We have lift-off

IT WAS the summer of 1969 when Jim Lewis witnessed the launch of Apollo 11, the unforgettable mission that landed on the moon. He was a young lad of 17 then.

His dad, who worked for a Florida newspaper, had obtained a pass for him to watch the momentous event at the Kennedy Space Centre.

“The Saturn V Moon rocket lift-off is still the most exciting rocket launch I have ever seen,” said Lewis, who has produced TV coverage for the launching of at least 150 rockets. He founded Communications Concepts Inc (CCI) in 1978, a Cape Canaveral-based audio-visual company specialising in TV and web production.

But even a TV guy such as Lewis conceded, “television at its best cannot capture the full impact of a rocket launch.”

“When you are at the launch site, the rocket blast off sight and sound literally hit you like a warm sensation and pounding wave in the ocean.”

Since CCI is located close to the Kennedy Space Centre, his company, naturally, has produced TV coverage of rocket launches numerous times.

It was also contracted by the Malaysian Government through Mimos to produce coverage of the Angkasawan mission.

“Your astronaut project could be a great starting point for the Malaysian space programme or it could be a one-time thing, something like how the United States went to the moon and then stopped. Again, the future is what you make of it. The US is now once again working to go back to the moon.”

He loves the space business. “Space is a great business with great people.”

Over the years, Lewis has been enthralled by stories told to him by astronauts.

“Most of the stories are about silly and funny things that they did or had happened to them.”

All that said, it was a statement that Al Warden, who flew around the moon in Apollo 15, that stuck in Lewis’ mind.

“Al said that while he was on the dark side of the moon he could look out at the stars and see them so much more clearly then you could here on earth and it was amazing how many stars there are out there.”

Lewis said that the Malaysian astronaut was so fortunate to go to space. “I would gladly trade places with him,” he said.

Likewise, Malaysian space buffs might also want to switch place with Lewis, whose home is near to where all the action is. For the locals there, watching rocket launches is as regular to them as night and day.

(Janie Johnson, who provides airport transfers to travellers, said she had lost count the number of rocket and shuttle launches that she had seen since moving here three years ago. “I always get a wonderful view as my house is near the launch site,” she said.)

Like most kids who grew up having the Kennedy Space Centre in their backyard, Lewis has unending stories to share.

His family moved near there in 1962, so he has lived 45 years of his life with the space programme.

“In May 1961 when I had just turned nine, I was riding in the car with my parents, brother and sister when the final countdown to America’s First Manned Space launch was announced on the radio.

“My dad pulled the car to the side of the road and listened to the entire mission. It lasted only 15 minutes but it was so cool.”

Florida is also among only three sites in the world that sends people into space; the other two being Kazakhstan and China.

Kennedy Space Centre, which is just 45 minutes from Orlando, has quite an impact on the local community.

“Roads are named after astronauts and space programmes; and there is an ongoing schedule of manned and unmanned launches from what is known as the Space Coast,” said Andrea Farmer, who is public relations manager of the Kennedy Space Centre Visitor Complex.

Children in Florida are more aware of the space programme. All six-grade students would take part in a space week project while seventh grade students had another programme for them.

“There is tremendous pride in the space programme in our community, as more than 14,000 people work at Kennedy Space Centre,” she said.

About 1.5 million visitors from around the world make the trip there annually.

And why shouldn’t they be fascinated? According to its website, it is “the only place on Earth where you can tour launch areas, meet an astronaut, see giant rockets, train in space flight simulators and view a launch.”

It is mankind’s ultimate journey, as the Kennedy Space Centre would say.

It’s all think big and talk big

ALL the hoopla and moolah during his book launch was a mirror to the world according to Donald Trump.

The real estate mogul promoted his latest book Think Big and Kick Ass last week at a New York City bookstore on where else, but Fifth Avenue, where its reputation as one of the world’s most expensive shopping streets remains solid despite the weakened dollar.

Curvaceous women in black little T-shirts emblazoned with the book title on the front and “I love Donald” at the back worked the crowds, giving out chocolate gold coins.

There was a mascot as well, bearing a resemblance to The Donald, complete with the infamous hair.

But the greatest bait was probably the US$100 (RM336) offered to the first 100 people who bought the book.

“I downed three cups of coffee to stay warm,” said Christopher Forbes, a 20-year-old student who began queuing up at 10pm the night before the book event.

His effort paid off. Forbes, who described Trump as his role model and that he wanted to become a real estate tycoon like him, was the first person in line. The second guy for the 12.30pm book launch last Tuesday arrived at 5am.

It was a happy crowd that day. Someone shouted: “I made US$100 today! Do you want to interview me?”

Trump sure seemed to have his fans. They held up placards proclaiming “Donald, Teach Me Think Big”, “My Eyes are on the $$$”, “Donald for President. Get Rid of Bush” and “Trump Kicks Ass”. One boy clutched a Donald doll.

Yvonne de Groot, a tourist from Holland, came for his signature when she found out that Trump would be at the Barnes & Noble bookstore. “He is quite big in my country,” she said.

His arrival drew cheers and chants of his name.

“That’s quite a hair,” an elderly man said, upon spotting The Donald. Indeed, his hair looked even more terrible close up.

Trump addressed the crowd for a couple of minutes in a brief speech that proved that it was all about think big and talk big.

“It is a bestseller already. It is going to be number one. I have been told that today’s turnout at Barnes & Noble here is the biggest in the past five years,” he said.

He had had a good life, he said, and the book carried a message of success.

Last Sunday, the New York Post published one full page of excerpts from his book. It highlighted his advice to couples that they must always have a prenuptial agreement.

He cited the example of Paul McCartney, calling him “the poor bastard” for making the mistake of not having a prenuptial agreement with Heather Mills.

Mills would still be a nobody if she had not married the ex-Beatles, he wrote.

The 61-year-old billionaire told his third and current wife Melania that she was beautiful and they would have a great marriage but “just in case it doesn’t work out, sign on the dotted line.”

He conceded that that was not the most romantic act but it was necessary.

The Donald sure has a mouth that matches his bank account. He was blunt about Angelina Jolie (“she’s no beauty”), George Clooney (“little and short”) and Martha Stewart (he’s upset about her ingratitude).

He granted a quick interview to an entertainment TV station before he proceeded to sign copies of his book that day, where he once again was on the offensive against Jolie.

“She was frenching her brother at the (2000) Academy Awards; then there was all that with Billy Bob Thornton and now she is representing the United Nations on world peace. Give me a break,” he said.

He thought of her as a pretty woman but “she’s no great beauty.”

Trump certainly did not forget comedian and former talk show host Rosie O’Donnell, his favourite target. “Rosie’s a bully. I have never respected her,” he said.

He mentioned as well that he had been asked to appear on Saturday Night Live.

“Should I be on Saturday Night Live?” he quizzed, somewhat teasingly. The people around him cheered.

Trump went on to say that the new version of The Apprentice, which would feature celebrity guests, was going to be a monster hit. The cheers began again. His fans were fired up and no one got fired.

No clash of cultures here

KOSHER meat is widely available. One tour agency arranges for travel on Emirates, Etihad, Kuwait, Qatar and Gulf airlines.

There is a mosque, too. And there is a “yeshivah” (Orthodox Jewish school), just a five-minute walk away.

Nearby, a sign outside a barbershop proclaims: “We speak English, Russian, Urdu and Yiddish.”

Welcome to Flatbush, a neighbourhood in Brooklyn presenting a New York City seldom seen on celluloid.

In a way, they are worlds apart yet there is no clash of civilisations here. Muslim men in “kurta” and Orthodox Jews in their distinctive long, black suits and large hats co-exist in Flatbush without any problems.

One fruit stall on the street populated by Orthodox Jews says “Golan Dry Fruit” and carries a Star of David. Another shop sells religious articles such as yarmulke (knitted skullcaps worn by the Jews).

“I have so many friends who are Orthodox Jews,” said Mohammad Razvi, a Pakistani-born American who has lived here for 30 years.

According to him, most of the 130,000 Muslims in Flatbush are Pakistanis.

Mohammad formed a coalition organisation with the local Jews after the Sept 11 tragedy to address issues on discrimination.

“We want to ensure that whatever happened outside of the United States would not happen to us here,” he said.

Almost half of the estimated 972,000 Jews in New York City reside in Brooklyn, and about 240,000 are Orthodox Jews.

“Theirs is an insular community,” said David M. Pollock, associate executive director of Jewish Community Relations Council of New York. They have their own school system where Yiddish is the first language.

In the Flatbush neighbourhood, believers from the two faiths live side-by-side partly because of their similarities, he said.

“They have similar food restrictions, they place great importance on the family, and their dressing is modest.”

Orthodox Jews, he said, pray three times a day. Theirs is a fast growing community due to their views on birth control.

“In a 2000 census, the average household in Williamsburg (another Brooklyn neighbourhood populated by Orthodox Jews) has about six children. It is common to see triple bunk beds there,” he said.

The New York Times, quoting the US Census Bureau, reported that the population in an Orthodox Jewish village in Orange County, New York state, went up by 51% in the past six years.

This rate was faster than any community in the state because of their ban on birth control and because women there tend to marry early.

Pollock also noted the Jews also continue with the tradition of circumcision. A baby is circumcised eight days after birth.

A large number of the community in Brooklyn are known as Hasidic Jews.

“The basic theological difference between them and the centrists is that the Hasidics follow a charismatic leader, someone who leads a very holy life and who comes from a holy lineage,” Pollock said.

Think Dalai Lama, if a parallel is to be drawn here.

Inter-marriages are discouraged by orthodox believers.

“The non-Jewish partner is expected to convert,” Pollock said.

Noah Feldman, a Harvard University law professor, wrote in the July 22 issue of The New York Times Magazine that he went to his high-school reunion with his girlfriend, who later became his wife.

A group picture was taken but he saw in the alumni newsletter later that both his and his girlfriend’s images were omitted.

“My fiancée was Korean-American. Her presence implied the prospect of something that, from the standpoint of Orthodox Jewish law, could not be recognised: marriage to someone who was not Jewish,” he wrote in the article titled The Orthodox Paradox.

“The 12 years I spent at a yeshiva day school made me who I am. Now the school doesn’t acknowledge who I’ve become.”

The 31-year-old Jewish Community Relations Council of New York is an umbrella body of at least 60 other organisations.

Pollock, who has worked there for 27 years, said the council would deal with issues related to religious liberty and hate crimes against Jews.

“The Jewish community embraces a diverse mix of cultures, each with its particular concerns and priorities,” said its website.

Leaping off to a better life

IT is a well-trodden path, one that many have been taking. To them, it leads to the Land of Opportunity.

So they “leap off the plane” (or tiew fei kei, a Cantonese metaphor meaning illegal entry), taking the step in hope of a better life.

They become waiters, drivers or take on jobs in restaurants or the construction sector.

The early years are tough, both physically and emotionally. Home is usually the basement of the landlord’s house. There is no health insurance provided by their employers.

Besides having to cope with a new culture and long working hours, loneliness often hits those coming without their families.

Stories are aplenty about blistered hands and the sense of desolation that led to them later confiding to friends that they had wept silently.

One woman here has not seen her husband and two children for five years as she has not returned home to Malaysia.

But most of them seem content when asked to share their stories.

T.C., 43, a fruit deliveryman, has been working in the United States since 2000.

“I came here with my wife to visit relatives in New York. I wanted to check out the job prospects, too. A week after I arrived, I began looking for work,” he said.

His first job was as a furniture delivery guy. The pay was US$350 (RM1,190) a week but he made extra every day in tips.

“That felt good,” he recalled.

There was also no fear of being nabbed by immigration officers. “I was free to roam about.”

Work was tough, though. He had to lift heavy furniture, sometimes up to the fifth floor of a building.

There was no need for such hard labour in his previous job as manager of a furniture shop owned by his sister in Kuantan.

Back then, he earned about RM2,500 a month. With a house mortgage and two small children, it was a struggle to make ends meet.

Now, he sends about US$1,000 (RM3,400) back to Malaysia every month.

His mother-in-law takes care of his son and daughter, aged nine and 11, who he has not seen since arriving in the United States.

He had no trouble adapting to life in New York, although his command of English was limited. “I am always in Chinatown, anyway.”

“I have no regrets coming here. It’s a good place in which to earn a living. My only worry is my kids. I regret not applying for visas for them to come with me,” T.C. said.

He calls them three times a week, admitting that he is missing out on their growing-up years.

“I can only see them through videotapes sent to me. They have never asked when I would be coming home. Of course I am distressed that there is no closeness between us, but what can I do? I need to cari makan here,” he said.

Even his 80-year-old mother in Kuantan has never persuaded him to return. “In fact, she asked me not to go back as it is better for me to work here.”

T.C. said he never thought he would stay on so long.

Initially, he was thinking of spending just five years here.

But now he has no intention of returning to Malaysia, not just yet. “If it turns out that there really is no way for me to bring my children over here, then I might make plans to return,” he said.

“But still, it is hard to say what’s in store. As long as I can still hold a job, I guess I will remain in the United States.”

His wife works in the same fruit stall.

He spoke of friends who went home and started their own businesses. “One of them opened a telephone shop but the business went bust.”

Some of his friends have since returned to the United States.

Michael Chong, 46, was a rubber factory supervisor in Malacca, earning RM700 a month, when he decided to make the journey to New York in 1983.

His uncle, who was here earlier, had invited him to come over.

Chong’s first job, as a kitchen help, required him, among other things, to mop the floor, cut vegetables and cook the rice.

It was a 12-hour job. By the end of the first week, he wanted to take the next flight back to Malaysia.

Nevertheless, Chong persevered. His wife came to join him and they slogged away, not returning to his hometown in Perak in the first 10 years.

He worked for a Jewish boss for 16 years, helping him make sandwiches. “He saw that I was hardworking and helped me get a green card.”

Chong’s life is better now. He has been an insurance representative for the past two years.

“I never thought I would stay so long,” he said. “I had assumed that I would return home once I have saved enough money.”

His dream was to retire in Malaysia and the family did try to resettle in Malaysia in 1997.

“We bought a house in Ipoh. My wife went back with the kids. They stayed for eight months but could not adapt to things back home.”

The house was sold and everybody was soon in New York again. The family now owns a US$220,000 (RM748,000) double-storey house in Staten Island, a New York City borough.

“My three children (aged 16 to 21) are now getting a good education here,” he added.

It isn’t always a success story. Others are known to have become gamblers, squandering their money and returning to Malaysia with empty pockets.

Kwong Yoo, who is Malaysia Association of America president, said nobody could tell for sure the number of Malaysians who had “leapt off the plane,” although an oft-mentioned estimate for the tri-state region (New York, New Jersey and Connecticut) was 40,000.

“They came in great numbers during the recession in the 1980s,” he said.

The numbers may have dwindled in recent years, he said, but the dream of a new – and better – life still beckons many.