Happy JULY 2011

The recently completed month of July 2011 has been a slow but tranquil month for most of us living here in the House of Gunabalan as we go through a calm before the storm situation with regards to the quiet financial market here in Malaysia and Melaka. It is evident the current low wage, high inflation malaysian economy is putting an extraordinary amount of financial stress on  many young families with 2 or more kids. 

 For many middle income wage earners, both urban and sub -urban- "flat broke" has become a permanent condition.  Today, it wouldn't be far fetched for me to say over half of all middle class melaka families of all races live paycheck to paycheck.

  High food prices is rampant from pasar malams through hypermarkets with the malaysian ringgit buying lesser and lesser as the years go by. And those families that do actually have jobs that pay well are finding that their wages are rising much more slowly than the cost of living . The financial condition of average middle class families continues to decline and this is showing up in all of the recent surveys. Bankruptcies due to credit card debts are imposingly high on certain demographic sections of our society.

Everywhere we turn in the streets, at the night markets, while waiting in queues,we seem to hear and see people indulge in street talk of the impending Doom and Gloom (Politically & Financially) that has yet to be felt officially here in melaka but nonetheless is evident in the western world and american states. 

 Right now, speaking as a malaysian indian in melaka, I can attest that more malaysian Indians feel polarized and ostracized by society at large than at any other point since 1970 and many young families in the urban jungles are flat broke and highly indebted and these poor souls have lost hope of ever achieving a better life style for themselves. They are mostly just living zombies, worrying more about how to pay off their 

subsistence living debts rather than planning, educating or saving for a better tomorrow - for themselves and their children. 

Many Indian individuals are disenchanted with the status quo and their  elected leaders inert disability to provide a better tomorrow for them and their families, due in parts to the lack of  leadership direction,  viable economic opportunities and living prospects under the current political climate of racial discrimination and race based politics of this country. 

 Until this particular Indian dilemma changes, the frustration level amongst these down trodden Indian youths and parents in this country is going to continue to grow, fester and eventually eat at this country as a cancerous cell.

These past few weeks there is also a rumbling discontent with many citizens of the way the malaysian government is handling it's latest opposition inspired demand for more electoral freedom and the supposed racial inequalities of the past 53 years but over all it all still is a storm in a teacup situation here in Melaka as at the moment the talk is all there is to it.....

 On a more personal and happier matter,Chandra my second son has completed his obligatory 3 month stint in the Malaysian National Service by end July 2011 and is now back home with us where he belongs & though my son did enjoy his time In Alor Gajah PLKN camp; and by the number of "see you soon messages "and gifts he received, looks like he managed to carry himself well while there, he was missed back home by his mum and me.

In the second week of last month, Michelle and I took time off to drive Chandra to Subang Jaya in KL as he was interested to attend a Malaysian Airlines job interview. It was to be his first official job interview and he made it to stage 3 before stumbling. It was a good job interview experience for him. There's another one that's awaiting him on the 06/08/2011 in KL Bukit Bintang under Singapore Airlines. We'll see how that one goes before deciding any thing for him.

Earlier in the month, there was a small gathering of like minded Franciscans to welcome the new Brother Visitor of The Lasallian East Asian Initiative (LEAD) to Melaka and the welcoming dinner was conducted with much aplomb and fanfare in the Equatorial Hotel Melaka with many ex teachers, Old boys, and the Federations supporters turning up to show support & welcome for the Brother Visitor.

An interesting event that I'd like to record was the evening brunch I had recently with an old class mate of mine from the schooldaze-Jeganathan,
(seated left side in picture); who managed to catch up with me over the last few weeks and how we decided to enjoy ourselves eating and drinking in the Clubhouse Rotunda in Tj.Keling while actively reminiscing of the other classmates, their where-a -bouts and current situation.

It was a happy and poignantly silly occasion as we ventured and waxed philosophical over buckets of the finest Danish Brew and Chicken Tikkas our life so far, the pitfalls and the acclaims and where we were headed in the next decade or so.
We were so engrossed in our stories and camaraderie that I totally missed all my wife's calls to me that evening !

Michelle got cheesed off that I was too busy entertaining my friend  and not answering her calls,that she decided to trace my where a bouts by calling all my other friends and known numbers and then  after concluding where I was, drop in on us un expectantly on her way home from Coats ,just to check up on my  state of sobriety !

You see,Jega & I  used live in the same Taman; 20 over odd years ago and he was a constant companion to me at a time when michelle was courting me though he was never interested in chasing skirts as I was back then;  as financial matters weighed heavy on his family and he was just interested in securing a good job and bringing home the dough.

 I suppose that's what interested him to be my friend those long lost days ago , my presumptuousness and gung-ho attitude and the distinct ability to enjoy what life has to offer, even though money was never easy on our side. Our little excursion ended well that evening with a full stomach and happy memories of a fun filled youth & the good times that we had ; ringing melodiously in our heads and hearts as we headed home to our individual sanctuaries.
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On the 30th of July , The Famosa Toastmasters Club had a joint installation night in the Tiara Country Club in Gapam with The Port Dickson clubs, Malacca TM and the Malacca Mandarin TM Clubs. It was a good night's outing as Michelle was happy to be with her fellow toastmasters and friends enjoying the 7 course Chinese Dinner.

We  also celebrated Michelle's 42nd Birthday recently on the 1st of August with a Dinner and Cake blowing affair that surely made my wife happy and satiated as the children and I entertained her to a Seafood Family Dinner at the Portuguese Settlement.

Funnily enough, it was our daughter in law Joey who suggested we go for a Ikan Bakar dinner but because it was the first day of the month long ramadan fasting period here in melaka, every ikan bakar shop we headed out to from Cheng to Alai was closed ! Luckily we managed to find my old buddy Patrick Pereira's restaurant in the Settlement still open at that late hour night. Utheya & Joey  introduced the Grilled Horseshoe Crab crusted with eggs and cheese for Michelle which was a first for my wife ! Shoryn seemed to enjoy the seafood buffet on the Table and managed to finish quite a little of the Chilli prawns, Buttered Crabs and Toasted Lala /Mussels that her brother ordered for all of us.

The Portuguese Baked Fish was also enjoyed by all of us including my mother who normally doesn't eat anything after 7pm.!

                           The Buttered Crabs with accompanying ginger and shallot dip was excellent !

                                                      The Chilli Prawns that everyone gasak !
                                                              No quarter spared nor given !

Kenyang .

This poem by Rabindranath Tagore is so beautiful that I decided to paste it here for you to enjoy reading it.

CHEEKY

With a little bit of luck (With apologies to My Fair lady & The Jolly Boys- Rehab)

This morning,
as I got up and stretched,
everything’s going to be all right,I felt.
Oh yeah.

Now, there was a time,when I was a young boy,
at the age of 5,my mother sold me the idea that

I‘ll be the greatest man alive and,if I’d wanted something,
to just go get it and not bug her for nothing.

But then when I was all grown up…
all of 21, I wanted only to bug the world to have Fun,Fun,Fun,baby, lots of Fun,
bar none.We'll freak & party from the break of dawn till the sun comes crashing down.

Time carried on &along came my 30’s
when I was tied down,
and babies started popping out the bun of my loved one,
left ,right and center !




It frightened me that we were
to be a father and mater
but I told myself,
Things are bound to get better !

So, by the mid 40’s, I mellowed and learned,
and what I learned, was why it matters, my rags actually not in tatters.

Lately however, me health’s not too good,
so off I went to see the jolly doctor of my old Alma Mater.

But my Doctor, Ohh, my Doctor, He said to me…

Boy, you’ll be all right..
Don't slouch and get off my couch,
You just worry your mouth too much!

Here… listen to the good doctor and have a stiff one to soften the nerves!

So I said, Doc, weren’t you supposed to go rehab ?
Yeah, he said.  The Bloody Knaves.
They tried to make me go rehab, but I said No.No.No.

You see, he said, the lord above made liquor for temptation, to see if man could turn away from sin.
But "with a little bit of luck, with a little bit of luck, my son", when temptation comes you’ll give right in!

Oh! You were taught from young, no doubt, that you must walk the straight and narrow, but with a little bit of luck, you’ll be able to run amuck now and then. So off I went… to me Home all cheery and nerves gone.

So I called my Baby and said," I’m a coming Home baby, the doctor said I was just depressed, he suggested you go wait for me in bed, undressed".  But, when I reach me Home it was more duress…

  

I found my wife all worried and alone by the hot stove, what a sight, what a sight, too drab and dreary, no more milk and cheery;  the old canary.
For though the gentle sex was made for man to marry, though it does sounds scary, t'was for sharing his nest and seeing his food is cooked.But with a little bit of luck, with a little bit of luck you should have it all and not get hooked!

Now, it’s a crime for man to go philandering, to fill his poor wife’s heart with grief and doubt,but with a little bit of luck, with a little bit of luck, you can have you cake and eat it too! All you gotta do is not worry the doubtful dear at home manning the throne.

But before I forget, there's one other thing

The Good lord above also made man to help his neighbor & his wife , no matter where, on land, sea or at his home, but with a little bit of luck, with a little bit of blooming luck,
you've cum and gone by the time he comes around!

Heh, Heh!

And be always aware of the kaypoh Aunties,for they’re also always throwing “My Goodness” at you but with a little bit of luck you’ll soon learn to DUCK, my good man! Yeah.

They may say you're a bit of a cad
but they should see the women you've had! 

Their bellies maybe like jelly, their arm pits are smelly but all you need remember is:

"Mmmm,these aunties'not bad”

Chin up, you middle aged man,

you’re everything you've ever wanted,

down the lagers, round up the sages,

nobody ever left this life alive with their gold, you fool !

With a little bit of blooming luck, you’ll be a lucky man, too!

The Stuffs That Matters To Me Now

I feel lazy today.

Lazy days like today is our chance to goof off, my wife & I, and definitely not worry about work.

It definitely comes at a good time, as the mid morning is tepidly hot, the weather makes it easy to kick back and be lazy for a day.

The bright yellow speckle of sunlight hits me square in the eyes as I gaze out my front door into the lively street outside. And the temperature of the afternoon sun today gives me a strangely pure sensation of relaxation and peaceful conformity with all in the world.

As the dull and almost swaying whispers of the warm breeze caresses my thighs; it moves through the house, bringing with it the noise and lively warmth  from the streets outside. The day started rather late for me as my eyes opened only at 10 am plus just as my eldest son was getting ready to leave the house for the day. My son always makes it a point to inform me when he leaves as it allows him to inquire if I'll need him for any chores later in the evening.

Now fully awake, and after giving grace for all my blessings, the daily routines were visualized while over a piping hot cup of 'Maxwell Coffee House Grande' and the computer's search engine trolling over the interesting news of the day from all over the world. It helps that the TV and comp is all in one unit as I don't even bother to walk out to the news paper stand for the morning news anymore as my bedroom TV invites the world to my eyes within the privacy of my home. I suppose privacy is important to me more so than some other given that some of the daily shenanigans I can get up to is "very adult rated".

Recently, I've discovered that with the correct internet search engine matrix , a person can invariably read and visually enjoy sporadic nubile shots of the prettier gender world wide while browsing through the daily (bad) news. This, certainly managed to put my senses to ease for the rest of the day !

Next, after a hot shower jet with sprinkles of the sweet scented rose spa water that Michelle bought the other day, and a good scrubbing over . while enjoying the melodies of Credence Clearwater Revival (CCR- a 1970's Band)) playing in the background, I got out , half an hour later, to discover our year old pet Shih-Tzu eagerly gazing at me; hyper ventilating unto the carpeted floor,curious for someone to play with.

With the sunlight streaming into the kitchen glass panels , a leisurely breakfast of some piping hot, straight from the cooker Nasi Lemak accompanied with a dollop of saucy sambal sotong; sprinkles of roasted peanuts and half boiled egg,my breakfast was soon finished with the remaining coffee from earlier.

The morning routine would not be complete without GIGI the Shih-Tzu and I going off our merry little way to the park adjacent my Taman for the routine 15 minutes of  morning walk and sun basking, which she absolutely looks forward to everyday..
Looking at her frolic in the meadows and grass patches available to us here in Bukit Bruang bring to mind the simple pleasures in life. Nothing beats the joy and frolic a dog has in it's face when the open fields with it's dewy green grass cleaned by the nights rain are in front of her and the masters permission to run and go crazy given. The freedom to roam and move about without a care or worry. Now that is bliss indeed!

Days like this, it's best spent under a Tree or Shady Branch, with the dog faithfully by your side; along with your favorite MP 3 sounds and a cool ice chilled beverage in your palms, watching the world go by industriously.
If  the impending datelines and worries are not done with by now, they can just wait one more day.

Someone once begged to differ by saying that "There's no lazy days...just lazy people." 

Well, we respectfully disagree. 

Today is proof positive.

It is indeed a superb Lazy day. And, I shall consider that a good thing.

Musings of a Proletarian

Literary accomplishments has never been known to grow in a vacuum and in so much as us creative types like to be known as Lonely Wolf type, our pose, (of an individual maintaining our independence and freedom, while straining hard to let society hear our voices and grouses) ; we have a need every now and then to nip and dip our bodies and souls into the gene pool of society to help us benefit & conceptualize / elucidate our external experiences up to a point.


Being in a situation whereby one punctuates one's existence with occasional trysts out of one's own self imposed vacuum allows for the solitude of peace and the visibility of clarity within one's thoughts as no one disturbs you with the normality of societal drivel but then, obliquely, no one can hear you rant as well.
It's Bloody Kafkaesque, (contradiction) I'll  tell you !
 So ,  reaching out to the humanity within societies can still prove beneficial  to any writer as it allows one the privilege of observing the masses and their mores; their desires and insanity of wants more closely.

Soaking up advice and establishing partnerships through consultations and gatherings opens up new points of views even though established mores predicates that your own opinions are set in stone even before these meetings;  but,occasionally, you'll find the other rationales do have a frame work of consensus (whether right or wrong would invariably depend on the side of fence you've gathered) and provides for an viable alternative stand point.


These views can open up new worlds and ideas of passage if pursued and can help mold new dimensions of previously unheard of success or at the very least provide a good impression of a technically viable answer to certain set in stone problems. 
Granted, this is how perfection within communal communication is achieved, but as per any other situations, personal agendas and political affiliations normally color such possible successes pre -emptively. So,despite best intentions, exasperation and frustrations abound in situations whereby personal agendas and affiliations are allowed to rule

What to do, what to do....
the world's a blood thirsty beast
Angry and sad inside,when all it needs
Is Love and a little solitude.


Moving on, associations of business types and non governmental association types are currently my favorite ways to observe and in turn be observed by the hoi polloi of my cherished city. Many a curious and exciting incidental stories have I delighted in, in private and in public,regulated of course, by the personal nature and secrecy of the acts and ambits of my fellow malaccans credulity (both male and female) in their chase towards personal glory and higher respect and maybe income levels.

All of these tales will be great fodder for a Greater Malaysiana story book should I ever be in the mood to record and compile these stories !
At the moment though, these tales sieve through my ears unbeknownst to the alleged perpetrators (in the true tradition of all gossip mongering stories) and some times even with their knowledge as the particular situation is so well known that it's no point in denying it- as in the story of a particular Indian Physician whose a vendor of nubile beauties to the politically inclined " society" who after many years of doing that service was rewarded with a noble peerage. But a few public missteps and years of personal gaffes due to poor choices of friends and contacts saw him slowly going into public contempt and disrepute within the very society he tried to impress.
One hardly hears of this individual nowdays as he spends most of his time out of the state. What a pity.

Every decade or so, the writer in me sees played out in the public forum a repeat of the displays of personal joy  and private achievement; angst & tragedy that is often played by different actors but within the same manners and Freudian slips of their previous perpetrators/ actors.The very human frailties and need for public adulation never changes even though the people and players seem to change. 


Funny how things always change but never does, wouldn't you say?

Pictorial diary of past few weekend.

The Family visiting Chandra @ the National Service Camp where he will be for the coming 3 months.

My son looks very dashing in uniform,no ?

The weekend we were in KL for lunch with my sister Mala and her family, (not in picture) followed by Tea & Thai entrees with our long lost friend- Nathan in Mid Valley and by dinner time we were enjoying the company of Ann and her husband here in Melaka over a meal of  local peranakan dishes with the Melaka river boats companying us in the background.

This picture above was taken during father's day outing the family had last Sunday which we did at the Malacca Club. Michelle is missing from some of the pictures because she's the one snapping the pictures !

Both Chandra & Utheya are getting better at the Pool Table as both managed to beat me at least one time each . My youngest son -Chandra is on leave from his National service stint for the weekend.

My son, Utheya is married !

My eldest son Utheya & his long time girlfriend Joey wed last Sunday (12/06/2011) here in Melaka with the blessings of all our families, friends and relatives and it was a wedding that made both the union of families happy & proud and hopefully the newlyweds very fulfilled as well.  Though the wedding itself was a simple, small & private do with mostly dear family & relatives blessing the newly weds, their wedding dinner was a slightly larger affair. 

 

The wedding & dinner at the Tiara Golf &Country Resort was truly a cheery and happy day which was beautifully planned and meticulously arranged with guests informed and invited within a short span of 4 weeks (!) by the ladies in both families and the duties, arrangements and bookings all falling neatly into place as if pre-ordained by the Heavens itself to culminate into a Grand Sunday Wedding for Utheya and Joey.

With my second son Chandra as the best man to accompany his brother throughout the sunny and gorgeous cloudy Sunday – (I have to say my favorite part of that day begun with Utheya friends and their entourage of 10 cars hopped over to Joey’s house for the customary invitation of the Bride to the Groom’s house ceremony and of course to take some video of the games they play at her house before my son is allowed to enter the bride’s home), Chandra did his part of the role admirably but apparently the time & toll drained him so much as he was out drinking the night before that he fell asleep in my bed after all was said and done in the middle of texting his friends!

The family union and wonderful occasion was made more beautiful with the attendance of my sittapa (uncle from fathers side who is the last remaining relative from my dad’s extended relations) who came with his wife (our lovely cinnama) all the way from S’pore and all my brothers and sisters from Penang, Ipoh, Port Kelang, Kuala Lumpur & Seremban and their children and the children’s children! It was a family re-union that made all of us very happy and thankful indeed!

Joey, as your newly installed father –in –law, I pray that the love, comfort and happiness we saw between you and Utheya on your wedding day continue to grow stronger every day for the rest of your lives together and that your children all grow up and bless you and utheya with a wonderful 60^th wedding anniversary  !