All For A Good Cause

After dressing up as animals with his team-mates to raise money for GOSH (and be inspired by their plight), Cesc demonstrated another model behaviour by joining celebrities in raising funds for the Haiti earthquake last Thursday. While he won’t exactly be a model on project runway, he did a good job walking the catwalk for Naomi’s charity event, Fashion For Relief Haiti. For a clip on that, go here.

All together now:

I’m too sexy for my shirt too sexy for my shirt
So sexy it hurts
And I’m too sexy for Milan too sexy for Milan
New York and Japan

:
:
:

I’m a model you know what I mean
And I do my little turn on the catwalk
Yeah on the catwalk on the catwalk yeah
I do my little turn on the catwalk

On another note, his team-mate, Shava, had this to say about Cesc: ‘Cesc is a good footballer. He’s got technique, sees the pitch. He’s one of the team’s leaders and deserves the captain’s armband.’

The Skinny On Being Skinny

I’ve just finished reading Skinny Bitch, a no-nonsense book on how girls can stop eating crap and start looking fabulous. I was a bit shocked when I saw the title but intrigued enough to buy it after a quick flick through. The language is a bit coarse and I felt like the authors were speaking potty-mouthed to me at times (I have read enough novels written in strong language not to be shocked anymore but come on, this is supposed to be a self-help book). Anyway, coarse language aside, the book is certainly an eye-opener. Let me share some of what I read:

1. Give up – all your vices: smoking; drinking alcohol (it raises the level of hydrochloric acid in tummy and wreak havoc on your digestive process – hence why people suffering from hangovers eat crap), soda (liquid Satan), caffeine (raises stress hormone levels, inhibits important enzyme systems responsible for cleaning the body and sensitizes nerve reception sites. Oh and coffee, regular or decaf, is acidic which leads to fat cells. Coffee also robs your body of nutrients. Got addiction? You control coffee, it doesn’t control you); junk food (artificial aromas and flavours, chemical food colours, toxic preservatives and heart-stopping hydrogenated oils); and popping pills for every sniffle, sneeze, ache and pain.

2. Carbohydrates. Simple carbs suck and hardly beneficial nutritionally. Go for complex carbs (starch and fibre) which make us feel full and satisfied and are easily broken down to release their energy. Eat lots of fruits – best eaten on their own as they get easily and quickly digested and not with other food as they cannot pass through our bodies as quickly, instead rotting and fermenting in our tummies.

3. Sugar is the devil. Refined sugar (simple carbs) has been linked to hypoglycaemia, yeast overgrowth, a weakened immune system, hyperactivity, ADD, enlargement of the liver and kidneys, increase of uric acid in blood, mental and emotional disorders, dental cavities and imbalance of neurotransmitters in the brain. Go for natural substitutes (evaporated cane juice, brown rice syrup, barley malt syrup, raw sugar, beet sugar, date sugar, maple syrup and molasses. Stop eating/drinking products that contain aspartame (diet sodas and sugar-free food that have NutraSweet or Equal)!!

4. Stop eating dead, rotting and decomposing flesh, i.e. meat. Our alkaline saliva is not meant to break down animal flesh (carnivores’ acidic saliva is perfect for this). The book also details in great length the stomach-turning realities of the meat-production industry.

5. Diary disaster. Drinking milk is apparently just propaganda. We don’t need our mother’s milk as adults and yet we are the only species to drink the milk of another species. We lose the enzyme lactase (needed to digest lactose) between ages of 18 months and 4 years. The undigested lactose and the acidic nature of pasteurised milk encourage the growth of bacteria in our intestines. And cancer thrives in acidic conditions.

None of the researchers at Harvard, Yale, Penn State and the National Institute of Health found drinking milk to be a deterrent to osteoporosis; in fact dairy products have been linked to a host of other problems. Doctors don’t necessarily know anything about nutrition and nutritionists who say dairy products are good are misleading us it seems. So much for the Got Milk ads.

6. You are what you eat. Eat crap and you are crap. Eat animals reared in stressed and overcrowded farms fed with hormones, arsenic-laced drugs and steroids and we eat all these poisons, fear, rage and grief too.

7. Myths and lies about protein. Too much protein (especially animal protein) can impair our kidney; leak minerals and vitamins from our bodies; cause osteoporosis, heart disease, cancer and obesity; and damage our tissues, organs and cells, contributing to faster aging.

8. Pooping. This is no small or smelly matter as pooping is a vital tool for weight loss and optimal health. Drink lots of water to rid your body of waste, eat fibre-rich food and pay attention to the order you eat food.

9. Government agencies don’t care about your health. The authors are referring to the American agencies but I don’t see the situation being any different here.

10. Be strong. Immerse in the new lifestyle now or set goals and tackle them one at a time. Spend the first week of your new life removing one dirty vice item.

Chapter 11 provides suggestion for what to have for breakfast, lunch and dinner, acceptable snacks and suggestions for a month-long menu. It also lists all the bad ingredients (so next time you go grocery shopping, don’t check the calories but check the ingredients instead!). Chapter 12 dispenses various advices of what to eat and look out for in our everyday life (toothpaste, perfume, toiletry and make-up). The last chapter urges us to use our heads in making our decisions.

Well, I must say it is certainly an eye-opening book and am convinced that I should give up some food or alter my diet. But give up meat and become a vegetarian and then a vegan? I don’t eat a lot of meat as it is (I’m a semi-vegetarian at home) but don’t mind the occasional chicken, meat or fish meal. Give up cheese (and pizza and yoghurt? Whoa. As a Muslim, I can eat meat as long as it’s halal. I’m sure even our beloved Prophet ate meat and drank milk (goat or camel). We are not prohibited from eating halal food but I suppose conditions back then were different. Food was more organically grown, reared and produced.

As for other vices, I don’t drink, hate even the smell of cigarette (I refuse to be a second-hand smoker) and while I love the aroma of coffee, I don’t drink it. I don’t drink soda/gassy/carbonated drinks either and I drink eight glasses of water in the office alone. I have stopped eating processed meat and buying flavour enhances for my dishes.

I’m far from perfect though. My vice is junk food, chocolates and ice-cream. Don’t hold it against me; I strive to enjoy life and maintain a healthy lifestyle. I’m only human. But I will strive for a better, healthier life.

And who knows? Maybe one day I’ll become a full-fledged vegetarian. Or better still, a vegan.

~~~~~~~~

What a crazy season it is – we beat Everton away easily on the opening day of the season and on Saturday afternoon, they disposed off ManUre. This ten days after they disposed off Chelshit (why couldn’t we be like them too?). We closed the gap with ManUre with a win over Sunderland. Bendtner tapped in a pass from Eboue in the first half and at the death, Cesc converted a penalty. I love it when the announcer went ‘... player number 4, Cesc...’ and the crowd went ‘Fàbregas!!!’ ;’) Oh the score could have been more like when we beat Everton and Blackburn (at the start of the season, we were the team that could not stop scoring, now we looked like we could not start scoring) but we only had one lone striker (and he’s still working to get here; he still has to attend some session at the finishing school) – why didn’t we invest in one in January?! I was getting impatient, frustrated and agitated as the match progressed. But I’ll settle for two goals ;) despite it being a skinny score. Sunderland have not won any game since they beat us in November. Again, what a crazy season.

Our skipper apologised to the fans for the Porto defeat using the plane’s PA system, no thanks to the referee’s errors. Awww, he must be devastated ;’) as all Gunners and Gooners should be.

Porto Bellow

Well, Fabianski had the opportunity to show he can step up and threaten Almunia for the position as number one goalie. But did he take it? No, he didn’t. Hardly a surprise. He should now be called Flapianski or maybe Flopianski. The referee was weak and allowed the schoolboy goal to stand. How about letting our defenders get in place first, Mr Referee? And why position the ball so close to the goal, closer than a penalty?! (Heck, from that distance, even Dudú would be hard-pressed to miss it). And surely they should wait for the whistle to blow first??? It was a bizarre goal alright. The debate continues.

Skipper Cesc suffered the most fouls of the night (and what was more disturbing was no one tok it upon him to come to his defence). Denilson was appallingly poor; I kept shouting to Wenger to substitute him with Ramsey but unfortunately that didn’t happen. The two substitutes Theo and Vela didn’t make much contribution.

Ouch! Porto’s blatant tactic was to kick poor Cesc out of the game. Poor baby ;'(

Bahhh. It’s a wonder I’m not bellowing out my anger and fury yet. But I looked a bit like this earlier.

Anyway, I’m sharing you the following from Shava’s official website. One of his fans sent the following 100 Questions to Andrey Arshavin. The last one is a classic:

Andrey, please, mark with plus sign what you’ve already done or experienced in your life and with minus what you have not done.

1. Fell in love with life. +
2. Stayed awake all night. +
3. Have been to the seaside. +
4 Embraced somebody out of overflowing emotions. –
5. Ran away from a huge (or almost huge) dog—
6. Grown a cactus –
7. Bought an MP3 player. –
8. Got yourself two cats –
9. Went for a walk in snowstorm. +
10. Stared somebody down +
11. Lost a friend. +
12. Met and made friends with a person born on the same day as you +
13. Went for a stroll in the rain without an umbrella. +
14.Went for a walk alone –
15. Patted a tiger. –
16. Took a running dive into the water +
17. Enjoyed the sunset. –
18. Stayed in solitude for several days. +
19. Got drunk. +
20. Broke the window. +
21. Offended somebody +
22. Roller-skated all day long.—
23. Jumped with a parachute –
24. Spent the whole day talking to a girl (a guy). –
25. Lived together with someone you love. +
26. Sewn your finger on a jacket. –
27. Fell into a deep pit. +
28. Got scared to death. +
29. Made a valuable present to someone. +
30. Spent your time chattering on the phone for a few hours. +
31. Fell in love +
32. Fell out of love +
33. Hated. –
34. Got lost in the woods. –
35. Climbed into the fountain with cold water and splashed there. –
36. Slept in a tent. +
37. Traveled by train for seven days .-
38. Traveled by plane. +
39. Smashed the dishes +
40. Was in good spirits on January 1. –
41. Killed a blood-filled mosquito +
42. Held a live butterfly in your hands +
43. Fell asleep listening to your favorite music. –
44. Ate potatoes, baked in the fire. +
45. Spent the whole day in the sun. +
46. Looked up to the starry sky and searched for bright stars and constellations. +
47. Forgot about something very important. +
48. Spent half the night texting +
49. Spent your last internet time on reading blogs. –
50. Sang karaoke. +
51. Ate a whole chocolate bar in one go. +
52. Spent the whole day reading –
53. Smiled through tears. +
54. Watched one and the same film for 5 times from the very beginning to the very end. –
55. Told someone looking in the eyes ‘it is time to stop our communication’. +
56. Clapped until your hands hurt. –
57. Danced to exhaustion. –
58. Quitted smoking. –
59. Kissed a photograph. –
60. Made a sand castle+
61. Haven’t slept at night during a thunderstorm. +
62. Hated yourself, and then fell in love again –
63. Noticed a stupid mistake in a movie. –
64. Climbed a tree. +
65. Come to love something you hated before.-
66. Radically changed your life +
67. Found a job. +
68. Won a dispute. +
69. Overate strawberries to the point of sickness. +
70. Switched on and enjoyed listening to the music at a maximum volume +
71. Cried for three hours non-stop. –
72. Got offended and stopped talking to anybody for a day. +
73. Plucked nettles with your bare hands. +
74. Sang a song without music. –
75. Sang in a choir on stage. +
76. Performed solo on stage in front of a huge number of people. –
77. Made a photo of an animal. –
78. Baked a cake. –
79. Made a photo of the sky. –
80. Hit the wall. +
81. Listened to somebody else’s gibberish+
82. Went to a concert. +
83. Spent the day in front of a computer +
84. Tried to commit suicide ..... –
85. Cut yourself with paper .—
85. Had a pain shock. +
86. Tried to swim in the water up to your knee +
87. Received a beautiful china doll as a present +
88. Fell down the stairs. +
89. Found something new for yourself +
90. Wore a wedding dress. –
91. Read a big book in just a few hours. –
92. Washed a mountain of dishes. –
93. Found strength to live. +
94. Told a secret about yourself +
95. Sat in a room with lights down till nightfall. –
96. Fell asleep embracing a soft stuffed toy. –
97. Talked on the phone with a perfect stranger. +
98. Got lost in the music, forgetting everything. –
99. Talked to a foreigner. +
100. Died ... --

Enter The Tiger

Our initial plan for the Lunar New Year was to go to Padang; unfortunately the earthquake happened and my parents decided not to go (if it were up to me, I’d just go. Surely not all hotels in Padang were destroyed and surely those in Bukittinggi would hardly be affected. And true enough, this was confirmed by the Padang travel agent I met at the MATTA Fair). Unfortunately, we had since bought new tickets to Langkawi so Padang was out. And because I couldn’t secure accommodation at any of TheOrganisation’s unit, I had to book a hotel room; it didn’t help that I only learnt of the unsuccessful booking 11 days before departure and most hotels were filling up fast if not already fully booked (and as we had visited Langkawi before, my parents just wanted to be based in Kuah so that pretty much limited the choice of hotels). I finally managed to secure a room a week before departure.

We flew out early Saturday morning and arrived at our hotel before 10 am (before the shops even opened). Luckily for us, the thoughtful receptionist took pity on my parents and allowed us an early check-in. We went to deposit our bags (parents had the obligatory morning tea) before going out to check out the shops. And my, what a bright, hot day it was. It was so hot that we were back at the hotel by 2 pm to rest. I only dared to venture out again at close to 6 pm and even then, it was a hot, humid evening.

I didn’t join my parents for dinner, having decided to check out the night market instead (in front of the run-down Langkawi Baron Hotel. I bought some food to go from the night market and returned to the hotel.

Sunday was pretty much a repeat of the day before although we took a different route to the shops. By Sunday evening, I was already fed-up and bored with the dirty, dusty, hot and humid town and in fact vowed that I wouldn’t return again. The rest of the island is too touristy and runs the risk of becoming tacky – just like Bali. God, I dislike Bali especially Kuta. I found it tacky beyond words. I really don’t see what the big fuss about Bali is especially when we have equally if not better beaches here.

I braved the early Monday morning heat to get some last-minute souvenirs before returning to the hotel to rest before our afternoon flight. What a relief to be back; yes, KL is hot too but I’m very sure Langkawi was at least 5 degrees hotter. I doubt I will return to the island. There are some places you don’t mind going again and again but there are some that you just don’t want to go to ever again. And that explains why I’ve been to Rome twice as many times as I’ve been to some places like Langkawi.

Oh and we had the Sultan of Selangor and his long-time actress companion on our flight back to KL.

~~~~~~~~

It looks like we’re in for another El Niño – which should explain the unusual extreme winter conditions in Europe and the US in recent weeks. In fact – and I hope I’m not exaggerating – I wouldn’t be surprised if we’re experiencing the beginning of El Niño in the country too: it would explain the unbearably hot weather these last few weeks (give me rain over hot weather any time). And guess when the phenomenon last occurred? Twelve years ago during the last Year of the Tiger. I remember it was so bad that we had water rationing. I pray it won’t be as bad this time around.

~~~~~~~~

We all know there are ten years in a decade, a hundred in a century and a thousand in a millennium. And yet some people seem to think that 2010 is a brand new decade when it’s the tenth year of the decade – just like there were those who thought year 2000 was the beginning of the new millennium when it was the last year of the last millennium. Not a hard concept to grasp surely.

~~~~~~~~

I’m now a new follower to the drama Merlin (yes, gasp aloud all you like), having never watched any until a few weeks ago (and now in the second season too). Thanks to my nieces (because of whom, I missed the first quarter of an hour of the Arsenal-Everton match), I am now hooked to the drama. It helps that Prince Arthur (Bradley James) is such an eye-candy and I can go to bed happy every Tuesday evening. Heh. Click here for official photos of the drama, here and here for more.

In the footstep of LOL Cats, a captioned photo of Colin and Bradley. They totally dig each other it seems

~~~~~~~~

And finally (what’s a blog entry without a mention of Arsenal eh. Hey, I’m only emulating Arsenal in doing community service here), Arsenal beat Chelshit at last! Well, the reserves side did. The Gunners, bar five, are in Porto now for the match tonight; go here for their training pictures. Oh, and apparently we tried to sign Louis Saha on the last day (tsk, tsk, never ever procrastinate again, Wenger) and our to-come Chamakh will be standing in local elections next month. Chamakh Obama? Yes, we can! (Sorry, can’t resist that. Thanks to Arseblog for that line and more).

Oh and it looks like ex-captain Terry-ble and wife had kissed and made up. Amazing. But wait, there’s more scandal involving Chelshit players. Ah... that cA$hley Cow of course.

I shall leave you now with a link to great Fab moments.

Lunar New Year

I’m sure you’ve heard of the following Chinese quotation (by Lao Tze? Or Confucius?): Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.

Well, in view of the coming Lunar New Year, allow me to share with you the LOL Cats’ versions of the above quotation.

And I save the best for last:

OK, OK, enough already. Sorry, it’s been a long week. I can’t wait for the long weekend *purr purr meow*

Adek and Cesc would like to wish everyone Gong Xi Fa Cai. May we all survive the massive exodus out of the city tomorrow and back into the city on Tuesday.

Special pose from the man in red

(In any case, my quotations for now are as follows:

Cesc: ‘They denied it, I’ve denied it. I just want to focus on Arsenal. Arsenal FC is above every single player in their history. The fans and myself deserve a little more respect.’

Wenger: ‘Nothing plus nothing is nothing.’)

~~~~~~~

I used to take the stairs up from ground floor to my office every morning (I was at the 11th floor at one point) but sadly I’ve become lazy over time. I still try to take the stairs whenever I can though. It irks me to see people taking the lift to go up or down one level (or even two), it really does. Believe me, sometimes taking the stairs takes less time.

Maybe I should consider climbing the stairs again or running to keep fit.

Or maybe I can try pumping iron.

~~~~~~~

Big Brother is not doing well. Please spare a prayer for him if you can. Thank you.

Comedy Of Errors

The first-half of last night’s (or this morning’s) match was a comedy of errors alright. Thankfully the goal came when we needed it most: Diaby did it, heading the winner. It was a beautiful goal and could be vital in our quest to get back into the title race (yes, despite what everyone else thinks, we’re still in it: 10-man ManUre drew and Chelshit lost. If we have to rely on other clubs to defeat the other Big 3, so be it). It’s a topsy-turvy season so far and looks to continue. I saw at least one occasion when we were denied a corner, another occasion where Liverpool were given a corner (despite Song handling it over the line) and a few instances where Liverpool were given undeserved free-kicks because Stevie G kept tumbling down unaided.

It’s anybody’s guess if Cesc is going and Chamakh coming. Apparently an agreement had been reached and he was alleged to have signed a pre-contract with Arsenal (not Liverpool) but this morning’s news denied it. I’d like to laugh off the Cesc rumour comedy; yes, he does desire a return to Barcelona but not now surely. Oh, the skipper has denied it too. So back off Barcelona and all irresponsible mainstream media.

And our reserves players won over Stoke City. I must admit I don’t really follow their news but hey, Nacer scored!

Love Hurts

I cleaned micasa Saturday morning after two weekends away and after that, treated myself with retail therapy at KLCC. Indulged in a bit of mall-walking before hopping on the bus to Ampang where I tried out a massage here - bought a coupon (for a massage, a facial, a slimming programme (well, it’s included in the coupon) and a shower gel) back in December for a real bargain. Yea, I can be such a sucker for bargains. The massage offer comprised of a ten-minute back massage (where the masseuse kept saying she dared not apply too much pressure in case she broke my back bone. Huh?!) and a ten-minute session on a machine (didn’t quite catch the name) – a bit of a strange experience. There I was in my robe, hands on the side rails, standing on the machine with my feet apart and feeling myself being rocked by the machine with infrared lights beaming at various parts of my body. After a while, my tummy started to hurt and I felt myself bending over. A very strange experience I must say, but hey, if it could help lose some fat, why not?

I much prefer walking out than working out in the gym – I feel claustrophobic, uncomfortable and a tad intimidated by other gym-goers and besides I enjoy nature more. Unfortunately, I can’t seem to be able to drag myself out of bed on weekend mornings after a late night watching footie and if I do manage an early Sunday, it’s usually spent watching the footie round-ups. So in my quest to live a fitter and healthier life, I’ve made some investments in a skipping rope (not the ones we had back at school, mind you. This one is pretty sophisticated and is able to tell you how much calories you’ve burnt etc. And yes, skipping is a great way of getting fit), a gym ball (still not received yet) and an exercise mat. Now I can do my exercise in the comfort of my home, yes, even while watching TV!


My quest is to lead a healthier lifestyle so I won’t end like this
... but I don’t like gym so treadmill is out for me

Don’t ask me to do push-ups

... or sit-ups

The above are not impossible to attempt of course

But surely there are better, easier and more convenient ways to burn (more than two) calories?

I appreciate yoga has its benefits

And can help one relax (I just fear it may stress me out instead!)

But I don’t really have yoga ambitions (despite having invested in a book and a DVD)

I’m also too lazy to go out for walks, what more biking (oh the investment!)

And exercise doesn’t have to hurt (OK I know they say ‘no pain, no gain’ but still...!) or be viewed as a chore. Now, I can just do skipping and hey even hula hoop on my new exercise mat in the comfort of my home! *excited*

So it’s exercising and remembering my diet

And hopefully I will have a good body image soon! ;)

Self-love hurts: spending on yourself be it for beauty or fashion or even travel will hurt your wallet but hey, I don’t believe in depriving myself. If I die, someone else will inherit my hard-earned dough anyway so why not spend on myself while I’m still alive? After all, I’m very much worth every penny I earn and spend and more.

~~~~~~~~

And yes, love can consume you and hold you a prisoner. Love can be both suffocating and liberating. Love can heal and yet can give such pain. What is love then? All of that and more. It can be bittersweet and it can hurt.

As what I’m feeling now. Any draw hurt and any defeat hurt me even more to the very heart and core of myself.

And now I’m feeling grumpy and moody. Like this love of mine. Be kind to me please.