Captivating

A Must Read For Traders or Investors or Human..........

2008-12-20T12:25:00.003+08:00

I got this transcript from Chu Ern:-

I had the good fortune to attend the 2008- Berkshire Hathaway Shareholders meeting at Omaha , Nebraska a few weeks back.

It was a wonderful experience listening to and learning from the Ma ster Investor- Warren Buffett himself and all I can say is that he stands alone as the reigning deity of financial world's Mt Olympus!

The degree of humility and composure he exhibited, although he is the richest and most well respected human is stunning!

I tried to take some notes and would like to share with you some of the best questions and answers which came across during the conversation between we mortals and God.

Having read about him, observed him and worshipped him for a few years now, I think it is reasonable to believe that this guy is exactly what he seems: a plain-speaking, tee totalling man of uncrackable integrity who works really, really hard and sticks to his investing and management principles through boom and bust which makes him a freak of nature since he is above normal human tendencies. He is like a comet streaking through the heavens every 75 years or so.

The questions the shareholders threw at him for 7 continuous hours ranged from finances, life, religion, career, politics, sports and several other streams. And he answered everything with a Zen like calm and confidence.

Even if you are least bothered about investments and finances, I insist, Please read on.

===================================================================================================================================

What does it take to become a successful investor? Brilliance or Smartness?

Neither, Success in investing doesn't correlate with I.Q. Once you have ordinary intelligence, what you need is the temperament to control the urges that gets other people into trouble in investing.

When do you deicide to invest in a firm?

The best thing that happens to us is when a great company gets into temporary trouble. We want to buy them when they're on the operating table. (Mr. Buffett bought Coke when it had its biggest fiasco after launching New Coke; he bought American Express when it went through a loss making phase in the early 60's)

What do you look for in people when they come to sell their firms to you?

I don't look for the usual credentials such as an MBA, a pedigree (Harvard, Wharton), or cash reserves or market cap of their firm. What I look for is just a passion in their eyes; I think that's the key. A person who is hungry will always do well. I prefer it when people even after selling stay on and work for the firm; they are people who can't wait to get off their bed to get to work. Passion is everything; there is no replacement for innate interest.

Mr. Buffett, you told us that  Berkshire Hathaway has $ 45 Billion in cash. Why aren't you investing?

Up until a few years back I had more ideas than money. Now I have more money than ideas.

When do you plan to retire?

I love my job; I love it so much that I tap dance to work. Mrs. B, the founder of Nebraska Furniture Ma rk worked until she was 104, she died within 6 months of her retirement, that's a lesson to all my managers, don't retire! I personally am going to work 6-7 years after I die, probably that's what they mean when they say- "Thinking out of the Box"!!

Why do stock market crashes happen?

Because of human nature for greed and insecurity. The 1970s were unbelievable. The world wasn't going to end, but businesses were being given away. Human nature has not changed. People will always behave in a manic-depressive way over time. They will offer great values to you."

What are the things that are taught wrong in Business school and the corporate world?

I like such open ended questions, I think Business schools should refrain from teaching their wards about profit making and profit making alone, it gives a sense of 1 dimensional outlook to the young students that loss is a curse. In reality, in the corporate world, failure and loss making are inevitable. The capital market without loss is like Christianity without hell. I think they should teach the student on how to buy a business, how to value a business? Not just on how to determine the price of a business. Because price is what you pay, value is what you get.

Do you still hate Technology stocks?

With Coke I can come up with a very rational figure for the cash it will generate in the future. But with the top 10 Internet companies, how much cash will they produce over the next 25 years? If you say you don't know, then you don't know what it is worth and you are speculating, not investing. All I know is that I don't know, and if I don't know, I don't invest."

How to think about Investing?

The first investment primer was written by Aesop in 600 B.C. He said, 'A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.' Aesop forgot to say when you get the two in the bush and what interest rates are; investing is simply figuring out your cash outlay (the bird in the hand) and comparing it to how many birds are in the bush and when you get them."

How do you feel after donating $ 40 Billion to the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation? You are a hero to us!
I feel nothing. I haven't sacrificed anything in life. I have had a good life. I donated after I turned 75. I think I admire those people who sacrifice their time, share their food and home, as the people to be emulated not me. Besides, what is money before a man's life?

What do you think are the pitfalls in donation?

I have never donated a dime to churches or other such organizations; I need to believe in something before I end up doing that. I have been observing the Bill & Melinda Gates foundation for years now and I am confident they will do a fantastic job of making use of the money. I am a big believer in Outsourcing, others believed in me as an Investor and gave their hard earned money to invest. I believe in Bill Gates, he is a better donor than me.

Why do you work from  Omaha and not  Wall Street ,  New York ?

Wall Street is the only place where people alight from Rolls Royce to get advised by people who use the Public transportation system.

You seem to be so well read, tell us how it all started.

My father was a stock broker, so we had all these financial books in our library. He introduced me to those classics and I got into them. I am lucky that my father was not a fan of Playboy! Reading is the best habit you can get. Well, you can learn from teachers too, and have mentors but there are so many constraints attached- they will talk fast, talk slow, they might talk like a pro or they might be terrible communicators. Books are a different animal altogether, I love reading! The beauty about reading and learning is that the more you learn the more you want to learn.

People who join  Berkshire Hathaway seldom leave. How do you get along well with all your executives?

I try to get quality people. I always say - Hire someone in your organization who is better than you are. If you do that, you build a company of giants. If you get people worse than yourself, you build a company of dwarfs. And do not try to do everything yourself. Delegate the jobs and look out of the window. The results will come. That's how you build institutions. It happens only when you empower others, believe in others. Iam an investor, Iam very secured at that, I have no clue how to make Coca-Cola or how to dole out credit cards (Mr. Buffett owns 8% of Coca-Cola and 13 % of American Express). I understand the wisdom of the aphorism that you cannot please all the people all the time. Of Course, you will always find qualities that you don't like in people around you, but if you observe carefully the love of the work unites you both. There is no point in being obsessive about a bad quality in a person, whom you otherwise respect.

I am a small time businessman from  Dallas ,  Texas , what do I need to do to hit big time?

Be patient, Achieving your financial goals and dreams will not happen overnight. As much as we would all really love to accomplish our goals in a few years, this is an ongoing process. Defining your financial goals is not a one-time task; you need to keep adding new plans at different stages in your life. We all admire the skills of Olympic ice skaters, pro golfers, and concert pianists. But do we remember that they didn't acquire their skills overnight? They had to practice hours on end for years to achieve their dreams. The key to success is to continue learning throughout your life with a voracious appetite.

I think it is marvelous that you have had a golden run with investing, how did you do that?

My rule is to be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. Besides, I call investing the greatest job in the world because you never have to swing. You stand at the plate; the pitcher throws you General Motors at 47!  U.S. Steel at 39! And nobody calls a strike on you. There's no penalty except opportunity lost. All day you wait for the pitch you like; then when the fielders are asleep, you step up and hit it. Stay dispassionate and be patient. You're dealing with a lot of silly people in the marketplace; it's like a great big casino and everyoneelse is boozing. If you can stick with drinking Coke, you should be OK. First the crowd is boozy on optimism and buying every new issue in sight. The next moment it is boozy on pessimism, buying gold bars and predicting another Great Depression, most people get interested in stocks when everyone else is. The time to get interested is when no one else is. You can't buy what is popular and do well.

Mr. Buffett you have seen so many crashes and recessions, your take on facing recessions and stock market crashes?

If past history was all there was to the game, the richest people would be librarians. Every scenario is different. But always remember, Tough times do not last. Tough people do.

What is the 1 biggest advice you would impart to a young investor like me?

Think for a moment that you are given a car and told this is the only car you would get for the rest of your life. Then you would make sure that you car is taken care of well, it is oiled and detailed every now and then. You would make sure that it never gets rusted, and you would garage it. Think of yourself as that car. You just get 1 body, 1 mind and 1 soul. Take care of it well. Invest in yourself that would be my advice.

You personally know many of the Financial executives who are engineers of the current turmoil in the financial world, surprisingly even after record losses, those executives receive astronomical salaries and bonuses and arrogantly declare that they deserve it, why didnt you advice them from making such decisions and what's your view on theirjustification for their pay?

I like sharing my ideas but don't like imposing my ideas on anybody. It doesn't make sense and is a waste of time. If somebody has decided that they know everything that is there to know, nobody can help them. The best way to learn and succeed is to know that we know nothing. There is an entire universe out there and still some of us think we can know everything. In the world of investing a few people after making some money tend to imagine they are invincible and great. This is the worst thing that could happen to any investor, because it surely means that the investor will end up taking unnecessary risks and end up losing everything – arrogance, ego and overconfidence are very lethal. Personally I don't feel too comfortable with too much extravagance, because I always think like an investor. My thought process doesn't see a lot of value in a fancy car or a designer suit. Thinking like an investor always is very important to bring in a sense of discipline and focus. Before reading balance sheets and investing you need to make sure your outlook and mindset is that of an investor. Never let ego, arrogance and over-confidence control you - not just as an investor but also as a human being. You will never have internal peace if you are unable to look at everybody around you with love, compassion and understanding. Irrespective of who the person is, he or she can teach you something you don't know. I have learnt so much from people all around me and I wouldn't have been able to learn all these wonderful things if I had not spoken to them with a smile. To quote Sir Isaac Newton- If I have seen farther than others, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants.

It was a 7 hour conversation and I could just capture some of the best questions and answers. As 37,000+ dazed, amazed and grateful shareholders trooped out of the stadium after the meeting, I found myself recalling one of my favorite quotes-

"A man has to learn that he cannot command things, but that he can command himself; that he cannot coerce the wills of others, but that he can mold and master his own will: and things serve him who serves truth; people seek guidance of him who is master of himself".

Perth 1

2008-11-26T21:53:00.002+08:00

I'm so sorry for my long disappearance. Basically, the other blog has been tying me down. Well, not that I'm any free-er today, but guilt set in and I better do what's long overdue - that's to update this blog.

Running Pretty and Under 40 has been exciting. I've been getting blogshop updates daily, and what surprised me most was that one of them who does check out 'Captivating' knew that I was going to Perth and wrote to me and suggested places for me to visit. That's quite surreal but the possibilities of the Internet is as such.

First off, PERTH. I've gone and am back. My last visit there was 3 years ago for Kristy and Jon's wedding. Things have changed since then. They've a new train line that stretches all the way to Mandurah, bypassing Murdoch *woohoo*. There are also way too many Asians in Perth. At every nook and cranny, I spot one. They are either shopping in the mall, tending the cashier or pushing the dimsum cart. I reckon that Perth is more multicultural than Malaysia.

I'll update with my pictures with day to day journal later. My pix are in my fiancee's laptop. Yes, I got engaged there too. hehehhehe.

Updating blogs

2008-10-23T17:04:00.004+08:00

Seriously, I've never blogged like this before. I mean blogging at Pretty and Under 40. It's hard work everyday having to catch up with the latest trends, flipping the pages of fashion mags on newsstands and clicking & clicking & clicking for untold hours. My goodness!

You really got to check out the blog. Nevermind if you're a guy; getting acquainted with the fashion world & knowing that it really isn't all that expensive is priceless. At least you have very good reasons to stop your girlfriend from splurging unwisely for a pair of stockings at TOPSHOP.

There's a lot of satisfaction at the end of every day (despite having to fight for the comp with the 2 men in my life)! There's a lot of plans for this blog and am looking forward to the next phase. There's a next phase? Of course, sweetie!

Updated: Pretty and Under 40

2008-10-17T16:20:00.003+08:00

I spent the whole day updating Pretty and Under 40. Indeed, there is so much to update. And to my astonishing discovery, there are so many blogshops in Malaysia alone. I'm not sure how profitable they are, but it only makes me happier because there's so much to shop... I mean look around *grins*

Do drop by to check it out.

xoxo

Pretty and Under 40

2008-10-16T01:19:00.003+08:00

I've been busy working on my new blog.
No, I'm not closing this down.
Just extending my blogscope.
I realized that I spent most of my time googling for e-shops and drooling over the pretty lil' things there.
So I thought, why not share this obsession with the rest *grins*

Pretty and Under 40 is my latest pride & joy.
Someone asked, what's pretty and why under 40?
The clothes, the belts, the knick-knacks, the shoes, the collectibles, etc are pretty.
And it's under 40 because I personally believe that things that pretty things ain't expensive. And it's my personal stand to not splurge on anything I lay eyes on that are above RM40.

Hence Pretty and Under 40 is dedicated to those who loves it pretty and wants it cheap - like below RM40.
Watch this space, always!

P/s: Do let me know if you've spotted anything that fits the bill.

maybe I should...

2008-10-14T11:57:00.002+08:00

There are too many pretty things in the world today. I was marvelling over Leng's rose bunches hairclip last Sunday, and it's sold out today. Shucks! Her stuff are often sold out in a matter of days. And I'm always too late! And from what I gather about my students' business, they are doing well too.

Hermm... if it's that profitable, maybe I should....

Next holiday, Perth

2008-10-14T11:21:00.003+08:00

It's the fourteenth, and both Daniel and I are not ready for our holidays yet. Thank goodness we've got our accomodations sorted out. But till now, we've yet to decide where to go and what to do in Perth. It's not my fault! It was 'the man' who couldn't decide whether to play by ear when we're there or to go on a planned trip.

Nevertheless, we've got our air tix ready, visa's done, dinner parties planned, and of course shopping money ready in our pockets. I even bought myself a new bottle of sunblock for my beach escapade. If you've been to Cottlesloe and Scarborough, you'll come back not wanting to go to Pangkor or Tioman anymore. And not to mention how these 2 turned me into a beach junkie.

I can't wait to touch down and breathe the air of limitless shopping... I mean adventure. I'll leave you with a fraction of my coming most thrilling holiday ever - a picture of the Cottlesloe beach.

Moonlight Resonance

2008-10-09T12:35:00.005+08:00

In class:
Student: Miss Kinsan, you look tired. Are you ok?
Me: No, I'm not ok. I haven't had enough sleep.
Student: Oh... is it because of work?
Me: No. It's because I have been watching Moonlight Resonance (a TVB serial) till the wee hours of the morning.
Students: Yeah... we totally understand.

Seriously, you won't understand unless you've watched this particular serial. Having watched it in the last 5 days (and I'm already at Episode 37 of 40), I'm already feeling like a junkie. It's like shooting heroin into my blood stream, I can never get enough of it. I tell myself every night, "this will be my last for the night" and it won't be until I finish another 2 more episodes. I'm totally addicted to Moonlight Resonance.

I'll echo with the rest that it is a great show. It's so engaging that out of 5 nights, I've dreamt about the show twice - once where the characters became part of my dream, and the other where I was one of the characters in the drama. It's definitely giving me more morning blues than ever. I got to work for class. I drove at 80km/j on the fast lane. I was most of the time disoriented.

But have you ever wondered what is it with such obsession for Chinese serials? Well, I have. Not only wondered but studied, researched, and wrote a paper about it too! Seriously! (I majored in Media Analysis back in uni).

There are 2 possible reasons: these larger than life serials are (1) a portrayal of lives that we can never live but dream to have, and (2) a portrayal of lives that are reflective of our true selves, but only less magnified and most of the time disguised.

And true enough, minus the drama, the good looks, the bad lucks, the exaggerations, the coincidences, the over the top lifestyles, in Moonlight Resonance, I find pieces of myself in the characters. It's like seeing myself in the drama. And Daniel even concurred that I'm no different from the evil stepmother. Not a pleasing comment at all, but I partially agree with him. I probably possess 0.0253% of her evilness.

Anyway, final note to self: MUST FINISH THE FINAL 3 EPISODES TONIGHT, and I'll be over and done with this.

Unless you're stupid or something, getting the message isn't hard

2008-10-03T14:42:00.007+08:00

I was dissed by my favorite doctor. Alright, maybe I dissed him instead.

I was at his clinic wanting to buy some cream for my ezcema. And it cost me RM12. I gave the nurse RM50 but she said she didn't have change for that. I told her the same - either RM50 or RM100. She gave me a poker face and said 'No' and walked away.

Fine, I thought it's one of those business practice where they try to keep as much small change as possible for emergency purposes. I waited for another nurse to come by and shove the RM50 to her. Again, my note was rejected.

I stood there inrelentlessly. I wasn't going to move until someone gives me my change and cream! Well, not until my doctor saw me. He wasn't stern but made it clear that he doesn't have change and that was final. I got his message.

I left the clinic to do a little unnecessary shopping just to break my money. Of course I did walked out from there with my cream and also a lesson learnt - that it's no rocket science to get the message.

Seriously, when someone tells you that they don't have it, or stop calling because I don't know, or call someone else instead of me NUMEROUS TIMES, you better get the message. Unless of course you are stupid or something.

I hate holidays

2008-10-03T14:19:00.004+08:00

Sleeping in.

Googling.

Channel surfing.

Meeting people.

Munching.

Facebooking.

Channel surf again.

2 hours nap.

Googling again.

Catching up with the Carebears like twice in a week.

Movies.

A week in life of a teacher who's on a break. Frankly, I hate holidays. I hate the fact that I'm not working. And I hate going to the malls and holidays when the whole world is there. I dislike crowds. I dislike having to wait. (You're reading about someone who only goes to the hair saloon when the whole world is working).

I am a workaholic. I don't know what will become of me when December comes.

Too pretty

2008-09-29T18:37:00.002+08:00

It's one of those days when I've things (like work) to do but slacks it because the Internet is way too interesting. This is the day.

I've been online way too many hours looking at mostly very important websites - my friend's boutique's website, my ex-schoolmate's online boutique website, my students' online boutique website.

There are too many pretty things in the world.

On another note, I'm heading to Singapore again this December. I'm gonna ikat pinggan for the next few months just so I've enough greenbacks to use.

Quotation

2008-09-29T16:40:00.003+08:00

Chin up. Put your shoulders back, walk proud, strut a little. Don't lick your wounds: celebrate them. The scars you bear are the signs of a competitor. You're in a lion fight, Stevens. Just because you didn't win doesn't mean you don't know how to roar.

Dr Richard Webber to Izzie Stevens

Mamma Meeeee...... yahhhhhh

2008-09-29T12:37:00.007+08:00

My honey honey and I finally caught this yesterday (yes, i know, we are like so yesterday). Believe me, I'll watch this over and over again.

About 5 years ago, I was at its musical with some friends in Perth, and it was oh marvelous, marvelous. The stage, the songs, the energy, the dancing, the colors. And at the end of the musical, we all stood up and started dancing while they did their finale songs. I was so tempted to do the same yesterday at the cinema. haha

I love the setting. Oh, maybe it's too bias to say how friendly the villa looks and spectacular the sea is because I love beach more than the shopping malls. Seriously. With all the singing, and dancing, and fairy lights, and not to mention the sea. Oh... I'd want to spend my whole life there. Did I mention how i love the beach more than the shopping malls?

And the spontaneity of it too. Having watched Rendition and Devil's Wear Prada, Meryl Streep is the last person I expect to break out dancing and singing in movies. She was extremely spontaneous all throughout. Though she looked gawky when she first did those moves on the pier and the roof of the goat house, this only shows how versatile she is as an actress. Apparently, she decided to do this movie to humiliate her children. If I were her daughter, i WILL crawl into a hole! But she's lovely.

Amanda Seyfried is amazing too. From being a plastic in The Mean Girls and now a love-struck 20-year-old, I've to applause her for the kind of energy she brings into the show. Alright, she sings well and she looks great too. But to act alongside Meryl Streep, the goddess of moviedom, is no easy pull. You can really see the connection between these 2 ladies. And they 2 seemed to have a lot, a lot of fun.

And if this is not enough to convince you, my honey honey, who loves indulging himself in Beowolf, Alien vs Predator, Rambo, and any other movies with sidekicks, killing, attacking, karate-chops, was seen humming Dancing Queen the whole night long.

Bummer

2008-09-24T09:21:00.003+08:00

I really love my job. I'm not sure if it's the young ones that I like. Or is it the sense of satisfaction when they improve. Or because I get to move them around. Or the nobility of it. I really don't know, but I have no complains at all. Despite the stacking essays that needs to be marked. Nor dealing with hyperactive students for 10 hours straight, I still love my job.

But what bothers me is when people start getting political in the organization. I understand that every man is for themselves. In fact, I'm like that too. It's just that in this situation now, I'm in no position to play for myself yet. I'm merely the wall between these parties.

Oh, bummer!

Joe Loy and the Warehouse Project

2008-09-23T16:37:00.003+08:00

This is uber cool.

LAUNCH OF THEIR DEBUT ALBUM "ALL THE NATIONS"
on Saturday, October 11 2008

VENUE: The Sanctuary, FGA KL

Doors open at 8PM

Refreshments provided from 6.30 onwards

SEE YOU THERE!

Trump: How to Get Rich

2008-09-23T16:18:00.003+08:00

There are 2 truths that I've to reveal about this book and the writer.

First, there isn't any tips from Donald Trump as to how you can be rich. All we get in the book is his constant bragging about how he made it. Unless, you're a CEO/President of some company and has a couple hundred of millions to spare, you can make the calls the 'Donald' way. Nevertheless, there are some quotable principles he noted. Again, that's Donald...

Secondly, he isn't a writer at all. He is a full blooded businessman. In fact, he probably made a couple of millions from us through the sales of this. If you're looking for something to review for your literature assignment, don't kill yourself over this book. The writings are short, concise, simple and probably down to earth. Again, it's Donald we're speaking about. Do you hear him explaining why the apprentices are fired? Not much. So don't expect him to share with you anything deeper than that.

One thing that I did pick up from this book is the fact that no one ever stop working towards being successful. There is a section in the book which detailed down one of Donald's week. It's a work journal/diary/whatever you call it. In every hour, decisions involving millions of dollars are made. And this man never stop moving/working. And lunch was his time to catch up with news. Unless he is over bragging, Donald Trump is one of the most hardworking man in America. And the very reasons how he can make it to today is because he has never stop working and is open to new ideas. This man takes chances. But then again, he's Donald Trump; he can afford it.

Why Not Advertising?

2008-09-23T16:09:00.002+08:00

Just recently, I overlooked an event our school was running. And subsequently the development and production of the promotional materials (brochures, buntings, etc, etc). That thrilling weeks reminded me how much I missed advertising. I love the nitty-gritty of it. And at the same time, am in awe of how quick and responsive humans can work within a short period of time. On the day of the event, I saw each of it unfolding to its form. I was a proud mama then.

Nevertheless, there's always one reason why I'll never go back to advertising. Unforeseen overlooked mistakes I'm capable of making. Just yesterday, I argued with a colleague due to a miscommunication on the namecard. No matter how many rounds it was checked, it will never be perfect. Frankly, I can't take frustrations like this.

Singapore

2008-09-16T13:52:00.004+08:00

I never really get to travel without the whole coach/plane knowing my name. That's travelling with the Ongs, for your info.

Last weekend, my parents and I made a trip to Singapore to attend the most awaited wedding dinner of our lifetimes. It was my Bee Gor Gor's wedding. My cousin la. Btw, he's the only cousin from my father's side.

Anyway, I hadn't travelled with my parents for more than 4 years. That's because I'm older, I'm working, I don't have time for their trips, they don't want me to join them in their mini honeymoons, etc. That's besides the point. So, as I was saying, travelling with them can be mad-hell. My parents can be exceptionally 'kan-cheong' and throughout the journey, they'll call my name for no 'apparent' reasons.

"Are you comfortable, San?"
"Have you got your passport with you, San?"
"Make sure you don't leave your things around, San!"

I bet half the coach knew my name that night.

My parents are definately the biggest 'jokers' I've ever known. My mum made a swimming pool out of the hotel's dressing room.

You see, this is the room's dressing room. On the left is the bath tub. My mum thought that was the bathing area. And she took a SHOWER there. A SHOWER, for crying out loud. After that, I walked into an almost ankle-deep water in the room. Btw, the shower area is on the right, where the towels are hung.

Anyway, the trip was a lot of fun. Uncle put us in St. Regis, that was also where the dinner was held. And the rooms were amazing. The dinner was also elaborated. Man... only pictures can tell what I mean. So, check them out on my facebook *winks*

And of course the shopping. I met Suleen (my ex colleague) for our shopping escapade. Poor girl, I dragged her to Bugis Village. psst.. it was her first time to Bugis village. With all the sweat, noise, colours, I don't think she'll ever forget me for that. And I'm not gonna mention how much I'd shopped. Hehe...

What made this trip unforgettable is definately the family get-together. It's been long since we all come together as a family. And the chats across the room and over the dining tables. The sarcastic remarks we threw on each other. That's the 'Ongs' way.

I love my family. And shopping in Singapore.

***

Not all went well. I left my novel in the hotel. I'm frustrated not because of the loss; more so because I was coming to the end of the book. I need to know the ending!!! That's frustrating!

Opposition will walk over

2008-09-14T22:41:00.004+08:00

I just got back from Singapore today. I've so much to tell you about the trip, but I'll save it for later. Tonight, we'll discuss about our recent ISA detainers.

Frankly, before Friday, I wasn't quite sure if Anwar will have his dream come true. But now, looking at what our government had done all in the name of preserving the country's peace, I'm pretty sure this will fascilitate Anwar's takeover.

This weekend, I learnt that our government is trully short-sighted (not that I didn't know before this, but they've cemented my thoughts). And for this very reason, I don't think these current leaders are capable of leading the country anymore. C'mon, who wants short-sighted leaders?

I'm not suggesting that Anwar is far better than any of them. I'm not sure. I don't know until he takes lead. However, from the current record and the Opposition's hall of fame, there are quality leaders - Khalid, Hannah, Guan Eng, etc. And out of them, we only hope that they'll breed another generation of quality leaders.

No worries about recurrence of May 13. No need to stock of food. The rakyats are more united than ever today. We all have to agree that this dysfunctional government need to go. On Sept 16, Oppositions can easily 'walk-over'.

Just to humour you a lil'

2008-09-11T15:24:00.002+08:00

Asylum for the Verbally Insane

We'll begin with a box, and the plural is boxes,
But the plural of ox becomes oxen, not oxes.
One fowl is a goose, but two are called geese,
Yet the plural of moose should never be meese.

You may find a lone mouse or a nest full of mice,
Yet the plural of house is houses, not hice.
If the plural of man is always called men, Why shouldn't the plural of pan be called pen?
If I speak of my foot and show you my feet, And I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet?

If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth, Why shouldn't the plural of booth be called beeth?Then one may be that, and three would be those, Yet hat in the plural would never be hose, And the plural of cat is cats, not cose.

We speak of a brother and also of brethren, But though we say mother, we never say methren.
Then the masculine pronouns are he, his and him, But imagine the feminine: she, shis and shim!

Let's face it - English is a crazy language.
There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple.
English muffins weren't invented in England.

We take English for granted, but if we explore its paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square,and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.

And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham?
Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend.
If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?

If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught?
If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat?

Sometimes I think all the folks who grew up speaking English should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane.
In what other language do people recite at a play and play at a recital?
We ship by truck but send cargo by ship.
We have noses that run and feet that smell.
We park in a driveway and drive in a parkway.
And how can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?
You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it out, and in which an alarm goes off by going on.

And, in closing, if Father is Pop, how come Mother's not Mop?

I give up !

Author unknown

I'm still around

2008-09-04T16:06:00.003+08:00

No, I've not abandoned my blog. I've been seriously busy. Piles of essays are sitting in my room crying for my attention.

My Primary 1's characterization notes on the ugly, hungry troll is done. Now, I'm moving to my Primary 3's story about the frog who finished the lake water, leaving his other furry buddies thirsty. And then I've got my Form 3's essay telling me that environmental crisis is a passing phase; soon enough, our ingenious brains will find a solution to it. And that's just a crux of it. I've not mentioned my Form 4 and 5's work. *sweat*

But I'm loving it :) No complaints.

I love it hot

2008-08-29T15:00:00.003+08:00

I've this thing for summer. The weather, the fashion, the beach, the people, the energy.

I can't stick winter. It's icky and no matter how many layers I put on, the chill is ALWAYS there. Summer is different. If it's too hot, just put on a tank top. If it's still too hot, put on a bikini. Still too hot? Go for a dip. There's always a solution to hot weather.

I've this fashion fetish. I love summer dresses. And I thank God it's always almost summer here in Malaysia. And I can always wear it no matter what size I balloon into. And I don't have to worry if it's too baggy... there's no such thing as a baggy summer dress. Pants bothers me so much. I can never find the best cut. Hey, I've got short legs to deal with.

And the beach and the ice-cream and the energy and the colors. I love the sun.

There's no better time to be in Australia than in summer. And that'll be me going there. *teehee*

Shopping Escapade

2008-08-26T12:47:00.002+08:00

I'm heading south! Nope, not Australia yet.

I'll be in Singapore next month, and I've already made plans with my Singaporean konco-s for a shopping escapade. First thing Suleen (my Singaporean konco) said after knowing my trip was, "I'll get Audrey and Azny and our discount cards ready."

Oh, I can't wait *jumping in joy*

Ugly wardrobe

2008-08-25T13:00:00.002+08:00

I have an ugly wardrobe. I don't mean the physical cupboard. I just don't have anything nice to wear.

Just last Saturday, I had to attend my five-former's farewell party. There was a theme and the theme was parody. I really couldn't think of anything to parody neither did I want to buy them specially for this occassion.

On the morning of the event, I openned my wardrobe and was quite decided to go as Ugly Betty. Purely because I can mimic her best with my clothes. I need new clothes badly.

Anyhow, I went as Mrs. Smith *winks*

Picture updates

2008-08-22T09:47:00.007+08:00

Fraser's Hill

***

Cambodia

The one who finally confesses

2008-08-22T09:22:00.004+08:00

Phil 1. 15 - 18, "Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill. The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice."

I've never been a big fan of Mike Guglielmucci. I can't even say his name right. But seriously, he made himself a bigger legend with his latest confession. We can now wiki him, i mean his hoax.

I'm not angry nor am I disappointed. I'm only amazed by how he managed to put on the show for such a long time. And I also feel that he has made us Christians look stupid and desperately crave for fame. Oh, who am I to judge? We all have our little mishaps. Unfortunately, his is magnified.

Quoting Billy Graham - thousands of aircrafts land safely at the world's airports every day - but the only time the media will take an interest is when one crashes. How true!

As Christians, let's not elaborate his mistakes. Let's not spin the news just like how the devil wants us to. We may experience many emotions now, but let us learn that he (and any other Christian leaders) is as human as us.

We all need God and close accountability.

So, will I still sing...

I believe You’re my Healer
I believe You are all I need
I believe You’re my Portion
I believe You’re more than enough for me
Jesus You’re all I need?

You bet I will! After all, "the authenticity of worship resides not in the composer of a song, but rather in the heart of the singer" (Batsirai Chada).

Going down under

2008-08-18T16:31:00.004+08:00

We've just booked our tickets to Perth. Quite painful to have come up with that amount of money. I can only imagine how much more we've to spend when we are there. I wish I have a million ringgit now.

The Kite Runner - movie

2008-08-18T14:40:00.006+08:00

The Kite Runner? So-so lar. One big consolation - they didn't alter the story as much as they did for P.S. I Love You.

Kinsan attempts to review without being a spoiler for Wern Yi's sake

One area that draws me is the accuracy of its setting. The contrast between Kabul before and during the Taliban regime is starking and nicely portrayed through colors in the movie. And I love how they make kite flying such an intriguing sports. I've never flew a kite professionally, and after watching the show, i don't think I want to attempt it. Way too complicating. What happen to those aimless kite flying activities?

There were definitely a lot of parts which didn't happen in the book. Or rather, parts that was told in the original story didn't come to live on screen. Nevertheless, the screenplay writers didn't make a huge boo-boo with that. Story still make sense, but I felt that the establishment of the events happened too quick and reached the climatic point too soon.

I'm not sure about the non-Kite Runner readers, but the scenes were too short to establish the whys and hows and whats. In this case, this is a story about unconditional love and redemption. Hence, some may find it hard to grasp the internal torture Amir goes through when he is asked to go back to Kabul. And it's not the fear of Talibans but the idea of facing his past and being good again.

A word of advice for those who've not watched it, please read the book first. I had to explain to my student (who watched the movie but not read the book) the reasons why people hated the servant boy despite how looking he is in the movie). Otherwise, you'll probably pass this movie as something that made you tear a little and not too sure why. Let the words do a deeper magic in you.

Some things happened over the weekend

2008-08-18T12:27:00.010+08:00

Something fragile

We finally got to see the latest addition to our family. He is so small. So precious. So fragile.

As most of us are first time aunties and grandaunties, we 'struggled' trying to carry Wallace and not make him cry. It was hilarious when all the ladies deliberated on the best way to pass him over to each other. We are really noobs (newbies in Daniel's dictionary).

Something bizarre

I know I'm mean, but I must share. At the full moon party, I finally got to know someone named Bosco (he's my distant cousin's son).

*in Cantonese intonation* "Meet my son, Bosco ah"

The most bizarre name parents could give their child. I know I'm mean. Sorry.

Something lovely

My forty-something-year-old uncle finally got hitched. His new beau met most of us for the first time. It's somewhat weird, but delightful, to see my uncle is now a changed man.

He's neater.

He tucks in his shirt.

His hair is less greasy.

His face is flushed.

He got himself a new pair of Levi's.

Less loud and less oblivious.

It was really lovely to see how he really cares for his new beau. He made sure she was confortable. Teman-ed her everywhere she went. Spoke to her softly. That is so unlike my uncle. Not the uncle I know in the last 26 years of my life. Love changed him.

Something confusing

The relationship between my forty-something-year-old uncle who just got hitched and his new beau is quite complicating. On papers, they are officially married. But in the Chinese custom, they are not not until the tea ceremony and wedding reception, and it won't be until this November.

If that's not enough to confuse you, hear this. When my uncle introduced his new beau to us, he refered her as his girlfriend. Later, he said she's his fiancee. To another person, he called her his wife. How's that?

We, his nieces and nephews, were more puzzled. We don't know what to refer her as. We can't call her aunt yet as she's not officially one. We can't call her aunty (in a generic manner) as she's only in her mid-30s. We have no solution to this, yet.

Something out of the blue

My forty-something-year-old uncle who just got hitched came to me during lunch and asked me about my opinion on styrofoam cut out words on the stage backdrop for his wedding dinner. Then I realised that I was informally, unofficially recruited as his wedding decorator cum coordinator.

Something honorable

We rushed back to KL for the badminton finals. And like many Malaysians, we were just as dissapointed. Daniel's still not over the lost.

But when Lee Chong Wei stood on the pedestals, I felt he did us proud. Hey, at least he got us a silver medal, and not you. I teared when I saw the Malaysian flag raised.

Quote of the day

2008-08-15T12:14:00.005+08:00

“Ok well there are about 100 steps between where we are right now and building our dream house. And they’ll be fun steps, and sexy steps, and we’ll try not to fall down them together, ok?”

Dr. Meredith Grey

The very reason why I love Grey's Anatomy. She just makes so much sense.

Randomificationess

2008-08-15T11:37:00.005+08:00

I woke up feeling like writing some hate-mails to some people.

I'm so terrible.

God forgive me.

***

Going to Ipoh for the weekend.

Meeting Wallace for the first time.

Hoping to meet Daniel's first and only nephew too.

And for grandma's birthday bash too.

I can't wait too.

***

Good news.

Gold price has dropped significantly.

Bad news.

Tight is my pocket.

***

School holiday begins.

So does my rest.

***

Kite Runner DVD is sitting on my bed.

So is my tissue box.

***

Googling for Master's programs.

It's almost like going on a Yeti hunt.

I reckon the latter will be more fruitful.

Why I microfinance

2008-08-12T14:05:00.006+08:00

"Microfinance? Can eat one ar?"

Cannot eat one, but you can help put food on people's table by YOU loaning money to people.

It all happened in Muhammad Yunus's trip to one of the poorest households in Jobra. As jobs are scarce in the village, the only answer to break poverty (and for some, survival) is to build businesses.

Simple common sense tells us that we need money to start a business. And at Jobra (or any other villages), money is always a rare commodity. Banks are regarded as unreachable saviors. Bank policies are never made in favour of poor people. They regard them as bad borrowers. Again, they are merely flogging the dead horse harder.

In the village, Yunus made his first loan, loaning USD$27 from his pocket to a group of female basket weavers. Not long later, these ladies were able to make a profit out of their trade and pay off their loan in a short period of time. It was an epiphany for him on that day.

An epiphany because from that little profit they made, they were able to reinvest into the business, and one thing leads to another. As a result, they are now out of poverty and children are in schools.

So, I microfinance because it works. It helps. It is a mean to someone's end. I'm a strong believer in microfinancing. Leveraging on the power of trade, we break the poverty cycle. And since the money is loaned, the loaner gets the money back, which could be used to help another person.

Look at the white box on the right of my page. Kiva is a philanthropic organization built on the concept of microfinancing. Many will enlist themselves on Kiva for help. Financiers like me (and many others) would go through their business proposals and their backgrounds before we decide to loan them the money. One can loan a minimum of USD$25 (approx RM82) to anyone enlisted there. This money loaned will be repaid in full amount within the time frame set by the debtors.

It's so easy. No brainers. Seriously, if you're looking for an effective way to help people, start microfinancing.

So, why don't you microfinance, too?

See I told you so

2008-08-11T11:50:00.003+08:00

They are sweet, right??

Thinking of...

2008-08-10T18:00:00.008+08:00

... the sweet blue roses Daniel bought for me

...... the new dress I got

... and heels that came with the dress

...... the greatness of God's love for me and all of YOU

... tomorrow's work

...... the possible reasons why my phone won't connect to my computer

.. buying a new phone, or perhaps a new computer

Coming in at the 11th Hour

2008-08-08T15:22:00.006+08:00

There have been so much raves about this heartthrob environmentalist's documentary, The 11th Hour, and I finally got myself to it. I was floored.

His good looks aside, I find this piece more appealing as compared to The Inconvenient Truth. The Inconvenient Truth was mind-blowing and it was definitely terrifying to know where human civilisation has brought us to and where it will bring us in future. It is an important piece of work as it did lay the ground works for this battle, for people like Leo Di. But, I felt a tinge of political agenda in it. And no doubt that the climate crisis will effectively be reversed when public policies are being altered in favour of the environment.

As for The 11th Hour, it approaches the subject with more hope. At the end of the documentary, I didn't feel doomed. And even if I did, I knew that I could do something within my own means. Being an environmentalist is not that far-fetched anymore. It's merely by voting, everyday. Trully, in future, I don't want my children, wearing the oxygen masks, to scream at me, "What were you thinking about!?!??!!?!??!"

Go watch it NOW. Even if you feel that a greener Earth is an utopia, go watch it for Leonardo's good looks *winks*

Love to Hate

2008-08-08T12:49:00.003+08:00

Note to self: Shop for Wallace!

I need to get him something. I need to make myself his favourite, super cool, ultra pretty aunt. *winks*

Maybe a golden pacifier.... or a Braun Buffel wallet to keep his angpow money. Oh decisions, decisions.

***

Know what I really hate now? I hate it when Internet Explorer keeps hanging on me!

I was really excited earlier. I wanted so much to post pix of things I love. Things like the Coach bag. People like baby Wallace. Friends like Carebears. I really really wanted to post them. And everytime I click 'Save picture as ', IT HANGS!! *#$%@ I've restarted my comp umpteen times.

Snipets

2008-08-08T11:28:00.006+08:00

:: went to Fraser's and back

:: watched The Dark Knight

:: watched Sex and the City with the Bears and loved it

:: watched The 11th Hour

:: Passion

:: started some new projects for my tuition centre

:: can't wait to see Wallace, my first and only nephew, next weekend

:: recovering from food poisoning, pumping in Vitagen and 100Plus into my system

:: counting down to cousin's wedding in S'pore, hence looking forward to a new dress

:: looking for cheap flight tix to Australia

:: going to post more pix, soon... that's when I stop procrastinating

Almost like a Hindi movie

2008-07-30T12:41:00.002+08:00

Family, fate, betrayal, friendship, redemption, Talibans... they sum up The Kite Runner. I mentioned that I cried in the 1st quarter of the story. Entering the 2nd quarter onwards, life settled into monotonousness. Life went on, boringly, until one phone call. A phone call which Amir dreads to answer. A phone call which is long overdue. A phone call that offers redemption.......... *jeng**jeng**jeng*

I have to say that reading it was almost like watching a Hindi movie. No, there wasn't any chasing and running around trees. Neither did anyone break into singing nor the dance troupe forming all of a sudden. Just a lot of drama. A lot of times I was caught in startles, going, "Oh, no... no..," and "That can't be it...," and "Is that him...........*long pause*..." Yups, a lot of drama.

But I love all the drama Hosseini created. I love him most for the way he shed light into the lives of Afghans before and during the Taliban regime. Full of brutality and insanity. Once again, it tells me how one country's unity and harmony could easily be jeopardised by some nonsensical believes.

Breathtaking

2008-07-23T11:49:00.004+08:00

I've finished The Kite Runner. Man, I'm very sleepy now. I stayed up for 2 nights reading it.

Again, I will only sing praises to this piece of masterpiece. It's brilliant. One of its kind. Breathtaking.

I'll do more writing later. I really need to sleep now.

And Werns, don't worry, I won't be a spoiler lar.

Pre-review: The Kite Runner

2008-07-21T18:46:00.004+08:00

I classify myself as an emotional reader. And I earned myself another star to this self-ranked category. At page 71 of The Kite Runner, I found myself wiping snot and tears off my face, and that's not even a quarter of the book.

Perhaps I'm not all that much emotional... but it's undeniably true that Khaled Hosseini is a great storyteller. A vivid one, of course. There aren't many books which I've read (or reading) that makes me think aloud - 'No, don't do that', 'Oh no, no, no, no...', 'Be a man!' And this is also one of the few rare books which I bring along in my car trips. That's how great this book is.

And like any great story, it comes with the elements of 'common expectations'. There's an unsung hero, which is pretty expected; the villain, another give away; the betrayal, like any other stories. But what makes this awfully great is a dose of 'bad things happen to good people' element. I hear you groaning, "I, too, can write a novel then" But hey, hear me out.

In this story - 'bad things happen to good people'. The 'bad things' which will rouse great contempt to the characters in the book. But what is most heart wrenching is when you see a servant boy whom had pledge lifetime loyalty to his master being betrayed by his cowardice master. I felt like jumping into the story and boxing him. I can't tell you more than this. I still have a lot more to go.

Though I'm only almost finishing half the book, I can assuredly tell you that you won't want to stop reading it. And I can only imagine how much more vivid the movie would be. Cherie said that she cried a few times watching it. I can't wait...

The Killing Field

2008-07-19T16:11:00.005+08:00

Many would know by now that I've this thing for Cambodia. Not because she's poor, but more so of the lives that were affected by the Khmer Rouge regime. And these are the lives that I can put faces to. I know too many Cambodians to make me understand the intensity of the damage war had done.

There's no better movie that I can recommend to you to just have a glimpse of what happened in the 1970s - The Killing Fields.

The Diary of a Young Girl

2008-07-19T14:42:00.007+08:00

"It's really a wonder that I haven't dropped all my ideals because they seem so absurd and impossible to carry out. Yet, I keep them, because in spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart. I simply can't build up my hopes on a foundation consisting of confusion, misery, and death. I see the world gradually being turned into a wilderness, I hear the ever-approaching thunder, which will destroy us too, I can feel the sufferings of millions and yet, if I look up into the heavens, I think that it will all come right, that this cruelty too will end, and that peace and tranquility will return again."

"Is discord going to show itself while we are still fighting, is the Jew once again worth less than another? Oh, it is sad, very sad, that once more, for the umpteenth time, the old truth is confirmed: What one Christian does is his own responsibility, what one Jew does is thrown back at all Jews."

Such mind blowing, deep and sensible quotes were pieced together by a young fourteen-year-old during WWII. Those who have watched Freedom Writers are no strangers to Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl.

I'd just finished reading this book. It's one of the most heart-rending piece of writing that had moved me. Reading her diary reminded me of my teenage years, and the heart issues we had to deal with - family, ambitions, emotions, best friends, siblings and boys - was not that different. Of course she had it the harder way.

Anne, a jew, was 12+ when WWII began and her family went on a hide-out for 2 years escaping death from the Nazis. At 12, like most teenage girls, she started her first diary, penning down her deepest thoughts and most intimate secrets, and didn't stop until the Secret Annexe was busted.

As I read her diary, there's this curiosity and eagerness wanting to know what next. Towards the end of the diary, Anne was noticeably more mature and hopeful especially it was almost the end of war. Always misunderstood, she was finally able to grasp hold of adulthood and was beginning to get it right. Her relationship was also blossoming, not just with the only young male in the hide-out but with her family as well.

And when I finally reach the end, I regretted knowing it. The Franks (except her father) and Van Danns (another family who shared the hide-out) were so close to surviving. Following a tip-off, their hide-out was busted. They were the last batch whom were sent to the concentration camp. Too dampening.

Her death was perhaps inevitable but to learn how she died especially in the heights of her optimism left a bitter after taste. It further raged me learning about another life having to suffer the inhumanity of war in the name of justice by a certain someone.

Nevertheless, it's a good read. And I'm glad to have read it.

I'm home

2008-07-11T16:40:00.004+08:00

I'm back. And I actually missed home for the first time being away. I do travel a bit but i hardly miss home. This time, i anticipated for the day to fly home. I was thrilled being on the plane home. Not to mention, for the first time in my travelling with AirAsia, I touched down KL 30 minutes earlier than expected.

Sorry (especially to Werns) for not updating any earlier. I've been busy. It's been crazy for the past 2 months, and it is still as crazy now. It's between works, mission trip, meetings, works, exams, etc. To be honest, I haven't had time to recollect myself.

All in all, I'm glad that I'm home. And oh, I got myself the Kite Runner. Can't wait to dwell on it.

It's his birthday

2008-06-27T13:24:00.003+08:00

Not today, but next Tuesday.

Blessed birthday, Sweetie.

xoxo

(why such an early post? That's because I won't be in the country to announce this)

I am taller than 160cm

2008-06-23T09:42:00.004+08:00

Things I've learnt over the oh-so-sumptious-roadtrip and shouting-cheesy-songs-to-the-mic weekend:

1. I can eat seafood without staining my clothes.
2. I am taller than 160cm.
3. I can sing out of tune effortlessly.
4. I've the smallest breast size compared to my friends.
5. I can remember the lyrics to Lemon Tree, Barbie Girl and Everybodyyy ya.....
6. I love hanging out with my beary girlfriends.
7. I AM 48kg!! (ask Daniel, he saw the scale I weighed on)
8. All my girlfriends have UOB Lady's Card except Janet.
9. All my girlfriends have Carebears FB application except Janet (get the hint, jan?)

Woman vs Pest

2008-06-20T10:59:00.007+08:00

It was the final show down today. With weeks of sleepless nights, i had had enough!!! It was woman vs pesky mosquitoes!

Imagine the scene of 2 Texan cowboys on opposite end of each other in a deserted town and a small bundle of hay blown in and rolled in between them...

Profiles:
Woman
Height: 160cm
Weight: 48kg
Weapon(s): 750ml Shieldtox Attack; 15x7cm, 144-page Sudoku on the Go book; a pair of strong hands
Strength: Could stand a room densed with aerosol; lower EQ, hence the anger

Mosquito
Height: between 0.2 to 0.5cm
Weight: Not disclosed
Weapon(s): Sting, wings
Strength: It flies

I walked into my mosquito infested room with my shiny bottle of SA. I knew I was going to taste victory very soon. I stood in the middle, lifted my SA and held the actuator down for as long as i could. The mosquitoes were alarmed that there was an attack. It marched out from various corners. I was surrounded. They came even closer to me, hoping that I'd spray on my face accidentally. How smart! I targetted on every mosquito individually. There was a one to one battle. Man, they were strong. They don't drop like how the TVC showed. But they were definitely weakened. They flew slower. A little disoriented. That was when my Sudoku comes in handy. A swap and that was the end of one of it. Had another 5 more to go. I came out from my room after the 20 minutes ordeal. I won. I smirked.

Kung Fu Fighting Panda

2008-06-17T14:36:00.004+08:00

I watched it with Daniel over the weekend. And this is way, way better than Happy Feet. The story is not fantastic but bearable for a movie that runs for 1.5hours. The plot's easy to follow but also questionable. After all, this movie is made for kids.

But I'm surprised that the government didn't ban the movie seeing that there are so many pig characters in it (remember those days when the g'ment censored part of the Dragonball series on TV because of the pig character?).

And to those who had watched and stayed till the end, YES, we did stay till the end :)

Infested!

2008-06-17T14:25:00.004+08:00

Lately, mosquitos have infested my house. And i reckon these are not the regular mosquitos which could be killed with the trusted Shieldtox or Ridsect. When i put on the electronic mosquito repeller, it doesn't work either!! What's more frustrating is that these maggots fly in pairs, waltzing around the mosquito repeller. How disrespectful! Mosquito has just entered my most-hated-and-will-make-sure-that-it-will-die-a-painful-death list.

It's so hard

2008-06-16T14:57:00.003+08:00

Sarah posted this on her Facebook:

life is too short to hold grudges, to stay angry
life is too short to be bitter
you COULD stay angry but what is the point?
just wasting energy

It's true that life is too short to be wasted on things that could only make you look ugly and bitter. But guess what's even harder - to make room for forgiveness. Nevertheless;

forgiveness is hard at first but it gets easier
slow to get angry, quick to forgive
love harder, and laugh louder
spend the time wisely
you won't get it back

Lord,
Help me to be a nicer person. Help me to let it go. Help me to release my bitterness. Help me, please. It's just so hard but i really want to.

It trots out of my shelf

2008-06-12T22:59:00.008+08:00

My kids were snickering while flipping through the pages of this book. I thought if this could amuse them that much, it should be a good read. Man, i was really in for a surprise. I was lost as I slogged through the pages.

This is a parody of Harry Potter (you see the similarity in the names? Harry Potter, Barry Trotter?). Only difference is definitely NOT child friendly. Too much filth. No wonder my kids snickered!

To begin with, I'm not a huge Harry Potter fan. I can barely remember like 3 names - Harry (duh!), Ron, Hermaine (see, I can't even get the spelling right). As this is a parody, Gerber changed the names by a letter (or two), and by the 4th character introduced in the story, i was lost.

Much of the story reflects quite closely to the original but with a little more twist and scandal to it. And because it's a parody, the plot was loosely built, expecting the readers to understand the why's and how's of the story. I've never read any Harry Potter books and have only watched 3 of the 5 movies and am still trying to make sense of the last sequel i watched, you can perhaps imagine how confounded i was.

You'll probably love this book if:
1) you're a guy
2) you hate Harry Potter
3) you want to put yourself to a challenge (like i did)

Ya, semua mesti ubah gaya hidup

2008-06-10T16:44:00.000+08:00

Fuel crisis

2008-06-09T16:19:00.003+08:00

I'm seriously feeling the pinch in my pocket. Never in my life have i felt this poor. Not that i don't have money; i just feel that no matter how much i have, it is not enough.

The road was pleasantly empty today. Which helps as i don't have to burn more fuel while being trapped in the jam. Daniel took the bike today and he was in for a surprise. There were more bikes on the road today.

Taking the lift to college, I shared the lift with another man who was holding a squarish looking Tupperware. I believe it was his lunch. The food stalls outside our college was EMPTY during lunch time. That was a depressing sight.

Personally, I've nothing against the price hike per se. But I've everything against how the government implements it and not providing a substantial compensation plan for us. After all, with the billions saved from fuel subsidy, what do they plan to do with it? Are they going to build another white elephant monument? Or is it to sustain a certain minister's wife's shopping addiction?

From the last election, I've never agreed with the current federal administration. And this fuel crisis further prooves my point. It doesn't suck being a Malaysian or living here. It sucks having a weak and ignorant leader.

Almost a birthday surprise

2008-06-09T15:45:00.003+08:00

We had Daniel's early surprise birthday dinner yesterday. Well, it's almost a month earlier. Because it's a month earlier, he was supposed to remain unsuspicious UNTIL a few friends accidentally let the cat out of the bag yesterday morning. The classic one was when a friend came up to him in church asking if he was going for the surprise party. I thought it was hilarious when the rest of us tried to control our expressions when Daniel came asking us about the surprise party.

So in the evening, I drove us both to the restaurant. As it was meant to be a surprise, i tried blindfolding him. He refused and i refused to drive if he didn't put on the blindfold. He relented for a while but it didn't last long. So we agreed that he should recline the car seat all the way back and lie there with his eyes closed while i drive.

I took him on a 30 minutes drive while the restaurant is actually 10 minutes drive away from where we took off. I parked my car in the residential area. When he opened his eyes, he had this S.T.U.N.N.E.D look plastered on his face. He kept uttering how he will refuse going into any of the houses there. After a short walk, he saw the familiar restaurant. The surprise element began to fade off when he saw his friends' cars parked around the restaurant.

Anyhow, it was almost a surprise and he was almost surprised. And i think we did a pretty good job keeping it from him for close to 3 weeks *teehee* Not forgetting that the dinner and company was fantastic!

Love you guys for making this possible!

Red One and Two

2008-06-04T09:32:00.005+08:00

I was blogsurfing and found this on Phoebe's blog:

Once upon a time there were two little girls named Riding Hood, both with red hair. They were cousins, and they were so alike in appearance that people took to calling them Little Red One and Little Red Two.

One day, each Little Red was asked by her mother to visit their common grandmother. She lived the other side of a wolf-infested forest. They were to deliver home-made cider. Grandmother had quite an appetite for refreshing alcoholic beverages. Wolves were known to also crave home-made cider.

Now...why any mother would send her little girl into a wolf-infested forest is unclear. But both girls accepted the errand. However, their approaches were distinctly different.Little Red One was an old hand at forest-crossing and wolf-evasion. Little Red Two viewed the tast as potentially dangerous. She did basic research on "safe paths through the forest", and "wolf psychology and behaviour". She also sat down and designed a WRB (which is a modern acronym for "wolf response basket"), a device patented by Little Red Two.Little Red One was amused by all this. "What a lot of crap", she said. "There's no wolf worth this much worry." But Little Red Two went ahead with her planning process anyway.

Off they went on their respective journeys to Grandma's. Little Red One was accosted by a wolf almost immediately. She lost all her cider and had to go empty-handed. The wolf then confronted Little Red Two, and grabbed for her basket (full of jars of cider). He was blown away by a double-barrel shotgun concealed in the basket.Grandma enjoyed Little Red Two's visit.

Which goes to prove:
- You shouldn't trust little girls with a big baskets.
- Experience is not necessarily a valid teacher.
- If you want to keep your cider, you'd better plan.

I agree with the above 3 points, but I'd like to add that i reckon Lttle Red One is a guy in disguise. After all, guys are usually hasty :p

Of funerals and eulogies

2008-06-03T23:43:00.004+08:00

I just got back from a friend's father's memorial service. I know this is an unusual fetish, but I confess that I like going to Christian memorial services and funerals. No, i don't like looking at corpses or seeing people bawling. I just love listening to eulogies.

Eulogies are powerful to me. It's not hyped-up. Neither is it manipulative in any ways. It's just truth. Truth about a person, a person's life, and a person's teaching. It's delivered raw from their memories. And these are usually the most genuine words any human beings can deliver.

I came back from the service very encouraged and at the same time reminded that my life can touch others. Most of all, I'm reminded that we all have the same appointment we've to keep; that's death.

And to Uncle Chan who has passed on,
Though our paths have never crossed on earth, my life has been moved by your works and memories you've left behind. It's my loss for not knowing you any earlier, but I have to agree with everyone who testified that you are a legend. Thank you.

World Refugee Day

2008-06-03T15:43:00.006+08:00

Taken from FGA's bulletin

There are an estimated 100,000 asylum seekers and refugees in Malaysia. Around 80-90 percent of them are from Myanmar. They live in uncertainty, are afraid of arrest, imprisonment, whipping and deportation, as refugee status is not officially recognized here. There is a higher incidence of sufferers of torture and sexual and gender-based violence. Pregnant woman, the sick, children and babies are also arrested during Immigration raids and brought into detention. Adults who are able to obtain work are sometimes not paid their wages. When raids occur, families are left destitute when the main income earner is arrested. Some stay in juncgle sites in order to avoid arrest and to get jobs in nearby construction sites. Children have no access to education. They live in precarious lives, suffering from fear and anxiety.

I've not met a refugee in person before, but I've heard of their plights. When they are sick, they can't get proper medical treatment without being arrested. Even if they have refugee status awarded by UN, they are not given accommodations, wages, education and food, and they are not allowed to work too. All they get is free medical treatment and freedom to roam in this country.

I know there are a lot going on in the refugee camps and their lives, but many of these stories are left untold. Nevertheless, we can do our part to be a blessing to this community. In commemoration of World Refugee Day (20th June), FGA has launched its 'Refugee Project' where we'll be collecting donations in kind for refugees in Malaysia.

We welcome the following items:

Clothes - for men, women and children (clean and in good condition), such as formal shirts, t-shirts, trousers, blouses, skirts, jeans, socks, shoes, etc. Plain white t-shirts and slippers are particularly needed in detention centres.

Food - rice, canned foods (within validity date), cooking oil, salt and sugar

Toiletries, hygiene and cleaning products - bathing soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, face towels, bath towels, detergent, sanitary napkins (especially needed in detention centres)

For babies and children - nappies (cloth and disposable), milk bottle, milk powder, talcum powder, baby soap, baby lotion, toys, books.

Others - blankets, pillows, bedsheets, mosquito nets, cash.

Let's take some time and reflect on our lives. We've been blessed in many ways we don't realise. These refugees who came in peace didn't have a choice. They didn't have luxury. They didn't have anything at all. You don't need to be spiritual, godly or to have any religion per se to help these people. We just need compassion - one of the basic fundamentals of human kind.

If you feel led to give, do call me or FGA KL.

Back to blog

2008-06-03T15:17:00.003+08:00

I know I'm guilty of not updating my blog. Busy lar.. sick lar... Before you call these lame excuses, hear me out.

I've been pretty busy with work. Kinda. Also with family stuff like chauffering mum around. That itself is a handful.

And I've been really sick as well. I have this H.U.G.E. ulcer on my upper left lip. It sucks. I can't eat; I can't drink. It feels like having rose thorns piercing through your lips. And you know the saying, rubbing salt against your wound, well, I did it, literally, and it hurts big time!!! I can't drink without using a straw. I can't eat without chewing my food using my right molars. It even hurts when I wet my lips. Now, no thanks to that, i get chappy lips! And no thanks to that too, it's too uncomfortable to blog. I rather trade my ulcer for pimple.

So, still lame? Yeahh... i don't think it helped.

Meet Ad

2008-05-30T11:27:00.006+08:00

Taken from Ad's FB profile

I've a new friend! His name is Advertising. We call him Ad for short. Seriously, I have him in my Facebook.

A series of nightmares

2008-05-30T11:14:00.007+08:00

I had a series of nightmare yesterday. Yeah, a SERIES. Well, in my dream, I was trying to track down spooky ghost; threw a peculiar-looking, green and blue-looking frog out of the car; kept a corpse wrapped in white hospital bed sheets; saw Valerie, a serious and cautious driver, hitting another car deliberately while parking(gasp, that's a nightmare!); and worst of all, my front tooth fell off!! That's a lifetime worth of nightmares! I woke up not terrified, but sleepy.

You know, they say dreams tell us something about our future. If it does, that's a whole lot of future to intepret there. I'll probably take the alternative view - that's me watching too much TV. I confess that i've been indulging myself with too much couch potato time this week - Juno, Ghost Whisperer, Fast Food Nation, Little Miss Sunshine, 8 simple rules, etc. I guess it doesn't take a rocket scientist to explain my series of nightmares by now.

To read or to watch?

2008-05-28T17:00:00.001+08:00

Josh came to me the other day telling me that he had watched Kite Runner the movie and how awesome it is, but of course not as great as the book la. But according to him, it's still bearable as compared to P.S. I Love You.

Now i'm in a little dilenma. Should i watch it first or should i read the book first, or should i watch and not read, or should i just read and not watch? Such a dilenma, right? I just don't want to walk down the same emotional path i did after watching P.S. I Love You.

Not sure about you, but when I read, i begin to create vivid images in my mind. And i create a certain expectations on the characters, scenes, emotions and reactions. And of course the accuracy of screenplay is most important. By altering the story just so that it fits into a 2-hour plus movie is a crime. A good story relies not just on the characters in it, but its plots too. The plots build the story, hence making it a superb story. Simple as that. Perhaps movie makers should stick to making movies out of scripts and not books.

So, to watch or to read.... I think i'll do both for this. I trust Josh's review :)

Requirements of a teacher

2008-05-28T09:27:00.006+08:00

My 8-year-old student made a remark the other day on requirements of a teacher.

Stephy asked me in the middle of class, "Teacher, are you married?"
I answered, No.

She went on querying, "Do you have kids?"

Duh, I'm not married and i'm not that sleasy, kid!! And i answered politely, No.

"So, you're not married and you don't have kids, then you're not a teacher, right?"

What!! Just because I'm hot, young, unmarried and have no brats of my own, I'm not a teacher??? I smiled and told her that not all teachers are married and have kids.

Stephy pondered for a while and made the most remarkable remark, "So, you cannot celebrate Teacher's Day la?" Her eyes glimmered when she stared at me.

Oh boy, she's only 8, what do i expect. She's forgiven for being discriminative. "Stephy, it's fine that I don't celebrate Teacher's Day."

And she gave me a hug at the end of class.

Men don't listen

2008-05-27T01:00:00.004+08:00

Got this from a friend today:

Wanda's dishwasher quit working so she called in a repairman. Since she had to go to work the next day, she told the repairman, 'I'll leave the key under the mat. Fix the dishwasher, leave the bill on the counter, and I'll mail you a cheque. Oh, by the way don't worry about my dog Spike. He won't bother you. But, whatever you do, do NOT, under ANY circumstances, talk to my parrot!'

'I MUST STRESS TO YOU: DO NOT TALK TO MY PARROT!!!'

When the repairman arrived at Wanda's apartment the following day, he discovered the biggest, meanest looking dog he has ever seen. But, just as she had said, the dog just lay there on the carpet watching the repairman go about his work. The parrot, however, drove him nuts the whole time with his incessant yelling, cursing and name calling.

Finally the repairman couldn't contain himself any longer and yelled, 'Shut up, you stupid, ugly bird!

To which the parrot replied, 'Get him, Spike!'

See - Men just don't listen! Period.

Utterly cool read

2008-05-26T23:05:00.006+08:00

After having had lashed out at a student, irked by oblivious and obnoxious and selfish individual, worked 7 hours, and bickered about the same issue over and over, I finally got to unwind with a kids lit - Utterly me, Clarise Bean.

Utterly what, you asked? Well, though you may think it's utterly unpopular, it is an utterly good book for the day. I desperately needed something to keep me occupied. Something light, something fun, something with big prints, and something that's utterly brainless. This read is utterly good for today. And I finished it within an evening.

I love the plot. Actually who am i kidding, there isn't any plot in this story. It's basically about Clarise who's crazy about the story of Ruby, who's a 11-year-old daughter of a socialite, who has a secret identity - jeng jeng jeng - she's a secret agent. Ruby receives messages via her bread toaster and messages are imprinted on her toasted bread. Oh, to destroy the message, she has to chow the bread down. Of course, she can choose to slap peanut butter and jam on it or just corned beef. Destroying a secret message has never been this tasty. And Clarise suddenly found herself in an investigative mood after realising that her best friend Betty was missing for a week without a trace (actually, Clarise's dog literally chewed the trace). And oh, there's this book project she had to do with one of the wrecked-up boys from her class because Betty was missing. At the same time, she tried inventing ways to get rid of her slimy brother. And also her grandfather who sneaks into shed in the middle of the night. Yeah, there's a lot going on in the story.

The story is written as such that no analyzing is required. You don't need to muse about why she hates her teacher who behaves like a 40-year-old spinster or why her best friend Betty Moody parents are way cooler than hers. As the story progresses, Clarise, who has recurring habit of drifting in thoughts, rambles about the happenings around her. It's like reading Gareth Owen's Horror Film but in more pages. Pure rambling but with a point (yeah, how oxymoron can this be, right?).

And i love the layouts. The sentence twirls into oval when Mrs Bean tells Clarise that they are running out of eggs. And sentence is arranged in stagger to tell that Clarise is walking down the stairs. And not to mention crazy caricatures and punches of large prints here and there.

It has cool phrases and expressions like:

Absolutely no way, hozay!

I bet he's using my hairbrush, the weasel.

Mrs Wilberton is a hippipotimis.

China is gersquillion kilometres and miles from here.

All in all, i had a good laugh. I'm envious of kids today; they've got utterly cool books like this as compared to my time, when Enid Bylton was like the only 'in' thing. Fairies and elves are cool, but hey, who would have figured that gersquillion is the distance of China from wherever we are.

I am upset

2008-05-26T13:15:00.004+08:00

Enough said.

Job for a psychologist

2008-05-25T19:51:00.005+08:00

A friend of mine told me that he has enrolled into a Psychology course. I was excited for him because i've always wanted to study that. But having typical chinese parents who believe that graduating with a Psychology degree is akin to career suicide, my dream suffered premature death.

I'm amazed by how we think or are motivated. What's more amazing is to find out what sort of joy it brings to one when he/she announces to the world his/her drunkedness. Identity crisis? LOA? ADD? Mind boggling eh? Well, let's leave it to the psychologists to explain.

Picture updates: Myanmar

2008-05-23T09:30:00.009+08:00

I know of a church planter, Ps Stanley, who was in Myanmar when Nigris Cyclone swept the nation, and he only managed to fly back to KL yesterday once the roads were opened.

The Rangoon hotel he lived in was destroyed, badly, and all patrons had to be evacuated. Rangoon, being one of Myanmar's most developed city was devastatedly destroyed - electricity and water supply was cut off. Everyone lived in darkness broken heartedly. What's worst is that there isn't any clean water supply - which could lead to cholera outbreak.

Everyone was made homeless by the cyclone. The most saddening news is that many are still missing especially those who lives around Irrawardy River.

Continue to pray that the junta government will be open to international aids. What kills the nation is not just cyclone, but the various disease outbreaks (i.e. Cholera, Malaria) due to slow and limited relief effort.

Here's something for you to ponder. Cyclone and earthquake hit Myanmar and China, and prior to these, these 2 countries brutally attacked the monks. Pure coincidental? Go figure.

Here are some pictures of Rangoon taken by Ps Stanley.

Don't Waste Your Life

2008-05-23T09:25:00.005+08:00

I am constantly aware that I am who I am today because many have sacrificed to nurture me and help me along the way - Soo-Inn Tan

And I'm ever so grateful for the many whom had made their sacrifices for my sake.

For you who are reading, I'm sure you've just as many (or probably more) who sacrificed and prayed for you each day :)

So, in Dr Yinsen's words, "Don't waste your life."

The UMNO mini-series

2008-05-22T11:47:00.008+08:00

Excerpt taken from Malaysia Today.
Note: Readers to exercise their discretion when reading the following excerpt.

“You sure you were not followed?” asked the UMNO insider, glancing over his shoulders.

“Of course not!” I replied. “Why should I be followed?”

“Who knows? You are an ex-ISA detainee. I am sure the Special Branch is monitoring your movements.”

“Don’t worry,” I assured him. “I made sure I went round and round on my bike to shake off any possible tails.”

“And make sure you don’t mention my name,” he stressed, yet again. “When you made that report on ABIM you said, ‘someone close to the previous Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’. That’s dangerous. Everyone can suspect who you mean though you never mentioned his name.”

“Don’t worry,” I assured him again. “I will not make that mistake again.”

“Mahathir did not intend to retire after October 2003,” said the UMNO insider after he had calmed down. “He was never given a chance to finish his closing speech. They quickly surrounded him and escorted him off the stage. If Mahathir had been allowed to finish his speech, he would have announced that he planned to retire at the end of this year, not the end of next year.”

Read On

....

I believe that no appointed leaders will be perfect. They'll fall short. They may turn out to be corrupted. Or unintellectual. Or perverted. Or they probably just have a plain ugly face. These are traits of imperfections.

Nevertheless, it doesn't give anyone permission to not try harder or to manipulate anyone/situations. All in all, leadership comes with making conscious effort humbling one's self, self-sacrificing, and to be all loving and determined at the same time. Not to forget the most potent ingredient - INTEGRITY.

Neither TDM, AAB, Najib, nor DSAI will make a perfect leader. But just as long as one's intention is clear and know to whom they serve, the rakyats will be more forgiving.

Till then, let's wait and see who's the next emerging hero to save these scumbags from hot soup.

My American Idol

2008-05-22T10:06:00.001+08:00

Dear David C,

If you're reading this, know that I WILL vote for you if I was in America yesterday. I'm very glad that you won after all! And you're HOT!

This is really hilarious

2008-05-21T22:33:00.002+08:00

Mok Sunny to Dr. M: Pak, I tak nak resign dari UMNO lah.

Dr. M to Mok Sunny: Biadap punya anak. Apa pasal tak resign?

Mok Sunny: Banyak hutang lah! Nanti tak dapat loan dari bank!

Dr. M: Pasal wang jangan susah susah. Nanti ayah arrange dengan En. Diam. Dia ada banyak bank di Afrika.

Mok Sunny: Kalau macam itu boleh lah I resign.

Dr.M : Pergi announce cepat cepat.

Mok Sunny: Oklah. Tapi macam mana dengan bang Mok Keris?

Dr. M: Mok Keris itu lagi satu kepala batu. Telepon pun tak... terus buat announcement...

Mok Sunny: Mungkin dia pun banyak hutang kot? Dengar dengar...beli business lagi...

Dr. M: Tak boleh harap semua. Chissss..chisss...

Mok Sunny: Hati hati pak,... nanti heart attack lagi.....

Dr. M: Suruh emak bagi ubat sekarang jugak....

Taken from here.

Gold Glee

2008-05-21T11:34:00.001+08:00

Gold prices went up again! *Glee*

A moment of silence

2008-05-19T22:22:00.000+08:00

And China mourned for 3 minutes...

Pictures taken from New York Times

If any of you felt led to help China and Myanmar (in any way), do let me know. I can help make arrangements for you (and/or your money) to be sent there. Btw, they are in need of tents because it's rainy season over there now.

Birthday Shout Out...

2008-05-19T22:00:00.000+08:00

.... to Jess

May your days continued to be filled with Holy Spirit, favor, dreams, visions, promises, wisdom, great looking people like me, wonderful moments, unforgettable experiences, blessings and miracles and a whole lot more.

I hope you'll enjoy the b*wax session we got for you. Or is it aromatheraphy massage? Whichever it is, i know you'll have a great time. And don't forget to sign up as a member. Then we can be spa babes.

P.S. I think it's OK

2008-05-19T16:28:00.000+08:00

One of my favourite love stories of all time finally made it to silver screen. Just the other day, Daniel surprised me with, well not the original, but a downloaded copy. We watched it today and boy..... i was quite upset lar.

It's always true that no movies based on novels can satisfy their readers. And i am one unsatisfied reader.

During the entire movie, I went like:

But, Holly didn't do this...

Daniel wasn't like that...

It's not suppose to be like this...

No, it's not him...

Why didn't they show....

Where is...

THEY DID NOT GO THERE!!!!

She... arghhhhh

I spoilt my own favourite story :(

But Hilary Swank looked gorgeous and she had beautiful shoes, and not to mention Gerard Butler's ohh la la body. Good that they've got eye candies in the show.

Most of all, i watched it with Daniel. That's what this whole movie is all about. He made my day.

Let's pray for China

2008-05-19T15:26:00.000+08:00

This flashed through my mailbox a minute ago:

Breaking News Alert

The New York Times

Monday, May 19, 2008 -- 2:47 AM ET-----200

Earthquake Relief Workers Buried by Mudslide in China

China's state-run Xinhua News Agency says more than 200 relief workers have been buried by a mudslide in Sichuanprovince.The Chinese government has declared a three-day period ofmourning for the May 12 quake. It has estimated that as manyas 50,000 people died as a result of the earthquake.

****

I read that newspapers across China were printed in black and white during this mourning period. And headlines like, "The nation mourns," "Pray for life," and "National tragedy" flashes on their front page.

"Pray for life"? Reality finally hits this Communist country that they are not that great after all. No wealth, no mortal power, no human intelligence, no GDP, no technology, no Olympic games, and certainly no iron fist who demands to build a dam by ruining God's most impressive gorges in the world can ever save any nation in the history of mankind. And finally, they are believing in prayers.

Let's take a moment of silence and remember all who lost their lives to this beastly earthquake.

Pictures taken from New York Times

More reasons why

2008-05-17T23:49:00.003+08:00

In class today...

Characters:
Me (the teacher)
Nadia (8-year-old)
Muqri (8-year-old)

Me: We may have a new student joining this class.
Nadia: Is this person a boy or girl?
Me: A girl.
Nadia: (cheered) Yeah!!!
Me: Why, Nadia, do you prefer a girl to join us and not a boy?
Nadia: Because boys are gross!
Muqri: (shouted from the back) I HATE GIRLS!

And for the rest of the class, they went on irritating one another.
Thank God they are cute. It compensates all the irritations they bring to my life :p

****

We celebrated Teacher's Day in class ala primary school style today - a cake, Mamee, and Vitagen. These brats also left me a whole lot of Mamee crumbs on the floor and chocolate cream smeared all over tables.

My brats

Cake of the day

Teacher's Day

2008-05-16T22:32:00.000+08:00

Many reasons why I love being a teacher more than anything else in the world...

note: Clients a.k.a. students

1. I get to scold my clients when they are wrong.

2. If I am wrong, my clients don't get to scold me.

3. There's no deadlines to meet, proposals to rush and meetings to attend.

4. I get to threaten my clients telling them that i'd drop them as my clients if they don't buck up.

5. I get to read more (it is said that to be a good teacher, you need to be very 'smart'. So i've to read to make myself look intellectual. But i've no complains; in fact, i love it)

6. I get to complain to my clients' bosses (a.k.a. parents) if they are doing a lousy job.

7. It makes my heart smile when parents tell me how their child(ren) love my classes.

8. It makes me so proud of my clients when i see them improve.

9. I get to celebrate Teacher's Day. Well, you can't celebrate Doctor's Day or Lawyer's Day, right?

10. My clients give me flowers and chocolates and gifts for Teacher's Day.

11. I get invited to my clients' birthday parties. And they get to parade me around telling others that i'm their teacher.

12. My clients fascinate me with deep questions like, "Who created God?" (asked by my 9-year-old), and weirdest & most irrelevant questions like, "Why are u wearing this shirt" when we are talking about dinosaurs.

13. I get to be apart of God's nation and generation building plan.

14. I get school holidays :)

15. If i make a boo-boo, my clients forgive and forget the very next second.

And the list goes on...

This teaching career has been awestruck and I can only thank God for putting me in such a position to be some form of influence to the next generation.

This shout out is to all the teachers out there (tuition teachers, school teacher, lecturers, sunday school teachers, teachers of life, etc),

Happy Teacher's Day.

A day in my life

2008-05-16T14:01:00.000+08:00

I'm loving the idea of blogging. I am beginning to see that I'm prone to become an obsessive compulsive blogger. soon.

Anyway, as i was saying about my life today, I went to town to help Dad collect some documents. Wasn't that excited about the idea. Mainly because it was going to be a 2-hour journey to & fro to collect something which would take me 20 minutes to complete. To add to it, my absent-mindedness only made the journey more eventful:

First, I had to join the rakyat on the train ride to town. If it weren't for my chicken rice uncle increasing his price per plate of rice, i wouldn't have forego my privellage of driving in my cooling box. sigh, if the food crisis continues on, i foresee myself cycling to town very soon.

I missed my train stop because i was too engrossed in reading the news about this malay man who is denied his right to marry his fourth wife by the Syariah court. I always thought Muslims are entitled to marry anyone (any four, to be exact) they fancy. Little did i realize that the court has its right to intrude to his personal life. Isn't that fascinating?

Crossed Jalan Masjid Jamek 3 times looking for the entrance to Putra LRT station. They closed one of it for renovation, and went round looking for it. I knew i looked silly.

The best of it, i nearly took the Rapid KL bus from the station back home because i forgot that i parked my car at the station. phew.

And i had to walk miles long under the sun to get to my car.

Finally, I'm home, extremely exhausted by the whole ordeal.

On another note, I read that the bloggers launched the campaign "Penangites for Trams".

My take? In all honesty, i think it will be a great project with very good and sensible intentions. However, before the trams could happen, i think that there's a lot more that needs to be worked on, i.e. revamping the public transportation system in Penang.

Let's take Perth for example. Though trams system doesn't exist there, they've what they call the CAT bus system. Basically, these CAT buses provide free transportation within City and Fremantle (tourist attraction). In the city, CAT runs on 3 routes (and i'm not too sure how many routes in Freo) connecting every part of the city. Because of CATS, there's hardly any traffic congestion in the city nor Freo.

And you probably might think that one needs to drive to the city and park their cars in the parking blocks before they can hop onto CAT. And if they do, why don't they just drive to their desired destination? Well, the Perthians do... but not all. Mainly because petrol price is sky high (mind you, their petrol is NOT subsidised by the g'ment) and there's very limited parking spaces in town, not to mention it's expensive too. So. the Perthians join their rakyat hopping onto one of those suburb buses and/or trains connecting to the city. And in order for these systems to integrate well, buses and trains come on time, there are ample buses and trains on stand-by, and drivers are considerate and ethical.

Hence, my take on trams for Penangites is that revamping the system is most vital before anyone plants another white elephant in the middle of the road. Let's hope that the new CM will have better foresight than the previous one :)

I'm most loved

2008-05-16T08:48:00.000+08:00

I learnt something new:

Something pure, loving, blissful, fun, hopeful, & what seems to be endless could be torn down at the spur of anger, slipped of tongue, & jealousy.

Boy, am I glad that despite their destructive power, love covers over a multitude of sins. With just a hug, it soothes the most battled soul.

I'm most loved, everyday.

On another note, I'm still learning how to embed pictures though. And i know i'll somehow manage it!! *hopeful*

And hey, it works!! See! I said i'll somehow manage. And it's managed!

Next - to locate smiley faces :)

First Entry

2008-05-15T14:36:00.000+08:00

It's so ironic that i spend approximately 3 hours a day online, am argumentative and opinionated, and constantly commenting on others' blogs. and i don't have a blog myself. I actually did previously but gave up when i tried uploading pictures and putting it in the right place. As you can see, I'm very impatient.

But it's been a year since I last wrote my 1st entry in my previous blog. And I have this hunch that this attempt is not gonna hit that bad *fingers crossed*. Well, we'll see...