A Chili-ng Crave

Craving is a delicate matter. Dangerous even at times. Because the need to satisfy usually comes at a hefty price. I once blew off a whole afternoon during my internship programme just to please myself with a San Francisco Steakhouse Calzone. It was bliss. But not quite the next day when I had to cover the workload of the day before. But the same thing could not be said last Thursday when I had my latest craving satisfied. It was an all familiar name. It was Chili’s.

Since my delightful introduction to Chili’s a few years ago, I have always experienced fond memories of the place every time I pay a visit. As I looked out of the window of Mom’s Spectra while waiting for the green light to flash at the Bangsar Shopping Complex crossroad, the outdoor balcony of Chili’s Grill and Bar Restaurant reminded me of an intriguing nite with Aritha when I managed to persuade her to dine out with me at 10 pm just so out of boredom. Of course, I had to pick her up from Bandar Utama and everything but it was worth it. It was quite memorable partly because later that nite, when we were about to leave, that was the first time Valerie’s left headlamp wouldn’t pop out. And for one couldn’t possibly forget embarrassing moments like that.

So when I received a second phone call from Sasa informing me the change of venue of our meeting place from The Coffee Bean to Chili’s, I just had this huge grin on my face. Somehow, I knew I was gonna dine at Chili’s. Thank God for the Pelangi history book.

With Sasa greeting me at the entrance with her usual schoolgirl-like wave, I find myself immensely attracted to this big green restaurant. Finally, when Sasa whispered the magical invitation, there was no way I was saying no.

Once inside, it was déjà vu all over again. It was close to nighttime, Sasa was seated across me and a live ATP match was on. I remembered that quite vividly as the last time Sasa had the nerve to ask me, “Lindsay Davenport tu sape?” Oh nobody darling. She’s just the top 5 female tennis player in the world.

You see, this was Sasa’s treat which just adds to the excitement. A crave satisfied and someone else is paying for it? Well, top that, will you? Another good news is that this was sort of a pre-birthday present. I never had any of those before. Ever. I never even heard of the term before but I do hope that I’ll be experiencing more of these ‘pre-birthday gifts’ thingy in the future.

I was quite full at the time and I was such a cruel time to be so on your first ever visit to Chili’s in months. I had this notion on just having dessert, which inevitably an image of the Molten Chocolate Cake springs to mind, but that would be a sin to the occasion. And for once, I was feeling less guilty towards Sasa’s purse.

When dinner was over, Sasa gave me another delightful surprise. She wants to treat me dessert. Haagen Dazs to be exact. This is quite embarrassing to admit but despite my numerous attempts, I have never had the chance to taste this allegedly heavenly brand of ice-cream. So, you can pretty much imagine my joy when I found out I’m gonna have my first ever Haagen Dazs experience. Yeay~

So, there we were, in a strangely warm Haagen Dazs side outlet, I ordered the Pleasure Platter and believe me, should the air-conditioning worked, I would’ve trembled in pleasure every time I put a spoon in my mouth. Sasa was less extravagant with her small cup of single scoop ice-cream. She was persistent to go along with her, “Aku nak diet la, Faizad” line.

All in all, I think she spent about RM50 worth of meal on me. Well, it was the nicest RM50 meal I had in a long time and I definitely think it was worth it. But, of course, this was all pre-birthday. As I keep her company while she shops for her usual amenities, which lately includes a lot of Himalaya brand of products, I looked around to find some idea on what kind of actual birthday present I would want because, to tell you the truth, I have yet to be inspired.

We passed a Macintosh store and I instinctively pointed to an IPod mini.
With a sarcastic tone, this is what she said.

“Bole la, Faizad. Nanti tu jugaklah present kau utk 7 tahun akan datang”

Okaaay. That was the not the answer I was hoping for. That would mean what? I’m gonna get my next birthday present from her when I turn 30? Well, that can’t be good.

Next we passed a store selling watches. I knew I would get a ‘no’ for an answer but just for the sake of seeing her face of disapproval, I mentioned the name Tag Heuer and she quickly gave a glance of annoyance and a slight shrug. I just chuckled behind her. It’s always amusing to tease her.

At the end of the day, I still haven’t found any idea for my birthday present. Even now. But I am sure glad to have someone like Sasa who I can continuously enjoy delightful evening with. Even with her constant complaining of how tired she is at the end of a long day at work.

So, Sasa, thank you so much for the dinner and everything. I’ll let you know the minute I figure out what I want for my birthday. Or the next time I have a mischievous idea just to hear you membebel.

25th of January, 23 Years of Age

About 23 years ago, during the silent night, at the maternity ward at Hospital Pantai, something magical happened. A baby was born into this world. That baby was me…haha!!

It is 2.01 am, Tuesday, 25th of January 2005. Although not technically but officially I am 23 years old. I am currently jobless, not in a serious relationship and still living with my parents. My my, isn’t that interesting? But then again, I have a Bachelor’s degree, an amicable social life and I drink ridiculous RM10 ice-blended coffee on a regular basis. So all in all I am not really a complete failure. It’s just a minor blip. And coincidentally it happened on my birthday. Coincidentally too, it falls on Thaipusam. Yes yes, you can all see how all the people worships me at Batu Caves (which happens to be only a 10-minute drive from my residence).

So, what is being 23 all about? Well, about a year ago, I had a berbuka puasa get together with a bunch of friends at Chili’s. Among them was a certain Regina Hayati. Now, she’s was born a year earlier than me which made her already 23 at that time. So, there she was, along with her closest friends, were excitedly talking about a vacation among themselves and there mentions of Japan, Europe and maybe even Australia if I was not mistaken. Beady eyed, I was seated across the table from them and I could not help but feel quite intimidated if not perplexed by the whole agenda unraveling. At that time, I thought to myself, when I reach 23, will I be talking about trips to Europe with my closest colleagues? Because back then I even had to put aside a significant amount of money just to make the trip back to UTP every once and again. The answer to that question is a resolute NO. I couldn’t even afford a decent haircut at Jantzen on my own let alone a plane ticket out of the country.

So, where does that leaves us? Not much. Last year I celebrated with my UTP friends at Moven’s Peak. It was just a fair occasion because the food wasn’t that great. The Char Kuey Teow at SS3 tasted better. But my best ever birthday celebrations was on my 20th when on the dawn of my birthday, I head out with 2 of my mates to the cool and breezy beach of Teluk Nipah on Pulau Pangkor. I sat on the bench at the seaside with my toes in the sand and watching fishermen brought out their boats towards the open sea while the sun began to rise. And at that moment, I was happy.

My 21st was equally impressive. I was atop of Penang Hill. But there was no quiet moment this around. I was sweating because of all the running and fooling around we had and acting like a bunch of 15-year-olds. But it’s still fun.

Oh those were the days. For this year, it will be just a small family occasion. No hustle or bustle. Unless, of course, somebody wants to surprise me with a week long getaway to Venice then I would most gladly oblige.

Maybe next year. You know, when I’m 24 and making money would I make a decent celebration. The usuals, raunchy party, huge cake and strippers on the stage with their tongues sticking out of their mouths. Haha..I’d wish! Nah, it would probably go along a weekend getaway by the beach. Or maybe on an island. With lots of topless mat salehs sunbathing. Haha~

No no, seriously….they have to be Latinos preferably and around my age so I could snog one. Haha~

Haih…what 23 actually means is more responsibility. It’s quite a bummer because I never grew tired of being a kid. Life was so free back then. But the remote control of time doesn’t have a rewind button. It’s always on continuous Play. Well, just like they all say, life goes on. Ruthless world, here I come…

Tiada Lafaz yg Lebih Agung

Anugerah Juara Lagu ke 19. That’s my highlight of the weekend. I would like to say that I actually went to Stadium Putra to catch the event but in reality...no. I watched it in front of the telly. Strangely though, the experience wasn’t that bad. And I just fell in love with Relaku Pujuk. I have heard it before and already I thought it was a good song. Then, I heard and saw it again performed live and I just realized, this song has a soul. It was hard to believe that the song came from the same group that brought Aladdin (which was a horrible song. I hated it...instantly). But the biggest surprise must be the fact that it beat Misha’s Pulangkan.

As for me, well, the only ‘pulangkan’ I’ll be doing is to bring back my little brother home this Wednesday from Kuala Selangor for the Raya Haji holidays. That is almost 3 hours of back and forth driving. As for tomorrow, I have to take my sister to Bukit Bintang and then to Kelana Jaya to pickup my grandmother as she will be going to see Siti Nurhaliza later that night with my brother. What to do? I’m the family chauffeur. 2 months of almost non-existant driving then suddenly I’m raking up the miles like mad.

Employment update: tomok is the latest member. He will be going to Formis. No real surprise there. He'll start on 24 January. As for me, I’ll be planning my birthday bash on that day(as if I’ll have one). But seriously, I don’t think I’m quite ready for work. I am in my final transition period. The first was before kindergarten when the only entertainment made sense on TV was slapstick comedy. Then it was before primary school. That wasn’t really cool because you’re too scared of entering Standard 1 (apparently, it is depicted as hell). Then it was after UPSR. Now that was sweet. I remembered coming to school a month after the final paper and sitting at my table and don’t know what to do because I had played all the games imaginable already. Walking to the canteen during recess suddenly became a significant event of the day. Soon, hell really did came in the form of high school. The only thing made me going was the brotherhood that was bonded during those 5 grueling years. But after SPM, whew, I turned off my brain to the point it almost became non-functional. Then, comes the present. The gap between the student life that I have become so accustomed to and the final frontier….the career life. Thankfully, I have endured 8 months of industrial internship so I know what to expect. But, that is not all good news either because once I do have a job, that will mark the end of waking up at 10 during weekdays. The end of frolicking around KL at noon while most people are working and the traffic made sense. The end of late night football, the end of the relaxing life as I know it…and loved. I will become a drone. Haih…and you know the saddest part is? It’s inevitable. I am destined to become a drone. Buzzing around for the good of the community. But unlike the actual drones, I’ll be making money. That is good news. 4 digits of good news. And soon after, I may be looking at a luncheon at Chinoz and an evening latte at Starbucks.

You know what, I think I’m gonna start look for work tomorrow. LNG marketing sounds fun. But in the meantime I think I’m gonna a lil bit of Mygo at Sri Hartamas. And rub shoulders with Yogi B? haha…that’ll be something.

Belog untuk hari ini

Utk arini aku telah decide,ops,memutuskan utk tulis blog dlm bahasa melayu. Bosan duh ckp omputih lama2. nnt org cakap lupa daratan. Haha. Nways,ish, walau bagaimanapun, keputusan peperiksaan sudah pun di..di..ish,post dlm bahasa melayu ape ha? Lantakla..tlh pun di'post' di laman web UTP. Keputusan saya takdela memberangsangkan sgt tp yg penting saya lulus modern music !! (tu tak kire sbb name subjek mmg dlm bahasa inggeris). Haih..cuak jugak mula2 takut tak lulus kan. Kang tak psal2 kena extend. Dahla extend sbb alasan memalukan. Sib baik lepas. Dan spt sedia maklum saya masih lagi blum bekeje. Walaupun ramai rakan2 UTP saya yg sudah pun mula bekeje (terbaru skali aritha yg dpt keje dgn ocbc dan mengikut jejak langkah sasa menjadi banker). Zal masih chill sbb die baru lepas oper…pembedahan. Jes pun tak lama kut sbb die tgh tunggu result kuar. Maaf, keputusan peperiksaan kuar. Acai mencikcur kat kedah, apau mencikcur kat kl,gombak a.k.a paris. Irwan takyah keje sbb die mmg dah sedia kaya. Kak gina jd kauselor utk kak red. Mon jd cikgu sekolah menengah, pak din,ops,dhiauddin jd HR manager kat proton dan hadi ternak berudu kat rumah. Lain2 aku tak tau la cer ape.

Haih..aku rase cukup la utk kali ini. Panas sungguh cuaca sejak kebelakangan ni. Nak gerak2 pun rase malas. Bile la nak salji nak turun kat gombak ni...

Scent of a Woman

I never thought light has a smell to it. It was even a nice fragrance. I found that out last night. Around 1 a.m., seated next to me in the passenger seat in mom’s Spectra driving along Jalan Sentul. She, of course, is Cahya (or Nur, as my brother likes to refer to her). She’s a stewardess and (surprise2) is dating my brother. God, he’s good. Anyway, I was on a rescue mission. Apparently my brother took Valerie to go out with Cahya and (another surprise2) the alternator went bust. So, there I was, in my depressing Next t-shirt and Nike shorts, answered my brother’s distress call all the way from Sentul. Being in line with The Code, parents were not notified. Answers are only given upon questioning (which was the next morning). Anyway, the point is after nearly more than an hour waiting in the street with my brother waiting for my arrival, when she stepped into the car, she smelled good. Almost flowery. Compared to her, I felt ashamed just to be in her vicinity. How you girls do that? Even in the most unpleasant of situations, you people somehow just able to smell nice. Alluring even. It baffles me. To me, it’s one of the great mysteries of the universe. Actually, this reminded me of a similar situation a few years back when I picked up eiwa from Medan Kidd. She just arrived on a bus all the way from Kedah. That’s a 6 hour ride and it was already 7pm. 6 hours in an express bus, I must say, I expected a comot version of eiwa. You know, the tired, sleepy and glad-to-be-out-of-the-bus kind of version. Boy, was I wrong. When she stepped in, my car suddenly smelt like a rose garden in Cameron Highlands. It was blooming all over the place. I was almost lost in the pleasant aroma. It was once again flowery…and somehow fresh…like rosebuds in the early mornings. And even a touch of Jasmine. With a slight spray of citrus. And the way she looked, goodness gracious, did NOT resemble a person who just came off from a 6 hour journey. She looked she just stepped out of the shower…prepped and ready to go. The level of shameness that I experienced at that moment was exactly what I felt last night, seated with Cahya by my side. You see, a man could never achieve that. Even after a 45 minute plane trip. Women just looked better. And smelled better.

It just amazes me, actually. The scent of a woman. I’d must say, it’s one of my weaknesses. If I was in the middle of a conversation and whiff of a woman’s fragrance pass me by, I would be lost and had to recall my last few words. Once, a friend asked what I liked most about a woman and I said, “…the way she smells”. She let out a small laugh. Yes, she. Women has one of the most deadliest weapon and some of them didn’t even realize they have them. And yes, she, my friend, too smelled nice.

New Year Resolution

Today is already the 6th of January and as of this evening, I just realized that I haven’t yet made a new year’s resolution for 2005. It’s quite strange actually because for the past few years I have always made a new year’s resolution. Although I couldn’t quite remember the last time any of them actually being achieved but that is not the point. The point is, well, to come up with one, I suppose.

So, for 2004 I had two. One is to become a sort of a cult figure in UTP since it would be my final year there but I think I used a different word back then. Acknowledged? Worshipped? I don’t know but somewhere along the lines of ‘God’. If you’d seen Can’t Hardly Wait then Jerry O’Connel’s character was what I intended to become. The guy who people still talked about long after he had already graduated. A stuff of legends. But that didn’t matter, really because I never made it. Seemed inspirational at first but my final semester at UTP was so horrendous it was forgettable. I had a car which I never had the joy of driving. Consequently, that affected my social life…dearly. How could one become the next legend if all he does was to tumpang everyone everywhere he wanted to go? So, there goes the first one. The second was quite sad. I wanted to find myself a girlfriend. Wasn’t that pathetic? I actually set a timeframe for myself to get into a relationship. But I didn’t realize how ridiculous it was until mid way through the year for which by then I had dumped the idea. I have come to realize that I don’t actually need a serious relationship. Like any male species I need a purpose in anything that I do. If I don’t see a purpose, chances are I’m not interested in pursuing it in the first place. For example, if I dine at Victoria Station, in the end I’ll be full. If I go to Malibu, then I’ll get a nice holiday by the beach. But what do I get in a girlfriend? Someone to call and SMS everyday? I already have that. Someone to call me sayang every now and then? My mother calls me that every day. Someone to watch a movie with? I have my small brother for that. Someone to spend my weekends with? Oh I have plenty for those. So, then, what’s the point? I’m sorry if someone doesn’t agree with me but really I’m happy as I am. For once in my life, I couldn’t ask for more. Except for a brand new BMW 645Ci. Oh, and also, unless Siti Nabilah dumps her current boyfriend and came leaping into my arms and start French kissing me then I would be more than glad to get into a relationship! Fuck that, I’ll marry her if I could!

So, where does that leave us? One failed resolution and another dumped one. As for 2005, well, as for the moment I could not think of one. What I really want I now is a job but that couldn’t pass as a resolution because I’ll eventually get one. No, that would be a lie. I don’t WANT a job. What I really want is to fool around until I’m old and money just miraculously pours into my bank account constantly. But in this not-so-ideal world, I have to get a job to continue in this big circle of life. Unless I’m the next crown prince of Pahang I’d have to work to get my first BMW.

After giving some thought I still could not think of a good resolution for this year. I mean, I want to learn French. Or Italian. Maybe both but those don’t seem to have a touch of grandeur. I want to learn foot message so I can impress women but that too seems to miniscule. Oh, I also want to wear a RM5000 Ermenegildo Zegna suit to my convocation but that too lacks depth. Haih…maybe I WON’T have a new year resolution for 2005. It will be a first but, you know what, I couldn’t be bothered less.

A National Disgrace

It is truly a sad day. For any Malaysian football fans, it is surely a sad day. It was the Semi-final of the Tiger Cup. A 2-1 lead from the first leg to bring home to. At halftime of the 2nd leg, we were 3-1 up on aggregate. Nothing could possibly go wrong, right? Wrong. As a matter of fact, dead wrong. Indonesia scored 4 goals in the last 15 minutes. 4 goals! That is comical defending! I’d say I’ve never seen school girls play football but if I ever had, I bet they will play exactly how our national team played in the 2nd half. It was an appalling performance.
I for once thought that maybe this could be it. This year, maybe, we have a genuine chance of actually winning something. Maybe, just maybe. Then, as time has proven yet again, our national team disappoints their own fans in front of packed Bukit Jalil Stadium. Sure I was late. Sure I didn’t get a seat. Sure I didn’t catch Malaysia’s goal but I did saw Indonesia’s final nail into the coffin and it pierced through my heart. As I lay crouched in the shadows watching the celebrations by the Indonesians, I almost wept.

Such it the bitter end…

Such it a national disgrace…

Tis' Holiday Season

Although I didn’t get the Lamborghini Murcielago that I asked Santa for Christmas, I find myself, how would you say, ‘entertained’ for the past week or so.

Yasir’s wedding was fun. Also, the night out afterwards with the lads at Yow Chuan although my tire got punctured later on. A good day of football the day after. Laid back at home for the next couple of days. Got stood up at JPN on Thursday (which I might add the ONLY downside of the week) but went out with Jes for the rest of the day and that is always fun. Unfortunately, financial constraints were on both of us so the choices of things to do was a little bit restricted. If not we would’ve gone to Genting and went on roller coaster rides and end the day with a hot latte.

Then came the pinnacle day of the year. December 31st. Although it was already confirmed that no official celebration will be held in respect to the lives lost in the tsunami aftermath, people still thronged to KLCC park, wishing for something, anything to happen. Some fireworks display I suppose. I too went there to see IF anything did turn up. Sadly though, those thousands of people will go home more disappointed than they were when they came. However, the only new year partying will happen at night clubs and so I went to Jln P. Ramlee and was I spot on. While the pathetic Malay community sat miserably around the KLCC lake, the Chinese and the occasional ‘mat saleh’ got it down there. There was no collective countdown, just a sudden surge of noise when the clock ticked 12 but still it was quite fun. The clubs were filled to the brim. People were masquerading the streets and there was a lot of spray cans laying around. The kind where they shoot out doodles or foam out of them. Of course, people were nuts and almost everyone got, even passer by, got sprayed. Myself not excluded. Of course all in the spirit of celebrating so when I got foam in my hair and the guy who did it shouted “Happy New Year!” right on my face I could only reply with a generous smile. Strangely, these things are well fragranced. Just so to make them less annoying I suppose.

Then came the quality time with the family. It has been quite some time since Mom was able to gather all of her 4 children at the same time so when it did finally happen, she made it count. And for one, couldn’t possibly ruin that. Family comes first. That’s why I even ditched the annual new year celebrations with the lads.

The new school season starts tomorrow and for once am glad. I finally get to go to the movies and not having myself queuing behind kids who dresses up thinking he’s the next Jay-Z or Nelly. Finally, some quality time for myself. And I’m headed to Bukit Jalil tomorrow to support the National team. That’s something to look forward to.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, life is peachy