my real name is short and begins with the letter ‘A’. ironically, i do not have a middle name, unlike my siblings, because … my mother once told me (and i don’t know whether she was kidding) that if i had two names, i would have a split personality, which i think is extremely ridiculous and i believe she was just pulling my leg. but then, with my mother, who knows?

for the moment, i shall call myself ylang ylang because it was my maternal grandmother’s favourite flower. she died about 20 years ago and sometimes i wish she was still alive because i believe that due to her influence, i would have lived more positively and would have become a better person than i am now.

i am an aquarian who was born in the chinese year of the ox. born in batu pahat, johore but residing in petaling jaya, selangor, i am of javanese/malay/indian descent. was a skinny child but became a blimp due to overeating as a reaction to parental pressure to excel. have been struggling with weight all my life (went through a bout of bulimia in my mid-20s), and need to lose probably 5 kilos. have gone on all sorts of diets but at 35, eating healthy is more important than not eating to get into a smaller sized pair of jeans. slightly taller than the average malaysian female person. straight hair, dark brown. if lost and found unconscious (or worse) somewhere, can be identified by circular mole on inside of right knee and a scar like a leech on my left lower arm.

am in a relationship which seems like it’s not going anywhere as we are both financially strapped.

studied architecture but not practising. have been jobhopping for a decade. wants to set up a book cafe but don’t have funding – yet. am writing a screenplay about …