246. Chong's Wedding

Saturday
Finally the day has arrived where our good friend Mr Tan is going to tie the knot. Their guests will be arriving later today and Mr Lai and I will be taking them to town for dinner at May Garden with Chong & Hiromi's family. Turns out the 4 flights doesn't arrive on time as planned. the first one arrived on time, the 2nd cancelled and the passengers were pushed to a later (40mins later) flight. Good thing the last 2 flghts arrive within 30mins of each other, but the were delayed for 2 hours. So we actually went to the restaurant first for makan and then back to the airport to pick up the 2nd Batch :)

El Piggy with Mantou

The food was excellent, but turns out, we chatted more than we ate. the other 2 tables finished all their food, but our table has lotsa leftovers. And our table are all guys except for Tomoko. It's amazing, this is the first time I'm meeting Arai (Hiro) San and Tomizawa (Tomi) San and already we've bonded :P guess ham sap ppl flock together. But seriously, despite the language barrier, they are very fun people to hang out with.

After dinner, it's time to party. This is suppose to be Chong's bachelor nite. So hang out we did. After coming back from the airport with another 3 guests, we head to Cititel to let them check in.

Our first stop was a dodgy bar that Chong's dad found right across from Cititel. It couldn't be any emptier than that. So many happening places in town, and His dad managed to find that bar. It was so boring, I didn't even bother to find out it's name. All I know is there's a huge lighted sign outside that reads, "HEINEKEN".

Next is SS. We went over for a while and got bored. So we then went back to the Heineken place. Finally, after Chong has excused himself, Lai took over of the helm and guided us to GLO. It's the first time actually went inside GLO and stayed.

Oddly, tonite feels more like Lai's bachelor nite :) The bridegroom has already gone to sleep and Lai is still in such a party mood.

We were out till 4am again.

Sunday
Woke up at 9:30 and was late for church service. I went anyway, I was late 45mins. The sermon was good, learnt something. Basically it was about insecurity and it's sympthoms. Had lunch and hanged around church until about 2pm and proceeded to pick up Lai from City Bayview.

We met up with Chong, Ishiguro, Tomi and the rest and took them to Soho to kill some time. Decided to take Ishiguro and Tomi to try the famous Penang Road Cendol. After that it's time to get ready for Chong's wedding dinner. Lai & I had a crazy idea of sending their VIP guests from Cititel to E&O hotel in trishaws :) They loved it. I wanted to get on one too, but someone had to drive the car to the hotel :(

The trishaws arriving at E&O Hotel

It's was a lovely dinner. Everything was as a wedding dinner should be, but the dancers stood out. Well, they were very interesting. I didn't expect something like that. Nonetheless, it's really nice to see everybody having a good time.

Wat The!?!?!

We adjourned to Coco (previously known as The Bungalow) after dinner to unwind. It was a relief that all the work and responsibility has passed and all can just chill and take it all in. Gee, 4am 3 nites in a row! It was worthwhile.

__________________________

My Random Thots:

Excerpts stolen from the sermon on sunday morning (paraphrased by me)

Insecure people
a) will COMPARE themselves with others
b) Is self centered (COMPETITIVE)
c) Is JUDGEMENTAL (CONDEMNATIONS)

is there a tablet/pill that we can take?

I was told that God can help heal everything....
.....too bad I don't have what they call an open heart.

245. Ai Fen's B'day!!!!!!!!!!

The day was spent as usual running around with the exception of having lunch at Megamall and wanting to buy a guitar. Chuwy got a very good deal on his Ibanez bass guitar and I was wondering if I could too. But unfortunately the boss wasn't in so I'll probably wait until monday and try again.

Headed over to Soho at about 11ish to celebrate Ai Fen's B'day. As with all b'day celebrations, we stayed until about 3:30am and headed out for supper. Wanted to have Bah Kut Teh at Gottlieb Road, but unfortunately it was already closed, so we had Bah Kut Teh at Green House instead.

To think that tomorrow I'm suppose to drive Chong's wedding guests around. :D

244. Pix from Pulau Perhentian

............CONTINUED FROM BLOG ENTRY #242

Had a great 4 days and 3 nites at the Island. Wish I had more time there. Because we're the only guests left on the island, all the staff really took good care of us.

On the way from KL, I had to chat with the dive instructor to keep him awake. :) Was nice chatting with him and finding out more about the life of a diving instructor. About how he travels to Thailand, Bali and Sipadan Island in the monsoon season. He really enjoys it. A carefree life doing what he loves.

Anyway, the Bubbles Resort at turtle beach creek is a really quiet secluded resort. Just what I needed. A quiet diving getaway.

Being nice to the diving instructor has it's priviledges. He decided to give us 2 free dives and 2 free snorkelings. He was gonna throw in a nite snorkeling too, but, it rained on the last nite. But he said he'll make up for it the next time we go. What a salesman.

Basically we saw everything I wanted to see. I saw Nemo playing in it's home, 3 black tip sharks (including one that's 2+ meters long), 2 huge Green turtles, a baby hawksbill turtle and a Stingray. Of course we saw other marine life too including a cute little yellow box fish.

We also took some underwater shots. Hopefully my dive instructor gets the uploaded soon. Can't wait to see how that turns out.

All good things must come to an end. Made a couple of new friends during the trip. The instructor for one, will be coming to Penang for White Water Rafting. So we'll probably meet up when he comes. As for the other friends, we're supposedly planning another diving trip. If they're leaving the planning to me, guess we'll not see each other for a while :D

Glad that I actually went. Was a tad reluctant to go initially becoz it's the monsoon season and all. It was an amazing experience. I also managed to get started on Carl Sagen's Demon Haunted World.

On the way from Kuala Besut Jetty to Pulau Perhentian


The view from the beach of the boat leaving


The beach from the resort (note the hammock on the right, spent quite a bit of time there)


Another shot of the beach, you can actually see the sea bed


The float reads "Diver Below" :)


Me in front of the Dive shop (the topless guy is my instructor)


My tan line


My diver pendant and my temporary card :)

Shots taken from the plane on the way back to Penang from KL

The following pics are taken by my instructor, next time, I'll hopefully be able to bring my own camera underwater

Batman in the water


Help!!! I'm being chased by a school of Barracudas


Me chasing da fishes


Peekaboo, I see u! Checking out the coral formations





Cute little Box fish


More of the cute little fella

243. Dave's Birthday

Took a nap after work and headed to Soho with Wee to celebrate Dave's birthday. Beau, Mandy, Howe and Dan was there too. Basically was a bit tired, but still managed to have a good time. Jo was there too. After Soho, went for soup and nasi lemak next to Soho. It's been a long time since I last ate there. When we finally reach home, it's already 4am. Yawn!

Happy Birthday Dave!

242. Back from Stop-over Island

Just got back from Pulau Perhentian this morning. So many things to write about my trip, but I also have so much work accumulated over the weekend. I'll catch up later, in the meantime, suffice to say I had a really really fun and relaxing time there. Just what the doctor prescribed. In fact, it was so relaxing, I forgot I was broke :D The wheather was amazingly kind despite the fact that it's the monsoon season already :D

to be continued........

THE PRICE OF CHILDREN

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140 for a middle-income family. Talk about sticker shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition. But $160,140 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into $8,896.66 a year, $741.38 a month, or $171.08 a week. That's a mere $24.24 a day! Just over a dollar an hour. Still, you might think the best financial advice is don't have children if you want to be "rich." Actually, it is just the opposite. What do you get for your $160,140?

· Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
· Glimpses of God every day.
· Giggles.... under the covers every night.
· More love than your heart can hold
· Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
· Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
· A hand to hold, usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
· A partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites, building sandcastles, and skipping down the sidewalk in the pouring rain.
· Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140, you never have to grow up. You get to finger-paint, carve pumpkins, play hide-and-seek, catch lightning bugs, and never stop believing in Santa Claus. You have an excuse to keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh, watching Saturday morning cartoons, going to Disney movies, and wishing on stars. You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For $160,140, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof, taking the training wheels off a bike, removing a splinter, filling a wading pool, coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat to history to witness the first step, first word, first date, and first time behind the wheel. You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great grandchildren.

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so . . . one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost.

From:
http://www.allprodad.com/9priceofchildren.asp

[forwarded by Bob Simmons]

today's THOT
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Children and dogs are good judges of character.

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241. Nine Emperor Gods Festival

Today is the last day of the 9 emperor gods festival.

The festival is celebrated over the first nine days of the ninth moon in the Chinese lunar calendar. Devotees flock to the temples throughout the country for this religious festival. The Nine Emperor Gods are part of a spirit-medium cult known locally as ‘Jieu Hwang Yeh’. These Nine Deities are believed to dwell in the stars in northern heaven under the reign of ‘Thien Hou’ - the Queen of Heaven. They are believed to preside over blessings, life and death, peace and harmony on Earth. Thus the focus of rituals during the nine-day festival acts as a channel between celestial and terrestrial beings for the salvation and protection of mankind.

On the eve of the ninth moon, temples of the Deities hold a ceremony to invoke and welcome the ‘Jieu Hwang Yeh’. Since the arrival of the Nine Emperor Gods is believed to be through the waterways, processions are held from temples to the sea-shore or river to symbolise this belief. Devotees dressed in traditional white, carrying joss-sticks and candles, await the arrival of their “Excellencies”. A carnival-like atmosphere pervades the temple throughout the nine-day festival. During this period of time, the constant chiming of a prayer bell and chants from the temple priests are heard. Most devotees stay at the temple, take vegetarian meals and recite continuous chanting of prayers. A procession to send the Nine Emperor Gods home then takes place to complete the rites of this religious festival.

To welcome the Nine Emperors, mediums wielding axes and swords will perform evening rituals on odd numbered days. The spirits of the gods are entertained in the temple grounds with Chinese opera performances and fire-walking sessions.

The Nine Emperors are the Chinese version of Robin Hood, who during the Qing dynasty robbed the rich and gave to the poor. According to legend, they were cornered at a seaside by soldiers, but a giant red turtle came to their rescue and ferried them to safety on Tow Boo Keong island.

Devotees throng to the Tow Boo Keong Temple in Ipoh, one of the oldest temples in Malaysia, and Temples of the Star Deities like the Nan Thien Kwang in Ampang, in Kuala Lumpur.


A photo taken near the Gold Coast apartments. It seems the processions ends near here

______________________________

My Random Thots:

Learnt a new lesson today from Wee. Don't test people! Just move with the flow. Most people will fail. So will I. There are many different reasons. That shouldn't be the focus.

On a more negative note, someone stole my rims and tires from my car :(

REWARD FOR INFO LEADING TO THE ARREST OR CASTRATION OF THE PERPETRATORS

240. Monday flew right by

Now it's already Tuesday 3pm. Where hath all the time gone?

Now kwai kwai waiting in the office for my customer to come for a visit. Since I have some time, might as well put it to good use and blog something.

Spent last nite at Starbucks @ E-Gate. Nice place. Met Andrew, CP and Khai at 9pm. Then suppose to meet Jack and Yew Peng at the same place at 11pm. :) Now that's what I call make good use of time. Was actually surprised that Yew Peng actually came out. It's so late at nite d and he has to work the next day some more.

Something of interest is that they're actually introducing the next Nissan GT-R Prototype in 8 days...... This is exciting.

___________________________________

A stolen article from Crosswalk.com

How to Deal with Difficult Relationships

...God's Insight for Making Wise Relational Choices
Bayless Conley

All of us at one time or another have had to deal with difficult relationships. Perhaps for you it has been with a family member. Or perhaps it has been with someone you thought was a friend. Or, even worse, the difficulty is with your spouse.

In Genesis, chapter 16, a story unfolds that provides us with God's insight and wisdom regarding how to deal with a difficult relationship. It is the story of Sarah, Abraham's wife, and her maid, Hagar.

We pick up the story after Sarah decides she will never conceive. And she tells Abraham to sleep with Hagar in order to produce a child. Abraham complies and Hagar becomes pregnant. But Hagar develops an attitude and begins to make Sarah's life miserable.

So Sarah goes to Abraham and complains... as a result, things don't turn out well for Hagar - yet in this story we find some powerful lessons in how to handle difficult relationships.

6 So Abram said to Sarai, "Indeed your maid is in your hand; do to her as you please." And when Sarai dealt harshly with her, she fled from her presence. 7 Now the Angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur. 8 And He said, "Hagar, Sarai's maid, where have you come from, and where are you going?" She said, "I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai." 9 The Angel of the LORD said to her, "Return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hand."

Sarah's harsh treatment of Hagar drives Hagar away, and that's when God shows up. He asks a profound, two-fold question... "Where have you come from, and where are you going?" Questions from which you and I can learn.

Now the first part of that question, "Where have you come from?" suggests that Hagar ought to consider what she was leaving. Implied in this question is God saying,

"I know you're hurt, you're upset, and maybe you're confused. You're angry. But have you really considered what you might be forfeiting if you follow through on this decision? You are going to be forfeiting:

* A husband that knows God (not too common in those days)
* A family who is being taught in the way of the Lord
* Great prosperity (because Abraham is very wealthy),
* Safety, and a place where your needs are met
* A place where you know your child is going to be cared for."

What can you and I learn from the first half of this question? To begin with, it is never wise to make major decisions when you're upset emotionally or when you've been hurt. How many of us have made a decision or made a call when the air was emotionally charged...and it just led to something bad? I can tell you, I've been guilty of that!

Or, how many of us have said something when we were angry or hurt, and the moment the words escaped our lips we wished we could have taken them back?

The principle is to think twice before you speak once. And don't be rash to make an important decision, especially when you're upset.

The Scripture says in Proverbs 19:2, "He sins who hastens with his feet." Yet, quite often, people make rash decisions. People will make a decision to leave a church, to leave a job, to even leave a marriage, and they haven't properly considered what they would be forfeiting in that decision.

Through the years I've heard people say many times, whether they are leaving a church, a job, a relationship, a marriage, "Well, the Lord has just released me." Very rarely have I believed them when I've heard those words. It is sometimes just easier to blame things on God than to deal with issues that need to be resolved.

Which brings us to the second half of the Lord's question to Hagar: "Where are you going?" I think God is asking her, "Are you going out of the frying pan into the fire?"

Hagar was on the way to Shur. If you look on a map, she is making a beeline back for Egypt, back for her home. She was going back to a land that, at this point in time, had no knowledge of the God of Abraham...back to a land full of pagan worship and idolatry.

She would have to go through a wilderness that, according to Deuteronomy 8:15, is a land that is thirsty... where there is no water. A land full of fiery serpents and scorpions.

Where will rash, emotionally-charged decisions take us? And what are we forfeiting? What are we getting ourselves into? Are we heading for a wilderness? Is divorce really the answer? Or is it just a temporary release from some of the pressure?

Is your decision ultimately going to make things harder or make things worse?

If you cut and run from wherever you are right now, no matter how distressed you may feel, you need to ask yourself: Is this wise? Are there other options? I think those are good questions. Where have you come from? And where are you going?

239. Hectic weekend

Saturday
Didn't get enough rest the nite before, but alas, still have to go to work. Basically was looking forward to go home and take a nap before going for Mun Kit's wedding. Turned out couldn't fall asleep. Seng and Wee decided to leave at 6pm instead of 7pm. Had a good time there except that Mun Kit's father-in-law isn't very sporting and was a bit uptight. Perhaps it's from the stress of giving the daughter away.

The MCs (Wee & Jimbo) announcing the arrival the the Bride & Groom

The decor

Everyone on our table

Adrian picked me up at about 10:40pm. We headed to Bagan to meet the rest of the guys. Ran into Lorna and Prakash there. The band there was really nice. After finishing the bottle, the guys headed to Sea Breeze beside Naza Hotel to end the nite. :)

Sunday
Was suppose to go Chang Lun today for archery, but found out that Jack is coming back today and not tomorrow as planned. So we didn't get to go after all. Really wanted to go for archery there, it's only RM5 for 24 arrows.

Anyway, end up going for Laksa and then went to the new Metrojaya at Island Plaza for shopping. Actually managed to get my shoes and also my new sunglasses. If they're not nice, the head of my fashion consultant shall roll. Heh heh. Spent the evening resting at home.

I'll be back!

A close up of my new sunglasses

My new shoes, I think it looks like my previous hush puppies shoe

By the way, it seems that my trip to Pulau Perhentian in pretty much confirmed :) Good thing I ran into Prakash last nite. Coincidently he's leaving for KL on thursday nite. So I'm gonna hitch a ride with him and fly back on tuesday. Woo Hoo.

My diving gear (actually it's Wee's), I'm borrowing it

238. As expected.......

I'm blur this morning :) This is what happens when one stays awake till 3:30am (Mental note: watching Astro can severely hinder progress of clearing paperwork!).

Tonite I'm suppose to go for Mun Kit's bachelor nite. We'll see how motivated I am after work. I might attend church service at BEDSIDE Baptist Church. I sense strong annointing there tonite. Heh heh heh.

To keep myself awake, I make myself laugh. My favourites are in BOLD :) My favouritest is in RED :)

These are the laws of the natural universe:

~ Law of Mechanical Repair: After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch.

~ Law of the Workshop: Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner.

~ Law of the Telephone: When you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy signal.

~ Law of the Alibi: If you tell the boss you were late for work because you had a flat tire, the very next morning you will have a flat tire.

~ Variation Law: If you change lines or traffic lanes, the one you were in will start to move faster than the one you are in now.

~ Bath Theorem: When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone rings.

~ Law of Lines: When you walk IN the grocery store, there's never anyone in the checkout line.

~ Inverse Hair Dryer Law: You're sure you hear the phone ringing in the background, until you turn the hair dryer off.

~ Law of Close Encounters: The probability of meeting someone you know increases when you are with someone you don't want to be seen with.

~ Law of the Result: When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work, it will.

~ Law of Bio mechanics: The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.

~ Theater Law: At any event, the people whose seats are farthest from the aisle arrive last.

~ Law of Coffee: As soon as you sit down to a cup of hot coffee, your boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.

~ Murphy's Law of Lockers: If there are only two people in a locker room, they will have adjacent lockers.

~ Law of Natural Attraction: If you and your date are the only two on a five-mile stretch of beach, the family of five will set up right next to you.

~ Law of Dirty Rugs/Carpets: The chances of an open-faced jelly sandwich landing face down on a floor covering are directly correlated to the newness and cost of the carpet/rug.

~ Law of Location: No matter where you go, there you are.

~ Law of Logical Argument: Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.

~ Oliver's Law: A closed mouth gathers no feet.

~ Law of the Last Word: "Hey, watch this!"

~ Theory of Absolute Certainty: Do not take life too seriously, because in the end, you won't come out alive anyway.

In the end, after a nice long nap, went out with the guys. Finally met Tomoko after she's been here for more than a week. After hanging out at Sega's went over to McDonald's Green Lane. It seems that the place is open till 3am during the weekends and the drive thru is open 24hrs. I ordered 21pcs nuggets thinking I'm getting help finishing it. Wrong! I had to eat 15pcs. *Burp!*

237. Another quiet lazy day

Basically worked the whole day and was pretty tired. Decided that it's been a while since I've met up with the guys. So made it a point to go out tonite. Met up with the usual people with the exception of a new friend named Wood. Lewis decided to come along as well. As usual hung out till about 12:30am and called it a nite. Still have some paper work to finish before tomorrow morning. :(