Turning 33

I've joined the repeating number club this year. The next one would be 10 years from now. So how does it feels to celebrate your 33th birthday? I felt that it was no better than the previous one and just hope to survive the next one.

For my birthday dinner treat, I have decided on Pizza Uno, having loads of great reviews from bloggers and forumers alike. A quick check on the internet for contact number and hey presto, I found out that they have recently open a new branch in Bandar Puteri Puchong. Surely that's a sign. Called up to make a reservation for a three person dinner party.

Finding the place is quite easy as its near my house, but finding an available parking space during prime dining time is another story. The decor was cozy and the setting provided just the right ambience for dining.

Dinner companions

Getting a big, wet one !

It's so good that I wouldn't want to share

The ice chocolate was NICE! A glassful of chilled milk with good serving of chocolate syrup, and a dollop of vanilla ice cream. It was so good that the boy wouldn't want to share it with us.

Appetiser - Crostini platter

Spagetthi marinara - Notice those big prawns? Yummy !

Primavera with prawns - fetuccini

Lemon Pana Cotta - complimentary from the house

Me scraping upto the last morsel of dessert - It was that good!

The portions of serving was more than enough for our Asian serving, and left uf full to the brim until the next thing that came to my mind is o sleep it off. By he way, no regrets about trying out this place, & since its near our place, would might be the next favorite to go for some good food.

The third eye

I for one believed that there are other 'beings' to co-exits with us humans, the ones that we could not see with our normal vision. But others have been 'blessed' (or cursed) with the ability to see the inexplicable beings. In adults it would be a very rare ability to have, but in children they seems to have been to detect the other beings presence easily.

Why broach this subject? Am I gonna be a volunteer on Seekers? Trying to film it on tape?

Nope, not close. The thing is that I believe during the weekend I have noticed two persons who might have experienced it. One is at a gathering when an acquaintance was talking then he suddenly quites down, eyes fixed on a spot and seem to be like 'out of this world'. He snapped out of it a few seconds later continue talking, albeit at a slower pace. He wouldn't want to disclose anything but I suspect that he saw 'something' but wouldn't want to disclose it maybe he doesn't want to alarm the host or the guests. I have talked to him before and he claimed to have experienced these things before, so I believed that he must have witnessed something.

The other incident was from my nephew, as he was having dinner at my house, he commented 'Banyaknya orang kat kipas Uncle Long tu." I asked him about it, "Adam nampak orang kat kipas tu ke?" He replied, " Adam nampak ramai orang kat kipas tu.." the adults at the table suddenly went quiet. We didn't want to pursue the subject any further, but I felt that he must have been telling the truth but the thing is that he is not alarmed about the sighting, continued eating his dinner.

Personally, I haven't experienced any sightings myself (and wouldn't want to) but have experienced some 'presence' previously, so I believe that these things truly exits.

All set & ready to go

Running Shoes - checked

Run T - shirts - checked

Run partner - checked (betul ke partner, nanti halway minta dokong camne?)

Fitness to run - dunno, maybe gained kgs after raya

What am I blabbering about ?

Check this out. Terry Fox Run KL 2007 .

For those who wants to help for cancer research, just register urself for the run. Venue and details on the link above.

C'mon guys, it's for a good cause plus you'll be getting some cardiovascular exercise. Plus gives you an excuse to get some rubdown from your nearest and dearest due to 'aches' from the run. Hehe...

Kampungmu ke kampungku?

Bestnya raya kat kampung ni ... Balik Kampung..

Ever since we got married, my mrs. & I have made arrangement for Eid, one year it would be on my side and another year it would be on her side. The arrangement has worked fine since, so this year we celebrated Eid in Pekan.

As I grow older & wiser (doesn't feel like it), I noticed that the Eid celebration feeling has lost some of its luster. As a kid, I would wait impatiently for raya coz that would be the time for collecting duit raya, trying on new clothes bought during Ramadhan, eating all the raya dishes and playing fireworks but as an adult the feeling is reversed as I am the one who's going to fork out the duit raya, buying the clothes and the preparation for it.

But wherever Eid is celebrated, the traditional dishes (Malaysian) would be similar albeit different tasting. For example, at my mrs.'s place, they are having ketupat but at my mum's, we'll be having lontong (this is the pure bona fide Javanese lontong) but the rest would be the same, rendang either beef or chicken, masak lodeh and sambal kacang.

Here's one I made earlier
( bangga tu dapat buat at least satu after 3 tries )

Lontong daun pisang & kuih lopes - hmm...food
( wonder how to shed those weight after indulging into these? )

Apart from the food differences, the environment is also different. At my mrs. her house would be the focal point of gathering as her grandmother is still around, but at my place we would go around to the elder relations during the first day.

But all in all, the spirit of Eid is still abound, irregardless of our geographical location as witnessed when celebrating here in Malaysia or even when I was abroad.

Eid Mubarak everyone.

Eid Mubarak

[ Image from here ]

First and foremost, I would like to wish all Muslims around the world Eid Mubarak. To those who sent us their greetings by card/emails/sms, we would like to wish the same to you back. Have a wonderful Eid, and those traveling have a safe journey.

Selamat Hari Raya
Maaf Zahir Batin

That's It... no escape for me anymore

The esc button on my laptop has fallen off today. Come to think about it, this is the second time that this laptop needs attention. The first time was to have the LCD changed after three months due to flickering images ... before any of you guys have any ideas...it's not porn ok... well... not most of the time...

Anyway, saw on telly the angkasawan launch just now. I gonna bet that there will be sleepless nights for some people on earth, probably dreaming of being mrs. angkasawan... hehe ... of a good chance of being datin angkasawan ...

Towards the end of Ramadhan

Pergh...now bila dah dekat nak hujung-hujung bulan puasa ni, makin tak lalu pulak nak sahur dan buka. Even the pasar ramadhan sellers have been dwindling noticeably as Eid is just around the corner. May I have the strength to finish this.....

Last Song Syndrome

Most of us have gotten the feeling before, the song that will be playing in our head would most likely comes from the last song that we heard, either in the car or the one on your portable music player. The same thing happened to me today, where this particular festive song has been playing on my cd player since 7 am nonstop-with-encores courtesy of The Boy.

Sudirman - Balik Kampung

Perjalanan jauh tak ku rasa
Kerna hati ku melonjak sama
Ingin berjumpa sanak saudara
Yang selalu bermain di mata

Nun menghijau gunung ladang dan rimba
Langit nan tinggi bertambah birunya
Deru angin turut sama berlagu
Semuanya bagaikan turut gembira

Balik kampung oh oh...( 3X )
Hati girang
Ho ho... Balik kampung (3X)
Hati girang

Terbayang wajah-wajah yang ku sayang
Satu-satu tersemat di kalbu
Pasti terubat rindu di hati
Menyambut kepulangan ku nanti
Perjalanan jauh tak ku rasa
Kerna hati ku melonjak sama
Ingin berjumpa sanak saudara
Yang selalu bermain di mata

Nun menghijau gunung ladang dan rimba
Langit nan tinggi bertambah birunya
Deru angin turut sama berlagu
Semuanya bagaikan turut gembira

Balik kampung oh oh...( 3X )
Hati girang
Ho ho... Balik kampung (3X)
Hati girang

Terbayang wajah-wajah yang ku sayang
Satu-satu tersemat di kalbu
Pasti terubat rindu di hati

Menyambut kepulangan ku nanti

Mechanical Failure week

Got a bit of a withdrawal symptom now. My 'equipment of torture' as been rendered unusable and the technical support cavalry will come and look into it tomorrow. Man, this is the second time in about six months into the ownership that it given me problems. Gonna wait for what's the verdict tomorrow, if it's the same one as the previous one, I'll consider writing in to them for a change. I mean, it's either design flaw or shortcoming in material used for the same fault to recur again.

On that note, a few of my toys are also out of service and to top that off, my car had a flat. So the old adage does come true, when it rains it pours. Just like the Japan F1 at Fuji today.

ps.. someone had a craving for a classic ploughman sandwich, hehe ... also for a pure, unsweetened ice blended watermelon juice....all home made, mind you...

SMS Our Angkasawan

I saw the headline today and it got me thinking, is it going to be like the popular 'reality-tv' show where they put up the 2 competing astronauts and decide to leave the election process to the masses instead of professional space trained personnel. Only after reading it I saw that this was a ploy for the monopoly satellite broadcaster way of milking extra moolah out of their customer.

But, lets say in Bizzaro world and this do comes true, then I think our "Raja SMS" ould surely beat all other contestant hands down. Some people just worship the ground he walked on and would blindly sms their vote to him.

As for me, the money spent on this angkasawan thingy could have been better utilized. Granted that it was part payment of our export, but so much could have been done with it. But that was just me.

ps. I know of at least one person who would SMS the angkasawan... hehe ... you know who you are ....

State of Indefference

Have we turned into a nation of apathy? How many reports in the news hat we have heard about people who needs help in the middle of a crowd but none of them actually lend a helping hand? We would crowd and slowed upon an accident or even a snatch case but none of us would actually administer first aid or even calling the emergency services.

I had similar encounters before, the latest last weekend. I was window shopping when among the crowd of people when I heard "Tangkap, tangkap!" and saw a man with a helmet being chased by another guy. Nobody even bother to stop the guy until a good samaritan just held the man running away and threw him against the wall and pinned him before the one chasing him caught up and whisked him away. The crowd that has parted suddenly gather around to watch the drama.

If I were closer to the guy running away, I would also be in the position of not knowing what to do. But I wasn't anywhere around him and fall into the 'guilty' category. Now, where are Spiderman when you need him eh?

So Proud Of You Son!

Aiman did something that I thought he could do today. Something that everyone at home tought that he did not have the endurance to do. After a few days of puasa setengah hari, he finally did manage to finish the whole day today. One whole day!!! OK, we had to give in to a lot of his demands just for him to continue with his fasting, but in the end he kept his word.

We're so proud of you son!

Glorified Coffee/Copy Boy

Due to my company's new policy, certain type of meetings especially dealing with tenders, the job that used to be run by us the menial boys are officially delegated to the upper echelon of the management but get this, the paperwork is still done by us.

So in order not to violate this, our presence in the meeting is not minuted and if anyone asked, we are there to do the coffees and happened to be subject matter expert in the area of discussion. Oh and due to Ramadhan, the term can be interchangeable with copy. So we were asked to commit our presence and time, but could not officially appear in any documentation. So its like a loop hole.



ps.

Alfatihah to a colleague who lost a daughter yesterday and also to Nurin Jazlin Jazimin.

Shakedown on the 1st Day of Ramadhan

First day of Ramadhan & I felt my body shaking at 7.50 am today. In my mind, "Eh, first day of puasa, not even yet 4 hours into it I have suffered from low blood sugar?"

Turns out to be the tremors from the afterquake that hit Sumatra earlier during the night. Now I really felt the earth moving under my feet. The next questin is going to be, was it as good for you as it was for me? ;-) -

Ramadhan Mubarak

Selamat menyambut kedatangan bulan Ramadhan kepada Muslimin & Muslimah dimana sahaja anda berada. Semoga amalan kita diterimaNya.

CNN...this blog is not...

Sometimes I might get stumped on what to write,
Thinking about it day and night,
Sometimes I can't find anything interesting to share,
As I can't seem to find any ideas anywhere.

Sometimes my life is just plodding along,
Shades of gray between what's right or wrong,
Sometimes I can just be a bore,
And at times I wanted to be much more.

So if you thinking of finding updates after updates, all done in a timely manner, then you would be better off, searching for it elsewhere...

Signs that you have arrived...or not...

Was going through my mails and through the sea of bills and spam there was one surprise : an RSVP to test drive a brand new 2007 E90 BMW 5 series. I turned the envelope front and back just to see whether they've sent it to the right person. Did they know something that I don't? Like I'm due for some windfall in the near future that I would even consider trading up to it. Or maybe they've found some money that someone with similar name as me have stashed away. But this wasn't the first time that they sent it to me. The first one was to test drive the new X5.

Why does the 3 pointed star never sent me a invite for test drive? Granted that I'm driving a 9 y.o. model, but the way the propeller signs are working their marketing, time for a change? The dark force is strong on this one....

The Long Weekend

First and Foremost,

Selamat Menyambut Hari kemerdekaan yang ke 50, Malaysia!

Went back to kampung on Merdeka day, been about 4 months since we were last back. The drive east was uneventful, not a lot of traffic or any hidden policeman trying to catch you in the act of exceeding the speed limit. Got there around 5pm, sempat singgah pekan sari lagi for fixes that couldn't be found in KL.

The boy was excited and when we got there, straightaway he wanted to get on his bike, (yes, we brought his bike back due to his request).

The next day they're were having some kenduri for one of the mrs. cousins who's getting engaged and the order of the day was to slaughter 7 chickens. These were not the run-off-the-mill poultry, these are the free range (ayam kampung) of the Isreali breed, means that they're easily 1.5X bigger than the local variety. Me had the task of holding them still for the slaughter and the cleaning afterwards and I would say that this went better than my last venture. I looked like the butcher of Pekan after it ended. Sorry folks, no pics as wouldn't want to upset PETA or something, suffice to say that cleaning them up by the river was a new experience to me.

Also in season was rambutans and the dragon fruits (white variety). Had loads of them and managed to whisked some home. Those homegrown dragon fruits are much more nicer & sweeter than store bought ones...now thinking of ways to grow my own ..

Being back in kampung did provide me with some sort of break from my normal routine ( meaning that I could sleep & eat & sleep to my content without the mrs. bising-bising...hehe) also being away from the hustle and bustle of the city ...

Next schedule back is during the Eid ....

Of Premium & Ordinary

How many of us are normally suckered into the word special - special offer, mee goreng special, burger special, special treatment - anything for them to get us into forking some premium over the ordinary stuff. I mean, a normal burger is RM2.00 but a special one is additional 50 cents.

For me, its OK if the premium paid was worth the difference, I mean from a plain old mee goreng, but with some extra ingredient it will transform into finger or fork licking good, so good that you need to have a second helping of a second helping, but what if when you have paid the premium then it taste the same as the 'normal' ones?

That happened to me last weekend. All the usual haunts were closed during dinner, so had to order dinner from the 'premium' diners/cafe in my area. What I meant by premium is that they serve the same food albeit at a higher price, up to double than the normal haunts. Granted that they do have a more posh outlook & premise, but food is food. Its not like we are ordering any cordon blue/fusion cooking, just the old plain dishes but the prices are tremendously high. Its ok if we having it in, but as a takeaway? A bit steep innit?

On another note, my watch battery almost died on me, displaying the 5-second jump since last week. So off to the shop where I bought it from for a battery change. Premium brand watch, premium battery change right? I don't mind paying for it but what got me was that the old battery was already leaking and could cause potential damage to my watch. I mean, for f**k's sake, buy a premium brand put la premium parts in it, not charging your customer and arm and a leg but outsource for the cheapest parts that you could find?

In the end, the bottom line is the profit & loss without the regard of perceived value of service or goods that the customer gets by patronizing or buying the products. Caveat Emptor!

Firework Extravaganza

With the school holidays and nothing planned to keep The Boy occupied, I decided to take him to the Malaysian International Firework Competition in Putrajaya. Set out from our house at 9 pm coz knew that it would be jammed packed with cars, especially when nearing the venue. It's held near PICC and true enough, we just beaten the rush as the traffic flow was quite light but with people stopping at anywhere they fancy, it constricts the traffic flow. The Boy wanted to go in the fun-fair where they had rides, so being a spoiling dad I obliged.

The thing that got me was that you have to pay for entrance at RM5/3 (adult/child) and then have to purchase tokens for rides min 2 tokens/person/ride @ RM 3/token. See how they milk money out of you? Preying on guilt that most parents have for not spending quite enough time with their offspring and have to make up by spending on them....(guilty as charged).

The firework starts at 10pm, with all the lights at the funfair plus the surrounding area being turned off. I didn't manage to get any good shot with my IXUS 55 plus haven't got a decent tripod to prop it. So the photos were taken mostly by The Boy, thinking that he could be a budding photographer in the future.

But managed to get some clip about it, as per below :

Transformer Quiz

Got this from screwboy's blog.

I AM
69%
BUMBLEBEETake the Transformers Quiz

Bumblebee

As an Autobot spy, Bumblebee is the ultimate robot in disguise. What he lacks in size and strength, he makes up for with courage. He enjoys the company of humans and would do anything for his Earthly friends.

Like Bumblebee, you are compassionate and your heart is pure. You want to be a leader and show some promise, but you have much to learn. In addition, you use technology when you need to, but you do not embrace the latest trends.

Feeling a bit melancholic ...

Her green plastic watering can
For her fake chinese rubber plant
In fake plastic earth.
That she bought from a rubber man
In a town full of rubber plants
Just to get rid of itself.
And it wears her out, it wears her out
It wears her out, it wears her out.

She lives with a broken man
A cracked polystyrene man
Who just crumbles and burns.
He used to do surgery
For girls in the eighties
But gravity always wins.
And it wears him out, it wears him out
It wears him out, it wears him out.

She looks like the real thing
She tastes like the real thing
My fake plastic love.
But I cant help the feeling
I could blow through the ceiling
If I just turn and run
And it wears me out, it wears me out
It wears me out, it wears me out.

And if I could be who you wanted
If I could be who you wanted,
All the time, all the time, ohhh... ohh...

How about this for a change

I have been wanting to post about the issue brought by the petrol station operator association with regards to the opening time of their petrol kiosk but somehow couldn't find the time to do it.

What I would propose is something similar to the above picture, where I saw during the course on my travels. The above petrol kiosk has no cashier or the usual shop, all the transaction was done through credit / debit card at the pump. No pump attendant, no issue about security, lower operating costs. Just four pumps, a forecourt and 24 hours operation. How about that for a change?

True, not all have access to credit cards, but in urban areas I would think most of us have at least one. With somewhat aggressive recruiting campaign that some credit card companies are employing, most of us would safely have at least one credit card in our name. Hence the solution could be given consideration.

One Doggy To Go

Had been ordering the same menu as the place where I always stop by for dinner up to the point that they know it by heart. But that wasn't the thing that caught me, it was the way that the order was relayed to the kitchen, ".. and plus one doggy to go.."

In my not so 'clean' mind and because the order comes from a girl, it sounded so nudge, nudge, wink, wink...hehe...maybe it was just me.... maybe this is what she meant ...

[ Image from here ]

As useful as a chocolate teapot

That's what I felt today. Didn't manage to get a sound sleep, what with the temperature & my car alarm blaring away very half an hour in the wee hours of the morning. Went to see the GP, being prescribed rest to let me recuperate.

The boy was not feeling well in school so I had to pick him up, not after he shot his class photos. Then off to the gynae for a checkup, and the baby is developing well. We could see a pronounced set of limbs now, and from the look of it he/she (hopefully its a girl) is going to be a lanky one.

After getting back from the checkup, fatigue sets in and I slept, and said something that I shouldn't...I'm sorry about it......

Should be better tomorrow & functioning as I should....

My Simpsons Avatar

Ada macam tak?

Temperatures Rising

I knew that it was coming, the impending signs are there, stiff joints and pains, raising core temperature, stuffy nose tract & eyes. So time to starve a fever, feed a cold?

That wasn't the only contributing factor to my rising temperature. On the way back today, near a petrol kiosk at my place, the left lanes were clear, indicators to turn left into the petrol kiosk on, rear view mirror clear, side mirror clear, initiating maneuver only to hear metal on metal crunching sound. Apparently a di*khead motorcyclist decides to swerve onto my left from my right despite me giving indication that I'm turning left. Now I'm left with a dent on the rear passenger door. His defense, none cause it was clear he was in the fault as witness by most. He meekly said that it was a small dent and he was hurt in the process. Serves you right, PDD 68 and what goes around comes around.

This is the second time this year I was hit by a motorcyclist. I don't want it to escalate into the third time, where it could inflict more injury to the rider. Loss of life is not something I would wish for, but at the moment of heat and anger, it was the only thing that seems to flow out of my mind. Rant over, calm under medication.....

Thinning Crowning Glory

During a weeding reception, had some remarks wrt to the condition of my thinning hair, from close relations. Usual reasons cited, stress at work, exposure to swimming & chlorine, etc... until someone pointed out that I've been swimming in the wrong gene pool.

Ouch...yela mana nak tumpah kuah kalau tak ke nasi....but my brothers did not show any signs of thinning pulak. Seems to me that they got the lucky draw on that as for me, I'm grateful with what I have, thinning & all.

Now where did I threw away the Yun Nam leaflet? ....

ps. One another note, I would like to clear the air about longan & mata kucing, as per highlighted here.

Blast from the past

Supergrass - Alright



We are young, we run green,
Keep our teeth, nice and clean,
See our friends, see the sights, feel alright,
We wake up, we go out, smoke a fag,
Put it out, see our friends,
See the sights, feel alright,

Are we like you?
I can't be sure,
Of the scene, as she turns,
We are strange in our worlds,

But we are young, we get by,
Can't go mad, ain't got time,
Sleep around, if we like,
But we're alright,
Got some cash, bought some wheels,
Took it out, 'cross the fields,
Lost control, hit a wall,
But we're alright,

Are we like you,
I can't be sure,
Of the scene, as she turns,
We are strange in our worlds,

But we are young, we run green,
Keep our teeth, nice and clean,
See our friends, see the sights, feel alright,

Are we like you,
I can't be sure,
Of the scene, as she turns,
We are strange in our world,

But we are young, we run green,
Keep our teeth, nice and clean,
See our friends, see the sights, feel alright.

Complete & Wholesome Again

The instrument of torture is complete & wholesome again! Wohoooo!!!! I'm also breaking in my new rubber/syiok absorption device...can't go the whole distance yet, 1/2 the distance with the same intensity for the first few sessions should do it.

After that, winding down with a pipping cup of Earl Grey, a pot of yogurt with JLH on the telly rounds up my day....

Why am I always hungry ?

Why am I always hungry? Why am I always hungry? Why am I always hungry? Why am I always hungry? Why am I always hungry? Why am I always hungry? Why am I always hungry? Why am I always hungry? Why am I always hungry? Why am I always hungry? Why am I always hungry?

It's not that I'm controlling my food intake gila-gila. In fact I've relaxed a bit about what I eat due the mrs. pregnancy. What I'm experiencing now is like whenever mealtimes are near, I MUST have food as soon as possible. When I'm full, I would get hunger pangs about an hour after mealtime. Then I need to have something again. Its like 'sympathetic' pregnancy syndrome but in reverse whereas The Mrs has lost her appetite and it went to me.

The Mrs. & The Boy told me that it looks like I've gained weight. But the weighing scale & measuring tape says otherwise. Could it all be only in my head? Hmmm...all I could think of now is food....glorious food...nothing but food...no wonder I'm always hungry...

Just Open Up & Say Ahhhh......

Sent The Boy for his dental checkup today. Never have I seen someone so enthusiastic to go to the dentist. In my case, I would conveniently forget about the appointment, even trying to hoodwink my parents. Not in this case. In fact, he was the one reminding me to take him to the dentist, " Dad, today's Saturday and you said that you are taking me to the dentist today dad"

So off we went to the dentist...he was not afraid or trying to talk his way out of it. In fact when our turn came, he walked and get on the chair willingly. I used to get my dad to promise me something after the trips like new toy or KFC, but he actually went on the chair on his own will....so unlike me or The Mrs....

So all he needs now is proper brushing to combat the caries formed, and if he feels that it hurts then another visit to the dentist is called for.

Happy 61st Birthday Dad!

The birthday boy & spouse with three masked partygoers - anak2 sape ni?

As usual, orang lain punya cake tapi orang lain yang tiup lilin....basah kek tu jadinye

My dad celebrated his 61st birthday on Tuesday. So we had a gathering for the family around my parents to celebrate the occasion. I got a cake for them, by that I meant that I paid for it. It was chosen by The Boy, based on aesthetics purely but apparently it turned out to be quite good.
Next time around there would be 5 candle blowers instead of the 3, lagilah havoc nanti....

Happy Birthday Abah!

Instrument of Torture

Imagine of loving and hating something at the same time. Its like :

• Thinking and planning for the session but not able to execute the whole plan
• Not able to be together yet unbearable to be apart
• Apprehension to meet but hating to leave
• Sessions that was tiring but leaving you like a million dollars afterwards
• Sweat dripping all over your body but felt re-energised after it
• Sessions that felt good but have to practice self restraint to prevent overexertion
• Pushing yourself to the limit but have to keep some reserve

Arghhhh…even thinking about it is killing me but due to the circumstances I would have to let it go…at least for the time being….it was ripped apart and parts of it taken away. ….Hopefully it can be better soon coz I kinda having withdrawal symptoms at the moment….oh how I miss those sessions…….

Decision Made

I've been looking for a portable MP3/MP4 player for a while. With so many choices in the market, although I have surveyed and asked around I can't still make up my mind about the kind of player that would suit my needs.

My requirements are :

• small enough to take with me for my running sessions
• could fit my (meagre) MP3 collections
• If possible the memory could be upgraded as I wouldn't want to be stuck with an obsolete product 6 months down the road
• has a 'cool' form factor
  

After searching high & low, I've decided that I would go for an MP4 player rather than an MP3 player just for the fact that I can actually play MP4 on it. I know that it would come in handy when traveling as trying watching it on my Treo would draw a reprimand from the stewardess although the phone is off.

Today I decided to goMP4 player hunting again and then stumbled upon this model. They didn't have one in black, which would be my preference hence I settle for the one in chrome. Granted that it's not branded ala IPOD, but at a fraction of the price, I couldn't care less. Itstill meets ny requirements.

Side by side comparison with Nokia 5330 & Treo 650

So please do not disturb me in the time being whilst I get intimate with my new toy...hehe

Loss of a Confidante

Imagine losing someone who made you feel at ease, never judge at what you do irregardless what you have done or thinking of doing, partner in crime, one you can trust and a confidante. Someone you trust with your life and vice versa. Someone who really knows what you thinking and understand you really well.

Well, I kinda lost someone in that category yesterday. It felt like losing a part of you and the worst part of it is that I don't know when the full impact is going to hit. Now I'm having sort of a withdrawal symptom. No more late night session, skiving & conference chatting thru IM ( maybe ni bleh lagi even though got time difference ) & phone calls & sms at ungodly hours.

To you-know-who-you-are (acheh, macam cite Harry Potter plak), good luck in your future undertaking and thanks for the companionship & experience together, something that I will cherish forever.

Well Laid Plans

Even the best laid and thought after plans could go pear shape due to Murphy's Law. I went on a business trip down south today and have arranged a designated driver for the mrs to get home from work. Plus Jools would be leaving this Friday so we have arranged to paint the town red tonite.

First thing in the morning, I was minding my way down the highway approaching a stretch under road widening project when I saw a figure hunched in the median. Thinking that it was some worker, I didn't slow down until I passed the figure only to realise that it was a speed trap. Smile, you're on my speed camera!

Whilst attending business, received call from the mrs. saying that she's not feeling well and need to have a lie down. Tried calling the designated driver for a change in pick up time, but to no avail. So her colleagues was kind enough to send her home. I managed to wrap up and speed back home.

About half an hour into the journey back up, some kind soul pointed out that something is wrong with my front driver's side tire. I pulled over to check it out and true enough, there was a puncture. Drove on a bit because I don't want to be swiped by an approaching vehicle whilst changing the tyre, I manage to find a layby. The changing of tyre wasn't that hard that I think I can auditioned for a pit crew in F1 next season only to find out that the spare is also flat. Fair enough, serves me right for not checking these out earlier.

Luck was still on my side since I saw there's a R&R with a petrol station about 2 km away. Driving slowly on the emergency lane I manage to reach the petrol kiosk and headed straight to the air & water pump. After setting the required pressure and reaching for the hose, I expected that the tyre would inflate with the familiar ting, ting, ting sound ...BUT it was quiet as a mouse. The pressure gauge did move but I didn't notice any air actually being pumped in...ARGHHHH!!!

Went to the counter and was told to follow some sequence since it was a digital gauge but I still couldn't get it to work. There I was, a grown man so close to tears, just wondering when lightning would come down & strike me to get me out of misery. Then I found out that the compressed air valve was in the off position. A quick turn of the valve sends a blast of air through the hose and boy was I grateful. I quickly inflated all the tyres to the right pressure and had a slow-ish drive back.

I was like being suspended in motion on the whole drive back because I was thinking that this only happens in movies. Anything that could go wrong did go wrong for me then but when I ponder it could have been worse. Like having the tyre blew up, or it was raining cats & dogs during it. I reached home exhausted that even the plan with Jools have to be put on hold. Oh well, might as well catch up with my HP7 then...

Reversal of Situation

There's two extremes at home now, one the mrs couldn't stand the sight and smell of food whilst me on the other hand have an insatiable appetite on anything edible. It used to be the other way around though, but with her being gravida, the situation reverses itself.

Perghhh...if this continue then all my effort to reach my optimum weight might be in vain...

On another note, The Boy had started to read Harry Potter 1, The Sorcerer's Stone, now at chapter 3. If I recall correctly, I wasn't reading anything except Gila-Gila at his age. This was brought on by the fact that everyone s reading something at the moment, maybe he wanted to join the club.

Oh well, if this continues we might have to sent him to Hogwart's soon......

Much ado over Potter

Got the book pre-ordered yesterday from one of the retailers who boycotted selling of the books by undercutting hypermarkets (read here). To me, nothing wrong with competition but Malaysians are so used to the protection of the RRP. Even amazon.com is offering it at $17.99, plus shipping would be lesser than Msian RRP.

The mrs. had finished reading it and wanted to be a spoilsport by giving me spoilers..but I have managed to resist...Now that the books is in my hands, I can take my time reading it...my verdict about the last installment of HP? watch this space...

Seminar in the Sky

Well, literally..had a seminar at the KL Tower for 3 days last week. It was rare that a seminar was organised there where as it would be normally held in hotels or our training institute, but the organisers said they got a deal hence the decision to have it there.

But what peeved me off was the traffic to get into/out of central KL at peak time. Imagine of paying toll to bypass the peak hour traffic through our super Smart Tunnel, only to held at the exit by a very green-horn traffic police officer. I think we were better off utilising the traffic lights...

Being held at above 250m above ground it provided a spectacular view of the capital unless it was hazy. To a certain point it proved very *voyeuristic* - you could observe people down below without them realising it...hehe

The view from the seminar room -
they kept the drapes drawn to keep attention locked onto the seminar

Some of the participant who has acrophobia couldn't handle being that high in the sky, but for me I couldn't handle the revolving restaurant. I meant, I've been there a few times before but I felt that the rotation somehow messed with my balancing circuitry as I felt dizzy after lunch. Or maybe it was the overindulgence during lunch...hehe

Gigi Biru II

Ok! I admit it. I have a tendency of misplacing some personal effects once in a while. It doesn't happen to me a lot, but when it happen to a high ticket item, I felt like slapping myself real hard. Especially when it was a gift from loved ones.

So when one day I lost my gigibiru handsfree headset which by the way was a gift from the mrs, I was expecting the worse. I did told her about it and as usual it made me feel guilty.

After about a month of losing it I decided to get another gigibiru handsfree set as I found out that it is not worth a traffic summons if caught using it during driving. After all the research for alternatives, I finally settle on the same model, albeit with different trimmings and furnishing. The thing is that there was some shortcoming in the performance of the previous headset, eg time lag in between making & receiving, losing battery if left in the car in the hot sun, etc, but the familiarity of operation form factor finally tip the scale towards the same model.

I guess that it's true in real life. Humans are creature of habit. For me, when presented with a new option, the old tried & tested way would always being considered as well. Now I need a way to hold on to this new gigibiru set longer than the previous one.

Now Serving ....

1. Mc'D "plain" Beefburger, no relish, no mustard, no pickle, no ketchup
2. No salt fries
3. A&W rootbeer
   

This is the menu of the week. Last week's was beehon soup, without garlic, onion, veggies, just plain soup and an eggdrop. Previously was plain soto with rice cubes. Gone are the days where spicy and full taste food. I did raised a few eyebrows when ordering these food, surely they were thinking, " If he wanted to be so picky aabout his food then better off cooking for himself". But it wasn't for me...

But whatever it is, as long as the food stayed in, not going down the toilet, it should be ok....

Now Listening ....

Umbrella - Rihana

[Jay-Z]
Ahuh Ahuh (Yea Rihanna)
Ahuh Ahuh (Good girl gone bad)
Ahuh Ahuh (Take three... Action)
Ahuh Ahuh

No clouds in my storms
Let it rain, I hydroplane in the bank
Coming down with the Dow Jones
When the clouds come we gone, we Rocafella
We fly higher than weather
And G5’s are better, You know me,
an anticipation, for precipitation. Stacked chips for the rainy day
Jay, Rain Man is back with little Ms. Sunshine
Rihanna where you at?

[Rihanna]
You have my heart
And we'll never be worlds apart
May be in magazines
But you'll still be my star
Baby cause in the dark
You can't see shiny cars
And that's when you need me there
With you I'll always share
Because

[Chorus]
When the sun shines, we’ll shine together
Told you I'll be here forever
Said I'll always be a friend
Took an oath I'ma stick it out till the end
Now that it's raining more than ever
Know that we'll still have each other
You can stand under my umbrella
You can stand under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh)
Under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh)
Under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh)
Under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh eh eh eh)

These fancy things, will never come in between
You're part of my entity, here for Infinity
When the war has took it's part
When the world has dealt it's cards
If the hand is hard, together we'll mend your heart
Because

[Chorus]
When the sun shines, we’ll shine together
Told you I'll be here forever
Said I'll always be a friend
Took an oath I'ma stick it out till the end
Now that it's raining more than ever
Know that we'll still have each other
You can stand under my umbrella
You can stand under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh)
Under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh)
Under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh)
Under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh eh eh eh)

You can run into my arms
It's okay don't be alarmed
Come into me
There's no distance in between our love
So go on and let the rain pour
I'll be all you need and more
Because

[Chorus]
When the sun shines, we’ll shine together
Told you I'll be here forever
Said I'll always be a friend
Took an oath I'ma stick it out till the end
Now that it's raining more than ever
Know that we'll still have each other
You can stand under my umbrella
You can stand under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh)
Under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh)
Under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh)
Under my umbrella
(Ella ella eh eh eh eh eh eh)

It's raining
Ooh baby it's raining
Baby come into me
Come into me
It's raining
Oh baby it's raining

Happy 3X Birthday Dear!

The mrs. celebrated her 3x birthday in full style today...in the hospital, thankfully not in the hospital gown.....she's suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum. Dunno when she'll be cleared for discharge, it has been 3 nights now...

What a year it has been... I've missed the boy's birthday due to my business trip & now we have to celebrate the mrs. birthday in a hospital. Oh well, might as well make the best out of it. Hopefully it will lead to a bundle of joy in pink (crossing fingers) at the start of the new year.

Mind Boggling Puzzle...

Have you ever been stumped? Think that you should know the solution to a problem or puzzle but irregardless of whatever method you use to try and solve it you could never get the correct answer.

At times I try not to think too hard about the solution in hope that it will present itself once my mind has been cleared. At other times I would obsess in thinking about it but despite my best effort and stab at it I would still not get the answer.

I'm on my wits end now as I have spent countless of my waking hours trying to solve it, plus it sometimes got into my dreams as well....



I mean how hard is it to arrange in order 27 cubes to make a 3x3 cube with alternating colours?

The cube at disarranged state

Closest Attempt No 1

Closest Attempt No 2

Any pointers anyone? A fair reward awaits those who could solve the puzzle....

~Yippee --- finally found the solution. Au usual, when you just tinkering about not trying so hard to find it, the solution will present itself to you ~

~ The proof ~

Finland Part 2

Helsinki

After two days at Joenssu, we head back to Helsinki for some leisure time. Helsinki is the capital of Finland, with about 600k population. Getting around Helsinki is quite easy, and for tourist you could opt for the hop-on/hop-off bus or go on the 3T tram. The tram proves to be a more economical choice as a tourist day ticket for all public transport is only €6 whereas the tour would cost 4 times more. Amongst the popular sights of Helsinki are the Market Square, which is located in the harbour, the Senate Square four famous surrounding buildings, namely the Helsinki Cathedral, The University, The Government Palace and the National Library.

The Senate Square & Helsinki Cathedral


Helsinki University


Government Palace


They still have the oldskool open flame gas lantern


Cherries & Strawberries anyone?

They are also having sales in Helsinki as per usual summer and most of the shopping places are full. It rained when we were there, hence we could only stay indoors. Prices in Helsinki are a bit higher than the rest of Europe, due to the fact that Finland is high taxed nation, with the tax bracket around 40 – 60 %. But they do put the taxpayers’ money into good use, with free education and free medical for all. With only a population of 5 million, they could utilise the fund efficiently and all the population could benefit from it. Finland is also ranked the highest by Transparency International. Just imagine what we could do with 5 times more population if proper fund management could be implemented.

Another thing that I noticed, the Finns are outdoor people. Even when the weather turn for the worse, they could be seen outdoors either power walking, cross country running, in line roller balding or in the winter skiing. Most of them would bring their gym shoes when they travel and they would hit the gym anywhere in the world they traveled.

Tallin

After Helsinki, we crossed the Gulf of Finland to Tallin, Estonia. Tallin is the capital of Estonia, former Soviet Union. The trip by boat took 1 hr and 40 mins, with about 80km of sea separating them. They managed to claim independence in the 90’s but remnant of the Soviet era could still be seen in the buildings. Tallin is divided into 2 parts, the old (medieval) town and the newer portion. The ambiance in the old town is very rustic, with pebbled roads and limestone buildings. Tallin is on the verge of a big limestone foundation, with 52 known layers of sedimentary limestone could be identified.

Kalev Chocolatiere

Tallin Town Hall

The Round Dome Cathedral

Tallin TV Tower - remnants of Soviet Union. The building was a drab grey concrete structure, with the interior preserved as it was during Soviet's rule.

Tallin to the Finns is like Padang Besar or Bukit Kayu Hitam to us. Everything is cheaper in Tallin due to lower taxation and the exchange rate was about 15 kroner to 1 EURO. So we managed to grab more souvenirs in Tallin more than in Helsinki.

Tallin also has an interesting history, being a seaside resort to the Soviet empire. A lot of spa's and vacation home are located here, with some majestic Russian buildings for the Czar could be found. The older buildings are nice to look at, but you could distinguish the Soviet Builiding, with its grey cooncrete exterior. It's like they dont even consider external paint as an option. To be honest, most of it are plain ugly. But Tallin has decided to keep most of the buildings after independence as it could be preserved as part of the towns unique architecture heritage.



Another thing to note is that we were treated to a private opera session by accident. We were visiting one of the monuments when we noticed there's someone practising and warming up. Once we finish the tour, the performance was about to start and we stayed for the whole duration. Irregardless whether we could understand what they are singing about, but the experience was unforgettable.

Overall I enjoyed the opportunity to visit these unique places. Normally, we would like to visit glamorous places, hence off the beaten path town like Tallin could be a real eye opener. Glad to have experience it.