The Makan-Makan Fiesta @ Holiday Villa

Was back in Subang tonight for the Makan-Makan Fiesta @ Holiday Villa. At RM46++ per head, we get a buffet-styled dinner, at all five eateries in the Club.

The rule, simple. You can enter each restaurant only once, and if the tables are full, they reserved the right to turn you away to another restaurant, or you can queue outside, or stand and eat.

The unfortunate part, each restaurant's left to their own preparations and organising.

The Inn of Four Seasons was our first stop. They served good food, mixture of Chinese cooking and DimSum. Staffs were helpful, food plentiful and restocked often.

The Cibo featured pasta, beef, lamb. No cheese! Again, staffs were helpful, but the dishes didn't come up to mark.

Seki Tei Japanese restaurant fared the worst tonight. By the time we got into the restaurant, the buffet table's empty. The sashimi counter's manned by one miserable chap who's trying to serve cold cuts, temakis and fending off offensive guests for not getting food to eat. The teppanyaki's nothing to shout about. But hey! Anybody there? The buffet table's empty!

We had to grab food while waiting in line for a table. Imaging eating tempura while on your feet. That's my sister, cousin and mum.

Palm Terrace Coffee House cum Coriander Garden had the best selection. Perhaps due to their experienced team of buffet servers. The Captain got us tables quickly enough and the food is constantly restocked. They even had time to serve us water, utensils, and coffee individually, whereas the rest of the restaurants expect you to collect them from the buffet table. Unfortunately, the oysters not fresh enough.

Father's had his quota of meat for the week... :)

All in all, it's RM46++ moderately spent. It's not often you get access to various cuisine for that price, but it's definitely not cuisine of any standards I know.

It's Mine!

Yes! I've got it! The Canon Ixus 850 is now mine! (Sounds like an excerpt of what Voldemort would say..)

I bought my Canon Ixus 850 from the PC Fair in KL Convention Centre today.

The package:

Main unit, with 16Mb SD Card - RM1,270.00
Ixus leather case
30" Umbrella
Screen Protector
Metal Neck Strap (1')
1Gb SD Card (Upgraded to 2Gb with additional RM30.00)

All in all, I'd say I got ao good bargain. The list price is still RM1,499.00, and still not dropping. Can't say if it'll remain so after August.

Time to go charge up the battery and explore the camera.

Bhut Jolokia

This was featured in The Star, 1st August 2007, Page 38, World Section.

The Chilli Pepper is known as Bhut Jolokia, translated as the "ghost chilli" in the Indian tongue.

I quote the daily: "Anyone who has tried it, they say, could end up an apparition."

It has more than 1,000,000 Scoville units (the scientific measurement of a chilli's spiciness), and is officially in the Guiness World Records.

Across northeast India, various names are used, including "poison chilli", "king of chillis", "Naga chilli".

I've found a Scoville rating, on the types of chilli level that we've been taking. From the looks of it, if you're a person who starts gulping glasses of water when you take Tabasco, the Bhut Jolokia will definitely make a ghost of you. Hah!

Missing...

I know, I've been missing for awhile. That's the problem when I don't go back to Subang. Internet access is not readily available like I want it.

Celebrated Lindy's birthday last Sunday. It's her 26th. We went to a place called Raffles - nice menu, nice ambience, pathetic food.

The Lamb Chop's dry and hard. Seafood Platter is a plate of fried flour, small portion of seafood (and it's not fresh!). The Spaghetti Bolognaise is nothing to shout about. The merlot's weak. A disaster, but the best Melaka could offer in ambience I think. Sigh, I miss KL.

But she enjoyed the evening. It's something different. Besides, the Titus watch more than made up for it. She wanted it badly...

I've sent in another application. This time to a niche market player. Hopefully, it's good news. They were foreign managed, foreign owned, and earns foreign income. Best part, it's in Glenmarie... beauty.

Time to go home...

Interesting facts - Forwarded mails

Who wants to try these out and reply?

1. Chewing on gum while cutting onions can help a person stop producing tears.
2. Until babies are 6 months old, they can breathe and swallow at the same time.
3. Offered a new pen to write with, 97% of all people will write their own name.
4. Males mosquitoes are vegetarian. Only females bite.
5. The average person's field of vision encompasses a 200 degree wide angle.
6. To find out if a watermelon is ripe, knock it, and if it sounds hollow then it is ripe.
7. Babies' eyes do not produce tears until the baby is approximately six to eight weeks old.
8. It snowed in the Sahara Desert in February 1979.
9. Plants watered with warm water grow larger and more quickly than plants watered with cold water.
10. Wearing headphones for just an hour will increase the bacteria in your ear by 700 times.
11. Grapes explode when you put them in the microwave.
12. The stars and colours you see when you rub your eyes are called phosphenes.
13. Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears never stop growing.
14. Everyone's tongue print is different, like fingerprints.
15. Contrary to popular believe, a swallowed chewing gum doesn't stay in the gut. It will pass through the system and excreted.
16. At 40 centigrade, a person losses about 14.4 calories per hour by breathing.
17. There is a hotel in Sweden build entirely out of ice; it is rebuilt every year.
18. Cats, camels and giraffes are the only animals in the world that walk right foot, right foot, left foot, left foot, rather than right foot, left foot.
19. Onions help reduce cholesterol if eaten after a fatty meal.
20. The sound you hear when you crack your knuckles is actually the sound of nitrogen gas bubbles bursting.

Learn anything new? Read it with a pinch of salt. Do let me know if you were to test any of the theories above.

Frozen Throne marathon

I was hammering away on the DOTA Allstars Map, 6.3 AI+, on Sunday. One thing for certain, when it says AI+, it meant fight one-on-one-or-get-ur-arse-whupped! Cheng and I attempted to fight 4 Insane heroes. The outcome: We're insane.

Till now, I've yet to really find a Hero that I'm fully comfortable with. Each with their strengths, and much weaknesses too... guess it reflects the perfectionist in me... hehe..

But seriously, I think I demand a lot. From people that I interact with, from people that I employ, from people I cared about. Maybe that's why I get upset easily. Can't expect people to be of the same make and mould as I, can I? Am I speaking with an ego here?

No. I can't say I have one entirely too large for me. But yes, I do demand a lot. The good thing is, I've excluded the demands from a certain gene-pool. Spare them the expectations, and myself the heartache. Sacrificing for a Nation's growth... I'd do it too, for the land itself.

Inspiring Website, TED: Ideas Worth Spreading

I found an interesting website, much thanks to the idiot box link.
The site's called TED: Ideas Worth Spreading

Check it out. I saw an interesting video on Hydrogen powered vehicle, and the use of Hydrogen as a source of heat to cut.

Besides, you'll find other videos on various topics, ranging on technology, design, business, science, global issues, culture...

Wet wet Saturday..

Ahh.. another beautiful Saturday. Enough of warm weather, the torrential rain certainly did a really good job of cooling the air.

True, road's wet. Traffic's lousy. Parking's in the rain. But hey, it's nothing compared to a peaceful afternoon at Starbucks, in 1U, eh?

Lindy's gone shopping.. again. Oh well, better her than me at that. The raspberry frappe tea is good. Refreshing, not too sweet, a right tinge of berry to make it slightly sourish.. yummy.

So what's on the news today?
I heard that they caught the suspected robbers/rapists in the Johor case. Good news that.

Oh yeah, Chayo's new family member is home. I'll leave the introduction to him. But anyhow, here's a pic of the cute fella.

Not named yet. Any suggestions? Drop a note to Lvin's blog.

I'm looking at a young lass reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Seems she's about 1/10 thru. Wonder what's the outcome like? Can't wait to get hold of my copy later. Sigh, if only Jo will hurry up over with the receipt.

Odd, my hours online is certainly high enough for an average Joe, and yet I can't seem to catch anyone online. Must be a Saturday thing. Wonder where's everyone...

Another news on The Star Online. The couple who killed little Shearwey had been officially charged with murder. Bout time. What drives a person to kill an innocent child anyway? What did she do wrong to deserve such punishment? Couldn't there be other solutions to whatever it is they were dealing with?

Ah, forget the news. Too much sad stories...

Build up to Harry Potter's future

This is it!

After a long long wait, we'll finally get to know the end of Harry Potter (not his end. I was refering to the series).

Who's going to die?

Harry?

Ronald?

Lupin?

Hagrid?

Hermione?

The questions had been well debated. I've enjoyed the read on Beyond Hogwarts. Amazing theories... really.

Let's find out.

First hand encounter of Ambulance in action

I witnessed this yesterday evening. A case of our Ambulance in action, as well as well-meaning passersby, who stopped to crowd round the accident victim, depriving him of much-needed air supply.

Strangely, the accident was pretty minor in nature. The traffic backlog, was major. Much thanks to the helpful observers. Hope y'all strike the 3D like you hope!

25th Anniversary Coin

Commemorative coins, minted for the 25th Anniversary Independance of Malaysia. Face plate shows 1st Premier, Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra declaring the Independance of Malaysia.

Wonder if we'll see a 50th Anniversary Commemorative Coin?

Mum's Surgery

Mum's minor surgery, to remove a lump from the underside of her thigh. Pictured above the before and after.

Doctor assured that the lump's not malignant, and nothing to be concerned about. Guess I can breathe a little easier, since I've got one too on my heel.

Green Earth!

Phew, the weather tonight really signifies an urgent need for us to start healing Mother Earth. The air's so stuffy, there's hardly any movements of air, let alone breeze of any kind. Needless to say, everyone's now nicely tucked in bed, in a air conditioned room. Which means every household is now releasing pockets of heated air into the atmosphere.

Mother Earth needs help. She needs to be cooled, as much as we do. Her icecaps are disappearing one by one, her sweats are pooling faster and faster each day, she's feeling all hot, stuffy and sweaty now. Like us, she longs for the day when she could bathe in cool icy water, and washes away all the dirt, grime, soot, trash and creepy crawly humans... guess what happens to us then?

Are we going to let her hit the Reset button? Are we going to let civilisation end, or like many of the futuristic movies, we mechanize Mother Earth to sustain more life, at the cost of hers?

Is our future made up of bright sunshine, lush green rolling hills, dews on leaves, birds chirping?

Or is it a dusty landscape, of cracked columns of dried mud, land so heated that it seems to sway in the distance, and piles, and piles, and piles of sun-scorched bones?

I don't want to live that long to witness that day. I want this to last. I'm doing my bit to help her. Smart waste disposal, less energy consumed, smile more, hate less...

What about you?

Happy Birthday, Sam

Hey friend.

5 whole years have passed us by, leaving us only sporadic glimpses into each other's lives. I've not celebrated your birthday with you these past years, knowing that we'll not meet in many ways.

Nonetheless, I still remember.

Happy Birthday to you.
May this day bring you more charms, joys, and wishes come true.
May you move forward fast and far, bringing you closer to your dreams.

Best wishes, from a friend.

Hospitals are so depressing..

I was visitting a friend at a hospital today. That place really depressed me. I was there for a short hour, and I've seen enough of patients shuffling around the ward, nurses scrambling around, rascal kiddies treating the wards like a playground... You get the picture.

This place is really depressing.

I'd say of the 12 storeys built up, you'll find one dedicated to births, and the rest in deaths.

Plus, a whole parking lot of Mercedes, BMWs (I saw a 6 Series there!), SUVs, Camrys...

And a 15 minutes ops plus observation will hit your pockets by almost RM1k! And it's not even overnight. And all they serve is a plain styrofoam cup of bland Milo.

This place is so depressing.

Gosh, next time wanna die, die elsewhere la.

Entering a hospital, it's like entering the living room of the Grim Reaper (or the Income Tax office, ready to squeeze every last cent out of the people there). All will to live goes out the window.

Local Fruit

This is a local fruit, known by different names. It’s mostly available only during the Durian season.
In the local dialect, it’s called Buah Binjai, or Buah Kemang. In the Hokkien dialect, it’s pronounced as “GuLamPa” (in reference to a bull’s bodypart).
The smaller fruit on the left is the sour variant, while the longer fruit is sweet.

One key identifier of this fruit is it’s pungent fragrant, much stronger than Durians, or Quini (variant of mango). Most of the time, people steer far away from it, as the scent could be quite overpowering. Needless to say, a delicacy that appeals to a niche group.

Baby Seafood Restaurant, Klang

Steamed fish on charcoal heated steel plate, Thai-Style

Bowl of Spicy Tom Yam soup, to be added to the fish dish continuously

Pandan leaf-wrapped chicken, Lemon Grass spice

Mantis prawn, fried in oats

Beef stock Pork Ribs (Marmite)

This restaurant is located along a main road, leading towards West Port, Klang. It can be reached by taking the PLUS Highway, exit at Bukit Raja, and enter the next toll booth towards West Port. Restaurant is located on left side of road, couple of doors away from a 7-11 Convenience Store.

Best landmark is the Batu Belah National School.

The chefs are Chinese of Thai origin, hence the unique chinese cooking style that orients towards Thai.

Dish on every table, the Fish on Charcoal Heated Steel Plate.
Mind you, they place a pot of burning coals on your table, with the partially cooked fish on a steel plate above. You keep adding the soup/stock, the fish keeps cooking, while you savour the spicy soup.

Invitation to participate in the Starbucks Azuki Contest

Thank you to Terence for the invite.

Happy Father's Day!

Daddy, Happy Father's Day to you.

We know celebrating means good food, good drinks.

Cheers!

The dishes that we had:

1. Pot of steamed seafood.
2. Stock from steamed seafood mixed with vegetables
3. Soft white tofu with eggs (simple, but really yummy)
4. Roasted milk lamb ribs
5. Braised Pork
6. Salt-baked Talapia

Office Security

Meet my new Office Security Guard.

Currently unnamed, since I've yet to figure out how to determine the gender. Anyway, poor fella's definitely lonely, as the partner floated this morning, and was flushed to the nearest sewage tank.

Condolences...

My sincere condolences, for the passing on of Collie, a very good natured friend and companion. He's had a good, fulfilling life; sheltered, loved, cared, fed...

It's unfortunate that he moved on due to Kidney Failure. That's a lesson learnt. Cut down on those KFCs!

Aaargh!

I really really am fed up with these people. What's wrong with a little pro-activeness? What's wrong with putting in efforts to go FIND OUT things that they are unsure of?

Does "I DON'T KNOW" mean I do not need to do anything about it?

Am I to spoon feed every single darn thing to them for work to get done? What're they here for then???

I know, I know, with great powers, comes great responsibility. Shit! I'm a Branch Manager, not Spiderman!

Sheesh.... what a lousy morning.

Breakfast at Starbucks...

Ahhh... a truly nice Sunday, all the time to myself, to rant, to rave, to while away without a care... almost.

Family's all out of town. JD's peacefully asleep, keeping a half open eye on the house. Lindy's lazing away at her mom's. All business taken care off.... finally, time to myself.


Now, what the topic of the day? I've just gotten myself a new pair of Hush Puppies with the $100 voucher I redeemed from my Citibank Card (got rid of the card too....). A shoe a year, that's not too bad. B'sides, it's more of a rare thing for me, to shop for clothes. (Come to think of it, that's quite a nerd in me...)

It's interesting to sit here and observe the crowd. By here, I meant Starbucks, Sunway. I like their name. It's dollars and stars. Sure attracts the right crowd. Oddly, at 11.00am, the patrons here are mostly families having a late breakfast, or individuals online, doing goodness knows what.

Crowd starts piling in.


Today's special, Azuki Frappucino. What's Azuki anyway? Sure sounds like an odd name for coffee beans.

Omigosh... 'cording to Wikipedia, Azuki (aka Adzuki or 小豆) is indeed a form of coffee bean common to East Asia and Himalaya. Azuki is a translation of the native Japanese name, meaning "small bean".

Duh! That's creative...


Anyone seen Pirates? I did.

Not too bad, though nothing impressive to make it memorable too. Perhaps the boxoffice was an influence of Kiera Knightley, Johnny Depp, and Chow Yun Fatt.


I was chatting with KH last night; topic veered to SLR cameras. I've had quite a few friends who uses a SLR to satisfy their creative needs, myself included. The difference, I grew up with a film unit, by Pentax. It was my dad's, and I believe it's referred to as the K series.

Seriously, anyone opting for a SLR, be it digital or otherwise, ought to consider carefully the uses and requirements first. Whilst there's no doubt that the unit carries a considerable optic range, good macro capabilities... there's also the all-time question of how much of the features are used by the casual photographer?

How many can truly say they experimented with the use of aperture and shutter speed? Do you know there's some very unique picture effects that can be achieved by manipulating these features? Try it. You'll realise a SLR can do wonders, which a compact can't. But You gotta learn to use it.

Me, I'm going back to basics. Thus you'll notice my intentions and research on the Canon Ixus series. Perhaps, when the day arrives that I do travel freely, freely as in clothes on my back, camera in my hand, I'll relook at a SLR.

Decisions, decisions

Canon Ixus 850IS

• In Singapore, it's $649 (RM1457), with 2Gb card, 7.1MegaPix, Wide Angle lense, Camera case
  
• In Malaysia, it's RM1499, with 2Gb card, 7.1MegaPix, Wide Angle lense, Camera case, Tripod, 12months installment without interest.

Canon Ixus 950IS

• In Singapore, it's $649 (RM1457), with 2Gb card, 8.0MegaPix, Normal lense, Camera case
  
• Yet to be sold in Malaysia

I've tested the Ixus 75. That won't do for me. It's too light, and feels horribly plasticky. Wait for another price drop, perhaps?

Judgement!

Yeap, I got my judgement, for being a non-stop eating machine. I received my blood screen report today. Boy, what an eye opener. Nothing like numbers in writing to get the message hit home.

I've got cholesterol issues. I'm 233mg/dl, against an ideal of 200mg/dl. Borderline is 220mg/dl. This is expected, seeing the fact that I've been consuming outdoor food 80% of the time. But then again, can't blame that factor. I chooses the type of food to eat. Sheesh.... time to cut down on lotsa stuffs.

The big No No for me:

1. Quail's Egg
2. Egg Yolk
3. Cuttle Fish
4. Squid
5. Cream
6. Clam
7. Crab

Erk! Somebody shoot me please. There goes the joy of eating.

Changes to be made..

Change again. We evolve. That's what humans do. And by that, our thoughts change too. Something that we can believe in today, may be wholly unacceptable the next.

I see change everyday. One moment good, the next ugly. People change. People who sways to live up to the moment. People who makes it a point to sway to favours.

What do you do when it happens to you? How would your treat your alliance, who decides to play against you? Let today begone, and move on? Do we seek the blood to repay the thirst of vengeance? Do we live again like the amicable sheeps being herded?

What would it be like, had people been born honest and trustworthy? We'll never know, would we?

JD's annual jab

We took JD for his annual jab yesterday, at the Healing Rooms, SS17 Subang Jaya.
It's a first for us (JD normally gets his jabs at Mayo Clinic, in USJ).

After our experience, I'd recommend Mayo, over the Healing Rooms. Dr Sylvia has a better approach to calming JD's nerves. Besides, the smell in Healing Rooms is horrendous. I really wonder if they actually practise good housekeeping in that place.

This blew of off RM170, for his vaccination and annual heart-worm protection jab. Ouch!

Congratulations to Wee Lian & Chia Yee

Hey Wee Lian & Chia Yee, our heartiest congratulations to you, may this part of your united journey be one of excitement, fulfilling and perfect always.

Love,
Eugene and Lindy.

Canon Ixus 75

Canon Ixus 75

I've changed my mind. Scratch the Ixus 850IS. After all, the specs are not that very different. Better to put the savings I get to better use, like the O2 Atom Life. Phew, what a dreamer, that one.

I'm going to get the Ixus 75. It's 7.1M, 130g, supports SDHC, and has 1/1500 second shutter speed. Good enough. I should be able to get good pics from this compact.

O2 Atom Life ~ The Centre of Your World

Yeah, baby! The Atom Life, now retailling at RM3,380 (gulps!). It's got the fastest onboard processor amongst PDA phones, stereo sound, 3G, HSPDA.

Another slow slow week day..

Huuuuarghhh.....

It is another slow slow week day. Temperature outside is hitting close to 40C, with slight winds rustling the leaves. Temperature inside no better.

I've just reviewed thru 63 resumes, all online. What a nightmare... strangely enough, there's so many people out there looking for work. Must prepare for another influx of fresh graduates. Unfortunately, the choices out there are too slim for picking.

So what if the number of places per university had increased? Seems till now, they've still not managed to do much character-building in the future generation. No, scratch that. I should say, they merely reached a handful of minorities, where people development are concerned.

How would you feel, as an interviewer, when a candidate walks in late, couldn't understand english, couldn't understand questions aaaaannnd... allows his legs to twitch throughout the whole interview?

They don't bother to check up on the Company, don't even know what industry they are applying to, and have the cheek to ask for a four digit pay!

Or perhaps, I've been meeting local candidates. Yes, that could be it. Poor sods never had the exposure of professionalism. Didn't know what is called sophistication. The old adage sticks - Katak bawah tempurung.

Scour the web, see the world...

It's lunch break.
With not much else to do, besides munch on carbs, I decided it'll be good to scour the world wide web, and see what's happening.

First place to start - Other blogs.
I'm surprised to find stuffs I'd never expect to see, just by clicking "Next Blog" again and again...
Found a site about a trans-sex living in Manila... then another site popped up about a same-gender loving brother... then site about comics... then site about American Idols... then site about hot chicks online :o !...

Come to think of it, whatever it is that they blog about, it's basically their life. Their interests. No wonder today's daily claimed that political bloggers can write all they want, the number of readers are still small to have much impact. The phrase was "bloggers write for other bloggers to read".

Meaning, only bloggers read my posts. Only friends who knows I've got a blog would pop in occasionally to see what I'm up to, that is, if they're interested to know. Or sometimes, they'll pop in after being reminded to pop in... hah! Pop away!



I've been re-reading my very thick copy of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, in preparation of the launch of The Deathly Hallows.

Speaking of Hallows, I was arguing with a buddy who runs a bookstore, that there was a typo error in his advertising. I told him there was no such word as Hallows. Needless to say, he dragged me over to the dictionary section, and we started combing tomes after tomes of dictionary. True enough, only one had the word. And it's equally as unclear.... So to Ask Oxford I turn.

hallow
/halo/
• verb 1 make holy; consecrate. 2 honour as holy. 3 hallowed greatly revered.
• noun archaic a saint or holy person.
— ORIGIN Old English, related to HOLY.

Hah... the amazing language of English. Another new word, which I doubt any of us would be using it much. Can't expect us to go round hallowing stuffs and people, rite?

Lobster dinner

One good thing that came out of the KK trip.

My parents brought back 4 fresh, succulent lobters.

Picture above shows the meal that we made:

1. Cheese baked lobster
2. Lamb in mint sauce
3. Leftover turkey thigh - baked
4. Wild mushroom + yellow corn soup (we mixed both)
5. Hydroponic salad - crispy... yum...
6. Fried potato skins with salsa sauce
7. Mashed potatoes with yellow corn
8. Garlic bread
9. Pecan, Walnut and Plum pie from Strudels

Excessive. I know. For 6 people, this is mad. Besides, there's 2 bottles of wine (I must recommend the Lehmann, 2002, mixture of 3 grapes)

Worst thing is, I'm to go for my annual blood test coming Wednesday. Those Lobster roe is definitely gonna shoot my cholesterol off the roof!

Ahhh... yum!

Gunung Tahan, anyone?

Speaking of hikes and treks, I've been informed of organised treks up Mt.Tahan, the earliest is in August.

Out of curiosity, are there friends out there who would like to make up a group for this trek? Normally, a group of 10 would be ideal, as the whole trek/camp would take up 4 days. There's plenty to carry, the walk is tough, the fun factor is high.

I'm keen. Anyone else?

Bummer...

What a bummer..

My parents are climbing Mt. Kota Kinabalu, the highest peak in Malaysia, this morning. I just got news that mother is felt dizzy, cold and her legs hurt. She's staying put at Laban Rata. She's not going to complete the climb to the summit.

Dad went ahead. Halfway up the summit, he dropped the torch. As usual, he trodded on, and tripped. Hurt his legs. Said it felt weak. And so, he turned back.
Good thing he's safe. Those cliffs are too dark for trekking without light. And one wrong step....

Right now, they're both headed back to base, enroute to KK town for a good rest. They'll need to nurse their injuries, sooth the pain. I know most definitely, they're disappointed for not reaching the summit. Nevermind. What's important is that they went up. Halfway, is better than nowhere. I've seen too many younger ones, who shudder at the thought. This is where guts and bravery comes from.

I've been there. Sis had been there. It was indeed very challenging to get to the top. But I had expected dad to be able to make it. After all, he spent an hour daily at the gym. For a 59ner, he's definitely fitter than I. If only he had listened and secured the torch to his arm.

I've been thinking since then. Perhaps, next year we climb as a family. We'll lookout for each other. Try to make the summit together. Right then. 12 months of preparation work. I better go get a medical check. Will my knee hold up for the climb?

CYoong's been there. Heard his toe is still black till now. Is he going to amputate it? But I know he'll say, it's worth it. We're not Everest material. Yeap, we're too soft for that. But for a softy, we've got the guts to go at it. It runs deep in our blood.

Bungee jump, anyone?

Invitation to Stuff 3rd Anniversary @ Zouk

Hey'all!

I've got an invite for two, to Stuff's 3rd Anniversary Party at Zouk, 18th May, 9pm.

Anyone interested to go catch "...a few hot bodies...up close and personal with some beautiful models....catch the eye of our gorgeous cover girls...." drop me a message and I'll have it couriered.

Hurry!

Joys of achievement

Ever shared in the joy of another person's success?

Today, a sales consultant of mine walked into my room, with red eyes, and the first thing she said was,

"Give me a hug"

I was naturally concerned, and wondered what happened to her. We hugged. She sat down, and blurted,

"I did it! I closed the first breakthrough sale of our new product in Melaka".

Ahh, tears of achievement. That explains it. I'm happy for her. I believe, in the 3 years that she had slogged in my team, this is the greatest achievement for her. Not only did she successfully penetrated the market, she had managed to get the product placed in a high profile residence, and at the same time achieved her highest sales record for May in Melaka.

Way to go, Fiona. Now you just keep up the momentum, and it's guaranteed that you will see your efforts bear fruit.

No one, other than herself and I, would understand the hardships that she had gone through to get this far. She saw her biggest career growth in her 10 years of employment, through me. She had to bear the harsh words, silence and ignorance by the top, all the whilst believing in herself and pushing harder.

Now, success.

It's momentary. It's for the day, the month. But she got it right. Now to keep going. To go where they had wanted her to go, but gave up. She must make it there.

"Ut sementem feceris ita metes" - As you sow, so will you reap

Sale! Sale! Sale!

To the Sales Addicts out there.... Yoo hoo!
Here's something you'll like - The Great Singapore Sale 2007
It's on from 25th May to 22nd July.

Thanks, Fabian for the tip.

Oh, and while I'm at it, here's the website to Uniquely Singapore.

New Word - Photonut

I learnt a new word today, courtesy of Fabian.

Photonut

Definition:

• Wikipedia - none
• Fabian - people who're passionate about photography
• WWW - generally refers to Photo Nut, ie photographs of nuts; and websites

So what.
I like it. From now on, Fabian, PohChin, MayChean, CheeWee & CheeYoong are officially Photonuts! Hahahaha.....

Anyone looking for work?

Anyone looking for a HR position, based in Labuan?

I was asked to put word out. Can't reveal much, but the fact that it's a good International Company.

Interested parties please email me.

Japanese Teppanyaki, or some yaki....

Warm Sake served in warm water (Duh!)

Warm Sake anyone?

We visited this dainty little restaurant selling Japanese food last night. Second time here, after Valentine's.

Liked the place. It's owned by a lady who had spent much time in Japan. Speaks good Japanese (she converse with her mostly Jap clientele in Jap), pleasant. Even have lots of novels and magazines from Japan.

Food's a little costly, by local standards. A light meal could come to RM50 for two, with 2 set dishes and a vege. That's minus the Sake too.

Oh, I was told Sake's good for health. Don't know how true it is, but I must say warm alcohol is certainly refreshing. It's actually rice wine, thus the taste needs some getting used to. In fact, I was perspiring by the 3rd cup (warm alcohol=blood rush)

Strange people, strange happenings.

Do you meet lots of strange people around all the time?

Like the weird ones that snap at you for no apparent reasons, or the clingy ones that refuses to let go despite you asking nicely, again and again...

I've seen enough of such people. Some are really creepy (friend in reading would agree). More often than not, we'll try our best to avoid such people. Then again, you and I know avoiding problems doesn't solve them.

What can we do about them?

I'm home alone again..

Poor JD. Everytime we come back to Melaka, he spends the whole day alone at home. It's sad to see his excited face in the morning, thinking that it's time to go back to Subang. I know he misses home.

Well son, we'll be back this coming weekend. Hang on there for another 4 days. I'll get you some chicken treats to compensate.

Melaka Tree

Anyone not seen a Melaka Tree? Now I'm not certain if this is the one that Parameswara leaned against and founded Melaka.

However, I must say that it is indeed shady.

Visit Melaka

Over the weekend, my cousins dropped by Melaka for a food tour. As is part of the itinerary, I took them to visit the landmark of this historical place. And for those interested, the statue above is found on the hill behind the Stadhuys.

And that's my niece, Chloe with her proud parents.

Dungeon Siege 2: Broken World

What's this?

I believe many reading this blog would be wondering what nonsense I'm up to this time.

The past weekend, I've revisited my schooling days past time of computer gaming, upped a notch by setting up a local area network at home. And I proudly say, we've completed the expansion quest of Broken World, after a long hiatus from gaming.

To those who likes fantasy, 3rd party RPG, multiplayer cooperative gaming, Dungeon Siege II is indeed a captivating game, offering good challenges and exciting moments.

PaintBall

I went for a Paintball session recently, with my colleagues, on grounds of team-building (or stealing time from work, whichever way you want ot look at it).

Anyhow, it's my first experience at Paintball, after hearing and reading about it for so many times. Really, nothing comes close to trying it out in person.

The Equipment:

• Face Mask - a very important safety component. More often than not, the is one of the nicest target to go for.
• Marker - this is a term used for the "gun". I was told that it's called a Marker, and not a gun, to avoid the connotation with violence and legality. (We were advised to avoid wearing military camouflage as well, in case we're mistaken as a militia group training for the wrong reasons). You'll notice that in photographs from foreign websites, the camouflage make up part of the gameplan.
• Pellets - not bullets. It's filled with paint made of vegetable oil (edible).

The Rules:

• Everytime we enter the enclosure, it's Mask On! No matter for what reasons, be it to adjust the obstacles, retrieve items, walk past. Of course, it's more for personal safety.
• Marker safety must be ON, and the Barrel Stopper fitted. Again, safety reasons.
• At close range, NO shooting. Just tap with the marker barrel. (Now I must add that those pellets really hurt, even when hit from a distance 10 feet away)

We played the game 4 to a side, with the objective of capturing the opponent's flag. Then again, this being our first time, our intention lingers more towards the number of bruises we will leave on the opposition; not the victory of flag capture.

To add to the fun, the session was held in the woods, amidst a light drizzle. Needless to say, we ended up soaked, muddy and bruised.

Like excitement? Try Paintball. Ladies and Gents alike.

Dinner Ala HongKong TeaHouse

Lindy found a magazine recently, listing most of the common HK teahouse dishes that we find in the major chains... Cheese Baked Rice, Twin Sauce Pork Chop Rice, French Toast...

Needless to say, we jumped at the chance. Results, passable....

Fried Spaghetti

Borsch Soup (HK ABC soup)

Cheese Baked Seafood Fried Rice

French Toast, with Honey and Peanut Butter

Not bad, eh....

Heroes

Have anyone been following the Heroes series?

I've been following the first season on my notebook. Thank goodness for the world wide web. Now for the uninitiated, Heroes is all about people with unique abilities, due to some oddities in their brains which gave them the additional advantege over others.

Given a choice, what would you choose?

• Flight - the freedom of movement, speed and a most useful ability to have when we need to get far far away..
• Persuasion - the power of persuasion, getting people to do things they do not intend to..
• Telekinesis - reaching out with the brain to physically move objects..
• Bend time and space - controls time, moving forward, backward, or stopping it for good..
• Foresight - seeing the future, before it happens..
• Mind reading - hearing what others think..

I wonder how this world will be like, if some people are given this "gift".

Surviving in the Klang Valley

I received this from a friend, and posting it uneditted. Odd how people could survive under such circumstances..

In Malaysia, the average family income is RM3,000/month.
I understand there are many families whose monthly income does not reach RM3,000, but, to make things simple, let's take RM3,000 as the figure. Ok lah, right?
Okay, let's start rolling with a family which has Papa, Mama, 1 daughter and 1 son. Ngam-ngam ...

Calculation starts...
-Electricity and water bill:RM100 (No air-con, No home theatre, No water heater ...ok?)
-Phone bill (Mobile):RM100
-Meals for a happy family:RM775 (3 meals on RM25/day, RM25 for 4 persons...?)
-Papa makan teh-tarik during working hrs:RM155 (RM5/day, RM5 ... can eat what?)
-Car repayment:RM400 (A proton saga aeroback, 7 yrs repayment)
-Petrol (living in city, traffic-jam):RM300 (go to work, bring son to school, only can afford one car running)
-Insurance:RM650 (kids, wife and myself)
-House repayment:RM750 (low cost housing repayment for 30 yrs, retired still have to work to pay!)
-Tuition: RM80 (got that cheap meh? I don't think so)
-Older children pocket money @ school:RM20 (RM1/day, eat bread?)
-School fees:RM30 (enough ah?)
-School books and etc:RM100 (always got extra to pay in school)
-Younger children milk powder:RM50 (cannot have the DHA, BHA, PHA one, expensive)
-Miscellaneous:RM100 (shampoo, rice, sauce, toilet paper)

No medical fees, no cinema visits, no Astro education, no outing with expensive tolls and carparks, no extras for LRT and busses.

Now it's starting to ring true. Most Malaysians go thru life in debts. House debts, car debts, credit debts. It's no surprise that an honest survey will turn up more bankruptcies than reported.

Can someone enlighten me if the same is true elsewhere??

Register local bloggers

Here's the latest scoop.
The Govt wants M'sian-hosted bloggers to register, in a move to prevent malicious contents being published, causing harm to Nation Unity.
How is it that putting in an administrative obstacle can prevent malicious contents being published?
Register to instill Accountability?
Or should it be Educate to instill Accountability?
~What if the bloggers moved their sites out of the Country?
~No longer held accountable?
~Licensed to speak freely?
~Isn't the person who's blogging still on the same soil?

If preventing the wrong things being said is what this is all about, then get to the source.
~Why was it said?
~Is there a basis for discussion?
~Is there "dirt" for picking?
~Isn't people's interests piqued from sparks of unconformity that originated somewhere else?

Didn't we register car owners too? Did that prevent accidents, hit and runs?
Didn't we register business owners too? Where did those gambling dens come from?

Is REGISTERING people on a list, a SOLUTION?

Happy Birthday May Li

May Li! Welcome to ClubThirty!

Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to May Li,
Happy Birthday to you...

Ouch!

I tore my shoulder muscle. At least, that's what I was told by an experienced badminton player.
I've had this nagging sharp pain shooting up my right shoulder since last Monday, when I did a nature-defying smash. I had my right arm overhead, and took the smash on the left side of my head, which resulted in an odd "tearing" sensation.

The past one week, I've experienced the pain each time I reach for my wallet in my back pocket (pun intended). Also the same each time I scratch my posterior ;) or when I lift the arm overhead.

Serves me right, no? The pros train for hours each day, to execute that stunt perfectly, and there I go, a once-a-week wannabe, carrying a 35" waist, trying that stunt.

Ouch!

Horror!

Horror of horrors!

A pink-punching monstrosity, thanks to the oddball owners with a really weird sense of beauty.

I took this in Ipoh, on a really hot Saturday afternoon.

Oh, what a blow to the poor dog's esteem, being seen in public like that.

Congratulations to Kelvin & Cui Si

24th March, 2007
Kelvin Wong and Lai Cui Si's Wedding
Bukit Kinding Resort, Tg Rambutan
Ipoh, Perak.

Congratulations!

Food for thought

Ever wanted to check out an eatery and couldn't find it anywhere? I've been scouring the web for links to the usual sites. Am gonna put it up for any of you people who might find it useful.

Check out the foodsite links on the side bar.

Something different?

Changed the feel of my blog today. No more dark gloomy webpage.
Like it?

Also found another blogsite featuring lotsa lotsa jokes. Pay it a visit: E-Laughs. It's on my site's link. I find it refreshing to have entertainment such as this.

What productive thing have I done today?

Let's see. I woke up late, if you consider 9.30am over sleeping.
First things first, JD got his haircut. Finally he got back his cute, intelligent look. Prefers him this way.
Then it's shower time. JD, not mine.

I had lunch with Ma and Pa. Jo's back in Ipoh with her other half. Somehow, Manhattan Fish Market's loosing their touch. Not on the recommended list anymore, unless it's your first time.

Oh, I saw lots of Yellow men around the Digital Mall. It's their opening ceremony today. Found my PDA softwares in one of the shops there. Bummer thing, the program I wanted couldn't work. Had to settle for something else. Nonetheless, it's still entertaining. What the heck!

Right now, I'm at Friends' Cafe, blogging and surfing. Lindy's attending a friend's wedding reception. Ahh... peaceful weekend.

Missing in Action again

Of late, I've not been blogging as often as I should. Blame it on endless busy weekends, scarcity of Net connections wherever I go, and pure laziness.

No, wait. It's not laziness... I've been busy scouring the weekend papers for interesting vacancies. No wonder I've not been blogging.

Seriously, despite the endless pages of recruitment listings, I still can't find something I'm keen on. I did take a few looks at Project Management, and somehow, I don't think I know enough to get the job.

Logistics? Finance? Marketing? Sales? Programmers? Developers?
Nope, nope, nope.... sighhhhh

Isn't there any Company looking at new startups? Needs Functional Manager, to set, implement, execute, conceptualize, analyse, improve?

Harry Potter @ JW Marriott Putrajaya

We had our National Sales Conference recently. Yours truly was there as Harry Potter, minus the nerdy glasses.

That's CK, a good friend, dressed as I-dunnoe-what... but hey, it's Hollywood characters night. So there you are...