LITTLE PENANG STREET MARKET - JUNE

I first heard about Little Penang Street Market from Jess quite a while ago, but the interest to check the place out only piqued when sometime in April, I met a gentleman who makes and sells miniature ships there. After reading at their website on what they have to offer, I'm desperate to experience for myself this wonderful effort to bring art and Penang culture together.

So last Sunday, when the weather was permissible, we made our way to Penang. As always, just the two of us.

Nunu thoroughly enjoyed the ferry ride.

Little Penang was started in July 2006, organised by a small volunteer commitee. It's main objective is to nurture and showcase both traditional and contemporary arts, craft & culture. Held every last Sunday of the month, the market combines stalls for artisans to peddle their wares, a platform for performing artists to showcase their talents and a host of different cultural activities.

I think I'm gonna be here every month, I surely don't want to miss anything!

First stop, the antique stall - lots of precious treasure here, I was stuck here for a good 10 minutes I think, scavenging through the wonderful mess for the perfect vintage brooch I was yearning for.

This beauty gleamed to me from afar, beckoning me to pick it up, but before I could open the locket, Nunu spelled trouble. This stall sold all sorts of owl paraphernalia.

We got hungry and my initial lunch plan was to just grab whatever that was available there. These cuppies from Mandy were RM10 for 3, so that was lunch right there!

This is Husni's stall. Magnificent, aren't they? Remember, 100% handmade.

One of the prettiest stall belongs to Community_Works, which was under this huge tent. You can read about the organization at their blog.

A lot of the vendors there sold handmade stuff, and most of them have websites or blogs. These cuties were irresitable. If only Nunu didn't conk out and I had to carry her around half time we were there, I would have grabbed some of these (doesn't matter if I don't have my ears pierced!)

Daphne, the girl from this stall was nice enough to offer her expertise to custom make the brooch that I wanted. I was supposed to email her for the details but when we got home Nunu has taken her name card and practically chewed it beyond redemption.

Dang, I couldn't recall her blog url or her email, so Daphne if you're reading this, let me know!

I don't remember what song this girl was singing, but not long after that a little boy came up and started belting out 'Ben'. Oh, woe!

The organization that I'm linked with, Dewanita set up 4 stalls for our members. One of the stalls was occupied by Kak Liza, a gorgeous lady who owns a clothing boutique and a corporate gifts business. Other stalls were occupied by Kak Endang, who sells hand stitched home decor items and Kak Ain who owns a bakery (but she only brought kerepeks this time).

I wished I could have taken more pictures or at least purchase something, but like I said Nunu got sleepy and cranky, so just had to get out of that place as I wasn't feeling good myself. Her dead weight was taking it's toll on my arms, which were sore for days.

More photos on my picasa site. I definitely would come again next month. This time I'll bring a stroller.

MY FAREWELL

Just when you think that you're done with the outpouring tributes to the late MJ, here I come with another cheesy one to add to the overwhelming pile. I didn't think I wanted to do this initially as I felt that it is best that I grieve in my own quiet way, coz you can't really consider me as a die-hard fan.

I don't own any of his albums, I didn't keep any posters, pictures or newspaper clippings of him, and I certainly don't have much childhood memories special enough for a worthy read. But as the shock and the state of denial wore off, reality began to sink in and I'm now at the stage of acceptance, that I am no different from millions others. On Sunday morning, when I had the luxury of time to mull over the news on the net and drown myself in sorrow with his youtube videos, I was officially in mourning over the passing of the great King of Pop.

What's with the delay, you ask? Slowlah Anne ni, you might think! Well, I have my reasons, hence the reluctant blog post. Zara texted me of the news early Friday morning as I was busy packing for a business trip later that morning. I texted, "U kidding rite?", thinking, not another hoax? But when I learnt the truth, I was indeed shocked, but unapologetically non-chalant somehow (I was probably more concerned about how I was supposed to close my packed-to-the-brim suitcase!) Zara admitted that she loved MJ, but did I too? No time to thinklah.

Through out my journey to KL with several other senior members of DPMMPP, although the air waves were inundated with his songs, I was still snobbishly indifferent. When we reached our destination, which was Istana Hotel, I switched on the tv and was turned off by the media frenzy. So another music legend dies, so what? I'm not a fan, therefore I'm not affected - haha, so action only, berlagak habih orang penang kata.

However, everything changed during our dinner later that night. A stellar performance by 80's one-time heart-throb Syed Sobri, who dedicated the song 'One Day in Your Life' to his idol, finally melted my icy heart. In a flurry of memories that were coming back to me, I realized that just a day before he passed away, Martian and I was singing our hearts out to Nunu, in effort of introducing Nunu to our respective fave song by MJ. Mine was 'Ben' and his, of course, was 'One Day in Your Life'. I forgot about Nunu's giggles when she saw her parents facing off with each other and thought that they've gone nutty. Now, is that an act of love?

'Ben' goes waaaaay back that I couldn't even remember when I first heard of the song, but my friend Suriani was the one who taught me the song 'One Day in Your Life'. I think we were 13 then, I remember sitting cross legged on our bunk beds and was completely enamoured by the sweet melody and Suriani's voice. Could that be love too?

Still, I wasn't a huge enough fan, my brothers were. When we were small, my mom got us a video tape of the 80's all time hit and we enjoyed 'Thriller' (sikit pun tak takut ok BB, lagi syok adalah!), 'Beat It' and 'Billie Jean' to the max. Of course the boys tried all the moves and I did what big sisters do best - roll my eyes and scoff mercilessly at them. As much as I enjoyed his moonwalk, anti-gravity lean and crotch-grabbing grooves, I'm more appreciative of his slower numbers and less popular hits ('The Girl is Mine', 'The Way You Make Me Feel', just to name a few).

I remember one of my brother bought (or made my mom buy) the HIStory album and the song that made the biggest impact on me was 'Smile' (originally by Nat King Cole), a staple for teens with depressive tendencies like me. I've always had a soft spot for poor troubled souls, and inside the CD cover, an image of a little boy cowering in a dark corner is forever etched in my mind. I began to see what is beyond the words in his humanitarian-themed songs. I remember feeling all warm whenever I listen to his songs, no matter how vulgar and violent-sounding, or sweet and melodious the tune is. The warm feeling all over, it's got to be love, right?

I also remember that due to all the negative press about him for the past decade has made my love for him wane. I truly didn't belief every allegation thrown at him, but the media circus involving his eccentricities and controversies just made me sick in the stomach that I chose not to care anymore. I ignored every piece of news about him coz none of them made him look good and he looked like he was on his way to his downfall. In short, malas nak layan. I didn't even know of the news that he converted to Islam once.

I feel bad about my attitude now, coz while I was watching those videos and reminiscing, I suddenly remembered something, and went to check my blogger profile, and there it was - under 'favorite music', i wrote 'used to be crazy over Wacko Jacko'. So I did loved him once, I just forgot all about it! Or maybe I have always loved him, and I was too embarrassed to admit it. How sad is that?

Now that he's gone, I realized that I couldn't have stopped loving him for all the wacky things that happened to him. I should be old enough to learn that people make bad choices in their lives all the time, especially when you love under a microscope.

Unlike some fans who admitted openly to have wept over this loss, I couldn't find myself to shed a tear (still action ka weh?) ... until I found this video that finally opened the floodgates.



Michael Mikaeel Jackson, my old love, I pray that you've finally found your peace now. I shall remember you now, forever and always for your pure heart, your legacy of music and your gift of love. For someone who has given joy to millions of people, I truly believe you shall be rewarded with everything you deserve for in the hereafter. May Allah SWT bless your soul. Al-fatihah.

One day in your life
Youll remember the love you found here
Youll remember me somehow
Though you dont need me now
I will stay in your heart
And when things fall apart
You'll remember one day . . .

A TUTU FOR NUNU

Dearest Nunu,

Ever since I knew that I'm expecting a girl the first time I went for the scan, I was ecstatic. Every mother secretly wishes that her firstborn's a baby girl I'm sure, purely for girly cuteness factor. But when you came along, little that I know that you were gonna be a challenge for me. Not only that with your perennially bald head (not your fault dear, it's purely genetic) and sparse hair made people thought that you're a boy (sometimes while you're wearing a skirt or a dress even!) but your character was also far from girly that I was constantly reminded by your grandmother to recite quranic verses in your ears in hope it would make you more 'gentle'.

Still, you prove to be 'one of the boys' right from the beginning. You easily warmed up to men and boys and abangs and you showed little interest to play or respond to women/girls. And the stunts you pulled, the troubles that you got into, oh let's not even go there! When you're old enough to have your own fashion sense, you prefer those ratty tshirts, jeans and pants. There were days when I just couldn't bear with the outfit of your choice and simply wrestled you into a dress or a skirt, but on the days that I won, you certainly didn't go down without a fight. And now that you're older and being much, much more vocal, *long sigh* lantaklah, mak dah tak kuasa dah.



This picture obviously is not NOT the cutest picture of you, but it is certainly the photo that describes you best. The typical funny selamba tomboy rockstar.

You're still a challenging girl to raise Nunu, but it's been fun ride since I had you 1285 days ago (gosh, has it been that long already?) At least in recent months you've shown interest in more lady-like stuff - Disney pricessess, Barbie dolls, main masak-masak - totally self-initiated, so I guess I should be cool. Even when you admitted that you've bitten a friend in school the other day, you defended yourself that the boy was a big bully and was harassing you, and I'm so glad I have a plucky kid as a daughter. You're nothing short of everything I hope for a child, babe.

The point of this post actually, a free tutu by tutuworkshop is up for grabs. Nunu DESERVES this tutu, simply because (1) TUTU rhymes with NUNU! obviously that's a winner of a reason (2) I hope it would girly-fy Nunu a teeny bit more. Please, I need all the help that I can get. I suppose years of being mistaken for a boy entitles Nunu for something totally outrageous like a tutu :) (3) If Nunu wins this tutu, we would totally ROCK this kampung! Seriously, Nunu wearing a tutu to a kenduri in this sleepy village? We'll be front page news and over-the-fence gossip! Who says budak kampung or budak penang cannot wear tutu, eh? You want her to beg, issit?

In truth, just about anyone can win this tutu, generously provided by tutuworkshop and organized by MySuperKids. Just follow these simple steps and win!

1. Subscribe to MySuperKids and Tutu Workshop.(Every contestant must be a part of MySuperKids member and as a tutuworkshop fans – by dropping your email in the box @tutuworkshop website )
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2. Make an entry titled : A Tutu For OR Tutu Untuk . e.g. A Tutu For Dania; OR; in my case, Tutu For NUNU
   
3. Put your daughter’s cutest picture.
4. Write about – why your daughter/niece/cousin/lil sister should get a tutu / kenapa anak/anak buah/sepupu/adik saya patut dapat tutu – in your very own, creative ways.
5. Describe about the contest with link back to http://mysuperkids.net and http://tutuworkshop.blogspot.com.
6. Inform Mommy Lyna of MySuperKids at this link when you’re done!
7. Entry should be written in English & Bahasa Malaysia only.

The winner will be featured in My Super Kids and Tutu Workshop.

First Prize : A Custom-Made Princess tutu 14″ length, extra puffy + accesories worth RM120.00

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Second Prize : A Custom-Made Classic 10″ length, double puffy + t-shirt worth RM100.00

Third Prize : Custom-Made Poffy Classic 8 ” length, double puffy.worth RM80.00

5 Consolation Prizes : 15% discount voucher for any purchase at TutuWorkshop.

- and oh yeah, the contest ends today! 25th June, so hurry up! I'm up very early to finish this post!

Last but not least, my cheeky tomboy has what it takes to be a tutu rockstar chick! Definitely not your typical ballerina/fairy-princess wannabe, that's for sure.


Image from here

JUST DANCE

Pic by Miguel Vidal / Reuters

Saw this on this week's msnbc The Week in Pictures.

A 4-year-old girl dressed in costume takes a break during the "Coca" celebration in Redondela in rural northeastern Spain on June 11. One of the traditions of the festival is for mothers to dance with costumed young daughters on their shoulders. The tradition is taken from a local legend, believed to have its origins in the Middle Ages, about two women being saved from a dragon by dancing in the said manner. The children are dressed in traditional costumes called "Penlas."

Every little girl should have a pair of make-believe fairy wings. That, or a bike.