Smell and Memory

Today some smell which i couldnt quite put my finger on..reminded me of Vicky and Lambo buying tshirts while Ammu, Bro and I wait outside the shop...at the Batu Feringgi night market. Very weird but, this is kind of a norm where many scents reminds you of a particular part of your memory so fresh that even you would not believe that you remember it that well!

My first and foremost memory of my recent visit to India, which I dont think i will ever forget is the smell..when we first got into the Ambassador car outside the airport and i was sticking my head out of the window and i could smell... hmmmm..the earthy smell, the mixture of dust, masala, cow dug and jasmine!

Of course, there are certain smell like a certain 'flavour' of Ambi Pure which gives a cold shiver whenever i come across it as it gives me certain bad memories of some people in the past.

I've always found it fascinating that smell can trigger memories so i decided to read on it..

'...the olfactory bulb is part of the brain's limbic system, an area so closely associated with memory and feeling it's sometimes called the "emotional brain," smell can call up memories and powerful responses almost instantaneously. The olfactory bulb has intimate access to the amygdala, which processes emotion, and the hippocampus, which is responsible for associative learning. Despite the tight wiring, however, smells would not trigger memories if it weren't for conditioned responses. When you first smell a new scent, you link it to an event, a person, a thing or even a moment. Your brain forges a link between the smell and a memory. When you encounter the smell again, the link is already there, ready to elicit a memory or a mood.' (source)

Simply put..the smell nerve is close to an area associated with memory and feeling. Hence, the connection.

New Year!!

Happy New Year to all. 2008 has done its part and now 2009 has come dancing in! Well mine started with a small celebration in Mount Kiara with Boye, Ammu, Ruben n Mano with Starbucks coffee. Yaaayyy a healthy start to a healthy year :)


Well its typical that everyone will have resolutions...so here goes my humble goals.

1. Land on a satisfying job
2. Get a car
3. Lose weight
4. Solve issues
5. Be more patient,wise & time appreciative

Its definitely shorter and simpler than the previous years..but definitely much more important.

My wishes for the people of the world is to be more peaceful if not happy, kinder and more family oriented.

Updates 2

Then came Deepavali..

ghee balls (nei urundai) wrapping session..
Brickfields at 12.15 am, two days before Deepavali..
with my little cousins..Tejini (apek) n Doshani (vaale)..
after being the usherer for the KEKKWA Deepavali Celebration..
with Shanti..the youngest in the orphanage..

Next the sis-bro day with my little bro..Jeganraj.


The birth of anxiously awaited baby of Ruben Mama n Malini Akka..
Ammu with the bundle of joy..
Boye with baby.. 5 times larger! ;)

Next was my birthday..(which was filled with almost all feelings a person can feel in their life time)..
The lunch treat for me in Ole-Ole Bali at Sunway Pyramid..
The weirdest drink I've seen..it had lemon grass, pudina, lime and a lot of other green stuff.. The daredevil tried it..N it tastes real good!

-The end ..

Updates 1

Since there's soo many things which i would like to write about n didnt have the opportunity to do so, I've decided to upload photos along which i took from some time in end of Sept till now.

Starting from the Physcomantra photoshoot by Arkay Productions in Putrajaya. One of my bro's dream visualizing for real. The pic is the team that was involved in the shoot. I was the make-up artist by the way..hehhe.. My bro, Rajkumar Kopalan and Eden was the director and Ammu was the production manager. It was during the Raya holidays so the entire place looked like "I am Legend" set because there was barely anyone there. It was a tiring but fun day. More about the day can be read here, here and here..


Next,

Navarathri..This is me after the Saraswathi Pooja at Sue's place. The ten days of the three Goddess was a beautiful festival. It is also one of the time where you can see all those who are learning Bharatanatyam, Sangeetham and etc performing in all the temples in front of the Kolu. Kolu is arrangements of deities on nine steps (normally built with wood) and Durga, Saraswathy and Lakshimi will be placed at the top step. I had the opportunity to visit several temples during this period and one of it was Ammu's performance in the Ampang Rajarajeswari temple. She had the most classic look and danced ever so beautifully :)


Then, I was busy with my report making and went back to Kedah to submit it. It was wonderful seeing all my kappez again. That few days i spent felt like i lived an entire semester there..full of events lol.

Neway this is me with my room-mate..

and my course-mate-plus-partner-in-crime for the past 3 years..

Don't Speak

"Don't Speak"

You and me
We used to be together
Everyday together always
I really feel
That I'm losing my best friend
I can't believe
This could be the end
It looks as though you're letting go
And if it's real
Well I don't want to know

Don't speak
I know just what you're saying
So please stop explaining
Don't tell me cause it hurts
Don't speak
I know what you're thinking
I don't need your reasons
Don't tell me cause it hurts

Our memories
Well, they can be inviting
But some are altogether
Mighty frightening
As we die, both you and I
With my head in my hands
I sit and cry

Don't speak
I know just what you're saying
So please stop explaining
Don't tell me cause it hurts (no, no, no)
Don't speak
I know what you're thinking
I don't need your reasons
Don't tell me cause it hurts

It's all ending
I gotta stop pretending who we are...
You and me I can see us dying...are we?

Don't speak
I know just what you're saying
So please stop explaining
Don't tell me cause it hurts (no, no, no)
Don't speak
I know what you're thinking
I don't need your reasons
Don't tell me cause it hurts
Don't tell me cause it hurts!
I know what you're saying
So please stop explaining

Don't speak,
don't speak,
don't speak,
oh I know what you're thinking
And I don't need your reasons
I know you're good,
I know you're good,
I know you're real good
Oh, la la la la la la La la la la la la
Don't, Don't, uh-huh Hush, hush darlin'
Hush, hush darlin' Hush, hush
don't tell me tell me cause it hurts
Hush, hush darlin' Hush, hush darlin'

Hush, hush don't tell me tell me cause it hurts

Updates

This is the latest updates of my life.

1. I’m done with my mandarin classes YAAYY..i don’t know how much I actually learned, but definitely not up to the instructor’s expectations lol. Nevertheless, some Mandarin program on TV is a little bit more understand-able. For example I could understand the Mandarin spoken in Fun Asia slot on AFC channel the other day. Surprised that it made sense a bit, I finally realized that I had not wasted the RM340/= Hhahhahaha..my dad is soo confident of my language ‘ability’ that he asked me to order when we went to the Chinese Fish Head Curry restaurant in Kepong for my mum’s n bro’s bday celeb but I managed to escapee…:p
I can only say wo e le…ni hao ma?..xiexie..among the few tiny bits of others.

2. I’ve got only two weeks of practicum left in INTERPOL. I’m feeling kind of neutral bout it. This place can get boring at times but when it gets interesting..it surely does majestically. My experiences here will be updated here soon. The lecturer that’s suppose to do a spot-check on me (I had to hunt who is he on my own ‘cause I was getting worried why he’s not here yet) told me ‘…takpe lah…I kalau x dtg pun xpe..asalkan u ok kat sana. No prob kan? U jus call me if need me my dear. Kalau I dtg sana bulan puasa ni pun, bukannya boleh belanja makan..i xde period. Hahahaha..’. I guess I’m good on my own without any spot-checks..hehehe. Neway, GOOD for me. My report is taking shape this week. Its so irritating when you have so much of information that you want to put in your report but fucking limited to 50pages max. Shit. It’s not like those crappy-cut-n-paste stuff. Its info on the interesting roles played by Interpol. Not many people know that. I’ve only done the basics and its already twelve pages. Too bad.

3. I’m currently job-hunting. I’m giving myself a break from Oct2nd till Nov30th. My target is to land on a reasonable job by Dec1st’08. I cant be choosy at this point but im filtering my applications, hoping to get thru to one of places. So far, I’ve applied at CIMB, OUB, and few more. I went for the ‘great’ PTD exam the other day. I say great because it’s believed to be as tough as hell. I felt that it was not exactly tough questions, but the difficult part is, the time given is very limited. But, heck I did it and waiting for the result. When I last checked, it will be out after Oct4th. Till then…vetttiizzzzzzzzz HHAHhahhahaha. Besides that, my Plan C will be a temp in any CS besides tuition for primary school kids. I jus know that I can’t bum for long. My system will kick myself up even before the two moths ‘holiday’ that I’ve given myself. That reminds me of this conversation with my bro couple of years back that I will always remember..

Me: According to tradition..na velalaikki povati kude paravale teriyuma? Pombele pille adakam odakama veedu-le iruntha nallathe-thane. (its ok if I don go to work and jus b at home u noe. Its better for gals to b at home than outside)
Boye (my bro): Ni matto anthamari irunthe..Ni sapade-mothu-la, na unne TENDE SORU TENDE SORU ne solluve. Pi tinggiriya sorru tinggiriya keepe. Parevaliya? (If u ever do anything like that, I will call u r eating guilty-less free food. And ask u eating shit or rice to be so thick skinned. Ok? –my best translation)

Well..although I would NEVER ever want to bum at home with nothing to do with my life…I just wanted to see my bro’s reaction, knowing very well that's how he will react..Hahahahaha..it was worth it. ;p

I truly believe all girls should do something on their own to secure their own future and stability. A person should never be dependant to anyone. You must always have Plan B. And Plan C and D.. As they say, you can never be too cautious.

4. Im currently planning what I want to do for the two months break. Celebrating bithdays, little bit of partying, Deepavali prep, holiday *secret secret* (will tell once conformed), and visiting my cousiezz.

Ok. Got to go back to my report.

INterN

Im finally attached to the NBC INTERPOL Malaysia as an intern. This one week has been smooth so far (*touch wood). No bossy or arrogant bosses..jus normal office politics which i definately dont want to get involved in. Of course i dont like the 'security' part where u need to leave ur hp at the main gate n get a pass to walk from there to the main building N get another pass at the building lobby. 'Security' la konon. Hehehehe.

SO far i've seen INTERPOL cases which involves expatriates, foreign workers which were caught alive or dead..the normal cases. Not very exciting ones but very informational. Im assigned under Sgnt.Singh who is soo nice to me (almost like a father) giving me daily 'lectures'.Hehehe..he's nice. I learned bout Malaysian POlice (PDRM) and INTERPOL a little.

I have to admit that police officers gave me slight creeps due to certain incidents...*wink wink* but after being here for almost a week, i definately have changed that. One thing which i've noticed, the higher the rank is, the nicer they are to interns..good for me! lol.

Okie..my lunch break is over. Back to digging. ;)