"The Silent Roar"

I’ve just got a new book!

You want to have a look?

It's called “The Silent Roar”

You can't buy it in a store!

Printed and bound down south

Only found by word of mouth!

It could affect your way of life!

Syabas to dear author and wife!

Witty SMS

Last night, Stephen sent me an sms that went like this:

The way you make me feel it doesn't matter if you're black or white because you're a thriller and you are not alone because we can heal the world and the others can beat it.

This was in reply to a dedication I made to him in my previous post. I think it's really witty and I so enjoyed it. I thought I'd save it in my phone but decided that I'd save it here in my blog instead.

I just wanted to share this. :)

The Way you Make Me Feel!

What an incredible performer. A great showman. A sensitive lyricist. A flawless singer. I can overlook all his personal whacko traits. After all, I'm not related to him. I just enjoy his public and stage persona. Why else would anything else matter to me, right?

First song dedicated to Stephen Grosse!

Michael Jackson is dead and ....

In today's world, one doesn't have to be in Los Angeles. One only needs to have a handphone, internet connection or Cable TV to be informed of any event around the world.

It's not even 7 am and already I've received two smses to inform me that Michael Jackson died. Last night I saw the news the Farrah Fawcett succumbed to cancer. No one cared, no one smsed. It was just news. But Michael Jackson dying of a heart attack is BREAKING NEWS.

I wasn't a fan of Farrah Fawcett. I considered her frivolous and full of herself. Well, that's just my opinion. Anyway, I had always thought Jaclyn Smith more beautiful to look at and, if I were a guy, she would be my choice!

While it is really sad that he is dead, it's the children that I am thinking of and, strangely, worried about. What will become of them? As always, I know there will be everyone scrambling to get custody of them. I can only pray that they will come out of this media circus unscathed.

Rest in peace, Michael Jackson. Rest in peace, Farrah Fawcett.

Why 17?

Over the last 17 years, I’ve probably driven thousands of miles, from home to my office in Jalan Ampang. When I first began work there, the Twin Towers weren’t even up yet. I was a widow and single-mom to 2 small boys. I drove a Daihatsu. I was considered skinny. I wore really micro miniskirts. I had waist-length hair. I couldn’t understand a word of Spanish.

Fast forward to 2009, the Twin Towers are a landmark and a must-see for tourists. I am remarried now. I drive a Myvi. I am considered “pleasantly plump” (my choice of words!). My dress code is sober. My hair is now shoulder-length. I speak and think better in Spanish than Bahasa Malaysia.

In 17 years, the transformation of a shy, quiet, reserved and insignificant girl into a confident, positive and outspoken woman is complete.

Before joining the Embassy, I used to teach in a secretarial school. I hadn’t been a practising secretary for almost ten years and I was a little apprehensive about putting my theoretical skills to practise. I hadn’t even the slightest notion of what working in an Embassy would entail. However, I decided I had nothing to lose, did my best and, well, the rest is history.

It’s no small miracle that I have remained at the same job for so long and some have asked me if I am getting bored. My answer is a definitive “No”. The reason is that the diplomats are only around for about five years or less. I’m now working with my third ambassador and, in the meantime, there have been more than ten different diplomats. It is always very interesting. Each person has a story to tell and something to share. You learn something from each one and many become long-distance friends.

When you spend more than eight hours a day in an office, it’s your second home. You have to make it a place where you grow, not only intellectually but also emotionally. It’s a conscious decision to do that.

What do I see as my greatest achievement after 17 years?

I think that I’m a better person for having had the opportunity to do my best every day. Running a close second to that would be learning to speak Spanish.

How did I celebrate my day? My boss took all of us to lunch at The Orchid Room in The Lake Club. I chose a superbly prepared Beef Medallion, drank 2 glasses of red wine and had too much dessert.

Today, it’s only fitting that I especially remember my three bosses (Jorge Bayona, Javier Gonzales and Alejandro A Gordillo) and numerous colleagues who have contributed to making me who I am today.

To my dear collaborators, a thousand thanks for everything!

Para mis queridos collaboradores, mil gracias por todo!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

To all the fathers who come here to this blog!
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY
May you be blessed in every way!

Today, I'm thinking of my dad, the late Tony Soliano who filled my childhood with wonderful memories.

The are so many, but the one that stands out now would be this episode.

My siblings and I were young teens, planning to go for our first ever party. We were so excited about it, until my mom said we would have to be home by 10 pm. When we protested, she promptly sent us off to speak with dad. He took one look at our faces and said "Go enjoy yourselves, remember your surname and just make sure you come back before the sun rises in the morning!".

Until today, I'll never forget that moment!

Tony Soliano

Home Home Home

When the kids were young, I used to say "home, home, home" to them whenever I got to the driveway and put the car in park. Until today, I occasionally say it if Jared happens to be in the car with me. We always smile and it's a pleasant memory from the past.

I'm sure all families have their anecdotes and idiosyncrasies and I surely have a goldmine. But those stories are for another time.

Today, I want to write about the home.

No, I’m not going into those clichéd stories about the home being where the heart is or that a house is not a home.

I just want to talk about the home and what I believe it has become in today’s world.

Let me start, I have two homes. One is here in Kuala Lumpur and the other in Singapore because circumstances make it necessary for us to have set up two separate homes, at least, for now. For this reason, I travel very frequently to Singapore. On the bright side, I have two dressing tables, two wardrobes and two sets of my girlie stuff for here and there. This is to allow me to travel as lightly as possible.

Let me come straight to the point of the “Singapore home”. People there have a strange robotic way of asking “How many rooms?” instead of “Where do you stay?”. While there are the occasional few who ask for the area, the majority normally begin with the number of rooms.

In Singapore, I notice that they say 2 room apartments and it means that there is only 1 bedroom. So 3 room apartments only means that there are 2 bedrooms and so on. So the people there seem to judge you by the number of rooms you have in your home. This is evident in the fact that the moment you mention the area, they will ask you for the road and when you tell them the road, they will respond with the number of rooms those apartments have. I find it amusing.

Here in Malaysia, we have something similar but we don’t mention how many rooms we have, we just say the locality. It’s more complicated than this, of course, but I’m just touching on this so as to move on to the next point.

The point being that a home is a home is a home. You won’t be able to take it with you when you die.

So those who are slaves to their homes, who have nothing but showrooms with everything neatly in place, do remember that people matter more.

And if you are wondering..... I live in a 4 room apartment (meaning 3 bedrooms) along Old Klang Road and in Singapore; it’s another 2 room apartment (meaning only 1 bedroom) in Toa Payoh! I am comfortable and more importantly, I am happy.

In the end, this is only thing that will matter.