Bong Natal, everyone. For those not in the know, Bong Natal means ‘Merry Christmas’ in Kristang, the dying language of the Portuguese Serani.
An elderly gentleman once told my uncle based in Portugal that Kristang is a form of ancient Portuguese that evolved by mixing Malaysian words.
So, while he could understand most of what my uncle was saying, the younger generation could not fully grasp it – similar to how many might struggle to understand William Shakespeare’s writing.
This year’s Christmas is quiet, due to the massive floods last weekend that devastated the country, and Covid-19 cases that show no signs of slowing down.
Many lost everything to the floods. While my home was not affected, I know of several family members and friends whose homes were.
Some are still cleaning up to this day.
The floods are a double whammy to those struggling to eke out a living after the many lockdowns.
It did not help that the government was slow to react, and many lives were lost.
A friend, Rizal Solomon, sent a video about how Japanese families have an ‘earthquake emergency bag’ (or a ‘go’ bag) as “there is a 70 per cent chance of a major earthquake in the next 30 years”.
He suggested Malaysians should consider having a flood/disaster emergency bag.
“We have to start thinking – how do I get ready as a family? There also needs to be some form of preparedness at the community level. What do we, as a neighbourhood, do if a flood or disaster hits?” asked Rizal.
That is a good idea as Covid-19 and the floods have shown that we can only depend on one another.
Like anti-vaxxers, some still do not believe in climate change. They are probably the same people.
But something is not right, as flooding is becoming more and more commonplace. So, we have to be prepared.
Stay safe, everyone.
EXPECT MORE COVID-19 CASES IN THE COMING WEEKS
The floods that ravaged several states could see a rise in Covid-19 cases as people are huddled closely together in temporary relocation centres.
In the past week, there were 23,477 new cases that took the total to 2,735,241. On the recovery front, 31,829 patients received a clean bill of health, making it 2,657,074 people who have beaten the coronavirus.
Unfortunately, there were 246 deaths, taking fatalities to 31,290.
Worldwide, there are 279.3 million cases and 5.40 million deaths.
TIS’ THE SEASON FOR MEET-UPS!
I have had more social gatherings in the past four weeks than I had since the beginning of the Movement Control Order on March 18, 2020.
It started with lunch at RexKL on Nov 27, followed by a Russell Curtis and friends performance tribute to Queen on Dec 3.
A week later, I finally got to see Mary Jackson – someone I have known for many, many years – sing ‘live’, while on Dec 18, I attended a cooking demonstration by Chef on Wheels.
Last week, I had three meet-up sessions with former colleagues and lunch with three Liverpool fans.
It was great to finally be out and about as I had not seen nearly all of them for close to two years.
I lost friends and family members to Covid-19, illnesses and old age, so I am trying to meet with as many people as possible (with proper physical distancing, of course) as we never know …
QUITE ACCURATE
A friend sent this via WhatsApp.
BACK TO THE CINEMA
Last Saturday, after 22 months, I finally went back to the cinema. Ticket prices have gone up, but watching Spider-Man: No Way Home on the big screen was a real treat.
There was proper physical distancing, and from what I noticed, everyone wore their masks, except when they were eating or drinking.
The home minister carried our sanitiser gun and sprayed the seats before the show … just to be extra careful.
WHAT I AM DOING THIS CHRISTMAS
HOW WISE ARE YOU?
Read this to find out.
SANTA! BRING MY GIRLFRIEND BACK!
Here is a funny Christmas song by High Plains Drifters to cheer everyone up.
Take care, folks.