I was an only child for 13 years, so my companions were my toys and my belongings. And since I had no friends to talk to, I'd always make believe that my belongings 'talk' to me.
One of my earlier love was 'Noni'...
Noni was an oversized teddy bear I fell in love with from a Cathay Pacific advertisement I saw in the newspapers when I was 6. One day, ayah and his colleague, Uncle Mazda, made a day trip to Singapore. Before they left, Uncle Mazda sat me on his lap and asked me what I wanted. I showed him that advertisement.
That night, they came back with 'Noni'. Uncle Mazda again sat me on his lap with Noni by the side and asked me what would I like to name it. I just shrugged. Then he said, "Nama Noni sedap. Kita panggil dia Noni, nak?". I just smiled, too shy to say anything and too disbelieved that I actually got what I wanted.
Noni became my first ever companion. She spoke to me in voices heard by no other. She cried with me when I got scolded by my mother. She was alive to me in every single ways that can be thought of by a 6 year-old.
Along the way, few more companions came and went - Fred the tortoise, Sam the angelfish, Nana the huge plastic doll.
As I grew bigger, I also grew out of them. That or they died on me.
When my little sister was born, I was in the rebellious stage. With much rebellion and resentment, I again recoiled into my 'seeking companion in belongings' phase. I had Man the daily journal and Man II the walkman.
Each one was treated with love and care as if they were alive and had feelings.
Days turned into months. Months turned into years. College days, got married, had kids. I had no time to hallucinate objects with feelings.
Until I met Blue. It was a love I can't describe. Blue wasn't my first car, but it was the first brand new car I ever owned. I wasn't the kind who'd wash the car everyday, or one who'd tell you to shake the dirt off your footwear before getting into the car. My kind of love was different. I was (and have been) rough with Blue but I handled (and still do) it (him) with respect as if it (he) has feelings.
My mom once said never ever in front of a car, say anything about not loving it or not needing it anymore. I asked why, and she said, it has ears. It may be metal, but it has ears. I guess that further enforced my belief.
With Blue, I never verbally say anything. So true that even if I flirt or dream about having other cars, Blue is always first in my heart. Some say that about men and their first wives. I guess Blue is my first husband. (yeah, go ahead and speculate anything you want...)
Some nights ago, the life partner said to the kids about mama selling off her car. Although he was joking because he knows how much I love Blue, plus the fact that Blue was parked some 20 kilometers away, I guess somehow the wind brought news to its (his) ears.
And since then, Blue has been grumpy. Beside the fact that the compressor wasn't working and got fixed earlier, it (he) made squeeky noises (which I solved and found out was caused by the jack underneath the passenger seat), got the radiator fan motor malfunctioned, got it(him)self overheated for the first time ever, and today - today it got a bolt into one of it's 3 months old tyres.
So if you ask me if Blue has got feelings, I believe it (he) does. And as much as it (he) is hurt by those words, it (he) hurts me back in return. When it comes to Blue, it's not only a financial torture for me, it's also an emotional burden.
So please forgive me for yacking too much about Blue. Just hide my FB statuses if you had too much of me. I just love my Blue to bits.
:/
(And to be fair, I need to mention my other loyal companions: White the laptop, Stealth the phone, Black the mp3 player which is actually a replacement to Stone which decided to go MIA and Yellowman the broadband modem. I can't risk not having anyone of them buat perangai at this moment of time... :P)
My Noni
