Contest : Do You Wear Suspenders?

NOTE : Closing date is extended for two weeks till 17 October!

The compilation of Eh Poh Nim articles is coming along nicely. It’s still in the edit stage and I’m now looking into the cover design. This time I’ve got the title already, thanks to Janet Tay over at MPH who unwittingly provided me with the title last year. The full title is DO YOU WEAR SUSPENDERS? – THE WORDY TALES OF EH POH NIM. Do You Wear Suspenders is based on the chapter about Manglish. To give you some context, here’s an excerpt:

“What cute suspenders he’s wearing. I love Mickey Mouse,” Gail whispered. (Referring to a guy who was wearing Mickey Mouse suspenders).

David stared at Gail. “How do you know what suspenders he’s wearing? You’ve got x-ray eyes ah?”

“What’s he talking about?” Gail looked confused.

Eh Poh Nim grinned.

“What’s so funny?” David asked.

“Gail, David thought you were referring to the hunk’s briefs, not the straps that keep his trousers up,” Eh Poh Nim said.

In this article, Gail is an Aussie girl and David is Malaysian.

The challenge

Please suggest the concept for a cover design based on the title. If you’re not familiar with Eh Poh Nim, you can read some of the wordy tales at The Star’s archives. You don’t have to draw the cover, a description in this comment box would suffice. But if you are the artistic type and would like to express your idea in drawing, you may email it to me.

Prize

1st prize : The winning concept will win RM100 book vouchers, an autographed copy of Do You Wear Suspenders and acknowledgment in the book.

Consolation : Three other participants will be selected by random draw to receive an an autographed copy of Do You Wear Suspenders.

Closing date (EXTENDED!)

Friday, 17 October 2008

Terms

1. Anybody can enter this contest. If the winner is based overseas, he/she must provide a Malaysian address for the prize to be mailed to.

2. Multiple entries are allowed. Please submit them in this comment box unless the submission is in the form of illustration which should be emailed to tehlydia@yahoo.com.

3. If similar concepts by different participants are submitted and such a one is chosen as the winning entry, the winner would be the one who first suggested it.

If you have a blog, please help me to spread the word. Thanks!

Of monkeys and mung beans

Sorry I haven’t been updating this blog for so long. Caught up with some family matters and then there’s the Eh Poh Nim manuscript to edit. It’s scheduled to be released next year.

Read about Saint Berba in today’s Star.

Dimitar Berbatov says he won’t give Sir Alex Ferguson any disciplinary problems, because he never swears and carries his Bible everywhere.

Berbatov: Says he’ll be good for Ferguson

Berbatov moved to Manchester United from Spurs for £30.75million on transfer deadline day after a protracted transfer saga. The whole story raised question marks about the 27-year-old Bulgarian’s temperament.

But Berbatov himself says despite sometimes going off the rails when he was younger, he is now a changed man.

He told The Sun: “I’ve done many stupid things because of my stubbornness, only because I didn’t want to listen to my parents’ advice.

“And then it always turned out that they were right.”

The talented striker added: “Besides, I am religious and I take The Bible everywhere with me. There are many good pieces of advice for those like me in The Bible.”

Berbatov also says that bad language is not something he indulges in either.

“This is a matter of good upbringing. I don’t swear in my daily life,” he added.

“I try to do everything with style – not only in football. And if I manage to give any positive examples then that is great.”

(This wasn’t on Star’s online portal, so I nicked it from teamtalk.com.

This is uplifting news in a world that’s being polluted more and more by swear words. I don’t swear either and feel uncomfortable when people do so, especially when they swear using Jesus Christ’s name.

Not swearing presents a minor problem. What do you say when you get riled? ‘Expert’ drivers like me often get irritated by incompetent drivers. I know this is a problem which I have to work on. Patience, patience. My son is beginning to drive like me, spouting Stupid! behind the wheel intermittently. Stupid should be banned from my vocabulary unless it is meant in the actual sense of the word, like why are you so stupid that you don’t know red means stop.

Similarly ‘monkey’ should be banished from my lips unless it refers to those creatures swinging along electric cables somwhere near my place. Two days ago I was just telling no. 2 that instead of saying ‘monkey’ I should say ‘mung bean’. Why? Usually the word slips out involuntarily, like when a driver turns without signalling. I’d go ‘Mong….” then oops… “bean!” Mung bean has never been a bad word as far as I know.