Tuesday, January 31, 2006

Mini.Opera.Com

For those who HATEs to idle (like me!)... I'd like to share a great JAVA-based software for your cellphone. It makes web-browsing oh-so-GOOD! Just point your phone's WAP browser to http://mini.opera.com and follow the instruction to download the 100Kb file. You can read more about it at the same URL via your computer's internet browser. Oh ya.. The most important fact -> IT'S FREE!!!! *grin! grin!* Now, waiting for the dentist will no longer be boring. Viva GPRS!! :P

Monday, January 30, 2006

a video that STILL makes my day!

These 2 videos are really funny. It's been on the net for many years actually, but it still makes my day...

BSB - I Want It That Way
BSB: As Long As You Love Me

Saturday, January 28, 2006

Style. Do you have it?

Style is a word without definition. I mean, how do you respond to a sentence like, "hey! you got style!"? It's a description without depiction. And no matter how we try to interpret it, simple fact is: everyone has style. We were born with it. Style makes you YOU. It’s not what you wear; it’s the air that you bring. Individual-style is concealed yet visible like a beacon to others. Wear your best or worst dress; you'll still have your own distinguished style.

In this sense, you can’t define style. There’ll never be anything definite about it. What describes and defines style is our perception, taste, imagination and preference. But it is our own state-of-mind that constitutes our individual-style. So, flaunt your individual-style. But never fault someone else’s =)

Smarty Pants

My friend has a problem. His son, who just started school, finds school BORING!!! I mean, yea, who doesn't. BUT this is a different case altogether. This 7-year old boy is LEAGUES ahead in terms of his knowledge. He finds Std 1 books too lame. So, he reads his brother's Std 5 books instead.

My niece is facing the same problem. She just started school and grumbles to her mom about how BORING school is. She keeps saying things like, "There's no homework!!" and "Why are they teaching me stuff I already know??". Of course she'd complain - she has been going to Kumon, Art, Drama and all sorts of classes since she was 3! She even knows how to operate a Palmtop and Apple computers, for goodness sake.

I find these as a HUGE problem. Our education system is, by nature, NOT flexible. There's a small cluster of people who are just brilliant. They could potentially be the next Einstein or Edison. But if the Education System does not recognize these kids, then, the country is on the losing end. There must be a system to pick these kids out, followed by a program that further progresses them. Keep them challenged, motivated and creative. Just like Malcolm (in the Middle) *hehe.

My friend's son was actually once identified by his teacher as being too 'advanced'. The follow-up program for the boy was best described with a quote from the teacher: "If you think you are too clever, go outside and play." So, that's what he did. Just like what Calvin (and Hobbes) would do ;-)

My thoughts on this topic bring certain respectable figures to mind. Bill Gates and Michael Dell are infamous for being college drop-outs. Mind you, I'm not saying that being a drop-out is good, but these are just 2 examples of a person who were way ahead in the life's survival game (more on this later), that they find school ultimately boring. Lucky thing, these gentlemen are exceptionally outstanding. But what about the other brilliant people out there with unrealized potential?

Well, in short, smarty-pants are the future. Education system should not ignore these fine breeds. Until then, it’s up to the parents to think of what’s best for them. Good luck! =)

Getting Weirder Here -- ooKooLehLeH!

For some reasons, unknown to me, I’ve always found ukulele (pronounced: oo-koo-LEH-leh) sooooo kewl. What’s even kewl is that, I bumped onto a quote by Sir Paul McCartney *salute! salute!* where he once said, "To this day, if I ever meet grownups who play ukulele, I love 'em." See, I’m not the only weirdo.

So, few days ago, I got myself an uke. It’s an all-American Samick, crafted in... err.. Indonesia. But it’s beautiful. Really. Mahogany and Rosewood, Mother of Pearl trimmings and stuff. But here are some stuff I learned (the expensive way) about the OokuuLehLeH:

1) No, it’s NOT easy to play.
2) No, guitar experience will NOT help at ALL.
3) It’s got 4 strings tuned at G-C-E-A (???).
4) The 3rd string is the thickest (???).
5) Not even 1 chord from a guitar is applicable here.
6) And yup, it’s Hawaiian. So, it’s cute & cuddly! Like pineapples!

In summary, yup, it’s a guitar alright, but nothing like the ones I knew. BUT... I’m loving it!! If I'd only knew why the heck is the 3rd string thickest, hmm.

http://www.samickguitar.com/uk70.html

Happy Chinese New Year.

Thursday, January 26, 2006

Chick-itas!! Cha cha cha!!

In the effort of tuning in some musical intelligence into Marsha, I bought her a pair of maracas... and she was VERY excited! Well, at least for 20 minutes... hmm. I guess it's off to plan B, then.

Tuesday, January 24, 2006

-

long weekend... monday holiday... but I had phone calls through out the weekend... today, monday, had to do some work from 9pm... it's 2:41am now... tuesday, i guess... just got off from a meeting... still exchanging files. Next meeting at 9am. Tired... but for whatever reason... right now... I have SpongeBob in my head... i dunno why... goofy goober yea... *yawn... ur a goofy goober yea... we're all goofy goobers yea... *yawn... need... sleep...

Sunday, January 22, 2006

Everton 1 - Arsenal 0....*sob sob :'(

Arsenal lost another away game yesterday. This season, it's a love-hate relationship between Arsenal and me. Last week, they trashed Middlesbrough with 7 goals without reply. Love Arsenal. Just a match later, they lost. Hate Arsenal. Couldn't really sleep last night - couldn't get over the match. And when I did, I dreamt of Reyes scoring a goal from a ridiculous angle to equalize. *sigh. If they keep this up for another season, I'd probably get hyper-tension :P

Saturday, January 21, 2006

Run Life With Knowledge, Not Advice

Sometimes, we’re an expert in what we do. My maid is UBER-expert in keeping the house sparkling while my kid is UBER-expert is making a mess. Hmm… bad example. Anyway, KNOWLEDGE drives expertise. And no one is an expert without knowledge.

The story is, yesterday, I took Sara, who still breastfeeds Marsha, to a clinic to check a lump she noticed earlier in the morning. So, we met this doctor and she said, “Oh, you gotta take this drug and we shall see what happens.” She then started writing stuff and probably expected us to say, “Oh, ok. You’re the expert, I follow”, and walked off the clinic. NOT! That stupid doctor did not even bother to EXPLAIN what the drug is, what it does, why we need to take it and stuff. So… after she received a good whack of questions from us, we got to know that it will stop milk production. Clearly, this doctor is a moron for thinking that we are stupid and for only wanting to sell drugs, so, we ended our session.

We went to another clinic and met a very nice doctor. He agreed with us that we should not be hasty and that we should see a surgical specialist. And so, we went to a specialist center and met another nice doctor; did a scan and phew, good news, the lump was just an accumulation of ‘curd’ milk due to yadayadayada. Solution: keep breastfeeding, and while nursing, apply hot-pack and massage the area. No drugs.

Point is, when we seek advice from experts, DO NOT rely 100% on it. It’s just an advice. It’s still YOUR life. So, make your OWN decision. Run a search thru the Net. Or grab some reading materials. Or talk to your friends. Or go for 2nd opinion. Broaden your knowledge. Do NOT be ignorant.

We put this principle to practice when taking care of our first child, Mariam. Doctors told us once she’s born, she could not live for more than 2 days. We took charge of matters, learned about her problems and gave her lots of love. She survived for 2 beautiful years. The best 2 years of our life. Miss her.

Oh, what makes a good doctor? Someone who takes time to EXPLAIN. Thus passing on KNOWLEDGE, with the intention of helping someone to be healthier and happier.

Thursday, January 19, 2006

8 Things I Do When I’m Bored... Today

1) Tell someone that I’m bored.
2) Roam around at the office and say, “Hey, what’s up?”, to anyone - without the slightest care of what the answer would be. (Usually, all I get is a very short answer like, 'OK', which usually means "Get Lost').
3) Go back to my cube and open up Internet Explorer and click on “Favorites”… and browse again the page that I just browsed 3.5 minutes ago. Then close it.
4) Get up, but pause for while, look down at my feet and say “uuuhhh, nice shoes…” and re-assess if I need another pair of shoes.
5) Get up and get a container full of water… observe how many unwashed cups there (there were 5 just now) and along the way, say “hey” or "hey, what's up?" (see #2) to anyone I bump into.
6) Open up my Messenger, check who’s on-line. And then, close it.
7) Stand ~5ft away from my cube and observe its untidiness. Then sit back in it again.
8) Pick up the company's phone and call Sara. Then do a bad impersonation of a piss-off-with-tax-problem China-man who speaks very bad Malay... and then say, “Hey, what’s up?” (see #2)

Then go back to #1.

Wednesday, January 18, 2006

She finally walk on her OWN!!!

January 14th – that’s the day little Marsha FINALLY decided to walk on her own – without help... it's about time, anyway :P BUT, it's the way that she decided to show to us that surprised us, because of all the place in the world, she decided to do this at... a MAMAK RESTAURANT! Hmm.. It all started with our routine weekend breakfast outing, little did we know that Miss Marsha has planned a surprise for us.

I guess, by choosing the kedai mamak, it’s her way to show to us just how much she LOVESSS Nasi Kandar…..

… and not to mention, ice-cream….

… and cats.

Monday, January 16, 2006

Give & Take Ratio

Give & Take is such a famous term. But what does it mean? Does it mean that, sometimes, we give, and sometimes, we HAVE to take? The term ‘Give & Take’ gives the impression that we have to be balanced. In mathematical sense, we must practice it at a ratio of 1:1.

Gee, I dunno. It doesn’t sound so right to me. Let’s dive in deeper into this. Let’s take a look at a few scenarios.

OK. Assuming you need help. On something that’s probably a little “out of the way”. Do you have someone at the tip of your mind to call? Yup, it’s that few people that you can ALWAYS rely on, no matter what. So, if they made it to your list, then these good people definitely have a “Give” factor greater than “Take”, or Give > Take. Make sense?

Now, do you have someone that’s ALWAYS demanding from you? No, I’m not talking about “asking' for help”, coz, there’s nothing wrong with that… I’m talking about “demanding”. And sometimes, even “expecting” something from you. Well, I have a few people in my mind right now, hehe. So, in this case, obviously, they have a “Give” factor lesser than “Take”, or Give < Take.

But hey! How about the other people in your life? Where does your best friend or the person you always hang-out with fall here? Why didn’t they pop into your mind so far? Well, I think it’s because they’d probably have a well balanced Give:Take ratio, at 1:1. (Hmm.. I think 'Normal Distribution curve' can be applied here.)

So, the big question is, as we head toward Maslow’s pinnacle of Hierarchy of Human Needs, what IS the perfect ratio for Give & Take? Well, my personal thought is, a "self-Actualized" person would probably have a Give:Take ratio of 1:0. All Give! And no Take. Here’s why:

When a person Gives and Gives and Gives - without ever asking for something in return, it shows sincerity. It also shows that he/she is generous, kind-hearted and patience – with no trace of greed at all. He/She would probably live longer and healthier too, because, without setting unrealistic expectations, he/she will not get disappointed. I picture people like these to be easy-on-the-eye as well as approachable :-)

Here's a good example: Noble parents are those who take care of their children, as God intended, and NEVER seek anything in return. My parents are like that. To me, they have a ratio of 1:0…. *tsk tsk.. feel bad for being such a pain to them*

So, to me, Give & Take is not such a meaningful term. It's the ratio that counts. Anyway, what’s your Give:Take ratio? Know anyone with a ratio of 1:0? Or even 0:1 (argh!)? Have a nice day :-)

Sunday, January 15, 2006

Smart Tag! Finally!

After a gazillion light years of stalling, I finally got it... YIPPEE!!! I shall now pay my highway tolls WITHOUT having to STOP and WINDING DOWN the window, hehe... though I'm not too sure if I want to stick it on my wind-screen, it's kinda ugly... what do you think? :P

Monday, January 09, 2006

Opening Hours 11am to 11pm

All the while, if I see a signage like so, I thought, that would be the business operating hours, where the customers can start coming in and perform transactions. But little that I know, that's not how it's translated in a well-known pizza outlet here.

As Sara started the day with cravings for pizza, we decided to have it for brunch. And since I know that the outlet opens at 11am, I got there right on the dot. But I was quite suprised to see that at 11, the door was still locked. And there were a few people behind me also wanting to go in, wearing shirts that look EXACTLY like the employee's of the outlet.

I peeked through the glass door and knocked on it. As I was doing that, I asked the lady beside me, whom I'm pretty sure works for the outlet, "Sudah buka, kan?". As she looked at her wrist watch, she replied with a straight-face, "Belum, pukul 11 baru buka." It was 11:08am.

Anyway, suddenly, a geek with a bunch of keys appeared from the other side of the door. And no sooner than I could say "I Love Pepperoni and Cheese Sandwich", the geek suddenly displayed a 30-seconds To Fame gig of "How A Clown Opens A Glass Door Of A Pizza Outlet". Everyone was stunned. In the end, thankfully, the door opened and we all came in. Then, as I entered, instead of the sweet smell of pizza, the smell of sambal Nasi Lemak greeted me. Then I saw 3 employees eating Nasi Lemak. Fine.

It was 11:30am when I finally get to order my food. And while waiting, I manage to amuse myself by witnessing the staff's morning roll-call and briefing, just 7 feet away from my table. Hey, aren't you suppose to do that BEFORE 11am and INSIDE closed door?

Gotta go. I'll continue later.

Marsha's Driving Class

Marsha finally got her hands on a steering wheel. It was a huge learning experience for her. She was very excited. See =)






She was quick to learn that sign language is a vital mode of communication among road users.







She also learnt on the art of keeping things cool in a traffic jam. Here she is practicing the #1 tips: Eat.






Well, after the stress of heavy traffic jam and having to deal with lots of errant drivers, she dumped the car... just after 20mins.


Ah, a well spent RM10... NOT!

Wednesday, January 04, 2006

Thks for the gifts, Mama & Choobs!

We were in KLIA few days ago to welcome back Sara's Mom and little sis, Farah. They just came back from a weeklong shopping trip in London. Thanks for the gifts! They were all WONDERFUL! We hope you'd go again, hehe.

p/s: the train you bought for Marsha... we gonna wrap it up and give to her on her 3rd birthday... in Nov, 2007. Love it! Oh, the shoes are too big for her now. So, that's her 2nd birthday present, hehe. *Kidding, kidding.. anyway, thank you!

Tuesday, January 03, 2006

New Year's Eve & BBQ Party

For some reason, BBQ is the preferred choice of dinner on New Year's Eve. I had it tough as both my families planned for one. So, I had no choice but to eat a LOT that night. Hehe.

Here’s my countdown log:
1830: Damansara, start BBQ fire
1900: Eat BBQ chicken & mutton
1930: Eat Tuna Pasta & Koshi Bread (I think)
2000: Eat BBQ Squid & Prawn
2030: Shower
2100: Fetch Karl at Bdr Seri D'sara
2115: Traffic jam
2200: Fetch Mama at PJ
2240: Reach Nini's place at Bkt Antarabangsa
2300: Eat Chicken Satay
2315: Eat Fried Rice
2340: Eat Fried Chicken
2350: Eat Beef Satay
2358: Eat Ice Cream
0000: HAPPY NEW YEAR! FIREWORKS!
0020: Eat choc brownie with ice cream
0040: Play Foosball *lost to my nephew, Karl
0115: Eat Chicken Satay
0130: Too much Coke
0230: Drove back to PJ via KLCC city tour, no JAM! :)

Love my nephews & nieces a LOT. Here's with Raisa & Karl. Nadia was always TOO busy with Marsha *cute!. Sad that Reece was not around, he had to follow to his Mom's BBQ party, I miss him so much, he was in S'pore throughout the school holidays. Wish Azim and Zariq were around too.

Why Fire?

Fireworks are beautiful. But they're also expensive and dangerous. As I was enjoying it during New Year Celebration, I couldn’t help to think about last year’s unfortunate incident where a man was killed by it. Poor guy. He could be anyone. You or me. I wonder if there’s a research grant out there that looks into making fireworks safe. Why shouldn’t it be? If I can develop a firework that’s safe, harmless and cheap; I’d be a billionaire by now. We are talking about world global market here.

Blueprint documents containing this research will surely be traveling in hand-cuffed briefcase, surrounded by 5 body-guards with black suits, dark glasses and earpiece (yeah, with those dark glasses, they surely need those earpieces). A “self-destruct” button by the side of it, in case some Dr. Evil wants to get his hands on it. The research has to be conducted in a low-profile abandoned ravine, 500 meters underground. The signage at the outer gate says, “Nothing to See Here. Go Away.” And the entry elevator is equipped with voice-password sensor. Yup, u gotta hum to The Doors's Light My Fire...

Come on baby, light my fire
Come on baby, light my fire
Try to set the night on fireeeee, yeah!

.... love that song *sigh*

ANYWAY, I really hope that we can one day have a very safe way of marking a special day like New Year. Until then, I’ll be 20km away from the firework site, enjoying its beautiful display from the 14th floor of my sis’s apartment.

Gotta go back to my top secret underground office.
Breaktime's over :P

It Really Matters (Part 2)... Burned-Out

Being burned out is just like driving your car in the red-zone. As we chase after life’s insatiable materialistic needs, we often put ourselves there. The simple logic is, if you’ve burned out all of your energy on work, hobby or friends, you will NEVER have enough energy to have good quality time with the people you love. You’d probably go back home tired and maybe, low in patience. You'd probably die early too. Just like the car :P

Burned-out parents are the worst. Not only they're self-destructive, they could also end up destructing the whole family. That's why it's always good to have one of them as full-time parent to focus the energy required to nurture the right values to the children.

In life, you can’t have everything. We recognize that in Economics through Opportunity Cost. So, depending on your priorities, “burn wisely”.

A Wonderful Christmas Eve!









Wait a minute, the title doesn't sound right. We don't celebrate Christmas. But, since we party-animals just about celebrate ANY occasion (hehe!), we kinda had our own way of enjoying the moment :-)











This time, it was dinner at Putrajaya's Lake View Club. Cool place with a cool view. There were Kak Ida's family, Nini & Ijam, my Mom and my family. That place serves VERY GOOD Asian food. The weather was nice, a little damp and breezy. After that, we went to Putrajaya's Marriot where Kak Ida took a room for the night. We had late night coffee at the lounge. Nice place. It was beautifully decorated with lots of Christmas deco and trees... which turned out to be a MASSIVE PLAYGROUND for Marsha and the kids. Not good...especially to my maid :D









Anyway, thanks Kak Ida, for a beautiful night.

Monday, January 02, 2006

I look like BEANO!

My hair is growing...
It's so THICK and SPIKY!

ARRGGHHHH!!!!
I LOOK LIKE BEANO!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!