Marsha Maung: I write. I love. I live

Sometimes, things are overwhelming on social media sites. The news feed is often filled with stuff like... 1. People's vacations 2. Cute kids or pets 3. Politics 4. Delicious food 5. News of catastrophes from all around the world You get it...sometimes, it is overwhelming and sometimes it makes you hate the timeline altogether because....you're not vacationing, your kids are throwing tantrums, your dinner turned out a disaster, you don't understand head or tail of what is happening in the political scene or you know someone affected by a catastrophe. It doesn't make me feel better about myself but whenever I look at pictures like THESE, it grounds and humbles me. When I compare my life and timeline to this, I know I am working this whole 'life' thing pretty Okay. XOXO, Marsha

This is one of the most honest parenting article that I have read in a long time....and I follow quite a few similar sites with similar articles. Maybe it just struck a chord with me. Maybe, just maybe, I will also become a single mother forever . ( read this article from Babble.com ) While some of my friends are in hot pursuit for their other half, actively hitting everywhere in search of their significant soul mate, I just don't feel the urgency. I am sure my stance have been criticized or laughed and joked about (to their credit, they did it to my face, I don't want to know what people say behind my back, anyway) because I have not utilized my 'tools' (you are allowed to think dirty here) for some time. Is THAT the priority, my question is? You're going to look for a man so that you can.....what? LOL Believing in an unbelievable love? It's not that I do not want love or believe in love anymore. I do, oh boy, you don't know how much love I am capa...

Ate a darn late lunch in the afternoon and it wasn't the healthy kind either....had Subway. Well, it IS one of the healthiest and freshest fast-food there is out there. =) Was a little out of ideas so, decided to bend the rules a little. Had a little bit of char siew marinade in the fridge but did not have pork. Originally, we are supposed to have 'char siew' pork right who no one ever said that you can't use other types of meats so.... So, used chicken breasts for the char siew and it was delicious but had to add a mix of oyster sauce and soya sauce because there wasn't enough marinade and it, in itself, is rather bland. Stir fried some baby bok choi (I think lah, I am never very good with the names for vegetables) with garlic and there you have it, done, dinner. Anyway, it's been a really haze day over here in Malaysia so, I hope you have a better (breathing) time than us over here wherever you are. Love, Marsha

Non-alcoholic? When I was young or now? lol Anyway, my favorite drink happens to be none other than (no, not wine) coffee. If I were to venture a little further for the sake of my all-encompassing need to encompass everything liquid into this category, I would include soup too, actually. Generally, speaking, I love all types of drinks except fizzy drinks. Well, I like them but I don't allow myself to drink too many within a single day. There are very few people in my life who don't drink coffee and one of them is my mom. She could be drinking coffee early in the morning and STILL can't sleep at night. God knows why. But that is the stance she has taken since forever and she will stick to it. One of my best of friends don't drink coffee either....come to think of it, I've never asked her why. =) There's something about the aroma, the piping hot liquid, the sweetness and (depending on the type of coffee, of course) sometimes bitterness in the drink that is...

It's really quite amazing the amount of money you will save when you make your own food at home. There was one time we (when I say we, it means the 3 of us) ate Vietnamese food for like more than RM100+, one time eating pricey burger and fries for RM80+ and then worse yet, I (as in me, alone, just me, one person eating with friends) had Korean for RM80+, ONE PERSON. It was  hellaloadoffood  but still. Yeah, we can opt for cheaper options, obviously, like our favorite mixed rice or our kopitiam and thank goodness for them too. It is the school holidays right now so, how many kopitiams can we visit before we get bored of them? How many stalls do they have before we have tried them all, right? Eating out IS always going to be expensive and that is why I feel like people should try to cook their own meals more often. I made days' worth of porridge yesterday and it is right now in the fridge. I have salted eggs, and some fermented vegetables, fish, canned food and some stuff ...

I accept the fact that there will always be differences in opinion, we all cannot share the same view but can we all agree to NOT hate? I don't want to be sensitive but how can I help feeling hurt? We fight so hard for a place and sharing of bond among all Malaysians, yet... Literally, as I watched the woman call some of my ancestors 'pigs' and 'immigrants', I was befuddled but it is what it is, isn't it? But most of all, tears welled up in my eyes and my heart cried. So, this is it? Do you know what it feels like to not belong anywhere on this planet? Ask the refugees. In fact, I see how some Malaysians are like those refugees. We have no place here, nor a place there. The unwanted. I know many Malays who are sensible, reasonable, loving, accepting and caring, I see them and at one point, I refused to let that one woman or that one man asking the reporter to 'go back to China' taint the rest of the Malays I know because they are not one. They are no...

Take me back 8 years before this and I would say that managing a social media account is a breeze. It's a walk in the park! All you need to do is to find content, develop them, post them and just viola! That's it! But what Ann Tran wrote about handling social media is important. "Keyboard courage" has some people posting cruel things they would otherwise not say to someone's face.  Hiding behind a screen is not a shield.   These people are armed with keyboard-shield courage and will not hesitate to put it out there, throw it in your face, threaten all types of ill-mannered intentions and actions and promise harm in all forms. After all, what can YOU do about it, it is THEIR right to do so with THEIR account(s) and whilst this is true, I think some behavior borders on bullying and we need better moderation and mediating methods. For social media and if you are a large brand name, as Ann Tran points out, remaining neutral, professional, removing emotions an...

I believe in right and wrong and sometimes, can be quite religious but to me, this is something between me and my maker and no one else. So, whatever deeds that I do and don't do, I will be held accountable or credit will be given accordingly. What I don't understand is why some people feel compelled to impose their own beliefs onto others or rather...cannot find the fine line between doing their job and sticking to your guns. If it is something that is not going to do anyone harm...for example, your boss asks you to stick a knife into your colleague's butt, then I think your boss, who is paying you a salary (or in charge thereof) should be allowed to tell you what to do. As long as it doesn't violate anyone else's life, right? But some people think differently. Ah well...I hope it ends well for everyone involved. The above image was taken from Facebook and is largely meant as a joke, is my guess. Not meant to be taken seriously...just in case someone decid...

I read on social media today that Zelda Williams, the daughter of funny-man, Robin Williams, made a 'powerful' statement about mental illness. I did not find the statement any more powerful than what someone would have said to me or others who are/may be suffering from mental illness. It should be the norm. It is 'us', human beings, who have decided to make statements like these 'powerful'. It is because we think it is 'abnormal' to be suffering from depression that makes these statements unnecessary 'powerful'. In my personal opinion, a whole lot of people have suffered from depression and mental illness at one point in their lives. The first time you got dumped. The first loss of a friend or family. The time you lost your job. The time your friend snubbed you. The time you quarreled with your best-friend. The time when someone misunderstood you. The time a relative called you a 'bitch' or 'slut'. The time when you got into...

You know people always, instead of posting pictures of themselves, post couple profile pictures? They even have joint Facebook accounts and stuff. While I am absolutely thrilled about their happy union and I am not being a mean or bitter person but I believe there is always another side to the coin. No matter how many wefie you post on Facebook, there is always another story behind that super happy picture and people don't post those unhappy pictures of themselves online. It is so different from when I first started blogging. There were happy stuff, there were unhappy stuff, there were scary stuff....everything is out there. With Facebook and social media, things are just so....fluffy. LOL. Sorry, I don't have another word for it at the moment. I have also evolved because I have seen absolutely crazy-for-each-other-I-will-take-a-bullet-to-the-brain-for-you people who suddenly announce that they were divorcing. Out of the blue. Just like that. What the hell happened, rig...

My friend recently had to do one of the most difficult things a parent would have to do. Send her kid off to study in another country. People might make it into something small, or say that it is some sort of rite of passage, or that parents have to learn how to let go and stop hovering over their kids but you would have to excuse the strong language here for a bit. You have no fucking idea . Even if you do, don't judge. I had my kids go off for a 4day Leadership Camp and I had one of the most torturous seperation anxiety ever. It is one of the hardest things to do when you have spent decades dedicated to these kids, your lifeline, the reasons you make it through each day. Every difficult situation you put yourself through, they are the reason you continue doing it. Whenever you are down, they are here to remind you that they love you. You feel like crap, they remind you that you are appreciated. And suddenly, the reason is gone. Off to find their own future and fate. All tha...