tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264683152024-03-08T06:48:11.178+08:00 Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.comBlogger107125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-46672323346068279502008-06-23T23:30:00.006+08:002011-08-14T01:14:03.653+08:00migrated!I have moved.
<br />
<br />Sorry for the inconvenience, but I've opted for something simpler with a better user interface.
<br /><div>
<br />Please redirect yourself here: <a href="http://rachelchew.wordpress.com/">Rachel Chew</a>.
<br />Much thanks!
<br /></div><div>
<br /></div>Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-2855482513070039742008-06-16T18:12:00.003+08:002008-06-16T18:24:08.561+08:00bowel education<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/sickness.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/sickness.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I'm not doing too well. I have come to believe that I've developed a love-hate relationship with Penang. Once, the island gave me my worst bout of flu that landed me with 5 stitches to my head (a long story which involves very strong medication and a lot of pain). This time it's diarrhea. The uncertified doctor in me (thank you, Google) suspects it to be either traveler's diarrhea or stomach flu.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/oysteromelette.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/oysteromelette.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Dirty eggs from the <span style="font-style: italic;">ochien</span> (fried oysters, probably dirty too, in egg batter) store in Penang.<br /><br />And while perusing Google and Wiki, I discovered what caused a certain trauma to my bowels 5 years ago. I was hungry for some cheap hawker style fish and chips so I stopped by the nearest store. A few hours after <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escolar">eating</a>, I had some "interesting bowel activity." I will spare you the details, but it was not at all date-worthy. Some people however, <a href="http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE2D7113FF933A25750C0A96F958260&sec=&spon=&&scp=2&sq=escolar&st=cse">had it</a> <a href="http://www.radaronline.com/features/2008/02/escolar_hawaiian_butterfish_anal_leakage_01.php">worst</a>. In Hong Kong and Singapore, the fish was sold as a knockoff version of cod. I don't really understand Mandarin but I believe this is about the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bImuM2sltk">fake cods</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Lesson in inconvenience:</span> Avoid escolar, also known as butterfish, oilfish, Hawaiian walu and white tuna (served in sushi restaurants, but the portions aren't substantial enough to cause a reaction) or cheap cod meat or Chilean sea bass. Or just avoid cheap fish and chips. What you save in dollars, you pay in embarrassment and excessive use of toilet paper.<br /><br />Since we're on the topic of fish, it's only fit for me to share about my recent nasty encounter with fish. At my last bite of a stir-fry fish fillet meal, I found what looked like a strand of noodle in the meat. With some simple fork prodding, it turned out to be a cooked roundworm. The same kind found in the feces of a dewormed pet. This is gut churning, but it's also called <a href="http://images.google.com/images?um=1&hl=en&client=safari&rls=en&q=roundworm&btnG=Search+Images">education</a>.<br /><br />I have downed 2 tablets of Zentel since the encounter.<br /><br />As for my souvenir from Penang, I'm setting up a date with the doctor.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-11991625167834519342008-06-07T16:27:00.005+08:002008-06-07T18:50:12.387+08:00chiang mai<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/backs.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/backs.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>People. Tut tuts. Bells. Chimes. People. Chili powder. Sandalwood. Lights.<br />People. Too many people.<br /><br />And the occasional "Konichiwa!" and "Mushi mushi" from street vendors who assumed I was Japanese.<br /><br />I never thought Chiang Mai would be so commercialized. Almost every business is geared towards tourists. American bars, Mexican food, dim sum, sushi, a three-storey Starbucks and several used books store with English, Japanese, Dutch, German and French books (one hung a <span style="font-style: italic;">Trainspotting</span> and Che Guevara poster over the cashier counter. Can't try any harder for touristy effect).<br /><br />There were also posters and billboards of their king in various dignified poses throughout the city and its outskirts. Many also sport orange colored silicon bands embossed with "Long Live Our King."<br /><br />Thailand was never colonized, yet in a sense it has.<br /><br />Escorts with "extra services" were advertised openly behind tut tuts. And then there were the old <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farang"><span style="font-style: italic;">farangs</span></a> with young Thai girls.<br /><br />Armed with a hook-and-hammer-like apparatus, elephant trainers scratched and nicked the elephants' thick skin to subdue them. The elephants painted on canvases, tote bags and t-shirts with the 'help' of their trainers.<br /><br />Clap clap. More bananas. More sugarcanes. Whack whack. Clap clap. And pose. Click. And pose again. Click.<br /><br />It's the way of life for some and who am I to judge. I'm only another sojourner in this thing called life.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/updown-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/updown-1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>On the really plus, plus side of things is that there were many coffeehouses all around Chiang Mai. Locally grown and roasted fresh.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/coffeebike.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/coffeebike.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/coffeecups.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/coffeecups.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/opiumhouse.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/opiumhouse.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I also saw the borders of Burma and Laos, visited an opium museum and saw the Golden Triangle. It was at best, interesting and informative. At worst, depressing.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/bamboo.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/bamboo.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/raft.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/raft.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>However, I loved the bamboo raft ride which lasted almost an hour along the <span class="descr main">Mae Taeng River. It was quiet, far from other tourists and it rained. The only thing that wasn't drenched was my camera. Awesome.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/ordered.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/ordered.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/rivers.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/rivers.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/towardsburma.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/towardsburma.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>(Taken just outside the Burmese border.) I will try to upload more photographs from Chiang Mai <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/thunderedcat/sets/72157605476163380/">here</a>.<br /><br />Next: Staff retreat in Penang.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-38315132751190069412008-05-29T15:46:00.003+08:002008-05-29T15:51:06.061+08:00keep coming home<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/blushlights2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/blushlights2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I couldn't really sleep the other night and I'm sure it wasn't because of those political (or anti) videos I was watching online. One of the things that went through my mind was about the holy and profane.<br /><br />My thoughts were everywhere and quick, I probably should've written it down when it was fresh. But here I am, trying to piece together a string of thoughts that will most likely end up looking like a tangle of hairs collected in the bath drain. So here's the untangling: I thought about Moses and his encounter with the burning bush.<br /><br />Holiness and profanity. We remove our shoes when we enter into someone's home (Malaysia and Asia, at least). We don't carry in dirt. We leave "where we have been" when we come Home. The building/place isn't holy, we are. When I enter into the life of another, I need to remove my shoes because it is holy ground. The burning bush lives in us... and encounters like this happens everyday. The profane becomes sacred. When there isn't such a thing as ordinary, only blindness to see beyond the apparent. I need to acknowledge the holiness or sacredness of and in another...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/barefoot.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/barefoot.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I will be leaving for Chiang Mai tomorrow morning. Have a great weekend, people.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-10546454628929928022008-05-20T21:46:00.001+08:002008-05-20T21:49:27.742+08:00no, never. ever.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/notusks.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 500px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/notusks.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-6351009526425414662008-05-14T17:11:00.006+08:002008-05-14T17:49:04.523+08:00i have a habit<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/highwaysesame.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/highwaysesame.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I’m on a terrible adrenaline rush lately. At work, I mean. I love it when I’m inspired and feel completely lost when nothing amuses me. So I have been designing, constructing and moving pixels. Rush, rush!<br /><br />(That reminds me of a very old Paula Abdul song I heard on the bus to school, circa 1991. And... dare I say it… Beverly Hills 90210. Thank God for puberty.)<br /><br />To add to all the rush, my boss came back with a souvenir from New Zealand.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/Photo17.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/Photo17.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I’ve also been keeping consistent with my 2008 Moleskine weekly notebook. I keep it as a journal for everyday and random thoughts, but most importantly, it’s my weekly menu. It’s a log of what I’ve eaten and what I will be eating and drinking.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/Photo19.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/Photo19.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Some excerpts:<br /><br />Sunday, April 20<br />Sushi. <span style="font-style: italic;">No Country for Old Men</span>. Waffles.<br /><br />Saturday, April 26<br />Homemade zaru soba with tempura battered sweet potatoes, long beans and carrots. Soba-tsuyu sauce. <span style="font-style: italic;">An Inconvenient Truth</span>.<br /><br />Tuesday, April 29<br />Starbucks coffee + tomato cheese basil sandwich. Job 38. Barbecue pork rice + chinese tea. Tom Yam fried rice.<br /><br />Thursday, May 8<br />Green tea. Black pepper burger from Burger King. Bleh. Milo. Rice with pickled cabbage, vegetables and tofu. Add ribbon to dress.<br /><br />Wednesday, May 14<br />Bavarian Kreme from Dunkin Donuts. Dark chocolate (70% cocoa, as seen above). Maggi goreng. Now I smell of onions. Yuck. Coffee bean roasted chestnuts. Mmm.<br /><br />On a side note, I have to mention how I dislike J.Co and Big Apple donuts. I don’t get why Malaysians line up to eat trash. There. I. Got. That. Out. Of. The. Way. Finally.<br /><br />And some things that inspire:<br />1. <a href="http://juliarothman.com/">Julia Rothman</a><br />2. <a href="http://www.stylemepretty.com/">Style Me Pretty</a><br />(Because I will be photographing and designing for a friend's wedding soon.)Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-64955664545058220502008-04-16T18:34:00.003+08:002008-04-16T18:58:22.937+08:00= •<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/ladder_re.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/ladder_re.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Hello. It's time for an overdue break.<br />A few things I've been contemplating on:<br />[=] and [•]<br /><br />Grace and forgiveness does not mean fairness but similarity.<br /><br />And a whole lot of centering.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/morningness.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/morningness.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Love.<br /></div>Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-33865825202653550572008-03-26T00:08:00.004+08:002008-03-26T00:34:48.654+08:00sweded<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/bw_buswindow2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/bw_buswindow2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Good driving music is good music.<br /><br />Good driving music makes you want to keep driving because you don’t want the song to end without really ending.<br /><br />But I wasn’t listening to anything when I was driving home from work the other day. I don’t even remember the conversation I had with my sister in the car. We probably talked about what we had for lunch or <span style="font-style: italic;">Juno</span> or <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/BeKindMovie"><span style="font-style: italic;">Be Kind Rewind</span></a>. I don’t usually take the direct road to get to my house, I’d skip my road and take an alternative route that follows a big curve. Every time I drive along the curve my mind would picture something really sinister. A middle-aged jogger with multiple sweatbands, a kid on a bike or someone’s ugly toy dog running towards me, at my blind spot. I always anticipate to anticipate something totally imaginary right there.<br /><br />I followed the bend and as usual, there was no middle-aged jogger, kid on a bike or scraggly dog. But by the road I saw a man squatting, hugging his daughter. He had his back to the road and her little head peeked over his shoulders.<br /><br />I slowed down and they were still holding each other.<br />I passed them and they were still holding each other.<br />In my rearview mirror they were still holding each other.<br />As a blur blob in the horizon there were still holding each other.<br /><br />Maybe a car before me almost hit her. Maybe he saved her. Maybe he was leaving and she did not want to let him go. Maybe it was someone’s birthday. Minus all the drama, maybe they just like hugging a lot.<br /><br />It felt a lot like flipping through a book and reading a random sentence from it. Out of context, like real life. <s>Sometimes.</s><br /><br />I suppose that is how being still is… to be embraced and protected just because.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-42828833794327469912008-03-20T14:19:00.003+08:002008-03-20T16:19:44.308+08:00one hundredth<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/addyellow.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/addyellow.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I’ve been on a hiatus, I know.<br /><br />Too many things on my plate, really. Too many mouths to feed. <br /><br />A little tired, yes.<br /><br />And contributing to this tiredness would also be my putting off of coffee, tea and any chocolate drink. Those black and brown (and sometimes green) liquids of hope had to stop filling my cup. At least for three weeks. A few more days left for the putting off to end and when the putting on begins.<br /><br />I’m not counting, but fasting really makes one more aware of one’s lack… perhaps a more heightened awareness of one’s cravings. Maybe it’s called withdrawal, but I like to think of it as an education of one’s daily necessities. What I will die without versus what I will live without.<br /><br />Besides work and needs, I was in Singapore for a little distraction.<br /><br />It rained as much as Seattle.<br /><br />Being lost while commuting on the MTR and bus made hell in my stomach that sounded like a waterfall of gastric juices. It took me ransom for food, or else I would be treating stomach ulcers. The signs said no eating and drinking allowed. A wee step closer to a breathing ban.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/amummmm.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/amummmm.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.mum.is/">Múm</a> was a saving grace though. They made music about berries, marmalade and a horse to bless everything that grows. The kind of imagery Iceland conjures.<br /><br />(I shouldn’t have dropped my melodion classes at six.)<br /><br />Happy Good Friday and Easter. Although personally, I like thinking about the day in between.<br /><br />I hope you like the new header.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-1933462158591142002008-02-29T17:45:00.002+08:002008-02-29T18:11:01.793+08:00unbusy me<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/read_sleep.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/read_sleep.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I've been coughing for 3 weeks. My nose is leaking and my eyes are watery.<br /><br />Being busy and busy coughing.<br /><br />Being busy.<br /><br />I had no idea what I meant until I wrote that. I'd rather be busy being. But this is what's been going on. There are too many things to get done and it's only the end of February. My mind might know the dates but my body is convinced that I've gone past July.<br /><br />Wordless music best describe me right now.<br /><br />Sand dunes. Mild sun, cold breeze. It doesn't smell of the ocean but of wood. Brown and green. Blue and white. Amber. Open fire. Sparks escape the family fire in random fashion to evaporate into the cold air. Where I want to be.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/the120s1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/the120s1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/the120s2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/the120s2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>We frosted 120 cupcakes last night.<br /><br />I found a quote from a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0307280586/1n9867a-20">book</a> I may want to pick up:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Antonio Monda:</span> You believe firmly in God, but you live in a world where suffering, injustice, and tyrrany exist.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Elie Wiesel:</span> It’s the great torment of my entire existence. The question I don’t know how to answer and that I don’t think anyone can answer. But even in these terrible moments I see not an absence but, rather, an eclipse.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-70290312551333802142008-02-20T10:45:00.002+08:002008-02-20T10:53:24.547+08:00letupan di langit*<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/eits_bw.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/eits_bw.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>That was how they introduced themselves. And the crowd went wild.<br /><br />It was amazing (and I need more adjectives).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/eitscompile.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/eitscompile.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/eitshandsfeet.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/eitshandsfeet.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Note to self: one more reason to know that I have lived.<br /><br />*<a href="http://www.explosionsinthesky.com/">Explosions in the Sky</a> in Malay.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-51370103426095492702008-01-31T01:32:00.001+08:002008-02-13T12:27:56.201+08:00faith, more or less<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/buddhistmonks2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/buddhistmonks2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I was having a conversation with my atheist friend the other night and I think we share a lot more in common about faith than we once thought. It’s not our beliefs in the existence/nonexistence of God that found common ground but that we both agreed that we can’t fully know God and His thoughts. I guess that when we say we do, we’ve missed the point.<br /><br />Do I sound like a heretic already?<br /><br />I could write a disclaimer here about how I believe in Jesus, but won’t. There are better places to do that. Not here. I’m glad we had that conversation. Among the stuff we talked about was that we both agreed that a selfless Buddhist would probably make a better Christ-seeker than a bigoted Christian.<br /><br />On another note, I’ve been so caught up with the busyness of work that in between that and my coffee breaks, I managed to relieve myself from some stress by indulging in some randomness:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/randomcd2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 375px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/randomcd2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>The CD Album Cover Game from <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/readysetinternet/">Damien Correll</a><br /><br />1. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random">first article title</a> on the page is the name of your band.<br /><br />2. The <a href="http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3">last four words</a> of the very last quote is the title of your album.<br /><br />3. The <a href="http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days/">third picture</a>, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.<br /><br />When I’m not designing for work, I’m designing to relieve stress. Amazing.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/decadence.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/decadence.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I’ve also bettered the frosting recipe (it’s chocolate mint cupcakes this time). My sister got a little bit carried away with the decoration and the piping nozzles. I call her ribbon cupcake ‘Louis the XIV.’ She also made one that resembled his baroquesque wig. Too grand for a photo.<br /><br />I should sleep now. The sound of raindrops suicidally slamming their tiny bodies on my window is too tempting.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-88392173974064052312008-01-25T16:23:00.000+08:002008-01-25T16:31:01.514+08:00past, present, future, sugar<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/ripplingheart.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/ripplingheart.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I don't know about you, but when I was a kid I had many dreams. When I was a teenager, even more. And when I became an adult (maybe not physically but perhaps mentally), my dreams aren't so 'grand' anymore. Here are some of them, fulfilled (√) and unfulfilled (×).<br /><br />[ √ ] have a dog and a cat<br />[ × ] learn Japanese (I took a class for two months before the teacher quit on us)<br />[ √ ] make a short film<br />[ × ] complete writing a screenplay<br />[ √ ] do a full storyboard<br />[ × ] be like Michel Gondry<br />[ × ] be like Wong Kar-Wai<br />[ × ] visit Europe<br />[ × ] travel Tibet<br />[ √ ] go to Hong Kong<br />[ √ ] visit India<br />[ √ ] climb the Angkor Wat<br />[ × ] ride a horse in Mongolia<br />[ √ ] travel America again<br />[ √ ] visit NYC<br />[ × ] go to Africa<br />[ × ] grow taller<br />[ √ ] put up my work in a gallery<br />[ √ ] snorkel in the sea / swim with wild fish<br />[ × ] sew my own clothes<br />[ × ] space travel<br />[ × ] dance without feeling / looking awkward<br />[ × ] make perfect soft-boiled eggs without the timer<br />[ × ] experience Death Cab For Cutie / Sufjan Stevens / Sigur Rós / Arcade Fire live<br />[ √ ] catch <a href="http://malaise.malscene.net/eits.jpg">Explosions In The Sky</a> live (this February 19th, KL)<br />[ √ ] catch Múm live (this March 13th, Singapore)<br />[ × ] have my art/photographs published<br />[ √ ] own a retro looking Polaroid camera that works<br />[ × ] get a Hasselblad<br />[ × ] go to Afghanistan<br />[ × ] study overseas<br />[ × ] have my own dark room<br />[ × ] go vegan (I can’t give up steak, cheese, sushi and hamburgers. I’m sorry.)<br />[ √ ] not step into a certain mall for a year (a personal protest)<br /><br />More to be added.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/peppermintcupcakes.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/peppermintcupcakes.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Here are some cupcakes my sister and I frosted at midnight. I followed an American recipe and found the frosting too sweet. There's a possibility that one cupcake has as much sugar as a can of Coke. I will do better next time.<br /><br />I found <a href="http://www.flowerdust.net/?p=651">this</a> interesting.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-5266203461893658072008-01-23T02:04:00.000+08:002008-01-23T02:13:42.323+08:00yes, you are<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/spark2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/spark2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I know I can be fickle. This is the second - and hopefully the final editing done to the blog template.<br /><br />I need to sleep. If only I knew creating two columns for my flickr badge would take me more than an hour.<br /><br />Html/xml/css/ihavenoidea is for geeks.<br /><br />Next: cupcakes!Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-5305828889602563482008-01-16T02:07:00.000+08:002008-01-16T02:37:42.986+08:001-2-3-4<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/shootglass.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 483px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/shootglass.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>So I changed my blog header. And I had my first paid photo shoot last weekend for a hospital's cancer ward. Not the most creative or uplifting, but some extra cash will come in handy. I'm looking forward to this weekend, however.<br /><br />Pirates. Children. Eye patches. Gold chocolate coins. More chocolates. Yes.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.myspace.com/mumtheband">Múm</a> in March. Singapore. Yes, yes.<br /><br />2008, you are looking up.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-91634052910599308922008-01-08T21:25:00.000+08:002008-01-09T12:22:59.644+08:00sans zombie-style<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/stainedglass_small.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/stainedglass_small.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>A couple of nights ago I received news that someone I knew from high school passed away. This was not the way I imagined 2008 will begin for anybody.<br /><br />We mostly sat together in class. She would talk about Baz Luhrmann's <span style="font-style: italic;">Romeo + Juliet</span> and Leonardo DiCaprio. We were fourteen. Once when we were waiting for the school bell, she told a group of us about her parents' Catholic beliefs and how they called a priest to exorcise spirits from her house. It was a lady with a flowing red dress, she said. The sky was thundering and raining heavily outside and we had a sudden power failure. We screamed and giggled. I remember those moments vividly. Mostly of her smile, liveliness and cool stationery.<br /><br />Death is never polite. It didn't sink in until I saw her obituary in the newspaper today. She was still smiling beautifully.<br /><br />I know how to feel but I don't know what to think. Births and deaths are peculiar ways to gather people together... when you were born, adults gather around to see when you'd take your first step. When you're dead, friends and family gather around you hoping the doctors made a mistake and that you'd resurrect. Sans zombie-style.<br /><br />In many ways I wish I knew her beyond high school. I regret having such shallow memories of her, but they were good ones.<br /><br />I suppose when you pass away your story doesn't end with you. It starts with the people you loved and those who loved you. They will tell your story for you and others.<br /><br />If I'm able to contribute anything to the storytelling of her life, I'd retell her house exorcism story.<br /><br />Ng Shu Zanne, 1983 - 2008.<br /><br />You are loved.<br /><br />For all we've lost, Iron & Wine's <a href="http://amonkeyrodeo.com//assets/Music/Blah/The_Trapeze_Swinger.mp3">The Trapeze Swinger</a>.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-45327733364261799952007-12-29T21:19:00.000+08:002007-12-30T19:18:08.675+08:00dignity and shame<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/clover_small.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/clover_small.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>A few nights ago I was having dinner with some friends when a panhandler approached our tables. It was raining. His hair was wet, white and sparse. He held his paper cup close to his chest but shook it a little. He said nothing.<br /><br />I remembered a mother and a child who approached me and some friends over lunch some time ago. I gave them some money and my friend's dad was unhappy. He said I was the reason they were begging. He said that they could find a job if they really wanted, but they were lazy. He said I should never give them money and encourage them to remain poor and lazy. I don't remember saying anything after that.<br /><br />So I stared at him. He came to my side. I don't know what's right or wrong, proper or inappropriate, but i took out my wallet. My friend who was sitting next to me said under his breath, "Sucker." He took out his wallet as well. "Sucker<span style="font-style: italic;">s</span>," I corrected him. When we dropped some money into his paper cup, the three of us smiled. Me, my friend and the old man. He still did not say a thing except bow and clasp his hands together to show thanks. He did it many times. He then went around our tables to shake our hands, even those who ignored him.<br /><br />As he was walking away to another table, something in me wanted to know if there's more. More to what, I don't know. But I asked my friend if it'll be fine if he joined us for dinner. My friend said yes. So we invited him to sit with us. If there's something you need to know about Chinese dinners is that food is communal. The same spoon you drink your soup with will be the same spoon you use for any other dish. Saliva and Hepatitis. Mmmm.<br /><br />As he was eating, he was also gesturing how much each dish would cost and the price of the dinner. He wrote on the table with his finger. He was pretty good at math. I was moved when I saw my friends mounting food on his bowl like he was our grandpa and we were his grandchildren. Very lovingly and respectfully.<br /><br />He finished his meal and got up to thank us again. One by one, he shook our hands. Instead of begging at another table for more money, he walked off. All he wanted was money to buy food, I suppose. I don't know why he chose to panhandle or if he had any choice, but I do know that he was full when we looked at him, fed him and acknowledged the dignity we failed to see in him at first impression. As a man, as a person and as a human being.<br /><br />Some people say that beggars are shameless. It's true and I want to embrace that. I don't deserve so much of what I have right now and I don't really own anything. Breath itself is a gift. I want to have my hands open, waiting to receive than fold them tightly over my chest, thinking I'm too good or great or noble to humble myself to be like a child pauper.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/thisroad.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 480px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/thisroad.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>So here's to whatever 2008 has to offer. May whichever road you take lead you to love and hope. As for me, I will remain a sucker.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-33305505164657841322007-12-21T12:42:00.000+08:002007-12-21T14:49:57.178+08:00.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/xmas-2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 500px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/xmas-2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I have much to be thankful for this year. New friends, old friends, lost much, found some, gained a little, restored, reconciled, searching, rested.<br /><br />Wishing you eggnogs, warmth, cuddles, Pictionary, long talks, long walks, some clarity, some mystery, truth, realness and love. Love.<br /><br />I love you.<br /><br />*That's me on the Brooklyn bridge. Taken by <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/thunderedcat/2108618210/in/set-72157603218743016/">her</a>.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-2643546651346675582007-12-13T18:05:00.000+08:002007-12-13T19:09:13.488+08:00new york city<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/lost_ny.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/lost_ny.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Let's just have the photographs.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/ny_ny.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/ny_ny.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/reb_brooklyn.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/reb_brooklyn.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/view_brooklynbridge.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/view_brooklynbridge.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/walk.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/walk.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/brooklynbound.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/brooklynbound.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />New York is empty sometimes.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/emptiness.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/emptiness.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/nathansconeyisland.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/nathansconeyisland.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/centralpark.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/centralpark.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />Ground Zero.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero3.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero4.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/grounzero6.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/grounzero6.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero5.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero7.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/groundzero7.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />I'm now back home in Malaysia. The humidity kills.<br /><br />P.S: America, I like you. I like your light. You're a natural.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-67293682248407358252007-12-05T01:39:00.000+08:002007-12-05T02:08:57.276+08:00irene and seattle<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/irene1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/irene1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Meet Irene Huang.<br /><br />I met her at the library. The library was space-agey and so very hi-tech. Unlike most libraries I've been to, this one had bright yellow escalators and huge glass windows. It stood out from downtown Seattle like it was a few centuries early.<br /><br />Back to Irene.<br /><br />She had the sweetest smile. I didn't know her but she was so warm and friendly, I felt like I did. We talked and she showed me the purple muffler she knitted and the purple sweater she was knitting. Purple is her favorite color. Then she took out a book of English poems. She loved English poetry so much she had been coming to the library everyday to type out every poem and save them into diskettes. Yes, floppy disks.<br /><br />We talked more and she shared about an accident she had that left her lower body paralyzed and how she was unconscious for 45 minutes. And how God healed her. She also shared about how her neighbor's wife who had an accident. She passed away. Irene didn't mention about whether God was there when her neighbor's wife died, but I like it when some things are left unsaid. Some stories are sad and some are less sad. Both are important. Both have something to offer and how we respond to that changes everything.<br /><br />And because she loved to share stories from her life, I followed her around town. She took my hand and we walked all around. She's too fit to be 65 years old. We moved in and out of buildings and she would tell me how to take a picture.<br /><br />"No, no. That's not good. Here. Take it from here. You can see better this way."<br /><br />"No, no. Turn your camera the other way. Let me see."<br /><br />Her love for Seattle was so infectious. She gave me too many reasons of why she loved Seattle. She would end her sentences with "... that's why I love Seattle."<br /><br />She also took me and my sister to her son's <a href="http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=17490">favorite</a> dumpling restaurant in the International District. Then we walked a lot more and took many buses. And that's why I love Seattle. It was that good. Food here is good. Sushi here is fresh. Cheese aplenty. French is cheap. Coffee shops are everywhere. A city surrounded by the sea and mountains.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/piroshky.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/piroshky.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>And there's <a href="http://www.piroshkybakery.com/">Piroshky</a>. What's not to love?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/irene2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/irene2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>"No more picture!"<br /><br />This post is actually a few days late as I was having some internet problems. I'm currently in Pennsylvania and it's snowing a ton and I'm having too much eggnog. Here are some photos from Seattle.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/lepechit.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/lepechit.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/birdman1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/birdman1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/birdman2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/birdman2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/seattlesky.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/seattlesky.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/seattlelast.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/seattlelast.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>My last sunset in Seattle.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-88049968402611280582007-11-29T15:36:00.001+08:002007-11-29T16:53:26.324+08:00seattle<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/eveninglights.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 449px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/eveninglights.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Seattle is cold and the sun plays hide and seek here. Mostly hide.<br /><br />The plane ride here was nothing short of amazing. We scaled the clouds and drifted over snowcapped mountains. We also dove into the clouds and got lost a little. And we landed in nothingness. Fog. Completely out of the Twilight Zone.<br /><br />We saw our breath escape our mouths and our fingers curl in. We walked in the rain as little paper cups of coffee warmed our hands. Seattle, I hate your cold winds.<br /><br />Being here made me realize how I've taken Malaysian weather—or the sun for granted. Or how I look for stars in the night sky and forget that our sun is also a star.<br /><br />But I like being here. This is probably the most laid back part of the trip for me. The first night here was good. We were at the <a href="http://www.greentortoise.net/">Green Tortoise</a> and it was a free dinner day. Pasta with meatballs. Buffet style. Eat all you want/can. They have a mini library, free internet, a dvd and vhs (yes!) collection, communal fridge and free tea/coffee/chocolate. Friendly people.<br /><br />There was a girl in my dorm stripped in front of me. Not a pleasant sight in the morning when the last thing you want to see is someone else's butt. But I guess it's a bargain... all the good things for a butt.<br /><br />I've since moved out of the hostel. Not because of the butt, but because a very lovely couple opened up their home. They have the largest flat screen TV I've seen and a very posh apartment. I didn't like the monster sound the sink disposal makes, but other than that, it's all lovely. The dishwasher sounds like a little waterfall if you can imagine. (We don't use dishwashers in Malaysia. We're still old school.)<br /><br />Right across our building, there's a bigger more posh apartment with bigger windows and a lonely girl. Every night she has the TV on till late and would play solitaire alone. Appropriate and sad. I could make a sign that says, "Hello" or "You're not alone," but that would scare her I think. Tonight she had her curtains down. Methinks she saw a strange Asian girl staring at her, invading her privacy.<br /><br />Here are some photos as usual. More to come.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/elliotbay.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 444px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/elliotbay.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/seattle.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 444px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/seattle.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/publicmarket.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 444px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/publicmarket.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/spaceneedle.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 448px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/spaceneedle.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-68744532975610408742007-11-25T11:19:00.000+08:002007-11-25T11:40:16.687+08:00northern california<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/camera_stripes.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 442px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/camera_stripes.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Today is my last day in San Francisco. Yosemite is so gorgeous it will put the fear of God in you. Tomorrow morning I will leave for Seattle.<br /><br />I have too much on my mind for my own good. But Múm is helping. Till then, here are some photos. I hope they tell a story somehow. Enjoy.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/fall.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 442px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/fall.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/rain_wind.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 442px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/rain_wind.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/oldstuff.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 442px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/oldstuff.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/found.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 442px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/found.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/bay.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 442px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/bay.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/beachdetails.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 442px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/beachdetails.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/chinatown.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 448px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/chinatown.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/amoeba.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 447px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/amoeba.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>And here's Amoeba, again.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-81571462157952509332007-11-18T12:55:00.000+08:002007-11-18T13:36:18.991+08:00southern california, nevada and arizona<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/losangeles.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 426px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/losangeles.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Here I am sitting on an air bed in the home of a WWII veteran and his Malaysian wife in Arizona. They don't have internet access and I'm stealing wireless connection from someone very generous.<br /><br />America is a very weird place. The first person I stopped to ask for directions from was a man outside a warehouse by a van. Then I saw fuchsia and orange colored lights coming out of the warehouse and his van sported phrases like "striptease dance" and "lingerie dreams." Very helpful and polite man he was.<br /><br />While waiting in line, I heard too many people talk about their myspace. In one store, a girl yelled to her friend, "This song is in my profile!" And a lot of people greet you with "how are you?" without expecting a real answer.<br /><br />The food portions here are huge. I can never finish anything I ordered. Despite being pro-green, most eateries here use a lot of plastic and paper. Walking into a supermarket is like being in a gastronomical Vegas. Everything here tempts you to eat more, drink more and have more. Speaking of Vegas, I hated it. I know hate is such a strong word, but I can't find a more appropriate word to describe it... okay, maybe sleazy. And um, artificial.<br /><br />I stayed in Silver Lake in Los Angeles. Very lovely environment... I'd come back to America just to walk around Silver Lake, Echo Park and Sunset. Possibly. I caught a glimpse of that <a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/32/2004-04-04_-_05_-_Elliott_Smith_memorial%2C_Sunset_Blvd.jpg">Elliott Smith wall</a> on Sunset Blvd. the other day but could not stop to photograph it. It was a stab in the heart.<br /><br />Oh, and there was <a href="http://www.amoeba.com/">Amoeba</a>. Love.<br /><br />Los Angeles can be quite a lonely city. There's so much activity going on, so many people everywhere but there's something sad about it. Something vacuous. Listening to <a href="http://thegodsarentangry.com/">Rob Bell</a> share about reconciliation and life minus the Christian jargons at the Wiltern was refreshing and much needed. I left knowing I'm cared for because God can be trusted.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/canyon_camera.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 426px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/canyon_camera.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>And then there was the Grand Canyon. Catching the sunrise at 7,000 ft in toe-numbing weather was breathtaking. You stand in the midst of greatness being more aware of your breath, your breathing and life. Strangely, people watching the sun rise over the canyon don't talk. They whisper. It is as though talking would disrupt nature or cause the sun to halt or stir the canyon from its slumber. A fitting way to respond to majesty, I suppose.<br /><br />Here are some photographs:<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/milk.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 426px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/milk.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/losangeles_churches.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 426px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/losangeles_churches.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/losangeles_tvpapers.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 426px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/losangeles_tvpapers.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Los Angeles<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/dusk_death.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 426px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/dusk_death.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/field.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 426px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/field.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/canyon_flower.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 426px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/canyon_flower.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/sister_sister.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 426px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/sister_sister.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Nevada and Arizona<br /><br /></div>Walking alone along the edge of the forest in the canyon was good. Very good. Then came the squirrel poop, rabbit poop and poop by some larger unknown animal.<br /><br />I'll leave Arizona in two more days for Yosemite and then San Francisco.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-45458450761411916242007-11-07T18:14:00.000+08:002007-11-07T18:23:00.203+08:00hello 18hrs of flight<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/floorground.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/floorground.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>1. I’m leaving tomorrow.<br /><br />2. I will upload photos here every now and then.<br /><br />3. !!!Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26468315.post-9152936177120630442007-10-26T13:07:00.000+08:002007-10-26T18:34:39.492+08:00this and that<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/sisternoodles.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/sisternoodles.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>[Above] That's my sister. And it's not a wig. And yes, those noodles tasted good. Red rice noodles and <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thunderedcat/1724583550/">Chicken 65</a> (a kind of Indian spice I got from India).<br /><br />So I've been neglecting this space for a long time. I've been busy. As always.<br /><br />I'm getting better, I'm recovering from the rash but now I have to think about what to wear besides my usual sleeveless tank and shorts attire. Most people are afraid of rash, so I heard. I think I lost count of the times I explained my condition and how it's noncontiguous to the people around me that I sound like a dermatologist now.<br /><br />You should ask me about hives. I will tell you everything you didn't know.<br /><br />In about two weeks' time I'll be leaving for the States. Here's when and where I'd be:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">November</span><br />08 Los Angeles<br />14 Las Vegas<br />15 Grand Canyon<br />16 Arizona<br />19 Yosemite<br />21 San Francisco<br />25 Seattle<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">December</span><br />01 Ebensburg<br />08 New York<br />11 Home<br /><br />I’ve been conversing with Gideon from <a href="http://voxveniae.com/">Vox Veniae</a> about church, communal living and downward mobility and it’s all good. So good. I am encouraged to know that another way really exist beyond a faint rumor or a passing thought. My route doesn’t take me anywhere near Austin, TX and I don’t know how that will work out logistically, but it will be more than great to spend some time and connect with the people there. How that will be, I don’t know but I have a 10 year visa, no? Who knows what will happen next year. Or tomorrow.<br /><br />(I hear that I <span style="font-style: italic;">might </span>be going to Nepal next year.)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/rebandme.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/rebandme.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Two nights ago my sister and I received aluminum balloons from some friends who wanted to celebrate our birthdays early. Personally, I prefer the ones filled with helium in the shape of a goldfish. I like them floating. We also caught some overly dramatic spoken word poetry and some subtle <a href="http://www.patricia-low.blogspot.com/">gems</a> at Wayang Kata.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/ciplak.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 450px;" src="http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e216/hauntless/ciplak.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>That was <a href="http://www.myspace.com/ciplaktheband">Ciplak</a> with Fahmi Fadzil. They should’ve really done an encore because beer bottles are handy for more beer bottle slides. I told Aziz from Ciplak that it was good and I liked it. He asked if I popped some E.Rachel Chewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551848657313111347noreply@blogger.com9