board within filters out any brutal truth that becomes unbearable to us. That's when you hear classic excuses "oh what can I do about it? .. nobody is going to listen to my little unimportant voice.' yea i've seen it...buuhoo poor dolphins,period.'' - WRONG! people are just so fuking lazy nowadays. nobody wants to fight for what they believe. probably held back by the fear of rejection more than anything. I'm sure I'm not the only person in distraught watching those clear emerald lagoons turn blood red?

So this is my attempt to give you a perspective from a freedom fighting minority - dubbed "the eco terrorist " by the ILLEGAL mind u WHALERS.

there's a good old Chinese saying that briefly translates something like this -

Jin Zhu Zhe Chi, Jin Mo Zhe Hei: Near Vermilion, One Gets Stained Red; Near Ink, One Gets Stained Black. well hopefully in this case Near Anton & Linn, One gets stained green.

Like all culture, it all builds from a single thread of information, that information then reverberates through the vines of communication, in all shape & form. you accept & become what you are expose to. In the simplest possible term, all i'm trying to drive home is this -Always be of good influence to others, because at any point if you ever condone the practice of being "inactive" consciously or not, you are part of why the problem gets bigger.

2 years ago, earth hour. we screened another great docu-movie entitled HOME at our Roof Garden Bar, people were yawning left & right.Some personal friends actually even started making fun of certain scenes because they were so bored & uninterested in the message. I was so carried away looking for validation from our customers , I actually lost the plot. 2 years later same friends txt me a reminder to off the lights .. that's when I realize, it was a job well done after all!

I'm not saying we should all take drastic measures like hugging a falling tree, or physically fighting off those buff lumberjacks - in fact, you can leave that to the crazy hard core Americans. But we can all take a baby step by not brushing the inconvenience truth away, by spreading the word, by educating ourselves & the people around us, by changing the way we live, stop feeling luke warm about life, stop being an "in-activist" today!

http://www.thecovemovie.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqxENMKaeCU

AHA!

ME WANTS! ME WANTS

sleepless in Seaa..dakan

Im so tired i cant sleep, loooooong week. busted generator,busted tyres, busted morale,busted body..now when its all sorted I feel...ermmmm weary, yea weary its the word. I've ruled out mid-life crisis, menopause, love-sick.

Its weird, I've been up searching for good sourdough bread recipes to the company of some really strange sounds like ( Oh Land , ,Jose Gonzales , Calvin Harris- oh but this 1 I LIKE & its not weird...somebody actually left this comment " I RAPED THE REPLAY BUTTON" hahahaa its that good!

a peep in my head will reveal the below, weird & weary is such an understatement.

1) I need 1 of those over-tanned trolls with neon pink/green back-to-the-future hair & stick my pencil up its ass.

2) I'm deprive of good gigs & fun parties.

3) Man,, bjork looks dam old...oh yea she's from planet earth too!

peace out folks!

Eco Erotica

Wrote this on my Jone's the grocer serviettes - best coffee ever!
Since every1 is accused of sodomising sm1 or smt these days, I guess my felic perspective on a row of innocently lined trees should be acceptable. so here goes....

The rich emerald, she lays soft against a clean canvas of blue & white.

the wind carries a thousand notes of spice & dust,

Like the spritz of fresh cologne,
the air is filled with spicy hints of the bark.

My vision throws a bashfull walk up his masculine back

dressed in a creased cloak of wisdom ,

he tames the head of ebullient temptress into submission,

and they flutter in the delights of life.

The upturn green dress leap into a mid-air pirouette,

then light as silk, she slips into the cradling arms.
With each rise & fall of the wind,
they waltz to the rhythm of the summer breeze.

I've caught on their fervent vigor of life,
my limp wick - ALIGHTS!

.....See! who say trees cant be sexy!!!

2 liner.

Fresh bread , cold french butter,
A good book under the tall trees & somethingelse ''explicit'' - I can die now.

Bubbye world.

Tidings of Blessings

Shouldn'e mario be wearing the official CNY colour - RED ?!
Technorati Favorites">
Prelude : Our Swedish friends Tomas & Nina, drop by last week on a mission to get some holiday colour & see some rainforest. Well.. They got RAIN & then some forest. For 2-3days all we did was eat, talk & battle the stomach virus. They've flew off to Kuching chasing the sun..sorry David & Anna,we tried our best!(apparently no luck,last heard in Bangkok )

This is week 2,.. The rain have finally slow down. By now Tomas & Nina is probably happily frying themselves under the Bangkok sun. So Its time to dry those soggy feet, hang up those wellies & actually celebrate Chinese New Year. Woopie!

GONG HEI FATT CHOI! - In this simple common CNY greeting , It encompasses possibly the 2 most important values we chinese folks swear by. HEI ( Happiness ) & FATT ( PROSPERITY ). Since we also always equate the water element to CHOI ( Riches usually in the form of Gold Ingots ) With the flood & all I guess this is a good time to literally count the "tidings of blessing". For the record, I don't think they use this in mainland china, I think its gotto do with the migration & hardship, In search of better life & a better year somebody must've come up with this clever little four letter word. heee

But to me,Riches comes in all forms, This year it came to me in the form of family & friends. Because off the rain, I didn't lock myself down with work & tending the Bar..actually got a taste of what celebrating CNY without rushing off for work.SHweeet¬

I'll also be going home to see mum next week! I think its the constant baby talk from the people around me, I feel like I need some of those mum knows best even when she don't make sense kinda oxy-"moronic'' nonsense. Well I guess only adult daughters with a cuckoo mum will get what I mean. AHA! sorta like the classic - "Grey Gardens"

Also recently I found my long lost non-biological twin bro. With good-looks, great taste,intellect & constipated awkward nature to match. Feels great to have a sounding board,A lot of people dont realise its so important to have company of mutual admiration, Inspiring character who keeps you motivated. I've been playing Ping ........................ & yes, no Pong for too long. Sandakan aka Wysteria Lane is driving me up the wall,Ever since my dearie Michelle jacky chan nose left for Canada , its been a boring lonely walk. But I feel a sense of rejuvenation for the things im passionate about again! Pew Pew! Kapoww!

It's also really strange that people thinks the world of our marriage.I always thought everyone had a life-partner that they can talk to for hours. In fact sometimes I think we talk too much.But I finally realise we have something that's probably god- given & for that I'm grateful.
My boss/partner/husband/bestest friend is indeed quite a precious lil gift.

In a nutshell, If you've planned your holiday around CNY in search of some traditions & cultural fiesta this very wet monsoon, all is not lost! Because behind the sheepish mask of the red money packets, the lion dance ,the fire works, the gambling sessions, the open house parties, the crazy drinking session, the foood! glorious foood , the family gatherings, the endless string of candy & treats for the kiddies, the new clothes, the new shoes & the long line of taboos... Just like every other celebration , Its a celebration of UNION & LOVE

So have a Chubbby Bunny Year Dear All!

180hrs & still going

Flood!

Sandakan, Including Sepilok area have been raining for the past 130HRS - that's 5 days of persistent rainfall! On the 4th day, the effects finally made their late & much pronounced arrival in the wee hours of a misty morning.The disturbing scene of land-slides,floods,fallen trees left & right was apparent as I manoeuvred through the obstacle course towards town. I've never seen a more damaging monsoon than this! The kids camping near our grounds, had to evacuate in the middle of the night when a surge of water fromt the nearby rivers gushed into their camps.

By the time Anton reached the retreat, The main road access to Sepilok & to our retreat was already completely flooded to knee height.We had no choice but to row a boat & thread in the muddy waters to get some of our guest to the airport. Fortunately the waters receded by 1pm & we quickly had a good gauge of the damages/potential risk if rain persisted.There was some soil movements .But luckily nothing major, Some hardcore "Jungglies'' insisted coming the next day & no flood or storm or torrential rain could dampen the spirit of a good Jungle lover. Mr Tamada,his wife, 2 kids & a stray dog all stood waiting on the seats of the Sepilok junction bus stop when we finally got to them up.

As our car waded through the precarious roads near BDC/SIM SIM/BDR RAMAI
(where slumps,poorer local community are),The painful revelation of what poverty can do hit me. Even in life threatening situations poverty simply leave you with limited choice.Drove by an old apartment block, the landslide from a dangerously close mountain rushed past the back doors, crashing through the corner lot restaurant & emerging from the front door & strangely neighbours left & right from the same block just went about doing their usual routine without evacuation ever crossing their minds. Later that day we got to know the owner of that particular restaurant was 1 of 3 accounted for casualties.

It is,... STILL absolutely pouring outside.As I lay warm & snug in the covers with great gratitude for the security that god have given us,I can't help but think of those who literally have to battle through another stormy night.