Jesper the Talking Hamster

Yesterday was also the time when I jumped onto the bandwagon that was NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I've been writing for as long as ten years (none of them are published, thus the blog) and I hope I'll have no problem in completing the goal, which was a whopping 50,000 words in a month. Yeah.

Sounds like do-able? Not to most of us. Me, if the muse sits on my lap, I can do that under two weeks (no kidding). But if the muse kicks me in the loins and flits away, it can take me a month or two just to get to the next chapter.

I went to the forums and the writers there are very friendly! They gave a lot of advice to newbies (I am one) and told me that any kind of novel - be it fantasy, romance, or even erotica - is acceptable. So I set my mind on a strange one - a pseudobiography. Ever heard of that one?

I began toying with the idea years ago, when I first heard a programmatic music penned by none other than Antonio Vivaldi. It's a vivid description of the four seasons: spring, summer autumn, winter. With nothing more than a small orchestra and a first violin he created a very vivid description of these seasons, and the rest is history.

When I learnt that Vivaldi was actually ashmatic and hated winter days, what came to my mind while listening to the 'Winter' concerto was him travelling to the Ospedale something-something (I'll look it up later!) during winter after being sent away by a (imaginary) money-squandering bishop. That however, did not come true, although remnants of the story is still stuck inside my head somewhere.

This one, however, is more involving and more profound. I would like to finish it in time, or even earlier because this person has been my favorite, and his death is still debated until today. So I'd like to tell a story from my persepctive, what could have happened back then.

Wish me luck, and if you want to, you can also join in. You don't have to finish the novel you started though. Not many did, and there were no penalties in not finishing it. At least you did something, right?

It's a strange situation for me, though; after years of writing to an audience I never met, this time I am in company with writers who talk and advise each other. If you want to join, go to their website by typing down 'NaNoWriMo' on any search engine. Look out for the local forums; who knows, you have one near where you live.

Go novels!

Thoughts on Living, v.1

Just yesterday, one of my cousins tried to commit suicide. To say it was horrible might be undermining the issue itself. I was horrified, yes, but then I wanted to smack him in the face for his awfully short-thinking. All of this because of a girl, who didn't even love him.

What was he thinking? That his ultimate sacrifice will make her return to him? And if she would, what would she return to, a dying man? I don't think she would, anyway.

Now he's lying in his bed in the hospital, barely alive. Yes, he is awake and all, but what I heard from the doctor is not very encouraging. His throat is all destroyed - he drank a cocktail of weedkillers - and his internal organs are close to non-functioning.

I know I should be compassionate, and yes, the thing is, it all has happened. Nobody can do anything anymore except to be on his side, whispering words of encouragement. Doctors said he would be dead by one o'clock in the morning, but he was still alive this afternoon. It is a good sign, and I hope his body and spirit is stronger than most of us. That is all he need should he want to keep on living.

For now, I would rather sit by him and talk to him - he can't talk, his throat was all swollen - and hope for his speedy recovery. His mother is always by his side, and so are his families. Let's hope that he will survive long enough to recover.

Unemployment is a four letter word

I hate(1) it. It makes me wanna hurl(2). I don't want to live(3) off my parents for the rest of my life(4). This period in my life (in anyone's life, for that matter) is very dark(5). When you can't get any jobs(6) you have to make do. So, I tried part(7)-time(8) and sadly it wasn't my thing. Well, guess I'll have to wait(9) for a better job.

There you go. Four-letter words that can summarize unemployment.

A Diamond Disappears

Last Thursday, Malaysia's First Lady, Datin Seri Endon Mahmood, passed away after bravely fighting breast cancer for the past two years. Extraordinary as the First Lady, she was even more extraordinary as a breast cancer patient, and as her husband's connection to the nation. She inspired many cancer patients and survivors to stand up and be proud of themselves, she single-handedly revived the ailing textile industry of batik, and made the world opened its eyes on the wonders of kebaya and songket. The heavens opened up and poured endlessly at the capital (PutraJaya) when she died. In my opinion, it was a sign that Heaven welcomed a dearly awaited member, and a sign for us who are alive that this woman was no ordinary being.

I will post more tomorrow.