When Love Means Nothing

 

It seems that we suddenly find ourselves in the end of February (wherever did the time go?!). February, the month of love and romance, and at least for this year, also the month for the Australian Open.

 

Love means nothing? Well, yes, in tennis at least. One theory is that the tennis term is derived from the French word l’oeuf where oeuf means egg. Apparently, when the game was imported into France from England, the French used the word l’oeuf to mean ‘zero’, due to the resemblance of an egg to the written figure 0 - indeed, even in Malay, if you have nothing, a score of zero, the joke is you have an egg. At least two of the Treasure Hunts I’d been on had this in the questions.

Speaking of love, I can't quite get over my love (lust?) for bags. And this love does mean something.

Charmed Life

I’m going to do another frivolous post today and this time I’m going to talk about charms. Specifically bag charms and includes bag accessories too. Do you do it? Do you dress and accessorise up your bags?

I read that it could be a cultural thing. For instance, in Japan, the girls there love to accessorise their bags and even have gizmos hanging from their handphones. In other countries, some women sniff their noses at this idea of accessorising one’s bags: they feel expensive bags should not be saddled with charms or accessories, nor do the bags need them in the first place. Parisian women especially don’t wear big logos and other accessories on bags. They claim they like to be mysterious and they consider too many accessories give a cheap look. They prefer to project what they claim is understated luxury or understated elegant nonchalance.

In other countries, it’s pretty much do what you love although it does look like it’s mainly Asian and American girls who like accessorising their bags, me included. I say, to each her own! I love accessories myself and hardly leave home without a fashion necklace or bracelet or rings. On some days, I may wear a couple of necklaces, a couple of bracelets and at least a couple of rings and on top of all that, I also put on a flower brooch and/or belt. If there is one accessory I don’t leave home without, it is my watch. I get upset if I somehow forget to wear my watch because I rely on it so much and my wrist just feels naked without my watch (I don’t get as upset if I leave my handphone behind so you can see which one I value more or rather which one’s absence I would feel more). So it’s a natural extension for me to also accessorise my bags with a simple bag charm or twilly (I may have even invested in some charms for shoes too but if I did, I can’t recall where they are now). I don’t go overboard (at least I don’t think so!) and I don’t accessorise all handbags that I carry, only selected ones. I don’t accessorise my Chanel bags but I do accessorise some of my Louis Vuitton and Hermès bags. Some bags are already heavy enough even without the added bag charm so I only use light charms. I also draw the line at spending on Fendi Karlito and monster bag charms: they are expensive and I don’t find them appealing.

There’s also a comment that twillies are so last decade but hey, I want to enjoy carrying my bags without having to deal with the headache and heartache of premature wear and tear on the handles. Also, twillies help absorb the oil from my hands. After all, I’ve spent a fortune on my bags so it makes sense to me to care for them in my own way.

Is bag accessorising a young thing? Well, I’m a believer of ‘you don’t stop playing because you grow old; you grow old because you stop playing’. Maybe one day I’ll grow out of it. Yeah, I can’t see a lady in her 50s still rocking bag charms but hey, fashion changes and who knows it wouldn’t look and sound so odd in the next decade or so.

What about you? Do you accessorise your bags too?

Saturday Roundup

I’m currently broke, no thanks to being cheated during Ramadan (damn you to hell) and the LASIK surgery, also in Ramadan. So these few months, I’ve been curbing my shopping habit (still managed to purchase some gorgeous arm candies though, all from my favourite brands heh) and looking for deals/bargains as I always do.

On another note, I’ve been tidying up my closet, drawers and dresser since I read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organising by Marie Kondo. Maybe one day I’ll share what I garner from this book. So what I found from all this tidying up is that I already have enough clothes. It’ll be some time before I purchase another piece of inner- or outerwear. I’ve stopped purchasing shoes for some time now as I concentrate more on collecting handbags. I’m a bagaholic, remember. And besides, I can will them later to my sister and nieces. So while I’ve stopped buying clothes and shoes, I still can’t stop lusting over handbags (and I love luxury branded ones) and accessories.

I’ve been planning to visit Mitsui Outlet Park (MOP) since the recent trip to Johor Premium Outlets but decided not to visit it when it just opened as I read that there were quite a few stores which had yet to open. (And besides, there’s the money issue as I mentioned above.) We finally decided to descend upon MOP last Saturday, 5 September 2015, after paying the MATTA Fair a quick visit.

Well, most shop lots at MOP are already opened for business. There is a huge parking area outside (and yet we sighted some cars parking outside the park when we exited) at RM2/hour or part thereof. The mall is spacious, or rather I didn’t feel it was very packed although there was a crowd alright. We wandered around and even checked the food court. Oh uh. The food and drinks aren’t kindly priced even at the food court especially if you bring your family along but there’s a myNEWS.com shop where you can buy sandwiches, crisps, snacks, cookies and drinks among other things at more reasonable prices (still higher than high street prices though methinks). We wandered from one store to another – I was looking out for accessories – but nothing really caught my fancy so after being there slightly longer than 2 hours, we left (and not long after, got caught in a heavy downpour all the way to Cyberjaya where we had early dinner at Salam Noodles at Shaftsbury Square. I love what I had and would definitely recommend the place).

Would I return? I find MOP a bit underwhelming but then again, I’ve always been a fussy lass. I might return but not anytime soon. As for JPO, I doubt there’ll be a third trip.

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I know I haven’t been writing much of late. I’m not abandoning this blog anytime soon, at least I don’t plan to! Sometimes there are times when I really feel I want to share something but can’t seem to put them into words. Writer’s block? Maybe. Anyway, July and August 2015 have been challenging months, financially, mentally and physically. Yes, August had been an especially testing, trying and tiring month indeed as we dealt with my dad’s health (which I mentioned about here) and I’ll just say that I’m glad to see the back of these couple of months. I hope it’ll be better from now on but we all know that our bodies and health deteriorate. I can only pray for my loved ones’ continued good health and wealth. Amen.

Ramadan Ramblings

I don’t think I’m incorrect in saying that we girls are an insecure lot. We keep seeking reassurance of how we look and even we are assured that we look pretty, fine and dandy, we are still not satisfied with the answer (because hey being pretty is not as good as being gorgeous or beautiful). We wonder if the person we ask is being truthful or just tactful, we scrutinise ourselves critically in the mirror trying to find fault with our poor selves, and even if everyone says we look good, we don’t want to believe it. We refuse to accept we are good enough, we compare ourselves relentlessly to celebrities, and we keep thinking ‘If only my eyes are bigger, my nose sharper, my mouth fuller, my cheekbones more pronounced, etc etc etc’. In short, there is just no satisfying us. And you know, you can’t quite blame us for being insecure when we are constantly bombarded by advertisements, articles, documentaries of how an ideal girl looks like, never mind that we are made up of different genetics, body statures, observe different diets, do different jobs, come from different backgrounds and live in different environments.

To make it worse, we also have those mean spiteful malicious women who look down on and put other women down. They are not happy to see others happy and content with themselves; no, instead they are intent on destroying other girls because they are insecure, unhappy and discontent themselves. Why? Why can’t the fairer sex be true to its name and be true and fair to fellow females? Why are we our own worst enemies? Why don’t we help each other, encourage each other and pick someone who’s fallen down instead of pushing her down further? It’s bad enough that we can never have it right: a thin girl is slated for being thin and encouraging others to observe poor eating habits and less-than-normal lifestyle, while an overweight girl is criticised for neglecting herself, for not taking good care of herself and for not living a healthy lifestyle.

It’s not wrong to be insecure; after all, girls are known for their insecurities. It is wrong though to be so insecure with oneself that one resorts to putting others down just so that one would look better. It’s not wrong to envy someone for looking good as long as it prompts us to better ourselves too. But it is wrong to be harsh and critical of another. I believe a beautiful person is one who is beautiful on the inside as well as the outside and someone who is spiteful, malicious and mean is not beautiful to me no matter how gorgeous on the outside s/he is.

So girls, let’s strive to be our best, bring out the beautiful girls that’s within ourselves. Be confident of yourself and don’t let anyone stop you from realising your dreams. Don’t let anyone’s criticism or harsh words bring you down. Exercise, get enough sleep, observe a healthy lifestyle, follow a healthy diet, and be kind to everyone else.

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Peter Cech to Arsenal? I don’t know what to make of this. I don’t trust the Chav club owner or the despicable manager at all to believe they would sell him to us. And if we get him, what will happen to Ospina or Szcz? But what do I know. I don’t know if I want him, if he’s going to be such an upgrade to our current goalies. Sure, he was a decent one but he hasn’t been a regular starter for the Chavs of late.

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I think it’s time to update my Bagaholic post. I’ll get around to it. In the meantime, I seriously want these bags. Sponsors and donations are welcome. Yes, I know that there are a lot of people more in need of the bare necessities like those affected by the quake in Nepal and Ranau, Sabah. And yes, I’ve done my little bit to help them. It’s not wrong to covet a couple of bags, yes?

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It’s a week into Ramadan today and I trust it’s not too late to wish you Ramadan Kareem.