Congratulations Malaysia(ns)

What an amazing, yet shocking weekend it has been. Malaysians have finally awoken from the deep slumber, with such a tremendous roar that not only shook the ruling coalition but the opposition coalition as well. Many predicted the winds of change but no one expected the 12th Malaysian General Election to be such a disastrous outing for Barisan Nasional.

I was at 1 Utama shopping mall in the morning of Sunday. Everything had seemed normal, despite all the campaign banners, buntings and posters in every corner you turn. Then, my fiancee told me "Come, let's buy the newspaper. Something big happened in the elections" (somewhere along that line). Apparently, she received a few sms from friends, indicating some shocking turn of event. I was like, how big can it be? Lost more parliamentary seats compared to the last elections? Found a newstand, grab a copy of The Star (which is biased to Barisan Nasional) and it read -

Barisan reels from worst-ever election performance

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia is in shock. The Barisan Nasional is reeling from its worst-ever election performance. While it managed to keep Terengganu and will form the next government, it lost Penang, Selangor Kedah and Perak to the Opposition and failed to recapture Kelantan. - excerpt from The Star, 9th March 2008

I was so elated, I jumped like a blardy monkey. The result has been long overdue and I am proud of all the Malaysians who came out to vote. It's time our rights are heard. It's time to clean up the shit that these states has stacked up all these years.

Now comes the hard part. Celebrations can only last so long. DAP, PKR & PAS has to know that, the people are their voices. If they have the power to vote you in, they have the power to vote you out at the next elections.

General Election 2008

8th March 2008, a day of possibilities, a day of hope, a day to make a change, a day to remain status quo. Whatever your reasons may be to vote or not to vote is your perogative and yours alone. The last couple of years has been a shake of awakening to my senses. Yet, when I started this blog, I tried staying away from politics. But today's headline truly tells us non-bumis where we actually belong. Below are partial extractions from The Star newspaper.

Vote for a voice in the Government, says Abdullah (click for source)
PENANG: Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi reminded the Chinese community that if they gave the DAP their votes, they will end up not having any representation in the Government. “You have to decide if you want a louder voice in Parliament or representation in the Cabinet where they can be more effective in representing all communities,” the Barisan Nasional chairman said.

He said if the Chinese did not have representation in the Cabinet, their requests would not be heard. However, Abdullah said the Barisan wanted the Chinese community to be part of the Government. “We do not want to have a government that does not have representation of all ethnic groups in the Cabinet. We want to be the best and I want to do the best for the rakyat,” he said at a press conference after opening the RM110mil project to upgrade Penang Hospital's heart and surgical unit yesterday.

Abdullah reminded Penangites of the situation after the 1990 general election when the MCA was “paralysed.” “When the MCA lost its voice, the people felt it. I hope they will think very carefully. This is important in the interest of all races,” he added.

What the FUCK! Is he not the Prime Minister of the rakyat? If at all, the chinese community chooses to elect DAP, are we not to be represented just because the ruling coalition turns a deaf ear to DAP, merely because they are the opposition? MCA, wake up and stop being a dog grovelling at their feet. Are you not confident of your community to rise up to the challenge if you work harder, without fear for the betterment of the chinese community? You know what our concerns are, and if you can't improve on it, step aside and let someone else have a shot at it.

The following could not be found in The Star Online but was published - "We will give what the MALAYS WANT and will not REDUCE it. But we will not forget and leave our Chinese and Indian friends in Barisan" ~ quote Pak Lah

It says it all, doesn't it? So, take advantage of your voting rights and VOTE SMART. I shall be rooting from behind the scenes and register myself for the next General Elections.

Gong Xi Fa Cai

Chinese New Year just seems to be getting a lot quieter here in KL. Gone were the days where it resembles a ghost town 10 years ago. Though the streets were free of the usual congestion, you could still tell many didn't leave the bustling city.

But this will be the final year where I thought I could earn my riches like I used to back when I was young. And boy has 2008 been a bountiful year for me. Up till today, which is the 11th day of Chinese New Year, I have shamelessly received 24 red packets.



With 4 more days to go, 24 is on the high side. The amount doesn't matter much, but with each passing year, the "When are you getting married?" remarks seems more frequent.

Well, fret not everyone. For this shall be the last year I am to be on the receiving side. So, line up everyone; nephews, nieces, cousins, friends and friend's children. I heard it's a tradition to give 2 red packets during the inaugural year and someone even told me it's fun to give out them out. I just hope she wasn't lying to me :P hahahahah

Let's Settle This

It happened right in front of my very own eyes.

A : Beginilah, ikut pendapat kami dan gambar ini, memang mesin kamu terkena kabel kami
B : Jadi, macam mana?
A : Kalau nak buat repot, boleh, tapi kurang-kurang kena bayar pampasan RM20,000. Itu sebab saya datang nak tanya, sama ada nak buat repot or nak settle kat sini.
B : Kalau nak settle kat sini, berapa?
A : Kalau settle, lebih kurang 3-4 ribu saje.
B : Bos saya kat luar negeri, saya tak boleh buat keputusan.
A : Kalau gitu, saya kena balik dan buat laporan kerana isu kelmarin melibatkan ramai penduduk.
B : Biar saya cuba telepon ofis saya

A moment later

B : Mintak kurang lagi boleh ke?
A : Nak settle berapa?
B : Seribu boleh?
A : Tak boleh lah, lebih kurang dua ribu ok lah.
B : Saya mana ada duit banyak tu sekarang? Ada pun lebih kurang RM1,500.
A : Takpe lah, tunggu saya telepon bos saya dulu.

Soon after

A : Bos saya minta RM1,600.
B : Begitulah, kalau dalam dompet saya ada duit sebanyak itu, saya bagi lah.
A : Jadi, ada berapa?
B : *korek korek* RM1,5xx lebih sahaja
A : RM1,500 jadi lah.
B : Ok, terima kasih
A : Gong Xi Fa Cai

WTF!!!!!!! $#@@*&?! Too bad I didn't take any video of the conversation. Otherwise, he'll just say, "It sounds like me, it looks like me, but I cannot say it is 100% me".

Sunway Parking

I've been biased. Having only written a review on Pavilion and The Gardens, I didn't see the need to do one on Sunway Pyramid. Well, I was wrong.

They have revamped their parking lot and I must say, it is fantastic. The management and designer has been very considerate to the plight of nomad motorist, turning in vain in search of a vacant parking bay. They derived a system worthy of mentioning in my blog.

Driving in, I notice there were these LED signages. They serve to inform us how many parking bays are available. Now, if you've been to Genting Highlands, they too have this system. But it only shows something like "444 bays available". Well, eat your heart out Mr. Lim. Sunway Pyramid's signs are on every row, indicating how many empty bays are available in that row, read this, in REAL TIME.

Get ready for this, they even have proximity sensors in each and every parking bay. When a vehicle is parked, the sensor which is located just above the vehicle will activate and a light located in front will turn red. Likewise, when the bay is empty, the light in front will show green. How ingenius is that? A first in Malaysia?





I am very appreciative of what they have done, and i'm sure the same can be said for many motorists as well.

Fish Food

Having been bitten by some pesky fishes when I was swimming in the sea during a recent trip to Kota Kinabalu made me grew wary of them. I mean those fishes were stalking my every move. I can actually see them following me when I had my snorkel on and looked under water. I shooed them by kicking my leg towards them and they would just scatter only to return. And their bite sure pack one helluva punch. Even made some of my friends bleed. They'll swim fast towards your leg, and SNAP. You don't even know what hit you.

Well, I subjected myself to it again last Saturday, albeit a mild, or many mild bites. I'm beginning to love Pavilion very much. For it's shops, for its orange juice, ease in finding a car park, and now for their Fish Spa. For RM38, this is what some of us subjected our feet to for 1/2 hour.




Ticklish? I love it



They were ticklish at first, but after half a minute or so, it started to feel good. The fishes are known as "Garra Rufa". Discovered in Turkey, they are known to peck away at dead skin and that they did. My feet did felt smoother. During the treatment by the fishes, they somehow seemed to swarmed around my feet. Must be my dirty feet.

Crash Boom Bang

There is this short song that goes like that

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Woe, despair and agony on me

Deep, dark depression, excessive misery

If it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all

Woe, despair and agony on me"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. Oh, I was floating alright, then came the stung. It happened in a similar fashion when I was in my late teens. Then, I was running across a road in the rain. The moment I jumped onto the curb, I slipped. I threw myself forward so that I don't fall backward. Next I knew, "crash", a lamp post came between my eyes and it became a starry moment for the next minute or so. The humiliation.

I was at Chef & Brew in Bukit Damansara yesterday, and it was kinda dejavu for me to see the same thing happening again. Well, almost.

It rained, as you would have it. Dotter offered to take a group photo of all of us after dinner. But nooooo, I wanted everyone to be in the photo too. So, I took the camera away from her, placed it on a flat surface, put on the timer, focus, click and it was ready. All it needed was for me to get back to the group within 10 seconds. The camera did snap a photo but it wasn't how it was meant to be.



Not clear enough?



Rushing to get into the frame, I slipped the moment I went up the step. Again, I threw myself forward, crashing on my right knee and my wrist instinctively went down to cushion the fall. I could have sworn at that very moment, I broke my wrist. The excruciating pain was just unbearable at that time. After a few minutes on the floor gripping my wrist, I got up. My dotters told me to go see a 'ta tit'. What in the world is that? Well, stubborn old me. I have yet gone to see one. I'm typing this aren't I? It hurts when I move it around much. No external swelling is visible. I presume the injury is a little crack in my wrist somewhere. We'll see how it is if and when the pain subsides before I decide on my next course of action. Till then, some TLC and restricted wrist movement will do.

Hmpth, and one of my dotter was still posing for the photo.