Ever since the kids' introduction to pop radio music on the Lord of the Flies-esque bus ride to camp a few summers back, Violet and Tyler scan the dial for the local z104 equivalent wherever we travel. Only a few minutes after getting in our car in Malaysia, we were jamming to Taylor Swift ("I'm feeling twenty twooo-oo-oo"). I'm basically in love of the pop radio station here in KL. Why, you ask? No, it's not because of Bruno Mars' latest hit or that annoyingly catchy Paramore "Still Into You" (that song actually makes me change stations). I heart listening to FLY 95.8 just to catch the public service announcements.
I have no idea why FLY FM does the PSAs. Is it required by the government? Are they just good citizens? With an awesome wit, the public service announcements convey messages with phenomenal humor and lots of local color. I tried really, really hard to find them online. But, alas, not much luck. So I've tried to recreate a few favorites here.
* Wash Your Hair:
Man and women talking.
Man: "Ewww, your hair looks greasy, lah. When did you last wash it?"
Woman: "Four days ago."
Man: "Uck. Don't you know that hair carries germs and grease. Plus it starts to smell if you don't wash it. Years of research shows you should wash hair at least every two days."
Woman: "Ahh. But why were they studying hair grease for years, anyway?"
Announcer: "This is FLY FM reminding you to keep clean and wash your hair."
Man: "You gotta wash-your-hairrr, everyday, lah."
* Speak Clearly the First Time:
Two men talking over the phone.
Man 1 (whispering): "No, he's not available. He's doing bussssi-ness."
Man 2: "What did you say? I can't understand you."
Man 1 (whispering): "He can't come to the phone, he's in de toilet doing his bussssi-ness."
Man 2: "I can't hear you - speak up."
Man 1 (yelling): "He on the toilet making a poop!"
Announcer: "The is FLY FM reminding you to speak clearly the first time."
* Rumor Mill:
Multiple phone calls.
Person 1: "Did you hear? She's going to a resort with a friend."
Person 2: "I just heard that her friend bought a resort and she's going to visit."
Person 3: "Guess what? She's going to her 'friend's' resort to stay with monkeys."
Person 4: "I heard that she's dating a monkey that plays golf at a resort."
Announcer: "The is FLY FM reminding you that gossip travels fast. Do not believe all that you hear."
Drum roll...My #1 favorite:
* Safety with ATM PINs
With heavy Malay accent to the Fresh Prince of Bel Air theme song (I KID YOU NOT!).
This is a story all about how my life got flipped turned upside down, so let me take a minute - just sit right there, I'll tell you how I lost all my money at the ATM, lah.
...Okay, I don't remember all the lines to this one. Probably because everytime I hear it I convulse with laughter by the end of the first line. The message was to not make your ATM PIN the same as your account number, or something like that!!
This is one I did find on line (FOR YOU AUNT PEARL!): http://www.spca.org.my/v51/noticeboard.php?id=298
And just to give a shout out: 89.9 BFM is the overall best quality radio station in KL. It's billed as the business station with a bit of NPR-like talk paired with great music. Plus, they are always joking about what "BFM" stands for. Among my favorites have been "Bureaucracy Failing Malaysia", "Bloody Fantastic Music", "Bodek free Minutes" (which I had to look up, Malay-English slang for sucking up/kissing a**) and "Bride-Free Malaysia".
Speaking of bribe-free Malaysia, Robin and I got pulled over last week by a traffic cop fleecing for cash. The traffic cops are different from the regular police. We know it happens here--actually all the expats who drive have a story or two about this. The guy stopped right at a complicated, yet quiet intersection. What irritated me the most was the traffic cop was not even reserved about it. He said "You drive dangerous. You pay me now and no ticket." Robin handed 20 ringgit -- and he said, "Give me 10 more?" She said no, and he let us go. I just checked online to find how to handle this next time. "Haram" means illegal in Malay, as in "Bribery is haram. Much worse than changing into the wrong lane at this intersection." Also, reported by the friends Robin and I have since talked with, if you don't mind waiting, just ask for a ticket and 99.9 percent of time they will let you go. Grrrrrrr...
On Thursday, Brian and I attended Garden International School's Year 3 performance. Violet's class and two other Year 3 classes produced a witty Who Wants to Be a Millionaire spoof, "Who Wants to Be a Ringgitaire?" The Ringgit is Malaysia's currency. Violet had a lead roll as Chris Terrent -- the British-equivalent to Regis from the original US show. Violet had never seen the show (either US or British), so we had a blast "researching" (i.e., watching clips on YouTube).
After entering the hall jamming to Jai Ho (that Slumdog Millionaire song/dance), the show began by Chris Terrent (a part shared by Vi and two other boys) explaining the rules to "Who Wants to Be a Ringgitaire?" from a center platform and then asking the contestant questions from class materials. The contestant would "day dream" back to a class lesson. The show then cuts to the stage where the kids act out a skit reminding the contestant of the answer. The classes even produced commercials played during the show -- all related to environmental awareness and clean water! In the end, based on a cleverly worded misunderstanding by a "phone a friend" to the P.E. teacher, the contestant misses the final question and does not get the million ringgit. But he's okay because he's realized he has many gifts in life: health, clean water, a safe home, a loving family, a great school, and friends that make him smile. The kids capped off the show singing "It's Not About the Money." The whole show was so well done. Great script, great performances that showcased how much the classes have learned already this year. Fantastic work GIS, Ms. Nicky, and the Year 3 students. (Unfortunately, my pics of Violet during the show didn't come out well due to the lighting, but here are a few from after the show.)
In other Violet news, the school selected Vi to participate in a local biathlon competition with other international schools. After Brian went on a rant about how Violet was too young to shoot a rifle and there was no snow in Malaysia, we realized that it was a 200m run and a 25m swim relay. Pretty cool since Violet just learned to swim freestyle three months ago! For this relay race, the coaches grouped the participants into teams of four for a run, followed quickly by the swim relay. Violet was on the school's C team -- excellent as the teams in her division were both Year 3 (like Violet) and also Year 4 kids. Violet's team came in first among the C team heat! Overall out of the 26 teams, Vi's team was THIRD in the run and 11th in the swim giving them a 7th place finish overall. Way to go, Violet!
Have a very wonderful Thanksgiving and a very happy Hanukkah! We very much miss you all. I'll report in our next blog post about our celebrations here.
I have no idea why FLY FM does the PSAs. Is it required by the government? Are they just good citizens? With an awesome wit, the public service announcements convey messages with phenomenal humor and lots of local color. I tried really, really hard to find them online. But, alas, not much luck. So I've tried to recreate a few favorites here.
* Wash Your Hair:
Man and women talking.
Man: "Ewww, your hair looks greasy, lah. When did you last wash it?"
Woman: "Four days ago."
Man: "Uck. Don't you know that hair carries germs and grease. Plus it starts to smell if you don't wash it. Years of research shows you should wash hair at least every two days."
Woman: "Ahh. But why were they studying hair grease for years, anyway?"
Announcer: "This is FLY FM reminding you to keep clean and wash your hair."
Man: "You gotta wash-your-hairrr, everyday, lah."
* Speak Clearly the First Time:
Two men talking over the phone.
Man 1 (whispering): "No, he's not available. He's doing bussssi-ness."
Man 2: "What did you say? I can't understand you."
Man 1 (whispering): "He can't come to the phone, he's in de toilet doing his bussssi-ness."
Man 2: "I can't hear you - speak up."
Man 1 (yelling): "He on the toilet making a poop!"
Announcer: "The is FLY FM reminding you to speak clearly the first time."
* Rumor Mill:
Multiple phone calls.
Person 1: "Did you hear? She's going to a resort with a friend."
Person 2: "I just heard that her friend bought a resort and she's going to visit."
Person 3: "Guess what? She's going to her 'friend's' resort to stay with monkeys."
Person 4: "I heard that she's dating a monkey that plays golf at a resort."
Announcer: "The is FLY FM reminding you that gossip travels fast. Do not believe all that you hear."
Drum roll...My #1 favorite:
* Safety with ATM PINs
With heavy Malay accent to the Fresh Prince of Bel Air theme song (I KID YOU NOT!).
This is a story all about how my life got flipped turned upside down, so let me take a minute - just sit right there, I'll tell you how I lost all my money at the ATM, lah.
...Okay, I don't remember all the lines to this one. Probably because everytime I hear it I convulse with laughter by the end of the first line. The message was to not make your ATM PIN the same as your account number, or something like that!!
This is one I did find on line (FOR YOU AUNT PEARL!): http://www.spca.org.my/v51/noticeboard.php?id=298
And just to give a shout out: 89.9 BFM is the overall best quality radio station in KL. It's billed as the business station with a bit of NPR-like talk paired with great music. Plus, they are always joking about what "BFM" stands for. Among my favorites have been "Bureaucracy Failing Malaysia", "Bloody Fantastic Music", "Bodek free Minutes" (which I had to look up, Malay-English slang for sucking up/kissing a**) and "Bride-Free Malaysia".
Speaking of bribe-free Malaysia, Robin and I got pulled over last week by a traffic cop fleecing for cash. The traffic cops are different from the regular police. We know it happens here--actually all the expats who drive have a story or two about this. The guy stopped right at a complicated, yet quiet intersection. What irritated me the most was the traffic cop was not even reserved about it. He said "You drive dangerous. You pay me now and no ticket." Robin handed 20 ringgit -- and he said, "Give me 10 more?" She said no, and he let us go. I just checked online to find how to handle this next time. "Haram" means illegal in Malay, as in "Bribery is haram. Much worse than changing into the wrong lane at this intersection." Also, reported by the friends Robin and I have since talked with, if you don't mind waiting, just ask for a ticket and 99.9 percent of time they will let you go. Grrrrrrr...
On Thursday, Brian and I attended Garden International School's Year 3 performance. Violet's class and two other Year 3 classes produced a witty Who Wants to Be a Millionaire spoof, "Who Wants to Be a Ringgitaire?" The Ringgit is Malaysia's currency. Violet had a lead roll as Chris Terrent -- the British-equivalent to Regis from the original US show. Violet had never seen the show (either US or British), so we had a blast "researching" (i.e., watching clips on YouTube).
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| Parents brought in breakfast for before the show. I love when I hear that it's potluck breakfast at Garden School. The parents are wonderfully generous at showcasing their home country's dishes. Pair that with Malaysian food being generally so amazing that I walk out of events with a satisfied belly. Yes, you are seeing sushi, spring rolls, curry puffs, and Korean noodles, along with the finger sandwiches. |
After entering the hall jamming to Jai Ho (that Slumdog Millionaire song/dance), the show began by Chris Terrent (a part shared by Vi and two other boys) explaining the rules to "Who Wants to Be a Ringgitaire?" from a center platform and then asking the contestant questions from class materials. The contestant would "day dream" back to a class lesson. The show then cuts to the stage where the kids act out a skit reminding the contestant of the answer. The classes even produced commercials played during the show -- all related to environmental awareness and clean water! In the end, based on a cleverly worded misunderstanding by a "phone a friend" to the P.E. teacher, the contestant misses the final question and does not get the million ringgit. But he's okay because he's realized he has many gifts in life: health, clean water, a safe home, a loving family, a great school, and friends that make him smile. The kids capped off the show singing "It's Not About the Money." The whole show was so well done. Great script, great performances that showcased how much the classes have learned already this year. Fantastic work GIS, Ms. Nicky, and the Year 3 students. (Unfortunately, my pics of Violet during the show didn't come out well due to the lighting, but here are a few from after the show.)
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| A friend gave Violet a junior cooking set for her b-day. She--along with A and Tyler--have enjoyed trying the recipes. Of course Violet's only interested in the sweets! |
Have a very wonderful Thanksgiving and a very happy Hanukkah! We very much miss you all. I'll report in our next blog post about our celebrations here.
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| Year 1s are learning about the 5 senses. Tyler and Ivan worked together to illustrate "sight". Check out the snowflakes in the upper left hand corner. |
Brian, remember that one time in band camp...
ReplyDeleteNo seriously, that time in Denver, when Dr. D Files was having business in the bathroom, we (Jason, You, and Me) stormed the bathroom and dropped wet paper towels over his stalk? Need a PSA for that.