With 1 nanny to a kid, (that's a total of 6 nannies) no wonder Brangelina is able to build a United Nations family, when most normal human beings struggle with a family of 3. And of course it's nice to raise kids when someone else does the cleaning up after. You just have to play with them.

And pay for them, of course.

It's another long weekend! The last one before holiday-filled December (a month which consists mostly of 4-day work weeks, yippee!)

I shall be spending this weekend at 2 weddings. I've lost count of how many I've been to this year. I think I've attended 7, and had to decline 5 (but the yan ching still goes). There should be only 1 more before 2008 ends (not counting this weekend's 2). And I've already got 2 invites for 2009.

I like weddings. Seeing the bride and groom try to get through the day's tedious proceedings, and the groom being so caring of the bride, knowing it's almost 10 times worse for her having to go thru the long make-up sessions and wearing those heavy gowns around.

And I like the dinners, because they become a reunion of sorts - seeing people you wouldn't normally take time to meet, everyone gathering just to say that loud yam seng to the couple on stage. And everyone catching up with everyone's life - who's jumped the corporate ladder to where, who's getting married, who already is (and didn't let us know), who is ballooning for 9 months, who just had a full moon party. Life just whizzes by the older we get.

Petronas Deepavali ad 2008

I constantly look out for Petronas adverts during festive seasons. This year's Deepavali ad blew me away.

"Even through tough times,

courage, determination and a lot of love

can give us wings to fly."

My immediate thoughts :

• I'm glad my parents taught me the joy of books. No kid should be denied books.
• The father works hard for his son's dreams. The father may throw harsh words at his son. But, what you are today, is what he made you.
• Every child's dream is important. It's what the future of our nation will be.
• Yasmin Ahmad sure is one heck of a film-maker.

Economic turmoil

My job requires me to constantly read and source for written articles on the property market as well as the economy (being that the performance of the property market is always directly linked to a nation's economy).

And I stumbled upon this brilliantly-written article by none other than our very own TDM.

I may not be a good economist, and I may not be able to ask the right questions to determine if what TDM writes is merely an old datuk's paranoia. But I do know that what he wrote made sense to me. And I suddenly felt this fear. I hope that TDM's analysis is very wrong and our current leaders (morons as they have proved to be) are very right. I hope hard.

So that you can feel ice running down your spine, here are some snippets from TDM's eye-opening article :

1. This ability to isolate Malaysia and Malaysian banks from the effect of the bankruptcies of all the biggest banks in the world must be regarded as a miracle.
2. The United States and Europe are among the biggest of our trading partners. Roughly 40 per cent of our total trade is with them. I may be wrong but I believe that if our buyers cannot pay for what they import from us, we would not make the profit we had expected.
3. It is believed that unpaid credit card loans is in excess of RM20 billion.
4. We are told that six billion Ringgit in Foreign Direct Investment would flow into the country. But what about the RM30 billion outflow as foreign investors pulled out of the stock market?
5. I pray that I am wrong. I pray that the Government is right in declaring that the whole world may collapse but we would be the only country which won't. We will sail calmly through the seas of shattered economies.
6. Instead of doing business in goods and services they now do business in money, in fictitious money.
7. If you ask yourself where do the US700 billion Dollars come from when you know the United States' Government has to borrow US1.5 billion every day, you will find no answer.

It is scary because everyday the newspapers report our various Ministers proclaiming that our economy is strong, our reserves are huge, etc etc. The recent immediate flip-flop on the "bank guarantee policy" is enough to show that our Oxford-educated Finance Minister does not really know what he's doing.

I hope the government is merely releasing such encouraging statements only because they want us to remain calm, and that behind the curtains, the government is actually taking severe measures to safeguard our country. I hope the government is smarter than they make themselves out to be. I hope this will not be the 50-year Great Depression as the chain mails are making it out to be.

UPDATE 15:41 - Najib has announced today that the government will borrow RM5 billion from EPF to fund government investment agency Valuecap Sdn Bhd which primarily invests in undervalued blue-chip stocks in KLSE.

Why, oh why, are my alarm bells ringing? All our hard-earned money used to play shares in the share market during a period of free-falling markets? Pls, can anyone explain to the economic bozo in me why this RM5 billion will help "boost the economy and protect Malaysia from the effects of global financial turmoil" instead of putting us on a speed-train straight towards it?

And on another note, but still on our favourite protagonist (or is it antagonist?), when asked on whether the government's cost-cutting includes the controversial Eurocopters, he says : "All projects will be reviewed but defence projects are to be assessed differently. We are looking at all projects, not just defence projects. Security projects cannot be measured on the economic yardstick."

The question of WHY begs to be asked. But, we already know the answers don't we. Whose pockets are brimming?

Book Review : My Favourite Wife by Tony Parsons

It's been awhile since I've reviewed a book. Not that I've stopped reading - I still read most nights before my eyes betray me. The last book I read was Vince Flynn's Protect and Defend. It was different from my usual literature, rented because KF's a fan and I gave it a shot after he'd finished with it (just to maximize rental). The book was readable. But no, I don't think I'll read anymore of his books - has too many Islamic terrorist elements in it and I had trouble keeping up with the various tribes and all their politics - so sssseriousss :P

Anyway, Tony Parsons is GREAT! He's one of my most favourite authors, I've read every single one of his books except for "Stories We Could Tell" (of which I actually own a copy but never managed to get past page 10 because it's not his usual style). I love him because he's so in touch with his emotions - such a rarity in a guy. He could be gay, I dunno, but he writes well, so I don't care.

My Favourite Wife is great because it's set in Shanghai - and involves "second wives", dirty property developers, upright lawyers, colonial imperialism, etc etc. But mostly, it is about a man who brings his wife and daughter to Shanghai for a career move. Apparently the Shanghai smog got too much for his asthmatic daughter, so the wife and kid return to London. With a sexy elegant Chinese woman as a neighbour, the guy falls, of course (isn't this so typical of Tony Parsons?). His father warns him about the potential destruction to his family, particularly to his granddaughter : "No woman is that good in bed", trying to pull his son back to the right path.

What follows is a gray line between what's right and wrong. Tony Parsons does so well because he can relate to that gray line so vividly, draw it out so clearly. Because in fact, any kid can tell you that the Shanghai lady mistress should be the one out of the picture. But Parsons makes it seem like she actually has a rightful place in there.

Of course, what makes the book good is also because he managed to paint such an accurate picture of Shanghai and life in that opportunist city as an expat.

I didn't want to return this book. I've got 3 of his books so far. Probably, in the future, I'd buy the whole collection of his books, just so I can read them whenever I want.

You should read it too. Highly recommended.

"A man with two houses loses his mind: a man with two women loses his soul."

Review : Sawasdee Sukhumvit Inn, Bangkok

In 2005

We spent 5 days in Bangkok (29-Oct-05 to 2-Nov-05), all of which we stayed at Sawasdee Sukhumvit Inn. It's really truly excellent value for money.

KF and I stayed in the Superior Double room on the 1st floor, while ML and JC stayed in the Deluxe room on the 3rd floor. It's definitely worth it to pay the extra for the Deluxe as you get a more comfortable bed, nicer drinking glasses, etc. But if you're not into the tiny details, a Superior is fine too.

Only problem I had was with the air-conditioning which turned hot in the middle of the night, so I would have to switch it off and on again. Troublesome. But otherwise, I was comfortable.

Hot shower available, although I would have to warn you that the bathroom I had in the Superior was really quite small, about 5' by 6'. The one my friends had in the Deluxe was much longer and more spacious. Note, though, that the bathroom will definitely be entirely wet after a shower.

The room had a fridge which was a great place to cool our store-bought mineral water after a day of traipsing in the hot Bangkok weather. They also had cable television : HBO, MTV, ESPN, CNN, and some others.

Breakfast came with the room and was American-style, with toast, eggs, ham and a cup of coffee/tea.

A nice touch was the little massage parlour in the lobby. The therapists there are excellent! For THB250, you get a 60-minute foot massage with a little head and shoulder massage thrown in. It's utterly wonderful to return after a day trip and flop down in the lobby to get your feet pampered.

We paid THB645 per night for the Superior, which is really a steal! The Superior has a queen-sized bed whereas the Deluxe has a king-sized bed.

The staff were quite helpful. Sometimes, they will appear to be frazzled and unsmiling. But, definitely, at all times, they assisted us with whatever we needed - be it booking a tour, or giving directions. It is no wonder that the reception people are often harried, because it appears that this place is constantly fully-booked. And I can see why.

Overall, I think this place is real value for money. It is clean, has a homely feel, is not seedy, quite quiet (no noisy cars or highways), very near to the skytrain, and near to all kinds of food. I would definitely stay here again the next time I am in Bangkok.

(this is extracted from a review I provided to Tripadvisor)

In 2008

This is the 2nd time (30-Sep-08 to 3-Oct-08) I've stayed in this inn, the 3rd time for KF (12-Jul-08). We booked 4 rooms this time - 2 deluxe and 2 superior. The deluxe rooms were very nice as usual - comfy quilts, nice beds, big windows, spacious bathrooms. The deluxe rooms were obviously more superior to the Superior rooms in every way. I'd recommend the deluxe rooms anytime! The location of the property is excellent, 3 mins walk to Thong Lo BTS station, about 5 mins walk to Ekamai BTS station (of which there's a shopping complex nearby with McD's and KFC if that's your thing). Excellent night food stalls in soi 63 across the road from the BTS. Helpful and friendly reception staff as always.

(this is extracted from a review I provided to Sawadee.com which I use whenever I need to book a hotel in Thailand because they have the best rates)

What I didn't say in the reviews

The 2nd time around, we wanted to book 4 Deluxe rooms but couldn't. So us young ones had to settle for the Superior rooms, which is the same as what I stayed in the first time I was there. Obviously, with age, (and higher spending power, more "yim chim"-ness) the room didn't seem so nice after all. It was bearably comfy, but not luxurious. The Deluxe rooms however are faultless, except that you have to climb more stairs to reach them. They've refurbished some Superior rooms (my sisters-in-law had a nice one), so if you're lucky, you might land a good Superior room. But the difference in room rates for a Superior (THB 830) and a Deluxe (THB 890) is not substantial, so I'd suggest a Deluxe anytime.

The travel desk is still there, and gosh, the hotel receptionist is still the same person! But much friendlier this time around and very helpful when we had to make bookings for massages and transportation. The only thing I truly miss is the massage service in the lobby. If the masseurs were still there, then the stay would have been perfect.

However, I'm glad this time we found soi 63 which has LOADS of great hawker food. And the nearby McD's to satisfy that Pork Burger urge.

Yes I know, this review is like super-da-long. Little bit more ah.

We've agreed that the next time we're back in Bangkok (if we do go back again for some leisure trip which we don't foresee in the near future), we'll stay elsewhere (like I said, higher spending power). But if it's a budget budget trip, definitely recommend here :)

I'm back from Bangkok. But swamped with work. I need another holiday.