Pada tanggal 4/12/09 kami sekeluarga telah berpindah ke rumah baru kami! Penat betui pindah ni.Thanks kat Saiful, Zaini & Izhar kerana sudi tolong. Time tu dah la ujan, removal truck tu plak lambat... Thanks guys. Kalau x dak depa ni, sure lagi lambat. 2 jam 10 minit removal company tu charge kami.
Anway rumah baru ni bg kami just fits our lifestyle & family. 4 bilik, enclosed space, ada sand pit & veggie patch. Aiman & Aliya cukup suka dgn rumah baru sebab luas & byk tempat nak main. Syok kami tgk depa main 2 beradik.
Selama 4 hari kami x dak internet. Mula2 ingat kami akan ada withdrawal symptoms, tapi ok la, kept busy dgn unpacking & playing with the kids.Siap call Telecom & dpt modem baru. Tgk2 hanya ada 1 saja phone jack yg untuk internet - pelik, kat tempat sama dgn tv plak tu. Jack lain x bleh.
Yg leceh umah ni, jauh sket dari Hospital, kena bangun awal dari umah dulu yg dekat sgt dgn Hospital.
Kat sini ada seorang Ustaz yg sudi mengajar anak2 Melayu Hamilton mengaji & Aiman pun dah mula pergi sejak kami pindah ni (kebetulan baru start lepas kami pindah)
Tu saja la kot untuk time ni. Nanti aku upload gambar umah baru kami.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Averse Sefira
This is an interview I made with the American Black metal band Averse Sefira while I was doing my A-levels in the UK circa 1997/98. During this time they released a demo called Blasphomet Sin Abset. I had the demo tape, it was pro printed, but I made the mistake of giving it to my good friend Imran aka tikuih, in otherwords, its gone - along with my tape of Pilgrims' Perfume Garden and other tapes I forgot.
They've gone on to become one of America's premier BM bands and have toured the US & Europe with the like of Incantation, Nile & Absu.
* How's the history of Averse Sefira? Any new stuff coming out from the A.S camp? Averse Sefira is such a distinctive name, what does it mean?
* How was the reaction to the demo? Are you satisfied with it? If it were done again, what would you change?
*WSD*: So far, the demo is getting a startling amount of positive attention. People seem to be impressed that we are an American Black Metal band and yet we still manage to approach the music the "right" way. That is, we don't cut any corners regarding our music or presentation. This genre is more competitive than ever, and to do anything less than our very best would guarantee that we'd get ignored. As I recorded and produced this demo myself, I am very proud of it. We had very limited recording resources, and we've been praised repeatedly about the recording quality itself, so for this first release I am satisfied. If we did it again, we'd do it at a professional studio, which is what will happen on the next outing.
* What are the lyrics about? Are they important? Who does them?
*SAN*: Yes, the lyrics are very important. For us, since we're working from an overarching concept, the lyrics form each song tell a certain facet of a greater story. Not too many bands are doing that these days, and it is somewhat dismaying as sometimes the music itself is not enough. Out of the ten songs we have, I've written seven and Wrath has written three.
* What do you think of Deicide? Do you think they're really extreme in promoting the 'Anti-Christ' thing? Do you support them?
*WSD*: Deicide is one our common favorite bands. They have been since their debut. I think the music is definitely extreme, and Glen Benton's lyrics are effectively inflammatory, but I see on the new material that they are taking a more sociological viewpoint in attacking Christianity, which is fine. However, I think the lyrics on "Deicide" and "Legion" had a cinematic quality that is missing on the last two releases. They are indeed an influence, and we support what they do for the most part.
*SAN*: Of course Deicide is an extreme band, and they do well as a stardard bearer for anti-Christian thought. Whether or not anyone else believes that Glen Benton is a Satanist, he certainly does, and he's getting paid to put out albums. But as Wrath said, he's exploring other avenues for expressing his beliefs. Wrath and I have begun the "We Like Legion" society, as so many people, including Deicide themselves, have dismissed that album outright.
* How's the scene is Texas now? Is there any new bands/zines that really deserve any attention? Who are 'death of millions'?
*WSD* The Texas scene is sparse, particularly for Black Metal. As far as bands playing out and building reputations, there is Imprecation from Houston, and they've been around for a few years now. A newer band that we are good friends with is Thornspawn from San Antonio. They've been around about a year and a half. They're good- kind of a cross between old Mayhem and Darkthrone. As far as zines go, I'm relatively unimpressed with the few I've seen around here. Not too many people do them now that the overall Texas scene has dissolved appreciably. Death of Millions is a band here in Austin. They are also our friends, and arguably the best Death Metal band in Texas right now. They are very professional, and we have played with them on a few occasions, probably more in the future.
*SAN*: It seems that the scene here, like anywhere else, is a relative thing. Almost every band interview I read has them saying that their scenesucks, that there aren't enough clubs to play, and that no one comes out to shows.
* What is your opinion of absu? Is Averse Sefira influenced by them? Are you in contact with Proscriptor?
*WSD*: Originally, I was only marginally interested in Absu. They just didn't impress me as much as I wanted. However, I really like the new album, and I was completely blown away by their performance at the Milwaukee Metalfest last summer! Sanguine has always liked them. He's met Proscriptor before through some common friends, and we both met Shaftiel and Equitant in Milwaukee. They don't really influence us, since we're taking different approaches to the music. They are definitely paving the way for American Black Metal, to be sure.
*SAN*: I have always liked Absu and good bands from Texas on principal, but I'm more wholeheartedly supporting them since the new album came out and they played the Metalfest. They have always had interesting artistic ideas. We've met all four of them at various times, and it would be nice to establish more solid contacts with them. Musically, they are not an influence.
* Now a lot of bands are into early 80's metal like Venom, Bathory etc. Do you think it is a good move, going back to the roots of metal? Do you think the music is progressing or moving back?
*WSD*: I think that reflecting influences from that era is good, because it's good music, but it's important to keep innovating and trying to do things differently. Otherwise, the music becomes redundant and homogenous. In my opinion, metal music is actually bridging the gap between the old and the new styles very effectively. Bands like Absu, Dodheim's Gard, and Usurper are letting the old influences show in new and interesting ways. I don't, however, like bands that purposely act brainless and obnoxious and blatantly copy older bands just because it's easier than being creative. Those are joke bands as far as I'm concerned.
*SAN*: Yes, a healthy appreciation for precedent is a good thing. The bands that are able to capture the spirit of the early 80s acts are helping to revitalize metal. I'm referring to bands like Angel Corpse, Sadistic Intent, and Vital Remains among others. That spirit is certainly one thing that is allowing the current Black Metal scene to flourish.
* Do you think in the near future that metal especially Black Metal will be like a mainstream type of music with all the bands emerging from all parts of the world? And with the violence that is parallel with the music that it would be banned in some countries?
*WSD* Black and Death Metal the way the established bands are doing it right now will never be mainstream. Sure, it can get a bigger audience, but unless the bands in question choose to change their style, image, or content to meet the status quo, they will never be accepted by the mainstream. Death Metal got pretty big for a while, but it never gained what I consider a mainstream standing. Sure, more people heard about it, but bands like Deicide will never appeal to the Top 40 types because they are simply too extreme and designed to only be enjoyed by a small portion of society. At least I think that's the case for the USA. As far as banning in other countries, that is already happening. Cradle of Filth is always involved in disputes over their shirts, bands get censored left and right, especially in Germany, but I don't think it's the violence so much as the offensive nature of some of these acts.
*SAN* No of course not. At this point will never get any more acceptance that Death Metal did circa 1993, but as we are painfully learning, these types of genres are cyclical in nature, and if we're lucky enough we might see a resurgence in popularity to the degree of Iron Maiden or Dio, perhaps. As far as it being banned, sure, in countries that are theologically based (ie the entire Western world) the ideas that Black and Death Metal bands present are not something that will go unchallenged. Complete censorship is unlikely, but some form or curtailment is also a possibility. But that mainly pertains to record stores and such refusing to carry such music.
* How about the internet? Is it moving metal into new dimensions or just mainstreaming it when everyone especially 'those of the unlight' see the homepages?
*SAN*: People using computers are the way things are going right now. Not every metal fan has a computer or internet capabilities, and not everyone with internet capabilities, no matter what music they listen to, will likely just stumble onto Death Metal or Black Metal sites. Saying that the internet will make Black Metal mainstream is like that the internet is going to make bestiality mainstream! The form of music we are producing is not for everyone, and therefore, not everyone will actively seek it out, even when it is available.
*WSD*: With Black Metal being such a global phenomenon, but yet still being relatively obscure, I think the internet is a powerful tool in helping those who seek it out find it much more effectively. I have contacts from various countries thanks to email, and I believe that our webpage has really gotten us the greatest amount of attention so far!
* What do you think of young teenagers listening to metal? Are they mere posers, or the new generation of Metallers? Should they listen to Metal? When did you start listening to metal?
*WSD*: To me, the only thing that makes you a poser is listening to this music for the wrong reasons. By that I mean listening to metal because it upsets parents and other authority figures, or because nobody else around listens to it. Some kids do that, but it's mostly stuff they know people have heard about, like Marilyn Manson. I get people looking at my Immortal shirts who say, "All right! KISS!" The point is that if you really like this music, then that's all the reason you need. Those kids who believe in it are essential to keeping the genre alive in the future. I myself started into metal when I was twelve or so, and here I am now doing my own band. So yes, it's fine for kids to listen to Metal as long as they don't simply use it as a shock value mechanism.
*SAN*: Given that I started fanatically listening to metal in the 5th or 6th grade, I would have to say that of course it's OK for kids to be listening to metal. For those of us who have made this type of music an ingrained and fundamental part of our lives, it's almost as if we have to treat this music like we were called to it. No matter how the internal factions perceive it, metal is not a trend. At certain point you realize that you're either metal, or you're not. Those of us that are will follow it indefinitely. Those that aren't will say cute things like, "Oh, yeah, I used to listen to Slayer." Although it is discouraging to see the current apathy that is going around amongst the younger fans.
* What does the future hold for Averse Sefira?
*WSD*: We're currently promoting this demo pretty agressively for a completely unknown band. Personally, I am interested in getting our name established in the collective scene. We are also talking with a few independant labels about officially releasing our full-length effort on CD. Outside of that, we are playing live, and we hope to continue doing that.
*SAN*: We'd like to do more live shows, hopefully playing again with Imprecation and Thronspawn, and perhaps Absu if they're interested. Wrapped up in my own ego, I don't see that a record contract is outside the realm of possibility, but I would be satisfied with being a cult band.
* Your closing dark words.......
*Sanguine & Wrath*: Thanks so far to all who have supported us by sending letters of praise or by buying our tape. We plan to live up to your expectations. Support derserving underground bands! Sorry if that isn't very dark.
Support this band!! What else can I say? They've released a cd entitled Homecomings' March released under their own label. Try and find it.They've got a homepage too!All correspondents to:
Averse Sefira
c/o Sam Spoor
PO Box 8166
Austin, Tx
78716-8166
c/o Sam Spoor
PO Box 8166
Austin, Tx
78716-8166
They have a new website at: http://www.aversesefira.com/
Monday, November 30, 2009
Hayagriva - The Lord of Neverending Wrath... the interview
It's been a while since I posted in English and anything metal related. With the demise of Thanatopsis zine at geocities, I've managed to save the stuff I had over there. Everyone into the underground/metal scene back then & now know of this band from the land of Silver, after the release of The Lord of Neverend Wrath demo before the excellent Silverian Elegy EP - one of the best Malaysian metal releases in my opinion. Read on for some piece of history...
This interview was featured in the 3rd issue of Thanatopsis zine released in May 1997. Since then they have released a new material entitled 'Silverian Elegy' and will be doing a split CD with Singapore Godz As-Sahar which is in the final stages of completion. This was answered by Mantheravathee
• Darkest greetings, blessed be dark soul, your first dark words...
Happiness and well being upon thy blissful
• What's the latest news on Hayagriva? Any line-up changes or new demo?
Line-up changes - nope, new releases will be in this year, 1997.
• Since the release of 'The Lord of Neverending Whath', have there been any labels that are interested in offering Hayagriva a deal?
Nope
• When will your new stuff come out? Is it in the same vein of the first demo?
Oh...it will appear in this year, 1997 in the 'Supreme Shadows Metal' vein surely... it's gonna kill your mom!!!
• You seem to be interested in Sanskrit Mythology, especially in your lyrics. What is the story behind each song like 'The Gate', 'Thy Lord of Shadows' and so on? Are you also interested in old Malay Black Magic like Santau, Tinggam etc?
It's all about the Darkside of Life. The beauty of heathen enlightment, wrath, hate, consecrations and shadows.
• Who is Aria Sidhayarta? Is he a permanent member or just a lyricist?
He is our lyricist on our first demo, but now he has been kidnapped by some alien from...? (what the...-Ed) I don't know where he is now... Aria Sidhayarta is also a man... but without a soul!!!
• You play Dark Shadow Metal. How do you define it? How does it differ from ordinary Black Metal?
It's totally not in any kind of Black Metal. Remember it's Shadows, anything you do on it, it's still Shadows, not the color of Blue or Red!
Throughout the year, Penang crowds are the best in Malaysia. In the 'Ethereal Reign' gig we performed only as a jam session band with Athothorgh also with us. We got to play coz we can really play.
• How important is corpse paint and other Black Metal uniforms to you?
Corpse pant, blazing fire and so on, is just like an adorement on stage in terms to make it more beautiful.
• What do you think of Sil-Khannaz, As-Sahar and Langsuir? Will they conquer the Eastern Metal scene?
They are as good as they are!!
• Your upcoming visions for Hayagriva?
It's a secret and the secret is only for us... but you might know it someday...sometime...
• Last incantation to end the interview?
Hail Thanatopsis zine.. Thanx Noorwan the editor who's responsible on his own great works! Yeah thanx for still remembering us. Svasti
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Eidul Adha 1430
Raya korban/haji kali merupakan raya yg paling x meriah bagi kami 1 family. Kami empat empat beranak semua kena flu.
Yang kena 1st Aiman last week. Dah hantar anak kat day care, macam ni la. Segala jenis flu etc mesti make the rounds kat semua budak2 kat daycare. Last weekend Aiman badan panas ja, dok melepek kat bean bag depan tv, dok tgk playhouse disney. Sampai bean bag tu dah jadi lubuk Aiman la. Makan x lalu, tapi tgk tv tetap ada semangat.
Selang sehari lepas tu, Aliya pulak kena! Aliya sebab kecik lagi, susah sket nak jaga. Dok menangis more than usual. Idung beringus dan eczema kat pipi pun jadi teruk balik. Di tambah pulak dok tumbuh gigi.
Hari rabu lepas, aku pulak amik sick leave sbb Fid dah amik 2 hari, pagi tu Fid dah rasa x sedap badan, tapi kuatkan semangat nak pergi kerja. Aku pulak pergi bawak anak2 jumpa GP. Aku cakap rasa mcm viral illness ja & GP agrees. Dapat la MC untuk aku & Fid just in case akan cuti lama lagi dan juga script untuk paracetamol liquid & ibuprofen. Lepas tu kami pergi ke Glenview library, Aiman ceria sket, pinjam la a few cd's - Little Einstein Classical Collection & Handy Manny. Aiman cukup suka Little Einstein punya, x sangka anak aku minat classical, bagus jugak Playhouse Disney ni.... hehehehe
Bila aku balik ja, x perasan Fid ada kat atas dok tidur. Aku bagi ja Aliya tidur dlm ndoi yg kami import dari Malaysia (electric oi!) tgk2 bini aku yg sakit.
Aiman still cranky for the last few days. Aliya much the same. Lagi susah nak tidur. Fid pun sama saja. Makan bubur nasik je kami.
Aku still ok, tapi dah rasa mcm nak demam. Khamis aku pergi kerja & shift Fid pulak dok umah. Hidung aku mula berair. Rasa mcm x cukup tidur - mmg pun, Aliya & Aiman jaga byk kali! Keesokan harinya aku perlu ke Rotorua ada clinic, boss aku cakap, baik try tukar, kot2 aku x boleh pergi, clinic dah la double booked (2 patient pada 1 masa) so dia mmg kena ada registrar. Aku pun tukar la dgn colleague aku.
Balik rumah, Aiman dah ok sket, Aliya & Fid still ada tempias demam. Aku so-so.
Jumaat pagi, aku bangun mmg rasa mcm x mo pergi keja, so aku pun amik la sick leave. Tinggal msg kat manager. Fid mmg dah amik cuti pun, igt raya Jumaat. Jadi hari jumaat kami 4 beranak dok kat umah, dok x larat semua.... Solat Jumaat pun aku tertinggal sebab demam.
Hari Raya aku bangun nak pergi solat raya. Aku siap2 sorang & pergi pukul 8.30. Sampai saja kat Hamilton Gardens (solat raya mmg buat kat sini, sebab masjid Hamilton kecik sket, x muat semua jemaah), aku dah dgr imam baca khutbah, sah aku dah terlewat. Pergi la ke tempat solat. Ramai sungguh umat Islam Hamilton di sini.
Selesai khutbah, kami warga Malaysia lepak setempat dan bersembang. Umah Syam nanti akan ada sambutan raya/melapah daging. Korban di buat kat Cambridge katanya, tapi aktiviti melapah kat umah Syam. Aku pun cakap ok la, aku boleh datang, maybe sorang saja. Kami ada join buat korban ni tahun ni.
Balik saja rumah, terus rasa demam, terlena kat living room, sampai pukul 12.30, aku call la Saiful ckp x jadi datang sebab aku x sihat. Aku kembali tidur.
Pukul 2 ptg, aku rasa refresh sket. Anak2 & Fid rasa ok sket jugak. Kami ke bakal rumah kami, nak buat final checkup. Kejap je, nak check kalau shower ensuite tu dah pebaik ke belum dan nak test semua kunci ada ke idak. Kalau semua ok, rabu depan dapat kunci & jumaat pindah! Yippee!!
Petang ni ada 2 open house, x pasti kalau kami semua akan pergi or just aku dgn Aiman, sebab kami 2 saja yg dah ok, Fid & Aliya still cranky & grumpy!
Apa2 pun,
Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Adha dari kami di Hamilton, New Zealand.
Sesiapa yg ada saudara mara yg menunaikan haji, aku doakan selamat pergi & pulang semoga mendapat Haji Mabrur... Amin
Yang kena 1st Aiman last week. Dah hantar anak kat day care, macam ni la. Segala jenis flu etc mesti make the rounds kat semua budak2 kat daycare. Last weekend Aiman badan panas ja, dok melepek kat bean bag depan tv, dok tgk playhouse disney. Sampai bean bag tu dah jadi lubuk Aiman la. Makan x lalu, tapi tgk tv tetap ada semangat.
Selang sehari lepas tu, Aliya pulak kena! Aliya sebab kecik lagi, susah sket nak jaga. Dok menangis more than usual. Idung beringus dan eczema kat pipi pun jadi teruk balik. Di tambah pulak dok tumbuh gigi.
Hari rabu lepas, aku pulak amik sick leave sbb Fid dah amik 2 hari, pagi tu Fid dah rasa x sedap badan, tapi kuatkan semangat nak pergi kerja. Aku pulak pergi bawak anak2 jumpa GP. Aku cakap rasa mcm viral illness ja & GP agrees. Dapat la MC untuk aku & Fid just in case akan cuti lama lagi dan juga script untuk paracetamol liquid & ibuprofen. Lepas tu kami pergi ke Glenview library, Aiman ceria sket, pinjam la a few cd's - Little Einstein Classical Collection & Handy Manny. Aiman cukup suka Little Einstein punya, x sangka anak aku minat classical, bagus jugak Playhouse Disney ni.... hehehehe
Bila aku balik ja, x perasan Fid ada kat atas dok tidur. Aku bagi ja Aliya tidur dlm ndoi yg kami import dari Malaysia (electric oi!) tgk2 bini aku yg sakit.
Aiman still cranky for the last few days. Aliya much the same. Lagi susah nak tidur. Fid pun sama saja. Makan bubur nasik je kami.
Aku still ok, tapi dah rasa mcm nak demam. Khamis aku pergi kerja & shift Fid pulak dok umah. Hidung aku mula berair. Rasa mcm x cukup tidur - mmg pun, Aliya & Aiman jaga byk kali! Keesokan harinya aku perlu ke Rotorua ada clinic, boss aku cakap, baik try tukar, kot2 aku x boleh pergi, clinic dah la double booked (2 patient pada 1 masa) so dia mmg kena ada registrar. Aku pun tukar la dgn colleague aku.
Balik rumah, Aiman dah ok sket, Aliya & Fid still ada tempias demam. Aku so-so.
Jumaat pagi, aku bangun mmg rasa mcm x mo pergi keja, so aku pun amik la sick leave. Tinggal msg kat manager. Fid mmg dah amik cuti pun, igt raya Jumaat. Jadi hari jumaat kami 4 beranak dok kat umah, dok x larat semua.... Solat Jumaat pun aku tertinggal sebab demam.
Hari Raya aku bangun nak pergi solat raya. Aku siap2 sorang & pergi pukul 8.30. Sampai saja kat Hamilton Gardens (solat raya mmg buat kat sini, sebab masjid Hamilton kecik sket, x muat semua jemaah), aku dah dgr imam baca khutbah, sah aku dah terlewat. Pergi la ke tempat solat. Ramai sungguh umat Islam Hamilton di sini.
Selesai khutbah, kami warga Malaysia lepak setempat dan bersembang. Umah Syam nanti akan ada sambutan raya/melapah daging. Korban di buat kat Cambridge katanya, tapi aktiviti melapah kat umah Syam. Aku pun cakap ok la, aku boleh datang, maybe sorang saja. Kami ada join buat korban ni tahun ni.
Balik saja rumah, terus rasa demam, terlena kat living room, sampai pukul 12.30, aku call la Saiful ckp x jadi datang sebab aku x sihat. Aku kembali tidur.
Pukul 2 ptg, aku rasa refresh sket. Anak2 & Fid rasa ok sket jugak. Kami ke bakal rumah kami, nak buat final checkup. Kejap je, nak check kalau shower ensuite tu dah pebaik ke belum dan nak test semua kunci ada ke idak. Kalau semua ok, rabu depan dapat kunci & jumaat pindah! Yippee!!
Petang ni ada 2 open house, x pasti kalau kami semua akan pergi or just aku dgn Aiman, sebab kami 2 saja yg dah ok, Fid & Aliya still cranky & grumpy!
Apa2 pun,
Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Adha dari kami di Hamilton, New Zealand.
Sesiapa yg ada saudara mara yg menunaikan haji, aku doakan selamat pergi & pulang semoga mendapat Haji Mabrur... Amin
Monday, November 23, 2009
Aku & Dickies
Pada ujung tahun lepas, time anak bini aku balik Malaysia, aku pergi la ronda-ronda sorang kat The Base Shopping complex kat sini. Masuk 1 kedai nama Red Rat, ada offer seluar Dickies - dari seratus lebih, turun ke 50 macam tu. Aku yg baru lepas makan Nando's pergi la try seluar ni. Amik size usual aku 36", rasa mcm ketat jer... mebe sebab lepas makan. So aku amik la pergi bayar.
Balik jer, lepas kekenyangan aku reda, try la balik. Still rasa ketat, so esoknya aku hantar balik. Kat sini kalau ada apa2 x kena ka, boleh hantar balik no problem, bukan mcm kat Malaysia. Aku return amik size 38 plak. Sayangnya sekarang seluar ni longgar plak. Haram tul. Sampai skang ada dlm almari aku, sesekali pakai pergi kerja, tapi rasa x selesa, jadi malas nak pakai selalu. Rasa mcm nak jual kat Trademe saja. Tgkla kalau aku rajin...
Selang beberapa bulan, 1 website nama 1-day.co.nz ada buat offer seluar pendek Dickies $35. Aku beli la 2. Bagi aku ini la, seluar pendek terbaikkkk pernah aku pakai. Time ni aku amik size 36" & mmg padan! Kalau beli kat kedai, lagi mahal. Site 1-day ni bagus jugak idea dia - setiap hari, 3 barang on offer untuk 24 jam atau sampai habis stock. Australia ada jugak. Anyway, sungguh selesa seluar pendek ni di pakai apabila summer, siap ada multi-use pocket dan dia punya crease mmg x akan hilang. Seluar pendek ni labuh melepasi lutut, jadi aku masih menutup aurat... hehehehe
Back to 1-day, baru2 ni ada lagi offer Dickies baru2 ni. Seluar pendek jugak, aku pun hentam beli 1 lagi, tapi kaler kelabu plak. Mmg best wa cakap lu shorts ni! Bulan lepas ada lagi skali offer Dickies - tapi kali ni seluar panjang. Aku beli la size 36". Dalam site x cakap labuh berapa. Bila dapat ja, aku pakai tgk labuh semacam. Measurements 36" x 34". Mak ai, pinggang aku lagi besar/panjang dari labuh seluar.
Kalau sesiapa nak beli 'Work pants' aku syorkan Dickies ni. Apparently mmg buat sebagai work wear & tahan lasak e.g. mechanic/fireman etc. Aku yg 'poser' jer pakai ke 'office'. Tgk site Dickies depa siap ada scrubs utk hospital, menarik, tapi aku kerja x pakai scrubs. Lagi 1 kalau x silap aku Dickies ni byk geng2 Chicanos/Mexicans pakai kat US.
Aku type ni time aku kerja 'Long Day' iaitu kerja dari 8 pagi sampai ke 10 mlm. Ward x call aku pun, so pikir update blog dengan pengalaman aku dgn Dickies... hehehehhe
Btw, hari ni aku pakai seluar Dickies yg aku jahit tu...
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Metastatic TCC bladder to bone
Tadi aku ada jumpa patient ni kat dlm clinic. Kesian kat pakcik ni. Dia skang ni in patient dlm ward. Masuk ward sbb sakit pinggang. Ada history of TCC bladder.
Dr buat bone scan dan inilah gambarnya:
Kalau korang tgk titik2 hitam tu - tu la kami panggil "hot spots", cancer yg telah pergi ke tulang. sakit pinggang dia sbb ni la. Dia ada buat MRI spine juga - result shows metastatic disease dlm semua tulang belakang, paling teruk dekat C3 & L4/5.
Aku plan nak bagi dia palliative radiotherapy 20Gy/5# ke semua c-spine & l-spine dia. Aku rasa life expectency dia measured in months, but hopefully radiotherapy will help with his pain
Dr buat bone scan dan inilah gambarnya:
Aku plan nak bagi dia palliative radiotherapy 20Gy/5# ke semua c-spine & l-spine dia. Aku rasa life expectency dia measured in months, but hopefully radiotherapy will help with his pain
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Rumah macam tongkang pecah!
Aduss, rumah aku sekarang dah semak & tak tersusun... bukannya apa, pada tanggal 2/12 nanti kami akan berpindah ke rumah baru.
Sekarang ni dok sibuk mengemas, susah sket dgn anak2 aku yg masih kecil & x paham sgt bahasa, especially Aliya. Selalu dok buat aku & Fid naik darah... hehehehe
Banyak sungguh barang kami sejak 3 tahun yg lalu, datang ke NZ pada ujung February 2007 dgn 2 suitcase, 1 laptop & anak sorang. Kami telah berpindah sekali sebab rumah pertama yg kami duduk, di masuki pencuri - laptop hilang, tapi dpt balik, yg selalunya jarang berlaku.
Sejak tu, kami dah kumpul byk khazanah, mainan anak2 la, buku2, etc etc..... naik pening tgk barang2 yg banyak ni. Kotak semua dah amik kat hospital, mmg kotak barang2 medical semua kotak kami.
Banyak benda nak kena settle sebelum pindah ni....
Kami telah beli rumah yg nak pindah ni. Kami pikir, dari dok bayar sewa yg dok bayar mortgage orang, lebih baik kami beli rumah sendiri & bayar mortgage sendiri. Plan nak tinggal kat Hamilton ni ada la lagi 4-5 thn, sampai kami berdua abis buat specialist course. So kira berbaloi la.
Dari bab rumah, sekarang ni dok tinggal nak settle insurance etc. Settlement date 2/12 nanti - hari kami dpt kunci.
X sabar aku nak pindah, tapi malas nak kemas barang!!!!
Sekarang ni dok sibuk mengemas, susah sket dgn anak2 aku yg masih kecil & x paham sgt bahasa, especially Aliya. Selalu dok buat aku & Fid naik darah... hehehehe
Banyak sungguh barang kami sejak 3 tahun yg lalu, datang ke NZ pada ujung February 2007 dgn 2 suitcase, 1 laptop & anak sorang. Kami telah berpindah sekali sebab rumah pertama yg kami duduk, di masuki pencuri - laptop hilang, tapi dpt balik, yg selalunya jarang berlaku.
Sejak tu, kami dah kumpul byk khazanah, mainan anak2 la, buku2, etc etc..... naik pening tgk barang2 yg banyak ni. Kotak semua dah amik kat hospital, mmg kotak barang2 medical semua kotak kami.
Banyak benda nak kena settle sebelum pindah ni....
Kami telah beli rumah yg nak pindah ni. Kami pikir, dari dok bayar sewa yg dok bayar mortgage orang, lebih baik kami beli rumah sendiri & bayar mortgage sendiri. Plan nak tinggal kat Hamilton ni ada la lagi 4-5 thn, sampai kami berdua abis buat specialist course. So kira berbaloi la.
Dari bab rumah, sekarang ni dok tinggal nak settle insurance etc. Settlement date 2/12 nanti - hari kami dpt kunci.
X sabar aku nak pindah, tapi malas nak kemas barang!!!!
Friday, November 13, 2009
Rammstein + pussy = porno
Rammstein, satu nama band dari Germany yang aku pasti banyak orang dah dengar. Band industrial yang kontroversi. Aku dulu ada satu album Rammstein, Sehnsucht yang kawan aku bagi. Best jugak aku dengar. Adala 1-2 album lagi yg aku download mcm Rosenrot etc.
Setelah sekian lama menyepi, mereka kembali dgn album baru, LIEBE IST FUR ALLE DA ("Love Is There For Everyone"). Album ini dah ada beberapa negara Eropah dah ban sebab lyrics nya.
Single pertama dari album ini adalah Pussy! Lagu dalam English - dgn chorus "You've got a pussy, I've got a dick, So what's the problem?" etc etc... Di tengah2 video tu ada penyanyi Rammstein mengibar bendera Germany. Sungguh patriotik mereka ini!
Video untuk single ini memang NSFW (not safe for work)! Rammstein telah membuat video porno! Sapa yang sangka?
Tak pasti kalau depa guna stunt cock or not (ala Orgazmo - filem dari pencipta South Park)!! Anda lihat sendiri:
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Fallen, Pour Habit, NOFX, Bad Religion - Auckland City Hall, New Zealand, 4th October 2009
It's been a while since I've been to a punk gig. I think the last time was when I saw Rancid play the Olympia in Dublin waaaayyyy back in 2006. Or was it when I saw Sum 41? Can't remember...
Anyway, I've been listening to punk the same time I listened to metal. Obviously I like metal more! Bad Religion are one of the bands that I really like and know most of the songs to. NOFX are the allright as well, I have some of their records - namely Punk in Drublic, So long... and The war on errorism.
So when I knew that BR and NOFX were coming to NZ, I had to see them. My wife wouldn't understand but she knew I wanted and will see these bands.
I bought my ticket online and waited for the day. The thing is, it was on a sunday and to boot, our open house was the day before! I knew I would be knackerd! But the punk spirit is high! hahahah
So, after we went to the Waikato Home & Garden show, I started my drive up to Auckland.
Since I got my trusty HTC Touch Pro as my GPS, it was a breeze to get to the Town Hall...
I find it a bit ironic that there was going to be a punk gig in a municipal hall such as the Auckland Town Hall, but what the hell, some punk ethics you have to break I guess. The Town Hall is a majestic place IMHO. I was asked to empty my pockets on arrival but all was good. Went straight to the merch booth. When I go toa gig, I want to get tour shirts, other regular shirts are down the list.
I eventually bought a NOFX Lion Red label rip off & simple BR 'suffer' ts.
The stage was empty when I came in, all the people were still outside or smoking. The 1st band I thought were Pour Habit, but I think they were called Fallen? Correct me if I'm people. They play more of a pop punk music I guess ala Green Day (now) and other pop punk bands out there. Not too bad.
After these guys finished, it was up to Pour Habit to get things going. While they were getting ready, a black guy with a bad afro was making some jokes and I thought he was some stand up comic while they were getting ready. It turns out this dude was their singer!!! Straight up punk from these guys from Compton! 2 black dudes & 3 white guys playing punk. 1 of their guitarists looked like that guy from Backstreet boys and the other looks so young! The BSB guy & the drummer looked like high school jocks. I guess you can say they play typical punk with a bit of reggae thrown in. Apparently they have like 12 cd's out and under Fat Wreck records. So check em out!
Next up was NOFX. As I said before, I've liked NOFX for a while and find them quite funny lyrically. 1 song I was really waiting to hear was Franco Un-American off The War on Errorism. While getting set up, some how there was some thing wrong with their setup and Fat Mike blamed Slayer/Megadeth (who were to play tomorrow night). Man the crowd went crazy when they started playing. This was the only gig that I was in a lot of pain, especially along the ribs. The punks tonight really got the place going. They played songs spanning their career, most of them I haven't heard of. After taking a few videos and pics, I was ready to make my exit from the front. Battered & bruised I fought my way to the side and out to take a piss and smoke. When I went back in, I stayed at the back near the sound engineers and in the end, I managed to get the set list. Oh, they didn't play Franco-Un American! Dammit!
It took a while before Bad Religion came on stage. They started off with LA is burning and No Control before Brett's amp has gone kaput. They had to use Fat Mike's amp as a replacement and blasted Do What You Want before playing Recipe for Hate. I was in a frenzy. I love going to gigs that I know the lyrics too so that I can sing along. Gregs vocals is the same as it sounds from the cd. Tonight I learned that Bad Religion are 1 year younger than me - 29 fucking years!! They played most songs that I knew and can sing along to. I was in a fit when they played I want to conquer the world, Infected and 21st Century (digital boy). I lost my voice and was in a lot of pain, but it was well worth it! Punks not dead in my book!!
Monday, November 2, 2009
Matinya Geocities....
Pada hari jumaat lepas tamatlah riwayat http://www.geocities.com/wanwarlock atau lebih dikenali sebagai Thanatopsis website. Yahoo! telah membeli Geocities dgn harga berapa billion ntah, tapi sebab dah x menguntungkan, Yahoo! dah tutup...
Website tu aku buat era awal 2000, lewat 1990-an masa aku buat A-level kat UK satu masa dahulu.
Time tu mana ada wysiwyg html editor, aku kena tau pasal html encoding! gila susah nak buat. Lepas tu datangla Microsoft apa ntah, x igt aku program tu, sebab tu ada boleh buat columns. Tu pun ada problem macamana nak direct clicks etc.
Dalam tu ada la interview yg aku buat & yg telah aku upload ke sini. Ada lagi yg akan datang. Last time aku update ada la kot tahun 2000.
Aku sebenarnya malas nak update site tu sbb kena guna pure html. Malas nak belajar.
Sempat aku save interview2 lama & gambar2 lama.
Pelan pelan nanti aku cuba upload.
Geocities kat Wikipedia
Website tu aku buat era awal 2000, lewat 1990-an masa aku buat A-level kat UK satu masa dahulu.
Time tu mana ada wysiwyg html editor, aku kena tau pasal html encoding! gila susah nak buat. Lepas tu datangla Microsoft apa ntah, x igt aku program tu, sebab tu ada boleh buat columns. Tu pun ada problem macamana nak direct clicks etc.
Dalam tu ada la interview yg aku buat & yg telah aku upload ke sini. Ada lagi yg akan datang. Last time aku update ada la kot tahun 2000.
Aku sebenarnya malas nak update site tu sbb kena guna pure html. Malas nak belajar.
Sempat aku save interview2 lama & gambar2 lama.
Pelan pelan nanti aku cuba upload.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Au Revoir to record new MCD
Berita eksklusiv dari Rammy Au Revoir (The Ravens/Kemenyan Fanzine). Au Revoir tengah dalam proses merekodkan MCD terbaru mereka yang di jadualkan akan di pasaran Januari 2010. Rammy ada mengakatakan bahawa kesemua 6 lagu yang bakal di rekod ini merupakan yg terbaik mereka pernah hasilkan.
Berita ini di petik dari blog Faithcraft mobile. Nama aku pun ada disebut sekali. hehehehe.
Apa-apa pun, nantikan opus terbaru dari Au Revoir Januari 2010! Untuk peminat hard rock, gothic ala Sentenced!
Berita ini di petik dari blog Faithcraft mobile. Nama aku pun ada disebut sekali. hehehehe.
Apa-apa pun, nantikan opus terbaru dari Au Revoir Januari 2010! Untuk peminat hard rock, gothic ala Sentenced!
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Punk's Not Dead
Hari ahad lepas aku pi tgk gig Bad Religion & NOFX kat Auckland. Dah lama aku minat dua dua band ni, lebih BR dari NOFX.
Aku dapat tau ada gig ni pun lepas baca dlm free paper yg tiap2 hari rabu org hantar dlm mailbox rumah. Paper ni ada buat cabutan bertuah utk menang cd dan pada hari tu depa offer New Maps of Hell - cd baru BR. Lepas tu aku pun carik la info kot2 betul depa mai NZ.
Tgk2 betui depa mai. Aku nak beli tiket, tgk tinggai seating ja. Malas la aku tgk gig kena seating. Hanya 2 gig yg aku pi tgk yg seating - Sum 41 & Rancid. Nyesal gila gig Rancid aku tak duduk depan stage! Lepas tu selang 2-3 hari aku mmg berniat nak p tgk, seating pun seating la. Time nak pilih tiket, tgk2 general admission ada, tunggu apa lagi! Siap beli pre-paid parking lagi. Yang ironicnya, gig ni buat kat Auckland Town Hall, x sangka punk bands akan main kat tempat2 mcm ni.
Gig ni la aku paling injured masa NOFX main, siap dgr tulang rusuk aku crack, still sengal sampai hari ni. Damn NZ punks! Lepas kena, terus aku ke belakang. Tapi ada baiknya, dapat aku set list utk NOFX & Bad Religion!
Ni ada 3 video aku upload kat youtube. Full review nanti aku buat dalam english, dapat hits byk sket... hehehe. Korang klik la kat iklan2 kat blog aku ni skali ya??
Aku dapat tau ada gig ni pun lepas baca dlm free paper yg tiap2 hari rabu org hantar dlm mailbox rumah. Paper ni ada buat cabutan bertuah utk menang cd dan pada hari tu depa offer New Maps of Hell - cd baru BR. Lepas tu aku pun carik la info kot2 betul depa mai NZ.
Tgk2 betui depa mai. Aku nak beli tiket, tgk tinggai seating ja. Malas la aku tgk gig kena seating. Hanya 2 gig yg aku pi tgk yg seating - Sum 41 & Rancid. Nyesal gila gig Rancid aku tak duduk depan stage! Lepas tu selang 2-3 hari aku mmg berniat nak p tgk, seating pun seating la. Time nak pilih tiket, tgk2 general admission ada, tunggu apa lagi! Siap beli pre-paid parking lagi. Yang ironicnya, gig ni buat kat Auckland Town Hall, x sangka punk bands akan main kat tempat2 mcm ni.
Gig ni la aku paling injured masa NOFX main, siap dgr tulang rusuk aku crack, still sengal sampai hari ni. Damn NZ punks! Lepas kena, terus aku ke belakang. Tapi ada baiknya, dapat aku set list utk NOFX & Bad Religion!
Ni ada 3 video aku upload kat youtube. Full review nanti aku buat dalam english, dapat hits byk sket... hehehe. Korang klik la kat iklan2 kat blog aku ni skali ya??
Monday, September 21, 2009
Raya di perantauan
Tahun 2009 adalah tahun ke 12 aku & keluarga berada di perantauan. Aku ke UK untuk melanjutkan pelajaran selepas SPM (1996) pada tahun 1997. Mula-mula dekat Shrewsbury School, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK. Selepas A-level, aku buat medical degree aku dekat Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland. Sampai la aku mula menempuh alam pekerjaan di Dublin & berhijrah pula ke New Zealand.
Dalam tempoh itu, ada la 2-3 kali kot aku balik raya, sudah tak ingat. Dulu time aku mula2 katUK, raya dekat2 sama dgn Christmas so senang la. Lepas2 tu dah semakin ke depan.
Kami di New Zealand beraya pada hari isnin, 21/9 kerana bulan tak kelihatan pada mlm sabtu lepas. Ada frust jugakla, sebab ramai org ingat raya Ahad. Dengar kata, ada yg telah beraya semalam, ikut Masjid Frankton yang ikut Fiji (banyak Indian muslim Fiji kat NZ ni)
Bagi aku raya di perantauan lagi meriah jika dibandingkan dgn Malaysia. Sewaktu aku menulis ni, kami balik berehat sekejap setelah penat & kenyang makan kat open house open house rakan2 malaysia di sini. Nak bagi Aliya tidur, kalau dak dia cranky nanti. Lepas ni ada lagi open house - Pak Rahman & K Zu.
Kalau kat Malaysia, memang ada family & kawan2, pasar Ramadhan etc, tapi time raya, lepas sembahyang, sure balik rumah, tgk tv, tunggu org datang rumah. Kat sini, pagi tadi, kami bersolat kat umah Abg Zul & K Hanim, who graciously offered their house for raya prayers. Memang meriah sungguh. Lepas tu tak berenti p beraya rumah org2 kat sini.
Semakin lama di perantauan, semakin aku tak kisah untuk beraya di negara orang. Tetapi kena ada komuniti malaysia/melayu yang rapat. Kalau di Dublin dulu, melayu bercambah sampai berklik-klik, susah. Di sini, komuniti tak la besar sangat, tapi semua kenal mengenali & rapat.
Kepada pembaca sekalian, lagi sekali aku nak ucapkan Selamat Hari Raya, maaf zahir & batin. Eid Mubarak. Dari kami di perantauan - Noorwan Ariff, Nur Hafidzah, Aiman Haziq, Aliya Hanani.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Radiation Oncology....
Encik berteromber ada tinggal komen kat post aku yg lepas pasal apa itu radiation oncology registrar
Radiation oncology ni salah satu cabang bidang perubatan di mana kami merawat kanser dgn menggunakan x-ray. Korang sure penah dengar pasal chemotherapy utk rawat kanser kan? Tapi byk org jarang dengar pasal radiation oncology. Boss aku ckp "it's medicine's best kept secret". hehehe
Untuk merawat kanser - x kira la kanser apa pun, selalunya melibatkan pembedahan - surgery, lepas tu mungkin diikuti dgn chemotherapy ataupun radiotherapy. Setengah kanser pulak main treatment modality mungkin chemo atau pun radiotherapy sahaja.
Baca la kat wiki
Kat gambar atas tu ada contoh salah 1 mesin yg digunakan untuk rawat kanser - linear accelerator atau linac yg menjana electron dan photons untuk rawat kanser. 2 orang pompuan yg dlm gambo tu adalah radiation therapist - yg deliver the treatment. Depa kira mcm nurse sket la tapi tahap lagi tinggi sebab depa la yg plan treatment suma. Kami habaq kat depa kami nak treat apa, depa plan, check dgn physics suma kalau kami kata ok, treatment boleh mula.
Radiation oncologist pulak adalah seorang doktor pakar. Registrar ni plak macam aku adalah doktor yg dok 'belajar' nak jadik specialist dlm bidang ni. Kalau kat Malaysia, Dr yg dok buat Masters la.
Kat Malaysia, x byk RO (radiation oncologist) sahaja, maksud aku, depa ikut mcm UK - ada clinical oncologist - Dr yg deal dgn chemo dgn radiation tapi mostly dgn chemo saja, RT (radiotherapy) knowledge kurang sket. Sini kat NZ asing - chemo & RT.
Itu je la sedikit penjelasan pasal kerja aku. Rumusanya aku sekarang dlm latihan nak jadik RO - seorang pakar kanser yg merawat kanser dgn x-rays.
Nanti aku cerita pasal patient2 menarik yg penah aku jumpa kat sini...
Friday, September 18, 2009
Malas betul aku....
Kerja aku sebagai radiation oncology registrar selalunya tak la sibuk sangat. Kat sini kami ada 3 orang dan kalau ada tiga-tiga lagi tak sibuk. Tapi sejak dua menjak ni tiap2 hari jumaat mesti tinggal aku sorang ja kat department.
Last week, colleague aku cuti, sorang lagi ke clinic out-station. Sibuk habaq hang time tu. Aku pun mintak la gaji lebih. Mintak additional duties, tapi aku hanya dapat cross-cover. Additional duties ni kita buat kerja lebih dari sepatutnya, dapat $ lebih sket. Cross-cover ni kita cover kerja colleague yg cuti/sakit etc. Manager department cakap dia bleh bg cross-cover ja. Ok la, dapat la sket. Aku mintak supaya kalau tinggal sorang ja kami hari jumaat boleh dak cross-cover jadi standard - dia ckp kena tanya clinical director - i.e boss aku.
Minggu ni plak, ingat ok sket. Tapi aku mai keja arini, tgk2 tinggai aku sorang lagi harini - sorang ke clinic out-station & sorang lagi cuti sakit. Haram betui, semlm sihat ja aku tgk. Pi ward aku tgk patient2 aku saja. Turun department nurse2 cakap, colleague aku rumah kena pecah masuk semalam so harini nak kena pebaik rumah sket etc etc. Marah aku reda la sket.
Hari ni x la sibuk mcm last week. Ada la a few patients kena tgk kat clinic dan ada a few GP calls. Nasib x dak emergency mcm selalunya. Emergency untuk radiation oncology ni ada 2 saja, yg lain boleh tunggu - malignant spinal cord compression (MSCC) dengan superior vena cava obstruction (SVCO). Nanti la aku cerita pasal benda2 ni.
Sekarang ni pukul 3.41 ptg. Aku plak kena kerja long day - masuk keja pukul 8, balik 10 mlm. Selalu 8-5 saja. Lagi la buat aku malas. Surat nak kena buat dictation lagi, malas malas....
On another note: aku dah dapat tiket untuk Bad Religion & NOFX 4/10 nanti kat auckland!! Yess!!! Bands punk yg aku x penah tgk & minat!
Selamat Hari Raya, Maaf Zahir & Batin...
Friday, September 11, 2009
Free Century Media Sampler: Carnival of Sounds
Who wants a free legal comp from Century Media?? I know I want one. I remember getting some free comps from Century Media when I was back in Dublin long way back. Back then I was introduced to Old Man's Child and many others on the CM roster.
Metal Sucks.net & CM are proud to offer Carnival of Sounds, a sampler comp of CM's roster featuring Old Man's Child, Napalm Death etc etc.
It's free, it's legal!
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Nuclear Blast Iphone/Ipod touch app. What? No Windows Mobile app?
Got this in my email the other day about Nuclear Blast's new Iphone/Ipod app. It will give the users/fans updated news, music videos and samples straight to your Apple Product.
It annoys me that there is no Windows Mobile app, but I guess the Iphone is the flavour at the moment. Oh well, I won't miss out much anyway since I'm on the Nuclear Blast mailing list
If you don't have itunes installed, the link above will bring you to the itunes download page (like me)
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
For sale: Pearl Powershifter Iluminator twin pedals
I'm helping out a friend who wants to sell his Pearl Powershifter Iluminator twin pedals. He's the drummer for the band Side Circle - melocore band (Is that right Sharman? hehe) Selling it for RM700.
"Items still in good condition and performs real well without any probs, for more info, please view my page, interested?? call me: 0176338632 (sharman)"
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Exclusive interview with Fenriz of Darkthrone!
My old buddy Rammy has an exclusive interview with Fenriz of Darkthrone! This was Rammy's 1st interview since stopping Kemenyan fanzine in 2006.
Wow, real in depth interview from Fenriz - he talks about Darkthrone (obviously), life, musical tastes, years of the Underground scene and Michael Jackson!
Monday, July 13, 2009
Belphegor completes work on new album
Wow, another Belphegor album in the works....
Austrian blackened death metal outfit BELPHEGOR have completed their work on the eighth full-length studio album, Walpurgis Rites - Hexenwahn, due later this year via Nuclear Blast Records.
Walpurgis Rites - Hexenwahn was recorded at Andy Classen's (LEGION OF THE DAMNED, DEW-SCENTED, NEAERA, ASPHYX) Stage One Studios in Kassel, Germany.
Commented frontman Helmuth:
"With these nine compositions/arrangements, we continue to piss on the damn mainstream. It's BELPHEGOR to the highest; the hymns are extremely varied, more intense and epic than ever, [and] there are new elements and structures added. Also, we used some haunting samples here and there, to give the album a cold and ritualistic feel."
He continued...
"On Walpurgis Rites - Hexenwahn, you will hear my most fucked up vocals to date; also the lyrical content is offensive and insane. The witch/devil concept is amazing to work with and we used alot of original chants/ incantations from archaic scripts."
BELPHEGOR has tapped Brazilian artist Marcelo Hvc to handle the graphics for the new album. Marcelo has already begun working on the cover art and "some magickal images," according to a press reelase.
Added Serpenth:
"The idea is to capture the okkultic orgiastic processions from the Broken Mountain, the Walpurgis night in the images."
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Dedikasi kepada para ibu-bapa
Huh, sungguh x sangka susah benar nak membesarkan anak-anak ni. Kami anak 2 orang pun dah rasa jenuh dah ni. Tambah-tambah lagi orang yg anak lebih....
Baru la aku tau betapa susahnya mak bapak aku membela & membesarkan kami 3 beranak.
Sungguh seronok melihat gelagat anak-anak dan semua milestones yg dicapai, tapi ada juga time time tension dengan anak2 yg manja, susah nak tidoq, kacau adik & teriak yg sungguh ngilu!
Posting ni aku dedikasikan kepada para ibubapa, x kira la anak dah tua ka atau baru lahir. Ya Allah, tingkatkanla tahap kesabaran kami & keimanan kami dalam membesarkan anak2 kami. Amin
Selamat menempuh alam ke-ibubapaan.
Kepada mama & ayah aku - sekarang baru aku faham... hehehe
Baru la aku tau betapa susahnya mak bapak aku membela & membesarkan kami 3 beranak.
Sungguh seronok melihat gelagat anak-anak dan semua milestones yg dicapai, tapi ada juga time time tension dengan anak2 yg manja, susah nak tidoq, kacau adik & teriak yg sungguh ngilu!
Posting ni aku dedikasikan kepada para ibubapa, x kira la anak dah tua ka atau baru lahir. Ya Allah, tingkatkanla tahap kesabaran kami & keimanan kami dalam membesarkan anak2 kami. Amin
Selamat menempuh alam ke-ibubapaan.
Kepada mama & ayah aku - sekarang baru aku faham... hehehe
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Countess Elizabeth Bathory
Those involved in the metal scene or occult/horror sure have heard of Countess Bathory. Venom has sung about her, Tormentor has sung about her and Cradle of Filth dedicated an album just for her. Oh, don't forget the legend that is Bathory - Quorthon's band. Hell, there's even a movie I saw on Sky Movies recently about the Blood Countess. That movie sucked balls! Featuring the girl from the Final Destination series (she survived pt 1 and was in pt 2) - it's about a video game that was based on Bathory and players die in mysterious circumstances.
Anyway, I was fascinated by her life as well. In my search for her story, I found this article years back and posted it on the Thanatopsis website. It got a lot of hits from Google! Here it is republished here.
The article was written by Mathew Amaral. I was contacted a few times about this article by Mathew saying there were corrections etc since it was released. He's now wrote a book about Bathory, find it at Amazon if you're interested.
A Brief on the life and death of Hungary's infamous Blood Countess, Elizabeth Bathory-Nadasdy by Mathew Amaral
The infamous "Blood Countess" of Transylvania, who was purported to be a witch, vampire, werewolf, and supposedly bathed in the blood of virgins in order to maintain her beautiful and youthful appearance, has been the subject of many legends some of which have affected even the American culture half a world away. Dracula, created by the Irish author Bram Stoker, was based, albeit loosely, on the Romanian Prince, Vlad Dracula, the Impaler. Raymond T. McNally, who has written four books on the figure of Dracula in history, literature, and vampirism, in his fifth book, "Dracula was a Woman," presents insights into the fact that Stoker's Count Dracula was also strongly influenced by the legends of Elizabeth Bathory of Hungary. Why, for example, make a Romanian Prince into a Hungarian Count? Why, if there are no accounts of Vlad Dracula drinking human blood, does blood drinking consume the Dracula of Stoker's novel, who, contrary to established vampire myth, seems to appear younger after doing so? The answers, of course, lie in examining the story of Countess Elizabeth Bathory.
Though a majority of Elizabeth's exploits are reputed to have taken place in a castle which is today called Cachtice ("Chakh-teetsay"), that stands in an area of Transylvania (meaning "the land beyond the forest" in Latin) which, in 1983, rested within Czechoslovakian borders, the story of her life begins on what was once the border between Romania and Hungary (in 1983) at Ecsed Castle, the Bathory family seat in Transylvania. Born in 1560 to George Bathory (Ecsed branch) and Anna Bathory (Somlyo branch), Elizabeth was yet another product of the intermarriage between the dwindling Hungarian noble families. The Bathory family was "one of the richest and most powerful Protestant families in all Hungary. Her family was to provide two of the most important ruling princes of Transylvania, a number of war heroes and church officials of Hungary, and even a great empire-builder, Stephan Bathory, prince of Transylvania and king of Poland"(18). The common practice of inbreeding did nothing positive, however, for this illustrious family; Elizabeth's other interesting relatives included: An uncle supposedly "addicted to rituals and worship in honor of Satan, her aunt Klara was a well-known bi-sexual and lesbian who enjoyed torturing servants, and Elizabeth's brother, Stephan, who was a drunkard and a lecher"(19). Additionally, as an interesting side note, McNally mentions, "there is some genealogical evidence that the Bathory clan was related by marriage to that of the infamous ruler Vlad Dracula, the Impaler"(19). To receive some insight into the soul of Elizabeth, the presentation of an incident during her childhood could prove enlightening.
Though it is not stated exactly when, occurring sometime after she turned six and before eleven, a band of gypsies were invited to her home at Ecsed Castle to provide entertainment at the court . During their stay, one of their number was accused of selling his children to the Turks. He was found guilty and his judges sentenced him to death. "Elizabeth recalled his long cries in the night, bemoaning his upcoming demise, which evidently made a lasting impression on her. At dawn, Elizabeth escaped from the surveillance of her governess and ran outside the castle to witness the punishment. There she saw a horse held fast to the ground as some soldiers slit open its belly. Three of the soldiers then grabbed the guilty gypsy and shoved him inside the horse's belly until only his head stuck out of the dying animal. Another soldier armed with a huge, long needle and coarse ropelike thread sewed up the culprit in the belly of the horse"(21). This, along with other incidents during her childhood, would ultimately shape her views of what was proper behavior and her basic concepts of morality.
Unlike most females of the time, Elizabeth was well educated and her intelligence surpassed even some of the men of her time. Elizabeth was exceptional, becoming "fluent in Hungarian, Latin, and German... when most Hungarian nobles could not even spell or write...Even the ruling prince of Transylvania at the time was barely literate"(20). Some modern scholars and contemporaries of hers postulated that she may have been insane, thus accounting for her seemingly inconceivable atrocities, but even a brief glance into her past reveals a person fully in control of her faculties.
In 1555, Elizabeth's future husband, Ferenc Nadasdy (pronounced "Ferents"), was born to a family which, by noble right, was as prestigious as the Bathorys but not as wealthy and not as old. Ferenc's education has meticulously documented by his mother, Ursula, who was then a widow, concerning the period he was attending school in Vienna between 1567 and 1569. These documents attest that "Ferenc was not a good student. He barely learned how to write some Hungarian and to speak and read a little German and Latin.... Ferenc... developed into an athlete, but little else.... Although he acquired little academic education, he was evidently popular among his peers"(28). At the age of sixteen, Ferenc was engaged to Elizabeth, then eleven, in 1571 thanks to the careful manipulations of his mother.
Ferenc married Elizabeth on May 8, 1575 in "a lavish, gala event"(30) to which even the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II was invited (though he was unable to attend personally, due to the hazards of traveling during a time of political unrest, he instead "sent a delegation to represent him and an expensive wedding present"[30]). The marriage, which joined two prominent Protestant families, was held at Varanno Castle where the "bearded young Count Ferenc Nadasdy henceforth added her last name to his. But Elizabeth, fully emancipated...[by that time,]... chose to remain a Bathory, rather than take his name, since she considered that her name was much older and more illustrious than his"(30).
Ferenc chose war as his career and so was not often around, leaving Elizabeth at Castle Sarvar (prn "Shar-var") managing the family seat, "especially the task of disciplining the servants. The countess carried her 'disciplining' to a point that would be considered sadism today"(32). Beating the girl servants with a heavy club was the least of her "punishments," according to accounts. Often she would stick "pins into the upper and lower lips of the girls...into the girls ' flesh and... under their fingernails"(32). One particularly harsh "punishment" would be to drag girls out into the snow where she or her women servants poured cold water on them until they froze to death.
The first ten years of their marriage, Elizabeth bore no children because she and Ferenc shared so little time together as he pursued his "career." Then around 1585, Elizabeth bore a girl whom she named Anna, and over the following nine years gave birth to two more girls, Ursula and Katherina, and in 1598 bore her first and only son, Paul. Judging from letters she wrote to relatives, she was a good wife and protective mother, which was not surprising since nobles usually treated immediate family very differently from the lower servants and peasant classes.
Among the things Elizabeth did to amuse herself while Ferenc was away at war was to "visit her aunt Klara, an open bisexual. Wealthy and powerful, Klara always had plenty of available girls around. Elizabeth presumably enjoyed herself with her aunt Klara, since she visited her aunt's estate frequently"(33). Ferenc meanwhile had created quite a name for himself. By 1598, Ferenc was a "well-known war hero: he was one of five... sharp-sabred heroes known as 'the unholy quintet' who inspired fear in the Turks. The Turks even dubbed him with a popular nickname to indicate their fear of him, the 'Black Knight of Hungary'"(36). Also during this time, the crown began falling behind in paying their illustrious heroes and ended up owing an immense monetary debt to the Nadasdy family of which Elizabeth was now a part. Near the close of 1603, "Ferenc suddenly became very ill, and died on the morning of January 4, 1604, as a heavy snow fell on his castle at Sarvar"(38).
It is unknown whether or not Ferenc was aware of the activities of his homicidal wife while he was away, but "it is known that, when he was home, he too enjoyed torturing servants. When Ferenc was on homeleave during rare respites from warring against the Turks... Elizabeth and he had spent some time together engaging in activities that would be characterized as sadistic today.... Ferenc tortured servants, although he did not torture them to death, as his wife did "(38-9).
Only four weeks after the death of her husband in 1604, Elizabeth decided that she had mourned long enough and soon began making appearances at the court. Though many chroniclers of the Countess' story point out that the death of Ferenc was the trigger for her reputed blood baths "for cosmetic purposes"(40), the evidence first, clearly shows that her sadistic behavior (as noted previously) began well before the death of her husband, and second, indicates that there were no blood baths (not from any of the eye-witness accounts)! One old legend states that while out riding with a young gentleman, she apparently was verbally abusive to a very old woman whom she found utterly repulsive in appearance. The old woman countered with the remark " 'Take care, O vain one, soon you will look as I do and then what will you do?' "(40). This was another reason given for Elizabeth's obsession with age and aging, though there is no evidence anywhere of documents to this event. It is worthy to mention here, though it also lacks evidence as the above story does, another legend concerning the genesis of Elizabeth's blood baths:
This practice started when a maid accidentally pulled the countess's hair while combing it; Countess Elizabeth Bathory instinctively slapped the girl on the ear, but so hard that she drew blood. The servant girl's blood spurted onto Elizabeth's hands. At first the countess was enraged at this and reached for a towel to wipe off the blood. But suddenly the countess noticed that as the blood dried, her own skin seemed to take on the whiteness and youthful quality of the young girl's skin.(x)
Nonetheless, though she may not have actually bathed in the blood of her servants, several accounts of her tortures described her as being so soaked with the blood of her victims that she had to change her clothes before continuing onward. She could have continued in this fashion, torturing servant girls to death at her whim, indefinitely because even the clergy at the time felt that the nobles could treat their servants however cruelly and the servants would have absolutely nothing to say about it (legally).
In the Countess's service, as helpers in the macabre, was her manservant referred to only as Ficzko (which means "lad " in Hungarian), Helena Jo the wet nurse, Dorothea Szentes (also called "Dorka"), and Katarina Beneczky a washerwoman who came into the Countess's employ late in her bloody career. Also, between the years of 1604 and 1610 a mysterious woman named Anna Darvulia, who was probably a lover of Elizabeth's, who taught her many new torturing techniques and was "one of the most active sadists in Elizabeth's entourage"(45). After a severe stroke that left her blind, Darvulia left her work to Elizabeth, Helena Jo, and Dorka, content that she had taught them well.
Escape from the Castle Cachtice was not unheard of, though few if any actually succeeded in their attempts. One such escapee was punished as follows:
...a twelve year old girl named Pola somehow managed to escape from the castle. But Dorka, aided by Helena Jo, caught the frightened girl by surprise and brought her forcibly back to Cachtice Castle. Clad only in a long white robe, Countess Elizabeth greeted the girl upon her return. The countess was in another of her rages. She advanced on the twelve-year-old child and forced her into a kind of cage. This particular cage was built like a huge ball, too narrow to sit in, too low to stand in. Once the girl was inside, the cage was suddenly hauled up by a pulley and dozens of short spikes jutted into the cage. Pola tried to avoid being caught on the spikes, but Ficzko maneuvered the ropes so that the cage shifted from side to side. Pola's flesh was torn to pieces.(47)
With the death of Elizabeth's dear Darvulia, when Elizabeth was in her forties, she became more reckless. It was Darvulia that made sure that the victims were only peasants and that no girl of noble birth was taken, but with her passing, and the fact that local peasants were getting wise to the wonders of Castle Cachtice, Elizabeth started picking girls from some of the surrounding lower nobility. Feeling lonely, the Countess turned to the widow of a tenant farmer from the nearby town of Miava. The woman's name was Erzsi Majorova (The last name is, by the way, a corruption of the Hungarian word majoros meaning "tenant farmer," with a Slovak feminine ending "-ova" added to it [47-8]). Apparently, it was Erszi Majorova who "encouraged Elizabeth to go after girls of noble birth as well as peasants"(48).
Elizabeth's atrocities continued:
One accomplice testified that on some days Elizabeth had stark- naked girls laid flat on the floor of her bedroom and tortured them so much that one could scoop up the blood by the pailfull afterwards, and so Elizabeth had her servants bring up cinders in order to cover the pools of blood. A young maid-servant who did not endure the tortures will and died very quickly was written out by the countess in her diary with the laconic comment "She was too small,"... At one point in her life Elizabeth Bathory was so sick that she could not move from her bed and could not find the strength to torture her miscreant servant girls.... She demanded that one of her female servants be brought before her. Dorothea Szentes, a burly, strong peasant woman, dragged one of Elizabeth's girls to her bedside and held her there. Elizabeth rose up on her bed, and, like a bulldog, the Countess opened her mouth and bit the girl first on the cheek. Then she went for the girl's shoulders where she ripped out a piece of flesh with her teeth. After that, Elizabeth proceeded to bite the girl's breasts. (50-1)
On the bright side, Elizabeth went out of her way to see to it that the dead girls were given proper Christian burials by the local Protestant pastor, at least initially. As the body count rose, the pastor refused to perform his duties in this respect, because there were too many girls coming to him from Elizabeth who had died of "unknown and mysterious causes." She then threatened him in order to keep him from spreading the news of her "hobby" and continued to have the bodies buried secretly. Near the end, many bodies were disposed of in haphazard and dangerously conspicuous locations (like nearby fields, wheat silos, the stream running behind the castle, the kitchen vegetable garden, etc.).
Throughout her reign as the "Blood Countess," after her husband's death, she sought to make the Hungarian king Matthias II repay the debts he owed her dear departed Ferenc in order for her to continue her rather pricey pastime. The King didn't pay up and Elizabeth resorted to selling her family castles around Transylvania (she eventually sold a total of two). These actions caught the attention of her "cousin" Count Thurzo. The Count, recognizing the danger of her conspicuously dangerous actions gathered the rest of the Bathory clan and planned to spirit her off to a convent "where she would end her days"(61).
Count Thurzo's plans to save the family name was thwarted when:
In the winter of 1610 Elizabeth evidently still felt that her social position made her virtually untouchable before the law, since she had her servants toss four murdered girls from the ramparts of Castle Cachtice into the path of roaming wolves. This was done in full view of the Cachtice villagers, who reported this latest atrocity to the king's officials. (64)
The king and the high church officials ordered Count Thurzo to act, and that he did, only he wanted to handle things the way that would best suit the Bathory family. He planned his raid to happen over the Christmas holiday, while the Hungarian Parliament was not in session. On December 29, 1610, Count Thurzo's raid on Cachtice Castle took place:
There was no midnight raid on Elizabeth's castle, because there was no need for any. Over the years there had been abundant evidence built up against the countess. When the raiding party arrived at Elizabeth's manorhouse in Cachtice, they found the beaten body of...[a servant girl]... before the door. Elizabeth and her cohorts had not yet bothered to bury the body. Inside the house the nobles found two other female victims. (71) In a letter to his wife, Count Thurzo wrote:
"I took the Nadasdy woman into custody; she was immediately taken to her fortress... She will be well watched and held in strict imprisonment until God and the law decide about her... I await only until the accursed woman has been deposited in the fortress and a suitable room found for her. (74)
Count Thurzo, however, had not waited for God and the law for he had already secretly arranged and decided that she would not be brought to trial, that she would be sentenced to life imprisonment within her castle at Cachtice. The trials on January 2 and 7 of 1611 were largely for show and to make the occasion "official." At the proceedings, the testimonies of her four accomplices, Ficzko, Dorka, Katarina Beneczky, and Helena Jo (Erzsi Majorova was tried much later because she could not be found) were taken and their sentences pronounced. It is somewhat important to mention here that the testimonies of the four placed the body count between thirty and sixty, but a fifth witness heard at the January 7th trial revealed the missing piece of the puzzle:
...the most surprising testimony came from a witness identified only as "the maiden Zusanna," no last name being mentioned. After describing the tortures by Helena Jo, Dorothea, and Ficzko...and after making a plea for mercy in the case of Katarina Beneczky, Zusanna then revealed the single most shocking piece of evidence in this trial... a list or register in the Countess's chest of drawers, which put the number of girls killed at 650 and that was in her Ladyship's own handwriting.(79) The servants were then judged guilty and their punishments meted out as follows:
...first of all, Helena Jo and secondly Dorothea Szentes, the so- called foremost perpetrators of such great crime, were sentenced to having all their fingers on their hands, which they had used as instruments in so much torture and butcherings and which they had dipped in the blood of Christians, torn out by the public executioner with a pair of red-hot pincers; and after that their bodies should be thrown alive on the fire. Because of his youthful age and complicity in fewer crimes, Ficzko was only to be decapitated. After that his body, drained of blood, was to be reunited with his two fellow accomplices and burned... Only Katarina Beneczky escaped the death sentence. Later on January 24, 1611... Erzsi Majorova... was also found guilty and executed. (81-2)
Only Elizabeth was not brought before a court and tried, thanks to a letter campaign led by her powerful family and the machinations of Count Thurzo. Sentence, however was passed on her, by Count Thurzo himself: " 'You, Elizabeth, are like a wild animal,' he told her, 'you are in the last months of your life. You do not deserve to breathe the air on earth, nor to see the light of the Lord. You shall disappear from this world and shall never reappear in it again. The shadows will envelop you and you will find time to repent your bestial life. I condemn you, Lady of (Csejthe) Cachtice, to lifelong imprisonment in your own castle.' "(84).
Workers were called in to wall over the windows and the door of the room in Cachtice Castle where she would spend her remaining days with only a small opening for food to be passed to her, and some ventilation slits. Additionally, "four gibbets were built at the four corners of the castle in order to demonstrate to the peasants that 'justice' had been done"(87).
On July 31, 1614, Elizabeth dictated her last will and testament to two cathedral priests from the Esztergom bishopric. She wished that what remained of her family holdings be divided up equally among her children, her son Paul and his descendants were the basic inheritors though.
And regarding her death:
Late in August of the year 1614 one of the countess's jailers wanted to get a good look at her, since she was still reputedly one of the most beautiful women in Hungary. Peeking through the small aperture in her walled-up cell, he saw her lying face down on the floor. Countess Elizabeth Bathory was dead at the age of fifty-four. (88)
Her body was intended to be buried in the church in the town of Cachtice, but the grumbling of local inhabitants found abhorrent the idea of having the "infamous Lady" placed in their town, on hallowed ground no less! Considering this, and the fact that she was "one of the last of the descendants of the Ecsed line of the Bathory family"(88), her body was placed to the northeastern Hungarian town of Ecsed, the original Bathory family seat.
Much of Countess Bathory's atrocities were left out of this brief for reasons of length and taste, but I hope that the basic flavor of her deviance can be felt and the myth concerning her "blood baths" dispelled. Some still consider her to be more of a werewolf than a vampire because, rather than drinking the blood of her victims, she bit their flesh- a supposed tell-tail in those circles, I suppose. But now, considering the legend with the reality, it is not difficult to see where Bram Stoker found his prototype for Count Dracula, and perhaps someday Elizabeth will receive the credit due her.
One of the songs I love from Venom, Countess Bathory. I love to play this song, wish I had somebody to play it with here in NZ.
Anyway, I was fascinated by her life as well. In my search for her story, I found this article years back and posted it on the Thanatopsis website. It got a lot of hits from Google! Here it is republished here.
The article was written by Mathew Amaral. I was contacted a few times about this article by Mathew saying there were corrections etc since it was released. He's now wrote a book about Bathory, find it at Amazon if you're interested.
The infamous "Blood Countess" of Transylvania, who was purported to be a witch, vampire, werewolf, and supposedly bathed in the blood of virgins in order to maintain her beautiful and youthful appearance, has been the subject of many legends some of which have affected even the American culture half a world away. Dracula, created by the Irish author Bram Stoker, was based, albeit loosely, on the Romanian Prince, Vlad Dracula, the Impaler. Raymond T. McNally, who has written four books on the figure of Dracula in history, literature, and vampirism, in his fifth book, "Dracula was a Woman," presents insights into the fact that Stoker's Count Dracula was also strongly influenced by the legends of Elizabeth Bathory of Hungary. Why, for example, make a Romanian Prince into a Hungarian Count? Why, if there are no accounts of Vlad Dracula drinking human blood, does blood drinking consume the Dracula of Stoker's novel, who, contrary to established vampire myth, seems to appear younger after doing so? The answers, of course, lie in examining the story of Countess Elizabeth Bathory.
Though a majority of Elizabeth's exploits are reputed to have taken place in a castle which is today called Cachtice ("Chakh-teetsay"), that stands in an area of Transylvania (meaning "the land beyond the forest" in Latin) which, in 1983, rested within Czechoslovakian borders, the story of her life begins on what was once the border between Romania and Hungary (in 1983) at Ecsed Castle, the Bathory family seat in Transylvania. Born in 1560 to George Bathory (Ecsed branch) and Anna Bathory (Somlyo branch), Elizabeth was yet another product of the intermarriage between the dwindling Hungarian noble families. The Bathory family was "one of the richest and most powerful Protestant families in all Hungary. Her family was to provide two of the most important ruling princes of Transylvania, a number of war heroes and church officials of Hungary, and even a great empire-builder, Stephan Bathory, prince of Transylvania and king of Poland"(18). The common practice of inbreeding did nothing positive, however, for this illustrious family; Elizabeth's other interesting relatives included: An uncle supposedly "addicted to rituals and worship in honor of Satan, her aunt Klara was a well-known bi-sexual and lesbian who enjoyed torturing servants, and Elizabeth's brother, Stephan, who was a drunkard and a lecher"(19). Additionally, as an interesting side note, McNally mentions, "there is some genealogical evidence that the Bathory clan was related by marriage to that of the infamous ruler Vlad Dracula, the Impaler"(19). To receive some insight into the soul of Elizabeth, the presentation of an incident during her childhood could prove enlightening.
Though it is not stated exactly when, occurring sometime after she turned six and before eleven, a band of gypsies were invited to her home at Ecsed Castle to provide entertainment at the court . During their stay, one of their number was accused of selling his children to the Turks. He was found guilty and his judges sentenced him to death. "Elizabeth recalled his long cries in the night, bemoaning his upcoming demise, which evidently made a lasting impression on her. At dawn, Elizabeth escaped from the surveillance of her governess and ran outside the castle to witness the punishment. There she saw a horse held fast to the ground as some soldiers slit open its belly. Three of the soldiers then grabbed the guilty gypsy and shoved him inside the horse's belly until only his head stuck out of the dying animal. Another soldier armed with a huge, long needle and coarse ropelike thread sewed up the culprit in the belly of the horse"(21). This, along with other incidents during her childhood, would ultimately shape her views of what was proper behavior and her basic concepts of morality.
Unlike most females of the time, Elizabeth was well educated and her intelligence surpassed even some of the men of her time. Elizabeth was exceptional, becoming "fluent in Hungarian, Latin, and German... when most Hungarian nobles could not even spell or write...Even the ruling prince of Transylvania at the time was barely literate"(20). Some modern scholars and contemporaries of hers postulated that she may have been insane, thus accounting for her seemingly inconceivable atrocities, but even a brief glance into her past reveals a person fully in control of her faculties.
In 1555, Elizabeth's future husband, Ferenc Nadasdy (pronounced "Ferents"), was born to a family which, by noble right, was as prestigious as the Bathorys but not as wealthy and not as old. Ferenc's education has meticulously documented by his mother, Ursula, who was then a widow, concerning the period he was attending school in Vienna between 1567 and 1569. These documents attest that "Ferenc was not a good student. He barely learned how to write some Hungarian and to speak and read a little German and Latin.... Ferenc... developed into an athlete, but little else.... Although he acquired little academic education, he was evidently popular among his peers"(28). At the age of sixteen, Ferenc was engaged to Elizabeth, then eleven, in 1571 thanks to the careful manipulations of his mother.
Ferenc married Elizabeth on May 8, 1575 in "a lavish, gala event"(30) to which even the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II was invited (though he was unable to attend personally, due to the hazards of traveling during a time of political unrest, he instead "sent a delegation to represent him and an expensive wedding present"[30]). The marriage, which joined two prominent Protestant families, was held at Varanno Castle where the "bearded young Count Ferenc Nadasdy henceforth added her last name to his. But Elizabeth, fully emancipated...[by that time,]... chose to remain a Bathory, rather than take his name, since she considered that her name was much older and more illustrious than his"(30).
Ferenc chose war as his career and so was not often around, leaving Elizabeth at Castle Sarvar (prn "Shar-var") managing the family seat, "especially the task of disciplining the servants. The countess carried her 'disciplining' to a point that would be considered sadism today"(32). Beating the girl servants with a heavy club was the least of her "punishments," according to accounts. Often she would stick "pins into the upper and lower lips of the girls...into the girls ' flesh and... under their fingernails"(32). One particularly harsh "punishment" would be to drag girls out into the snow where she or her women servants poured cold water on them until they froze to death.
The first ten years of their marriage, Elizabeth bore no children because she and Ferenc shared so little time together as he pursued his "career." Then around 1585, Elizabeth bore a girl whom she named Anna, and over the following nine years gave birth to two more girls, Ursula and Katherina, and in 1598 bore her first and only son, Paul. Judging from letters she wrote to relatives, she was a good wife and protective mother, which was not surprising since nobles usually treated immediate family very differently from the lower servants and peasant classes.
Among the things Elizabeth did to amuse herself while Ferenc was away at war was to "visit her aunt Klara, an open bisexual. Wealthy and powerful, Klara always had plenty of available girls around. Elizabeth presumably enjoyed herself with her aunt Klara, since she visited her aunt's estate frequently"(33). Ferenc meanwhile had created quite a name for himself. By 1598, Ferenc was a "well-known war hero: he was one of five... sharp-sabred heroes known as 'the unholy quintet' who inspired fear in the Turks. The Turks even dubbed him with a popular nickname to indicate their fear of him, the 'Black Knight of Hungary'"(36). Also during this time, the crown began falling behind in paying their illustrious heroes and ended up owing an immense monetary debt to the Nadasdy family of which Elizabeth was now a part. Near the close of 1603, "Ferenc suddenly became very ill, and died on the morning of January 4, 1604, as a heavy snow fell on his castle at Sarvar"(38).
It is unknown whether or not Ferenc was aware of the activities of his homicidal wife while he was away, but "it is known that, when he was home, he too enjoyed torturing servants. When Ferenc was on homeleave during rare respites from warring against the Turks... Elizabeth and he had spent some time together engaging in activities that would be characterized as sadistic today.... Ferenc tortured servants, although he did not torture them to death, as his wife did "(38-9).
Only four weeks after the death of her husband in 1604, Elizabeth decided that she had mourned long enough and soon began making appearances at the court. Though many chroniclers of the Countess' story point out that the death of Ferenc was the trigger for her reputed blood baths "for cosmetic purposes"(40), the evidence first, clearly shows that her sadistic behavior (as noted previously) began well before the death of her husband, and second, indicates that there were no blood baths (not from any of the eye-witness accounts)! One old legend states that while out riding with a young gentleman, she apparently was verbally abusive to a very old woman whom she found utterly repulsive in appearance. The old woman countered with the remark " 'Take care, O vain one, soon you will look as I do and then what will you do?' "(40). This was another reason given for Elizabeth's obsession with age and aging, though there is no evidence anywhere of documents to this event. It is worthy to mention here, though it also lacks evidence as the above story does, another legend concerning the genesis of Elizabeth's blood baths:
This practice started when a maid accidentally pulled the countess's hair while combing it; Countess Elizabeth Bathory instinctively slapped the girl on the ear, but so hard that she drew blood. The servant girl's blood spurted onto Elizabeth's hands. At first the countess was enraged at this and reached for a towel to wipe off the blood. But suddenly the countess noticed that as the blood dried, her own skin seemed to take on the whiteness and youthful quality of the young girl's skin.(x)
Nonetheless, though she may not have actually bathed in the blood of her servants, several accounts of her tortures described her as being so soaked with the blood of her victims that she had to change her clothes before continuing onward. She could have continued in this fashion, torturing servant girls to death at her whim, indefinitely because even the clergy at the time felt that the nobles could treat their servants however cruelly and the servants would have absolutely nothing to say about it (legally).
In the Countess's service, as helpers in the macabre, was her manservant referred to only as Ficzko (which means "lad " in Hungarian), Helena Jo the wet nurse, Dorothea Szentes (also called "Dorka"), and Katarina Beneczky a washerwoman who came into the Countess's employ late in her bloody career. Also, between the years of 1604 and 1610 a mysterious woman named Anna Darvulia, who was probably a lover of Elizabeth's, who taught her many new torturing techniques and was "one of the most active sadists in Elizabeth's entourage"(45). After a severe stroke that left her blind, Darvulia left her work to Elizabeth, Helena Jo, and Dorka, content that she had taught them well.
Escape from the Castle Cachtice was not unheard of, though few if any actually succeeded in their attempts. One such escapee was punished as follows:
...a twelve year old girl named Pola somehow managed to escape from the castle. But Dorka, aided by Helena Jo, caught the frightened girl by surprise and brought her forcibly back to Cachtice Castle. Clad only in a long white robe, Countess Elizabeth greeted the girl upon her return. The countess was in another of her rages. She advanced on the twelve-year-old child and forced her into a kind of cage. This particular cage was built like a huge ball, too narrow to sit in, too low to stand in. Once the girl was inside, the cage was suddenly hauled up by a pulley and dozens of short spikes jutted into the cage. Pola tried to avoid being caught on the spikes, but Ficzko maneuvered the ropes so that the cage shifted from side to side. Pola's flesh was torn to pieces.(47)
With the death of Elizabeth's dear Darvulia, when Elizabeth was in her forties, she became more reckless. It was Darvulia that made sure that the victims were only peasants and that no girl of noble birth was taken, but with her passing, and the fact that local peasants were getting wise to the wonders of Castle Cachtice, Elizabeth started picking girls from some of the surrounding lower nobility. Feeling lonely, the Countess turned to the widow of a tenant farmer from the nearby town of Miava. The woman's name was Erzsi Majorova (The last name is, by the way, a corruption of the Hungarian word majoros meaning "tenant farmer," with a Slovak feminine ending "-ova" added to it [47-8]). Apparently, it was Erszi Majorova who "encouraged Elizabeth to go after girls of noble birth as well as peasants"(48).
Elizabeth's atrocities continued:
One accomplice testified that on some days Elizabeth had stark- naked girls laid flat on the floor of her bedroom and tortured them so much that one could scoop up the blood by the pailfull afterwards, and so Elizabeth had her servants bring up cinders in order to cover the pools of blood. A young maid-servant who did not endure the tortures will and died very quickly was written out by the countess in her diary with the laconic comment "She was too small,"... At one point in her life Elizabeth Bathory was so sick that she could not move from her bed and could not find the strength to torture her miscreant servant girls.... She demanded that one of her female servants be brought before her. Dorothea Szentes, a burly, strong peasant woman, dragged one of Elizabeth's girls to her bedside and held her there. Elizabeth rose up on her bed, and, like a bulldog, the Countess opened her mouth and bit the girl first on the cheek. Then she went for the girl's shoulders where she ripped out a piece of flesh with her teeth. After that, Elizabeth proceeded to bite the girl's breasts. (50-1)
On the bright side, Elizabeth went out of her way to see to it that the dead girls were given proper Christian burials by the local Protestant pastor, at least initially. As the body count rose, the pastor refused to perform his duties in this respect, because there were too many girls coming to him from Elizabeth who had died of "unknown and mysterious causes." She then threatened him in order to keep him from spreading the news of her "hobby" and continued to have the bodies buried secretly. Near the end, many bodies were disposed of in haphazard and dangerously conspicuous locations (like nearby fields, wheat silos, the stream running behind the castle, the kitchen vegetable garden, etc.).
Throughout her reign as the "Blood Countess," after her husband's death, she sought to make the Hungarian king Matthias II repay the debts he owed her dear departed Ferenc in order for her to continue her rather pricey pastime. The King didn't pay up and Elizabeth resorted to selling her family castles around Transylvania (she eventually sold a total of two). These actions caught the attention of her "cousin" Count Thurzo. The Count, recognizing the danger of her conspicuously dangerous actions gathered the rest of the Bathory clan and planned to spirit her off to a convent "where she would end her days"(61).
Count Thurzo's plans to save the family name was thwarted when:
In the winter of 1610 Elizabeth evidently still felt that her social position made her virtually untouchable before the law, since she had her servants toss four murdered girls from the ramparts of Castle Cachtice into the path of roaming wolves. This was done in full view of the Cachtice villagers, who reported this latest atrocity to the king's officials. (64)
The king and the high church officials ordered Count Thurzo to act, and that he did, only he wanted to handle things the way that would best suit the Bathory family. He planned his raid to happen over the Christmas holiday, while the Hungarian Parliament was not in session. On December 29, 1610, Count Thurzo's raid on Cachtice Castle took place:
There was no midnight raid on Elizabeth's castle, because there was no need for any. Over the years there had been abundant evidence built up against the countess. When the raiding party arrived at Elizabeth's manorhouse in Cachtice, they found the beaten body of...[a servant girl]... before the door. Elizabeth and her cohorts had not yet bothered to bury the body. Inside the house the nobles found two other female victims. (71) In a letter to his wife, Count Thurzo wrote:
"I took the Nadasdy woman into custody; she was immediately taken to her fortress... She will be well watched and held in strict imprisonment until God and the law decide about her... I await only until the accursed woman has been deposited in the fortress and a suitable room found for her. (74)
Count Thurzo, however, had not waited for God and the law for he had already secretly arranged and decided that she would not be brought to trial, that she would be sentenced to life imprisonment within her castle at Cachtice. The trials on January 2 and 7 of 1611 were largely for show and to make the occasion "official." At the proceedings, the testimonies of her four accomplices, Ficzko, Dorka, Katarina Beneczky, and Helena Jo (Erzsi Majorova was tried much later because she could not be found) were taken and their sentences pronounced. It is somewhat important to mention here that the testimonies of the four placed the body count between thirty and sixty, but a fifth witness heard at the January 7th trial revealed the missing piece of the puzzle:
...the most surprising testimony came from a witness identified only as "the maiden Zusanna," no last name being mentioned. After describing the tortures by Helena Jo, Dorothea, and Ficzko...and after making a plea for mercy in the case of Katarina Beneczky, Zusanna then revealed the single most shocking piece of evidence in this trial... a list or register in the Countess's chest of drawers, which put the number of girls killed at 650 and that was in her Ladyship's own handwriting.(79) The servants were then judged guilty and their punishments meted out as follows:
...first of all, Helena Jo and secondly Dorothea Szentes, the so- called foremost perpetrators of such great crime, were sentenced to having all their fingers on their hands, which they had used as instruments in so much torture and butcherings and which they had dipped in the blood of Christians, torn out by the public executioner with a pair of red-hot pincers; and after that their bodies should be thrown alive on the fire. Because of his youthful age and complicity in fewer crimes, Ficzko was only to be decapitated. After that his body, drained of blood, was to be reunited with his two fellow accomplices and burned... Only Katarina Beneczky escaped the death sentence. Later on January 24, 1611... Erzsi Majorova... was also found guilty and executed. (81-2)
Only Elizabeth was not brought before a court and tried, thanks to a letter campaign led by her powerful family and the machinations of Count Thurzo. Sentence, however was passed on her, by Count Thurzo himself: " 'You, Elizabeth, are like a wild animal,' he told her, 'you are in the last months of your life. You do not deserve to breathe the air on earth, nor to see the light of the Lord. You shall disappear from this world and shall never reappear in it again. The shadows will envelop you and you will find time to repent your bestial life. I condemn you, Lady of (Csejthe) Cachtice, to lifelong imprisonment in your own castle.' "(84).
Workers were called in to wall over the windows and the door of the room in Cachtice Castle where she would spend her remaining days with only a small opening for food to be passed to her, and some ventilation slits. Additionally, "four gibbets were built at the four corners of the castle in order to demonstrate to the peasants that 'justice' had been done"(87).
On July 31, 1614, Elizabeth dictated her last will and testament to two cathedral priests from the Esztergom bishopric. She wished that what remained of her family holdings be divided up equally among her children, her son Paul and his descendants were the basic inheritors though.
And regarding her death:
Late in August of the year 1614 one of the countess's jailers wanted to get a good look at her, since she was still reputedly one of the most beautiful women in Hungary. Peeking through the small aperture in her walled-up cell, he saw her lying face down on the floor. Countess Elizabeth Bathory was dead at the age of fifty-four. (88)
Her body was intended to be buried in the church in the town of Cachtice, but the grumbling of local inhabitants found abhorrent the idea of having the "infamous Lady" placed in their town, on hallowed ground no less! Considering this, and the fact that she was "one of the last of the descendants of the Ecsed line of the Bathory family"(88), her body was placed to the northeastern Hungarian town of Ecsed, the original Bathory family seat.
Much of Countess Bathory's atrocities were left out of this brief for reasons of length and taste, but I hope that the basic flavor of her deviance can be felt and the myth concerning her "blood baths" dispelled. Some still consider her to be more of a werewolf than a vampire because, rather than drinking the blood of her victims, she bit their flesh- a supposed tell-tail in those circles, I suppose. But now, considering the legend with the reality, it is not difficult to see where Bram Stoker found his prototype for Count Dracula, and perhaps someday Elizabeth will receive the credit due her.
One of the songs I love from Venom, Countess Bathory. I love to play this song, wish I had somebody to play it with here in NZ.
Kisah menarik hari ini
Kisah bermula pada petang ni. Aku mula2 nak iron baju nak pegi keja esok. Dok pilih baju, tgk2 ada 1 baju puith aku collar mcm pudar sket disebabkan basuh dgn baju gelap. Bengkek aku! So merungut kat isteri. Isteri pun cakap la, basuh la baju tu saja dgn tudung putihnya, hopefully akan hilang pudar tu.
Aku pun turun la basuh baju. Letak baju tu dgn tudung isteri. Letak 'cotton stains', temp letak 60, 1200 rpm spin. Sementara tu, isteriku dok bagi anak2 mandi dlm bathtub kat atas.
Lepas tu, aku mula nak naik tangga ke atas. Tengah kaki melangkah, aku dengar "mummy adik beyak!". Punya la tergelak besaq aku sambil dok naik tangga!
Sahih, aku naik atas, isteri tengah dok berus gigi. Aiman dah keluaq dari bathtub, Aliya still dlm bathtub, muka pelik... Ada la 2 ketui taik dlm bathtub. Panjang plak tu, dlm 4-5cm each! hahahaha...
Nasib taik kira keras sket, so x la air bathtub colour taik. Basuh la aku pungkoq Aliya & buka plug bathtub.
Aliya oh Aliya, dah tiga kali Aliya berak dlm bathtub. Sekali kena kat aku, 2nd kat bini aku, ketiga kali ni.
Lawak la karenah anak2. Terlalu byk utk di cerita. Tapi hari ini aku tergerak nak tulis pasai ini.
Apa cerita kelakar anak korang? Sure byk bukan? Sesapa yg x kawin & x dak anak ni, jaga anak mmg susah & payah, tapi benda2 macam ni yg kelakar & worth having kids.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Ustaz oh ustaz
Tadi dekat facebook ada kawan aku post gambar time kami kat sekolah menengah dulu - circa 1996. Sekolah Menengah Sains Tuanku Syed Putra (SMSTSP) Kangar, Perlis. Gambar tu kami dekat dewan makan, rasanya hari Jumaat kot, sebab pakai baju Melayu semua. Sungguh kurus aku time tu, tak sangka... kekeke ada la x-schoolmates aku comment kat gambar tu, cakap ada berita dalam BH pasal bekas Ustaz aku, Ustaz Rashid.
Dia ni punya la kira alim dulu. Aku ingat lagi, setiap hari, semua student laki kena turun solat jamaah. So dia akan datang dengan memakai serban & jubah, bersama sama dengan memegang rotan untuk tibai kami semua yg lambat turun solat.
Selain dia ajar PI (pendidikan Islam) dia ajar BA (bahasa Arab) jugak. Memang kami tau dia ni aktif dlm PAS. Dia pun cuba la dok 'didik' kami pasal politik sket2. Time kami form 2, or form 1 aku pun dah x igt dah la, maklum la lebih 10 tahun dah, dia ajar boys class aku senaman harimau. Takkan x tau kot apa itu senaman harimau. Kami pun naik syok la, apa lagi. Kami pun penah pergi solat & makan malam kat rumahnya kat Santan.
Time aku form 3 kot, dia kena tukar ke sekolah kat Padang Besar, again x igt sebab dia orang PAS. Time tu jugak ada sorang lagi cikgu yg pro BN - cikgu Mat Hasan, yg kini MP untuk Kuala Perlis.
Last aku dengar cerita pasai Ustaz Rashid ni last year time election dulu. Dia bertanding untuk DUN Santan & kalah. Sampai la hari ni kawan aku bagi comment kat gambar kami kat facebook.
Aku mmg tiap2 hari akan baca paper - especially UM, BH, The Star, NZ Herald. Tapi hari ni sibuk x sempat nak baca kat hospital.
So aku pun baca & sambil tu obviously cari news pasal Ustaz Rashid.
Jumpa la news dia:
Apa dah jadi ni? Kawin 10 tahun, nafkah hanya RM300. Nafkah batin, jangan cakap la, ni sure hasil senaman harimau ni.
"Dari segi batin dia tidak pernah lupa. Kalau boleh setiap hari dia mahu sehingga kadangkala dia tetap memintanya walaupun saya dalam pantang," katanya.
Apa dah jadi kepada Ustaz Rashid?
"Dari luar dia memang kelihatan baik dan warak, tetapi sebenarnya dia lelaki yang kejam dan panas baran," katanya.
Aku pun malas nak kata apa la, tapi orang-orang yang macam ni dok bagi Islam a bad name dan terkena la kat PAS sekali sebab dia dulu calon PAS & Ketua Ulama PAS Perlis. Meluat aku tengok dalam news banyak betul 'kesilapan & kekejaman' org Islam. Riot kat Iran, suicide bombers merata.
Malu aku jadi student dia masa ni. Kredibiliti dia sbg org alim & warak dah hilang bagi aku. Adala junior aku buat status update kat fb, kata ni political conspiracy ka? Aku rasa tidak, ni real life. Takkan bini dia saja nak buat camtu kot. Bini dia ustazah, pakai tudung labuh semua. But then again, Malaysia had Saiful Azlan (betui ka? ingat2 lupa nama) & Anwar debacle. Kalau betui both things are politically motivated, how low can you go & what price?
I'll still remember my school days with fondness, but I'll try and forget this news story I read today about my dear old Ustaz...
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Norwegian Embassy in US watches Enslaved on tour
Wow, talk about commitment to the arts. Read this in the CM (Century Media) newsletter. Looks like the Norwegian Embassy in Washington DC saw Enslaved & Opeth while they were playing there. Don't know if any of them were fans but just shows how open the Norwegians are. They did mention that Enslaved & Opeth are a 'death metal' band, which are NOT TRUE (now anyway). Enslaved are now a 'progressive metal' band while Opeth I'd say are the same, previously 'viking metal' & 'death/doom metal' were the respective musical styles.
If only Malaysia's Government was as supportive as this and not just saying Black metal is a cult and is Haram...
By: Kiki Ryan and Jeff Dufour
You can’t say the Norwegian Embassy doesn’t take seriously its commitment to supporting the country’s art. Even when that art happens to be death metal.
On Wednesday night, the Norwegian death metal band Enslaved played the 9:30 Club, its first show in D.C. (Sample lyrics, for the uninitiated: “As we emerged/From darker dungeons/Splendor of yellow hells/Expanded swollen eyes.”) And, to the crowd’s surprise and delight, there were a group of embassy staffers in the VIP section, getting a shout-out from front man Grutle Kjellson.
Anne Myklebust, a cultural adviser at the embassy, said she and four of her colleagues went to see the show. But that wasn’t by any means the beginning of their support. She said the embassy helped the band out with funding for its U.S. tour. So “they asked if they could see the embassy,” and Wednesday afternoon, the band met with Ambassador Wegger Strommen for an hour.
Did they wear suits?
“No,” Myklebust laughed. “They wore their road wear of T-shirts and shorts. But the ambassador wore a suit.”
The second half of the night’s bill: Swedish metal band Opeth. So were any staffers from the Swedish Embassy on hand? “We know them pretty well, but we didn’t see any of them,” Myklebust said.
The Swedish Embassy was closed Thursday afternoon, so we couldn’t confirm that no one attended. But maybe the Norwegian Embassy just rocks harder.
CM news letter via washingtonexaminer
If only Malaysia's Government was as supportive as this and not just saying Black metal is a cult and is Haram...
Norwegian Embassy makes it metal
By: Kiki Ryan and Jeff Dufour
Washington Examiner
05/29/09 12:05 AM EDT
You can’t say the Norwegian Embassy doesn’t take seriously its commitment to supporting the country’s art. Even when that art happens to be death metal.On Wednesday night, the Norwegian death metal band Enslaved played the 9:30 Club, its first show in D.C. (Sample lyrics, for the uninitiated: “As we emerged/From darker dungeons/Splendor of yellow hells/Expanded swollen eyes.”) And, to the crowd’s surprise and delight, there were a group of embassy staffers in the VIP section, getting a shout-out from front man Grutle Kjellson.
Anne Myklebust, a cultural adviser at the embassy, said she and four of her colleagues went to see the show. But that wasn’t by any means the beginning of their support. She said the embassy helped the band out with funding for its U.S. tour. So “they asked if they could see the embassy,” and Wednesday afternoon, the band met with Ambassador Wegger Strommen for an hour.
Did they wear suits?
“No,” Myklebust laughed. “They wore their road wear of T-shirts and shorts. But the ambassador wore a suit.”
The second half of the night’s bill: Swedish metal band Opeth. So were any staffers from the Swedish Embassy on hand? “We know them pretty well, but we didn’t see any of them,” Myklebust said.
The Swedish Embassy was closed Thursday afternoon, so we couldn’t confirm that no one attended. But maybe the Norwegian Embassy just rocks harder.
CM news letter via washingtonexaminer
KATAKLYSM - GUITARIST DETAINED BY FEDERAL AGENTS!
Canada's KATAKLYSM recently returned home after two separate very successful shows in St-Petersburg and Moscow, Russia. Unfortunately, upon arriving in America guitarist Jean-Francois Dagenais was pulled from line at customs and detained by federal agents.
Commented vocalist Maurizio Iacono: "Well, this was one odd week especially yesterday. First, we finally flew out to Russia for the first time and we didn't know what to expect. There's always been this grim picture painted of that country to us. Having said that, we thought we'd arrive under dark skies, with rain and depressed looking people everywhere. Instead, we arrived to sunshine and enthusiastic people that looked happy and energetic and we were through customs in matter of minutes. So I said to myself, 'This will be interesting.' We were soon greeted there with open arms by the promoters and we were off. We played St-Petersburg first then Moscow. The shows were fantastic and everything was top notch. Fans knew all the lyrics and went ballistic! We even had Russian special forces soldiers stage diving! It was just a crazy, all-around good time and the shows were packed! I could have stayed there another week but we said our goodbyes and headed back home.
"We arrived in Washington D.C. with a layover to Chicago where I live now (the rest of the band still live in Montreal). So we grabbed our bags and went through immigration with no problems, as expected. As we're waiting in line for the customs exit, some uniformed guy grabs J-F and takes him away with his bags. We assumed it was just a random check.
"So we make our way to our next gate for our plane and realize it's been over an hour and there's still no sign of J-F. This was 4 p.m. I go back to the customs area and the place is deserted. At this point, we started worrying and asking questions but we received no answers. We decide to board our plane at 4:30 p.m. with still no sign of him. Someone from United Airlines tells me finally he won't be joining our flight but still no reason is given. At this point I'm like, 'What the fuck is happening?'
"So we jet out of D.C. and get back to Chicago where the guys were staying over at my house until today to go back to Canada. After fruitless calls to the airport we just decided to wait for some sort of sign of life. That sign came at 11 p.m. in Chicago at O'Hare airport.
"Apparently, Washington customs official grabbed J-F and threw him in a room with only one chair and a table. He was there for five hours until they finally talked to him and they told him that he was wanted internationally and by the U.S. government. I could have imagined his face when they told him this, it must have been priceless. People that know J-F know he couldn't hurt an ant. He's one of the most down-to-earth and sweetest people you could meet. After a few hours of denying everything, Interpol sent in a picture and that picture didn't match his. What happened was that there was another Jean-Francois Dagenais that is listed in the FBI's most wanted list and they thought they'd caught him. I mean, what the fuck!? He was given a tap on the shoulder and apology and rebooked to Chicago! Even though we were really worried, all of us laughed it off at the end. It's just ironic that we expected this to maybe happen in Russia, but in the end it ended up happening right here at home!"
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