Indigestion to Absorb

Somewhere in the din, the cocks are crowing. The ceiling fan whirs gently and soothingly amidst the night's (or should I say day's) stifling heat. For some reason, the bedroom's air-conditioner is not working as efficiently as it was last year. It is in dire need of servicing, after more than a year of usage.

I cannot seem to fall asleep.

I don't know why. No, make that I think I know why. I'm having a really bad heartburn following a fasting day yesterday. I'm windy and bloated, for eating some spicy food at Iftar in Cozy House Restaurant (affiliated with the famous Cozy Corner in Ampang Point) in Great Eastern Mall.

This was compounded by the delay of eating itself owing to the massive jam we were stuck in on Jalan Ampang enroute to our destination.

Luckily, there were some stroopwafel from Delft which I had brought along as they are currently Sadia's only favoured snack, which I practically inhaled during the car crawl.

So this is the quality of life in Kuala Lumpur. Getting stuck in jams in search of those much-needed escapades at the malls. The irony of it all is just too much to swallow.

I know it'd have been better if we had left a little bit earlier to avoid the jam and plan our journey accordingly. Going around is no longer according to our whims and fancies.

There are other interminable factors to figure out before we venture out the door. If the weather condition was the only drawback in Delft, now an interplay of a number of elements must be accounted for when an excursion is at hand.

Some Malaysians might raise an eyebrow (or two) for my ceaseless whinging about the deplorable state of some of our current infrastructure, not to mention mindset. Enough already and get adjusted, some will exclaim.

My intention is never to belittle my home country but merely to point to some egregious actions. Only yesterday a small lorry driver gave us a finger (and funnily enough spat at the sight of us!) just because we stopped when the light was about to turn red, thus blocking his vehicular progress towards a seemingly urgent destination.

We stopped at the junction going to the right and get this, the stupid driver wanted to use our lane to cut his way back to the straight lane!

As our country is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its independence, I beseech the powers-that-be to improve our way of life and cultivate future caring generations that would do the nation proud, both in their intrepid ideas and commendable thoughts.

Is it probably too idealistic to hope against hope that our changed mentality - kiasu, herd, the whole works - will lead to better, courteous manners on the road? No more big buses haphazardly changing lanes so as to further their movements in a jam. No more creation of 'additional' lanes by witless motorists to get ahead in their journey. No more leaping out of a junction without any concern of any incoming cars.

The continued progress of our nation hinges upon the collective efforts and thoughts of its people who in turn must cast aside their differences and prejudices in order to turn those ideas into concrete actions.

For that to happen though, some laws have to be amended and revamped while others must be tolerated for their own unique manifestation.

Happy Birthday Malaysia. May you liberate yourself from the shackles of incongruity and always exude that much charming, sunny personality, within and without.