Tera-pies

Okay la, that might be a tad bit of an exaggeration. Melbourne is nowhere near as cold as London. Or even South Korea(as I've been reminded countless times by my Korean colleagues). But still, I'm too used to it being summer all year round(with the occasional wet spells) from where I come from.

Having said that, I'm here to compile a random list of things I now consider as much needed luxuries(you can live without them, more or less, but by god when you get it, layan sia) in winter; certain things I either take for granted in toasty KL, or simply never thought about till I came here.

1. A Hot shower

Not warm. No room temperature. PANAS. Macam hot spring/sauna level of panas. Kalau musim lain, memang the idea of throwing yourself into air-yang-borderline-melecur wouldn't even cross your mind. But if you spent almost every hour of your day outside on a windy(ni sebab utama Australian winters are a bitch...the wind is not your friend in winter, and they tend to make frequent appearances during the course of the day) winter's day. The only thing better than having a long hot shower in winter would be having your very own home built sauna. But ain't none of us got that kinda dough. So what to do. Actually, while we're at it, yes, a sauna is something I take for granted a lot when I'm back home. Kalau aku balik ni, nak cari sauna and just duk dalam there for awhile.

2. Sushi rolling

A friend of mine calls it burrito wrapping. "Tomatoe", "tomaato" man. Get a thick ass comforter/quilt/blanket, and roll yourself into a california roll. The best sia. To complete the picture, get a book or your laptop to watch a movie or go online.

3. Layers

Dekat Malaysia, pakai tshirt atau kemeja sudah. Sini, pakai dua-dua, pastu pakai sweater or jacket on top. On some days, lagi 2 tu pon pakai gak. Cannot la, too climatized to Malaysian weather dy. Gimme sweaty and sticky over brrrrr. But as of late I've been "winging it" so to speak; just pakai t-shirt and kemeja when going out. Don't ask me why, it's one of those unexplainable Syaf things(like how no matter what, my body just won't move in a club setting, it'll remain awkwardly static till I finally see no point in being there and bailing out early).

4. Socks

This makes a diff whether I dapat a good nights sleep or merana satu malam.

5. Good walking shoes
Think those thick ass Nike/Adidas/New Balance style shoes. Tak kira aa what brand. But I find that these type of shoes are the best. It particularly helps in winter, sebab bila too sejuk, I can make a dash for it...in comfort!

6. Soups, hot drinks, spicy food
Speaks for itself I think. But Aussie's level of pedas is a joke man. The "Extra Hot" level in Aussie Nandos ain't got nothing on the Malaysian equivalent.

It's a "Syaf" version, because I wrote a similar article for a friend of mine. This one's the shorter, more selamba/lepak version. It's basically a list of things I realized or noticed after working in the fnb line for awhile.

1. Most people don't bother to read

There are huge signs that say "order here", "cash only", "collect here" and "self service". But do they care? Nope. "Bro, latte tak sampai sampai lagi". You're supposed to pick it up yourself you prick. Tak nampak ke ada 5 orang lagi dekat counter tu, rajin je diorang tunggu. "Don't throw tissues into the bowl, we have bins for that". There are 2 of those frickin huge ass, block lettered signs; one when you frickin open the door, another when you're about to sit on the throne. Balik balik, sama gak, masuk toilet, tu dia, selagi ada lubang, tersumbat la dengan tissue. Pastu tanya kenapa toilet selalu out of order. Ee aku lempang karang.

2. There are 2 basic stereotypes of "corporate" people

They're either pushy pricks who lack common courtesy(like "excuse me", "hi", "thank you") and expect things to go their way errtime. Chop chop. And yes, they will more or less have some variation of the fuckface plastered on their mugs...ee rasa cam nak tumbuk je kekadang. The other type of corporate people though, I like! While they too may have that same sense of urgency, they still treat you like a human being. And its usually the latter type that will come in errday errday, become regulars, make polite conversation, and might even pop in when they're much more free in the weekends.

3. Working environment dictates my mood

So far with colleagues, regardless of where I work, takde hal la. Everyone I've met so far seemed chill and lepakable and seemingly have no interest in office politics. Kalau ada pon, I'm not a part of it, which is just the way I like it. But one stark difference between workplace A and B? The background music. There's "typical" coffee joint music(think uninspiring jazz, terlalu mellow stuff etc), vs a vinyl corner and custom ipod playlists by a manager/supervisor with good taste in music(amboi, mengampu nampak...haha, but true though).

4. England very the important

This applies more for the Aussie portion of my fnb career. Kat Malaysia tak kisah sangat. I understand how white people feel now; the whole "you come to our country, learn to speak the language" thing. Haha. Yang paling takleh blah, they'll have the accent down. Tapi pronunciation bapak berterabur. Grammar teruk takpe. I'm not much of a grammar nazi. Heck, my grammar kekadang all over the place gak, since im too used to speaking rojak. But its hard when you can't pronounce chocolate or regular. To be fair though, the locals aren't completely untouched either. Their main problem is that they mumble(again for both examples, not all obviously). Speak up man! How am I gonna take your order if you dont speak up?

I've made a promise to myself that I'd write SOMETHING, at least once a week. But with 3 more essays to go, I didn't really have time for my usual bouts of pondering and/or self reflection. I did however notice a recurring pattern for the past few weeks; I've basically stumbled upon a number of "90+% lookalikes" of people I have already known or met back home in Malaysia. Some of em are pretty spot on doppelgangers, except for the simple difference of ethnicity, or maybe some small but distinguishable twist to the facial features that separate these "clones" from the "orignals"(I know, I know, no one's really a clone of anybody here). There's a very "Pokemon-gotta-catch-em-all" vibe to all this, apart from the fact that I don't literally document each encounter with pics and notes. That is already Silence of The Lambs territory bro.

I know, I know. Let's just not go into any arguments about how I'm not much of a catch either. I'm aware of my own limitations okay? But a guy can dream, can't he? To be fair, it's not really an impossible list either. And it has nothing to do with specific looks(it took me awhile, but I've finally established that I don't actually have a "type"; my taste is simply dictated by whoever I like at that particular moment in time). This is more of a to-do list really; things that I'd expect the "dream woman" to be comfortable and down with. For the sake of simplicity, she shall simply be referred to from this point on as "her".

Mamak/Ramly/Chill makan sessions

This is the easiest, yet at the same time, one of the most essential things I need to be able to do with her, simply because it's the one element that's consistent with every good example of a happy, functioning long term relationship(from parents to friends). A couple who grows fat together, is sure as hell happy together. Ask my folks(I know, I know, you guys dah start slimming down dah, but you know, still a point).

Movie night-ins/pandai just lepak kat rumah

Wajib doh. I think I mentioned this before in one of the earlier posts. Cari alasan nak snuggle je ni. Haha. But why not la kan, alang-alang tengah tengok movie. And regarding the ability to just sit it in, some girls find it a boring routine. To me on the other hand, it's one of the little comforts I never take for granted; just chilling at home with people you actually care about. Priceless.

Explore/Adventure time/Hikes/Climbs/Traveling

So we're still in the do-able territory. But it'd be cool if I can do this EVERY weekend. Any takers?

Cook together

What I'm about to say doesn't apply to ALL the ladies I know, but, MOST of you can't cook for shit. And it's not an insult because many of you willingly admit it yourselves(heck, even my mom acknowledges my dad was the house cook sejak azali lagi, haha). Dah semua aim nak ada maid/personal chef/eat out frequently, kira takyah belajar masak aa kan? Haha, I forgot who told me this, but one of em was so proud that they were able to masak maggi. Awww, *pats head. But yea, it'd be nice to actually cook with someone every now and then. Masak sorang-sorang bosan gak, after awhile.

Quiet time/reading/libraries/galleries/drawing-sketch sessions

As you can see, "chill" is a very apt description for how I prefer to spend most of my time. I'm quite new to galleries. My first time was just recently, when one of my uni-mates dragged me, out of the blue after our class. And it's not all "high brow". We played a game where she points out a painting and I'd rate it from 1-10. It's interesting because we have different systems and tastes, and I now know that I'm apparently a fan of realist paintings over expressionist/abstract ones. But I dunno if I have any kakis back home though. Regarding quiet time, even my closest friends can't handle "awkward silences". Dudes(by dudes I mean dudettes, since I'm talking to the female population here), I'm not purposely trying to make you feel awkward(okay, not true, sometimes I do in fact purposely make a situation awkward...because there's just something fun about making another human being squirm and fidget uncontrollably, clawing unto thin air for conversation topics...I'm a social sadist, I know). Sometimes it's just nice to appreciate each other's company without the need to talk. No? Just me? Okay...

Ditch a boring "up" event for a more lepak night out, still in our fancy getups

Speaks for itself. I dunno, I'm just intrigued by this particular idea.

"Sweet" parkour chase/jump tag

This is basically the jangan harap section of the list. I'll always openly be a child at heart, and I want her to be able to indulge me with such childish endeavours. Tak nak aa serious/grown up selalu. Cepat bosan seh. Dari a lovey-dovey walk in the mall, lagi best lari/lompat merata-rata around downtown kl.

I'll probably add more down the line, or make some up as I go. But yea, yet another reason why I'm still single. Haha.