Day 1

29 June 2008
1050
Starbucks, KL Sentral

It rained intermittently when I left home. Mother uncharacteristically – but yet typically in such situations – bawled as she said her goodbye wishes while we waited for father to make photocopies of my passport. Said her usual annoying motherly advice that I loathe hearing because it is invariably repetitive, cliched and uttered by someone who has hardly any worldly experience. Yet I couldn’t help my stupid tears when I heard mother’s voice teary and blowing her nose.

Father has been annoying me the whole day. I snapped at him several times, probably overreacting. I just feel like I couldn’t help it. Maybe it’s the stress getting to me. I just hate the way he fusses so, and then there are times when I expected him to be there for me and he doesn’t plan to, and I hate that too. The last thing I said to him was Don’t fuss on me! I seriously hope that is not the last thing I will ever say to him…

On top of that, while father was helping me to change some money at the foreign exchange, this sleazy guy kept leering at me the whole time he was there. I got so provoked that I shouted at him as he left. I don’t normally do such things even though I detest being stared at.

So here I am, waiting for her at Starbucks, stewing and writing about things that bother me.

I am not homesick yet.

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