Sideshow

My place in the office is pretty easy to find. You just have to look out for this:

Ticket stubs, programme books, posters, postcards and various pretty things I pick up from events on the job. I thought it's be a shame if I stuff them into a drawer somewhere, or worse, bring them home and clutter up my bedroom with it.

I'm also in the process of turning a side of my desk into a display of of stuff I can't stick on the wall.

Although it'll be really funny if I stick the mineral water bottles on the wall.

Songwriters’ Round, Kuching

The first ever Songwriters’ Round was a reasonably pleasant affair broken too often by a bunch of unappreciative ingrates in the screened-off area behind where we were sitting. I don’t think they were even here for that. Towards the end, they were making fun of one of the performers.It certainly wasn’t an improvement of my mood after sitting through Land of the Dead in front of a bunch of brats who were so disappointed that this is nothing like… oh, I don’t know, Resident Evil maybe… that a couple of them chattered loudly in Chinese about how boring it was and how it wasn’t what they expected.

I realise that PMS Week is starting, my head is getting fuzzy and I’m getting more blur than usual. I’m not quite up to the toss-people-out-on-their-ears stage yet, but we’ll get there. Great time to start blogging again.

Anyway, Songwriters’ Round was held at this bar called Mojo, inside Denise the Wine Shop. It’s fairly new and is a posh-looking place, although the lighting is not really meant for photography. Maclean and I were having trouble getting clear shots.

I thought Maclean was attached to a publication, but he gave me his card and it’s not a publication. Heh. I also finally met Sharon from The Star, after hearing so many people mention her, and we lasped into shoptalk almost immediately.

Gary and Reuben were good but I really came to hear Owen before he jets back to the UK for school. We first heard him in PUAS Vol 2, under the name CJ Owen, and I was quite enthralled.

There are plans for other Songwriters’ Rounds in the future, which is good. I’m generally more interested in solo acts.

I’m also always pleased to meet anyone who recognises Kuching for the boring dump it is but are willing to do something about it instead of just grumbling that nothing ever happens here.

People came, people left. I recognised a handful of them as friends of friends, business associates or from astronomically expensive dinner events. The wine & song scene would attract the yuppies rather than the younger demographic who shows up at PUAS or Lord of the Bands.

Jennifer was one of those who came and left, but she didn’t leave before arranging a radio interview with the trio who performed tonight.

Or last night rather. It’s way past my bedtime again.

Time is golden, but only if it’s my time.

The birth of Malaysia herald the birth of another thing that's uniquely Malaysian.Malaysian Time.

Countless events start late because there wasn't enough people there at the appointed time. This resulted in smarter organisers who mark up the actual time by half an hour. If it's not your day, the thing starts late anyway.

It's not my day.

Tonight, I went to an event that supposedly starts at 8pm. When I arrived a few minutes before eight, the place was dead quiet and festive ornaments like balloons were still lying around. Undaunted, I found someone in-charge, who escorted me to the press table and made sure I got a drink.

By 8:30pm, I was still the only press member there, although other people have began filtering in and claiming tables. It's not the first time I've been embarassingly early. Not by far. I guess I haven't learned.

The organisers found me and made good use of my free time by filling me in with the latest news. It was the semi-finals in a karaoke competition and I only briefly turned up at two of the qualifying rounds. Thick cigarette smoke and poor ventilation drove me out rather quickly both times.

Let's not forget the Guest of Honour. By protocol, they arrive last. If there's is more than one, they arrive in the order of least important. (Which makes me the 2nd or 3rd least important person in the room.) If one of them run late, everyone that comes after is delayed.

If you asked me, the Guests of Honour are the ones who really need an extra half hour tacked on top of the real arrival time.

So the event only really started sometime past 9pm.

It's the semi so The singers were pretty decent. I actually stayed to hear a few this time.

Another press person turned up just before I left. I guess that makes him smarter than me.

I should have been in bed two hours ago, but I guess I run by Malaysian Time too.

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