319. Busy day at work.....again

Finally left work at about 7ish. Stopped by at Frame shop because we made a frame for the dart board. When we reach the shop was told it's not ready yet and that it'll be ready in 30mins. The truth is she actually forgot to get started on it.

Oh well, I'm learning not to bitch and take in everything the best way possible (though not always successful), so decided to go to the pasar malam nearby while Wee and I waited. Gotta say, it's been ages since I last went to a pasar malam. I can still remember the last time I was "dragged" to a pasar malam. It was the one near USM. I still remember giving RM5 to a beggar who seems like he's a victim of down syndrome (I'm not being mean) and later see him buy a pack of ciggies with the money. Anyway, we sat down and Wee had some Laksa and some drinks. I refrained worrying that I'll get IBS on the long way back to Penang. So just bought some Putu Mayong and I'll enjoy that in the comfort of home.

A scene of the Pasar Malam

The frame was ready on time and off we went.

Reached home and Alex came back dressed in traditional baju melayu, complete with songkok and sarong. I was so shocked that I forgot to snap a picture of him. My dad actually thought he's a muslim and ask Wee to check if the bowl of Shitake mushroom actually had pork in it.

My maid was actually attracted to Alex after seeing him in the baju melayu and sarong. He asked Raine twice about him. Looks like we have a SPG (the meaning as explained by the Coxford Singlish Dictionary; look under sarong party girl) in the making.

Alex's dressing actually brought up the topic of the "cartoon protests". The cartoon which ran in the Danish newspaper way back in Sept 05 that pissed off the Muslim community. Well, I'll not publish my stand on the whole issue as it's not my intend to make this a political site. I will say, however, that it's a chicken and egg arguement. Which came first, violence or freedom of speech? Think about it for a while. For further discussion, feel free to speak to me personally. ;) Btw, there's a new issue that angered the muslim community. It seems that there's a Thai Rapper that quoted the Quran and hence insulted their faith. Mr Abhisit Opasiemlikit was quick to apologize though. Hopefully that's the end of that issue.

Chuwy came over with his entire family. Spent the evening in the nursery playing with my niece and nephews. Kids warm up to each other a lot faster than adults :P Sophia is always a joy to watch. Wonder if the kid is just naturally sweet or it's the upbringing.

After they left, it's off to Wee's Casino. Learnt a new game today. It's called Texas Hold'em Texas Hold'em Poker. Interesting game and it won me a couple of bucks. :)

318. Time to vent

Decided to take a drive after work today. Needed to vent some pent up emotions. Met up with Jack, Ann & Boony for dinner at the Pulau Tikus market first. After dinner waited for Yippie, Dennis, Anthony and Jia Li. After they arrived we off we went for the drive. That was rather relaxing. Reached home feeling much more refreshed and relaxed.


A nite shot of the Teluk Bahang dam.......serene

317. Praying to the God of Heaven

Woke up late today, didn't manage to go to church. Went straight for "breakfast" with Yippie and Boony at US Pizza. After pizza they decided to go for gaming at NetCity. I headed home as I'm not much of a gamer.

Tonite, the Chinese prays to the God of Heaven. Alex arrived just before midnite and will be staying with us for the next 2 weeks. He just came back from rock climbing and scuba diving in Krabi. I can only wish I have the free time and cash to join him.

Man, even tonite is quiet. Normally you'll hear firecrackers come midnite. Guess, people take the firecracker ban very seriously this year. Sigh! Before long, we'll all lose our culture, traditions and identity and Malaysia will truly be a "Muhibbah" nation.

Stayed up with Seng & Wee to watch the Liverpool Chelsea match. Disappoining match. I just hope the Ferrari F1 team won't be as disappointing this year.

The feast for the Gods


Seng lighting the firecracker


The burning of "Gold"(I initially thot they were hell notes, but was corrected by Ann. Thanks!)


Alex giving us a hand

316. Beau's Party

Went over to Beau's new place in Sri Golden Bay for his BBQ party. Initially the idea was to go there for BBQ and gambling. The BBQ was great, but surprisingly, there was no gambling at all! This is a first. :)

Beau bought 2 huge boxes of fireworks and decided to set it off by the beach. Halfway thru the second box, the cops showed up! :) They got busted and got their hair shaved! No, I jest! The cops did show up and in true Malaysian style wanted to settle out of court ;) Beau is RM100 poorer.

After dinner went over to Anthony's house to chill a bit before heading out to Haagen Daaz to meet up with Yippie, Jack & Ann.

After that, they came over to my place in an attempt to gamble. For the 2nd time today, no gabling. We just sat and watched the MU game and I spend some time to catch up with my Blogging. :)

Beau (our host) & his lovely girl Mandy; Wee and Raine @ the grill


Dan the man; Wee reflecting


Raine, Wee, Ee Ling, Say Keat, Louisa & Jules; A shot of the sunset as seen from the poolside of Sri Golden Bay


The perps who lit the fireworks!

315. Ru Yi's official B'day party

The traffic on the Penang Bridge was surprisingly smooth today! After having the bridge clogged up with traffic, I was very surprised that there weren't many cars! Guess all them visitors has gone back to their kandang. :)

A picture of traffic on the bridge taken from their website

Rushed back to celerabrate what seems to be Ru Yi's official b'day party. It's more like another good excuse for people to come over for food and then gamble. And gamble they did! :) It was scary watching them gamble. You won't believe the amount at stake. These high rollers would make any casino owner happy.

The birthday girl & her parents; The guys


The kids playing with fireworks

314. Work begins!

It's an official working day today! Gosh, it was hard to get up & get back to the routine. :P

313. Blank!

Can't remember much of what happened today! :) Just spent the day chilling and catching up on my sleep.

312. Blur!

Got back from Lai's house at 9 in the morning. What a crazy nite. Took a nap and after lunch, started drilling holes on my work desk to make a hole so that I can connect my monitor to my PC. This project has been put off for 3 mths. Glad I finally got it out of the way.


I was going for a smiley face with the 2 eyes at the top, fine, so it didn't work out as well as I planned :)

Had dinner with Yew Peng, Chong & Adrian at McDonald's. It's been a while since I last had McDs. Not too bad.

After dinner, they went back to my place for gambling. We were joined by Jeff and Jo. It's the first time I played poker in God knows how long! Did alright. :) Was an early nite becoz Yew Peng and Chong actually starts work tomorrow morning.

311. Party at Lai's

Woke up at 11am and went over to Starbucks at E-Gate to meet up with Chong, Arif and Jane. Had breakfast with them and then rushed over to Wei Wei's house for a reunion with ex-Xaverians. By the time I got there, most of them have already left. End up just spending time catching up with Wei & her hubby.


casa de los Lai (Lai's house)

After a short nap, went over to Kepala Batas with Jack and Ann to Lai's new house for a house warming and CNY BBQ. After food, they started gambling. What I wasn't prepared for was that we gambled thru the nite and went back home only after breakfast. After that, it was time to hibernate for a bit.

310. GONG XI FA CAI

Actually managed to wake up for church in the morning. It was a short 1 hour service. The pastor gave out Ang Pows with bible verse in it and 2 mandarin oranges.

After a short nap, went over to Jimbo's house with Seng, Fen, Wee & Raine. Had a long session with Jimbo's family and friends. Had a good time.

In the evening, Yew Peng, Chong, Adrian & Eva dropped by for more gambling. Seng has to leave for Muar early tomorrow morning, so he excused himself earlier.

309. Of Ang Pows, Gambling & Firecrackers

Tonite is the eve of the Lunar New Year! As such, we have our reunion dinner & as always, it had steamboat again. After the reunion dinner, we celebrated Ru Yi's birthday.

After the celebrations, it's time for firecrackers! It's seems that whoever is caught lighting firecrackers, they can be fined up to RM300. My dad will be paying in case we get caught anyway, so time to burn! :)

The aftermath of the fireworks! We're suppose to leave our lawn red like that coz it's good luck!

Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year (Chinese: 春節, 春节, Chūnjíe; 農曆新年, 农历新年, Nónglì Xīnnián; or 過年, 过年, Guònián), also known as the Lunar New Year or the Spring Festival is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. It consists of a period of celebrations, starting on New Year's Day, celebrated on the first day of the first month of the Chinese calendar, i.e. the day of the second new moon after the day on which the winter solstice occurs, unless there is an intercalary eleventh or twelfth month in the lead-up to the New Year—in such a case, the New Year falls on the day of the third new moon after the solstice. (The next time this occurs is in 2033.) The Chinese New Year period ends with the Lantern Festival, the fifteenth day of the month.

Some Chinese believe that Nian ("Nyehn") was a reptilian predator that could infiltrate houses silently like the infamous man-eating leopards of India. The Chinese soon learned that Nian was sensitive to loud noises, and they scared it away with explosions and fireworks.

Celebrated internationally in areas with large populations of ethnic Chinese, Chinese New Year is considered to be a major holiday for the Chinese as well as ethnic groups such as the Mongolians, Koreans, the Miao (Chinese Hmong) and the Vietnamese, who were influenced by Chinese culture in terms of religious and philosophical worldview, language and culture in general. Chinese New Year is also the time when the largest human migration takes place when Chinese all around the world return home on Chinese New Year eve to have reunion dinner with their family.


Greetings
Around the New Year people greet each other with:

Traditional Chinese: 恭喜發財; Simplified Chinese: 恭喜发财; pinyin: Gōngxǐ fācái; Hokkien Keong hee huat chye (POJ: Kiong-hí hoat-châi); Cantonese: Kung hei fat choi; Hakka: Kung hee fat choi, which translates to "Congratulations and be prosperous."

Traditional Chinese: 新年快樂; Simplified Chinese: 新年快乐; pinyin: Xīnnián kuàilè; Hokkien POJ: Sin-nî khòai-lo̍k, which translates to "Happy new year."


Traditions
Traditionally, red packets (Mandarin: 'hong bao' (紅包); Hokkien: 'ang pow' (POJ: âng-pau); Hakka: 'fung bao'; Cantonese: 'lai see' (利是)) are passed out during the Chinese New Year's celebrations, from married couples to unmarried people (usually children). Chinese New Year is celebrated with firecrackers, dragon dances and lion dances. Typically the game of mahjong is played.


Reunion dinner
A reunion dinner is held on New Year's Eve where members of the family, near and far, get together for celebration. The New Year's Eve dinner is very large and traditionally includes chicken. Fish (魚, yú) is included, but not eaten up completely (and the remaining stored overnight), as the Chinese phrase 年年有魚/餘; (nián nián yǒu yú, or "every year there is fish/leftover") is a homophone for phrases which could mean "be blessed every year" or "have profit every year", since "yú" is also the pronunciation for "profit". A type of black hair-like algae, pronounced "fat choy" in Cantonese, is also featured in many dishes since its name sounds similar to "prosperity". Hakka will serve "kiu nyuk" 扣肉 and "ngiong tiu fu" 釀豆腐. Because the things sound alike, the belief is that having one will lead to the other, like the old child's aphorism "step on a crack, break your mother's back".


First day of the new year
New Year's day is also celebrated within the family. Usually family members gather on the morning of New Year's Day. It is at this gathering that red packets are given to unmarried members of the family. The age of the recipient is not material to receiving the packets. Married couples usually give out two red packets on the first new year after being married. This is because the wife presents one and the husband presents one. In subsequent years they may give one as a couple.

Red packets traditionally consisted of amounts which were considered multiples. Amounts like $2 (two piece of $1), or $20 were acceptable. Similarly "multiples" such as $1.10 and $2.20 were also acceptable. However, this is not strictly adhered to. The gift was originally a token amount but these days it is not uncommon to receive large sums in affluent families. In some families this tradition has evolved into the practice to substituting money-like instruments (stocks, bonds, unit trust) in place of large sums of cash.

Red packets are also given to unmarried visitors but the sums are often smaller than the packets given to family members or close friends.


Second day of the new year
The second day of the new year is usually for visiting the family of the wife if a couple is married. A large feast is also typically held on the second day of the new year.


Seventh day of the new year
The seventh day traditionally is known as the common man's birthday, the day when everyone grows one year older. It is also the day when tossed fish salad, yusheng, is eaten. People get together to toss the colourful salad and make wishes for continued wealth and prosperity. This is only celebrated amongst the Chinese in Southeast Asia, such as Malaysia and Singapore.

New Year dates
The dates of the Spring Festival from 1996 to 2019 (in the Gregorian calendar) are listed below with pinyin romanizations for the earthly branches associated with the animals, which are not their translations.

Animal
Rat <1996> <2008>
Ox <1997> <2009>
Tiger <1998> <2010>
Rabbit <1999> <2011>
Dragon <2000> <2012>
Snake <2001> <2013>
Horse <2002> <2014>
Goat <2003> <2015>
Monkey <2004> <2016>
Rooster <2005> <2017>
Dog <2006> <2018>
Pig <2007> <2019>

More info available on the Chinese New Year here:
i)At Answers.Com
ii)ChineseCulture.Com
iii)Tuvy.Com

308. VIP Dinner

Dad invited Tun over to our home for steamboat dinner last nite. Dinner was suppose to start at 7pm. I was already hungry since 6, but as with all Malaysian events, we didn't get to eat until it was 8ish. Even then we were busy entertaining guests and all that I hardly ate. Finally ate my fill once everyone was done with their dinner :) Oh, even the boss of Flame (one of the sisters anyway) was with us. Interesting. Well, if Flame introduces beef soup, you know where the inspiration came from :D Heh heh!

The VIP table

Dad having a friendly game with Tun

Tun taking aim

After work today, rushed over for dinner with Seng, Fen, Wee, Raine, Jimbo, Hooi San and a few other friends. The food was excellent! After dinner, they adjourned to our house for our first gambling session of this year. Hey! I don't like to gamble, but it's tradition :P

307. Goodbye my lover

Heard this song over MTV while working late at nite. Very deep lyrics and it really caught my attention. Guess I get emotional while working late at nite and all alone. :)

I recall while studying marketing back in uni, I read that they always sell things thru TV late at nite because people tend to be more suggestable late at nite. Also they especially chose to sell self help items during the weekends because from their research, they found that people who stay home on friday or saturday nites probably would buy them. For those who can't figure out why, call me :)

Anyway, back to the song by James Blunt.

Goodbye My Lover
by James Blunt

Did I disappoint you or let you down?
Should I be feeling guilty or let the judges frown?
'Cause I saw the end before we'd begun,
Yes I saw you were blinded and I knew I had won.
So I took what's mine by eternal right.
Took your soul out into the night.
It may be over but it won't stop there,
I am here for you if you'd only care.
You touched my heart you touched my soul.
You changed my life and all my goals.
And love is blind and that I knew when,
My heart was blinded by you.
I've kissed your lips and held your head.
Shared your dreams and shared your bed.
I know you well, I know your smell.
I've been addicted to you.

Goodbye my lover.
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one.
You have been the one for me.

I am a dreamer but when I wake,
You can't break my spirit - it's my dreams you take.
And as you move on, remember me,
Remember us and all we used to be
I've seen you cry, I've seen you smile.
I've watched you sleeping for a while.
I'd be the father of your child.
I'd spend a lifetime with you.
I know your fears and you know mine.
We've had our doubts but now we're fine,
And I love you, I swear that's true.
I cannot live without you.

Goodbye my lover.
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one.
You have been the one for me.

And I still hold your hand in mine.
In mine when I'm asleep.
And I will bear my soul in time,
When I'm kneeling at your feet.
Goodbye my lover.
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one.
You have been the one for me.
I'm so hollow, baby, I'm so hollow.
I'm so, I'm so, I'm so hollow.

Here're the links to the music video. One's Window Media Player and the other is real player. Both are streaming videos. I think it's brilliantly done and it captures the song's emotion well.

Windows Media Player: James Blunt - Goodbye My Lover
Real Player: James Blunt - Goodbye My Lover

306. Just another day

Got back from work late and decide to take a break and stay home to rest. Jack called and needed a ride back from college, so decided to cancel the nap and pick him up and head for supper at Sg Ara with Yew Peng.

305. Back to the kandang!

Nothing special at work today. Just the usual stuff.

Went over to Kepala Batas with Yew Peng to pick up his new rims and also Adrian's rims. While we were there, we had dinner at the usual mamak stall near Public Bank. It seems that it's run by new people. The food still is as good. Guess that's all that matters.

Went over to Lai's new house to help him install his new sound system and all. *drool drool*. By the time we left KB it's already 1am. After dropping Adrian's rim at his place, rushed home to my bed. Nite nite.

304. KL

Woke up really late since we don't have a deadline to meet. Had "breakfast" at the chinese restaurant downstairs of the hotel, checked out and went for a walk around Midvalley while waiting for Eva's mom. Bought a couple of DIY stuff. Among them is and automatic door sealer for my room door and some foam tapes. It supposedly keeps out wind, insects and noise even.

The door weather strip & the automatic door seal which I bought

Left KL rather early and as usual, stopped by Tapah for an early dinner and continued the journey home. Reached home before 9pm and the decided to go for Ikan Bakar beside Chong's apt.

Once I reached home, started on my DIY project. By the time I got everything installed it's already 2am. Pleased with the result, but the sound proofing isn't that good.

The start of my DIY project, the door seal installed

Attaching the weather strip to the door frame

Managed to watch the MU vs Liverpool match. How dissapointing. Liverpool lost 1-0. Anyway, time to sleep.

303. Early morning!

Managed to wake up at 4:30am! We only had 3 hrs of sleep! Boy! it's gonna be a long long day ahead.

Rendevouz with the rest of the guys as planned at 5am and set off.

The drive was rather uneventful. We stoped by tapah and Restaurant Jejantas for breaks. Once we reached KL we dropped off our cars at the workshop in Sunway. Needed to have some work done on the car.

We went for lunch at KLCC coz the guys needed to check into the hotel and do some shopping. Did buy myself a pair of cargo pants coz the pair I brought along was dirty from working on my car earlier. After a couple of hours, we're back in Sunway to check on the status of our cars. Very happy with the outcome, though feeling a bit bewildered on the means. Sigh.


Shot of KLCC - taken from the garden

When we're finally done with our cars, it's already very late in the evening. By the time we left the workshop, it was 10ish! Since the boss stayed so late with us, we decided to have dinner with him. He suggested some seafood place in Klang. Off we go then.

Surprisingly the food the was very nice. Especially enjoyed the Stingray done nyonya style (or something like that). But guess since everyone was starving, we're a tad cranky. Felt better after filling out tummies.

Back to the hotel after that and rest. Couldn't really sleep so we end up watching the badminton match on TV and doing some light reading before calling it a nite.

302. Good Samaritan

There's still some good people left in this world. :) Lost my glasses at my customer's place. It dropped out of my pocket. By the time I realised, it probably has been half an hour later. I was thinking to myself that I have to get a new pair already. Gosh, and I just got this pair not too long ago.

Decided to try the guard house and see if anyone turned in a pair of Oakley sunglasses. To my surprise, there it was siting in the tray! :) Gosh, this sure brings back some of my faith in people.

Well, gotta get ready for my trip to KL early tomorrow morning. Going to stay over at Chong's apartment tonite and leave early tomorrow morning and meet the rest of the guys at Shell Juru.

Had dinner at Island Glades with Chong, Yew Peng, Jack, Ann and Tony. Tony stopped by on the way back from KL.

Over to Chong's place after that.

301. Batman's day off

Some days you feel like a super hero! Helping the weak, saving the world and impervious to pain. Then, there are days like this when you just want to hide in the corner and lick the wounds (which by way, one refuses to admit he has). Sigh!

_______________________

My Random Thots:

"A girl, 25, raped and killed while jogging near her housing estate in SP"

"Bomb goes off in Prangin Mall"

What the hell is this world coming to? The end times can't come soon enough.

___________________________

Six suspects detained in rape and murder case


REMANDED: The six suspects being taken to court by the police on Monday. They were later ordered by a Sungai Petani sessions court to be held for seven days for questioning.

SUNGAI PETANI: As the family of marketing executive Chee Gaik Yap gave her a final send-off, six suspects were ordered to be remanded by a Sungai Petani sessions court in connection with her rape and murder.

Sessions Court Judge Azizah Mahmud issued yesterday a seven-day remand order on the suspects, believed to be workers of a recreation club here.

The six, aged between 20 and 40, arrived in the afternoon at the courthouse in a police truck. They were taken to the Kuala Muda police headquarters lock-up two hours later.

The six were picked up from the club on Monday night.

Gaik Yap, who was jogging near Taman Ria Jaya on Saturday evening, was found dead less than nine hours later.


Gaik Yap

The Universiti Utara Malaysia graduate was believed to have been trailed by her assailants, kidnapped, raped and killed elsewhere before her body was dumped near the housing estate.

The case is being investigated as rape and murder.

If convicted of murder, the suspects could face the death penalty. Rapists could be punished by a jail term of between five and 20 years, and in some cases whipped.

It was believed that some tissue paper containing semen had been found at the recreation club and inside an unidentified pick-up which was seized by the police.

Police have questioned several witnesses, including the victim’s boyfriend.

Gaik Yap’s family, meanwhile, was unhappy that a security guard who was informed of her disappearance did not act promptly to alert the police.

Her father Ah Sau, 49, said his younger daughter Gaik Choon was jogging some distance from Gaik Yap when she realised that she had gone missing.

“My daughter rushed to the guardhouse of a gated community when she saw some bloodstains on the ground. But the guard did not immediately call the police,” he said.

“The guard said the bloodstains could have been because someone had bled from an accident.

Relatives, friends, colleagues and politicians, including state MCA chief Datuk Beh Heng Seong and DAP deputy secretary-general Chong Eng, turned up for the funeral.

Gaik Yap was cremated at the Siamese temple crematorium in Sungai Pasir here.

___________________________

Cops hope witnesses can shed light on Prangin Mall blast

PENANG: Seven witnesses are now helping police in their investigations into the bombing that killed a 47-year-old man at a cafe in Prangin Mall on Sunday.

State CID chief Senior Asst Comm II Syed Ismail Syed Azizan said police hoped to make headway into the case after quizzing them.

“A five-man team from the Bukit Aman forensic unit had also been sent to help,” he said.

Among the witnesses interviewed by police on Monday was singing competition emcee Teng Eng Teik who was barely 10m from the blast.

“I had just announced that the contest would start when the explosion went off. I initially thought that the organisers had let off some fireworks.

“I saw sparks and flames leaping up about 2m into the air. It was pandemonium after that as people ran helter-skelter.

“I noticed a man lying on the road and immediately knew that something bad had happened,” he said.

Senior Asst Comm II Syed Ismail Syed Azizan said they had yet to determine the motive of the bombing but business rivalry had not been ruled out.

On Jan 12, a milk bottle filled with explosives was found in a used car lot in Butterworth.

On Dec 11, a businessman discovered a parcel containing a hand grenade in his house in Codrington Avenue.

He called the handphone number, which had come with the parcel, and was told to pay RM200,000.

Police are trying to determine if the three cases are connected.

In the Prangin Mall incident, a homemade bomb, filled with nails and live ammunition, was detonated with a delayed fuse. It was lit by someone who fled the scene seconds before the explosion.

Witnesses or anyone with information are urged to contact the investigating officer, ASP Asri Akmal (019-5670059), or the police hotline at 04-2282222.

300! The 3rd Century Mark!

Who would've thought that this "fad" of mine would last this long! I do feel it's beginning to lose it's zest. Perhaps it's because this reflects my life.

Oh well, onto a more "positive" note, my finger's still hurting but it's no longer swollen. I can actually move it a tad. Gonna rest at home today and hopefully accelerate the healing. Actually stayed home coz there's some work that needs to be cleared before tomorrow.