Happy New Year

After a long hiatus, part of it enforced, it feels good to be back, soaking in radiation while cogitating whether to use 'ubiquitous' or 'common'.

Anyway, what better way to usher in the new year than to write about the very second that 2006 gave way to 2007. While it is no way as momentous as Y2K, these moments before a new year is born will linger in the memory, for a few months at least anyway. Since my memory seems to take unauthorised shut downs every now and then, blogging is probably the best way to make good on what my previous sentence predicted.

Like nearly all fun-craving youth, I am particularly attracted to any party like atmosphere. That points to one very obvious locale, Gurney Drive. Since the past few years, it has been the site of one of the biggest New Year's countdowns in Penang. It should be enough to keep me awake.

Unfortunately, for some apparent reason unknown to us mere mortals, the mobile phone services always become dodgy just when there is a hint of festivity in the air. Consequently, I had difficulty contacting any of my friends to plan for the night. Just when I have resigned myself to escorting my mum and aunts around for the night though, I got my second break. I got a text from Kenneth, and so we are set to go.

With Kenneth's bro, Kevin tagging along, we set out on the trek to El Gurney, er, Gurney Drive. I had warned them beforehand that things could get a little too 'bubbly' and raucous at bashes like this, and to my chagrin was proven more than right. Upon arriving at Mount Gurney, ooops, Gurney Plaza, we were greeted by a sea of humanity wider than what Moses had to cross.

Our hardy party knuckled down and tried to force our way through. In spite of our best efforts though, we were finally barred by a row of massive barricades wrapped with barbed and electrified wire. Taking stock of our situation, we decided that a small pass on the other side of the bohemoth was our only hope of reaching the other side.

After taking the long detour, we were greeted by the sight of ... a massive battle. Though the white of soap suds have taken the place of the red of bloodshed, we did not doubt the lethality of this skermish. Saying a final battlecry and promising to meet on the other side, we dove in. Sharp reflexes that will make Spidey proud proved to be the best defence against bloodthirsty nemeses.

We survived this battlefield a few more times the remainder of the night as we walked to and fro to kill time. As time ticked towards 2007, Kenneth decided to look for more of our schoolmates. With the huge crowd, this seemed to be worse than looking for needles in a haystack...

To be continued...