In a nutshell

Sorry for the lack of updates...

Been up and about lately. Just came back from a 4-day trip in Ipoh for the second and probably last run of Broken Bridges. The town, where the musical is based in, is small, sleepy and easy to warm up to. The performances went smoothly enough and we played to appreciative audiences. Performing at Taman Budaya was tiring for many reasons, but I learned a lot from it and there was oodles of fun to be had in between. The last show was an emotional one; such is the cycle of theatre work. I'd blog about this, but I haven't even gotten down to blogging about the first run. Eventually, eventually.

In terms of my gastric problems, the results of my urea breath test came back negative. Which is good, because that means I don't have a bacterial infection. Which is bad, because now I still have no idea what's going on. My GP has recommended me to a specialist for an endoscopy, which I have been told isn't exactly da bomb, except in terms of expenses. Doesn't look like I'm gonna be covered by insurance either. As much as I want to evade the situation, all I'm left to do is see how long I can kid myself that it's all just a case of too much Ipoh white coffee.

I've lately become more and more involved with the Remember Sheena Campaign. There was a meeting that was held at a recently-opened pet sanctuary called the Furry Friends Farm in Kluang, where many ideas were shared and it sounds like things are getting off to a refreshing start. There's tons of work to be done however, and I'm terrified of not being able to put in as much work as I would want to because of other commitments. But I'll try my bestest.

I attended Female Magazine's 50 Gorgeous People publicity gig at the magazine's bumper roadshow a few weekends ago at One Utama. (Thanks for popping by, Kelvin.) My impromptu interview there with Channel [V] made it on television a few days ago, and my little sister managed to record it. Watching the playback reveals how shamelessly flirtatious VJ Alvin was with my girly-girl persona. The 50 Gorgeous People party at Zouk is happening this coming Saturday, where the results for Most Gorgeous Man & Woman will be announced. I'm not keeping any high hopes on clinching the title, but a huge thanks goes out to all who voted and for their love and support. (The event also happens to fall on my birthday. It's nice to have a gig already organized for me, although I'm only true friends with two out of the 49. I'd like to see if I can organize a small get-together the evening before, but I've been so busy feeling old to be bothered about getting old, so it's a play-by-ear as usual.) Mix FM is organizing a contest where their listeners can win a blind date next Wednesday with 5 guys and 5 girls from the list. I'm not sure how I ended up getting selected for that, and I've never gone on a blind date before. Heck, I don't even know how to date altogether. As you can see, it's gonna be a surefire hoot.

Here's another little treat for those who missed out on the TM Net commercial I did last year. Nicholas found it whilst browsing around on YouTube! A shame it's in low resolution here as the expressions are priceless. The subtitles are in Malay, so drop me a line if you need translation.



That's it for now. Back to the usual blogging soon.

Second round

Work has gotten into a bit of a crisis that requires civilised talk between lawyers, rehearsals for the Broken Bridges run in Ipoh has kicked off to an ebullient start this week, and I've just gone for a medical test that may confirm a gastric bacterial infection if, left untreated, could lead to cancer.

As you can see, my internal 24-hour hotline for drama is once again off the hook.

But it doesn't feel as bad as it sounds for now. In fact, as pathetic as this sounds, at the end of the day my biggest concern is how much time I have left to blog these days, and what about.

Many friends have been telling me about a promo ad on TV about S'kali being featured in the Astro Box Office Movies selection for November 2006. I haven't seen it myself, and probably never will at the rate my contact hours with the television is diminishing. But while it's still a discussable topic, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to post up a couple of related articles to keep you guys distracted while I get my act together. My apologies for the text being relatively small for reading comfort.

Here is the interview with the full cast - one of very few - that that appeared in CinemaOnline, July 2006 issue. I feel this the best group interview we had - well written with little misinterpretation. Although there was a little mix-up at one point between a cameo I made on Pond's 'Table For Two' and the 8TV Quickie Dramedy.





This article is taken from Vida! magazine, also taken from their July 2006 issue. This one is my baby for biased reasons: I contacted the Managing Editor with a humble proposal for coverage, and she unexpectedly gave us a ten-page feature. All the pictures used here (except the one with me in it) were taken from my first personal photography assignment using my then-brand-new Konica Minolta Z20. (The photo credit includes my castmate Zimy Rozan, but his pictures unfortunately didn't make the cut.)

If you subscribe to Astro's Box Office Movies (Channel 21) this month, you can catch S'kali at the following times:

Tuesday 14th November, 11am
Wednesday 15th November, 6am & 10pm
Thursday 16th November, 5pm
Friday 17th November, 9am
Saturday 18th November, 4am & 8pm
Sunday 19th November, 3pm

Thank you once again for supporting Malaysian cinema.

We be Chiling

During my stay at Vig's place during the Deepa-Raya holidays, he told me that he and his mates were scheming to make a day trip to Kuala Kubu Baru, the usual site for Raleigh International's Introductory Weekends. When I took part in the event late 2004, I underwent the usual bootcamp routine that Raleigh plans out for their potential recruits. The only thing familiar this time round was the parking area, and that the obstacle course path would barely form half of the warm-up of a long hardcore trek to our true coveted destination, Chiling Waterfalls.

Vig's right-hand man Alan graciously took on the role of chaffeur. Together with Chun Ming and Pearly, the five of us headed out to fuel our bodies up first, and chose a hawker place that sounded veritably dubious.


The ride to Kuala Kubu Baru was not too short, neither was it long enough to stretch over into my fidget zone. Chun Ming kept the car buzzing momentarily with a sudden outburst of paparazzi panache.


Once we got to the parking area, we immediately got going with Alan leading the way. I decided to strip down to my swimsuit, since I only had one set of dry clothes to last me the whole day. Had trekking been on the agenda before I packed for Vig's place, I would have also included a pair of hardy sandals in my rucksack. Alas, the only available replacement for my delicate white trainers was Vig's flip-flops, 2 sizes too big. After several minutes of trudging through puddles and uneven terrain, the slippers proved to be more of a shortcoming than an advantage. "You know, I'd personally go without the slippers," Vig nudged me. I gave in to the logic behind that option, and off my feet they went.

The next hour and a half was an upsetting ordeal for my tender virgin soles. Slipping on rocks, tripping over roots, stepping on the unsuspecting thorn, not to mention having my heels chased by ants the size of my thumb. But it was riveting to feel the earth under my feet and soon enough, I was lapping up every step onto damp humus, fuzzy moss and the notoriously guilty pleasure of toes sinking into mud.


There were a few rivers to cross along the way, and treading chest-deep into an overwhelmingly strong current of chilly spring water on a rocky bed whilst attempting to keep your bag dry is a feat that only looks easy when acheived by either iron men or Raleigh members, both groups sometimes overlapping. I tried swimming at one point, thinking that it was easier, but got hurled downstream before finding a large stone to cling on to until the others waded over to lend me a hand. "You're such a rookie!" Vig teasingly said as he grabbed me by the forearm. Easy for a Raleigh-an to joke about it. Had I not shared the same physical density as cork, I'm sure river-crossing would have come to me more naturally.

We eventually heard an unmistakeable roar, and we stepped up on our pace. Alan ran out of my sight and I heard him holler with awe. We joined him in the open space, felt the wind and mist on our faces, and started screaming too.

It was amazing.


There was a massive stone facing the waterfall for us to chill and indulge in some photography.

I in the meantime inspected my feet after the long, exaggerated reflexology session.


There was a low ledge to the left of the waterfall which Alan had already begun to exploit. Vig set his camera to progressive-shot mode, and each of us took turns in capturing our creative take-offs.

I call this one 'The Lemming'.







How's the water? I'm sure you can tell.


While we were there, we also surprised Alan with a birthday present: a limited edition Ultraman figurine. He was very happy.


You Tarzan, me Lame


Our lack of heed to the greying clouds overhead got the better of us when we got hit with a sudden heavy downpour. We packed up hurriedly and Pearly started to run. "Why are you running? No point!" Chun Ming laughed. The 'Tard didn't understand why, and then remembered how far we were from the nearest roof. The rain died down halfway through our journey back to the car.

The jungle is full of strange and terrifying creatures.


Not your average afternoon stroll


After Chiling waterfalls, we drove further down the road to check out the natural hot springs, where some of the village folk were already utilising as their sunset hangout. The water was seething, and our skin flushed. Amidst the rustic sound of toads croaking and fragments of feathery blue algae floating around our shoulders, it was a dreamy end to the day.

I loved the company I had that day. It was the most impromptu getaway I've ever had, and the one didn't know I needed the most. I'm glad that they were to blame.


Most of the images here were taken by Vig. For more pictures of crazy dives, the Ultraman 'sexcapades' and other wierd things these people got up to that day, log on to Multiply and check out the album at Vig's account.

Special message from Mr. Koh

This is an exclusive combined response to the comments made by Pugly and Commonjack in the previous post.


Hello. My is Knee Kah. But you can call me Mr. Koh.

I want you to vote Davina because she is gorgeous lady and I like her very long.

If you vote you can also be top 120 readers to get 2 passes to 50 Gorgeous People party at Zouk club in December and you can party with Davina the gorgeous lady.

If Davina win Favourite Gorgeous Woman (based on the most number of many votes and most creative entries), you can win Samsung Ultra Edition 6.9 (SGH-X820) worth RM1,099. They will tell the names of the winners at the Zouk happening party where Davina the gorgeous woman will be there.

How To Vote for the very Gorgeous Davina the sexy lady

1. Type VOTE DAVINA and send to 36677

2. After this you will get SMS back and it will asking you to say why Davina is the most gorgeous person (maximum 150 characters). So you type 'ANS' and then leave space and then say your answer and then send to 36677.

Example: Type ANS I WANT HER NASI LEMAK and send to 36677

The winners to the party will know when the Female people will send SMS and phonecall.

You can check if Davina is in the Top 3 Gorgeous Woman, so you type RANK and send to 36677.

It cost 50 sen per SMS on top of normal charges so is very cheap to make sure Davina is winner. Vote deadline is 27th November 2006.

For more term and condition you can check the Female magazine that is November and is very big and has funny upside down cover.

I will now say my poem I write for Davina. I call it Davina Is Very Gorgeous Lady.

Davina is very gorgeous lady

I will do stupid thing on motorbike for her


And I will be spaceman for her


And I will become sexy kangaroo for her


And I will be very strong for her


And I will do sexy dance for her


Because she is my Davina and she give me special feeling in my trouser.

Okay I finish thank you.