A musical usually is enough for me. My Fair Lady, Oliver Twist…they always serve as perfectly amusing distractions. Unfortunately a singing Johnny Depp with swinging razors in tow couldn’t keep my mind off things that I ought to be doing, or have done by now. Nothing clicked with me despite the small chuckles, and I felt it hugely unfair to have an 18PL movie censored. What’s the point of a horror film without the gore? On a better day, maybe Sweeney Todd would have won me over, especially with songs with lyrics like “Nothing’s gonna harm you, not while I’m around…”. Aww, that’s cute.
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I don’t know what the bleep I was thinking, signing up for the 5km Humanitarian Walk tomorrow. Considering the last time I hit the tracks on a regular basis was at the beginning of last semester, and that now I can’t run 20 steps without keeling over and coughing my guts out, I’ll be lucky if I don’t crawl my way across the finish line, if I make it at all. I tried weighing the pros of doing this for a good cause, and the cons of possibly having to bear the humiliation of trotting at the tail end of the running crowd. In the end, screw it, if it’s for charity, why not? I’ve struck a deal with the girls - no one runs. Fara suggested putting everyone on one leash so that no one cheats and leaves the other behind. If one starts sprinting, she’s going to have to drag the rest along with her. Yeah Naj, Daad, hear that?
If you see one rather large group of girls tomorrow walking about, chatting loudly and generally having a good time, insya Allah I hope that’s going to be us. We’ll wave if you wave. 
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Listening to Buddy’s ‘Westgate’ makes me ache for a road trip to anywhere but here. Not for the sake of getting away, but just for the experience, you know? Windows down, driving until I run out of road. I know this whole “running out of road” phase is nothing new, but this song has just revived the longing for it.
I’ve never made a mixed tape/CD before. If I made one for the open highway, what would you propose I include? I have a mellow theme in mind, and I mean mellow. Think minimal instruments. A guitar/piano solo would suffice. Think Ben Harper, Jack Johnson, Newton Faulkner, Norah Jones, a little of John Mayer, a little of Matt White, Amber Rubarth, Alexi Murdoch, DCFC, Ryan Adams, Iron and Wine, Travis, Kings of Convenience, Kareem Salema, Priscilla Ahn, The Album Leaf, Damien Rice, The Weepies, Nickel Creek, Fiona Apple, Buddy (of course), Nizlopi, A Fine Frenzy, Meiko…
Actually come to think of it, I’m going to need to intersperse the above with less mellow tunes, lest the mellowness of it all makes me doze off at the wheel. Alanis Morissette, Radiohead, The Cranberries, The Perishers and Athlete suddenly come to mind. I’m tempted to throw in some experimental and electronica tracks, but they don’t seem to fit.
Why do I even bother with coming up with this list, I wonder? Practically speaking, the funds I have would probably be just enough to land me, say, somewhere in Terengganu, maybe. This is why I am a strong advocate for the reduction of petrol prices.
But it’s fun, the idea of it.
Making a mixed CD for a road trip that in all probability I won’t be taking.
It’s 2am, and the walk’s at the crack of dawn tomorrow. What am I doing here?
Enough said here.
Ps:
I would like to think this is the year we’re going to win the Thomas Cup. I don’t know though, screaming myself hoarse in front of the TV screen for the last 4 Finals hasn’t proved effective, apparently. If Rexy quits for real now though, we’re going to need more than a miracle to even get to the final round.
