Author: ultroni1

  • An intergenerational choir that builds community through song

    At 61, Chin Siew Mui knows what it means to carry a heavy load. The former banker, one of twelve siblings, has long been a dedicated caregiver to her mother and recently endured the loss of her father.

    Yet, when she talks about her life and her newfound passion, her quiet, smiling resilience is immediately apparent in her voice and calm demeanour.

    “I realised at some point in my life, I had gone through depression, and that singing helps me to heal,” Chin shares.

    “I sing when I’m sad, and I sing when I’m happy. Even now that I have to care for my mother, I have my ‘me time’ when I am singing. It makes me feel better, lighter, and happier.”

    Chin doesn’t only sing behind closed doors; she sings on stage with the Kita Canta Wellbeing Community Choir (KCW).

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  • Beyond Dracula: Why bats deserve our affection, not our fear

    Few creatures are as closely linked to being spooky as bats.

    With their large ears, sharp teeth and eerie midnight flights, they have long fuelled fears of bloodsucking vampires and carriers of disease.

    In films, they frequently symbolise disaster and evil – from the 2023 horror The Last Voyage of the Demeter, where a bat-winged Dracula terrorises a ship at sea, to the recently-remade vampire classic Nosferatu, whose vampire teeth evoke a bat’s fangs.

    But are these creatures really as terrifying as they appear on screen?

    “Bats are nocturnal, so we usually only glimpse them briefly, and their lives seem mysterious,” says Marcus Stiglegger, a film studies lecturer in Mainz. In cinema, their leathery wings and pointed teeth create an eerie visual shorthand.

    “The less we know about the real animals, the more effective the symbol becomes,” he says.

    Bats have long been associated with vampires. The most famous is Dracula, from Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel, though legends linking the undead to bats date back to the early 18th century.

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  • Grace Wales Bonner takes top menswear role at Hermes as young talent rises

    Birkin bag maker Hermes has named Grace Wales Bonner as its menswear creative director, replacing veteran Veronique Nichanian, who spent nearly four decades at the brand.

    Wales Bonner, 35, who will show her first collection for the brand in January 2027, is part of a new generation taking the creative reins of some of the biggest names in fashion, including Chanel, LVMH-owned Dior and Kering’s Gucci.

    The industry has been shaking up design teams in an effort to pull out of a two-year slump, prompting a round of musical chairs, with the latest season of fashion shows featuring a record number of design debuts.

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  • French digital artist explores nature’s resilience amid human progress

    He resists being boxed in as merely a photographer or fine artist, though he moves fluidly between both worlds.

    Francois Bancon’s art – shaped through the lens of a camera and the precision of a computer, rather than on paper, canvas, or any traditional medium – is not a bid for modernity, nor a play for relevance in this age of algorithms, doom-scrolling, and AI.

    Now based in Malaysia, the Frenchman is far more interested in engaging your mind. He wants you to think – really think – about what you’re seeing, just as he does when creating it and questioning what that process means.

    The essence of Bancon’s work lies in nature – not in vast landscapes, but in the delicate details of flora and the subtle life forces we often overlook.

    It reflects Bancon’s ongoing contemplation of nature’s place in a rapidly changing world – how it endures, adapts, and sometimes retreats under the weight of human progress.

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  • Prince William to ban Andrew entirely as king: report

    Prince William will not allow his uncle Andrew anywhere near his coronation or even royal life once he is king, according to a recent report.

    William was consulted and favoured his father’s decision to force Andrew to renounce use of his Duke of York and other royal titles amid damning disclosures about his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, The Sunday Times reported.

    At the same time, the Prince of Wales thinks his dad, Charles III, is cutting his brother too much slack and remains unsatisfied, the newspaper said.

    Andrew said he was stepping back because the “continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family,” compelling him to “put my duty to my family and country first.”

    William, however, is said to be more concerned with the welfare of sexual abuse victims, The Sunday Times reported.

    He is conscious of the potential message that seeing Andrew at events alongside his royal relatives could telegraph to survivors, the newspaper said.

    The 65-year-old Andrew’s banishment under William’s reign will encompass every single facet of royal life, including public and private royal events and most state occasions, The Sunday Times reported.

    King Charles has simply asked his brother to remain “invisible” at such functions and told Andrew and ex-wife Sarah “Fergie” Ferguson not to come to Sandringham for family Christmas. Ferguson also can no longer use the Duchess of York title.

    The tipping point for King Charles may have been the revelation that Andrew lied about cutting off his friendship with disgraced globetrotting financier Epstein, who allegedly trafficked teens and young women to prominent men around the world, including Andrew.

    Both Andrew and Ferguson continued contact with Epstein even after publicly disavowing him as he became mired in victim allegations starting around 2010, newly leaked emails have revealed. Epstein died in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

    One of Epstein’s most prominent accusers was Virginia Giuffre, who was 16-year-old Virginia Roberts when Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell lured her from Mar-a-Lago with a job offer that quickly turned into exploitation.

    Giuffre, who committed suicide in April at age 41, had consistently maintained she was forced into sex with Andrew three times, two of them when she was 17. She sued him, and Andrew settled in 2022 for an undisclosed sum.

    In 2019 Andrew told BBC journalist Emily Maitlis in a Newsnight interview that he had cut off all contact with Epstein in 2010.

    But last week email correspondence emerged between the two in 2011, right around the time a now-famous photo of him with Giuffre was published. London authorities are now looking into whether Andrew asked his taxpayer-funded bodyguard to dig up dirt on Giuffre.

    Fergie in 2011 publicly disavowed her Epstein association and said taking money from him was a “terrible, terrible error of judgment,” only to turn around and praise him as a “steadfast, generous and supreme friend” in an apology email, The Sunday Times reported.

    Andrew has denied knowing Giuffre or committing any of the acts attributed to him.

    As snippets and excerpts trickle out from Giuffre’s posthumous memoir, Nobody’s Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice on the eve of the book’s Tuesday (Oct 21) publication, pressure is building for Andrew to be officially stripped of his royal titles, which would require an act of parliament.

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  • Fun activities for rainy days in Malaysia

    As the nursery rhyme goes: “Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day.” That will soon be the general opinion among Malaysians in affected areas when the northeast monsoon hits.

    The season typically brings heavy rainfall to Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, Johor, Sabah and Sarawak, from November to March.

    But don’t let the rain, well … rain on your parade. As long as you don’t do recreational activities outdoors, like island hopping or picnics at waterfalls, you can still have fun on rainy days.

    That said, not all outdoor water activities are strictly prohibited either. Some activities are actually best done during the monsoon season (as unbelievable as this sounds).

    Relax at resorts

    Beach resorts tend to have lower occupancy during rainy seasons, making them perfect for staycations if avoiding throngs of tourists is top on your priority list.

    Fewer crowds, less waiting time, more relaxing overall – staff too will be more attentive as they have less to juggle.

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  • 7 tips to master multiple languages

    Learning to speak several languages is a rewarding journey, but it takes strategy and consistency. Here are some tips to help you stay on track:

    1. Start with a strong reason

    Whether it’s connecting with family, advancing your career or exploring new cultures, knowing why you’re learning keeps your motivation high.

    2. Immerse daily, in small doses

    Listen to songs, podcasts or watch short videos in your target language. A focused session of 10 minutes a day is better than an occasional “marathon”.

    3. Practise out loud

    Speaking activates memory and builds confidence. Read signs aloud, talk to yourself or use voice notes to hear your progress.

    Practise out loud because speaking activates memory and builds confidence. Photo: FreepikPractise out loud because speaking activates memory and builds confidence. Photo: Freepik

    4. Use it in real life

    Text a friend, order food or label household items in your new language. Real-world use locks in vocabulary and makes learning feel natural.

    5. Balance is key

    Schedule different days or times for each language to avoid mixing them up. Rotate to keep all of them active.

    6. Embrace mistakes

    Fluency grows from trial and error. Celebrate small wins and treat slip-ups as valuable feedback, not failure.

    7. Find a community

    Language exchanges, online groups and conversation meet-ups provide support and authentic interaction, with more space to practise and get better at the language.

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  • The power of community in our ageing society

    There’s a poignant adage that while one mother can care for ten children, ten children often struggle to care for one mother.

    Personally, I feel we can no longer bring this up each time there is a discussion about elderly neglect, abuse or abandonment. In the first place, it is becoming a rarity these days to find a family with more than five children. The demographics show a steady decline in the fertility rate. It currently stands at 1.9, down from a high of 2.9 in 2000. The average of one or two children is becoming the norm now for young couples.

    Furthermore, children will eventually leave the family home to further their studies or seek employment elsewhere either locally or abroad. The end outcome is the rise in the number of empty nesters. An estimated 10% of our senior citizens live alone. This trend is continuing. Smaller family size means fewer siblings to share the financial, physical and filial responsibility of taking care of their elderly parents.

    Not all children will support their parents in their old age. Some can afford to, but choose not to because of long-standing family friction. Many have their own financial commitments to grapple with and a young family to raise. Whatever the case or circumstances, the fact is elderly parents have to fend for themselves.

    If they have sufficient savings to see them through the retirement years, well and good. But with advancing age comes a host of health issues, especially non-communicable diseases like diabetes, cancer, stroke that require long term care. The situation is further compounded by soaring medical costs and insufficient or no medical insurance coverage.

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  • What’s the ‘no spend’ trend and how to make it work

    By the end of the month it can be easy to think, ‘Where did all my money go?’ If this sounds familiar, and if you feel as though you often have little to show for the cash you’ve spent, the ‘no spend’ trend could be for you.

    It’s been around as a concept since the early 2010s, but is now all over social media – check out #nospendchallenge or #nospendmonth. “It’s basically talking about a set period of time where you make a concerted commitment to not spend money on things that aren’t essential,” explains Matthew Sheeran, from UK-based credit counseling service Money Wellness and a trained debt adviser.

    It could be for a day a week, just on weekends or for a whole month. “You can still do your food shopping and pay your bills,” says Sheeran, but all those little luxuries, like takeaways, coffees or new clothes, are off limits.

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  • Every stitch tells a story: Brides seek gowns uniquely and stylishly their own

    Although a wedding celebrates love and commitment between two people, it is also a moment when fashion takes the spotlight.

    The bride’s gown will somehow always become a focus.

    Is she wearing a strapless design? Does it trail into a mermaid train? Is it a traditional ensemble or a Western-style gown?

    When Selena Gomez shared her wedding photos on Instagram early this month, it instantly made headlines.

    The pop star tied the knot with songwriter Benny Blanco in not one, not two, but three spectacular looks. All of them were custom-made by Ralph Lauren.

    Gomez began the day in a halter-neck gown trimmed with a macrame collar, before changing into a silk lace number adorned with floral appliques and a crystal-embellished, hand-painted corset.

    As the evening unfolded, she reappeared in a tulle dress, its bodice draped in hand-pleated panels of cotton, silk and linen voile.

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