Ideas for Life

Dreamz at Genting Highland

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sat, 24 May 2008 08:00:00 +0000

If you think white tiger and lion are your kind, you should try and see for this upcoming events at Genting Highland, and try your hands on the free passes offered by the AMBP team. Its a contest though. I want to win this passes because me and my son are very keen on animals and look foward to see a real white lion and white tiger plus all the other performances, off course. It will be a happy moment, just like the first time we visited the zoo. Such a memorable experience...

For sure, I am looking foward to see that same smile and laughter again in this event.

The questions with answers for this contest are:

1. Who is the professional image consultant dishing out juicy tips on how to look your best at CloveTWO.com's Lookin' Good section? Wendy Lee
2. Name the bloggers at the Guy and Parent blogs. Andrew William and Sharmila Rajah, respectively.
3. At which section do you find stories on women's fashion and beauty? In Vogue

The slogan goes..
"Attending Dreamz would be a dream come true for me because...white lion, white tigers are long lost fairy tales fantasy and seeing is believing that magic and miracle does exist and I deserve to be happy about it and win these passes to attend it."

I hope I'll make it through the cut and win this one.

AMBP is sure making its' bloggers active and work hard.

Maybe, you could try too. Just make it before its closing date, which is 1st August, 2008.

All the best!

A Hand on Maroon 5!!

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sat, 24 May 2008 06:46:00 +0000

Take a good look at this.

Its all about Rihanna and Maroon 5.
All Malaysian Blogger Project had launched a contest and is giving away Maroon 5's undeniably good album It Wont Be Soon Before Long? and I am not missing my chances.

Interested as well?
You can check it out at their website at AllMalaysia.info.

You will have to answer a few questions like

1. Who is the Lead Singer of the band Maroon 5? ADAM LEVINE
2. What was the original name of the band before they became Maroon 5? KARA'S FLOWER
3. Name the guest singer in the Maroon 5 song �??If I Never See Your Face Again?�?? RIHANNA

Here's the picture:

Then, in between 5 to 500 words, you'll need write a little about Maroon 5 or Rihanna or Rihanna's undeniable physical presence, in your blog, which I am doing in mine, right now.

"Well, I think Rihanna is HOT and Maroon 5 were cool, and their debut are going to get people's eyes on them for a while. Well to go, Rihanna! I wish she would come out with an act of 'umbrella'ying Rain, just like her song suggest. Rain and umbrealla is such a nice match!"

I hope I'll win this album.

Reflection of the Month

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sat, 17 May 2008 14:53:00 +0000

The month of May is a month full of bad and good news.
The good news is, this is the month where we celebrate the hard work of all labourers, the sacrifices offered by our first love, our Mom, and acknowledging the 'candle' that burn itself, to brighten others, our teachers. These events had made me realise that we exist, as a whole person because there are people making sacrifices for us.
In a basic family structure, the father is the labourer who wins the bread to feed the family. The mother would care for the young ones, and keep the family in order. While teachers exist to assist the family to add more value into the future generation. Therefore, in this month, these poeple simply are royals. We are nobody if it is not of these "somebody".
However, this month also saddened us with many other bad news.
The missing girl, Sharlinie, has not been found yet. Our neighbour were massacred with the tragic catastrophe of Nargis Typhoon. China were struck by an earth quake. We lost in the Thomas Cup.
The first three had consumed many innocent lives. The latter shows that, no matter how high our cheer goes to our sportsmen, we just keep on losing, despite all the funds that had been poured away.
I wonder, why do God chose this month instead? Is He trying to remind us that we shouldn't take things for granted anymore?
For the Catholics, which is me, myself. The month of May is the month of Mary, the mother of Jesus. We prayed for her motherhood and at the same time, be thankful to her and acknowledge her importance in fulfilling the prophesy.
However, it struck me again that if this is a holy month, why do God chose to bring disaster at this time?
Maybe, He is giving out his warning. Or perhaps, its just to test the faith of His people?
A normal human will always have doubt. It goes to our hero, Mother Theresa as well. We were designed in a way that we will think back, and test every hypothesis, every possibilities, and constantly looking for the right answer. So, is having doubt, sinful? How far can a doubt alter a faith?
All these incidents, happening in this month made me wonder. What if human fail to stand God's test? Will there be Dooms Day?
There are so may possibilities out there, with many solution, but the same answer. Maybe, we should stop taking things for granted and starts protecting what we have right now. Our family, the environment, and the community as a whole. No man is an island. Even Adam were not created alone until the end.
I strongly believe that if we start caring for the things around us, we could at least ensure a beeter future for the younger generation. If we start repenting our sins, we might stop history repeating by itself. I have a strong feeling that God might let what happened to Noah, and the country of Soddom, to repeat again.
Maybe, you should take your time, and start reflecting on the things that you frequently overlooked at.

Cheers, to all Mothers!!

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 06 May 2008 01:18:00 +0000

Its the month of May, now. The celebration for all mothers were just around the corners.
Well, it have been 2 good years that I have become one, to put it in one word, about motherhood, its challenging.
Everytime I watched 'Desperate Housewives', I pictured myself as Lynnete, and a little bit of Bree, and Gabrielle. But the most is, Lynnete. Well, as enjoying as being a mother could be, it have never been the best job of all (just like what Lynnete lie, to tell her friends about motherhood).
I started to realise how great my mom is when I have became one. The pain of labour, and carrying it for almost a year, the sleepless nights, the tantrums and the heartache that I have to endure when I disciplining my son(in this case is spank and angry at him) makes me wonder, how on earth had she managed for all the 3 of us. I personally felt a terrible remorse whenever my son cries upon being spank. It makes me feel that I am not being a good mother enough. Yet, as the saying goes, spare the cane and spoil the kid.
So, I end up loving my own mom even more.
It have never been an easy task. All the cleaning and healthy cooking, just to make sure that this little one gets the best from everything, is easier said than done. Its a very sad thing that Brax, (Bree husband) didn't understand this. This applies to all. How many husbands out there did ever appreciate those things done by their stay-at-home wives a.k.a mom? Some might even accused them for spending and wasting their money on nothing, when their wives hardly have the time to rest and have their own time. Its a 24/7 job and there is just no break, compared to in an office.
Mother's Day, should be an everyday event. The one we became today, originates from our first upbringing, that is from the first time we sucked our mom's teats. We loved, because we were so much loved by them at the first place. We're spoilt because they can't bear our tears to fall endlessly.
Bree,(again, Desperate Housewives) said to her son Andrew, that she would still love him, even if he is a murderer. How far can a mother go for their child? Well, try putting their own lives on the line, just like the day they give birth to the being called their child.
I believe that I am more like Lynette is because of the sacrifices that she have to make for her family. She stays down when she can be on top, just for the sake of raising her children well. She copes with everything and hardly had the time for herself. Well, I almost there. The only difference is, I have only one and she had four! There is asaying that said that children are gifts from God. However, if there is a chance of returning them for a while, I could just try once, and take them back after some time, before I start crying, missing them.
I met a Mongolian internet marketeer(infopreneur) recently, and he said what is my job. The simplest answer that I can give is, "Well, I am a full-time mother." I was shocked that this young guy replied, "Wow, its the hardest job of all." I guess, he is right, but we, mothers just never complain, and we stand the test of time. I bet, he must had loved his mom very very much, and sees this as a proffesion.
So, Mothers. When everything starts to fall apart, you stand still, and smiling. You always believe in the future. You stand against all odds and not even the world leaders are comparable to you. Cheers to you, for all the time, effort and love you pour. May God blesses all of you.
I love you, mommy.

Maybe someday, I'll be a Singaporean

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 15:08:00 +0000

Yeah, its true. Maybe, someday I would be a Singaporean, living in Singapore. Well, the reason? I think I am attracted to how Singapore had managed to maintained its order, cleanliness and the strict implementation on how the society should behave!

Honestly, I am a proud Malaysian, for we had many things that Singapore don't have. However, I some how envy this neighbour, for they possessed many values that we, Malaysians, shamefully, lacked of.

I am very furious when it comes to etiquette and the label of common Malaysian behavior. Where ever you go, there is a remark that if u are punctual or early, you aren't Malaysian. Are we that lazy and slow, that we had to be labeled that way? I am a very punctual person, and because of that, the "common" Malaysian would highly regard me as a foreigner. How unfair! Indeed, there is also a mindset that says, put the venue to starts at 30 minutes or half an hour earlier from the time you would expect it to starts. Then, at the 'promised' time, everyone would be there. This is very unfair to punctual people like me, who ends up waiting for these labels to come. Well, that is so much about time..

I somehow think that one day, Malaysia should emulate its neighbour in terms of implementing 'no chewing gum' , and 'no spitting' laws.
The logical reason are, these behavior are far too disgusting for public display. Imagine yourself waiting at a bus stand with so many people around, and suddenly,"'kwek...ptui!". A solid greenish and yellowish phlegm landed just next to you and that particular person acts as nothing has happened. Can you be in the shoe of the ones who are looking and hearing of such imbecile character? Or, how about sitting on a public chair and later found that your back were stuck with some gummy? How can I put it?? Gross! Yuck! And sadly enough, no ones seems to care..

We, Malaysian are simply irresponsible in certain ways, and I am so ashamed that, this had showed outsider how 'small' is our mind, in contrast with the development that we had here.
There can never be free stuff in Malaysia because its citizens, in one way or another, will always take advantage of ruining it. Free public toilet use will sure cause that toilet to be malfunction in a few days. Well, everyone wants to have the free stuff, but nobody feels the need to take good care of it for the good of others.
That's why. I have said it. Maybe one day, I want to live in a more "real" civilised nation. So far, Singapore is doing well with its petty crime laws.. Its so humiliating to be a first class country with no class people. At least, you don't have to be first class or rich people in order just to be polite, clean, and proper, right? These are the basics, what?

The Mind Game

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 03:14:00 +0000

"Sometimes, our mind always playing games with us" as Spiderman tells his girlfriend, in Spiderman 2. Yes, I agree with it.
Our mind doesn't always tells us the right thing to do. It, more often than always, conflicts with our intuition and heart. The values that we hold upon, has so often affect our decisions in life.
I often wonder, if I could get back into time, what are the things that I would like to change. There are the choices that I have taken and regreted later.
To begin with, life is not to be regreted of. I guess, if I can't change the past, I still can do something about the future. Walking tall, and steady, even when the steps got very shattered. Painful as it was supposedto be, but God just never challenge us more than our own limits.
Faith keeps us ahead. At the end of the dark cave, there is always light awaits. All you need to do, is to never stop searching for the right path that leads you to it.
The journey is not even halfway yet. All those falls are just because I didn't look well, and its lonely and dark along the way. Hope keeps me up, that there is a better place after this journey ends.
Again, the mind would start to lament again. There could be shortcuts, or maybe, if you would just give up, things would get better. Its self denial, just to make you happy. Nothing more than a short taste of wine. Sweet for a moment, and last for a time.
The mind has a very weird thing, called logic.It makes you smart and stupid at the same time. So, it likes to play the game called, "Who is Smarter".
Therefore, at the end of the day, even when you have become smart enough to beat everybody, you can be so foolish enough to make a laymen mistake.

Earning Money Online: Hype or Truth

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 09:31:00 +0000

Have you ever heard of a method of earning money through the internet? Well, is it possible? Many of us may fear that, if we signup or pay for certain stuff online, we might end up being the most idiot person in the whole universe. Well, to tell you the truth, you are not alone.

However, earning money online, the right and honest way is not a hype as well.

As Zamri Nanyan in his book of "The Ultimate Bluprint of Internet MLM Success" stated, the real truth in internet network marketing, is that , no matter what, you are going to make mistake, fail, waste money, waste time and get frustrated.

In my personal experience, it all applies to me. I got duped once, and thank goodness, it only cost me RM25 to learn from that lesson. I got frustrated with all the the emails that fills up my boxes. Time? Well, you have no idea...

Yet, still, I have the faith in this line of bussiness, for I believe that I can achieve financial freedom through internet marketing if I just got the right knowledge and apply it in order to achieve my goals. I have seen people succeed in this. People like Zamri, Azrina, Patric Chan, Gobala Krishnan, and many more, are unbelievably, Malaysians!

Perhaps, if you don't trust me, you should trust your instincts. Success University, is just one step ahead in shortening your learning curve and you can rest assured that this is not a scam. The people that I have mention above are real, and so do I. Some of them have paved their road to financial freedom and wish to share it with others, so that they can repeat their success, and reach the top.

You can click on the banner at this page(I am with Success University, currently) or simply read the ebook written by Mike Filsame and Ellie Drake, on "The Death of Network Marketing".

Ellie Drake is a successful network marketer, while Mike Filsaime is a well-known internet marketer that does not need an introduction anymore. You can search this on Yahoo! or Google.. search engine.

This 45-page pdf ebook is targeted to the people who are involved in network marketing and also to those who are curious about the industry. While you will not get an introduction about network marketing from this ebook, you will know some of the problems faced my network marketers nowadays - especially network marketers who are still using old methods to grow their network marketing team.

Ellie Drakes talks about her past experience about how network marketing was done previously. In brief, she explained that she had to do cold-calling, belly-to-belly meetings and seminars alike. She explains that some of the leaders are still doing that now but the wave is changing. People are looking for easier ways to grow their network marketing business and the old ways of doing network marketing are dying. The attrition in the industry is high because what people are looking for is not presented to them entirely - things like how to get people look for them and how to use cutting-edge internet tools to grow the business. This is where the ebook talks more about using the internet to do recruiting, training, coaching and more.

You will see some of the action steps suggested in the ebook such as studying lead generation page, automated training, forming online communities and a few others. Although internet marketing can be powerful in the network marketing industry, Ellie warns that high-touch connection is equally important as well. In case you are wondering what Mike Filsaime has to do with network marketing (or NetWeb Marketing as it is mentioned in the ebook), you can guess at the end of the pages as Ellie mentions that Ellie and Mike are working on internet marketing tools to help network marketers build their business much more efficiently (do you smell another product promotion?)

The good news is that this ebook is FREE to download.

Please feel free to visit http://www1.successuniversity.com.my/r/joanita1612 for more details on Success University, and reconsider your current financial situation. Our team leader, Zamri Nanyan is in the hottest and most lucrative personal development programme in the internet.

You can download your FREE ebook by clicking at the title here, "The Death of Network Marketing".
I am sure you might want to make up your mind into something later. Feel free to drop any comments or questions, here.ok?

Choosing Between Linear Or Residual, Recurring Income?

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 07:46:00 +0000

If you were given 2 financial choices in life, which one will you pick? I�??m also assuming that you are already making a living comfortably at work or in your business. Here are your two important choices.

A. You get paid every day on a fix amount of dollar (say USD$100 per day) but you have to work every day to get that amount of money. You stop working and your income stops.

B. You work every day for two years with little to no income at all and sometimes you lose your money, but you are sure that by the end of the third year, you will get more than the person who works every day in the case of option A above. And the money keeps on multiplying regardless if you work in the fourth year and beyond.

Which one will you choose now?

I�??m sure many people will choose option B. Who doesn�??t want an income stream that will keep on multiplying regardless if you work or not? And, believe me that there is a few ways to do it. But I also believe that some people will simply choose option A as they can�??t bear the fact that it takes so much time, money and effort to achieve their financial dreams.

If you were to ask me, I would not abandon the idea of making a recurring income. At the same time, I would love to get paid every day for the work that I�??m doing. It�??s just not making sense to choose only option A and leaving option B on the table. Of course, eventually you want a steady recurring income in your life - the one that will provide you cash regardless if you work or not. At that time, you have the luxury to choose to work or not and even if you choose to work, it is more because you like to do it - not for the money anymore.
Now, the idea of building a recurring income is not new and it is a very exciting concept after all. Let�??s look at how Burke Hedges explains this great idea in his book �??The Parable of The Pipeline�?? which tells a story of two cousins who bring back water from a river to their village using two methods. The first cousin, Bruno, will bring a bucket to scoop the water and carry it back to the village. He�??ll be paid for the water. Then, when the demand increases, he hires more people to get the water.
Obviously, he gets paid more but he also has to pay the employees and the tools. His income will be limited by the number of employees and the tools he has. The other cousin, Pablo, is quietly making a plan. He is building a pipeline to supply water from the river to the village. It takes time, money and effort to build the pipeline.
As you can guess, he is not paid a single red cent for this effort. He can see his cousin making a fortune but he knows it will be to his advantage when his work is done. Finally, his pipeline is complete. What the villagers need to do is turn on the tap and the water is supplied directly into the village cistern. You know what? Who�??ll need to buy the water from the other guy anymore when the simple turn of a tap will provide water in their houses at a cheaper price than the other guy charges?
As for Pablo, his work is done and he�??ll get paid for as long as his pipeline is working (while he is lazying around). I�??m not going to build a real water pipeline for sure but you can model this concept to create your own recurring income.
Here are a few suggestions:
1. Write a best-selling book for a royalty income. Then write some more books in your spare time. You can also write an ebook and sell it online.
2. Buy a property and rent it out. Then, buy a few more to double or triple your income.
3. Deposit your money in bank or invest in stocks. Compounding effect will double your money in 7 years for a yearly 10% interest of your savings. Stock appreciation will increase your money as well.
4. Create a product that requires a license from you. For example, a piece of software can be charged annually for the license. Big corporations are doing it but the small players are seeing this opportunity too.
5. Build a network marketing business. You and your team will build a group of distributors and the bigger your team is, the more money you will get. But, do not confuse network marketing with a get-rich-quick or pyramid scheme.

So, back to the original question, �??if you were given 2 financial choices in life, which one will you pick?�??

The General Election Aftermath

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 06:52:00 +0000

It have been a week since 9th of March, where Malaysia have its 12th general election However, I felt dissapointed with the current scenario.
Personally, I am very satisfied with the results of this election. You can see that people starts to aware and open up their minds. The opposition have done well in finding the loop hole of the government. We must know that, the leaders that we choose, will affects us, the people, the Rakyat, who paid taxes and consume in Malaysia. In my opinion, in a democratic country, you must always have opposition to manage and control the ruling government. There should be more transparency in our system. I am a full supporter of "Kerajaan Campuran". With this, everyone can have their fair share of thoughts and rights in deciding the best for the country.

Personally, I am a total disagree with the term "Hak Ketuanan Melayu", though I am a Bumiputra, which according to the Constitution of Malaysia-third class citizen!

Having the "ketuanan Melayu" mindset will only cause anger and insecurity among the non-Malays. We try our best to gain integrity in this inter-racial community. However, its sad that all the while, it have been just noises and no action was taken.

I believe that equality should goes to everyone despite of races. The losers are starting to show off their stupidity right now. In fact, you can hear many vulgar phrases from them. Is this a proffesional way to campaign? Finger pointing, is not an appropriate thing to do. Remember! When you point one finger to someone else, there are three more pointing at yourself! The truth will reveal by itself. One can never hide in the blanket forever.

Deep in my heart, I hope that, we Malaysian can move towards a more mature mindset. We do need history, but only as a guide, not to rule.

Its a shame having a third-class mindset, living in a so-called first-class country.

General Election: Problems to be Addressed

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 05:09:00 +0000

Its only a few more days until the big day comes. Well, its the responsibilties of all Malaysian to take part and decides which government that will best suits the country. I have yet to decide one.
The oppositions' party had addressed many unsolved problem caused by the previous government, and had predicted future problems as well. The prices of oil, toll, goods, etc had cause many concerns especially among the middle and lower income levels. In my opinion, whether BN is going to win or lose, the prices of these stuff are still going to hike anyway. Lets just see it from the demand and supply point of view. Although having a dependable authority could lessen the people's burdens. Therefore, more and more people are going poorer, as their living cost increases but their income remain stagnant. So, could a better government change this?
The problem of corruption has never been able to be really solved, even though we have Mr. Clean as the Prime Minister. Guess that, he can't do much about the residual problem of the previous reign, huh?
I am not against any party, for personally I don't feel like voting. Promises were made and had never been kept until today. There are changes, yet many still suffer. If what I am saying is false, then can anyone trully explain the riot possed by the Hindraf? I believe that injustice had brought them to the verge of fighting, just to get themselves heard. I don't blame them, for there are many Indians in Malaysia who were left out. Saying this, its only a matter of time for the other non-Malay Bumiputra to burst their anger.. Well, they are many still pure locals who are left out there, who doesn't really understand yet. So, politically saying, what is muhibah, then? What is integration? Is having a second class and third class citizens makes integration works? Even the constitution of the country is questionable..
Politics are like gambling. The people(rakyat) would gamble their votes for their future during election, in the hope of getting a better life, cheaper stuff, stability and peace. However, in the end, most of the pre-election promises are just talk, for talk is cheap.
Again, in the end, we still have to make our choices of having the right person in the parliament, for we, the voters had the mandate to put the ones we think should govern us in order for the country to prosper better than the previous. We need charismatic leaders in order to bring progress into our people, despite of races and religion. Well, talk about being independant for more than 50 years...

Where is Sharlinie?

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 06:39:00 +0000

It have been more than a month since Sharlinie disappeared. The case of Nurin hasn't been solved yet..
Today, not even the front yard of your own house is safe anymore.
Somehow, I wonder, what does these criminals have in their mind. These are young and innocent children. What is their motive? Why?
Its really a pain to see the playground being unsafe today. Our children have to be trapped inside the house for safety reason. If so, how are they going to grow? How about their social life, or childhood?
The authority have not progressed so far, regarding this matter. Come on, Malaysia... Your population is only a mere 23 billion..
Can we have a better place to stay, here?

Why Women Won't Understand Men...

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 05:17:00 +0000

Below, are 11 things that women don't know about men, plus one thing that they may know but won't admit, taken from Yahoo! Personal on Valentine's Day:

1. Getting angry at us for not reading your mind is like getting angry at yourself for not being able to fly. It's not just futile, it's physically impossible.
2. Yes, we do think Jessica Alba is hot. Sometimes we're even dumb enough to admit it.
3. Don't ask us to understand your shoe fetish. Asking us to respect it is even sort of pushing it.
4. You do look good without makeup, just not as good as you look with it.
5. Ever notice how we don't fight with our male friends? That's why we get so frustrated when we fight with you.
6. You care what you're wearing infinitely more than we do. In fact, if you're naked when you open the front door, you won't hear an argument from us.
7. You don't like to get hit on in public, you don't want to date online and you don't want to be set up on blind dates. Tell us if sending messenger pigeons is an appropriate way of courting. Because if it is, we're all over it.
8. There should a statute of limitations on stupid things that we said that can come back to haunt us
9. Cooking dinner for a man is like buying flowers for a woman, except it takes a lot more time, effort and thought for you to do it. Thanks. We appreciate it.
10. We actually like your girly pet-names for us, but please, not in front of the guys!
11. Just because we like looking at the women in Maxim doesn't mean we want to actually converse with the women in Maxim. Not for long, anyway.
12. Your nice guy friends are the most reliable source for telling you if your new boyfriend's a jerk. And he probably is. (By the way, you might want to consider marrying that nice guy who's giving you advice about the jerk.)

Okay. Evan Marc Katz says it

Maybe, the guys out there should read thoroughly the book written by Chuck Snyder, The Way to a Woman's Heart, about how 90% of all the trouble existed in a marriage comes from men, themselves, or perhaps men should read "Men from Mars and Women fron Venus".
Oh..Please don't take things for granted.. I think, men should before hand, tries very hard to understand their partners. Both side had needs that must be fulfilled in order to reach a harmony and happy relationship.
So, Men, do you really know what it takes to win your queen's heart? What does it takes to keep her, and what does it takes for both of you to keep falling in love, over and over again?

Love is just as complicated as being blind.. What do you say?

What Makes A Woman

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 02:26:00 +0000

I found some really funny stuff from Lydia Teh's blog and other fowarded emails. Lets just think about it, and reflect back. Is this reality?

Women are undeniably complicated on its own ways. However, to be able to explain it in such scientifically matter, isn't it a little bit to exaggerated? Well, you say?

LOVE

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 05:25:00 +0000

Love is God's creation, the whole and every grain of sand in it.
Love is every leaf, every ray of God's light.
Love the animals, love the plants, love everything.
If you love everything, you will perceive the divine mystery in things.
Once you perceive it, you will begin to comprehend it better everyday.
And you will come t last to love the whole world with an all-embracing love.

Fydor Dostoyevsky

What is love?

According to the Bible, in the letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians, love is patient and kind, not jealous or boastful. It does not rejoice in the fall of others, and is slow on anger.

Generally, it is a feeling of wanting to be good to others, to care and to offer yourself unselfishly.
There are so many definitions of love..
It can be puppy love, monkey love, parental love, etc..

Love is a great force, that many people would die for it, or even die if does not have it. So, we need love. We can have a better place to stay if everyone starts to care. Well, the 'Care Bears' does have their say here!
Teenagers are at the age that they are starting to seek romantic love. Girls will starts fantasising their charming prince like in all fairy tales, while at the same time, boys would start labeling girls according to their definition of beauty. The truth is, love is very confusing at this age. Its a journey that everyone had to face it and make it either a good or bad memory to remember in their books of life.
The confusion does not stays at that age only. Even adults have problems with it. Its out of love that people sacrifice their time, self and money for the ones that they cared for, and its also because of love that many got hurt, in life.
Then, the question goes, how deep or how shallow can the meaning of love stands for?
How many of us will cry at the deaths of our pets, like a hamster, or mouse, or even at the scene of seeing one stray dog being crashed by a car?
How many of us is a good Samaritan in this world? We constantly doubt people around us, and label strangers as dangers.

The media should stop introducing a happily ever after story, for none of it is real!
Imagine, Beauty and the Beast. Do you think Beauty, who is such a clean, beautiful, wonderful, and polite little girl could really stand for the rest of her life, when she saw Beast's hair all around the washroom, everyday in her life? Have you ever heard of a nagging princess?
The reality is always a pain. The truth reveals everything under the skin.

There is a saying that, getting married is falling in love with the same person over and over again for the rest of your life. In a sense, I can see that there is truth in it. True love, maybe?

What do you think, huh?

Man to Lead, Women to Follow

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 14:16:00 +0000

In this 21st century, the role of women had increased up to a level where the previous decade of them could have ever dreamt of.

However, suprisingly there are also many social issues that came by as a results of women progress in society. What I am trying to emphasis here, is not their achievement, which had contributed not only to the society in general, but also to the world. As the saying once, "The hand that rocks the cradle, rocks the world", or to translate it into nowadays scenario, - The hands that rocks the cradle, rocks everything..

Women battery, single motherhood and many more other crimes against women hit our statistics badly enough to cause concern.

Women, in general are soft creatures created by God. Abrahamic beliefs, such as Judaism, Chriatianity, and Islam stated that they came into the world when God finds that Adam is lonely and needs a partner. The rest is history..

Charles Synider in his book, "The Way to a Woman's Heart" stated that men, can be classified as an animal. Why? Their aggresive and dominant behavior had caused wars, and pain throughout mankind history.
There is a saying that, "Men are all brothers". However, all the while, it have been men taking the lives of the other men. So, how true is that?
When men are granted the responsibilities to protect the weak, why there are more pain and suffering out there, caused by men?

Well, I am not being a feminist here. But, lets think about it.

I have to admit that, there were men who have brought peace and harmony. Good and rare ones. Brave, and strong, and kind enough not to hurt the young, innocent and weak ones.

Women, today is slowly partaking the roles of men. Now, America will soon enough to have its first woman president. Islamic country, like Indonesia also have had their own female leaders.

In a family institution, man have long being the head of the family. I remember having one Indonesian friend of mine telling that during their family dinner, the father is the one who will have the fish's head, as a symbol of his leadership in their family.
But, considering the current scenario, does he still make a good leader even if he is sadistic husband, or father? What if he is also jobless, and is counting on his wife and children to feed him, and contribute nothing except being bossy? What is the measure of responsibilty, then?
The traditional ways stated that a wife must submit to her husband. Is it still relevant now?
My personal views are, submiting to each other is the key towards a successful mariage.

Men and women are so suprisingly complicated in their own ways.

Inter-racial Understanding

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 08:18:00 +0000

Lydia Teh, in her book, "Honk, if You're a Malaysian" mentioned that, if you are lazy, you're a Malay, if you cheat, you're a Chinese, and if you are a drinker, you're an Indian. However, she also continued, saying that " I have Malay friends, and they aren't lazy. Chinese pals, and they doesn't cheat and Indian companions, and they don't drink".
The fact that our social institution had labeled races according to their specific characteristics had been unfair. I have an Indian friend who can speaks both Chinese and Malay fluently, and fare better in Chinese school, which is not in their mother tougue. Yet, upon looking for certain jobs, there are few that only accepts Chinese races and not Chinese spoken individual.
Inter-racial understanding is not a new issue in Malaysia. Problems also arise with other "pribumi" when development is not carried out thoroughly, across the nation.
Being independent for more than 50 years has not been sufficient enough to ring our people together.
Are we, Malaysian itself to be blame?
Why understanding each other is so difficult, when inter-racial marriage had been raising good children since the old days?
Please comment.

Challenges for the Future

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 07:41:00 +0000

In an interdependent world, globalization had positioned us with many challenges. While some proponents opined it as beneficial, in reality, there are many who experienced it as a negative force. Problems arise when the wrong kind of globalization had taken place. An accelerated deregulation of commerce and investment had indirectly marginalizing the poor and raises the issues of human ethics.
Global warming, pollution factors and natural disasters have a repercussion. More people are suffering from green house effect, nuclear radiation, floods, droughts, and many more as results of vast modernization. The status quo of environmental upheavals needs a global action in order to avoid future catastrophe which would devastate wildlife and finally our own natural environment. The effort of using renewable resources of energy would assist the �??green project�?? through the minimization of waste product and the increase of energy efficiency. Therefore, awareness must be instilled in order to avoid more damages done to Earth and to assure that the future generation has a better environment to live in.
The sins of the pass must not be inherited by the innocents.
As the new generation of the 21st century, partaking a role in maintaining Mother Earth had became an obligation of all. Simple task, such as re-used plastics, cans, papers, etc, is meagre compared to all the damages done.
Then, who should be blame?
What else we can do?
Ever wondered when the sun is expanding? What will happen, then?
Can we make Earth a better place to stay?
Please comment.