Remember The Time (Part 1)

So, the big news that shocked the world...that Michael Jackson passed away on 25th June 2009, 2:29pm in Los Angeles. The early word is that he died due to cardiac arrest, but an autopsy is being carried out now to determine the cause of death.

It's been a long day for me, but I feel it's important to remember it right here, right now.

I was still in bed when my phone alarm went off. And having set it to vibrate as well, the phone presumably slid off the shelf and dropped to the floor, the first time it has happened.

So even though I normally snooze in bed for a while more, I had no choice but to get off the bed to pick up my phone. And I saw an SMS and opened it. It was from KP, and he texted: "Bro. Mj passed away! Do you know? Sorry." That was 7:11am. (So it wasn't the alarm vibration that caused the phone to drop off the shelf, but the SMS vibration alert)

Of course, the first thought that came to my mind was disbelief, but I knew KP wouldn't play a trick like this on me. So I immediately turned on my computer and rushed to turn the TV on as well.

I saw it on Channel News Asia first: "Michael Jackson has died. US media reports."

By the time I managed to log on to the Internet at 7:19am, I saw the first news report and I knew it was true.

As I visited more websites in search of more information, the SMS-es started coming in, first a trickle, then a string. All in all, yesterday, I received SMS-es from 25 friends (including 2 who are overseas), calls from 4 others and Facebook messages from 7 others. I thank each and every one of them for their concern.

I also tuned in to the radio to listen for updates, and FD and Vern were giving the latest news and their thoughts on MJ's passing. I also went to TMZ's website for live streaming video with interviews and call-ins from various people. I watched the proceedings as the fans and media flocked to the UCLA Medical Centre to cover the event, and also witnessed the helicopter transferring MJ's body to the LA Coroner's Office.

I did shed some tears when I watched Jermaine giving his statement that the paramedics tried to resuscitate MJ for more than an hour but were unsuccessful. Jermaine was strong, he has always been the spokesperson for the family, but he did not break down on stage, which is admirable.

It took me a lot of effort to pull myself away to go to work. I took a cab and went in late. I very much didn't want to go to work at all, but I still did.

I'm left with a lot of thoughts about MJ but now it's time to sleep. There will be many more posts to come, and my wish now is for people to appreciate the genius and music of Michael Jackson, and not for his "eccentricities" to overshadow his enormous talent and contribution to the world.

Heal The World.