The Last of the Malaysian Girls

You have no idea of how many hours I stared at this blank box, thinking of something to type about. Seriously. So many things happened these past few days, yet I've no inclination to elaborate about those events, except that they were quite uncomfortable.

Enough of that, now! So instead of brainstorming for another couple of years, I've decided to blog about these girls. No, they're not the Last of the Malaysian Girls, but they're certainly brilliant, funny and pretty, and no, the last part wasn't bullshit. Well. Maybe for Hui Jan. I'm JOKING!

And please excuse the title, I'm so hooked up on Green Day's the Last of the American Girls. Have you seen the music video? Oh, you should. Finger-pointing-explosive melody, that one.

So, readers, let's begin with Girl Number One!

Hui Jan / Jan / Boss (as I call her)

Yes, that's Hui Jan. Don't mess with her fellas; she's the Discipline Officer I in our school, and man, she packs a mean can of whoop-ass. Her smile is as nasty as her roar. Ha-ha, I'm joking. No, Hui Jan is actually a cool girl. She's one of the few girls I know who shares my liking towards Green Day. Though she loves these punk-rockers from the marijuana-induced band, she's also smart. Damn smart. If you read her blog, you know she's an avid player of Scrabble. Have you seen her play? I did. I play Scrabble too, and thought I was good at it. That's until I saw Hui Jan play... my playing skills were like child's play compared to Hui Jan's. She plays like a Titan from Greek mythology. No, it's not exaggeration, you fools! Another thing about her, you can see the fine line that divides Hui Jan into funny mode and serious mode. She's ferocious and mean when time demands it, and she's understanding and kind when the situation is light. You have to respect someone with that rare ability. I can't be serious. I'm too immature. Thumbs up, Boss!

All right, let's move on to Girl Number Two!

Jacie Tan Cheng Hwee / Slit-Eyed Japanese Girl (she looked like one during Citrawarna, with all that spiky hair. Mind you, they were really spikes with the amount of gel that was used.)

She's the girl on the left, readers. One word before I begin about her; crazy. Don't get me wrong; it's the fun and good type of crazy! She gets even crazier when she's with her crew! Don't get me started on her group of friends. But you can't be angry about that! I mean, yeah, they once hijacked my DSLR; got pretty pissed about that, but then I laughed when I saw the pictures they took. Do you wanna be angry when you see a picture of girls posing their butts in front of the camera? Fully clothed, I repeat, fully clothed. I laughed until my lungs collapsed, and then deleted the picture. I'm pretty sure my mom wouldn't be happy with that kind of picture in my DSLR. Yeah, that's Jacie. Crazy reader too. Right now she's going on and on about a book called Fire and seduced (I wonder if this is the proper term) Xin You to read it. He loved it too, and he said it was about the girls (that's understandable) and the humour in Fire that makes it a good book. She's as fun as she's crazy, and among all these girls, she makes me laugh the hardest. Though I never really admitted that to her. She's the kind of girl who can raise your spirits too. When you're feeling down, this girl will slap you and say, ''Buck the f*ck up, idiot!'' Well, she never actually did that, but the energy's there. That's what I think of you, Jacie. Awesome and another thumbs up!

Hello, here's Girl Number Three!

Yap Ee Leng / Mada / ''T'' (her favourite letter on MSN)

One of my best buds. That's Ee Leng, and yeah, she's cool. No, no, not ''cool'', but cool. Note the Italic usage. Yeah, and whenever I'm blur on Chinese culture, she sits down with me and explains about that particular matter. De facto points. She's like my own Wikipedia. I'm a fan of anime, and this girl is too! There was a time when we used to swap stories and once, both of us got hooked on this show, Code Geass. Have you finish watching it yet, Ee Leng? She also introduced to me the fantastic sea-plant, the abalone. Before that, I thought abalone was some sort of fish. And I still am shocked such a small plant costs a lot. Ee Leng's a great listener as well, and with the next girl I'm about to type about, they're the best pair of pals that's around. We really need to go to an anime exhibit sometime, Mada. Don't worry, tickets are on me! And of course, you get a thumbs up!

Ehem. Step up, Girl Number Four.

Madeleine / Maddie / Mad / Mom (she really does act like it, sometimes)

Last girl, but of course, not the least! That's Maddie Tsl, and boy, she's hot! Fellas (boys, esp) she's available. Wooh! Anyway, this girl is like my sister. Really. Sometimes my mom. ''You look like a drug dealer with that hoodie!'' ''But I like hoodies, Mo-- I mean, Mad!'' ''We need to get you new clothes.'' In the end, she bought me a ''I'm a Virgin'' T-shirt for my birthday. When teamed up with Ee Leng, like I said before, they're the best at looking out for me. They even forced me to have my own birthday party! Not that I resent it, gosh, I loved it! Being another of my best buddies, she's awesome at art. A couple of days she's been working off her-- erm, let's just say energy-- to finish her batik for her arts project. She says it's not proper and looks off, but heck, me and Ee Leng said it looks awesome. Stylish. Ee Leng even admitted that it looked like a fashionable mango, but then again, she was hungry at that time. Like Ee Leng too, Maddie is a good listener. Gives good advice as well. That's why sometimes I call her ''Onee-Chan!'' which is Japanese for ''Big Sister''! Though without doubt, I am bigger than her. Great Big Sister though. And that certainly earns her a thumbs up!

So. These are but the few of the girls in my life. There are others, and one more I'd like to type about, but I'm gonna leave that to rest. Quit raising eyebrows, I know what you're thinking. If you don't, just nod as if you do.

I have to repeat myself that these girls are brilliant, funny and pretty. Yes, Hui Jan included. Excellent friends, what a person like me would hope for. If you're raising your eyebrows again, I do have guys as friends also. But I'm gonna save that for another post.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is truly the Last of the Malaysian Girls!

She puts her make-up on
Like graffiti on the walls of the heartland
She's got a little book
Of conspiracies right in her hand
She is paranoid
Endangered species, heading into extinction
She is one of a kind
She's the Last of the American-- err, I mean-- Malaysian Girls!

Thanks for visiting, folks!

I'd Stay in the Middle

This week... the first week of the second semester... what was thought to be a full-scale attack on my mountains of notes and homework... turned out to be a regular task of cleaning my camera, transferring photos, and trying to survive in the small opening between two major clubs which have been rivals ever since before World War I.

Yes, I am talking about the infamous and glamour Interact Club, and the honourable-than-thou Leo Club.

I'd like to point out that both clubs are great, and I really like both of 'em. Tho I am leaning a bit towards the Leo Club. Sorry, Interactors.

Throughout the entire week I've been performing last-minute miracles with undone reports for the Editorial Board, and capturing pictures of Annual General Meetings of both Interact and Leo. Yesterday I kept jumping from the Interact AGM to the Leo AGM (one AGM was in 4 Adil, while the other was in 3 Jejarum).
Put a fat guy in front of countless flights of stairs, and you get a miracle if the fat guy survives when he's done with them.

Despite all that running and puffing and almost ripping my underpants when I tripped at the canteen stairs, I'm glad I'm involved with these clubs (tho unofficially) because I get to delve into these clubs' histories, and their senior and more experienced world-class parent organisations, the Rotary International and the Lions Club International.

Though I am perplexed with their goals and causes. To me, they're almost the same. Aren't both of these clubs formed ages ago to help the community? Yes, different perspectives and mottos, but their agenda and methods are similar. Presidents, Sectaries, and even their International Understanding days (some Leo Clubs prefer it to be called International Relations to avoid confusion) which always are held to contribute to charity!

Yet there exists a rift between these clubs. Try mentioning the Leo Club in an Interact meeting (at least in SMK SAS) and the members will boo.

And since I am the neutral party here (being a photographer for both clubs' past events) I have to be honest. There are some flaws which don't usually mind the members of each club. Some will notice, but they'll shrug it off sooner or later.

Needless to say, the Interact Club flourishes with members. Their membership database, compared to the Leo Club, is admittedly impressive and usually beats memberships in all other clubs (scouts, dance club, chess club, etc.) . Their events and charity concerts always attract large crowds, Interactors, Leos, and even those who wish to be none (like moi). But when it comes to goals and causes, it is the Interact Club's greatest weakness. External significances such as the glamor, popular friends, parties and concerts and statuses are the real magnets for newcomers to join the Interact Club. There was once a time where the Interact Club was indeed fun and noble, but as the century chips away, the members enjoy more of the fun instead on focusing on the honour that was once bound to the club.

Am I lying? Sorry, folks. Take a look at Sri Aman's Interact IU. The performances were indeed for a noble cause; human trafficking. But due to the organisers' heavy mention on women and children being sold as sex slaves, aided by some uncontrollable hormones of several in the audience, the event itself was a shame to Interacts all around the world. Not to forget, the after party which all the attendees agreed was 'the highlight of Sri Aman's IU' instead of the message that was trying to be conveyed. Heavy drinking and such continued in the after party.

Just bear with me; I am trying to be fair here.

Enter the Leo Club, its symbol is the mighty lion, which shows courage and valor. Leo itself stands for Leadership, Experience and Opportunity. The reason I favour the Leos a tiny bit more than the Interacts is because that though the club has a smaller membership, and lesser independent events (most Leo events are joint projects with other schools' Leo Clubs), the Leo Club hasn't lost sight of its original focus, to provide the youthful with chances to improve the world. They have stayed true to the Lions Club International motto, 'We Serve'. Yet, there is one small flaw that puts the Leo Club in the same disdain position as the Interacts.

In the Leo Club of SMK SAS, racial integrity is almost at lost. Most of its members are of only one race, and a small portion of another race. The last race which describes 1Malaysia is not present, therefor breaking the illusion of racial harmony of the Leo Club. Other Leo Clubs have the same problem as well and like one of my Leo friends said, ''At the forum, mostly all the Leos from other schools were Chinese.''

These two clubs are actually excellent proteges of the major organisations. But if they can fix those small little problems, they can excel and move forward with more confidence attracting more members for their causes.

Personally, I think it'd be better if the Interacts and Leos merged their clubs together. Sure, there would be a riot and such, but if everyone just gave it a chance, there might be a possibility that they can succeed.

Interacts and Leos; you've been helping people a lot. How about a change, and you help yourselves out this time around?

Thanks for visiting, folks.

(This is a response to Hui Jan's post of Sri Aman's IU, Breaking the Silence)