Money Cheating Establishment

What has become of businesses? Have they stooped so low that this has to happen to me, yet again?

I was at Mid Valley Megamall yesterday. Having only eaten an half boiled egg and crackers for breakfast much earlier in the morning, my stomach growled way before lunch time.

I have not been to a Delifrance in a very long time, much less this outlet.



Having ordered some beverages and pastries, the bill came up to a cool RM48.95 for 5 of us. Taking out a RM50 note from my already depleting wallet to pay, I knew how much change to expect. Would you believe it that they just returned RM1? Did they fail Maths? Was their cash register not working? They didn't even bother to tell me if they had run out of coins or small change. They just left the tray, receipt and RM1 on the table and left. Leeches ......

A Child's Wrath

I was brought up singlehandledly by mum when my dad passed away when I was only 2 years of age. With a sister who is 3 years older than I am in tow, my mum could be considered as one of those super single parent. Childhood wasn't easy, always lacking in many things when compared to others. But we get what we need and some occassional perks.

I'd like to think that she brought me up to be an obedient and righteous son. Am I? Hey, we're kids back then. Rebelling WAS fun and I had my fair share of disciplinary action. Now, rebelling IS also fun. I don't do it intentionally but at times, the old skool of thoughts is just that, old. I seldom bend or break my interpretation of how things should be done, unless you can convince me with logic and common sense. And I am as stubborn now as I was back then. Nothing much has changed, only my skin became thicker.

Having been brought up and associated with women most of my life, I find they are either soothing or they are a pain in the neck, in no particular order and not necessarily one without the other. Let's see, I was raised by mum when she's not at work and by my grandmas when she was at work, not to mention having my sister around 24/7. Being a church goer during my primary school days, most of my mum's friend were ladies. Then I had a 'kaima' and 'kaimui' at the age of 12. Few years ago, Kaima made me realise why I can be so strong and stubborn mentally. Literally having to be the 'man of the house', I was made to realise that I had no father figure all this while to guide me, to scold me, to support me and to love me. I had the company of my uncles occassionally but till this day, none whom I can relate to or be an example to me. Who then was my pillar of strength when the stars weren't shining as bright?

Family, can they be counted upon, in good times and in bad times? Situations varies and changes I guess for everyone. But they are still family. We can't ignore them, we can't abandon them, we can't stop caring nor can we stop loving them. Respect goes both ways they say in a relationship. And a parent-child bond is also deemed a relationship, no? Can that bond be broken?

Touched At Last

So I lied about getting an iPod Touch when it has a bigger capacity. Sue Me!



Now I can't wait for them to release software update so that I can input on the calendar as well. Yippee!

Tsukiji Fish Market

19th Oct, I must say waking up at 4am is ridiculous, just to see a bunch of dead fishes. Japanese are notorious for their Sashimi, creating a huge demand for tunas. The market was alive today as compared to being there 2 days ago, without realising that they are closed on 2 Wednesdays a month.



This is the first time I've seen Tunas this huge. No, National Geographic channel does not count.







Unloading of the fishes must have taken place much much earlier in the wee hours of the morning. What they do is to label the fishes.



Then it was open for checking by cooks, market operators etc to inspect the fishes for freshness. Once that is done, they bring this fella out. It's auctioning time, may the highest bidder win. And he's the man of the hour.



I tell you, he was damn good and funny at the same time. He wasn't the only auctioner around, but he was the most entertaining. I suspect it's due to the fact tourists like myself crowd around that tourist designated area and he must entertain. Anyway, once the buyers have paid up, the can haul their catches away. They even have a cutter on hand to cut them into size for you, upon additional payment of course.


Tokyo Chainsaw Massacre



The fishes were really frozen. I overheard a tour guide telling a tourist that upon catching, they are instantly frozen in an ice room on board the fish trawler. This is to retain the blood within the fish and doing so would improve the freshness and taste of the fish. Blood = Raw = Sushi ... bleh


Consumer Market

Japanese were known for their Kamikazes and dying an honorable death by way of Harakiri or Seppuku but this is something they fear.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/06/24/business/tuna.php

Lim Jia Xi

A colleague of mine just delivered a baby boy while I was away in Japan. Was at her place yesterday for lunch and she spoke of the escalating cost in having babies. Hey, isn't it still cheaper than adoption?

Born Lim Jia Xi, he looks so much like his older brother. Congratulations Jimmy & Yvonne!



Babies, they are so damn cute when young. Is that why people have them? Had an insightful discussion with his mum and my colleague many weeks ago. They were mumbling about high cost in raising a child, and I'm talking about from birth till they actually start to earn a living. I posted a question. "Parents these days seems to grumble about the escalating cost of raising a kid. This cost, that cost, this cost, that cost. But I rarely hear discussion of how much joy does a kid has on a parent. If that is so, why do they have kids in the first place". I can't remember their actual answers. Perhaps you could comment on my question too.

Moshi Moshi!

I do not want to return to Malaysia. The past couple of days spent in Kansai prefecture was wonderful. Perfect weather, perfect transportation system, very clean, very systematic and the perfect travelling companion.

Just arrived in Tokyo this afternoon and was at the Shinjuku district, browsing around for potentially good buys for eletronics. I wish now I had left my credit cards in KL.

Tokyo really is a city of lights. Neons and huge LCD screens everywhere, you would go blind just looking around. But I guess that is the reason why many of them here wears sunglasses, even if it is at night. Oh, at 5:30pm, it is already dark.

My feet is killing me. Mount Kinabalu does not seem that bad after this. But it has been well worth the walk thus far. Internet is free at this hotel I am staying. So, I would not hog the line . If you must know, my sentences are in full because I can not find the apostrophe on their damn keyboard. Geez!

告別

Japan, here I come. After months of preparation and numerous destination changes, I am one day away from Land of The Rising Sun. My bag is filled with instant noodles, snacks, drinks, cereals and biscuits.

Let's pack this in first



Then this



Won't be enough, we need more



We need drinks



Hey, it's expensive to have our meals there. A simple Bento lunch box would set me back approx RM30, so I heard. It's a lunch box for goodness sake. I expect to lose weight by the time I get back, if I decide to come back.

Sayonara

I'm Getting The Hang Of It

I tell you, my fried rice taste AWESOME. With my favourite ingredients, it was a cinch to prepare.





What a weekend it was. Made french toast the next morning as I've not had it in a while.



Laugh all you want, but I bet you're slobbering now.

Erica & Alice

The Brave One

Jodie Foster has always been one of my favourite actress since Silence of the Lambs. She hasn't been versatile in her roles but that doesn't stop her from dishing out award winning performances time and time again.



She plays Erica Bain, a victim of a brutal & violent assault which cost the life of her boyfriend. Despite recovering physically, her emotionally scarred life drove her to purchase a firearm illegally. In self defense at first, she soon became a vigilante, killing scumbags of the city. We need her here to shoot them snatch thieves.

How many has been victims of any crime before, only to see the perpetrators get away? Don't we wish we'd have the courage and means to punish them as we see fit?

Resident Evil : Extinction

Ah, naked yet again but im not surprised. Alice (Milla Jovovich) once again battles the dead to save mankind from extinction. Created from the immensely popular console game, Resident Evil comes to it's third installment after Resident Evil (2002) and Resident Evil : Apocalypse (2004). Claire Redfield (Ali Larter) from the series, Heroes looks much better than Alice, I must say. Being the original incarnation from Project Alice, her blood is the key to eradicating the walking dead and perhaps, reversing the effects.

It's sad that these days, movies have resorted to sountracks and shock to scare viewers. Where has all the movies that makes our hair stand just by their mere presence gone? This show is mostly, you jump, I jump. Or was it, you bite, I bite? You shoot, I shoot or something like that. Boring.

Hakka lah, not Cantonese

"Wo Pu Hui Chiang Hwa Yee, Ni Ker Yi Chiang Kwong Tung Hwa Mah?" - was amongst the first line of Mandarin I learnt

Oi! That's neither Hakka nor Cantonese lah.

With my broken Cantonese, I was never really seen as a pure chinese during my younger days. In fact, seeing that my Malay seems to be more fluent, my Malay colleagues have nicknamed me Mat and it has stuck with me for the past couple of years.

You see, my couz, Catherine and myself took it upon ourselves to derive a family tree a couple of years ago from the little information that we have. At the word go, all was plain sailing, seeing that we only had immediate relatives, siblings and cousins to start with. To dig further, it obviously meant having to wipe the webs off family photos, meeting them and engaging them in *boring* conversations on family generations.



Aunt Christine told us sometime last year that we are of Hakka heritage. Huh? Hello? I'm Cantonese ok, so I've been told. Goddamnit, I've been lying to everybody. I have not even mastered the Cantonese dialect, how lah to master Hakka. Anyhow, she said in order for us to see further up the tree, we needed to pay a visit to the Hakka Association. Nah, too troublesome. So, what I have here is all that we know.

If for any reason, you so happen to see someone you are related to on the list, please get in touch with me. I would gladly buy you a "Kat Chai Shin Mui" and you can fill in the blanks of the family tree further. My couz, Catherine can be contacted at cathcsh@yahoo.com and you know where to find me.

Vios 2007

UMW hosted a sneak preview of the all new Toyota Vios for it's Toyota Merit and Tribe Toyota members today at Mid Valley. I have seen the pictures of the new Vios before as Thailand already had them a few months back, and they had the luxury of choosing a manual or an auto tranny.

Going into the vast floor space that they had occupied, I was not suprised to see the new Vios, well not on the outside that is. But within it's new Global Outstanding Assessment (GOA) body, lies spaciousness I didn't find within the previous models. With 60:40 foldable rear seats, boot space became even more flexible. A new 1.5S is available as a choice on top of the 1.5G and the 1.5S models. Side mirror indicator, side foldable mirror, steering mounted media control buttons, front driver & passenger cabin lights, centre arm console, a Multi Information Display are what's new in the 1.5S model. A VVT-i 1NZ-FE 1497cc enginepowers it, providing excellent power to weight ratio.









When the function began, it was the first time I had seen DJ/VJ Serena C up close, and I must say she looks better up close and personal than on TV. Petite with huge eyes. "Look at the Vios, not me" she jokes with the crowd.





And many were waiting for the main event of the function, a performance by our very own artiste, Maya Karin. Singer and actress, she rose to stardom in the local production movie, Pontianak Harum Sundal Malam and suddenly, she was everywhere.



Outside was 2 fibreglass molded Vios 2007, which was given a decal makeover. Bold & cute.

Before Maya Karin came on stage, we made our way to a caricaturist who made a black & white impression of us. He was fast and he is damn good. Don't I look cute?

Bird's Nest 'Soup'

Mr. A & Mr. B, 2 veterans within the company I am currently working for. In these past couple of years, stories of their past usually cause a tickle within my body. And yesterday was no exception. It was during lunch that A suddenly brought up the issue of the re-opening of a "hotel' in Puchong, and we all knew which hotel he was referring to. He knows this particular pimp who use to update him on new 'products' and one in particular was mentioned during lunch. He said, "jin wo" girls are now available. I had imagine that these "products" had skin as smooth as silk and was damn energetic and healthy *wiping sliver off my chin*. He kept asking if we knew what he meant. Being innocent *whistling*, we said no. He had explained that these 'products' will swallow. Ok, but I still did not see how "jin wo" is related to that.

B then changed to a related topic. He mentioned that in Malacca, there is this heritage building which has been renovated to attract birds to build their nest there. And he said, the birds that came are called Swallow.


A Swallow

It was then that we know how it relates to the 'products'. But my curiosity soon discovered the following.

The Chinese name for bird's nest soup, "yan wo(燕窝)", translates literally as "swiftlet's nest" (yan=swiftlets, wo=nest). When dissolved in water, the birds' nests have a gelatinous texture used for soup or sweet tong sui. It is mostly referred to as "jin wo" unless references are made to the salty or sweet soup in Chinese cuisine.


A Swift

A & B, you are mistaken. They are swift, in name and in motion. They don't, I mean, they are not swallow.

Note : Fictional or is it?

Touch Me Not, Yet

30th Sept, 6:01pm, Ring! Ring! +60321712633? Wonder who could that be?

Me : Wei wei?
Caller : Hello, I'm Ivan from from Apple KLCC
Me : Yes?
Ivan : I'm calling to inform you that iPod Touch has arrived
Me : *shocked* Cool, I'll come have a look either tomorrow or Tuesday
Ivan : ok, shall I reserve the 8GB or 16GB for you?
Me : 16GB please

Ivan : see you then

*click*

Heck, I'm not gonna wait till Tuesday. Made a beeline to KLCC yesterday evening and went in with such eagerness to try out the iPod Touch. #!@%*/ this blasted fella was playing with it. While waiting, I was playing around with this iMac on display. It was only a 2.4Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor but it was blazingly fast. Not to mention it would look good on my desk at home. More on that next time, maybe.

10 minutes had passed before I finally got my hands on it. And boy, did I enjoyed every moment of testing it. Here is my review.

Photos
The screen resolution was amazingly clear
It was so easy to zoom in, by spreading 2 fingers and to zoom out, by bringing 2 fingers together. Pictures could be in potrait or landscape by just rotating the iPod

Music
Attaching album covers, it was effortless to flip through multiple albums

Video
I would assume their test videos in there were hi-res videos. So, video quality would be subjective to what you upload. But the screen is capable of playing it in high quality

Safari
Best part of what I like. Loading of web pages was fast and crisp. Unlike mobile phones where web pages are in text format, the iPod displayed a page in all it's glory, pictures and colors.

Contacts
You could either input directly into the iPod individually or you could sync it with either iCalendar on a Mac or Microsoft Outlook on XP or Vista.

Calendar
This was a failure of Apple's design. You could not enter any data in the iPod. Your only option would be to sync it with iCalendar or Microsoft Outlook. Basically it means you would have to update your appointments into your PC before it gets into your iPod calendar. Bad move.

8GB or 16GB
Both units were of similar size. Slim and sleek, thoughs the chrome finishing at the back smudges with finger prints easily.

The iPod Touch is excellent in most areas. But I would defer from purchasing it until they release an updated Calendar function which allows for direct input. Also, 16GB is too small for me. After some tidying up of my media files yesterday, my photos and music compilation adds up to a whopping 11-12GB. This does not even include my videos. And I'm pretty sure not all 16GB is available considering the software would have taken up part of the capacity. Till it happens, I'll just have to keep my fingers crossed.

Hypocrite Environmentalist

Wild animals fleeing, trees being felled all round the world, polar ice caps melting, rise in climate temperature, inhalation of toxic fumes, polluted water and land, erratic and unpredictable environmental behaviour. And here I am being told that I, little ole' me, can affect a change to make it better or worse.

Here is what we can do to;

Reduce your impact at home

Reduce your impact while on the move

Try as I may, there are still bad habits that are hard to inhibit, such as leaving a running tap while brushing my teeth or washing dishes. Or my passion on car modification, which in turn guzzles up more fuel. As Dr. Koh Tsu Koon once said, "We must find a balance between economic growth and preservation of the environment". Well said, but futile. Evolution has shown that need and greed rules the mentality of many nations.

If we can look beyond them, perhaps then, and only then can there be a chance for mother nature. Till then, may she have mercy on us.

Gardens vs Pavilion

Sunway Pyramid, One Utama, Megamall Mid Valley, Suria KLCC, Lot 10, Sungai Wang Plaza, Starhill. One would have thought it's more than we could handle, but noooooooo, they want more of our hard earned money. And we were gullible enough to fall for it.

The Pavillion

With the established Starhill, KL Plaza & Lot 10 lining up just opposite of it, one wonders what more could the Pavilion offer to the public. My jaw dropped when I saw all my favourite retail shops under one roof. Not only were they there, many of them were on multiple floors.







Donuts for breakfast? Now wait a minute, is it donuts or doughnuts? British and Americans, why can't they synchronise.

Man, the mall was huge. We were there from 10:20am till about 4pm, and we haven't even entered most of the shops. It was good training for what I might have to go thru in Japan.



I'll let the pictures speak for itself.





















Baby Lily is the 'alleged' owner of Miss Whatever.

Copyright Disclaimer : This video is not related to Miss Whatever at The Gardens @ Mid Valley or anywhere else. It shall be removed if the owner so request it.

The Gardens @ Mid Valley

Gelatissimo Ice-Cream, this was what greeted me the moment I entered. I was in love already. Unfortunately, it was way too early for them.



It looks huge as well, with Lower Ground going all the way to the 4th Floor. The mall was longish like Mid Valley. Yet, it is dwarfed when compared to the Pavillion.



I miss you







Dare I enquire the ticket price?









This particular staff in Funky Mama came out just as I was about to snap this photo and was all over me, just to tell me I'm not allowed to take photographs, "Management Policy". I've taken so many and this was the only one that stopped me. I sure ain't buying mummy's clothings from her next time.



Calvin Klein, one would assume their staff to be efficient and knowledgeable. I was enquiring on a particular jacket and it had no price tag. No price? That in itself is a scary thought already. But seeing him and his colleague fumbling about to get the price was humorous. After a good 5 minutes of waiting, I left and told them to just get the price. I might be back. And came back I did, an hour later. The price?



Need I say more? On their service desk, there was this sign;



I was flabbergasted that he did not know about it and was searching high and low for the wallet when I wanted to have a look at it. Oh, this is the Calvin Klein within Isetan. Having visited Calvin Klein that was on the Grd Floor, it fared no better with employees speaking like ruffians. Mr Klein's name has been tarnished. Now, did I buy anything above RM1,000?

Pros and Cons

Both were competing with each other to complete ahead of schedule. And due to that, they sacrifice finishing and completion. Ceilings were incomplete, escalators were squeeky, certain floors were incomplete as we were greeted by a wall when the lift doors opened to one of the floors at the Pavilion. It was no better at the Gardens, floors and many areas were dusty. Railings were cordoned and lacquering was still being applied on the wood finishes. The Gardens still had employees manning parking ticket counters instead of automated parking. Something which doesn't make sense when they have huge hi-tech touch screen directories on every floor. I am also saddened that GSC has only design and catered to the higher income group of cinema goers. What about poor me?

Quality of shops are nonetheless nothing short of spectacular. From mid to top of the range apparels and brands, they can be found in both Pavilion and Gardens. Having said that, it is not suprising that the Pavilion holds the upper edge in retail outlets due to their bigger floor area. It was an experience just walking these 2 fantastic and spanking new malls. Wear a good pair of sneakers or slippers and you're all set. Now I'm ready for Japan or am I?