Minum Kopi-O Boleh Nampak UFO

Kopi Moment #15

2011-11-13T03:02:00.001+08:00

"A human life, I think, should be well rooted in some spot of native land, where it may get the love of tender kinship for the face of earth, for the labours men go forth to, for the sounds and accents that haunt it, for whatever will give that early home a familiar unmistakeable difference amidst the future widening of knowledge. The best introduction to astronomy is to think of the nightly heavens as a little lot of stars belonging to one's own homestead."

- George Eliot, "Daniel Deronda"

It's Time to Get Drunk Again

2011-10-12T05:02:00.001+08:00

Yes it is. So deja vu. History repeating itself again. The second coming.

Call it what you like.

Fuck.

Just Don't Do It.

2011-10-11T22:44:00.002+08:00

He's gonna hurt you. Really, he will.

What?

2011-09-16T22:45:00.000+08:00

C'mon lah. Why so pissed? So irritated? Cos I invaded your 'private space' with your boy boy is it? You can't be your usual, flirtatious self is it?

Huh!?

2011-08-21T01:17:00.005+08:00

Why on earth are you so upset??

I'm the one who got the negative reply. Geez.

Edit: You just don't know how hard it is. At all. In your role all you have to do is sit around till the right one comes along...

Katy Perry's Most Epic Song. Ever.

2011-08-19T14:56:00.003+08:00

For those times when you know you've lost it. Her.

That Robin Moment

2011-08-10T21:32:00.000+08:00

This is SO not HIMYM. Not at all.

When do you stop?

2011-08-02T23:21:00.003+08:00

Yes, when do you? When it's too late? When you're in too deep?

The problem is, you don't want to stop. You're actually enjoying this. So's the other party, who may be taking you for a ride.

Trust me. You may enjoy it now, but you will regret the consequences if they don't turn out in your favor.

So what's the right thing to do?

July

2011-07-31T14:25:00.001+08:00

It's the end of July now. A little less than 3 weeks more before I head off to Dubai.

Hmm...

Player Status

2011-06-09T01:08:00.002+08:00

Sometimes on the bench, sometimes left completely out of the squad. Definitely lacks match practice. May have to move to a smaller club to get more playing time perhaps?

Sympathy

2011-06-08T19:55:00.001+08:00

I feel like sleeping. Not really been a good week this I feel.

The work. The people.

Feel-goodness is a one way street isn't it?

It's a Friday night

2011-06-04T05:55:00.001+08:00

Oh well...*another shot of JD*

Kopi Moment #14

2011-05-30T22:24:00.001+08:00

"Apa salahku, kau buatku begini?"

- Nora, 'Di Persimpangan Dilema'

Some things...

2011-05-24T01:33:00.001+08:00

...never change. And some people too. Just gotta shrug and say: "What can I do?"

Why Am I Enjoying Myself?

2011-04-12T03:04:00.005+08:00

9pm and it's a beautiful shade of twilight out there. I'm sipping beer and surfing the net. It's just me: my two neighbors are away on business trips. But somehow I'm enjoying a little this rare private time. Cooking for myself and being happy with the results (trust me, the ham choy chicken IS good!), then chilling...just chilling.

I guess maybe I should be more direct about what I write here: I'm enjoying myself. Yes, work may be lacking in direction, but I'm planning to talk with the boss tomorrow (if she isn't too busy as usual), where I'll tell her I'm thinking of taking things in a new direction. Kinda like the last 3 times I said wanted to take things in another direction, except this time I'm pretty convinced it's the right direction. Same same but different, you know?

But yeah, I'm enjoying myself. The grass is slowly turning green; spring's here, and I'm actually digging this whole late sunset thing.

Another sip of beer.

It's so nice having a cozy apartment like this downtown. And what I love about it is that I can ask people over for dinner, or maybe even get friends to stay over for a couple of nights over the weekend. That is if you can make it of course :)

I don't have to feel embarrassed about showing my apartment to people. This one's clean and comes with all the creature comforts. Just don't make any surprise visits lest you see the messy coffee table and vacuum cleaner in the corner.

But I really, really am starting to love this place. And part of me suddenly tells me 5 months is all too soon. I'm starting to wish I could stay longer.

F-off.

2011-03-08T23:04:00.001+08:00

Some creatures are just born more lan si than others. Always complaining about the treatment they get whether its too nice, or too bad.

Sheesh.

March

2011-03-06T23:02:00.001+08:00

TRF-STN-TRF-HHN-TRF-AGP-TRF. Many trips coming up! Google up if you don't know the airport codes ;)

Ditched

2011-03-01T15:21:00.000+08:00

Dumped. And you thought he wouldn't. Hah!

Sandefjord Again...

2011-02-01T01:04:00.003+08:00

That's my car. With all that snow around. I'm here for my first assignment and will be here till July. Brrrrr...cold...

Champions!

2010-12-30T10:26:00.002+08:00

Yes, we may be champions of SEA only, but I'm still proud of them! Heck, it's the proudest I've been of the national team, ever!

Indeed if patriotism really is the last refuge of scoundrels, then you've got one really happy scoundrel sitting in this corner!

Oh Wow

2010-11-30T22:20:00.000+08:00

I missed a post in October! For the first time! This blog is officially winding itself down starting now...

Endings

2010-09-09T18:55:00.004+08:00

Did I tell you I love this comic strip?

Is this the ending you hoped for?

Kopi Moment #13

2010-09-05T23:38:00.001+08:00

“Malaysia is a land of justice. Men and women here were born free,"

- Anwar Ibrahim

A piece of mind

2010-08-26T01:03:00.002+08:00

It's 1:03am. You can't sleep. You think and you think and you think. And it's all that thinking that keeps you awake. Keeps your brain in a mess.

And then you go to work the next day. Exhausted. You try, but you don't get far. And you see people. Then you see that face. And you can't eat. You can't move. You can only pretend.

It's not working. And you hope it will not last.

Kopi Moment #12

2010-08-23T03:37:00.001+08:00

"Once upon a time I was falling in love,
But now I'm only falling apart;
There's nothing I can do,
A total eclipse of the heart,

Once upon a time there was light in my life,
But now there's only love in the dark;
Nothing I can say,
A total eclipse of the heart,"

- Bonnie Tyler, "Total Eclipse of the Heart"

Ouch.

Vietnam

2010-07-30T09:21:00.001+08:00

And here I am in Saigon...officially sending out my first blog post from another country!

Thinking of a Proton?

2010-06-30T03:43:00.003+08:00

Don't! Don't even touch one with a barge pole!

Why?

Quality issues, that's what! And on a 1.5 month old car!

So what happened then?

It's that faulty brake light switch again. The one that keeps my brake lights on after I've parked my car and shut off the engine. I mean let's face it - how many of us actually do check the rear of our cars after parking it for whatever reason? None, that's how many. So I wouldn't have known that my brake lights were on, draining the battery and causing the car not to start in the morning.

And the total damage from all this?

RM80! RM80 just to get a mechanic here to check and tell me that was indeed the problem.

Wait, wasn't the car under warranty?

It is, but the a-hole at Proton's hotline had all sorts of jack to say: he couldn't find my car's registration and my IC in the database, bla bla bla. That and this whole nonsense about my car being distributed by EON and not Proton Edar, etc. Like what the hell - my NEW car ain't starting, you fix it! It can't get any simpler that that! I don't want to hear excuses, especially since you're the 'national car manufacturer' who thinks you're a Godsend and doing Malaysians a favor by selling cheap cars when in actual fact your godfather the government is taxing the competition to hell!

Is this what our NAP has been breeding? Complacency? It's pretty obvious isn't it? Tax foreign cars to the tune of 300%, ensure that Potong - I'm sorry, PROTON - has no competition, and force us poor Malaysians to buy these poorly built steel buckets because then, it's the only thing we can afford. And our dear friends at Proton, knowing this reality, are potong-ing us in every way they can! Us poor Malaysians!

So what's next for me then?

Not a Proton that's for sure. I'm glad I'll only be keeping this piece of junk for nine months before I buy a new, FOREIGN car. I kinda dig those Koreans. At least they got it in their minds to improve their products and service.

And the quote of the day:

"Beli itu Jepun punya kereta la" - said by the condo guard whom I was relating my problem to.

Wise words indeed. I hope dear Mahatiu knows what he has condemned an entire generation of Malaysians with. Jahanam punya Proton!

Shah Alam and Bukit Larut

2010-05-27T14:50:00.003+08:00

So I'm heading to Shah Alam this weekend before I start my job on June 1st. Apartment room doesn't look too inviting but for RM280 a month inclusive of water and electricity, I guess I can't complain.

And about that hill. Apparently some genius inked some agreement to build a cable car up there. May I ask what benefit does it bring the people of Taiping? This isn't Langkawi or Genting where there's a large tourist population to begin with! If these bozos think a freakin cable car's gonna change all that, I'll say they're pretty stupid. Most visitors to Maxwell Hill either comprise of morning walkers or nature lovers who treasure its pristine and rather undeveloped, natural environment. A monstrosity like a cable car system won't be a boon, but a scar on the beautiful hillside. So I think I represent a majority of my fellow Taipingites when I say: keep your grubby hands off our hill, you stupid politicians!

Sucky Sunday

2010-04-25T21:07:00.003+08:00

So the folk of Hulu Selangor sold off their principles for money. So they'd rather choose corruption over alcohol as the lesser of the two evils.

Good for them. They deserve the government they voted for. As for me, I guess I'd have to forward to other things and get over the disappointment.

Sometimes...

2010-03-31T21:18:00.000+08:00

...I wonder why I maintain this blog anymore...

February...and Kangar

2010-02-28T22:40:00.001+08:00

Back from Kangar dead tired. And gotta work tomorrow. Huargh!

Go HD!

2010-01-31T15:46:00.002+08:00

I want HD! Especially in time for the World Cup!

Happy New Year!

2009-12-31T18:46:00.001+08:00

Happy New Year! Happy 2010! Happy whatever you wanna call it! Hopefully 2010 will be a better year for all of us!

Photos for November

2009-11-29T09:33:00.002+08:00

More spotting action from Taiping:

and Ipoh:

A photo for October

2009-10-29T19:11:00.002+08:00

Taken after its display in conjunction with the T-birds visit on Oct 3rd.

16th September

2009-09-16T21:16:00.000+08:00

Happy Malaysia Day!

A story for Merdeka

2009-08-30T20:46:00.005+08:00

Let me tell you a story. When I was a young kid of no more than five, I used to live in a neighborhood in SS5, near Kelana Jaya. One day, at about five, maybe six in the morning, I suddenly woke up to the sound of the Azan or call to prayer humming over the air. It wasn't too noisy or anything, but just audible enough over the background, cutting through the still and crisp morning air.

If there was something else I also noticed, it was that my (now late) grandmother was beside me from the moment I woke up. I still do not know until today why an elderly woman - she was about seventy years of age then - like her was awake at that hour or indeed whether it was me who woke her ever so light sleep with my stirring. But what happened next I will remember for a long, long time.

Being the young, naive kid that everyone was at the age of five, I cursed the Azan for waking me up. I remember complaining in Cantonese to my grandmother that the Azan was 'noisy'. It was then that my she said to me in her usual, gentle tone.

"You must not say that. It is their way of worshipping God, just like we have our own way,"

And just as she said that, the Azan ended. Quieting myself and knowing I was wrong, I went back to sleep. I have never insulted the Azan again ever since.

With just a few words, my grandmother taught me more about acceptance and respect than any Pendidikan Moral textbook or 1Malaysia campaign ever could. She who was seventy years old. She who was born in the time of Empire and who never went to school, learnt to read nor speak Malay.

I'm telling you this story on the eve of Merdeka simply because I want you to know how extraordinary we can be as a nation if we want to. All it takes is just a sprinkling of acceptance and a pinch of common sense. I still think of that morning sometimes whenever I read about the bigotry that we see everyday.

Why is it wrong to have a Hindu temple in a Muslim area? Was it necessary to protest with a severed cow's head? Why is it wrong to sell alcohol? Why is it bad to work in an Indian majority company? Why are we fighting for the rights of only our own race? The list of questions I see goes on, all sparked by incidents that affected me both communally and personally.

But the main question above all else is this: if after fifty-two years of independence we cannot even look past our differences then what hope do we have for the next fifty-two?

Racism and bigotry is about more than politics. It may be institutionalized now but that doesn't mean we can't break down this imaginary wall that separates us. It doesn't mean we have to participate and turn it into a zero sum, eye-for-an-eye game. No we musn't even allow ourselves the thought of it. For it is a greater triumph to come out of all this together than to say my or your or anyone's race 'won'.

And if my 'uneducated' late grandmother can liberate herself to think like that, so can the rest of Malaysia.

Selamat Hari Merdeka.

737s Galore!

2009-07-07T20:47:00.010+08:00

In my almost four years of spotting, I've shot many aircraft but none as numerous (except AK's A320s) as MH's B734s. I've got all the registrations save a few, and since there's nothing much to do except attend interviews nowadays, I thought I'd post em up:

9M-MMA

9M-MMB

9M-MMC

9M-MME

9M-MMF

9M-MMG

9M-MMJ

9M-MMK

9M-MML

9M-MMN

9M-MMQ

9M-MMR

9M-MMS

9M-MMT

9M-MMU

9M-MMV

9M-MMW

9M-MMX

9M-MMY

9M-MMZ

9M-MQA

9M-MQB

9M-MQC

9M-MQD

9M-MQE

9M-MQF

9M-MQI

9M-MQK

9M-MQN

9M-MQO

9M-MQP

9M-MQQ

Rotting in Taiping

2009-06-21T00:24:00.002+08:00

Jobless, unemployed etc etc. Take your pick of words to describe it. Going to Bali in a few days but not before attending an interview. And that's one update for June, at least.

Stay of execution granted?

2009-05-12T13:44:00.004+08:00

Please lah. What is there left to appeal? Zambry accuses the opposition of being "power hungry" but isn't he the same? And he had the balls to compare himself to Mandela and Gandhi.

Perception is all that matters I tell you, and if the court of appeal overturns the high court's ruling on Nizar being MB then it would reinforce further the view that most people have of the judiciary being under the thumb of the BN. Already they have acted with such speed and efficiency in considering Zambry's appeal that one can't help but question whether the strings are being pulled really hard on the puppet judges sitting in our kangaroo courts.

Well I say return it to the court of the people. Stop this nonsense lah Zambry. You're starting look like the definition of desperation in the dictionary.

So now what?

2009-05-11T18:09:00.003+08:00

Okay so the high court has declared Nizar the MB of Perak. Now what? This is what I think's gonna happen next: Ganesan is still speaker, he calls for an emergency sitting, 28+3 BN ADUNs vote to remove Nizar in a vote of no-confidence and we're back to square one. Only difference then is that PR will not have the means nor options to retake the state, at least until the next GE.

Pessimistic? Sure, it's me after all and pessimism is my middle name.

One judgement does not mean we're back to the golden age of our judiciary and I don't think the BN will give this up without a fight. Not after they have dragged the instruments of state and the people through the mud to get what they want. We'll see what happens...

Weren't they like in the premier league?

2009-05-04T08:33:00.003+08:00

Southampton
Charlton
Norwich City

Is it just me or is it troubling that teams that were in the premier league just a few seasons ago are now being relegated to league one?

Name that plane!

2009-04-28T15:37:00.003+08:00

Something interesting (to me at least) from Popular Mechanics

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d40/gohweiyang/Planespotters-Guide.jpg

And that's one for April from me in the midst of exam season.

This says it all

2009-03-29T19:48:00.003+08:00

Need I say more?

Pic courtesy of blogger and fellow Taipingite zorro here: http://zorro-zorro-unmasked.blogspot.com/2009/03/angry-perakians-dare-bn-to-hold-snap_2917.html

That's my hometown y'all! My hometown!

Can't go wrong with this message...

2009-03-28T02:41:00.002+08:00

Can't help but laugh whenever I see this pic.

Good folks of Bukit Gantang, you know what to do!

One for March

2009-03-27T14:35:00.013+08:00

So I was at KL last weekend for some sick SPM level exams that AirAsia decided I must pass before they would even consider me for a cadet pilot, and here are some pix from the journey there. Enjoy as I walk you through the landing scenery before kissing concrete on Runway 32L.

Pleasant early morning flight with good nasi lemak (they had REAL sambal sotong, I swear!) and a bunch of sleeping tennis players. Out the window you will see this...

...and this. Local times: 0652 and 0702 respectively.

Then a left bank and descent over the peninsular with airbrakes to reduce lift.

Heading south now.

And then a right bank. Note the flaps and slats are already down on the wing.

Near or over the town of Pengkalan Kempas heading west now, just kilometers from the NS-Johor border and approximately 45km from KLIA:

The wind drags a trail of smoke from the ground, nicely lighted by the yellow, morning sun.

And a final right bank to line up for landing.

Near the town of Pasir Panjang, NS. Cape Rachado can clearly be seen on the right of the picture, just below the wing, while in the distance is Sumatra, about 45km accross the straits. We are approximately 37km from KLIA now over here:

Skimming over the beaches of Port Dickson, just 25km from KLIA with Sumatra still on the horizon to the east. We are over here now:

Over what I assume are storage tanks and petroleum facilities at Port Dickson. Close - about 23km from KLIA:

Flying over a river that winds its way to the sea. Note the angle of the flaps compared to the previous pic. Very close now! Just 6km from KLIA, here:

And finally, touchdown on Runway 32L! Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Kuala Lumpur International Airport. We hope you enjoyed the flight and look forward to welcoming you on board Malaysia Airlines again soon!

What the heck, I hope you enjoyed the series of pix too!

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L USM

2009-02-23T21:23:00.008+08:00

Folks, introducing the Canon EF70-200mm f/4L USM.

Finally got my hands on this piece of wonder glass during the CNY break and it has not been disappointing. Nope, not one bit. These pix will attest to its legendary sharpness:

All were unsharpened, with only adjustments in size, brightness and contrast. But if it's sharpened and touched up pix you want, here's some spotting ones from the airside of Penang International and the perimeter fence of Kuching International:

Final verdict: worth every cent I spent on it, though it may be the smallest sibling in the 70-200mm class at f/4 and has no IS. But it's L-quality nontheless and I also think it's gonna be hard to control the 'poison' now.

Next items on the wishlist:
i) A walkaround lens. Think 18-200mm IS.
ii) A new body. EOS5D anyone?

Anwar Ibrahim

2009-01-12T05:46:00.005+08:00

The first time I'm seeing Anwar 'live'. This was at the "Friends of PKR" dinner in Kuching. Couldn't resist taking some shots as I sipped beer and listened to his speech.

So did I buy what he said? Mostly. I mean I gotta give the guy credit - he does know how to push the right buttons with the right crowd after all, though Rohene and most of the folks there (who were older gentlemen in their 40s to 60s) seemed much more cynical. Can't blame em though. After so many years of 'Pek Moh' and his BN kind from West Malaysia, any Sarawakian would definitely eye most West Malaysians with caution, especially those who come with a promise of returning power to the people.

Now where's that DAP ceramah I've been waiting to go for...

Kopi Moment #11

2009-01-11T03:43:00.002+08:00

"In the absence of justice, what is sovereignty but organized robbery?"

- St Augustine

Full

2009-01-04T19:26:00.001+08:00

Fried egg + canned pork + huge pile of rice = full!

I'm feeling contented. What about you?

What Have I Been Doing?

2008-12-26T15:38:00.005+08:00

For the past month, I was at:
1) Home - in Taiping
2) KK, Land Below the Wind
3) Sarawak - and spotting before the sem starts.

So:

1) No pictures...yet.

2) Nice pre-Xmas fireworks show on my last night there.

3) Skies have been like that for a couple of weeks.

And the reason I'm writing all this? Why to fulfill my one-post-a-month thing, of course!

Kopi Moment #10

2008-11-13T23:02:00.002+08:00

Now john at the bar is a friend of mine,
He gets me my drinks for free,
And he's quick with a joke or to light up your smoke,
But there's someplace that he'd rather be.
He says, "Bill, I believe this is killing me,"
As the smile ran away from his face,
Well I'm sure that I could be a movie star,
If I could get out of this place.

- Billy Joel, 'Piano Man'

Goodnight Saigon

2008-11-11T01:54:00.002+08:00

Billy Joel's Goodnight Saigon - what real music appreciation is and should be, instead of Smetana, Dvorak and a whole lotta people with names I've never heard of. Just listen to the lyrics...it really brings the intensity and horror of the Vietnam War home.

WTF is wrong...

2008-10-16T01:39:00.002+08:00

...with the English standard of undergraduates nowadays? I mean really now, wtf is the problem that they can't even get some of the most basic grammar rules correct? I don't mind if they make some mistakes or get some rules wrong but to get all of it wrong in every sentence?

That's just atrocious. Reflects 'wonderfully' on our education system once again.

Kopi Moment #9

2008-10-09T19:20:00.003+08:00

"Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

- Matthew 5:10

A belated RIP to Mr JB Jeyaratnam - a true Singaporean patriot; the real lion of Singapore.

People and Standards

2008-10-06T02:46:00.003+08:00

Have I stooped so low that I have actually come expect incompetence? That somehow whenever some groupwork is assigned, I already subconsciously expect to do double my share of work because some of the people I work with are known for their incompetence and complacency? And for what really?

Because true meritocracy cannot flourish in a public university? That copy and pasters will earn the same amount of brownie points as those who really did their research and wrote every single word of their assignment reports truthfully and honestly in the best traditions of academia? Because lecturers cannot afford to be fair and punish plagiarists lest 75% or more of the class would potentially fail every course they took?

There was a time when I would savage junior prefects at school if they did a piss poor job, but that was back in a place where people at least tried to be competent. In a public university, competency, decency and honesty are words flung out a window like dirty dishwater. People can afford to be incompetent, lazy and dishonest because they know they will not be punished for it. And then there are those who look at them and ask themselves the question: why am I doing real, hard, honest work when they could get away with it? So they too bend down to that level.

And then you have me. Or people like me. People who go through all the trouble just to be honest with their work and hope that somehow, the lecturers would reward their diligence with what it deserves. But who am I kidding. This is higher education in Malaysia after all. You gotta bend backwards to satisfy the majority even though they may be lazy and incompetent.

Such a sad reflection of our education system when you can identify plagiarists through the good English in their work.

Our Government and the People On Top

2008-09-13T11:31:00.001+08:00

Look familiar?

Cherry Trees and Malaysian Politics

2008-09-11T21:37:00.003+08:00

Something for laughs I found here. It's about the current state of Malaysian politics:

Chopping the cherry tree - Malaysian political version.

I remember a story told to me by my late father regarding telling the truth and facing the consequences. It has been a story told by many a father to his offspring. I am of the conviction that the truth is not always a simple "yes" or "no" but many of us miss the point when it comes to taking decisive action.

Legend has it that George Washington, America's first president, chopped down a cherry tree in his youth. George gives the tree a good swing and chops it down with an axe. His father sees the damaged tree and asks his son if he knows who did the deed. George is quoted bravely admitting the truth:
"I can't tell a lie, pa. You know I can't tell a lie. I did cut it with my axe."

This is a satire of how some Malaysian politicians circa 2008 may have reacted to the question :-

PM Badawi - I did not cut down the tree, I was just taking a nap underneath it.

Najib - I swear that I have never MET that tree.

Hishamuddin- ...but I only own a keris, not axe, how to cut down the tree.

Dr.M - Apa nama cherry tree, I chopped it down because, I don't like the idea of Pak Lah sleeping under it.

Chua Soi Lek - Yes it was me, I resign as caretaker of this orchard.

VK Lingam - It could be me, it might have been me but I don't think its me.

Anwar Ibrahim - I DID NOT do it, and I am not giving any DNA samples for you to plant on the axe handle.

Khir Toyo - the new state government should just trim the grass and not waste time asking who cut the tree.

Ahmad Said (Terrenganu MB) I chopped it because cherry trees are more expensive to maintain than durian trees.

Azalina Othman - The cherry tree is not included under my tourism MOU so I cut it down. Besides there were unauthorized signboards put up around the tree.

Shabery Cheek - I challenge you to a debate on tree cutting.

Samy Velu - I chopped it because HINDRAF members were using it as a meeting point.

Wira Ali Rustam - We have planted Durian trees for 50 years and we will plant them for another 50 years. We do not need cheery trees, apple trees, pear trees and all these other foreign trees.

Rais Yatim - you must see the bigger picture, Ahmad said cherry trees are expensive to maintain, Ali Rustan said that are against our national identity and I needed to test my new axe, so you see - its a WIN-WIN situation all around.

Sharir Samad - I cut the tree because we could no longer afford to subsidize it.

Karpal Singh - The bigfoot creature did it.

Bung Mokhtar - The big monkey did it

Pandikar Amin Mulia - There is nothing in the standing orders against chopping cherry trees. Kinabatangan duduk, Bukit Gelugor duduk. Sit down.

Khairy Jamaluddin - I did not do it, neither did the mat rempits. By the way, what's a cherry tree ?

Lim Kit Siang - In response to Khairy - cherry tree also you don't know, you are an insult to Oxford.

Nazri Aziz - Racist, racist, racist, when we cut down durian trees nobody made a fuss.

Malaysian Citizens - Oh for heavens sake! Somebody plant something before we all starve to death.

For That Someone...

2008-09-03T20:36:00.004+08:00

...who thinks I don't blog enough anymore, here's a lil' somethin for ya:

PEN-KUL, 5 July 2008

KUL-KCH, 5 July 2008

You and planes don't exactly mix well I understand, but it's the best I could manage with all the assignments, labs, reports and exams weighing down on me.

And it proves I still update my blog! :)

Beer...

2008-08-04T22:28:00.003+08:00

...tastes a lot better when you're pissed. Really, it does.

Kopi Moment #8

2008-08-03T20:07:00.001+08:00

"Not at all similar are the race of the immortal gods and the race of men who walk upon the earth."

- Homer

Kopi Moment #7

2008-08-03T20:02:00.002+08:00

"I am the Lord thy God. Thou shalt have no other gods before Me."

-The Bible, Exodus

23

2008-08-02T16:43:00.002+08:00

I first heard this awesome song when I was 19. I'm now 23. Just never thought four years would go by so quickly.

23
by Jimmy Eat World

I felt for sure last night
That once we said goodbye
No one else will know these lonely dreams
No one else will know that part of me
I'm still driving away
And I'm sorry every day
I won't always love these selfish things
I won't always live...
Not stopping...

It was my turn to decide
I knew this was our time
No one else will have me like you do
No one else will have me, only you

You'll sit alone forever
If you wait for the right time
What are you hoping for?
I'm here I'm now I'm ready
Holding on tight
Don't give away the end
The one thing that stays mine

Amazing still it seems
I'll be 23
I won't always love what I'll never have
I won't always live in my regrets

You'll sit alone forever
If you wait for the right time
What are you hoping for?
I'm here I'm now I'm ready
Holding on tight
Don't give away the end
The one thing that stays mine

You'll sit alone forever
If you wait for the right time
What are you hoping for?
I'm here I'm now I'm ready
Holding on tight
Don't give away the end
The one thing that stays mine...

Kopi Moment #6

2008-07-30T18:06:00.002+08:00

"We cannot in all conscience be a party to the machinations by executive arms of the government to withhold/fabricate evidence against a citizen of our country."

- from the press release by seven branches of the PJ Utara MCA

The Power of the 'L'

2008-07-28T19:43:00.004+08:00

With this:

Set up like this:

You get this:

this:

and this:

What a superb piece of glass! I've officially been poisoned by the L...

Singapore Ho!

2008-07-23T23:28:00.003+08:00

Heading off to the Lion City tomorrow for me bro's graduation on Friday and some spotting action at Changi on Saturday.

Mmm...mmm...can already smell the salty sea air, hear the waves crashing onto the sand and see the planes (and oil-covered seaweed) as they gently float by while I fondle my soon to be rented 70-200mm F/2.8L IS lens. The anticipation does take my mind off the stress of the new semester I tell you!

Away

2008-07-05T07:09:00.003+08:00

Will be leaving for the airport in just under an hour's time. Couldn't sleep the entire night. Not sure why, but the same shit always happens the night before I leave for the hellhole.

Stay sane. Just one more year to go.

Walkabout

2008-06-30T00:24:00.007+08:00

Went shooting with Ron the other day, but unfortunately we didn't really have any idea where to go, so here are the results:

Kicking off with the railway station. These are railway switches.

Tracks. The sky sucks when you don't put on the polarizer.

View along the outside of the Station Master's office.

Kitten!

After that, it's the district and land office. The jury's still out on the performance of my recently bought EF 28-90mm III lens though. Some shots like this one came out surprisingly sharp - much sharper than my 18-55mm kit lens in fact. What you see here was just cropped, with no software sharpening done.

But some like this weren't that sharp and I had to rely on a little software sharpening.

Hate the govenance, love the country.

The nearby local council building.

Macro shot of some insect I found hiding in the nearby bushes.

The south face of the land office.

Another angle of the same face.

At the lake gardens. Just love this shot, with its warm evening colours.

Water running down some rocks. Too bad the pipe was in the way.

View of one of the lakes. Took a shot of the same lake a few weeks ago.

Like I said, mixed reviews from me about the 28-90mm. Aside from the occasional sharpness streak (instead of being sharp all the time), it also suffers from a focusing problem, often focusing on the background instead of the object when the aperture's wide open. But I guess one gets what one pays for, and for SGD60, a mint condition lens to bridge the gap between my 18-55mm and 90-300mm isn't too bad at all.

Pyramid Schemes

2008-06-24T23:22:00.005+08:00

Oh, those suckers at the top are gonna have a windfall now that the Malaysian economy is going in the tank. Those bastards at the very top of these pyramids. Reminds me of that bloke based in Hong Kong.

Anyways, I hope I don't sound too arrogant or anything, but I get really pissed when I realize how some nice people around me can be so gullible and actually think schemes that involve parting with your money and recruiting people to do the same for a commission can be profitable, considering the nature and the law of exponentials. And they're not uneducated people. These are business grads, engineering grads, university students - all young urban professionals.

I mean c'mon people, it's simple math! Simple math that will tell you such schemes will not last due to the limited people that can be recruited - or conned, considering the obscene amounts of 'success stories' they tell you and fast cars they show off during their introductionary 'seminars'. If you're still too lazy to do some research or calculations, here's a diagram from Wikipedia to show the unsustainability of it:

See? And most of the time, a huge percentage of the 'recruitment' fee goes right to the top to the sucker who started this and probably counts his money while laughing away at how stupid you people can get. It also doesn't matter if actual goods (like 'medicinal' lamps) get sold during the process. Most of the time they're highly marked up from the original pricing so the suckers at the top can milk more money from the recruited cows at the bottom. Yes, this very aspect involving the transfer of items probably also makes it legitimate from a legal standpoint, but from a morality one, it's highly unethical. And so are the dubious recruiting tactics:

i) Brainwashing 'seminars' where people are invited on the basis of attending a simple business talk (which cost me RM20, by the way. The price of giving face to a 'friend'...);

ii) Ridiculously high amounts of false hope dispensed involving lots of luxury cars, success-made-simple stories, bragging about buying RM50k Rolex watches (I kid you not!), etc;

iii) Belittling your current financial status - questioning whether are you getting the money you deserve, how your current job and life sucks cos you ain't making enough money, how your boss is taking you for a ride by getting the big bucks while you're working your ass off for shit, etc;

iv) Avoiding simple questions about sustainability and profit potential through ambiguous statements like "in every business you have to work hard," or "RM[insert amount] is a small amount to pay nowadays to start a business";

v) Avoiding questions about failure rates (those who failed to break even and hence lost money) but instead, blaming these failures for their lack of effort though it's obvious that it's not an easy task trying to persuade a person face-to-face to part with a large amount of money. Which is why come to think of it, they'd rather avoid telling you immediately their 'business model' but instead prefer if you come to their 'seminars' where they can convince you with crowd pressure and other psychological factors;

vi) Making it sound as if it's an opportunity to you by wanting to share their wealth making technique since you're a friend/relative/[insert relation], when in actual fact, they're more interested in the commission they will get once you join;

vii) Fill these seminars with their members (poor sods who have been brainwashed) who engage in overenthusiastic welcomes, cheers and actions in order to give an appearance of trust and success to outsiders new to this;

viii) Tell you that this is a chance to be your own boss;

ix) Members, even those you don't know, are extremely friendly and overenthusiastic about getting you started, which logically, will not happen in a perfectly honest business. I mean which business would want more competition unless they have something to benefit from this competition?

x) Masking their schemes under names like 'network marketing' or 'multi-level marketing' to lend it a sense of legitimacy;

xi) Calling it a franchise because for the amount you pay, you get some really overpriced items and the right to sell these items. After that, the cycle repeats itself when you recruit people and sell them items and the right to sell these items. And they will repeat the exact same thing later by recruiting and selling to someone else. Confusing? Well think about it this way. In a real franchise like McD, I don't exactly get the right to sell Big Macs just because I bought one, do I?

Look, I have no problem with them if everything is done in an honest manner without all the added sugar. I have no problem if during these 'seminars', a business plan is outlined and people are made aware of how the 'business' (if you can even call it that) works.

What I have a problem with, is the secretive (read: lying, ambiguous, double-faced) nature of the way they work. More specifically, not making clear certain things when they invite you to their 'seminars' or not telling you from the start how they actually make their money. Ask yourself this question, o' potential investors: what kind of business is this if it does not even have the guts to tell you their plans face on but instead, prefers to subject you to a two hour show of chest thumping rags-to-riches nonsense before giving you an idea of what they're doing? Oh, and they will probably tell you after the 'seminar' - just like they told me - not to tell anyone else about their business under the reason that the general public might misunderstand them.

But why the need to hide in the dark if this business is perfectly legit? Instead of the truth, what you will get after the 'seminar' is a teaser: come to this whatever one-day thing we're organizing and you will get a clearer picture of how our business works. All fine, until you consider the RM150 or someting you will have to fork out for what I will assume is another uber-brainwashing session. But I guess that's how the scheme works - by flooding your brain with delusions of riches and taking advantage of your greed, which I will admit, is something everyone has.

If you're still not convinced by this point as to why you shouldn't throw a penny at these schemes, ask youself this question: can you live with the fact that you're making money by selling people false hope? By asking them to 'seminars' to have them brainwashed so that they will part with their money and you then get a cut of it?

Legit in the eyes of the law this scheme may be, but I know I'd rather be poor and ride my beaten down C70 for the rest of my life rather than make money out of people through dubious means and drive a BMW Z4 - especially if those people happen to be my family and friends. Its a syn...I mean sin, no matter how you look at it.

Finally, to my 'friend' who may be reading this, I say you know who you are. And just so you know, here's my middle finger and a big 'f*ck you'. Shame on you for trying to get an old friend to one of your 'seminars' without telling him exactly what he's in for. If you had the balls to tell me from the start it will be about the business you're in and that I will have to fork out RM20 to attend it, I probably would've attended it anyway because you were honest and I'd give you face as a friend. Not telling the entire truth isn't lying, but it's cheating nontheless. I hope you realize this before you lose all your friends.

"If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is,"

Opportunity my ass. Guess for once my pessimism actually saved me from being conned.

Ah...physics!

2008-06-18T22:53:00.004+08:00

Does anyone else besides me find this funny?

Edit: something else I found in my hard drive:

Didn't know he rocked, did you?

Circumzenithal Arcs

2008-06-14T13:18:00.005+08:00

"The circumzenithal arc or cicumzenith arc (CZA), also called the Bravais' arc, is an optical phenomenon similar in appearance to a rainbow and arising from refraction of sunlight through non-terminated, horizontally-oriented ice crystals in certain clouds. It takes the shape of one-quarter of a circle centered at the zenith and parallel to the horizon, on the same side as the sun. Its colors run from blue near the zenith to red towards the horizon; it is one of the brightest and most colorful halos."

- Wikipedia: Circumzenithal Arc

Some CZA shots taken from the front yard, before and after PP. The 'after' shots were autolevelled, autocontrasted and autocolored to bring out the CZA more clearly...and somewhat more eerily too if you ask me.

Shot #1: Before

Shot #1: After

Shot #2: Before

Shot #2: After

Shot #3: Before

Shot #3: After

Conclusion: There are more things than you can imagine in the sky if you'd just bother to look up - in my case, accidentally.

Euro Blues for the Azzurri Fan

2008-06-13T19:44:00.008+08:00

And the tournament hasn't even progessed beyond the group stages yet! Shitty Italy lost to Holland 3-0 and shitty Germany just had to lose to 'ikan Bilic' Croatia. Darn. At least Spain are firing on all cylinders though. Hope they keep their form up and go all the way to the finals - where they lose to Italy of course! I've been saying time and time again that Man Utd should've buy Torres and Villa. Scousers got the former, isn't it time the reds got the latter?

Forza Italia folks!

And here's a self portrait just to show that I've been busy with my camera and Photoshop when I'm sure there are more productive things to do during the holidays:

Post-match edit: The Italians just drew with Romania. Shit.

Taiping Lake Gardens, Part Deux

2008-06-07T15:44:00.008+08:00

Went back to the lake gardens a few days later on June 4th to see what I could get on a weekday morning and also to help my bro snap some pix for his school project. Most pix here are also my personal experiments in photoshopping:

Tranquility

Walkway

Walkway, this time in B&W.

Overlooking the lake towards the northwest.

Same angle, slightly different subjects.

The same walkway, but this was photographed after the bamboo stuffed Chinese bridge.

Across another section of the lake. This is looking westwards, I believe.

Greens and blues. Okay, I think I may have overdone the color adjustments on this one...

An underexposed shot that's here cos I kinda like how it turned out.

One of the many lakes. Love the tree on the extreme right...

And this is what you'd get if you shifted your gaze towards the right. They sure as heck don't call this place the lake gardens for nothing!

More greens and blues with such great weather and light that morning.

A path into the trees. Used a simulated yellow filter on this one.

Surprisingly this shot came out well. Gotta love those circular polarizers.

The grass somehow looks inviting from this angle.

Once again that nice tree I mentioned earlier. Would've preferred the tree branches to be out of the sides of the pic though. My bad.

And by this stage, I really am tempted to make another "fuyoh...macam Switzerland," remark.

Cheers, folks!

Taiping Lake Gardens

2008-05-31T20:50:00.004+08:00

Lotsa green everywhere on a Saturday morning...but I admit I could've done better though. Blame it on the lack of a caffeine fix that morning.

European Champions 2007/2008

2008-05-22T16:05:00.003+08:00

Haha! Basking in the glory of the Reds' third European title here as I write this...but looking back, I guess they could have thrown it away a couple of times during the match. I'll admit, it wasn't the best performance by MU in any measure and the lads should have put the game beyond Chelsea in the first half. I mean they could have been 3-1 up for chrissakes. And if that wasn't bad enough, they actually let their opponents back into the game in the second half! That's when the usual United half-effort play began...you know, the half-hearted passes that were easily intercepted, little effort to win balls (even 50-50 ones), etc. And Chelsea hit the woodwork twice as a result. Yeah, like I said, it could so easily have gone the other way couldn't it?

It's easy to forget all those flaws in the United game when you watch Rio Ferdinand finally lift the cup, but somehow, somewhere, I feel something in the squad still needs straightening up. Maybe it's called team spirit. Or maybe it's a certain Brazilian right-back named Dani Alves. :)

Anyhows, here's to an even better next season where we win the quadruple without needing extra time or penalties to do it!

GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED! THE REDS GO MARCHING ON, ON, ON!

Time to give off one of my evil laughs now...bwahahahahaha....

United...Man United...

2008-05-12T00:57:00.002+08:00

English champions for 2007/2008! Woohoo! Onwards to Moscow now!

3 Lessons

2008-04-11T20:55:00.003+08:00

Lessons I've learned over the past week:

1) There's no such thing as a free lunch.
2) There's no substitute for hard work.
3) If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Mood of the Day: Contented

2008-03-09T13:41:00.001+08:00

:)

Thank you, my fellow Malaysians for daring to stand up and make a change. We have shown each other that there is hope after all.

No Election Plea Here, Just a Simple Thought

2008-03-07T14:22:00.004+08:00

In less than 24 hours, I will be lining up at SK All Saints to cast my vote. No doubt others will be there too, having already made their decision to give a cross for the scales or the rocket or the moon. The events leading up to election day have been intense. The poster war in Taiping seems to have reached its climax. Even the poor tree opposite my humble 2 storey terrace house has fallen victim to poster-campaigning. It's all interesting to look at, really, but at the end of the day, when you make a decision, it's all on facts isn't it? No amount of posters or giant weighing scale replicas are going to sway your mind if you know the issues. No amount of cloaked and veiled threats should tamper with your resolve to do what's right. If you care about mending our fractured and polarized society, reducing corruption, having an independent judiciary, and other national issues plaguing this nation more than having your MP get the bandaraya to clean the longkangs, then you know what to do.

The BN has come out and threatened the Chinese community with reduced representation if you don't vote for their UMNO lapdogs. They have threatened to take action against university students like me if I ever sympathize with the opposition. And yet I write this, undeterred, undaunted; for my conscience knows that even if my community will be 'represented' if the MCA wins enough seats, or my 'privilege' of a university education upheld if I choose to remain ignorant to the ills of the country, I will still be unwilling to vote for the BN. No, I will not allow my right to a fair representation and education be held to ransom. Not by anyone, and especially not by the BN.

And that's why I've made my decision. What about you?

Nik Nazmi

2008-02-29T21:09:00.002+08:00

I've been reading his blog for quite some time and now he's running for office. My respect goes out to him, even though I don't know him personally. Go Nik!

Check out his campaign website at http://www.niknazmi.com/wordpress/

Open House in Not-so-open Season

2008-02-17T00:11:00.002+08:00

The PPP threw a Chinese New Year open house at Theatre Road today. Bought the entire Casual Market and gave off free food for an afternoon. Wonder how will the votes swing?

A Day at the Demonstrations

2008-02-09T16:30:00.001+08:00

And as a follow up from the last post, these pics from a demonstration at KLCC, which was the main reason I was there two Saturdays ago (26 January). These folks apparently are from a group who call themselves Protes, and were there to protest (what else?) the impending price increases of various essential items. While I don't exactly agree with them in turning Malaysia into a welfare state, what I disagree with more is the way the cops handled the people there. It seems they are adopting a new tactic when it comes to breaking up protests and demos - arrest and detain the people the moment they arrive. Quick and simple ain't it? No waste of time, no dissenting voices to be heard, a day's job done in half an hour. And a stamp of approval from PM Badawi's autocratic administration.

Early on, with not much action. So time for some spotting...

Some Unit Amal PAS guys arriving at the scene.

Cops have been there since I morning, I believe.

And the reporters. Yours truly joined the party and got mistaken for one too...

At the entrance of one of those police trucks they use to haul away protesters.

Part of the police presence. Ironically, I've never felt safer in my life.

The cops came fully equipped.

The first arrests were made as soon as the crowd swelled.

Cops at the side entrance of Suria KLCC too, cos they closed the main entrance. The idiots.

Some Zulkarnain guy, whom I understand is KL police chief or something like that

Ginie Lim of the PKR, from the wrong side of a police truck.

Then the cops formed a barricade of sorts.

And tempers flared.

There was a heavy presence of Indians too. Note the Parti Sosialis Malaysia button badge.

Police surrounding some of the protesters after one of the officers gave a really stern (and loud) order not to allow them near Suria KLCC.

Dr Hatta Ramli of PAS

More chaos as cops try to arrest the protesters...

...and haul them into these to be taken away.

An Indian woman fainted, apparently after policemen shoved her into a street lamp.

FRU vehicles on standby.

The police heli still buzzed over.

For whom does the bell toll?

Arrests, arrests and more arrests.

All of them ending up in the trucks, and the trucks waiting to be filled before speeding away to Bukit Aman.

They look like they're used to it though.

And I saw this on my way back via the LRT. Ironic isn't it?

My verdict: It's disgusting. Just plain disgusting. Seeing the people's voices silenced like that just makes me wanna puke. And I hate to parrot the lines of many opposition figures, but where were the cops when our kids were kidnapped, our handbags snatched and our motorbikes stolen? None? Well now you know where they are - doing the bidding of their political masters.

KLCC

2008-02-09T16:17:00.000+08:00

My first time photographing this landmark, and though I have some choice comments to make about its construction and utilization, I have to admit also that I'm impressed by the sheer size of the things.

Kopi Moment #5

2008-02-07T22:38:00.000+08:00

"We shall do whatever is required to safeguard American lives and American honor."

- Richard M. Nixon, Address to the Nation on the Situation in Southeast Asia, May 8th, 1972

Nixon, Bombs, Vietnam and CNY

2008-02-06T22:44:00.000+08:00

Some recently unearthed gems from youtube. Firstly, the intro video from the Vietnam campaign from a really old computer game by Jane's Combat Simulations called Fighters Anthology (1997):

And the intro from another combat flight sim, USAF (1999), also by Jane's:

Beautiful stuff ain't it? Reminds me of why I wanted to be a fighter pilot as a kid.

Oh, and happy CNY and a prosperous year of the rat to everyone celebrating!

One for January

2008-01-25T19:56:00.000+08:00

Once again filling space so I will maintain my one-post-a-month record!

Shots From Home

2007-12-28T07:00:00.000+08:00

Some shots taken over the holidays:

Off to KL now for my industrial attachment. Will be there till May. In the meantime, Happy New Year 2008, everyone!

Norad Tracks Santa

2007-12-25T08:13:00.000+08:00

And they track him to Taiping!

Get That In Your Head!

2007-12-15T17:13:00.000+08:00

I woke up today, stumbled down the stairs, fumbled through the pages of the Star (15 Dec) and this gem of a report hits me smack in the face - Najib: Look at Gitmo First. According to our dear DPM:

KUALA LUMPUR: The United States should cover its own backyard before demanding that other countries give their political prisoners a fair trial, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.
“Can they give a fair trial to the detainees in Guantanamo Bay? We’ll only respond if they do so,” the Deputy Prime Minister told a press conference after chairing the 36th Malaysia-Indonesia General Border Committee Meeting (Malindo GBC) yesterday.

I mean WTF, man? Comparing your wrong to a larger wrong doesn't make you right, dammit! When will you guys in the govt see it? Damn, I just feel like slapping them hard on the back of the head and scream "wake up!!". Real beh tahan la reading this kinda stuff everyday. Thank heavens for the availability of blogs and alternative news online.

Maybe I should hope a Democrat wins the US elections, and see if our DPM would give ISA-ites a free and fair trial after Gitmo is dismantled.

And yes, in case you're wondering, I'm on the side of the Republicans for 2008.

Speak Now or Forever Hold Your...

2007-12-14T01:58:00.000+08:00

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

Kopi Moment #4

2007-12-10T22:30:00.000+08:00

"For once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

- Leonardo Da Vinci

Pictures of a Different Malaysia

2007-12-02T21:10:00.000+08:00

Three different rallies (bar council, bersih, hindraf), 2 police crackdowns in the last two months. And probably the only reason our boys in blue didn't fire teargas during the bar council march was for fear of getting their asses sued by a thousand lawyers. Which brings me to a few pictures I found while reading some blogs. Hope I'm not infringing any copyright laws by reproducing them here.

From Jeffooi.com at the Hindraf Rally:

From Kickdefella at the Bersih rally:

Anyone wanna tell me we ain't a police state yet? What happened to Voltaire's "I may not agree with what you do, but I will defend to death your right to do it?"

Arresting and brutalizing peaceful protesters is shameful.

Firing teargas into a temple is shameful.

Spinning and telling lies to the people who put their trust in you to run the country is shameful.

But I guess that word really does describe our government doesn't it? That one word: shameful.

Textures

2007-12-01T23:04:00.000+08:00

I wouldn't claim to be a nature lover by any stretch (except when it comes to sandy beaches with crystal clear blue water) but what never fails to amaze me is the patterns and textures that mother nature manages to create. The variety is absolutely astounding. Here are some pics from Bako taken well over a month ago.

Random Photography

2007-12-01T22:46:00.001+08:00

Dug through my collection of pictures today and came up with some stuff I took from early this year up till pretty recently. First off, The main road near my Desa Ilmu home at Unimas. Take a guess at how much photoshop work went into this:

Then, some B&W shots of KLIA that I thought would look really nice:

Night shots of Kuala Lumpur, taken from the 22nd floor of the Dynasty Hotel during my stay there for the Malaysian Intervarsity Economics Debating Championship:

An alley at Desa Ilmu:

Shots from my flight to KL on the 24th of November:

10 Tahun Sebelum Merdeka.

2007-11-16T16:28:00.000+08:00

There are many things history books don't tell you - especially our history books. As such, this documentary is a must watch if you happen to care or if you're just plain curious about the history of Malaya. It gets a 4 out of 5 from me for its surprisingly high production quality (by my standards anyway) despite the low budget I hear director Fahmi Reza had. And you can get it here in high def.

Hungry

2007-11-11T04:40:00.000+08:00

It's 4:42am, I've just done cramming dozens of pages of words and I'm hungry. There's a single pack of instant noodles left (indomie tomyam flavor, if you must know), but I'm saving it for tomorrow. My wallet's empty too, otherwise I'd grab the bike and get some kolok mee at the nearby Siang Siang (it's a coffeshop franchise here in dumbasslan...I mean, Sarawak). Guess some crappy noodles would be better than no noodles at all. Will be heading back to the West in a week and a half. Can't wait to get some real food in the system.

Zam Pissed

2007-11-10T17:22:00.002+08:00

Just watched a live interview on al-Jazeera with info minister Zam, and he sounds really pissed, accusing them of biased reporting. Surely hypocrisy at its finest!

And the fact that Zam's pissed means I'm happy. Yes, I'm sporting a really big grin as I type this now.

Give Me Democracy

2007-11-10T16:51:00.000+08:00

They marched, tens of thousands of them. It's about time we stood up against the BN tyranny that has manhandled this country, raped it again and again, and called you and I stupid to our faces. It's time we demand for what the Malaysian people truly deserve. Yes, it doesn't get any more blunt from me than that.

If only I could be there in KL participating in the demonstrations. God bless Malaysia.

Bako National Park

2007-10-25T15:53:00.000+08:00

Some pics from Bako. Came back last week, but the connection was so God-awfully slow that I couldn't post anything!

Sunset with Mt. Santubong in the background

So how did I enjoy the trip? Not too much, not too little. Too many insects, noise and a forced march kinda spoiled it, but that doesn't mean I don't plan to return. With a different crowd next time, perhaps...

Crawling along...

2007-10-20T20:04:00.001+08:00

That refers to the connection by the way. Horrible, horrible speeds here in Samarahan, and the SOBs are charging us RM130/house/month to use it. Looks like more short posts to come.