Culling, Essential For Simple Life

I read today in NYT about "Books You Can Live Without". Its about getting rid of the clutter on your bookshelves.

I have, for a long time, subscribed to the "travel through this Earth lightly" approach to acquisition of physical  things. When visiting places, I have always preferred not to buy any souvenirs as I preferred to treasure the memories of that place in my head rather than by some touristy key ring/tea towel that was probably made in China. I even abhor taking photographs. If not for my better half, who is a stickler for family-having-fun photos, we will not even have a photo album.

Talking about photos, one of my school mates had posted our 1980's pictures on his Facebook. This served as a big source of amusement for my wife who kept asking me about the things we did  during the time we spent in that boarding school. I can only remember snippets but most of them were a blur.

The other day my sister told my son how I used to frighten her with tales of axe murderers, and the one time I hid under her bed with an axe, only to slither out when she went to bed. I can't remember doing that but it was nice that she remembered it and told my son of her crazy brother. At least now he knows that my telling of horror stories at his bedtime is not new. Ha, ha, ha.

With six months to live, in my view, this should be extended to even emotional baggage. There are so many things that are best to be let sink to the bottom of the sea, given a burial and forgotten. In my 40+ years there are some things that I have done and still cringe when I recalled them - not  intentionally but they land uninvited.

New Year is upon us. A new decade is beginning. Its time to do some spring cleaning - both physically and mentally. With six months to live, it will do a lot of good to us to keep life simple and clear out all the clutter. Maybe then we can leave this Earth in peace when its time.

Eve of 2010 Party

We are organising a New Year's Eve get together with a few old friends. They are basically my old school mates (known these guys since 1980), their wives/partners and kids. I love getting my friends together - these range from night outs, weekend outings, to Ramadan Iftars. Each time we had a gathering, my moment is when I take a step back  from the crowd and just watch everybody talking  and having fun. It is a great feeling to provide a platform for people to enjoy themselves.

This time it will be a barbecue. I hope the weather will co-operate. It had been raining in Kuala Lumpur these few days. My wife and I will provide all the grilled meats/seafood and drinks, and the rest of them have each been tasked to bring one side dish or dessert. It will be simple and done without caterers.

These parties used to be just us guys, then us guys with girlfriends. Then girlfriends turned into wives, and later babies, toddlers and teenaged kids came into the picture. The nature of the parties has also changed throughout the times. The "just guys" parties were... lets just say wild . Nowadays, as all my friends one by one 'found peace', the only "wild" is the wild salmon cooking on the grill. (I know the incorrigible few who are still living it up but that will be another story. Ha, ha, ha.) Whatever it is,  I still have a blast each time we have a party.

If you have six months to live, a New Year's Eve party with friends is definitely something you should do.

Sherlock Holmes - Movie

Watched the new movie Sherlock Holmes the other day at KLCC, starring Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law. If you are a die hard fan of Sherlock Holmes, you will not be happy to see him portrayed as a maverick in this movie. Robert Downey Jr is not and never meant to be another Basil Rathbone.

It was entertaining and worth watching and you won't be wasting your precious six months to live.

The Gods Envy Us But I Don't

In the movie Troy, Achilles said, "Let me tell you a secret, something they don't teach you in your temple. The Gods envy us. They envy us because we're mortal, because any moment may be our last. Everything is more beautiful because we're doomed. You will never be more lovely than you are now. We will never be here again."

In contrast, this poem by Chairil Anwar reflects closer what I feel.

AKU (I)

Kalau sampai waktuku (When my time arrives)
Ku mau tak seorang kan merayu (I don't want anyone to beg for me)
Tidak juga kau (No, not even you)
Tak perlu sedu sedan itu (There is no need for sobs)

Aku ini binatang jalang ( I am a wild animal)
Dari kumpulannya terbuang (An outcast)

Biar peluru menembus kulitku (Let bullets punch my skin)
Aku tetap meradang menerjang (I will continue to rage and kick)
Luka dan bisa kubawa berlari (With poisoned wounds I will run)
Berlari (Run)
Hingga hilang pedih peri (Until the pain disappears)

Dan aku akan lebih tidak perduli (And I don't care)
Aku mau hidup seribu tahun lagi (I want to live another thousand years)

Maret 1943 (March 1943)

The Gods may 'envy' us but I don't. Our lives are finite. We hurtle towards our deaths. It may be six months, it may be tomorrow. To me, my aim in life is to collect experiences. I want to live forever like an immortal but that is a fantasy.

This blog is inspired by a bad Christmas Eve Dinner at "The Apartment," a restaurant in KLCC, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The food was substandard, and the service was appalling.  We paid RM400 for food and bottled water (not even wine or any expensive drinks), I thought that someone with six months to live would deserve to be forewarned and not waste his time going to this place. It was not so much the money (really) but I was angrier about the waste of what could have been a perfect Christmas Eve which was also my son's birthday.

After all, there are only so many Christmas Eves that we will enjoy. A Malaysian male is expected to live to 70.56 years, and a Malaysian female is expected to live to 76.21 years. I am 40+ and my quota of Christmas Eves to experience is now less than 30.

So this blog will be a mix of reviews of life experiences - food, books, movies, trips, as well as my own thoughts. Hopefully, this would be useful for someone who has six months to live.