tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53263658940694986012011-12-24T03:24:00.875-06:00{observing, comparing, celebrating} {Malaysia, Switzerland, USA} and more!*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.comBlogger381100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-70278092244452841502011-12-24T03:24:00.001-06:002011-12-24T03:24:00.947-06:00

Have you been with me since December 1st when we started this crazy endeavor? If so, well, pat yourself on the back, you made it all the way to the end. Here are the final questions of the Family Circle Christmas Quiz!B24: What is the name of the little girl who asked a newspaper editor, "Is there really a Santa Claus?"Wha-? Did that make national headlines or something?"Virginia"If you say

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-45013767829145138742011-12-23T03:23:00.001-06:002011-12-23T03:23:00.569-06:00

Almost there, folks! Have you been keeping your own score? Here are a few more Christmas-related questions for ya...B21: The Three Wise Men brought Jesus three gifts. What were they?Hey, I over-answered this a while back didn't I? Gold, frankincense and myrrh.B22: What is the name of the little crippled boy in Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol"?Tiny TimB23: How many years ago was Jesus born?Oh

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-60516892192002291052011-12-22T03:22:00.001-06:002011-12-22T03:22:00.520-06:00

We are almost there! More Christmas-related questions for you, courtesy of an ancient Family Circle magazine quiz that my packrat hubby saved back in 1984.B18: What were the creatures doing in the poem "A Visit from St Nicholas"?sleeping?Technically, weren't they "not stirring"?Yup.B19: Who first saw the star of Bethlehem, the Three Wise Men or the shepherds?I'll go with the Magi.Yup. The answer

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-12019844005275532572011-12-21T03:21:00.002-06:002011-12-21T03:21:01.164-06:00

Continuing with Christmas-related questions, seeing as it's December and all...B15: Where is Christmas Island?Near Easter Island?Turns out there are two Christmas Islands. One is in the Pacific Ocean south of Hawaii, the other in the Indian Ocean. I did not know that; did you?B16: What cactus plant blooms only at Christmas?No idea.A Christmas Cactus.Seriously?B17: Name two food items that people

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-84712782558290517572011-12-20T03:20:00.001-06:002011-12-20T03:20:00.493-06:00

Hey hey hey, we're moving along nicely... here are more of the Christmas-related questions from an ancient issue of Family Circle magazine.B12: Name the three spirits who visited Scrooge on Christmas Eve.The ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future.B13: Who plays with a pinata at Christmas, and what is inside?I dunno.. Winnie the Pooh? Blackbirds??! LoL!(Looks at answers)Oh.I thought there

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-27756134047450545842011-12-19T03:19:00.001-06:002011-12-19T03:19:00.629-06:00

Still here? It's Day Nineteen of the Christmas-related trivia questions taken from a 1984 Family Circle magazine.B10: What did Mary ride to the stable where she gave birth to Jesus?A donkey? Mule? [a donkey]B11: How many turtle doves did the true love in the song "The Twelve Days of Christmas"?Heh. Five?Nope. Two.Oh well.Today's score: 1 / 2 = 50%Score to date: 30.5 / 37 = 82%We're doing this up

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-4642408775068647642011-12-18T03:18:00.001-06:002011-12-18T03:18:00.091-06:00

Any of you gonna have any difficulty with any of there questions?B8: What do Dutch children leave out for Santa to fill with presents?A sock? A little sack? Oooh ohhh wait... how about their shoes/clogs?!(Yep, their clogs or shoes is the answer)B9: Who are Santa's helpers?Elves.Or, singular and with a diminutive added, that would be the family pet of The Simpsons :)Today's score = 2 / 2 = 100%

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-77849709067641581962011-12-17T03:17:00.001-06:002011-12-17T03:17:00.822-06:00

More Christmas-related questions on this seemingly never-ending Christmas Quiz I decided to subject not just myself to, but my reader(s) [if any, haha] too!And on we go.....B6: Who's "nipping at your nose" when you go outside in winter?Jack FrostB7: What kind of Christmas does Bing Crosby always dream of?the White varietyEasy peasy.Today's score = 2 / 2 = 100%Score to date: 27.5 / 33 = 83%Hey, my

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-471179047983552462011-12-16T03:16:00.004-06:002011-12-16T03:16:00.294-06:00

A long time ago, back in 1984, Family Circle magazine featured a Christmas Quiz, which got saved by my packrat now-hubby. The yellowed pages somehow ended up with me a few years ago. This year I am finally going through them, and will be 'free' to put them in the paper recycling bin, once I go through all the questions here on this blog. So on we plod.B3: What do bad boys and girls get for

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-88019867496184868532011-12-15T03:15:00.002-06:002011-12-15T03:15:01.070-06:00

Wheee! We are halfway through this bad idea I had, rejoice, rejoice!! :) Here are the "B-side" questions.B1: Who was chosen to guide Santa on Christmas Eve?I assume you mean Rudolph?B2: Where is America's national Christmas tree?Wha-? At the Rockefeller Center skating rink thingy, perhaps?NOPE! Turns out that the official National Christmas Tree is the General Grant, a giant 40-foot-base sequoia

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-77986159420608540172011-12-14T03:14:00.001-06:002011-12-14T03:14:00.812-06:00

Today's questions are sooooooooooooooooooo easy, they are not worth the pixelson your screen to read them.A25: What date is Christmas Day?December 25thA26: Name three words Santa says when he's happy.Well it's the same word, just repeated twice: "Ho, ho, ho!"Today's score: 2 / 2 = 100%Score to date: 21.5 / 26 = 83%Tomorrow we start the "B" questions, also 26 of 'em. Are you looking forward to

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-70795065086819106322011-12-13T03:13:00.001-06:002011-12-13T03:13:00.910-06:00

"Are we there yet?"... Not quite halfway, sorry!A23: What do people hang on their front doors at Christmastime?WreathsA24: What is another name for the log you put on a fire at Christmas?A yule log?(brief consultation of the answers) ... Yup!Today's score: 2 / 2 = 100%Score to date: 19.5 / 24 = 81%Puzzled at what's going on? I am featuring Christmas-related trivia questions taken from a Family

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-43341293719985287512011-12-12T03:12:00.001-06:002011-12-12T18:45:15.803-06:00

More quiz questions!A21: Does Santa live in the South Pole, North Pole, Greenland or Siberia?North PoleDuh.A22: In the Bible story about the first Christmas, why did mary and Joseph go to Bethlehem?Another blank for me... To escape persecution? No wait, that might have come after Jesus was born. Bah, no idea.Oh."They went to Bethlehem to be counted and taxed, following the king's order"Okay.:

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-74884418899447489322011-12-11T03:11:00.001-06:002011-12-11T03:11:00.258-06:00

'Tis the season to be folly, ha ha ha ha ha haha ha haaaa! Here's another Christmas-related question:A20: What present did the little drummer boy give Jesus?Dammit! Trying to run the song through my head, but the lyrics I have are "I've got some gifts for you, they're up in my bum" ... thanks Family Guy! :p I'm gonna have to take a stab at "the gift of a song? Or a tune?"The answer says "He

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-86480105754776201952011-12-10T03:10:00.001-06:002011-12-10T03:10:01.013-06:00

Always going forward, 'cos we can't find reverse! :) No, we're not Star Trekking across the universe, we're trudging through a whole bunch of Christmas-related questions culled from an old issue of Family Circle magazine.A18: Name a famous Christmas ballet children enjoy.Not that I've ever seen it or know anything about it: The NutcrackerA19: What is another name for "Christmas pie"?I have no

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-89754446727429149652011-12-09T03:09:00.001-06:002011-12-09T03:09:00.790-06:00

Still here? It's Day Nine of the Christmas-related trivia questions taken from a 1984 Family Circle magazine.A16: What do Christian churches call the 28days before Christmas?The advent, right? That's when you have that countdown calendar with a piece of chocolate behind each day, right? I suppose I should look up what the significance of this 'countdown' is, because I'm sure it's not because of

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-67443734708279830352011-12-08T03:08:00.001-06:002011-12-08T03:08:00.379-06:00

Day Eight of Twenty Five or so of Christmas-related trivia questions taken from a Family Circle magazine dated December 11th 1984. Why? Just because.A15: What was the magic signal Santa gave before he went up the chimney in the poem "A Visit from ST Nicholas"?I don't think I've ever read/heard said poem, so I have no idea. Therefore I'm going to guess "a clatter" as in "there arose such a clatter

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-32341465315996739212011-12-07T03:07:00.002-06:002011-12-07T03:07:00.673-06:00

Yawwwwnnnnn what *have* I gotten myself into?? Here are a few more questions from that Christmas Quiz from an ancient issue of Family Circle magazine:A13: What is a crèche?If I'm not mistaken it means crib (or 'baby's sleeping place) in French.The official answer says "A crèche is a replica of the stable where Jesus was born."Really? A hop to wikipedia's disambiguation page tells of THREE

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-76021196237558518422011-12-06T03:06:00.001-06:002011-12-06T03:06:00.785-06:00

Continuing with this way too simple Christmas Quiz...A11: If someone wished you "Joyeux Noël," would you be in Haiti, Switzerland, Canada or France?These are all francophonic (is that a real [English] word?) countries, so you could be in any one of them.A12: What famous snowman do you sing about at Christmas?Frosty! [Not to be confused with that dessert from Wendy's!]Today's score: 2 / 2 = 100%

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-57330022617254861372011-12-05T03:05:00.001-06:002011-12-05T03:05:00.562-06:00

A9: What was Scrooge's favorite saying in Charles Dickens' story "A Christmas Carol"?Bah, humbug, what sort of question is that? Teeheehee :)A10: Name two places Santa puts presents for children.In socks hanging by the fireplace, and under the Christmas tree.

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-46461368880855343322011-12-04T03:04:00.001-06:002011-12-04T03:04:01.424-06:00

Today's questions are *such* a challenge... NOT!!:A7: What song contains the phrase "fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la"?Deck the Halls. ... with boughs of holly.A8: Who is the singing chipmunk known for his Christmas songs?There's only one singing chipmunk that I know of: Alvin!!Wow, I sure hope they vary -- or at least increase! -- the difficulty level of these questions! My score for today is another

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-80961337182228500312011-12-03T03:03:00.001-06:002011-12-05T13:37:24.876-06:00

More Christmas-related questions ...A4: Who are the Magi?My answer: According to the tale, they were the three wise men who understood the signs and followed the star to the manger where Jesus was born, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.Magazine's answer: The Magi is another name for the Three Wise Men who visited the Baby Jesus.Did you know that in the Gospel of Matthew, the number

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-2120401506848624772011-12-02T03:02:00.002-06:002011-12-02T03:02:00.409-06:00

Here's a question for ya:A3: What happens when you stand under the mistletoe?Have you actually done this? I totally know this from movies, perhaps even books, but I swear I've never seen this happen in real life: you get to (of *have* to, depending, LoL!) kiss the person who's under the mistletoe with you.Oh funny, the official answer is "You get kissed."I know they provide as succinct an answer

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-73242126425583050802011-12-01T03:01:00.001-06:002011-12-01T03:01:54.074-06:00

From now until the 25th, I will be featuring Christmas-related trivia questions taken from a Family Circle magazine dated December 11th 1984 (yes, you read that right!), and my responses to them.Just because!!Here goes!A1: Name the red flower commonly used as a Christmas decoration.Ummm... poinsettas? Nope, spellcheck tells me it's spelled poinsettias. I've never had to actually pronounce/say

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-12117812020351014252011-01-27T17:35:00.002-06:002011-01-31T08:08:03.286-06:00

Last week I features the multiple-category winners within the Illinois Times' 2010 "Best of Springfield" feature, specifically in the 2010 Food and Dining category. This week, let's take a look at some of the other winners, shall we? Here they are, in no particular order....Best Outdoor Dining: PANERAThere are at least two locations, but it sounds like the one on South Dirksen has a patio with a

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-90468530678442592842011-01-20T09:45:00.003-06:002011-01-20T09:58:19.002-06:00

The Illinois Times has a "Best of Springfield" feature every year. I have yet to vote, because you need submit a minimum number of votes across a vast number of categories, and I didn't know enough to do justice to any of them. Hopefully by the time voting is open for 2011 I might be in a better position to participate.I've decided that the focus/theme of a malaysian abroad for 2011 will be food

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-177800739268819912010-12-31T21:20:00.006-06:002010-12-31T21:26:11.398-06:00

It's time to say goodbye to 2010, and welcome to 2011.If 2010 wasn't what you hoped it would be, I wish you a fantastic 2011! On the other hand, if 2010 was wonderful for you, here's wishing you continued happiness!!See you on the flip side!(Image: 2011 Natural)

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-24696872596947641492010-12-24T18:25:00.003-06:002010-12-24T18:25:00.310-06:00

Welcome to Part 3 of the 2011 Holidays of Malaysia! We've covered the National and State public holidays,,, and now, on to the School holidays!Did you know that most -- but not all! -- of the states in Malaysia go by the "usual work week of Monday to Friday with Saturday and Sunday as the weekend? The states of Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu -- read: the more, shall we say, conservative? ones --

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-19424679616538129542010-12-23T18:25:00.002-06:002010-12-24T13:30:27.625-06:00

There are THREE sets of dates you should keep in mind when planning a trip in/around Malaysia: the national public holidays, the state public holidays, and the school holidays! Today we'll take a closer look at the state holidays: each state within the country has its own unique set of days off, so while the total of ~15 days is the same, the spread of those days can vary widely. Take a look for

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-49104086392695902032010-12-22T18:25:00.005-06:002010-12-24T13:30:52.951-06:00

Planning a trip to Malaysia in 2011? You would do well to take into consideration when public holidays (whether national or state) *and* school holidays are, because, well, things might get crowded and crazy! To help you out, here are the NATIONAL public holidays of Malaysia in 2011:JANUARY[none! because technically Jan 1st isn't a NATIONAL holiday! can you believe it?]FEBRUARY3 (Thursday) & 4 **

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-76079944114072067582010-11-25T12:12:00.001-06:002010-11-25T12:12:00.881-06:00

Gobble gobble, (aluminum) foil and (apple) crumble...... turkey turn and (green bean) casserole bubble!HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-54936535032719441312010-07-08T14:35:00.001-05:002010-07-08T14:37:50.423-05:00

Nickel and dimed! is the first in an erratic and sporadic series of posts in a malaysian abroad themed You're Not In Chicago Anymore!This is a common habit of mine: making the false assumption that that how something works in one place is how that same something works everywhere else in the US. I'll cover recycling next time. Today I'd like to whine about public libraries.First, I have to

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-13926469478668764892010-06-20T21:07:00.006-05:002010-06-20T21:55:38.553-05:00

If you've dropped by my Life After Work blog recently, you'll know that I got my hair cut a few days ago. I just realized, however, that I'd neglected to tip the person who'd done my hair!*sigh!*Tipping is so NOT part of the culture I grew up in.I've pretty much gotten used to leaving a tip for waitstaff at a restaurant, but that's about all my exposure to a tip-required service, except for the

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-68735056905192941712010-05-20T08:20:00.004-05:002010-05-20T18:53:13.300-05:00

Oh my, was it already a week ago that I was seething at the woman in 5D? Where has the week gone?? Thankfully I worked in a LOT of buffer for the Postcard / Link Exchange of 2010 (PLX2010) so this update isn't late at all, despite the move from today.com to a malaysian abroad's new home here in blogspotland.To refresh your memory, here are the rules for PLX2010, and the participants this time

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-893081320143599862010-05-12T16:13:00.003-05:002010-05-12T16:13:00.924-05:00

The May 13th 1969 race riots are a painful, shameful chapter in the history of multi-racial, multi-cultural and multi-religious Malaysia that continues to hang over the collective consciousness, casting a dark shadow over the political landscape of the country."...When reflecting on May 13, 1969, we can blame others for what happened, blame the situation, or we can choose to transform things for

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-65362542043756284502010-05-04T11:55:00.000-05:002010-05-04T11:56:49.888-05:00

As you may recall in Part One, I shared the cost incurred for going to the emergency room to have my ankle looked at, and estimated that the total out of pocket would be about USD$100.Boy was I wrong!You see, on Monday I went to see the orthopedic specialist... okay so he took a look at the Xray and dismissed the chip, saying it was an old injury, based on the fact that I wasn’t in pain where the

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-68630842537255690242010-05-01T23:05:00.001-05:002010-05-01T23:10:00.536-05:00

Oh what fun, I’m hobbling around on crutches no thanks to an accident on the tennis court yesterday :p It’s given me some comparative blog fodder though, so yay!I’ve incurred about RM240 so far:RM65 for some pain killers and anti-inflammatoriesRM65 for the xrayRM65 for the cast/bandagesRM30 consultationBalance for registration/administrative stuffI expect to incur at least RM60 just to see the

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326365894069498601.post-28727033522298360772010-04-29T05:25:00.002-05:002010-05-01T23:07:56.673-05:00

I forgot a cardinal rule last night, and am still paying for it... ugh...When partaking of drinks in areas where food prep standards might be low, it's not advisable to get anything with ice, because ice is one of the main culprits of contamination/spread of tummy-upsetting bugs.... but it was so warm and muggy last night, the air so stagnant, that I HAD to have an iced drink, then another and

*lynne*http://www.blogger.com/profile/06245915758105430033noreply@blogger.com0