50 shades of Grey, thru my eyes

A complete nonsense-filled -twilight-fan-fiction. 

You might claim it’s not my cup of tea since I’m not even a fan of romance novels and how can I ever possibly tolerate an erotica like this. Frankly, that’ s digressing from the point for I appreciate and am highly fond of reads which are well-written with words and syntax capable of blowing minds. This though is a major failure and I unfortunately went against my ‘Life is too short for crappy stuffs’ principle by reading some parts of the book (online of course!). 

As you all know, I have read novels of 500 pages in which the author could vary words and interjections perfectly and even use repetitions without annoying the readers, yet this so-called phenomenon by E.L James gets plain boring with the over and over usage of ‘jeez’ and special scene allocated on nearly every single page for the female character to blush and chew her lips. Whatever. And guess what? A 26 years old entrepreneur in Seattle, do not have any work  but hooking girls! Seriously people??

I have not read this book fully except for it’s summary and first few chapters, but I can assure you it’s a complete disappointment to the readers unless one loves hardcore, abusive sex in written form and have no access to porn. Well just because the book is not photographic, that doesn’t make it any less of a pornography ok?

To your surprise and many other’s satisfaction ( since their FB fan-page has obtained over 300000 likes), big names and production companies including Universal Pictures and Paramount  are fighting for a chance to produce a movie out of this ill literature. We will soon see the disaster in visual I guess.

it's actually a trilogy by E.L J

Reality check, if it’s suffice for a book like 50 shades of Grey to a create phenomenon and spread 'fever' , I bet it’s not called raising the bar anymore, it’s an ultimate act of lowering expectations and welcoming more social issues via written- materials. Plus, since the sordid novel has already filled up the shelves of numerous book stores and even grocery shops, I wonder what’s the future of reads with much knowledge and moral values. And can you predict the influence on our teens who were to pick up and learn something of little reality and thick fantasy? 

C.R.E.E.P.Y

Touching on facts, a large number of women in their thirties seems to be approving this book, leaving me wonder why would the bunch settle for a story which does nothing but characterize a girl worse than an idiot in a stereotypical way? Has feminism died or something in the world?

Anyway, books like the mentioned often share the old similar ending, don’t they? They fill up the shelves, call up media attention, make a movie with good looking casts, go big, then never heard ever. Take Harry Potter series for instance, nobody’s talking about the novels anymore, only the casts are embracing their midas touch in Hollywood. Twilight will soon end up the exact way, perhaps already has. So, let’s wait and see the future of '50 shades of Grey   a FUGLY work'.

Renuka G

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All you need to fix

There will be no great thing in the world if nobody's there to say it is. Even winning a lottery would be of no significance for a pauper if he chooses to call it an ordinary event (which I totally believe he won't) . The same applies when it comes to nerve-wrecking scenarios. Getting an answer wrong transforms many into a complete loser in their own head when it's human nature to make mistakes. The case here is, we put labels on events and things, then we go around blaming God and circumstances.

Some of us are miserable as the result of our own perception. We get agitated over simple things that would vanish as soon as the sun rises the next morning, or after a few more mornings. We ignore our simple achievements presuming they are not enough and we make huge fuss over our minor shortfalls calling it a major trip. Some say these are dreams-driven dissatisfactions that motivates one to not settle for less and take every single step with caution. My question though is, what's the point of traveling such a long tiresome journey full of resentments to achieve one superficial goal?

I was convinced by circumstances to believe life is all about the journey and not the destination. However, why are there so many of us striving to live  life like a bitter pill to be watered down each day forsake of a huge vision which may or might not come true?

this is kinda against the theory! true though =p  

Can't the journey be like the glass on its way to be full and not resembling the one half-way filled yet pressured by so many factors, only waiting for the time to shatter into pieces ?

From what I've learnt, everyone should dream big and never stop working towards making it real. Keeping that in mind, I have no rights to comment on anybody's dream and hey, I have no will to do that either. I just intend to make the road less bumpy, presenting to you an approach to get your glass full at the end without compromising your self-esteem and happiness in general.

We can't change circumstances and that is the ultimate trick played on each of us living in this world. Things will happen forcing us to call some good and the rest as tragic or bad. Way worse during some unfortunate case scenarios, our battered system forces onto us the blurry most vision that even our little successes seems like zero-incline in the progress.

But no matter how you twist or turn,everything comes down to this- it's either we usually perceive wrongly or perceive too honestly. So why not play a trick?

Why not mend our perceptions according to our comfort? We are holding the keys now aren't, we?

Just like a loophole in the constitution, this is certainly a secret way-out we take into our personal favor. When it is so clear that trying to change circumstances is a futile attempt, let's fix our perceptions. Even a massive blow can be masked as a mild-trial if you just believe it is. 

Begin a great journey towards your dream (s)! 

Renuka G

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The spritz hunt

After a year of indulgence in the notes of wild strawberries and drenching myself with the pride of a Marc Jacob's product in grip, it's finally the time to wave goodbye. My Daisy Hot Pink perfume is soon to be disposed and replaced.  Hence, this post is going to be about the journey spoilt with choices and the chosen one.

Just like shopping for clothes and shoes, I love fragrance-shopping. In actuality, I enjoy it the most for a few glaring reasons like, I need not join the fitting-room queue looking like a madwoman in a mad-rush attempting to squeeze through the mad crowd and also not wait in horror for a sales assistant to check on size availability that is sometimes already pasted on the shoe soles which some greens like me fail to notice. It's complicated you see. Perfumes are often an easy-peasy chapter. All you have to do is conduct a research in collaboration with Mr Google here, shortlist a few, try them later, narrow down again and voila, you have 'the one'. If the sales assistant is friendly enough, ask for some perfume samples ok? Many succeeded I tell you! So be a wise-spender, yet drench in a collection of various scents (even though it's just 5 1.5ml)

you know me =)

When I'm hunting for perfumes, my favorite place would be KLIA. I can give you a long list of whys but guess what? I'm too tired to type it all down. The most simple and obvious one would be, everything is there, from J.Lo to Versace, I guarantee they didn't miss a label. Not to anybody's surprise , that is where I purchased my new Eau de Toilette.

And my choice was....jeng! jeng! jeng! jeng!

Not yet.

Just to let you know, I did shortlist a few prior the, what I choose to call the ultimate 'investment'. The list included Jimmy Choo, Lola by Marc Jacobs, Lady Million by Paco Rabanne and also Bright Crystal by Versace. Why I rejected them though? That is indeed a sad thing for all the mentioned labels to digest , yet a choice had to be made and things had to be crossed. It was not a mere hearsay based decision I assure you. A lot of efforts and sniffs and spritz involved. I can't lay forth reasons for saying No to each so let me present you the ones for a few.
As you all readily known, I'm a huge fan of Marc Jacobs, however, Oh my Lola! smells too sweet and I can never stand the strong hint of vanilla in any perfumes even if it's of the designer I'm so devoted to. Sorry MJ!

Lady Million, it was so clear, the same problem but this one is TOOOOOOoooo sharp and heavy that I could faint even before reaching the next room. I love my perfumes mild, regardless of it being an Eau de Toilette or Parfum or what-so-ever! Setting that aside, one thing good about Paco Rabanne's scents is. they last long, like really-really long. Anyway, they all were sent into depression-mode this afternoon and I kinda am feeling sorry right now. Tranquilizer anyone?

Without further ado, let me reveal my perfume for the next 1 year period.

Tada!

It's Flora by Gucci- Gorgeous Gardenia. Please do not believe any slanders thrown upon my beloved perfume for having affairs with the famous bread brand, for it's not true! Hehe. To tickle your memory, Gucci launched the Garden collection just a few months ago, in May to be exact, with a huge advertising campaign. Many were pleased with the fragrances but cringed at the price placed. In Malaysia, it costs 364 MYR per 100 ml bottle. Quite pricy I should say. However, bearing red berries and pear on its top notes, the mildly sweet scent definitely impressed me in all ways the moment it faded on my wrist, and of course is worth every penny.

I got Carolina Herrera L'eau's sample!!

The sweet me signing off

Renuka G

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Tweed Jacket

Tweed jacket from topshop

Tweed jacket first gained its fame by keeping the legendary fashion icon, Mademoiselle Coco Chanel warm further popping glam to her signature dangly pearls. The staple piece came back to regain its status in the fashion world sometime ago and now it has been named a wardrobe-essential.

Don't be surprised if I were to call it the new addition to my layering pieces.

The truth is I'm too bored with my cardigans and G2000 blazer, apart from starting to loathe the color black. Therefore, I went to Dorothy. P, Topshop, Mango and also Subzero hunting for my meant-to-be jacket but finally found it in Promod which drained me about 255 MYR. Please do not end up having panic attacks or cardiac arrests for, good layering pieces are often priced around that. Take Topshop for instance, the cheapest price for a blazer would be 256 and could go up to 356 MYR meanwhile at Dorothy Perkins if you are lucky enough you would be able to hunt down a piece as such for about 156 MYR (usually during sale). However, more often you would end up not liking the cheap one unless your frugal-policy outweighs your fashion eyes. And trust me ladies, layering pieces are good investments indeed, so please don't scrooge on that.

Back on tweed jacket!

tweed jacket by pro mod

Mine looks like this is exactly this. For further info and more detailed view, do visit promod.com. The one thing that captured my eyes the most is the golden-zip details on both sides, very exquisite. Also to be noted, the material feels great and not too warm or uneasy when worn. Since it's sort of like milky in colour, you can don it over a bright colored top to tone down your look. If you love cinching, you can always get your favorite belt over the piece to show your puny waistline.

Be it a skirt, skinny or tapered pants, a tweed jacket can match them all.

All the best hunting one!

Renuka G

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Brain-boosters

Hold your breath folks, I'm about to surprise you with some shocking yet heart-soothing facts!

i Was THIS shocked!

Recently, Glamour released its list of food rich in brain-boosting nutrients. The chosen ones are said to make you think quicker, concentrate harder and of course be smarter. Strawberry, blueberry, yogurt, prawns and spinach are some which made the entry. They were the ordinary, commonly-known ones, causing no impact to my system. Apart from the mentioned, the list did shock me with 2 extraordinary names and that is what going to constitute this canvas today.

No matter how hungry we are, we often never forget to alienate the red-spicy foes but who knew they could make us focus better. Yes, chillies beside being crowned for their fat-burning abilities is said to possess brain boosting powers. Capsaicin the natural compound in chillies, capable of giving the vegetable its heat, when collides with its' receptors in our brain release good hormones known as endorphins. Endorphins apart from helping us maintain focus, do promote calmness and reduce stress. Pretty shocking uh?!  Chew over that and stop sending them to the bin, they belong elsewhere I suppose!

Coffee lovers, this is for you. Your beau is included as well in the top 30. Despite years sustaining its bad rep in the diet world, caffeine grins to ears when applauded for its ability to stimulate brain cells eventually helping them to work faster and efficiently in the short term. Turning the spotlight on coffee beans, they are full of antioxidants which assists in transporting oxygen to the brain. Even more shocking, and rather exciting to the coffee lovers, studies have proven that drinking 2 to 4 cups of coffee a day can even reduce the risk of degenerative mental illnesses  later in life. All hail coffee!

Having read what you should, the next time you meet the two Cs, make sure you 'hello' them right! And you know exactly how, don't you?

Renuka G

 

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What a skirt man!

You might have measured the pencil skirt using your ruler, who knows, but this time around the fashion world has evolved letting us don a ruler inspired skirt instead. As quirky as it sounds, the piece   exactly typifies the word, jolly modeling the measuring tool  in a literal manner.

The way things are going somewhat alerts me, how seethed mr.eraser must be hunting for designers to please. Perhaps it's just a season way to see more stationaries dominating the runways and catalogues.

Back on the ruler skirt, it is the masterpiece of a Korean webshop, StyleNanda, which is also featured in Seventeen's webpage. They offer pretty good fashion I assure you. 

The pencil skirt has officially humbled its market, the question though is can ruler skirt soar better? Would you wear it?

Measure your likeness and mark it down before the eraser invades!

Renuka G

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A shelter for fiction

This afternoon, since I had a little free time before my siesta, I utilized it to find and arrange the books I have read. And as soon I managed to collect all of them for each was left at different places, reality hit me hard! How am I supposed to arrange them in the general space I have allocated to keep books, which is to be exact, under my table? This is like way too many to be squeezed there as I already have stacks (yes plural) of books ruling the space for about 2 years.

Now it's indeed a dilemma surfacing here.

What am I going to do with these books?

Please kindly rule out 'throwing' or 'disposing' or even, 'incinerating' as in Bradbury's dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451. Not doing that! And bearing in mind the limited space in my cubicle like room, I forsure can't dream to secure another area to store them nor I'm capable of twisting a magic wand to form a hoard. Neither is even close to possible, especially the last one. Staving off the mentioned options, what do I have left?

still a struggle to finish 

Bring the books back? Well, I'm considering that in fact. At least if they are there, my dad would take good care of them, arrange them nicely on the book shelf, easy to find, no need to rearrange and I can leave them anywhere I like again, without a tinge of worry as I know it would be back on the shelf like a magic trick the next day =) Setting that reason aside, the book would also be available for my sister to kill time when she's back on holidays. However, since she's more engrossed with poems lately, I need not stress on that one much. What do you say ?

'Problem Solved !' of course!

Traveling south with books this time, but 'heading south' is not in the agenda =)

Renuka G

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Tikki Tikki What?

Totally!t

As soon as my School-Based Experience is over and the Raya holidays wave goodbye, the assignments will get piled up once again. Setting aside 3 lesson plans and the time-consuming corporate video we have to create, storytelling is another huge agenda to be prepared and endured. Not enough of  the singing and poem-writing activities the previous semester, this time around we have a subject solely focused on storytelling in primary ESL classroom. Fortunate for some while unfortunate for beings like me, the coursework for this particular subject requires us to conduct a storytelling session with level 1, 2 or 3 pupils for about 10 minutes. Ain't no joke buddy!

The only consolation being, we do not need a lesson plan for this one!

Point blank, what worries me the most is the 'fact' that I'm not a good storyteller nor a good story-writer. Have you ever seen me writing a story? (Not those long facebook or interpals replies okay?) I hate that in fact. I spent my years in secondary school avoiding essay questions which demands for a story, like a plague. I love public speaking and have participated in English Debates a few times but story-telling is not at all in my field of expertise nor it is under the list of interests. However, if you were to praise me for the Jungle book storytelling session, honey that's what we call as fluke! Just in case you are still in denial, I so totally love you!

Whatever it is, there is no escape in this one, so I better start doing something instead of voluntarily- embarrassing myself in front of those kids. If they laugh because it's a fun session, that's absolutely fine, but if they were to laugh because of my rotten-eggs-worth-'showmanship', I rather take an MC and repeat the semester! Seriously Renuka? 

Hell NO of course! What do you think? I'm a warrior okay, haven't you heard that about me? =p

Even though, I have ranted for paragraphs about the work-to-be-done, to your surprise I have actually picked the story already. Excited nah me? It's not a boring fairy-tale with a lame happy-ending, not a modern fantasy with huge giants and mythical unicorns, and also not an allegoric fable with personified animals. I chose a chinese folktale entitled, Tikki Tikki Tembo.

Interesting name right? And that's is indeed the highlight of the whole story. Since I'm too lazy to write my own summary, here you go, the one given by wikipedia.com;
"Tikki Tikki Tembo is set in ancient China and invents an ancient Chinese custom whereby parents honor their first-born sons with long, elaborate names that everyone is obliged to say completely"


The boy's tragedy is caused by that long name he had. Read the story if you are interested! It's pretty short. 

The one thing I have to practice well now is the boy's long-lengthy name which is "Tikki Tikki Tembo-no Sa Rembo-chari Bari Ruchi-pip Peri Pembo"  which means the most wonderful thing in the whole wide world. It's not easy to get it right every time and that's such a huge risk as kids hear well you see. And as this is the most interesting thing about the story, I really have to make sure I can pronounce it well throughout the session, each time when the name is repeated, which is like 6 times! The props and other stuffs can WAIT!

Let's just hope for the best!

Renuka G

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Confession indeed

I can't fathom the courage I have to risk waking up late tomorrow, possibly adding another not-so-glam 'L' on my attendance, but since I'm already here, only fairy-multimedia-mother/father can save me!

Nothing of dire importance, just dropping by to brag about my new read. Perhaps the word 'brag' is an overstatement, so do kindly ignore my jolly impaired vocab.

The novel is a legal thriller by John Grisham entitled 'The Confession'. I know it's a little too embarrassing since his new book 'Calico Joe' is just out and here I am flipping through the pages of his 2010 published novel. It's ok though, better late than never they say. ( I don't understand why I have to make it sound so important when it's not!)

Speaking about the book, mostly flashback-based with humour etched here and there, the story revolves around a guilty-man roaming free while an innocent man pay for the crime he's forced to admit   his. Usual John Grisham stuff you know? I certainly do know because this is the 2nd novel by him that I'm reading after 'The Litigators' which impressed me in all ways.

Hoping to finish this one by Raya so I could get my hands on 'The Firm', one of John Grisham's best works, also adapted into a movie starred by Suri's Daddy @ Katie's ex-hubby. You can guess who!

Good night, readers !

Renuka G

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Bag-Saver

It's never easy to get a thing from our handbags isn't it? Be it the keys or a small pen, we often have to fumble our way into all corners of our bag just to reach it, and at a few unfortunate circumstances, we have no choice but to make the poor thing barf in public only to extract the needed content. However, if it is a bowling bag that we are talking about, by all means let's dismiss it at this, but what if it's a large tote?? Hell will indeed break loose!

If this is worse, you haven't seen mine yet =p

Getting to the cause of this whole scenario, we certainly have to blame it on how disorganized some of us are. Things are simply thrown or chucked into bags with zero organization. Guilty!

Can you recall the last time you took an effort to arrange your keys and stationaries? If it's a 'Yes' then Congrats, you are one in a million indeed! But if 'No' speaks the ugly truth of yours, someone is waiting to assist you out of the mess.

An upcoming Malaysian bag-label Gin & Jacqie, has designed a multi-pocketed helper or better known as a bag-organizer to torch you towards better fumble-free days. The organizer is basically a detached insert piece with 11 pockets tailored to fit different essential items from keys to your handphone, which is then placed in the bag you intend to use. Mirroring the functions and features of a pencil case, this organizer besides saving us our precious time, provides a hassle-free handbag switch we all ever dreamt of. 

Hence, considering the benefits mentioned, while planning for a grand investment on an arm candy, do allocate a humble 40-60 MYR for this cute little denier-friend. 

Handy indeed!

Renuka G

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Scale to my favor

Do you know the feeling you get when stepping on the bathroom scale and it shows a drop? It's like a buy 1 free 1 sale at your favorite designer boutique, it's like an ice cream giveaway at Baskins, it's like a holiday on Monday, such a happy scene even beating the proverbial cloud nine feel. And that happened to me today.

I was flabbergasted in fact, as it was just yesterday I felt like I have put on weight. Now having the scale pointing to my favor, I can certainly pin point to the photographer's angles and skills for the picture malfunctions.

Plus, prior today, I thought fasting doesn't contribute much if I were indulge to the max after 7, reality check, I'm wrong with much bliss!

Looks like my size 6 (UK) dream is so close I could hear it calling!

In actuality, I can already fit myself into a size 6 top, but it's just not to my comfort yet. Considering the fact I don't like to wear tops that are body hugging, I thereby choose to reduce a little more.

But Whatever my size is and going to be, I'm healthy and that satisfies me the most. Thanks to jogging, dumbbells and of course my meals, not forgetting the Almighty for the precious gift.

Renuka G

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A Platitude!

While I yearn for a mere cake, God chose to give me a yummylicious chocolate cake with frosting instead. Feeling so privileged to be loved and cared by all.

Half of the day is done, can't wait for the rest to bring much joy, for I absolutely sure it will.

Let's put this macbook to sleep and wake up in a heavenly place, life is too short to love assignments and endear tasks !

Renuka G

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