Of World Cup & MasterCard...

World Cup...

It happens once every 4 years.

Sad to say (sad ke?) I'm not a fan. But my dad is rooting for Argentina (he even bought the white-blue jersey) while my kid brother supports France.

Eight years ago, in 2002 when I was 15, I remembered this incident where my mom threw a mild tantrum because my dad refused to take her out to dinner.

Sebab time tu tengah World Cup.

During that one month memang susah la kalau kitorang nak keluar for our weekly family outing.

Then in 2006 I was in university. So I never really knew what happened at home during the 06' World Cup.

For this year, I think my dad made a few *ahem* "persiapan awal" in anticipation of World Cup 2010 fever.

1. He bought a jersey. Kepala macam tak boleh nak comprehend that my dad is actually wearing a jersey. For those who really know my dad, you guys know what I mean.

2. If dulu selalu berebut telly (which usually the guys will win on the basis that WC is once every 4 years and it's only during the one and a half month je diorang nak conquer the telly), this year tak payah nak sorok-sorok the remote dah because my sister and I got another Astro installed in our room. MTV, Star World and E! for me, Disney and Cartoon Network for my sis. (Okay, memang dah lama installed, way before WC, but I'd like to think my dad decided to get us another Astro dish this year solely because come June 2010 he can hog the other telly all to himself.) He even told my sister, "Kalau Ina nak tengok TV depan, lepas pukul 4 pagi baru boleh..." -_-"

3. If back then my mom would sulk because she can't go anywhere for more than a month (they lied when they say WC is over after July. Lepas tu ade the English Premier League pulak. Pfft!), now my dad cakap "Abah hantar mana2 you all nak pegi, bila nak balik give me a call". But there's a catch. We can either ask him to pick us up at 9.30 pm (since there's a match at 10pm) or if nak balik lagi lambat then we'll have to wait till 11 pm. Ehh, nak tolong tutup kedai sekali ke ape??

So today my dad dropped the female clan of Zubi's residence in MidValley before driving back home to catch a match on the telly. The best part, he gave my mom the oh-so-shiney plastic card.

Swiping card never felt this fun. Okay, my mom did most of the swiping.

In the end my sister came home with the most "catch-of-the-day". New bag since Roxy was doing a sale, new shoes, jeans and....I lost track of other things that she bought.

My mom.....well, let's just say she was very much preoccupied in the Home & Living dept of Jusco. At the end of the day she came out with 3 big bags which she defensively told us "Barang ni semua untuk rumah, untuk awak and abah jugak."

Yeah, right. Since when do we need 4 cushions and a table runner? The ones currently at home still looks fine to me je... Tapi takpe ma, along faham... ;)

And me? Niat sebenar I ajak my mother and sister keluar is to buy shoes untuk pegi kelas nanti (I know, classes haven't even started yet but it's always good to prepare early). There's this one shoe shop in Gardens where you can buy 2 pairs of flats at the price of RM100. I've been eyeing them for quite some time truth be told. And I was hoping to get this one jacket I saw in Cleo's magazine. But when I went to Miss Selfridge and asked the salesperson about the jacket, she told me the stock has not been sent to their store yet. Haila....

I felt kind of dejected after that actually. And the sight of my sister with all the things she got was like rubbing salt into an open wound.

Then we passed by a store and this one RED, leather handbag caught my attention. Fake kulit buaya, or ular (don't care that much honestly) but seriously, the red is to die for. Then I asked my mom,

"Kalau nak beli beg untuk kelas kira bawah abah and mama punya expenses tak? It's for my studies..." *inserts pleading eyes like Puss in Shrek*

"Kalau ye boleh bagi Dean's List kat mama ke?"

Like, mesti la boleh. Mama nak dekan tu sendiri pun I can give her to you.

Of course, that was before she saw the price tag. Then she started this long and *coughs* nagging lecture about how during her days dapat masuk U pun dah cukup bagus, pegi kelas bawak beg kain je.

"Handbag takde kena mengena pun dengan study".

Siapa kata?? The perfect red bag plays a crucial part la... Buku banyak nak masuk mana? And I just know the bag will serve me well for my studies nanti...

If my mom could debik me publicly, I think she would have.

Then lalu depan Thomas Sabo. The store is just plain irresistible... My mom rolled her eyes as I pulled her towards the counter and pointed at the red ballet flats charm. Nak tu please...

To which she said "Tadi dah beli kasut untuk kelas. Ni pun untuk pegi kelas jugak?"

Me smiling sheepishly of course.

I begged, made some promises and begged some more. Finally dapat la jugak the shoes.

Funny how I loved the tiny charm shoes more compared to the real flats I just got.

9.30 pm on the dot my dad is already at the front entrance waiting to pick us up.

He eyed the bags in our hands carefully.

You should know better than to give us girls a card and 8 hours of shopping time abah.

Remember the "Priceless" ad by MasterCard? I've a feeling my dad's version would be something like this :

Handbags : RM 380
Shoes on promotion : RM 100
Dinner for 3 : RM 60
Household item (yang kononnye untuk kitorang semua) : RM......wait, mama sorok the receipt.
Thomas Sabo : RM 250
Getting to watch WC w/o wife and 2 daughters bising2 in the background : Priceless.

For me, the envious look on my brother's face when he saw us with the stuff we got is priceless. Haha. Siapa suruh tak ikut...

Next week, strappy red heels at Pedro OU. Kasut Raya. Since I saw the shoes in the magazine, please, please, PLEASE let the stock be there when I come.