When The Stockmarket Is Crashing, Do You Believe In Your Calling?

So I thought it was going to be a quiet Tuesday afternoon, get a little lunch, and then perhaps sit at a cafe and finish writing, the life of a writer in progress. 

Then, a reminder came on the phone. Free briyani at the neighbourhood Cosway store. Hajjah is great at attracting her customers who become her friends, especially after tasting her warmth and her excellent cooking. Since I missed her Hari Raya open house, which I was sure, and it was confirmed that it was rows of more, more, more delicious treats, this is like perfect timing when I'm just about to walk out the door to find some lunch!

Well, I had two rounds of colourful briyani rice, with acar rampai (strips of cucumber, carrot, chilli pickled in vinegar and mixed with peanuts and sesame seed), and dalca tulang (dhal curry with vegetables cooked in bony meat) 

... and then Hajjah told me a close friend of hers, a designer, would be dropping by. She thought that it would be interesting to tell me as I am in the entertainment industry. 

Hideaki did indeed appear soon, bringing the whole house down with his infectious personality! I hadn't seen him since 1999 (oops...) and what a way to be re-introduced -- in a Cosway shop!

It was fun to be catching up with each other, and finding out how great his life has turned out. And that we had another close mutual friend in common who owns a recording studio, and that both of us had something to do with the music business as well. 

Crazy co-incidences of a day -- bumping into olden-days associate Hideaki,
and both of us wearing something in the same shade of blue!

Hideaki Lim is already his own brand. He was introduced to me in 1998, a one-of-a-kind designer who designs cyber-themed or futuristic looks! 

With his touch, we had fun conjuring up a cyber look for the beauties in the first ever beauty pageant I produced for Astro, the Miss Malaysia Chinese International Pageant in 1998. Then, we choreographed them for a cool music video with the awesome "futuristic" Twin Towers as its inspiring background. The video was played back for the judges to score each contestant's onscreen performance, and on the "live" telecast of the Pageant final.

Hideaki designed these "futuristic" outfits, and we had a blast shooting a music video
for the contestants in 1998 Miss Malaysia Chinese International Pageant. 

He shared with me even though many questioned why does he bother to design cyber-themed designs -- could it be a non-realistic fad for a young man "ahead of his time" then, as one newspaper interview of him headlined.

Years down the road, Hideaki is still doing great with his branding, which has open many doors for him. And he said, "I am so glad I didn't stop designing cyber-themed clothes." And because of the exposure he received, also from the pageant, he received calls from many parties including those from outside the country to design cyber-themed clothes for their events. 

At these turbulent times when Malaysia ringgit is at its lowest, and as stockmarkets around the world are registering declines, I sometimes wonder about being relevant and how lucrative could our business be in our chosen professions -- why do designers keep designing luxurious outfits, especially cyber-themed fashion, why do songwriters keep writing music, why do painters keep painting, and why do people like me keep writing blogs.

All I can believe now, is to be true to yourselves. That is our individual calling and uniqueness. And that's why we are here at a time when the world calls for our passion and God-given talent -- to make it a better place.