Take a Quick Quiz …

Whilst I await the 2nd mock up for my children’s encyclopedia to arrive and ponder the possibility of a change in government, I thought you might want to try some history questions. After all these may be historic times

Here are the first 5 of 75 questions in my encyclopedia. I created 3 levels: Beginners, Intermediate and Advance. These 5 questions are from the Beginners section.

1. Which European power ruled over the Malay peninsula in the late 19th century?

A. Portugal B. Holland
C. Spain D. British

2. Which group of people migrated to the Malay peninsula from the Celebes?

A. Bugis B. Minangkabau
C. Javanese D. Acehnese

3. Why did the Dutch come to Asia?

A. to sell spices B. to fight
C. to preach D. to control the spice trade

4. What are megaliths?

A. tall buildings B. large upright stones
C. early kingdoms D. politicians

5. The Emergency began following?

A. Independence B. Confrontation
B. Second World War C. Separation

They should be fairly easy (I think!) How confident are you of your answers?

Do you think I should do a quiz competition to promote my encyclopedia?

P.S WISHING EVERYBODY A SELAMAT HARI RAYA & SEASON’S GREETINGS!

An Historic Event?

This is quite frustrating. I’ve set a retail price for my encyclopedia. I’ve found a distributor and fixed their discount. The book, with all corrections finally done, is ready to be sent to the printers. Except for one tiny thing …

A possible change in government.

This may be one of the biggest historic events since independence and the formation of Malaysia. And, of course, it needs to be mentioned in the encyclopedia somewhere. So I await with bated breath. Will Anwar take over as PM? If so when?

I know all Malaysians are dying to find out. Trying to get into the Star online for the last few days has been frustrating as the site will only load after many many tries. Too much internet traffic. So instead I resort to The Straits Times (not the NST) for news from our friends across the causeway.

It’s a great time to be in Malaysia. All the gossip, speculation, hearsay. I wish I was there with you good folk – we could chat the night away. Instead I end up talking to these little lambs.

“Will Anwar and Pakatan take over the government?” I called out.

But they just ate grass and stared back.

They, alas, probably knew neither more nor less than the rest of us.

“Surely you guys must have some clue?”

Then the one on the far right said, “I hope this thing doesn’t drag out.”

“Why?” I asked.

“Not good for your encyclopedia,” it baaed. “Not good for the country”.

“What about the stockmarket?”

“Not good for that too.”

“I suppose you’re right,” I said. “Don’t mind if I put this in my blog, do you?”

“No problem, go ahead,” the lamb said. “Just make sure you eat less meat. It’s healthier for all of us.”

“Sure,” I said under my breath as I slipped away.

This is what these recent events feel like. It slips between the surreal and the real.

So I wait. As do you.

The Mock Up stage

I do want to thank all of you for your very kind and supportive comments. I would have liked to reply individually to each of you but, as you may have guessed, it’s difficult to do so without getting quite emotional.

It has not been an easy month for several of my friends either. Two mums and another dad have passed on. Another dad is in hospital. I wish my friends the strength that you have given me.

Fortunately for me, I’ve also been very busy with my labour of love. That is, of course, my encyclopedia. After obtaining my ISBN and a shelf company for the project, the next thing was to obtain a quote from the printer. They’ve also produced a mock up for the book. I’ve been poring through it over the last 10 days, fixing mistakes, typos and improving it where I can.

Here are a few sample pages which I thought you might like to look at.

It has taken almost five years to get to this stage. I do wish my father was still alive to see the final product. He would have liked it. It was through writing his biography that I got interested in Malaysia’s history.

I’ll keep you up to date with my publishing effort.

Once again, thank you. All of you.

Finding Meaning

Thank you once again for all your kind words and messages of support. It’s been over two weeks since my father passed away. I had always felt that he would grow very old and very frail before he would depart this earth. But life is full of surprises.

Sometimes we look for meaning, some sign of fate and fatality.

> By father died on 20 August 2008 or, more significantly, 2008 2008. Is there some numerological, astrological meaning here?

> Twentieth August also happens to be my brother’s birthday. How can his birthday ever be the same? How can it ever be fully celebrated? His birthday is now a deathday too.

> Recently, I completed my 100th post. It was a milestone. What does it signify that my 101st post announces the death of my father? What forces were at work? Does the virtual work affect the real world?

> I’ve been working on my encyclopedia for the past 5 years. Just as I was making the last change that morning before sending it to the printers, the phone rang. It was my sister, in tears, telling me that my father was dead. What is its significance? Does one ending bring about another?

Was there a clustering of energies at work? A shift in the planets?

Odd that I should look for meaning in these diverse and probably insignificant things. Things that ultimately may be no more than superstition. Words from the lips of a fortune teller.

Instead of grasping for signs of significance, I know I should be appreciating the meaning in life: in the daily ritual, in the humdrum, in the aching pains and soaring pleasures.

More importantly, I should live a meaningful life.