Selamat Hari Merdeka!

Book of the Week: Still dipping in and out of Jonathan Strange (this is taking me forever...) And Harry Potter in between.

Malaysia is 50. I still remember the year of the 25th anniversary celebrations. I was in P4, had just placed a shitty 9th place in class in mid-year exams, one of my best mates was moving to another town, had a cool teacher who didn’t always give me a row when I read other stuff / doodled rude drawings instead of paying attention to the lesson, and we had to go line the streets and wave flags. From what I’ve been gleaning from the good ol’ government-controlled dailies back home, it looks like the brain-washing and idiocy masked as patriotism is even more alive today as it was 25 years ago.

I always thought I would be around to see the 50th anniversary celebrations, but in a way, I’m glad I am not. Because it would mean that I still hadn’t got out of the country, and right now I’m not sure if I want to go back. It’s getting increasingly racially and religiously segregated, and I’ve already had more than my fair share of discrimination. I don’t miss the shitty politics, the even cruddier politicians (the keris-waving ones are the worst), and the holier-than-thou twats. But Malaysia is where I’ll always find family, friends, fantastic laid-back people and what is absolutely the best food in the world. So happy birthday, Malaysia. Long may all the good things about you prosper.

Oh, and happy 10th anniversary, Diana.

Factoids of the Week:
Malaysia is 50. That’s all you need to know (well, going by the press coverage in Malaysia, anyway). Most people don’t even know there’s a country called Malaysia!

Richard Jobson, the frontman of the Skids, and Fay Fife, a.k.a. Sheila Hynde, of the Rezillos, are both from Dunfermline, Fife. (Pretty amazing what you learn on the job, eh?)