Lagi-lagi Gila-Gila Part I

I was in my formative school years in the 80s. And that was when Gila Gila become the mainstream comic at the time. At least in Malay, and one which I could read and understood. It basically served the untapped market of local satire.

With anything else in Malaysia, there were never free speech - at least until the advent of Internet. So, there were plenty of metaphors and commentary of local events which at the time was pretty radical. It was half entertaining comic, but the satirical undertone was what that caught my eyes.

If I remember correctly, this was from Perwira Mat GilaSure, we also had Lat at the time who also communicated in an almost similar vein. But Gila Gila seemed to be sharper, of course helped by the fact that is was published twice a month. I can still fondly remember the trips into Kepala Batas town, cash in hand to pick up the latest issue. Not to mention being disappointed on numerous occasions learning that it had sold out.

This first thing I asked my parents after my bersunat was for the latest copy of Gila Gila right after I got home. I loved it that much.

The famous opening commentaryMy boys sure got plenty of questions to askSome words of wisdomFrom Taiping with Love ...I lost touch with the comic when I entered MRSM Terendak in 1985, but many of the characters were still famous. I still followed Matt Romeo, From Taiping With Love and of course, my facilities the Ujang series when I returned for holidays. Often binge reading them back home - there were no bit torrent or fake DVDs back then to catch on the latest TV series.

Then I went to the UK. I lost track. An on the odd occasion a copy landed on my lap, Gila Gila never had the same appeal again. Ujang was then a separate comic having left Gila Gila, and the magic was gone.

Follow this link for Part II of this write-up. A slidevideo for the visit here.

The Race is Near

There was not much of a buzz around town about the coming F1 GP. Understandable since plenty of people were still thinking about the coming GST and also the recent CNY. Things were pretty quiet. As for the festivities, the coronation of Johore Sultan would likely made more of a headline in terms of who’s headlining the shows.

I was booked for some teaching program this weekend, so I would definitely not be attending. Did hear any of my friends were going as well.

I was at KLCC yesterday afternoon, and the stalls was already out. Not surprising as Petronas is one of the main if not the main sponsor. Even then, it didn’t create much of a pull to me. I did;t even bother checking the events.

Maybe the GP in Malaysia would die a slow death. I don’t think we were generating much of an income from the event. At least the Singapore GP seemed to attract more people, with more glitz. Either because it was organised in the evenings, which would likely also meant better weather, or because it was penned into the later stage pf the season when more was at stake. Either way, the organiser had to think about making the event more attractive or otherwise it would be a drag. Maybe we would be better off without it …

Sunday Walk

I was on call on Saturday and ended up finishing the post-take rounds at noon on Sunday. Missed a conference I was meant to attend that morning despite rushing to get things done. Got to the apartment just after noon, picked up the boys and Puan Anita and headed back to Gombak. Left the boys there with the maid, and Anita and I went out for a lunch date. We overate!

The actual programmeStill there were a number of visitors, and there was a wedding going on at the nearby Saloma BistroMight as well make use of the fair weather

With our tummy full, Anita decided to go for a walk. The sun was not to bright - in fact it was threatening to rain later in the afternoon. I read on the web that there was a festival at Matic, around 15 minutes walk from Suria KLCC where we had lunch. Off we went.

The place was deserted! Apparently the had a regional arts festival which opened at MATIC, but the actual weekend events were scattered at various venue around town. Sigh!

Trudging back to KLCCAlmost there ....That hit the spot! Big time!

We mingled around for a bit before strutting back to Suria. Time for a cold drink by the time we reached back …. Best to check out the event thoroughly before going. But then again some of the information was not forthcoming.

Pucker Up!

I had some errand to run yesterday afternoon, changing the names to some of the utilities for the apartment. After picking up the boys from school, we went straight for lunch at KLCC.

On the way back, we stopped at Candilicious at the Ground Floor and came across this candy called Pucker Powder. Reminiscent of sago when we were small, these powdery stuff were actually full of flavours. So much so, that it stung the tongue!

I thought the boys were hooked!

Select the flavour you fancyPress to fill your containerYou can mix and match of courseFinally you gulp it downThey could mix and match the flavours, and gulp them down. Not exactly cheap though! The 1 foot tube cost about RM10!

Anita spilled some of it in the car, and took a while to clear them up. They turn sticky when in contact with water …

Queuing Skills

Malaysian are generally bad at queuing. Come on! Owned up. Who have not been cut across while queuing. Good practice then as you'd need all the skills to be applied here. If you want the popcorn that is.

Taken this early evening at Garrett's Popcorn kiosk at Suria KLCC. Not for the faint-hearted.