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heading down south

view from the padang
Originally uploaded by naesul

to catch up bff and gal pals. hope it'll be a relaxing weekend before the madness of CNY. if only my cough could be miraculously cured when i cross over the border.

pride and prejudice

i have a weakness for historical romances - starting with Barbara Cartland (cringe) in the teens and moving on to less chaste novels later. They always have a happy ending, which i find comforting and have enlarged my vocabulary of regency english - pince-nez, crinoline, cravat, dandy, etc. it has also made me the ridicule of readers of more 'serious' fiction. as my uni flat-mate once confided in me, it's always good to curl up with a Georgette Heyer romance when feeling sick. being down with a hacking cough, i spent the day trying to sleep and watching Pride and Prejudice (the BBC version of course). The smoldering looks exchanged by Darcy and Lizzie over the pianoforte and of course, that white shirt/lake scene (poor colin firth has never lived it down) did not disappoint. hehehe. reminds me of my days in the uk where i rushed back to watch the series. here's to feelgood comforts.

2008 round-up

Bet you thought i had abandoned this blog. Been meaning to post, but somehow never got around to it. Will make more of an effort for 2009. In fact, planning to leave work before sunset and have more time for gym, dance, charity and friends. Work life balance, eh. Anyway, here's my 2008 compilation reflecting what i've been doing/liking/experiencing over the past year:

1. Alone In Kyoto / AIR [Trip to Japan in November. ok, so i didn't go to Kyoto, but Tokyo is an anagram of Kyoto, hehe.]
2. Mansard Roof / Vampire Weekend [funky african-style group from columbia uni - check it out]
3. Mamma Mia / ABBA [loved the musical, and the movie was so kitsch it was good. where else can you see colin firth and pierce brosnan singing and dancing?]
4. Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger / Daft Punk [mainly for cool youtube video, see: http://ie.youtube.com/watch?v=K2cYWfq--Nw. it takes a while to start, so hang in there]
5. One Way Or Another / Blondie [Veronica Mars sang it and i play it on Guitar Hero]
6. The Rip / Portishead [Portishead is back!!!! their third album is worth the wait]
7. White Winter Hymnal / Fleet Foxes [obligatory dave-influenced track - gets stuck in your head after a while]
8. Recipe For Love / Harry Connick Jr [Ok, he didn't sing this during the concert, but it's one of my fave tunes from him]
9. Leaving On a Jetplane / Chantal Kreviazuk [For all the travelling i did - Adelaide in Feb, Michigan in April, Denver in June and Japan in November]
10. Cantelowes / Toumani Diabaté [Fantastic fingerwork, would love him at DFP]
11. Gypsy / Jesse Cook [one of my first picks for DFP]
12. Into the West / Annie Lennox/London Philharmonic Orchestra [Lord of the Rings concerts ended our season with a bang]
13. Fix You / Coldplay [Wonderful rendition in 'Young at Heart', a documentary about an octogenarian choral group]
14. If I Were A Boy / Beyoncé [Relatively late discovery, like the lyrics]
15. Inní mér syngur vitleysingur / Sigur Rós [the Icelandic band does happy with style]
16. Somewhere Beyond the Sea / Frank Sinatra [Finally made it to Sipadan for end of the year diving]
17. Anyone Else But You / The Moldy Peaches [Sarcastic yet sweet movie, soundtrack rocks]

Let me know if you want one.