jay choW...wo xi huaN!!!

He’s coming to Malaysia next month 23rd…arghh I wanna go!!!

Not that I’ve never been to his concert…well, just once. And guess what? I went ALONE. Yup, it was the time when SARS was big news (and spreading like fire), and no one wants to go out. Even die-hard Jay Chow fan friends of mine couldn’t be persuaded to go along with me. The situation was that serious. That was back in 2003, 2004? I was like, “Peduli…!” and borrowed my friend’s mum’s credit card to purchase the concert ticket at TGV. On the day of the long-awaited event, I took the LRT and switched dunno how many trains to get to bukit jalil, where the concert was held. When I got there, few hours before the concert was due to start, I was surprised to see that the place was practically empty. Where are the die-hard fans like me? Where’s the screaming and big crowds and little food stalls? I sat down on a bench and occasionally looked around, hoping for a noisy crowd to form. 15 minutes later, when nothing happened, I decided to walked around the stadium to make sure I was at the right place. That’s when I saw a white banner hanging from the gates located at one side of the stadium.

It read, “Jay Chow concert moved to stadium merdeka…” WHAT?!! How come I didn’t know about this?! I must’ve missed the papers. Without waiting any second, I memorized the instructions on the banner on how to get to the next stadium and sped off to catch the train. However, when I got to the train station listed on the banner, I had another problem – which was locating the stadium itself. I’ve never been to this stadium before, and I was at a loss of what to do. But not for long, as I noticed groups of Chinese teenagers and young adults walking towards the same direction. Ha! They must be going to the concert too, and I was right. 10 minutes later, the stadium loomed in front of me…and there was the big, noisy crowd and numerous stalls selling food and Jay Chow merchandise. Luckily, everyone was on their best behaviour (even though we had to wait for an hour and a half standing outside), there were no fights whatsoever, and I managed to get into the stadium safely and got a seat which overlooked the whole stadium (It was the cheapest seating area, but u get the whole view from top! All u need is binoculars). Needless to say, I had the best night of my life. Jay himself was superb, and his performance fabulous, especially when he played the transparent grand piano, that was magical. I even called up my bestie, Suki, to let her listen to Jay singing her fave song ‘live’.

I got home an hour after midnight. When I came to think about it, I guess I was pretty daring. A little girl going alone to a night concert by train and coming back by taxi at midnight? In KL some more.

Anything for u, Jay!!

I wanna go to his concert next month!! Arghhh…

If you readers are interested, it’s on 23rd Feb at stadium merdeka, 8pm.

tHen i'm a bOOkahoLic

Today is a lucky day for me, ‘cos I’ve found the shopaholic series latest, shopaholic and baby, at Popular bookstore. And it was the last copy! YESSSSsssss!!! It first came out really pricey (circa RM65) last year as it was larger than the normal paperback novel ( and it’s not hard cover either!). Anyway, the standard paperback (around RM36) is finally out and my sharp eyes were drawn to it (spot on!) when I was actually looking for another book hehehe… For those who are not so lucky, please head over to Times’ at warisan for an extra 4 bucks J ! There are few copies left, so hurry!!

If Becky is a shopaholic, then I’m a bookaholic.

I love you Kinsella!

Do not trust the drunk doctor

A word of advice to you all: if u are in doubt of the illness or pain u are experiencing, it is highly recommended that u pay a visit to a proper (and sober) doctor in a proper clinic. Pharmacists and doctors not on duty should not be on top of your list. Why? Let me tell u about my not-so-pleasant experience.

Back in April last year, I had this patch of scaly and itchy skin on the front side of my leg (somewhere between my knee and my ankle). Since I was living on campus which was located practically in the middle of nowhere, I was too lazy to head over the doc’s to have a thorough check on my leg (plus transport is super troublesome). At that time I treated it as the ringworm disease ‘cos the only skin disease I can think of which relates to scaly skin in a form of a circle is ringworm (or ‘kurap’ as u say it in Malay which we always refer to the stray dogs…anjing kurap!). So I didn’t bother about it (though it’s soooo itchy!) until about few months later when I went back to KK for the holidays. I went to a pharmacy in Damai and told Mr. Pharmacist (who looked blur himself) that I had the ringworm problem and showed him my affected leg. He was so blur that he thought I was talking about my foot! I think he had a thing for flowers, ‘cos he directly looked at the fake purple flower attached to my purple slipper. “Your foot? I don’t see anything wrong with it,” says Mr. Pharmacist. “Not my foot lah, my leg!” I retorted. “Oh! Yes, that’s ringworm allright,” Mr. Pharmacist agreed and gave me a little white cream bottle which had ‘poison’ written on it. He told me to apply it on my leg thrice a day but did not say for how long. I had forgotten to ask as well and assumed that I need to finish the whole bottle.

After few weeks of application, the itch was gone but not the scaly skin. It really looked ugly, so I kept on applying the cream until one day when I noticed a strange thing about my flaky skin. It had grown extra hairs, so it was more noticeable than ever. I was like, ‘what the…?!’ I panicked and did not dare to apply more cream even though it got itchy at times. Around that time, I met up with my doctor friend at a relative’s wedding. By the time I got to chat with the doc, we had a few drinks and I was already becoming pink in the face. We talked about everything including his job at the general hospital. That got me to come up with my skin problem. He had a look at my leg and nodded. “U shouldn’t have applied so much cream. It’s supposed to be 2 weeks max. The cream’s got steroids, u know,” he said knowledgeably. Steroids?! What’s it doing in my skin cream?? The doc then explained that steroids helped in relieving the itching. “U sure it’s ringworm?” I asked the doc again, just to be sure. “Yup,” said the doc and took another swig of his beer. “So what should I do with the extra hair?” I waited hopefully that he could provide me with a reasonable solution. The doc shook his head. “I’m afraid there’s nothing u can do with it. What’s grown will stay, unless u shave it regularly.” NOOOOoooo…and no way I’m gonna shave my leg. Blame it all on Mr. Blur Pharmacist.

Being literally helpless, I went to another pharmacy in Centre Point. I showed the lady pharmacist my leg AND explained the horrifying experience that I went through. She gave me a look and said matter-of-factly, “That’s not ringworm dear, I think it’s eczema. If u really had ringworm, it would’ve vanished by now. And ringworms only exist in particular areas of your body. I’m afraid u took the wrong medication and consultation as well.” I felt a knife being stabbed into my back (like those illustrated in Japanese comics). I’ve been given the wrong medication by a licensed pharmacist and given the wrong advice by a licensed general doctor?! Life is so not fair. This time, I didn’t buy anything from the lady pharmacist and went direct to the clinic which I should’ve done months ago. This doc, situated in Donggongon area, patiently listened to my tantrums and rantings. Kindly, Doc confirmed that I had very mild eczema, but he told me not to worry and assured that the skin problem can be cured, but it will be on a long-term basis (however, the extra hair stays…darn!). He prescribed me this lotion called ezerra cream which functions to relieve the itchiness and smoothen the skin. And I can apply it as many times as I want. I used it until to this day, and though it will take time for my skin to heal, I have finally found the right medication. And so, my advice to u readers, once again, unless u are completely sure about which medication is right for u, it is best to go to the clinic and have the doctor to undergo a thorough check on your symptoms, and for the doc to prescribe u the correct medication.

Here are some facts about the differences between eczema and ringworm which may be of interest to u guys ‘cos their symptoms are really similar. Info are taken from the trusted family health encyclopedia :)

Ringworm – A popular name for certain types if fungal skin infections (commonly of the feet, groin, scalp, nails or trunk). Ringworm is marked by ring-shaped, reddened, scaly, or blistery patches on the skin.

Infections may be acquired from another person, from an animal, from soil, from the floors of showers, or from household objects, such as chairs or carpets.

Most ringworm infections are diagnosed by a doctor from their appearance. However, the diagnosis should be confirmed, and the type of fungus identified. For most types of fungal infections, treatment is with antifungal drugs in the form of skin creams, lotions, or ointments. For infections affecting the hair or nails, an antifungal drug in tablet form may be necessary.

Treatment may be continued for some time after symptoms have subsided to eradicate the fungi and prevent recurrence. For mild infections on the skin surface, there may need to be 4 to 6 weeks of treatment; for toenail infections, treatment may be necessary for up to 1 or 2 years.

Eczema – An inflammation of the skin, usually causing itching and sometimes accompanied by scaling or blisters. Eczema is sometimes caused by an allergy, but often occurs for no known reason.

Nummular Eczema (in my case) – This type usually occurs in adults. The cause is unknown. Nummular eczema takes the form of circular, itchy, scaling patches anywhere on the skin, similar to tinea (ringworm), from which the eczema needs to be distinguished. Corticosteroid drugs may be applied to the affected skin to help reduce inflammation, although the disorder is persistent and often resistant to treatment.

General treatment – To reduce irritation and the likelihood of scratching, a soothing ointment should be applied to the affected areas, which should then be covered by a dressing to prevent scratching. Absorbent, nonirritating materials such as cotton should be worn next to the skin; irritating fabrics such as wool, silk, and rough synthetics should be avoided.

Can you pass the aspirin, please?

be careful what u choose from the menu...

What's one of the uncooler things your boyfriend can pass down to you? Let’s have a view at the scrumptious menu below :-

Appetizer – Fever of the Day

Main Course – Sore Throat Killer Surprise

Dessert – Nasty Coughing Fits Special

"Pure Torture for days Guaranteed"

Moral of the story? Never, under any circumstances, attempt to kiss your boyfriend (cuddly hugs included) when he’s taken the sick leave.

Keeping tiMe...witH caLvin KleiN

That day I went to a watch shop to buy batteries for our gate remote control. Pretty expensive if u ask me, which cost RM9 per battery. I should check out the supermarkets next time since mr. shop owner said that it’s available at such places too. While waiting for the assistant to change the batteries for me, I looked around the shop with its variety of nice-looking watches and suddenly remembered the watch that I have been dying to have for the past 5 years.

Yup, it was really love at first sight. I initially saw it in a magazine, and clearly kept in mind the image details of the Calvin Klein ad. It depicted a model showing her hand with the watch attached to her wrist. The minute I lay my eyes on the page, I was like, ‘I GOTTA have it!’ It’s the most gorgeous thing I’ve ever seen and it’s unique as well. Instead of the usual watch with its leather straps, this one is a cool stainless steel and is perfect for any girl’s wrist. The main reason I liked about this watch is its design which makes it looked more like a bracelet than the traditional shape of all watches. The next thing I knew, I was in a watch shop in Starhill, acting like a little girl in search of her favorite candy. Well! The watch was of course magnificent, but so was the price. How much? A grand short of three hundred. The shop assistant was very nice and said that he can customize it to match my super-slim wrist and even gave me his business card, just in case I wanted to buy it in the future (I wish!). It’s bad enough when u can’t get what u want, but it’s even worse when u see some happy girl wearing it. I was waitressing in Sushi King, refilling customers’ tea mugs with hot green tea. I was pouring onto one Chinese girl’s mug when I saw THAT watch on her wrist. My eyes nearly popped out and frantically signaled to the other service crew and made gestures towards the girl's wrist.

Anyway, I’ve always wanted to own an elegant watch which u can wear to work, on casual outings, or at formal and informal parties. The best bet would be a bracelet watch, right? I’ve a watch which was one of the prizes I won during a competition in my uni. That one is really pricey, but it doesn’t look like it at all. It’s just a normal round shape with black (genuine) leather straps. My friends say its old-fashioned, but the elders say it’s a classic. Whatever it is, I’m definitely getting one elegant timepiece this year!

this is the pricey hugo boss watch which I won in a contest, but its not as 'oomph!' as the one below...

sigh..so pretty isn't it? the ck eNdLesS...mmm like my love for u is endless ;)

bracelet watches are so elegant and cute yeah?this one's dkny...saw similar ones in esprit too

I misS my camera!!!

my favorite 'mistake' : the chawan mushi (steamed egg)

That's right...my poor ol' Nikon isn't functioning that well anymore (its lens only opens half way, so when u wanna take a pic, half of the pic is in complete darkness). The shop people told me that it'll take up to 3 months to get the camera fixed. 3 whole months!! And my graduation ceremony is just a few weeks away. Darn..I gotta get someone who's generous enough to lend me his/her camera...and fast!!

Friday night me and gatal had jap food at yoshimi's (the one at warisan square) before catching up the national treasure movie. The menu was alrite, but the sushi section was quite limited (and no sushi train available!). However, the atmosphere of the restaurant was nice and cosy, not too bright and not too cold. It's nearly a month since I had the dreadful chicken pox, but Mum was still strict on my selection of food. No eggs, soya sauce, beef, squid, prawns and mangoes. Since jap food consist most of these ingredients (and are the yummiest!), I really had a hard time deciding on which bento set to choose from. Finally, I picked the salmon set, which was the safest dish of them all, and also other dishes. I was so happy indulging in my favorite food when gatal asked me a question which stopped me in my tracks.

"Hey, u think how do they cook the steamed egg? So sedap lah."

"Easy lah. Just steam it. I'm thinking of trying to cook it at home also...OH NO!!" I glanced down at the little spoon clutched in my right hand, and then peered into the little cup that contained the food that I was eating. It's almost half cup gone.

"Girl!!! Why didn't u tell me that I ordered the steamed egg too?! You were supposed to stop me!!" I screeched.

"Aiya..just eat it lah, since you ate the whole thing already. No big deal," gatal responded calmly.

So I ate what's remained, but I gave the itty-bitty prawn bits for gatal to consume.

Shhh...don't tell Mum.