The Last Leg Of Things

August 21st, 2008

i usually sit in the lounge at the lower deck when i take the bus back from singapore, because the seats are wider and a lot comfier, and also because there’s usually no one else there, which means i get unadulterated peace and quiet. it’s also great being able to pick whatever movie i want. but sometimes i’m not so lucky, and i get a hollering bunch of kids who in between jumping up and down the seats, fight with each other (ignoring the fact that i could put up a good fight too) over which movie to watch. i long to tell them that there really is not much of a difference between Balls of Fury and Talladega Nights; they’re both lame. but then again when i was younger i really liked Mars Attack so who am i to pass commentary.

then there is the occasional lone guy who tries to keep a tete-a-tete going even though i pointedly keep staring at my book (which then gets: oh hey that’s a really good book, i read that a few years ago, have you gotten to the part where he meets the sheep man, oh you havent oh i’m sorry did i spoil it for you, but even so another book you have to check out is blablablablabla) or loudly exclaiming how i’m so tired (yeah me too haih life is so difficult these days study study study then after school have to work like a dog to earn money hey what do you do anyway? i actually run my own business blablablabla), but much to my chagrin, i sometimes find myself being very curiously drawn into these conversations.

then there’s also the guy who talks too loudly and too long on his mobile phone. or worse yet, the guy who’s far too generous with his bodily gases and isn’t ashamed of it.

but the other day, i encountered a new species of lounge partners: The Caucasian Expat! there were four of them - an american couple and an australian couple - and they’d all been working in Malaysia for 3 years. throughout the entire 5 hour ride to singapore, they talked about Malaysia and all the gritty comparisons that will inevitably come to anyone who’s lived in another country besides Malaysia. it started when the american lady expressed her disdain at the service in Malaysian hospitals, but the australian lady said that when she was at Gleneagles, the service was wonderful - “they even gave me little sandwiches and drinks and everything, but i suppose that was because it was a case of ‘hello, white person!’”, and ended with the american man saying with much sprightliness, “coming into singapore from malaysia is like getting out of a jungle and being welcomed into civilization” upon arrival at the Singaporean immigration.

many other topics were touched on in between, ranging from our political situation and our taxis to the state of our toilets and our currency. (my favorite phrase of the day was: “it’s okay to pay extra, after all it’s only ringgit. the ringgit is like leaves off a tree!”) mostly these things made me sad, but i didnt know if it was because some of the things they said were glaring truths, or if i was upset that these foreigners had such a bleak view of my country. maybe a bit of both.

i’m two days away from leaving, and i feel like there’s so much left to KL that i havent even seen or fully absorbed. i’m going to be taking away with me only fragments of a big picture, only such small pieces of this city that i grew up in. there are a lot of things i havent done, and many of these things wont fit in a suitcase. it’s been a very melancholic couple of weeks. i know i will eventually come back one day, and there will always be summer breaks, but there’s just a lot that i will be missing out on. four years is such a long time to be away. it’s going to be a time so pregnant with events, opportunities, big things happening to loved ones, new restaurants, stories, political change, exams, weddings, graduations… and i wont be here to see any of these. sigh. i dont care what anyone says.. skype just isnt the same as being there in person.

i’ve been frantically eating all sorts of malaysian food over the last week. all my final meetups have been done over delicious things like a piping hot claypot bowl of bak kut teh or my favorite teochew porridge in pudu. yknow, the things i will miss. i really gotta have that SS15 rojak and a really good bowl of curry laksa before i leave. tonight: nasi lemak antarabangsa with Martian! and tomorrow, chili pan mee with the nuffnang folks!

though some of my friends are being cheeky. remember the New York Cheesecake sieutheng and the bunch got me for my farewell party? last week, i wanted to eat chili pan mee for my farewell lunch with the nuffnang boys, but they took me to this place called Yellow Cab Pizza instead, and ordered these pizzas called ‘New York’s Finest’ and ‘Manhattan Meat Madness’. then just yesterday, edmund passed me a box of Big Apple Donuts from his sisters, with a note attached - “Preparing you for the onslaught!” hahaha so cute all these people. i heart.

a picture from my farewell dinner with waifon, albert, skyler, arthur and nazrul, because it’s the cutest pic ever! arthur was teaching us a rude sign, so we all decided to take a photo with various rude signs:

the guy who’s seated second from the left is arthur, and he and i go way back :D one day i’ve gotta tell you guys the story of arthur and i. hahaha it’s a barrel of laughs. “i hate fish” hahahaha okay shhhhh dowan to spoil it. waifon is on the furthest left and she is seriously the most sweetly garang person you will ever meet. it’s hard to explain :P albert is behind me doing this very complicated series of rude motions with his hands. i met him at this play called Endgame, and i was very amused to see his confused and completely mind-boggled face after the show. i swear his eyes were glazed hahaha. nazrul is second from right, and he is one of the coolest guys ever. nazrul, i’m so glad we met :) skyler is on the furthest right, and working with her was a truly fun experience because there’s just so. much. to talk about! she’s also damn angsty wan, as you can see from her blog :P

and here’s the luggage bag i just bought. it’s so humongous that i can curl up in it, and there’s still extra space. and once i fill it with all the shoes and bags i plan on bringing, i hope i figure out where to put all the rest of my stuff :\

so many things to bring, so little luggage space. and dorm room space, too :( apparently i only get 110 sq feet. i’m going to be a mouse!

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