Blogging to Live

GETTING TO KNOW MY HUSBAND

Every alternate Wednesday night, my husband and I have a date night, where we abandon our kids at home with their grandparents, and take in dinner or perhaps a movie or just hang out at a local mall.

You know, do all the couple things we used to do before we got married.

This date night ‘regulation’ came after almost three years, two kids and one very big argument. We discovered that no matter how much we loved each other, it was important to reconnect. Because people DO change, and getting to know your partner was an ongoing process. That I did not know all there was to know about this man I’d known for eight years and loved for five.

For example, the fact that he took his job pretty darn seriously, and not because he was the chief breadwinner in the family, but because he wanted people to take him seriously. Not that they don’t already, but it mattered to him that at 35, he was not content to stay where he was. That it mattered that he continued to learn as well as an individual and not just take home a salary at the end of the day.

It was enlightening and unnerving at the same time, to realise that my husband had shed the carefree persona he had when we dated and could very well get a stroke if he was not careful, at the rate he was going.

Last night, we had a nice, romantic dinner at Opus Bistro in Bangsar. We talked and laughed and made a pact to lose weight, where he promptly told me that I was eating more than him (I’m breastfeeding!).

Now Lokes NEVER ever ‘complained’ about my appearance. And he did not view this as a complaint, just one friend telling another that I’d better watch it.

Again, the feeling was ambivalent. As a woman (and a wife!), do I want to hear that my husband may find me unattractive? But that was not it at all. He said it with such concern, it was as though I was an alcoholic. And it was right after we decided to shed some pounds (make that kilos).

Nevertheless, he was honest, and I appreciated that. He was concerned about HIS own weight as well, not being able to find clothes already at his current state.

And so, we reconnected. We found out how each other truly felt about our health, and came away a little reassured, a little insecure and as we walked back to our car, he pulled me to him and gave me a tight hug.

How we must have looked, two rolly-pollies, hugging outside a chic restaurant where beautiful people ate.

If only they knew.

MICASA PICASA

Ever wanted to sort out your gajillions of digital images but don’t know how to use Photoshop or any of those new fangled thingamajigs?

Check out Google’s FOC (and really spyware-free, ads-free, kinda free) picture management software called PICASA 2 which is only about 3MB in size to download.

It’s pretty full featured for a free app, and more importantly, FUN, to use.

When installed, it will first ask if you want it to scan your computer for all types of images and movie files you have (in case you, like me, are not too organised and have your pics stored in all sorts of files). It then organises them for you CHRONOLOGICALLY, which is REALLY cool since I’ve always grieved about finding time to sort my pics out in a timeline.

Whaddya know, Picasa also has a pretty neat TIMELINE feature that lets you view your pics according to when you took them, in a slideshow format.

And then there are basic things (in basic English) you can do to your pics like crop, straighten, eliminate redeye, the cheeky “I’m feeling lucky” ‘feature’. Also present are the special “wedding picture” effects which are so popular, like “soft focus”, sepia and so on.

And after you’re done, you can print, email, create collages, upload to Blogger (via Hello, also Google’s, which you have to download as well – 1.46MB) or even burn them into a CD (provided you have the necessary hardware, of course).

All in a neat, tasteful little package of only 3MB. Amazing.

ps. Hello is pretty neat as well. It’s a picture sharing app which goes a little something like ICQ but MUCH smaller.

Mucho impressivo!

Raeven having an ice cream treat after Kidsports last weekend.

This was uploaded using Hello and was sorted using Picasa!/>Posted by Hello

GAMES ‘ON TAP’ – A REAL SOLUTION TO PIRACY?

Had the opportunity to interview one Fadzly from TeckWah Online today and learnt a lot about where game development – and game distribution – is going in the future as far as Southeast Asia is concerned.

Check out their Noribox offering, which I wrote about heretoday. It’s a games ‘on tap’ delivery service that lets gamers play titles such as Blizzard’s Starcraft, Eidos’ Hitman 2 and Atari’s Neverwinter Nights LEGALLY for less than RM1 an hour!

That’s right. Less than RM1. That’s about RM4 less than the usual per disc pirate fee.

Will it work? With such big names on board, I’m guessing it has about as much a shot as locally boxed original games.

If not better.

Check out their New World Order game, a shooter a la Counter-Strike exclusive to Noribox i.e. you can’t get this anywhere else.

While you’re at it, win RM30k.

LG PHONE PLAYS 3D GAMES

Check it out.

Having totally no thumb-finger coordination skills, I shouldn’t be too excited, but I am. One wonders how they will handle input.

Ah well. Am waiting for the DS (US version) to restock. Heard they’re selling the Japanese version in Imbi. Crazy Friend got one but can’t read the damned thing.

On the heels of the skirmish men foolishly called the war to end all wars

the dark one sought to elude his destiny
and live as a mortal

so he fled across the ocean

to an empire called America

but by his mere presence

a cancer corrupted the spirit of the land

people were rendered mute

and fools who spoke many words but said nothing

for whom oppression and cowardice were virtues

and freedom

an obscenity

into this dark heartland

the prophet stalked his enemy

til, diminished by his wounds,
he turned to the next in the ancient line of light

so it was that the fate of mankind
came to rest on the trembling shoulders on the most reluctant of saviours

Prologue, Carnivale.2

HITTING PAYDIRT WITH GOOGLE ADSENSE

I’ve been on Google’s Adsense for a little over a year now and guess what? I’ve earned *drumroll*…US$6.10!

That’s about RM23.49, thank you very much. Check it out and weep!

Time to go book that Honda Jazz…

PHOTO MADNESS

The problem with having a camera these days – and by that, I mean a digital camera – is the sheer number of photos one takes.

Every once in a while, when I get in the mood, I will TRY and sift through the GIGAbytes of photos my husband and I have taken (most of which are of my daughter Raeven). We have three cameras between us, not including two camera phones, so you can imagine how crazy it all becomes after a while. I’ve even got pictures of someone’s infested toenail! Yes! Crazy!

My filing system has become “Camera model-date taken”. Then I look in them and file them according to subject matter and cross refer them to occasions. It’s a little obsessive I know, but if I don’t do it, you can bet my husband won’t! And then what’s going to happen is we will have DVDs of pictures and movies that get shelved because who the hell knows what “Casio-010105″ is?!

How nice if someone could offer a service of sifting through your gazillions of pictures and then identifying good ones you can print, eh? Problem is what is good to them might not be good to you. You knowlah, us women.

Oh well. Back to more organising.

See you in a million years.

An almost lesbian experience

Yesterday was perhaps the closest I got to a lesbian experience.

After a few days of looking around, I finally found a place to go get a rub down as recommended by my doctor.

One of those residences-turned-commercial properties in Bangsar, Cafe Jamu is located at the corner just opposite Bangsar Village. It’s owned by an Indonesian lady, who looks great despite having given birth just two months ago – unlike yours truly.

This place offers Indonesian jamu treatments from RM60 to RM600 depending on what you need. Since I just popped myself, my friend Hazel and I took the Ibu Manja package (RM200) which gave us a facial (one hour), a massage (1.5 hours) and a mandi bunga (1/2 hour).

Now I’ve never done a facial in my life. Always heard horror stories about how beauticians poke blackhead removers at your face as though they’re dipping into fondue. However, this jamu kind of facial is gentle and soothing. The smell from the spices need a little getting used to but all in all, very nice.

Now the massage was surreal. I was led into a dark upstairs room with a rickety bamboo bed which didn’t look very comfortable but who cares – it’s authentic.

I had to strip down to my panties, which freaked me out a bit because, well, I’m 220lbs man.

The back bit was painful but no surprises there. However, I had to turn around and when the masseuse did my front, it all got a little awkward. If my husband was around, he’d probably be in a hacking fit of giggles. It was just plain uncomfortable, her spreading coconut milk and cucumber extract between my breasts. And when she began massaging, I didn’t dare open my eyes. What with the dim lighting, soothing music and all, it was beginning to resemble a French movie.

Anyway, that wasn’t it. After the rubbing, I was asked to go downstairs into the garden for my mandi bunga. Yup, in broad day light. Cafe Jamu has little Balinese huts built into a huge garden where you have bath tubs filled with all types of stuff such as chrysanthemum and orange slices. For the second time in my adult life, a stranger gave me a bath other than my husband (first was at the hospital three years ago after my Cesarian). I sat there, breasts exposed and nipples becoming a little cold and painful from a breeze blowing, stewing in a tub of fragrant oils and kook fa.

Oddly, it was really nice, albeit cars ahonkin’ outside while fake bird and wave sounds try to convince me I’m really in a tropical paradise somewhere in the Pacific. If not for the neighbour’s roof and a ventilator spinning atop it, I would verily swim in the fantasy. Instead, I was looking for windows and lurking eyes. Apparently, Cafe Jamu has cleverly engineered its huts with their leafy roofs to hide just enough without looking like squatter quarters. And I’m not sure of this, but they timed it so I never saw Hazel (in her bogelness) the whole time we were there. It’s like “How BIG is this place man?!”

Regret not taking any pictures. When you’re nekkid and have elephant thighs, you don’t exactly think of freezing the moments.

I am definitely going back for more.

New year, new look

I’ve decided to give this blog a revamp since it’s the new year and all. Notice that the comments engine is now Blogger’s resident one, so I must apologise that all of the Haloscan ones have now been effectively wiped out. Well, nothing like a clean slate, right? That’s one of my 2005 resolutions: to be more tidy with my things

So what other resolutions are up? Well, to lose weight, as always. As it is I can’t find clothes to fit me anywhere these days. Yes, I am THAT fat.

The last resolution (hey, there’s enough on my plate man!) is to embrace humility. I think many times in the past I’ve been quite the attention whore. It’s time to change thatlah. Mother of two already, can’t be like that anymore hehe.

Went and did a spot of shopping today. CNY decorations are up, and nothing else quite cheers me the same way as CNY music, for some reason. Well, my CNYs back in Ipoh were always happy and festive, which must be why I get so in the mood just from hearing the clanging of cymbals and dung-dung-chang tunes.

Time to strip the Xmas tree down and replace the ornaments with ang pow fish and firecrackers!