¡Viva España!

World Cup 2010 Finals Checklist:

Red t-shirt - checked

Red and yellow rubberbands - checked

Spanish dictionary - checked

Red and yellow gummy bears - checked

¡VAMOS España!

This is how I am watching the finals match:

Am streaming ESPN on Sopcast but it lags more than one minute, so to ensure I get accurate live results, I need to watch the live scoreboard on Yahoo!

The stuff I do once in many years.

What a match. Half-time 0-all. De Jong got only a yellow card for kung fu kicking Alonso in the chest. WTH.

Back to the game,

The Almost-End of Every-Four-Years Football

I think I have not written an entry regarding the mega-hyped world-stage football competition, so since it's coming to a close soon (and we can all rest easy till 2014), I thought I'd share some of my World Cup 'fun' since it started.

That and also I somehow woke up early and can't go back to sleep :P

So, firstly there is Paul the Psychic Octopus, whom everyone has been either skeptical of, or smitten with, till he chose Spain over Germany. Then everyone didn't want to believe him. Then they lost. Then they started talking about Sushi. Poor Paul...all he did was choose the mussel from the winner's box.

And then there's me, but then you don't see any hype over me, do you? Maybe that's because I am not a cephalopod mollusk, and I do not have eight extremities. But I have been right all these while. So far in every match, the team I've rooted for has won.

For the record:

• The Dutch Oranges' victory over the Japanese Sushi earned me a dinner.
• The German Bratwurts' triumph over the Argentinian Sunshines won me RM30. (I was right about the English Muffins too, but unfortunately, I didn't make anyone bet with me.)
• The Red Fury's trouncing of the German Bratwurts got me a RM50 shopping spree.
• The worst was the tie between the Portuguese Cherries with the Brazillian Bananas.
• And of course the time when I was conned into betting on the Uruguay Sunbeams over the Dutch Oranges, although I have specifically said that I was rooting for them Oranges.

OctoPaul ain't that awesome, you know. However, I do refer to him occasionally. So, what's my take on the Finals? I hope I don't jinx it by blogging about it, but I bet everyone know by now that I am always a supporter of the Spanish Red Fury. They are the only team that I have not given any ridiculous names to.

Rafa says: We Matadors are going to tame those Orange Bulls*!

*Anyone ever noticed that the Dutch plays really rough? So carabaos, I tell you...hence the bull metaphor.

¡La Furia Roja va a ganar!

An Ode to Shoes Pt. II

Here's a fact that's oh-so-true,

A girl can never have 'nuff shoes,

A pair of pumps, or maybe two,

A different pair of every hue.

One for pavement, one for court,

One for fun, it's just for sport.

Flip-flops just to shuffle around

Two blacks, and a gold that's sound.

Sandals for the stylish casual,

Gladiators, and beaded ankles,

Embroided canvas espadrilles,

They make walking so glamourous.

Flats are also all-the-hype,

Leather, gold, or canvas stripes.

Black pumps are a staple must,

For work and the formal fuss.

Four pairs I have, I kid you not,

Three and a half inches, they're so hot.

A zebra pair that's just too sexy,

A pair of boots that's oh-so-cosy.

I've just realised the amount of shoes,

EIGHTEEN, omigosh it's true!

Author's Note: I conclude that I have not really regrown much brain cells since the previous post earlier today thus leading to the urge of concocting this nonsensical rhyme. Also the picture shows one-third of all of them mentioned in the poem. This is a strategy so as to a) not freak everyone out, b) not show-off, and c) I was lazy to go downstairs to bring up the other shoes.

I also promise that I shall not blog about shoes anymore.

Unless I get a pair of new running shoes seeing as my old ones are giving me some kind of feet torment.

Hugs and kisses,

An Ode to Shoes

I don't usually write about shallow stuff like this, but once in a while, a girl has to succumb to her love for shoes and the phrase "We were meant for each other!".

Oh Roxy Fiesta Sandals, you were definitely meant for me!

It was love at first sight, when I first set eyes on the pair of white embroidered espadrilles a while back, when it was on the New Arrival shelf. After a whole lot of admiring, a quick peek at the price tag confirms that "No! I'm sorry, but I can't have you!"

RM239.90 for a pair of dress shoes? No way. I'd rather spend that amount on a pair of running shoes. It's always function over form when it comes to splurging, yes sirree!

So I thought, it was "Fare thee well, oh pretty shoes."

Fast forward many months later, and I have put the shoes at the back of my mind. I came up with this random random thought of "Hey, let's go check out bikinis, just for the heck of it."

And would you believe it, them shoes are in the bargain bin going at 70% discount. SEVENTY PERCENT!!! And it was the LAST DAY of the sale (which has been going on for, apparently, a month -- which brought about this remark at me: "What have you been doing for a month? How could you not know this?")

It was "Hello my dearies..." all over again...till I discovered they were not in my size! A request was made to the other outlet, if they have the same pair in my size and... they said Yes! All seems to be good again.

After a whole lot of mucking around, we eventually went to the other outlet to claim my shoes, but would you believe it? They reserved the wrong pair! The wrong design!!! So I hurried over to the bargain bin, and as luck would have it, there is one last pair hanging miserably on a hook. I could hear them calling to me "Save us...oh please, save us!"

And I really lucked out. It was the RIGHT SIZE! *big sigh of relief*

And just to prove how the shoes and I were meant together, someone else wanted them when they saw it on the counter. "Sorry lady, all's fair in love and war. They are MINE!!!"

Them shoes and I live happily ever after. The end.

~ ♥♥♥~

Right. I hope you've enjoyed my melodramatic entry. Now I shall go try regrow some brain cells.

Cheerio!

*KOFF*

I hate coughing. I think it's one of the worst parts of being sick. Being sick is already sucky enough as it is, and especially when one doesn't fall sick ever so often, when the sick comes, it COMES.

Productivity - below zero
Proper sleep - almost zero

It's difficult to sleep when you are coughing your lungs out and trying your best not to cough your brains out as well. I always wonder if that is possible. Take last night, for instance: I should have had a good sleep seeing as I took a piriton prior to bed (which is supposed to knock me out) and not to mention, some sweet sweet stuff :) yet I woke up so often I wondered if I ever did sleep.

So I decided to pay the doctor a visit this morning and ended up with a bottle of Dried Ivy Extract Cough Syrup. Yay! OD time!!!

Coughing is so exhausting, I think I have abs from all these abdominal-pectoral 'exercise'. Rubbish.

I've noticed a couple of things though. When I'm sick, I become awfully compliant. Perhaps I'm just too exhausted to argue or say anything else so I just go "okay". Now you know when is the best time to ask me stuff. I've also realised that sometimes I tend to become all ooey-gooey due to the self-pity I feel. What's that local word for it? Oh yes... 'manja' :P

Gah.

Hope I get well soon enough.

*koff*koff*KOFF*kOfF!!!*

Them darned radicals...

I remember reading a blog entry once by kinkyjasmines about religion and at that point of time I thought, "Well, so I'm not the only one..." although not so much as of the same context/situation, just feeling insulted and all that.

I once saw this button with a message on it that is so true. Wait, I'll look around for it.

Here you go:

Yup. That's the one.

Firstly I'm not saying everyone of that religion is like *insert entry title*, just that I've come across some of them, and I am not generalising, just ranting in public in hopes of them reading this and stop bugging me.

I know it is a sensitive topic, but yea, if they can always go around insulting others, why can't I for this once?

I am offended when these people parade about as if they are more superior than others and trashes other people's beliefs. It is also dumb when people of different denomination trash each other. You do realise it is the same religion, just slightly different, right?

I think they are ridiculous when they start condemning fantasy books and movies because they are "blasphemous", and then say movies with alien-robot-species actually have a biblical storyline.

I dislike it when they parade their religion around and rub it in other people's faces. You know how in social events, you try to include the people around you by coming up with general conversation topics? Not excluding them by babbling about how great your religion is and trashing everything else. Manners, people...manners.

I am insulted when they say things of religion-based to me. Asking me to attend their "camps/retreats/etc.", saying that I should say "real prayers". Do you think I'm that dumb to be saying a prayer on Facebook addressing "The Big Guy in the Sky"?

These people should read Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens. At best the book will whip them up in a tizzy. At worst, they'll most probably stage a book-burning session.

I have actually been insulted more than that, but you see, my belief teaches me not to keep grudges, so now that I have got this out of my system, I will just go on with my life until some *insert entry title, minus first word* insults me again.

Thankyouverymuch,

Thoughts of the moment

You know how it feels when you are waiting for something, like, for instance, at the moment I am waiting for a friend to pick me up and it is one of those 'anytime-now' moments. If I were to start reading or writing anything research-related, she will most probably be here before I could grasp the gist of what I am doing. However, by not doing anything, it feels exceptionally long, and the mind wanders.

Maybe that is what random blog posts are for -- to while away the small frame of time which you otherwise do not know what to do with.

For this, I shall type out all the random thoughts that came to mind for the past 30 minutes.

- I am going to be a witness at somebody's ROM. How random is that? And I haven't even practiced my signature!

- I realised the real reason why I totally severe connections with some people is because it is just too painful to have anything to do with them. Ever. It is like, if you don't take out the splinter, your wound isn't going to heal, is it?

- My dad sends me the best quotes at times.

Update: The entry ended abruptly this morning because (obviously) my ride came. Skimming on the surface of thoughts of the mo were that, but to further elaborate now I shall.

Initially when I was requested to be one of the two witnesses in someone's ROM, I just said "yes" and didn't think more into it. But later, I realised the significance of the role, albeit it wasn't a very difficult/full of responsibility one, but hey, my name and signature is officially on somebody's Marriage Certificate. It is not something which everyone has a chance of getting in life. It's like a small but important thing. Besides, I heard that sometimes people do argue over who is to be the witness. So this was incredibly cool.

It was also cool that the Registry of Marriages takes the whole thing really seriously (as aptly be) although technically, it is their day-to-day job. They actually have a nicely decorated room for the solemnisation ceremony and even have the advantage of printing out the married couple's names on a paper and putting it on a sign outside the room -- making you feel special on your special day.

And the best quote I got off the wall written with "Rules of a Happy Marriage" today? "Never scream at each other unless the house is on fire."

Cheers all,