Sunday, July 15, 2007

What I did last weekend

Last weekend was laundry and spring cleaning weekend. I had prune fingers for about an hour as I wash my clothes manually because I am a frikkin’ perfectionist and I cleaned my bedroom throw the bedsheets into the RM 16 (I think, I bought it on a sale) Ikea laundry bin and put on fresh new ones, that made me want to just lie on them and sleep. I also washed Wiwa, myself. I didn’t even go to Starbucks for my weekend fix.

On Sunday, I was dragged to my father’s friend’s son’s wedding nearby. It was done in a hall and we stayed until the bersanding ceremony.

By that, I meant, we arrived at 12 PM and left at about 3.30 PM.

Keras akak punya punggung tau?

In that wedding, I spent about 2 hours plus observing people.

It was a colorful event, the guests were multiracial, largely contributed to the fact that the father was an Indian and the mother is a Mamak. The food was average and the band was playing old 60’s hits and the occasional irritating ‘dangdut’ numbers.

‘Aku benci… benci… pada diri mu
Aku bosan… bosan… pada dirimu

Aku sudah tidak percaya padamu lagi…’

Went the lady singer, whom my mother told me was the third wife of a man who was my Dad’s age. The singer was around my age.

Even typing those lyrics made my hair stand in agony and ‘kegelian’ so just imagine me sitting there trying to eat amidst the deafening ‘music’.

Malay weddings are always chaotic. Relatives grouping around at one side gossiping, guests coming in heading straight to the buffet table, kids running around with ‘Bunga Manggar’. It was also something that gives you the opportunity to really ‘see’ people.

There was a woman wearing a conspicuous pair of ‘Baju Kurung’ dotted with shiny pieces of beads and whatnots, a makcik who was wearing her whole collection of gold bangles until her fat arms could not fit them, girls who wore too much make up on their face and men wearing unpressed pants and shirts.

If western weddings always make it a point to prioritize the couple’s guests, in a Malaysian wedding (because I think all weddings, be it Chinese or Indian ones are the same) what matters most is the parents’ guests. They would invite the moyang, sepupu, dua pupu, all the way to the 4 pupu if there is such a thing, and plus all those distant relatives we have never even known existed.

At the back of my head, I was thinking of what my own wedding would have been like, if that happens. Would I be shocked by the presence of faces I have never seen before, would I be tortured with the horrendous music, would I be dressed in a color that totally didn’t complement my skin tone, would I have a Pak Andam who wears a wig, would my husband looks dashing in a songket get up, should we choose to have a big wedding.

Or would I choose to make it a low key affair, close friends and family, white tube dress, a deejay and a three piece band playing at the side.

Knowing my family, it would probably be the first. I would probably be sweating and there would probably be a full scale zapin performance even (Which I kinda don’t mind because I love zapin).

Eh… hello, berangan tak salah kan?

19 comments:

  1. as always..
    depending on several factors of course, such as;
    where, who, when, who, why, what

    i.e.
    kita, parents, kawan-kawan, saudara-mara
    kampung, bandar, hotel, rumah
    dulu, sekarang, hip hop, dangdut
    simple, sakan, duit ada, takde fulus
    bla.. bla..

    apapun.. yang penting..
    perkahwinan yang sah
    keluarga bahagia

    :)

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  2. hurm, the wedding/relationship talk here is getting a bit too constant. hurm ...... anything you wanna enlighten us with missy? hehehe

    just joking and getting on your nerves.

    I wish I can have 3 ceremonies.

    one for my friends. one for the family i.e. a kampung style wedding (for the 4 pupus and kupu-kupus). and one done in a hotel for the biggies that our parents (since we're not gonna have the groom's/bride's side and have it all one go) are obliged to invite and announce the marriage to.

    the one for my friends would be a laid-back style with reading out our own vows and singing our song. (I plan to sing Sarah McLachlan's "Ice Cream") :)

    berangan tak salah kan?

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  3. dreams=ideas=perfect planning=result...eh, ok what? Beranganlah selalu :D

    kalau parents yg keluar duit, your say may be limited. But always make sure that makeups/dresses/photography follows your concept and yours alone.

    kenduri will last as long as the last bit of lauk pauk but the pictures will last a thousand lifetime!!

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  4. Babe,

    Do you want to sit beside me during my big day?

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  5. adoiii kelakar aa lagu dangdut itewww :P

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  6. weddings are overstated affairs. mine will be small and meaningful. all i have to do now is find the candidate.

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  7. If you have the budget you can do anything! You can even have the small reception just for your friends (but ud have to pay for it yourself coz yr parents would be paying for the BIG wedding which they'd invite 3/4 of the people uve nvr met before)...hehehe..

    Whatever it is, im sure ud look gorgeous :) all brides do

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  8. a private and solemn ceremony in the garden is my kindda theme! the candidate is still elusive tho :P

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  9. berangan tak salah..hehe...but you're right...most malay weddings are a little too exaggerated..
    all 'x'mas trees' will be lighted up,..makcik gelang tak leh masuk pun paksa:))
    yeah...and the songs..apsal baru kawin dah 'aku benci pada mu?'
    hahhahhahahhaa !
    dangdut kan best..'abang oh abang sayang! oooooohu!!"

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  10. kenapa tak letak gambar penyanyi dangdut tu.

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  11. Penyanyi dangdut tu Shida 'Angkat Kaki' ke? Mak si Bienda tu?

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  12. malay wedding i think x teruk cam greek weddings la. deyrang lagi chaotic nyah. well, i pon tgk dlm My Big Fat Greek Wedding jek. bukan tgk betul, eheheheh.

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  13. Sarcy you can post in nightcrossings now...

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  14. Katak,

    hmm.. okeh.. i am no poet but i could manage a simple.. :)

    Abby,

    ceh.. nothing la... too many weddings, and me being on my thinking mode, biasa la.

    me too, id like to have a se[parate reception for me friends.. berangan again hahaha

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  15. MsD,

    i once went to thios wedding where the Mak andam was like sooo not mak andam-ish... think not groomed with a few kids in tow...

    thank God the make up actually turned out quite well...

    Sheryl,

    naaaakk... make sure of that eh.. kalo tak tanak geng...

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  16. Lilith,

    Kan?? if you arre there at the wedding mesti ketawa tak hengat ko... hehe...

    Waffles,

    arent we all... *sigh*

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  17. Cosmic,

    my parents paying for my wedding.. i dont think so.. not because they couldnt, because they wont... you see my situation now?? hehehe.. apa nak buat, i am a kak long.

    TheWailer,

    candidate ni susah sket nak cakap la... it has always been elusive...

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  18. Zetts,

    i left my camera at home sebab i changed bags.. akak bawak bag labuci yang.. like datins like that.. hahaha...

    Dnas,

    ntah la... i was too shellshocked to notice.. double whammy from the mediocre nasi minyak and the choice of song...

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  19. Bfeline the closet dangdut lover,

    hahaha... tulah pasal, i told my mum the same thing!

    Mummy,

    i love that movie, but that only shows that family is still our top priority, altho sometimes we wonder why...

    Bfeline again,

    Thanks dear.. :)

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