Third person world.

Buddhaphish needs to update properly soon. But Buddhaphish has been so busy at her new job, and is also very sad that there are no bookstores where Buddhaphish lives.

Buddhaphish recommends Wizard of the Crow by Kenyan author, Ngugi wa Thiong'o.

There, that counts as a semi-update!

Think of the children!!

The funniest movie review I've read in a long while: Coraline

“Coraline” is a bad movie for children and a disturbing movie for adults. The horror of it comes not from the plot, which is common, but from its nihilistic attitude. This view sees human relations as power struggles which can only be resolved by an exercise of will, and it sees life as an existential wasteland that has no intrinsic meaning, but what we can give to it ourselves. As art, it is a diminished thing without light, while its truest love is of the darkness in all things. Some people may be misled by the bright tone of the voices in its real world to think it is an “uplifting” movie, but underlying that tone is a spiritual emptiness which inhabits the characters, the setting, and, it seems, the movie's creators.

I can't wait to watch it!

Apa khabar, pak/ibu?

Greetings from Central Kalimantan, my new home for hopefully many years. :)

I brought less work-related books than I originally wanted to and I'm rather regretting it now No bookstores in Pangkalan Bun!! However, I tell myself, I'll be back home in about two months time for a visa run and there is so much to do at my new job that I think I would be more occupied than I thought.

Lovely town here and I doubt that I would be updating much books-wise.. Thinking of starting a new blog on my life here so we'd see what happens with this. 

Already I am appreciating the laid-back vibe here and it feels great to be working with sane people once more..

Deconstructing KL.

Has it been already a week since I last book-blogged? Time certainly flies. I'm back in smoggy Bangsar, trying to work on a research assignment. In the meantime, I'm currently reading Urban Odysseys: KL Stories, edited by Janet Tay & Eric Forbes for MPH Publishing. I bought the book a couple of days ago, despite the odds:

1. Poor display of books at MPH Midvalley (and MPH Bangsar). You'd think the bookstores and publishing would collaborate to showcase the book so that customers/browsers could easily pick it up.

2. Lack of knowledge from the enquiry staff at MPH Midvalley. Ok, so I couldn't remember the exact title of the book but I knew part of it was "KL Stories" AND that it was published by MPH. You'd think the staff would be familiar with books published by the very same company they work for. Not really. She had no clue, and was unpleasant to deal with. Frustrated, I walked away and wandered around the store until I found the book behind the cashier - not exactly standing out but hey.

I haven't finished reading Urban Odysseys yet but the stories so far are enjoyable. I particularly liked stories by Karina Bahrin, Joanna Chin, and Preeta Samarasan (I had jumped ahead to read her story first). It's a mixed yet interesting bag of authors: experienced, and newbies. My hat off to the young newbies; I enjoyed their debut and look forward to more of their work. 

I had wanted to read the book because I am (was?) a new 'expat' to the city. Ever since I moved to the big city in the mid-2007, I have been surprised, and disappointed by the city. I moved from a smaller town thinking that I could leave certain prejudices behind, only to find out that KL really is a big 'small town'. I wasn't fazed by the pace, but I was surprised by how much petty  politicking goes on, to actual work (and it extends to social circles too). In this town, it's really who you know (or to a lot of people, who you are related to), than what you know. And there are some dumb, lazy people on top but with very good connections (and/or bodek skills). Sure the same thing goes on back home, but at least I was able to avoid said people. Alas, I am not so lucky in KL. 

That being said, I have no regrets in living here because I had a lot of great moments as well. However, if there is one thing I could impart to KL-lites, it's "remember katak bawah tempurung". Outside KL, no one else in Malaysia cares who you are. So please, save me your stories of who you know, who you hang out with, no I dont' give a fuck that you are a 'celebrity' or your daddy is blah blah yadayada snore zzzzzzzz.... 

Do I like KL? It's a mixed bag of emotions for me. However I appreciated some of the tender stories in Urban Odysseys. One thing for sure, KL-lites (and Klang Valley-ites) are very proud of their origins, and the rest of us who live here appreciate the opportunities it provides. KL is rather a bitch at times, but like a lot of bitches out there, we can't help but be drawn to it. Bitch power. 

All the things I could do, if I had a little money.

Today, I spent almost RM600 worth on books, and without blinking too.

It's easy to spend money when it's not yours.

I bought a bunch of field guides for work and it was a lot of fun choosing them. I ended up buying the following (after looking at the current list of what we have and don't have):

1. A Pocket guide of Lizards of Borneo by Indraneil Das (x 2)
2. A Field Guide to the Frogs of Borneo by Robert F. Inger and Robert B. Stuebing (2nd edition)
3. Panduan Lapangan Katak-katak Borneo (a Malay translation of the above)
4. Turtles of Borneo and Peninsular Malaysia by Lim Boo Liat and Indraneil Das
5. Slipper Orchids of Borneo by Philip Cribb
6. A Field Guide to the Butterflies of Borneo and Southeast Asia by Kazuhisa Otsuka
7. Manual Latihan Pemuliharaan dan Penyelidikan Hidupan Liar di Lapangan by Alan Rabinowitz
8. Man-eating crocodiles of Borneo by James Ritchie with Johnson Jong (I know, I know, trashy stuff but I couldn't resist especially after the recent fatal attack by a Tomistoma schlegelii in a river that I would soon be intimate with!)

At the same bookstore, I picked up The Soul of Malaya by Henri Fauconnier. This was originally published in French as Malaisie, and won France's highest literary award, the Prix Goncourt. It also has wonderful illustrations.

Then I came across Eda Green's "Borneo: The Land of River and Palm", which is not a fieldguide on river palms as I had thought but rather an early 20th century account of Borneo's people and its customs as well as a missionary description on 'converting the natives'. Accompanied with photos and intricate illustrations, this book (despite its irritating Christianity fervour but I do enjoy the appendices where Green discusses the 'study problems' of converting Dayaks) is definitely a useful reference.

A good haul today, and I haven't even finished!

Introducing Almayer's Folly

I have just returned home from an underground bar (I kid you not - it has a lovely bar, with comfortable wide wooden stools and Iban rice baskets laid prettily all-in-a-row) where I had asked one of my companions, "if you could write a fictional story, what would it be about?"

His answer was about a mixed-race family in Borneo struggling during the Japanese era. He pretty much had it all figured out but hasn't written it yet. I think it's a story worth writing, and left inspired wanting to read more fiction based in Borneo.

A google search soon revealed that Joseph Conrad has written a book which is set in Borneo called "Almayer's Folly: A Story of an Eastern River", and published in 1895. Almayer's Folly is Joseph Conrad's first novel and centers on the Dutch trader Kaspar Almayer and his life in the jungles of Borneo. 

Thanks to gutenberg.org, you can read it online. An excerpt:

"Kaspar! Makan!"

The well-known shrill voice startled Almayer from his dream of splendid
future into the unpleasant realities of the present hour. An unpleasant
voice too. He had heard it for many years, and with every year he liked
it less. No matter; there would be an end to all this soon.

He shuffled uneasily, but took no further notice of the call. Leaning
with both his elbows on the balustrade of the verandah, he went on
looking fixedly at the great river that flowed--indifferent and
hurried--before his eyes. He liked to look at it about the time of
sunset; perhaps because at that time the sinking sun would spread a
glowing gold tinge on the waters of the Pantai, and Almayer's thoughts
were often busy with gold; gold he had failed to secure; gold the others
had secured--dishonestly, of course--or gold he meant to secure yet,
through his own honest exertions, for himself and Nina. He absorbed
himself in his dream of wealth and power away from this coast where he
had dwelt for so many years, forgetting the bitterness of toil and strife
in the vision of a great and splendid reward. They would live in Europe,
he and his daughter. They would be rich and respected. Nobody would
think of her mixed blood in the presence of her great beauty and of his
immense wealth. Witnessing her triumphs he would grow young again, he
would forget the twenty-five years of heart-breaking struggle on this
coast where he felt like a prisoner.

I'm not used to reading e-novels however, it just feels like another damn long blog... Give me a book I can curl up to anyday..

Have books, need home.

I returned home to Kuching a couple of days ago, only to find out that mould had attacked my room due to the floods - yikes! Much cleaning and Thirsty Hippos after, I was relieved that my books had escaped unscathed - except perhaps a couple of interior design inspired books on Amsterdam and Paris. I decided then and there that it was a good time anyway to spring-clean my Kuching personal library and perhaps sell, donate or give-away books who deserve owners who would love them more. 

This incident left me with a personal dilemma because I have already packed up my books in KL, ready for shipping but I dread the next flood. Maybe next time, my books wouldn't be so lucky - considering my circumstances where I won't be there to save them! So perhaps, my books would stay in KL for the time-being... if I find the space for them. Dilemma, dilemma....

I want my own house/space with my own library!