Sampah Masyarakat : Wesak Day Cleanup

Hey there, awesome people! :D

So in case you haven't heard (which is unlikely if you're living in Malaysia), Wesak Day is coming up on the 28th of this month.. It's a day in which Buddhists celebrate the birth, enlightenment and passing of Buddha.

On Wesak day, devout Buddhists assemble in various temples before dawn for the ceremonial hoisting of the Buddhist Flag and the singing of hymns in praise of the holy Triple Gems: The Buddha, The Dhamma (His teachings), and The Sangha (His disciples). Devotees bring simple offerings of flowers and candles to lay at the feet of their great teacher. The symbolic offering of flowers is to remind us that just as the beautiful flowers would wither away after a short while, life is subject to decay and destruction in similar manner as the flowers. The symbolic offering of candles is to remind us that just as a candle gives light to chase away darkness and in the process melts away (“sacrifice itself”), we should be mindful in “chasing” away our ignorance and care for the well being of others. Devotees are enjoined to make a special effort to refrain from killing of any kind. They are encouraged to partake of vegetarian food for the day.

 Now, usually after a celebration of this sort, there would be a vast array of rubbish left behind, scattered everywhere.

As a solution to this problem, there is Sampah Masyarakat, a nonprofit organisation that brings people together to clean up the mess that is left behind, hence the well-chosen name. Sampah Masyarakat has done this before on more occasions than one, and this time it's at Brickfields' Buddhist Maha Vihara temple.

In a nutshell, it's like this:--
Start Time: Friday, 28 May 2010 at 20:00
End Time: Saturday, 29 May 2010 at 00:00
Location: Buddhist Maha Vihara, Brickfields

Click (here) for the Facebook event page.

:)

World Pillow Fight Day

Have you ever had a fantasy in which you walked into a public place with a pillow and just randomly started a pillow fight with a complete stranger?

(No? Well, maybe just me then? :P)

Do you want to try something different?

Do you live in KL?

Well, if you've said yes to all or ANY of the above, then this is perfect for you. Brought to us by Random Alphabets -- who also masterminded the successful Tali Tenang earlier this year -- is World Pillow Fight Day! Yes, you got that right. A pillow fight. In public. In KL. Have i gotten your attention yet?

I'm guessing maybe it's in 1Utama, or Sunway Pyramid. What think you? Well, either ways, check out their website for further updates on the location!

(taken from the website)

Some of the things you will want to know:

1. The location of this event’s Gathering Point will only be revealed days before the fight. Don’t ask where the Fight Point will be, we won’t tell. We never tell. You just find out when the time is right. At the last minute, that is.
2. Gathering Point and Fight Point are two separate locations.
3. Pillow Fight Police (PFP) will be at the Gathering Point to welcome you and escort you to Fight Point.
4. PFP will stand out, it will be easy to spot them. If you can’t spot them, you shouldn’t be near a pillow.
5. Bring your own weapon of choice. We will be selling pillows on that day just in case. If all the pillows get sold out, then you won’t have a weapon.
6. Only Pillow Fight with someone who has a pillow. Do not hit the official photographers.
7. Always be cool, we are not there to cause trouble or nuisance.
8. There will be official photographers and videographers, and photos will be uploaded and available for all. In short, this is a Pillow Fight, not a photography competition. Fight, not click!
9. Show your love to us by purchasing our t-shirts. Not all of our projects have sponsors. Buying our t-shirts help us in funding our projects. More importantly, participate! Join in!
10. Most of all make sure you have fun!

Sounds interesting, yes? Last year's Pillow Fight Day was equally as fascinating...

Corntoz Pillow Fight Kuala Lumpur 2009 from RandomAlphabets on Vimeo.

 What a way to vent out all your frustrations!

Pillow fights in public -- awesome!

Zee Avi

If you are Malaysian and you STILL don't know who Zee Avi is, then shame on you! After all, she's only the very one Malaysian girl who got signed on by Brushfire Records, a label partially owned by Jack Johnson.

Bitterheart

 

Honey Bee

First of the Gang To Die

So i was one of the lucky couple of thousand people who got to catch her live in KL on Saturday -- her first performance here since she made it in the States :) her voice is amazing, and her character so absolutely endearing -- it wasn't long before the crowd fell in love with her. It was lovely, watching a perfectly awesome performance from a girl who spoke exactly like how we Malaysians do.

Halfway through her performance, she called her dad up onstage ;) introduced him, and someone in the audience shouted "hi, uncle!" Well, it's probably just me, but the concert had a really personal feel to it. Maybe because i was right in the front and center -- or maybe because she's Malaysian.

Lovely <3

World Water Day - Sandwich Mob - the outcome

So, half of our plans worked out right -- everything else was a blur of spontaneity and impulse. Yesterday, in order to raise awareness and urge the public to Start Saving Water, a bunch of students went onto the streets with their message boards.

Went by the LRT stations...

Got a good few thumbs up from passerby's!

Dropped by the Chinatown of Malaysia a couple of times --

 

And finally, we went to where it all began :)

The river that was before Kuala Lumpur came about =) it's just a giant drain now, and with all the trash in it that was contributed by KLites, it's a really dirty one.

Did you know that our planet is 70% water, but only 2.5% are available for consumption for the 6 billion people on earth?

Did you know that every 15 seconds, a child dies from unsafe water and inadequate sanitation?

Why should we save water, anyway? Does it really make a difference? Why shouldn't you flush? Why should you ensure that your tap isn't leaking? The answer lies with the same reasoning that the Power of 10 Sen campaign is built on, and also why it is so successful. Every drop counts, and it all accumulates into something that can be used for something else altogether.

A little something for you to consider :)

It is officially World Water Day tomorrow -- perhaps also the day that you embark on your conservatism? ;)

P.S. : BTW, we got media attention!

Success!

World Water Day - Sandwich Mob

Good day, lovely people!

On the 22nd of this month, it is World Water Day. This initiative was borne out of the UN Conference on Environment and Development in 1992 and has been held annually ever since. It is a global effort to raise awareness and also encourage the birth of further initiatives to end the water poverty that affects people from (too) many countries, such as Cambodia, Uganda and Ethiopia.

In conjunction with World Water Day, Taylor's UC Environmental Club and 6SOS have teamed up to organize a public rally, mainly aimed at raising awareness among our local community regarding the vitality of sustaining a constant source of clean water.

So, if you live in KL or are in want of doing something for the citizens of the world, i invite you to join us this Saturday for our sandwich mob, held in KL. Details of the event are as follows,

Date : 20th March, 2010
Time : 9AM - 2PM
Location : Central Kuala Lumpur (the exact location will be informed to guests who have RSVP-ed)
(CLICK HERE TO RSVP)

So bring yourself, bring your friends, and gear your spirit in for a time of fun and ado!

Love :)