The hour of death would have been welcome to me.

Excerpts from Victor Hugo’s letter to Adele Foucher 1820

A few words from you, my beloved Adele, have again changed the state of my mind. Yes, you can do anything with me, and tomorrow, I should be dead indeed if the gentle sound of your voice, the tender pressure of your adored lips, do not suffice to recall the life to my body. With what different feelings to yesterday’s I shall lay myself down tonight! Yesterday, Adele, I no longer believed in your love; the hour of death would have been welcome to me.

And yet I still said to myself, ‘if it be true that she does not love me, if nothing in me could deserve the blessing of her love, without which there is no longer any charm in life, is that a reason for dying? Do I exist for her own personal happiness? No; my whole existence is devoted to her, even in spite of her. And by what right should I have dared to aspire to her love? Am I, then, more than an angel or a deity?

FMD, that's so good I could almost french kiss Victor Hugo if he was still alive. A gold standard of letter writing in the age of romanticism.

+++

So the Queen got a pay rise. I am not sure where all the extra money would be siphoned to, but I have been feeling a bit short changed recently due to the fact that I am already covering the mortgage, her car loan and shelled out cash for my own ride so that I could give her my car. It would be nice for her to channel some of her funds to the cause especially since I have been mulling over a new ride to replace my Japanese tin can and I have my sight set on a nice continental ride to reward myself. But the additional gearing ain't making it an easy decision. Being middle-income sucks. I may have to compromise again and settle for a more affordable Japanese ride. My life of compromises continues...

+++

Bumblebee is 6 months now, he is brilliant at this age, real animated and has a fine temper to boot. Time flies...by the time I know it, he is going to start calling me dude.

+++

The stock market this morning continues to correct. It is sad to see the country lacking of any credible storyline and catalyst to attract foreign investors and FDIs. The recent policies, glazed as a changed in the country's growth engine appears to be more of a reconditioning of an old engine to make it look like a new one. Too much fluff and verbal rah rah, too little credible execution, too little too late it seems. Tragic....thank God we still have nasi lemak and cendol.