BFMP #6 ~ Dr Smith Still Gives Me The Creeps!

For those who are old (or young!) enough to remember Dr Zachary Smith (Jonathan Harris) from the television series Lost In Space:  That guys still creeps me out!

I had to pleasure of watching the series again recently and I still find it refreshing even to this day.  I do not remember much of any of the series story lines but characterwise, Dr Smith leaves an impression. 

In season 1, episode 1 when he was first introduced popping out in the empty spaceship to reprogram the robot to sabotage the mission, the camera pans directly at his villaneous face.  One look at it and it was enough to bring back some memories of how afraid I was of this character when I was young.

For the record, the impact is not as great now as it was some 30 plus years ago but it is still enough to give me the heeby-geebies!

Ah, Dr Smith... what an impression you have left in my childhood.  Thanks for the creepy memories!

BFMP #5 ~ Still Missing Mom

February 10, 1976,  34 years ago to this day that mom passed on.  I was in studying in Year 5 that time and still vividly remember a few days prior to that day where I was brought home from school.  At that time I didn’t really see the severity of the situation although I knew that mom was already bedridden from her cancer (which I only found out about years later) and she was breathing with the assistance of an oxygen mask.  I was 11 at that time and at that age you do not really see the magnitude of the events that will eventually take place until it happens.

Mom was a housewife and as with all moms out there, a great cook.  I especially remember her prawn fritters which was fluffy and crunchy on the outside and a huge piece of prawn in the inside.  To be honest, recall as I might I cannot remember any of her other signature dishes but one thing for sure is that I never got hungry when she was around.

Mom also enjoyed her mahjong games with her circle of friends every other day and sometimes we would tag along when she goes for her mahjong sessions at her friend’s place or at the Rotary Club.  We would spend hours playing with the other kids while waiting for the mahjong sessions to end.  We had good fun but at times got bored waiting.      

I only noticed something was wrong with her health when she and dad started making trips to KL (we lived in Batu Pahat at that time).  It was for her medical checkups.  I think mom and dad made the conscious decision in not telling us what was happening as they knew we were too young to comprehend the severity of the situation.  Still they actually kept up a brave front for us.  I, for one was oblivious and thought all was hunky dory even though I knew deep down something was not right with her.

On that fateful day, it was somewhere during daytime.  In the house were many relatives and friends.  I was watching cartoons downstairs in the living room when we were summoned up to mom’s room.   There, she breathed her last breath and was gone forever.
I still remember what she last said to me – “Study hard”.

Where and what I am today is because of mom and dad.  I would have loved for her to see us all grow up and become what we are today.  I honestly think we grew up pretty decent and have had some success of our own.  Most importantly we grew up to be good people with a decent, honest jobs with families of our own.  She would have loved to see her grandchildren and maybe she is constantly keeping an eye on them.

We love you and miss you mom even after you have been gone for 34 years.    

BFMP#4 A Place Where Dreams Come True

Let’s fast forward to the present for my latest BFMP.  About a couple of weeks ago – Nov 30, 2009 to be exact, the family and I hopped on board the Hong Kong MTR at Jordan Station in Kowloon and headed over to Lantau Island to interchange to a special train to take us to Hong Kong Disneyland.

From the time as a little kid I had always wanted to visit Disneyland.  Growing up with Mickey and friends and all the Disney cartoons, it was not a matter of ‘when’ but ‘how’.  Thank God for Hong Kong and Air Asia that this was made affordable.  Even if it is not in the U.S of A, that’s ok as it is still Disneyland.

As we stepped into the Disney themed train, I knew that this was the start of a wonderful day.  And what a wonderful day it was.  This time of the year being the Christmas season made it all the more special.  Music filled the air as we made our way to the entrance.  Once inside the magical kingdom, it was what I had imagined as a little kid.  Music was everywhere creating the atmosphere and the first Disney characters that we saw was Goofy and Pluto followed by Mickey and Minnie.  Needless to say we had our pictures taken with them.  Would have wanted a picture with Donald but time did not permit.

Although it was a bit strange that Cantonese was the primary language used in the park but we got used to it time passed.  We had a good laugh though during the stage presentation of the Golden Mickeys when the master of ceremonies started speaking in Cantonese.

Main highlights of the day was the ‘Let It Snow – Christmas Parade’ which was excellent after all this was Disney!  Characters like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, Ariel, the Toy Story characters and of course at last parade float there was Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy and Pluto.  Santa made an appearance too.   The other highlight was the Fireworks display at night.  If you have seen videos of it, watching it ‘live’ is something else.  About 10 minutes of non-stop fireworks!  Couldn’t have ended the day on a better note.

November 30, 2009 – the day I felt like a kid again and realized a longtime dream.  And to top it all, the dream was realized with my wife and kids.  As cheesy as it sounds, dreams do really come true!  Cheers!!

BFMP#3 Bruce Lee Rulers

Bruce Lee was huge in the 70s and is still huge now.

When I was in primary school in the 70s there was a time which I just had to get my hands on a Bruce Lee ruler.   If you were schooling in the 70s and were in a small town in Malaysia, I am sure you would have come into contact with this.

This ruler came in either the 6inch or 12inch type.  Made of plastic and the thing that made me want one is that it had a picture of Bruce Lee (obviously!!) in his famous flying kick pose (similar to the picture below).  Needless to say I managed to get my hands on one at one of those provision/sundry shops that sold almost anything from toys to fireworks to drinks to food.

That ruler was treasured and I think that there were a few more of those in the months and years following.

Its little simple pleasures like that that kept me happy when I was young.  Now, if only I can find one of those rulers..

BFMP #2 ~ Primary School Part 1

Sometimes, it takes a whole lot of effort to recall your early childhood.

Primary 1 for me was a total blur as I don't have any memories of it whatsoever... for now anyway. Maybe it will come back to me as I make my blog postings of BFMP more frequent.

Now primary 2 i remember some of it.

I recall vividly the first day of school. It was also the first time that I was attending S.R.K. Limpoon 1, Batu Pahat. My dad being a government servant had been transferred to Batu Pahat that year and I was enrolled in that school.

My class was overlooking the school field in which the field was not covered with grass but sand. The school at that time was not gated and had a mountain stream flowing along the fringes of the school.

On that day, dad sent me to school and accompanied me to my class. Now for an 8 year old kid, a new environment can be a scary one especially when you know you will not be with familiar people.

Dad sent me to class, had a word with the teacher, gave me some instructions and then he made his way to work. I don't think I cried but there was a feeling of being lost in a class with total strangers.

I also remember that in Primary 2 I had a best friend called Esen (think that's how his name was spelt) and the friendship only lasted for the duration of Primary 2. I think he moved to another town later that year.

There are more stories of my primary years which I will dwell in my next BFMP.

Cheers!

BFMP.. well, sort of...

Blast from my past. This is the title that i've chosen for my blog which i will attempt to recall bits of my life from childhood till where i am now. Bits of my life that i think would have made a difference for me. Of course there will be the good memories and bad ones as well. The objective of this blog is to have an account of of my life for my friends and more importantly my family to read about errr... well.... me. Eventually...

I would want my children to be able to read about their dad when he was a kid just like them and the things i did of which some i may not be too proud of. But then hopefully they would realise that their dad was also human. Hey, the thought of me being where i am now in this place and time is in itself an achievement!

I would want my friends to be able to read about this friend which was also more or less just like them. Things some of us went thru before and generally the good times... and there were many of them.

My accounts may skip from my earliest childhood memories to adulthood to teenage years and so on based on what comes to memory first.

So to start it all off this will be my first account of BFMP......

My earliest memory of kindergarten was me dressed in my kindy uniform waiting for the school transport in Kluang, Johore. The school transport was a school bus or a van. Don't remember that as most things look rather big at that age. I supposed i would have been around 5 or 6 at that time.

I remember being dressed in a green and white checks design (small square ones) uniform with a sailor collar (i suppose those things were cool in that day and age) and waiting for the school transport outside my home with an auntie or nanny. That's as far as it goes in terms for kindy. Don't remember the classes or the friends that time.

Not exactly a good start for BFMP #1 but it's still one nonetheless...

Till the next blog... cheers!