Kelam Kabut

Hey guys, I was talking to my friend last night over the phone. She's not from Malaysia but was in Malaysia for a little while sometime back. Anyhow, i was describing something to her and i being Malaysian, Manglish just comes naturally. Afterall, have you met a Malaysian who doesnt use the word phrase 'Lah'?

So i was describing something to her and then i said 'he was so kelam kabut'..... she then said.. what the hell is 'kaa-lamm kaa-buut'??? and i went like 'huh?' The rest of the conversation went like this:

Me : kelam kabut means... um... err... it means kelam kabut la... its some malay phrase

She : I know its in Malay but what the hell does it mean?

Me : erm... eh... you know... like... he was... urm... er... 'kan cheong'... (more like i was getting kan cheong)

She : what the hell is kan cheong now?

Me : (very proudly) - it means anxious la...

She : will you Malaysians stop it with the LAs! So it means anxious. Therefore kelam kabut means anxious?

Me : No no no... kelam kabut doesnt mean anxious. At least not in this context. Aiya.. i'm getting anxious now. Oh i know now.. it means Gabra!

She : What the hell is Gabra now! Dude, dont forget i'm not Malaysian.

Me : Aiya... I give up.

She : I give up too.

Anyhow, i was doing a little bit of research, and apparently Kelam means 'Murky' and Kabut means 'Fog'. So if i were to translate it literally, kelam kabut would mean MURKY FOG??????? so 'he was like kelam kabut' = he was like MURKY FOG?

Anyhow... i guess the phrase can mean alot of things... for instance, if i was to say that the wild boar tore of the campsite and made the whole place kelam kabut. In that instance, kelam kabut would mean 'run / ran riot' rite?

Anyhow, all this talk is driving me nuts. If you know a better way to explain the phrase kelam kabut - do share!!!!! What to do.. my England no powderful!!!!