I had no idea that talking about the safest place to sit in a plane is enough to make you a terrorist suspect.

For goodness' sake. The family probably watched a few episodes of 'Seconds From Disaster' a few days back, and were just hoping they can sit in the areas with the best rates of survival (in case the plane crashed).  I think it's more to how they look like compared to what they were talking about.  Bad timing though. I'm assuming it's because the family were probably dressed as Muslims typically do (veiled, etc.) and they just happen to have the conversation inside the plane...and what with the impression most Americans have on Muslims these days, especially after the 9/11 incident.

For goodness' sake, the only thing the family mentioned was about 'the safest areas to sit in a plane' and they wanted to go on a VACATION!!

Darn, I'd be pissed off if that incident happened to my family.  So, let's say if I happen to be talking to another passenger on a plane about how to decide when to overtake cars on a road, I should be arrested on suspicion of violating traffic laws and have my driving license barred.

So much for globalization. Seems that the amount of xenophobes have increased along with globalization.

Err...I'm stuck in a hotel room in KL...first day of an almost never-ending journey basically. Will be flying off to KK in a few more days, and then off to my grandparents' place and my aunt's wedding. And then I'll be back in KL next month and off to another West Malaysian state (forgot which one) for some sort of program which I can't disclose for privacy reasons =p. Educational though.

2008 is coming to an end...this has been quite a weird journey ever since the start of the year. Compared to previous years, I've been away from home a lot more this year...this includes workshops, trainings, and volunteering activities...my favorite event of the year is the Miri International Jazz Fest, coz we were part of the volunteers in that event. And we even got the chance to take photos with the 'crazy' pianist from Oma Sound (somehow and unfortunately I've forgotten his name), I have to admit he's one of my favorite pianists.

Earlier this year, I was part of a group of volunteers who painted the Kenyalang Mental Association new building (Raymond was the OC, 'Charity of Paint'), and also helped Angeline with the Tabung Dapur Untuk Darfur (literally 'kitchen funds for Darfur').  Come to think of it, I had a different perspective of volunteerism a couple of years ago.

Like most Malaysians, I was part of a 'pasukan beruniform' in primary school(uniformed team?), which means being a part of the Scouts, St. John's Ambulance, Red Crescent, Girl Guides, etc.(I switched to Taekwondo in primary school). Whenever there was any sort of event that required donations or any sort of help, I went just because I was part of a student team and all my friends were going, and I thought it would be fun.  Sure, we had fun, but I never put any deeper thought into what volunteerism was at that time.

I entered a Malaysian secondary school (my schoolmates were Asfan, Michelle P, and Azie, and ironically I knew them in university instead) and enrolled in the Firefighter Cadets team. Learnt about where the fire extinguishers were stationed in every building of the school, and even went through marching lessons, probably as part of discipline.  Yup, it was fun, no deeper thoughts.  All those eight years in school and I was stuck with the perspective that volunteerism is about being part of a uniform student group and helping out just because...just because.  Sure, we had teachers in school telling us that it's important to help people in need and all that, but that was that. That's all we knew.

It was a dramatic, life-changing 3 years of living in an impoverished North African country that turned my perspective around.  It sounds cliche but being there to experience and witness something in person is truly different.  What you see on CNN or BBC is nothing compared to what I saw.  Whenever cars stopped at traffic lights or road intersections, crippled beggars would tap (or knock loudly, depending on how desperate he/she is) on the car windows to ask for money.  Planes with the United Nations logo would fly in from time to time, partly to send rations and also as part of a peaceful mission...never in my whole life in Malaysia have I seen a UN cargo plane fly within our airspace.  What with civil wars and genocides raging throughout the country, it doesn't sound like a very safe place to live in. Soldiers everywhere, guarding this and that, and once upon a time we were not even allowed to snap pictures at the main airport.  I can remember a gruff, sullen soldier shaking his finger at a few of us, saying 'No camera' with a thick Arab accent.

Not to sound insulting or what, but the occasional reports on TV3 about poor Malaysians are mild compared to what I've seen.  The rich are really really really really really rich, and the poor are really really really really poor. The poorest people had to make do with a makeshift hut made of old boxes, newspapers, and the like.  It was a really saddening sight, to see a couple of shoddy huts being built right next to the mighty fortress-like walls of the super-rich (I say, some of the houses are way larger than the mansions you see in Miri's own Ocean Park). One advantage the poor people had in using those materials is that it rarely rains in that country. But if rain pours, there goes their only home. They'll have to rebuild it. There's no place to stay for the night. Or nights, depending on whether they managed to get materials.

I really admire the volunteers who go here and there to help improve and save lives in various relief situations, especially those who go to the point of actually stepping into war zones to help victims of war.  Now I'm not saying that I'm encouraging everyone to just fly to a war-torn country and just venture blindly into enemy territory with the risk of getting shot. But these volunteers have sacrificed A LOT just to be there to help those in need. Quite a number of them have, unfortunately, been killed just because they were in the right place at the wrong time.  May God bless their souls and may they rest in peace.

Logging off for now.