"Keep me hanging on". Good way to generate bad karma?

Set me free why don't-cha baby
Get out my life why don't-cha baby
Cause' you don't really love me
You just keep me hangin' on
(ohh ohh)
You don't really need me
But you keep me hangin' on
Why do you keep on comin' around
Playing with my heart
Why don't you get out of my life
And let me make a new start
Let me get over you
The way you've gotten over me
(hey)
Set me free why don't-cha baby
Let me be why don't-cha baby
Cause' you don't really love me
You just keep me hangin' on
(ohh ohh)
No you don't really want me
You just keep me hangin' on
You say though we broke up
You still wanna be just friends
But how can we still be friends
When seeing you only breaks my heart again
And there ain't nothing I can do about it
(Whoa whoa whoa)
Set me free why don't-cha baby
Get out my life why don't-cha baby
You don't really love me
But just keep me hangin' on
You claim you still care for me
But your heart still needs to be free
Now that you've got your freedom
You wanna still hold on to me
You don't want me for all yourself
So let me find somebody yes
(hey hey)
Why don't-cha be a man about it
And set me free
Now, you don't care a thing about me
You just use me
(ohh ohh)
Go on, get out, get out of my life
And let me sleep at night, please
Cause you don't really love me
You just keep me hangin' on...

*Song originally sung by Diana Ross & The Supremes, and covered by Dianna Agron @ Quinn Fabray in Glee.

Who likes to be kept waiting and feel like there are issues "hanging on"? Nobody, i guess. It's unpleasant to experience, mainly because of the clouds of insecurity enveloping around yourself. Big enemy of rational thought. Ugh. Life without some curiosity can (or will?) be boring, but having too many unknown factors in deciding the outcome of an issue is undoubtedly a bigger cons than the familiar things you have in life.

To truly own yourself, there's the (neverending?) journey of self-discovery. Sometimes, shortcuts are allowed, but on rare occasions, it is better, if not imperative, that the long road must be taken. Adversity builds courage, strength and desire.

There's still a long way to meander on, but i musn't get ahead of myself. Right now, the only hanging on/hanging around i want to do is on my comfy bed. Being back in home environment is definitely a HUGE plus point. Can feel i'm returning to my usual self. Yay me. *rolls eyes*

Note: No, this is not related to any current issues in my life. Just a case of listening to iPod and hearing this song play that led to this post. that's all.

"I dreamed a dream"

No, i'm not going to start on the speech Martin Luther King gave in 1963. This is much, much more simple (and trivial, i might add). With my newly discovered "Gleek"iness, i've been indulging in some escapism from the mundane existance i have in my current "prison". By the way, am liking Idina Menzel and Lea Michelle's rendition of "I dreamed a dream"! Better than Susan Boyle's version (i think).



But before i get ahead of myself, the series got me thinking...we always seem to root naturally for the good guys etc. And if i'd want to play any character from Glee for example, i'd choose to be Mr. Schu or Finn. You know, the cool guy type. Is this nature's way of doing selection? To choose to be part of the "in" crowd?



Accepting ourselves as who we are is important in maintaining our persona, beliefs, and also keeping ourself grounded. Age does that by teaching us life lessons (and these are approved courses from the University of Hard Knocks...heheh). The way how the Glee kids keep going on (what with the regular slushie/slurpee facials and stuff) is admirable...if not oblivious to the fact that they don't seem to fit in naturally into other cliques. :P



And within the Glee kids group, there's the sub-grouping of popular kids: the cheerleaders and athletes who just happen to like singing or performing. And there's the remainder of the gang...the ones who by self-choice or by choice of other people, end up being outcasts. All of them (popular or not) have one thing in common - their passion for the performing arts.



Modern life also has similes/parallel examples. There's always the "happening" crowd who seems to do everything that is popular, and also there's the "loners" who mostly keep to themselves. Personally, i don't care for labels as such. Whatever makes you happy, that's the best choice for you to keep going on. Of course, the occasions when you're required to cooperate with others...take that opportunity to get out of your shell and broaden your horizons. Find the common factor that makes all of you tick. Life should always have friends whom you can lean on when you need to. Friends who can see your true colours, are kinda rare to have.

Besides than allowing myself the chance to gleek out, i'm in need to rethink some things over. Life is a stream of never-ending surprises. And sometimes, i need a break from them. Where is the remote control in life to pause certain moments?? (That's right...the character Adam Sandler played in Click has it. :P ) Imagine. The cool things i can do with it :P Won't need the rewind button (yes, i'm glad bygones are bygones).

So, here's a shout out to time...thanks for the past and wishing for better days ahead. That's all man can do. Hope.

And that's a wrap!

Coming to the end now...what's next?

Goodness, my stay in China is almost up. Just have 2 weeks and coupla more days to go before heading back to KL. This working visit sure has made me realize how much i like my homeground. At least most things that happen there are within expectations.

But to re-evaluate the entire trip up to date...it's been pretty ok i'd say. Being a city boy, and used to having my creature comforts and environment where i feel safe; to suddenly be put into a location where you experience sensory overload almost everyday just from having to translate and re-translate stuff...i'd rather have the same old boring stuff in exchange for all the culture shock. Can only be glad that i'm going home (cue "Home" from Buble or Daughtry...whichever you like. LOL)

I guess, the older you get, the more resistant you are to changes in life. Used to think i can adopt to foreign places pretty well, but somehow this time, i feel i'd rather choose the status quo. There's comfort in something familiar that you already know, and that compared to the (promisedly wonderful) unknown quantity awaiting, is definitely a huge advantage.

And to think that you've learnt life lessons from whatever has happened...well think again. There's more stuff to learn if you bother to take a second look. And nobody's perfect, especially yourself. Eating humble pie has never been so unappetizing...but it's good for ya!

Dear home...welcome me back. To be finally in someplace where i have my things in the exact place i put them...that's something i look forward to. Can't wait!

HK photoblog mid-June

First set of photos are taken in Lan Fong Yuen, Central, HK Island. The famous HK Milk Tea is shown (both hot and cold versions - having tried them, they're really milky sweet. Not with condensed milk, just fresh milk and sugar.) We also ate Chicken chop rice, Chicken chop noodles, and Macaroni in tomato stew with pork chop. I had the Chicken chop noodles. Nice, but nothing to shout about imho. Story about LFY is that it was in danger of having to move away from it's existing premises until the loyal customers rallied and helped to raise funds to secure rental or ownership of the shop. We ate at the "new" branch, few doors away from the original branch. Anyway i'm not too clear about the history, just remember bits and pieces from what my friends told me :P

Next set of photos are taken in Hui Lau San dessert shop. First photo shows bird's nest thong sui with fruit salad, Second photo shows coconut slivers in mango puree with side of fruit salad, and Third photo shows Mango pudding with fruit salad (top left) and Mango pudding with mango puree and sorbet (bottom right). I had the Mango pudding with mango puree and sorbet...let's say it was an overdose of mango. Besides mango-centric desserts, they do serve other types of hot and cold desserts too, and the chain branch where we had these is in Mongkok.

Photoblog #4 - Dim sum brunch in Shenzhen

After the walkabout in Hong Hu Garden, this was where me and my colleagues headed to for brunch; New Star Seafood Restaurant. It came highly recommended by colleagues who ate there before.


Chrysanthemum tea. RMB6 per head. There was a better grade of chrysanthemum but it was RMB12 per head. Am no tea connoisseur so we chose the cheaper grade. haha.


Pork porridge and "lor bak" cake (white radish cake?). Both were nicely scented with the aromatic smell and flavour of pork. YUM.



Some kind of char siew bao...but not the steamed or baked variety. This one came in a proper sticky bun. Not my favourite.



Custard bao...the piping hot filling spurted out a little when we opened the bao. Haha. Custard was savoury and fragrant. Best eaten hot.


Siu mai. Moist, flavourful, succulent pork topped with some fish roe in normal wantan wrapper. Also best eaten steaming hot.



Har Gow. This was a DISAPPOINTMENT. Looked so promising from the outside, smelt delicious, but one bite into it revealed less than firm/crunchy prawns. Not sure if it was the over-steaming or use of less than freshly caught prawns that made the difference. Prefer HK (and even Malaysian) Har Gow. Will try to have a HK dim sum photoblog sometime soon.



Dan Tat @ Egg tart. Filling was creamy, smooth, egg custardy and altogether tantalizing to the tastebuds. However, the skin/pastry was oily and slightly overpowered the delicate texture of the egg custard. Prefer the egg tart in HK (refer to recent post).


And...the result of the brunch? Empty plates and cups, full stomach, and the damage was only RMB 95. That's about RM 48. For the 7 dishes, not too bad i guess. But a weekend surcharge did apply on the bill, so it could have been cheaper if we went on a weekday morning.

If i were to rate the place, it would get 7/10 for food quality, 8/10 for service, 7/10 for ambience. It wasn't that easy to find the place, but after some searching, we found it. Just head to Shenzhen Metro (Dongmen) Lao Jie Station, Exit A. Come out, and look for the Holiday Villa Hotel. The entrance is somewhere around there. Can't miss it.

Photoblog #3 - Hong Hu Gardens, Shenzhen

Went with colleagues (they like taking pictures, have DSLRs, etc etc) to a local park in SZ, and armed with my new Samsung (yes, Samsung...i don't believe i bought a Samsung, but for the price...can't find anything like it in Malaysia. Panasonic and Sony are far too expensive in China.) 12.4Mpix digicam...i went along. And saw water lotus...not exactly my favourite activity, but got to spend time getting to know my colleagues. And managed to get some pictures, poetic or not. I particularly like the shot of the pink lotus, standing tall in the water. Can even see the reflection/shadow of the flower on the water surface. And a pic of me is shown too (photo taken down because i'm photo-lergic. So sue me.heheh). The Samsung digicam has 2 LCD screens, one in front and the normal at the back. Helps with self-portraits, thats for sure.

More updates coming soon, since i'm able to blog from within the Great (Fire)Wall of China. Yay! :)

Photoblog #2 (pics taken in HK 22-23 May 2010)

Mmm...yummy, warm, eggy, custardy egg tarts in Hong Kong. Nice with a cuppa coffee or the local milk tea. And there's two types of crust - pastry (flaky) and biscuit base. BOTH are good, imho. And they only cost HKD 2 each (which is less than RM 1 each). Wish i had Tong Kee egg tarts for parallel taste comparison...hahaha.

















These are pictures taken at Sheung Wan, near Central (Chung Wan). Shun Tak Centre is the hydrofoil ferry port to Macau from Hong Kong (but i think it's not the only one...correct me if i'm wrong). Visitors there, say hi to Stanley Ho alright? :P



















These two pics are taken on the same point, one looking to the left, and the other to the right of Causeway Bay. The SOGO departmental store is HUGE, and will make a visit later today. Along with the Landmark in Central, and of course, Tsim Sha Chui. SHOPPING MECCA...i've come to do my pilgrimage. LOL.


Bamboo scaffolding. Still used in HK and also China, and honestly, walking under them gives me the creeps...never know when any one bamboo will give way and... OSHA will have a field day with safety and health regulations if they saw people working on these scaffoldings.





IKEA...for real. Hello, civillization :) Don't feel so backward now, do i? haha. Too bad it's just home furnishings and not the complete superstore.


People in the local park, practising Kung Fu, Tai Chi, etc. HEALTHY lifestyle.



And for the fashionistas, here's a look at the LV Boutique in The Landmark, Central, HK. And this isn't the flagship. I think i saw the flagship in TST and it's IMPRESSIVE. LV @ Starhill, eat your heart out.