It has been four decades since the legendary P. Ramlee left us - but his legacy still lives on. Much of the fan I am, I admit I know next to nothing about the life of this icon in our performance industry, and this is but one and maybe the only time I have to learn a little bit out the journey that P. Ramlee traveled to become legendary as he is today. Having sat next to a bunch of veteran fans who interjected mildly with comments, I felt a little envious to the fact that they are true fans of P. Ramlee, elaborating the representation and re-enactment of P. Ramlee's life events that could not be shown on stage. On some scenes, I saw some of them probably half-in-tears, their crushed handkerchief in their palms - totally absorbed in the performance. Afterall, we've seen his movies - but to be witnessing the representation of his life's journey is a totally new experience, and for them that is as close as they can ever be to their idol. 

The stars : (from left) Tiara Jacquelina, Tony Eusoff,
Elly Mazlein and Nadia Aqilah Baiduri.

P. Ramlee : The Musical, now in it's forth run, was shown at the Borneo Convention Center Kuching for two nights - September 9 and 10. The new cast line-up featured Sarawak's very own Tony Eusoff as P. Ramlee, Nadia Aqilah Baiduri as first wife Junaidah and Elly Mazlein as third wife Saloma. Datin Sri Tiara Jacquelina herself, as the executive producer also plays the role of the second wife, Norizan. The musical itself is part of a five day tribute to P. Ramlee, also in conjunction with the celebration of Sarawak's 50th Independance Day Celebration, and includes a concert by Indonesia's violin maestro Idris Sardi.

Highlights in the programme book

The musical portrays the life of P. Ramlee particularly how he began in the art and performing industry in Penang. He was first offered a role as a clapper boy and background singer in Jalan Ampas, Singapore by BS Rahjans for Shaw Brothers. His migration from Penang to Singapore opens up a whole new opportunity in the industry. 

 His climb towards fortune and fame in Singapore was due to his incredible ability to not only sing and act, but also in writing lyrics, composing melodies, script writing and directing. His natural talent led to his success and was well known as an entertainer and an exceptional artist throughout Asia. 

No journey come without pain and sacrifice. His first marriage with Junaidah did not last. The marriage failed because fame and fortune was too much for Junaidah to handle as she would rather have her husband and a simple life than the lifestyle of artists with the media always scrutinizing their life. After that came Norizan, the second wife whom embraced the life of fame and fortune - but P. Ramlee was far too absorbed with work  and Norizan socializing with her friends caused rumors affairs, lies and deceit. 

The stars, ticket and banner

The third and last marriage with Saloma was portrayed as hitting the balance between work and family, and was probably the cheekiest most clever bit of the whole musical! As Tony Eusoff and Elly Mazlein acted their wooing scenes on stage, the audience went "ooooohh" and "aaaaahhh" and "yeerrrrr.. ingga ku nangga!" (all in good humour - you HAVE to know Sarawak dialect to understand the last bit there). Even the makcik (aunts) sitting around me had their melatah (hyperstartle response? I can't find the English translation for this word and hyperstartle response is the closest that I can get) moments at the cheeky scenes playing on stage. I would like to know if P. Ramlee and Saloma did call each other Remy and Sally respectively, or is it just icing on the cake for the musical. Still, very cheeky and clever indeed!!

Some of the exhibitions and part of the musical

What touched my heart most was at the end when the montaj tribute to P. Ramlee was rolling, I could hear the faint sobbing of the aunts and grandmas to my left, dabbing tears away from their eyes with their crumpled hanky or tissue. The loss of such a great artist, even if it was forty years ago, must've been heartfelt to them. 

To me, Tony Eusoff played an awesome role as P. Ramlee (althought I have nothing to compare it against). It was a great show, well deserved for a huge icon that is P. Ramlee. I never knew he (Tony) can sing that well, but as he sang Hujan di Tengah Hari, Engkau Laksana Bulan and Getaran Jiwa, I felt goosebumps! Datin Sri Tiara Jacquelina and Elly Mazlein was just as powerful - singing the musical original A Marriage Falls Apart and the evergreen Di Mana Kan Ku cari Ganti. 

The set was also AH-MAY-ZING!!! Being my first musical, I thought the stage was small while the side stage too big, but as the sets and props rolled in I was all open-jawed at much of the effort and details that went into the design. It was nothing short of amazing!


Credits :

• To Mina and Anthony for giving me a ticket in the first place! Sorry I did not sit with you guys cuz I had my brothers with me.  
• To friends Naydee and Lydia for sharing some of the pictures you guys took. 
• To brothers T-man and Lupi, for being a great company! And Faizin and Bang Fitri too during the first half of the musical! 
• The makcik and grandmas sitting around me for sharing the anecdotes of P. Ramlee's life - truly you all are real fans!

So my blog recently got featured in Sarawak bloggers for the month of September. In a mood for celebration I headed to the Sarawak Regatta Fair. I’ll have another entry for that later, but right now I am fully content with my own company having a bite of Steak Beef Pie at John’s Pie. I’ve heard of John’s Pie from someone, I don’t recall whom though. Also came across the name while covering for the Rainforest World Music Festival 2013.

The entrance

I gotta there was a small misunderstanding about John’s Pie. Though the name was familiar, I was never able to find it. Instead, I came across John’s Place. Boy they are worlds apart. Where John’s Pie serves pie and pastries (as the name implies), John’s Place is a kopitiam which also offers a bed & breakfast on the first floor. I have a feeling that they are related - perhaps of the same business owners. If you know dow put it into the comments below! Thanks!

Inside - rather cozy albeit small

John’s Pie is a small quaint little cafe on the street of Song Thian Cheok. Common landmark is the 360’s Hotel, Liwah Hotel and Wisma Pheonix across Secret Recipe Padungan. I have to say after spending a whole day at the Regatta Festival with a bunch of awesome friends (a couple of which I just met) this quiet little place with its mellow jazz music in the background is all I needed while my other half is doing her own thing, if I may be to bold to point out.

Well anyways I I tried the Steak Beef Pie and boy was I pleasantly surprised. It was delish. The crust was thin but not too thin –it simply crumbles away revealing the scrumptious fillings inside. I have to point out that this is not a good place if you have large numbers in your party. Solo coffee time, couple’s date, that’s just the right number. Three, four or more would be a crowd. As it stands, I will definitely bring my better half here.

The receipt - not expensive at all!

John’s Pie also serve Shepherd’s Pie among other things ~ for those who fancy juices with their pies, there is bottled orange juice, but I like my pie with a cup of plain old coffee. They also serve a few types of quiches - a type of baked flan or tart with savory filling thickened with eggs (or to me it's a much larger version of egg tart - except instead of just egg, you get chicken or meat on it as well >.<) 

There is also a new pie on their menu - a locally inspired Laksa Pie! I might head over there to try it out soon! Who's coming with me?   \(^_^)/

Laksa Pie

Though I'm proud to say that I like to read, that given the choice to be paid to read I would probably become a millionaire very very quickly, I'd like to clarify that I don't remember too much of what I read. More than "not being able to remember", I'd say I "don't want to remember because I tend to live inside the novel and get caught in my vivid imagination". Sounds crazy, I know, but trust me, I have been know to drive myself crazy. 

The Yellow Birds is such a book that would drive me insane. Written by Kevin Powers, a veteran of war himself who enlisted with the army and joined the Iraq war serving as a machine gunner, The Yellow Birds was something like a memorabilia of his experience of war. Set in the northern city of Al Tafar in the eyes of Private John Bartle, the book tells a story of a brotherhood of men in the army, of a broken promise and of betrayal. 

21-years-old Private Bartle together with 18-years-old Private Daniel Murphy enlisted into the army and was placed under the command of Sergeant Sterling - a decorated war veteran. The sergeant, worn and battle-scarred, would punch them in the face one moment and clap them in the back the next, as they together with the rest of their platoon endured basic training. 

Before their deployment, Private Bartle made a promise to the mother of Private Murphy that he would take care of his son. It was revealed that the promise would be broken in the early chapters of the book, and it was Sergeant Sterling who stressed that such promises should never have been made in the first place. 

The book was non-lineally structured - jumping between the years of which Private Bartle and Private Murphy fought in the war to when Private Bartle returned home, without private Murphy with him thus breaking the promise he made, to the brief time they had spent in Germany for their post-battle health evaluation, and finally when Private Bartle was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Division for the crime he and Sergeant Sterling committed regarding the death of Private Murphy. 

The climax of the book, in my opinion is when Private Bartle returned home to his mother. and began reflecting on the things he did back in Iraq. He felt like he did not fit into the society - whom was very grateful for his service but to him he was wrong for returning home unharmed while some of his army-men never had the chance to return at all. As he drank and slept his days away, counting the second when the CID would finally catch him, he reflected on the promise that he made to Private Murphy's mother, how he should've seen how Privatee Murphy began to lose himself to the war, and how he felt responsible for not setting Private Murphy straight. 

This is my first book with army and war theme in background, but more than that the inner-thoughts that made up for chase scene made up of words and phrases, like music that crescendos into fast paced allegro vivace to a melancholy adagio, it carries me to a different world - an slight and if only made-up understanding of the state of a soldier returning from war. I find myself worrying about our own men coming back home from war, and I hope they don't go through what Kevin Powers describe it to be in this book. 

In the post-celebration of Eid Mubarak, Muslims all over Malaysia celebrated their effort of a whole month of fasting in the Ramadhan.  The Malay community, the largest Muslim community in Malaysia swarms the mosque to perform the Eid Mubarak morning prayer, and soon after visiting the homes of their families and friends, reconnecting and rebonding, forgiving and forgetting part grudges, amending broken bonds. Clad in their signature Baju Kurung, they welcome families, relatives and friends from all races and religion, truly in the spirit of unity in diversity. 

Somewhere amidst the celebration and festive ambiance, an identity fell between the cracks of time. Old tales no longer pass through broken lips and music of the new age replaces the colourful tales our fathers and forefathers grew up with. They Malays, very proud of their heritage abide the flows of time. The uniqueness of Baju Melayu enters mainstream fashion and evolved into what it is today - a lapsed identity.

The History

Unraveling the history of Baju Kurung proves to be a daunting task because there has been very little written documentation to support what has been claimed. Various sources debate that the traditional costume was introduced by Sultan Muhammad Syah, the third sultan of the Malacca Empayar between 1424 to 1444. Other sources claims that Baju Kurung has been around in the Sultanate State of Johore during the ruling of Sultan Abu Bakar in Telok Belanga, Singapore - which gives the name Baju Kurung Telok Belanga. The idea was hatched by the sultan himself in year 1866 to commemorate the nostalgia of Telok Belanga as the ruling capital back then.

Traditional Variation

In Malaysia, Baju Kurung refers to the female costume while it's male counterpart is referred to as Baju Melayu. However, traditionally both are called Baju Kurung, as it's purpose is to confine it's wearer (from dirt, filth, weather, touch etc.) (Kurung literally means to lock up or confine). The style therefore, comes after : Baju Kurung Cekak Musang, Baju Kurung Telok Belanga etc. However, it is generally more accepted to say Baju Melayu Cekak Musang or Baju Melayu Telok Belanga when referring to the male version of the costume, and Baju Kurung to refer to the female version. With the female versions however, there are even more styles I hope to cover from time to time.

Baju Kurung Cekak Musang

Cekak Musang

Literally translated to fox's noose (musang = fox, cekak = noose), this costume is distinguishable by the raised collar and 5 buttons on the placket. In itself, it is a 2 piece costume - the shirt or baju, and the pants or seluar. The hem line of the baju will run to the middle of the wearer's lap, with the placket running a third of it's whole length. 

Whether or not the buttons are traditionally sewn into the plackets is not known for certain, however the common practice is that 5 buttonholes are provided in which dress studs (similar to cuff-links) called kancing are inserted. It is further claimed that 5 buttons represent the 5 pillars of Islam, the religion that the majority of Malaysian Malay follows. Morever, traditionally the placket overlaps right over left, signifying the Muslim's prayer ritual where the right hand is placed over the left hand while standing. Normally, three pockets complete the baju, one on the left side breast and two along the waist a few inches above the hem. 

Baju Kurung Telok Belanga

Telok Belanga

This version of Baju Melayu is also comprised of a 2 piece suit. More famous in the state of Johore, the absence of cekak musang or raised collar and buttoned placket became the distinguishing feature of this variation of Baju Kurung. In place, an opening hemmed with stiff stitching called tulang belut (lit. eel's spine/bone) ending with a small loop to one side to fit a singular kancing. Symbolically, this represents the Muslim's believe of Allah as the one and only god worthy to be worshipped. The breast pocket is sometimes missing in this version of Baju Melayu. 

Accessories

To complete the Baju Kurung Cekak Musang and Baju Kurung Telok Belanga, various accessories are added. From head to toe, they are : 

Tanjak - Worn on the head

Keris

Bengkung - Worn around the waist over sampin Sampin - worn around the waist

The Lapsed Identity

It was said that the Baju Kurung not only survived, but thrived - from being first introduced to Islamization, followed by the colonisation of the British empire to the Japanese colonisation and finally modernisation after independence and formation of the Malaysian Federation. However, what Baju Kurung is today is different from what it was hundreds of years ago. Back then, the wearer is identified by the folds and position of his tanjak, by ways whether the baju is worn under or over the sampin, by the folds of his sampin - the length of which tells whether the wearer is single, married, a widower or an elderly. Even the position of the keris carries a connotation of the wearer's intention whether coming in peace or with malice.

The basic two-piece Baju Kurung - both the baju and the seluar was never that long. The sleeves of the baju was once only an inch or two past the elbow for Malays with ranks in the society, while commoners and farmers would wear it sleeveless. This is due to the nature of their job - having long sleeves means they will be more prone to getting dirty. As most Malays are also Muslims, having sleeves up to the elbow means they can easily perform the ablution before prayer without having to roll up their sleeve.

The same is said for the seluar. The lengthening of the seluar from just below the knees (around halfway through the calf) to the hem reaching the ankle came together with the British colonisation. The crotch area were traditionally made baggy to facilitate movement - especially in playing sepak takraw and silat. Again with the Muslim reference, the length of the seluar reaches only past the knee as the male aurat (parts of the body considered to be intimate in Islam) for men is between the belly-button to the knee. Having a shorter length also helps to reduce possibilities of the seluar from catching dirt off the road or ground.

Each accessories also carries a traditional identity along with folks tale surrounding the history of each accessories. The keris, for instance, is usually inherited within a Malay family. Generally regarded as a weapon for self-defence, little is known that the hilt of the keris made from various materials i.e. wood, antlers and coral stone which is further regarded to give certain mystical effect to the keris. 

Rings also forms a part of the traditional Malay costume, it's own connotation on the ring or pinky finger on either hands of the wearer. Similar to the hilt of the keris, the batu cincin or stone of the ring can be made out of various materials from wood to rocks to benefit the wearer medicinally, offensively or defensively, or even believed to have love-potion-like effect to the wearer.

Revival of the Lapsed Identity

There has been a slow and steady attempt to revive the tradition of Baju Kurung. Hazriansyah and Mustaqim, founder of Kotak Hitam Art Studio has a passion in conserving and reviving the Malay heritage and traditional wear. Instead of a cap or a stylish fedora that most guys wear, Hazriansyah and Mustaqim (fondly known as Tok Pek and Mus, respectively) wear the tanjak with their T-shirts and jeans.What makes them even more special is that they not only wear tanjak but they also make their own.

Loque, a 35-year-old songwriter and founder of Butterfingers and MonoloQue, has been wearing the tengkolok with shirts and jeans as his newfound identity since two years ago, saying he feels proud to wear tengkolok because it is part of the Malay culture and it reflects his true identity. According to him,

“Tengkolok is ours, not something that we borrow from the West like caps or fedoras. It’s a pity if a man wears tengkolok only on his wedding day. Tengkolok has character and is a unique heritage that we should be proud of.” 

For purists, the attempt to revive and merge tanjak and tengkolok with shirts and jeans or any other wears than Baju Kurung is considered brazen, but to both Tok Pek and Mus,

"It’s not anti-establishment or anti-convention. It’s just our way to revive traditional wear to make it fashionable and more appealing to our peers and the younger generation. It’s also our way to re-introduce tanjak as a daily wear just like it was in those days. Rather than glorifying caps, hats or  bandanas, why not wear a tanjak instead?” 

Efforts to preserve and revive traditional Malay costume not only as the hundred-years-old legacy our forefathers left us but also as one of the main attractions to what makes Malaysia unique should be strengthened lest it disappear into the cracks of time. As the old Malay saying goes :

"Biar mati anak, jangan mati adat."

- lit. Let die the son, not the tradition.  

Every now and then my English takes a turn from being good to garbled.. Mispronunciation here and there, stuttering, slurring my words.. Yeah we all have had that. I stumbled upon something that made me tell myself - Hey it's ok if I don't speak good English. It's a difficult language afterall! Don't believe me? Survive this poem by Gerard Nolst Trenité - The Chaos (1922).

Dearest creature in creation

Studying English pronunciation,

   I will teach you in my verse

   Sounds like corpse, corps, horse and worse.

I will keep you, Suzy, busy,

Make your head with heat grow dizzy;

   Tear in eye, your dress you'll tear;

   Queer, fair, seer, hear my prayer.

Pray, console your loving poet,

Make my coat look new, dear, sew it!

   Just compare heart, hear and heard,

   Dies and diet, lord and word.

Sword and sward, retain and Britain

(Mind the latter how it's written).

   Made has not the sound of bade,

   Say-said, pay-paid, laid but plaid.

Now I surely will not plague you

With such words as vague and ague,

   But be careful how you speak,

   Say: gush, bush, steak, streak, break, bleak ,

Previous, precious, fuchsia, via

Recipe, pipe, studding-sail, choir;

   Woven, oven, how and low,

   Script, receipt, shoe, poem, toe.

Say, expecting fraud and trickery:

Daughter, laughter and Terpsichore,

   Branch, ranch, measles, topsails, aisles,

   Missiles, similes, reviles.

Wholly, holly, signal, signing,

Same, examining, but mining,

   Scholar, vicar, and cigar,

   Solar, mica, war and far.

From "desire": desirable-admirable from "admire",

Lumber, plumber, bier, but brier,

   Topsham, brougham, renown, but known,

   Knowledge, done, lone, gone, none, tone,

One, anemone, Balmoral,

Kitchen, lichen, laundry, laurel.

   Gertrude, German, wind and wind,

   Beau, kind, kindred, queue, mankind,

Tortoise, turquoise, chamois-leather,

Reading, Reading, heathen, heather.

   This phonetic labyrinth

   Gives moss, gross, brook, brooch, ninth, plinth.

Have you ever yet endeavoured

To pronounce revered and severed,

   Demon, lemon, ghoul, foul, soul,

   Peter, petrol and patrol?

Billet does not end like ballet;

Bouquet, wallet, mallet, chalet.

   Blood and flood are not like food,

   Nor is mould like should and would.

Banquet is not nearly parquet,

Which exactly rhymes with khaki.

   Discount, viscount, load and broad,

   Toward, to forward, to reward,

Ricocheted and crocheting, croquet?

Right! Your pronunciation's OK.

   Rounded, wounded, grieve and sieve,

   Friend and fiend, alive and live.

Is your r correct in higher?

Keats asserts it rhymes Thalia.

   Hugh, but hug, and hood, but hoot,

   Buoyant, minute, but minute.

Say abscission with precision,

Now: position and transition;

   Would it tally with my rhyme

   If I mentioned paradigm?

Twopence, threepence, tease are easy,

But cease, crease, grease and greasy?

   Cornice, nice, valise, revise,

   Rabies, but lullabies.

Of such puzzling words as nauseous,

Rhyming well with cautious, tortious,

   You'll envelop lists, I hope,

   In a linen envelope.

Would you like some more? You'll have it!

Affidavit, David, davit.

   To abjure, to perjure. Sheik

   Does not sound like Czech but ache.

Liberty, library, heave and heaven,

Rachel, loch, moustache, eleven.

   We say hallowed, but allowed,

   People, leopard, towed but vowed.

Mark the difference, moreover,

Between mover, plover, Dover.

   Leeches, breeches, wise, precise,

   Chalice, but police and lice,

Camel, constable, unstable,

Principle, disciple, label.

   Petal, penal, and canal,

   Wait, surmise, plait, promise, pal,

Suit, suite, ruin. Circuit, conduit

Rhyme with "shirk it" and "beyond it",

   But it is not hard to tell

   Why it's pall, mall, but Pall Mall.

Muscle, muscular, gaol, iron,

Timber, climber, bullion, lion,

   Worm and storm, chaise, chaos, chair,

   Senator, spectator, mayor,

Ivy, privy, famous; clamour

Has the a of drachm and hammer.

   Pussy, hussy and possess,

   Desert, but desert, address.

Golf, wolf, countenance, lieutenants

Hoist in lieu of flags left pennants.

   Courier, courtier, tomb, bomb, comb,

   Cow, but Cowper, some and home.

"Solder, soldier! Blood is thicker",

Quoth he, "than liqueur or liquor",

   Making, it is sad but true,

   In bravado, much ado.

Stranger does not rhyme with anger,

Neither does devour with clangour.

   Pilot, pivot, gaunt, but aunt,

   Font, front, wont, want, grand and grant.

Arsenic, specific, scenic,

Relic, rhetoric, hygienic.

   Gooseberry, goose, and close, but close,

   Paradise, rise, rose, and dose.

Say inveigh, neigh, but inveigle,

Make the latter rhyme with eagle.

   Mind! Meandering but mean,

   Valentine and magazine.

And I bet you, dear, a penny,

You say mani-(fold) like many,

   Which is wrong. Say rapier, pier,

   Tier (one who ties), but tier.

Arch, archangel; pray, does erring

Rhyme with herring or with stirring?

   Prison, bison, treasure trove,

   Treason, hover, cover, cove,

Perseverance, severance. Ribald

Rhymes (but piebald doesn't) with nibbled.

   Phaeton, paean, gnat, ghat, gnaw,

   Lien, psychic, shone, bone, pshaw.

Don't be down, my own, but rough it,

And distinguish buffet, buffet;

   Brood, stood, roof, rook, school, wool, boon,

   Worcester, Boleyn, to impugn.

Say in sounds correct and sterling

Hearse, hear, hearken, year and yearling.

   Evil, devil, mezzotint,

   Mind the z! (A gentle hint.)

Now you need not pay attention

To such sounds as I don't mention,

   Sounds like pores, pause, pours and paws,

   Rhyming with the pronoun yours;

Nor are proper names included,

Though I often heard, as you did,

   Funny rhymes to unicorn,

   Yes, you know them, Vaughan and Strachan.

No, my maiden, coy and comely,

I don't want to speak of Cholmondeley.

   No. Yet Froude compared with proud

   Is no better than McLeod.

But mind trivial and vial,

Tripod, menial, denial,

   Troll and trolley, realm and ream,

   Schedule, mischief, schism, and scheme.

Argil, gill, Argyll, gill. Surely

May be made to rhyme with Raleigh,

   But you're not supposed to say

   Piquet rhymes with sobriquet.

Had this invalid invalid

Worthless documents? How pallid,

   How uncouth he, couchant, looked,

   When for Portsmouth I had booked!

Zeus, Thebes, Thales, Aphrodite,

Paramour, enamoured, flighty,

   Episodes, antipodes,

   Acquiesce, and obsequies.

Please don't monkey with the geyser,

Don't peel 'taters with my razor,

   Rather say in accents pure:

   Nature, stature and mature.

Pious, impious, limb, climb, glumly,

Worsted, worsted, crumbly, dumbly,

   Conquer, conquest, vase, phase, fan,

   Wan, sedan and artisan.

The th will surely trouble you

More than r, ch or w.

   Say then these phonetic gems:

   Thomas, thyme, Theresa, Thames.

Thompson, Chatham, Waltham, Streatham,

There are more but I forget 'em-

   Wait! I've got it: Anthony,

   Lighten your anxiety.

The archaic word albeit

Does not rhyme with eight-you see it;

   With and forthwith, one has voice,

   One has not, you make your choice.

Shoes, goes, does *. Now first say: finger;

Then say: singer, ginger, linger.

   Real, zeal, mauve, gauze and gauge,

   Marriage, foliage, mirage, age,

Hero, heron, query, very,

Parry, tarry fury, bury,

   Dost, lost, post, and doth, cloth, loth,

   Job, Job, blossom, bosom, oath.

Faugh, oppugnant, keen oppugners,

Bowing, bowing, banjo-tuners

   Holm you know, but noes, canoes,

   Puisne, truism, use, to use?

Though the difference seems little,

We say actual, but victual,

   Seat, sweat, chaste, caste, Leigh, eight, height,

   Put, nut, granite, and unite.

Reefer does not rhyme with deafer,

Feoffer does, and zephyr, heifer.

   Dull, bull, Geoffrey, George, ate, late,

   Hint, pint, senate, but sedate.

Gaelic, Arabic, pacific,

Science, conscience, scientific;

   Tour, but our, dour, succour, four,

   Gas, alas, and Arkansas.

Say manoeuvre, yacht and vomit,

Next omit, which differs from it

   Bona fide, alibi

   Gyrate, dowry and awry.

Sea, idea, guinea, area,

Psalm, Maria, but malaria.

   Youth, south, southern, cleanse and clean,

   Doctrine, turpentine, marine.

Compare alien with Italian,

Dandelion with battalion,

   Rally with ally; yea, ye,

   Eye, I, ay, aye, whey, key, quay!

Say aver, but ever, fever,

Neither, leisure, skein, receiver.

   Never guess-it is not safe,

   We say calves, valves, half, but Ralf.

Starry, granary, canary,

Crevice, but device, and eyrie,

   Face, but preface, then grimace,

   Phlegm, phlegmatic, ass, glass, bass.

Bass, large, target, gin, give, verging,

Ought, oust, joust, and scour, but scourging;

   Ear, but earn; and ere and tear

   Do not rhyme with here but heir.

Mind the o of off and often

Which may be pronounced as orphan,

   With the sound of saw and sauce;

   Also soft, lost, cloth and cross.

Pudding, puddle, putting. Putting?

Yes: at golf it rhymes with shutting.

   Respite, spite, consent, resent.

   Liable, but Parliament.

Seven is right, but so is even,

Hyphen, roughen, nephew, Stephen,

   Monkey, donkey, clerk and jerk,

   Asp, grasp, wasp, demesne, cork, work.

A of valour, vapid vapour,

S of news (compare newspaper),

   G of gibbet, gibbon, gist,

   I of antichrist and grist,

Differ like diverse and divers,

Rivers, strivers, shivers, fivers.

   Once, but nonce, toll, doll, but roll,

   Polish, Polish, poll and poll.

Pronunciation-think of Psyche!-

Is a paling, stout and spiky.

   Won't it make you lose your wits

   Writing groats and saying "grits"?

It's a dark abyss or tunnel

Strewn with stones like rowlock, gunwale,

   Islington, and Isle of Wight,

   Housewife, verdict and indict.

Don't you think so, reader, rather,

Saying lather, bather, father?

   Finally, which rhymes with enough,

   Though, through, bough, cough, hough, sough, tough??

Hiccough has the sound of sup...

My advice is: GIVE IT UP!


So, how far along the poem til you gave up? Me? Up until where there's no more bold or italic or both. And apparently I've been pronouncing "bade" and "chamois" wrong for my entire life so far. >.<

And if you've managed to go through each and every verse, in your head or aloud, have a listen to this video and see if you got it all right? There are differences here and there as the video is an adaptation of the poem.

The new app shorcut icon

I swear if I get a dollar everytime I get excited over something I'd be a billionaire by now! I get excited over the smallest things! This time, the new YouTube app on my phone (and yes, on yours too! check it out!). 

I first noticed the app shortcut new design on one of my home screens a couple of days ago and promised myself to check it out once I have some free time on my hand (well if my free time happens to be at work so be it -.-") and wow am I excited to see the new features on it! 

I always b@tch about how I cant do anything else other than probably read the comment and video info but really, who reads ALL of them anyways? This, of course, is referring to music and lyrics videos. Sometimes I wanna search another video while the current one is playing, right? Well guess what, the AWESOME development team added the

multitasking capability IN the app itself. Technical mumbo-jumbo aside, this means that you and I can now search for other videos while the current one is playing! You can browse through your history and playlists, you can look at your channels and subscriptions! Owh this feature is awesome!

Another thing I used to b@tch about is I can't play playlists on the app. Yeah we all have our collections of MP3s and music on our phones but sometimes I want to listen to what other people have on their playlist! I wont b@tch anymore because the new update brings playlists to the app along with the multitasking! PSYCHED!!! Now I can stream my friend's playlists in the car!

The new design isn't significant but I did notice the Google Now Cards-like layout. The swiping gesture to minimize and dismiss currently playing video is anticipated as all smartphones recognize swipe gestures but I am still excited nonetheless. What's missing now is to have the video keep playing when YouTube app is in background so I can text and listen to music videos at the same time - but not while driving of course!