Working together for a living planet

Thursday, January 15, 2009

why kuE love antiques: they have a story

people who knows this often asked me upon occasion, why do you like antiques, when did you start liking antiques, or have you always liked them. it did make me wonder.

a visit to ah teng's shop this morning gave me an idea to blog something about this! grandma asked to me to buy rice and potato ;) so while waiting for nya (ah teng's wife) to weight the rice, i stood infront of the shop with ah teng. then when i looked at this view (pic below), i know that its hard to find that big jars no more. i quickly took my oly in the car, and snapped this—

'ol things at ah teng's shop


and when i got closer to get a close-up view, ah teng told me, "sudah lama orr... itu balang. sikalang susah mau lapat orr..."

"berapa lama?", i asked.

"aiyoo... macam lu talak tau, pulut-pulut taun lor..."

'ol things at ah teng's shop


most of us that are are collectors of antiques have some sort of favorite heirloom that was passed on to us from a beloved family member or perhaps a close friend. for me it is an antique bed that was my grandmother's mother. i remember that i did post some pics here. i also have a few other pieces of furniture that were either my grandparents or treasured accessories that were both my grandmother's and my mother's as a child.

what is my point to all of this you ask? well in about few more years i will then pass on to my puteri and megat some things i have acquired over the years. things that are special to me, and that i hope will be special to my kids. i also will try to pass on my love for all things old. i figure if i start to surround my kids with antiques then maybe by the process of osmosis this kid will love them as much as i do. i am already planning in my mind some of the vintage influences i would like to incorporate into them.

back to ah teng's shop, by the time i wanna pay for the goods, he was already busy with their other customers. so i asked nya about the age of their sempua

'ol things at ah teng's shop


i know from some of my researches, that sempua is referred to as the world's first computer. this 600 year old calculating device is still used as an effective calculator in many parts of asia, including ah teng! hehee... you can learn how to read and work with this ancient invention here.

"dari bukak kedai sudah ada", nya said.

"nya agak berapa lama?".

"ayooo... manyak lama... masa tu lu olang pun belum ada! bapak lu pun muda lagi, sekolah, belum kawen.", replied nya. then we laughed out loud!!! rotfl ;)