what could've been and what it became.

what could've been and what it became.

recently, i've more than voiced out my desire to get out of a rut, as compared to living one. spontaniety was nonexistent, and the purpose of my very being was being questioned as i contemplated various actions that i could take the further enhance my reputation as being an avid [home] lounge lizard. the weekend had reared its head without much incident, while i mentioned the possibility of embarking on yet another road trip to the nether regions [that sounds gross, doesn't it?] of malaysia. or at least selangor. now, it's not everyday that you get to drive cross-country [or cross-state] if you're not resourceful [in other words, UNbroke enough] to handle logistical issues such as petrol and tolls. but it'd been a while since we'd done anything, and the oppurtunity presented itself in the strangest of ways.

at a&w, malaysian's first [if not premier] convenient fast-food family eating establishment.

after spending a good deal of time at justin's gas station, we went in search of food [if lazing around his room can be called "searching"], and we went to a&w. to cut a long story short, about 2 hours later at 4-ish a.m., justin, sazman and i were in my car [with justin driving the initial route and me handling return journey details], and we were on our way to lumut. to cut an even longer story short, since most of you already know what to expect on the way to lumut...

the ferry fares to pangkor island have increased from RM 2 one-way/RM 4 two-way to RM 5/RM 10 respectively. the jetty has been renovated and reworked to make it more...accessible. must of the rustic old-world charm that i remember has been replaced by something a little more orderly. i'm sure that most of you would find this agreeable seeing how we're supposed to promote our tourist destinations in such a manner that finds it appealing to most, but sexing up [if i can use the term] a jetty is just...well, it's like adding that poly-whatever canopy to petaling street. it's functional, yes...it looks alright [gawdy would be my choice], but it's killing the spirit to whatever was there before. it's not...organic. it's mechanical, it's engineered...cold, even.

after our brief sojourn to lumut, which included grabbing breakfast at a neighbourhood not-quite-seaside nasi kandar eatery, we went to...sitiawan. in search of...lower perak chinese girls.

if i were you, i wouldn't ask for what purpose. i doubt we knew.

we drove around the vicinity...wait, i drove around the vicinity while the two of them slept. as a result, they lost out on beautiful views and bridges. i would've loved to go on, because...well, it looked awesome. but petrol [or the lack of it] was a killer.

one lost chance.

so, after that...fast forward almost 10 hours later and i'm at justin's place, blogging this. my pc at home has died once again [the best things happen at the worst times], and i'm quite blur and dead tired. nothing memorable about this road trip. long, hot, and...not as fulfilling as the previous ones. i guess our minds were on this one, and maybe for a matter of time, our hearts, but sometimes it takes all the commitment that you can give in order for something to actually work.

but, what if...we'd taken the ferry to pangkor?

we'll never know. or maybe we'd know on the next time. who knows? lord, this blows.

highlights: dawn breaking. a sunrise amidst a horizon. a road leading forever, straight to it. around us, endless padi fields with the morning mist flowing off them. ahead of us, more padi fields and an open road. breathtaking if you were there. red sky rising.

lows: ferry fare hikes. scary. lack of girls. and where's Giant that was being advertised? where do all the people hang out? lordy.

quirks: running over a dead animal carcass. and maybe another one. the constant adrenaline rush to find petrol was rather fun. speeding back with the windows open.

lesson of the day: totally unrelated, but don't believe your father when he tells you that he'll be home soon. he's usually lying. even after 10 years.

verdict: might've found a new way there that might be able to save us time. ipoh and penang optional for future road trips. we head north by northwest. soon.