when life throws a lemon at you....

We can never hide from God!

2011-11-18T13:59:00.000+08:00

There have been times where I also wanted to hide but I am reminded that Adam and Eve, when they discovered their shame, tried to hide from God.

God punished them, but He loved them so much..rather than giving them what they deserved, He gave them a second chance.

He does the same with us, He gives us chance after chance after chance to get things right!!! He loves us that much!! God is alive and working in our lives!!!

Coincidence? I don't think so!!!

2011-08-04T15:54:00.000+08:00

The last week of July has certainly been an interesting week for me. Strings or wonderful events unfolded by themselves.

For the past few months, I have been praying for my mother that the Lord will open her eyes, ears and heart to see how wonderful a Father he is. In a few occasions I have invited her to join me at church during the weekends and every time I am given an excuse.

Last Tuesday, I took up the phone and called her and invited her down to KL and to join me at cell and church for the weekend. Expecting a NO from her but a YES came out from her mouth and I was so excited about it and started to make plans for her accomodation. Since BS and I have a housemate, it's not really convenient for her to spend the night at our place. So I started to check out which hotel should I put them in. This happen somewhere on Tuesday.

By end of the Wednesday I still have not decided which hotel. Finally I sat down on the couch and before I turn on the TV, I told God that I will let you decide for me ~ I submit 100% that you will show me what is best. Believe it or not, at about the same time ~ the housemate of ours who is BS's nephew told him that he will be going back to his hometown. I was like, "WHAT" ~ I had that kind of reaction is because he went back to his hometown the week before and how often you will see one person goes back that frequently. Somemore, he is leaving on a Thursday. He has been staying with us for more than 4 months, he has never make such decision before.

Deep down, I praise and thank the Lord. All is decided by then and BS said, mum can spend the night at our place (wonderful).

Mum arrived on Friday and we had dinner and a short catch up before heading over to cell. I took the chance to glorify God by sharing the rest on the above scenario. Surprisingly, mum started to share something that happended in Ipoh that same week. A pastor and his wife who is a long time friend of hers invited her to his church on Sunday. Of course mum decline, otherwise she won't be here with me for the weekend.

The interesting part is this, I have asked MW on how do pray for someone's salvation. And part of her advise to me is to ask God to send someone who is highly spiritual influenced to come along her way and guide her. I see that God is slowly answering my prayers and I believe he will answer all of them if it's something I really want from my heart and my motive is good and pure.

Praise the Lord!

On that night itself at cell, mum accepted Christ to be her savior. It was the most wonderful experience, everything was just so right at that point in time. It's so real and it shows that He is a Living God.

BIG THREE "O"

2011-06-22T14:37:00.001+08:00

Next month 11th marks my BIG THREE "O".

I made fun of the situation ever since the start of the year when friends started reminding me about my 3-0. I started to wonder why some people dread turning the big BIG THREE "O". Being a person that rely solely on the Internet for information, I find myself in Google.

I would like to share this particular result that caught my attention.

30 Reasons Why Turning 30 Rocks (click her to visit Michael Moniz's site)
1.I get to check a new age group box on forms.

2.I get to say, “I remember when I was in my 20s”.

3.It is a milestone birthday.

4.It is more exciting to say “I am 30″ than “I am 29 or 31″

5.More exciting to blog for a week about your 30th birthday.

6.I get 10 years to prepare for turning 40.

7.I get to take the time to look at a new vision for my 30s.

8.I have stopped trying to find myself and started creating myself.

9.I get to start anew in my new age range.

10.I have great experiences from my past and so now I get to add new ones!

11.I can celebrate BIG for this birthday.

12.I have years to get use to being called sir.

13.When I get carded it is a compliment instead of them not thinking I am old enough.

14.All the life lessons I learned in my 20s, I can now apply to my life.

15.Don’t have to worry about being 30 because I just AM.

16.Get to read all the self help books about surviving your 30’s and nod in agreement with them.

17.Do not have to do it alone since many of my friends and my niece are turning 30 with me.

18.A major birthday like 30 means better presents!

19.If I have learn nothing else from Desperate Housewives, 40 is the new 30 and 30 is the new 20.

20.People naturally take you more seriously when you are in your 30s.

21.You get to smile when people can not believe you are 30.

22.No longer have to struggle to be an adult because you have years of practice.

23.5 more years and I can be president.

24.Instead of stressing about acne, I can stress about wrinkles and white hair.

25.When I was younger 30 was OLD, now I feel 30 is young.

26.Don’t I wait for Santa to bring me a wii, I can go get my own.

27.I maybe turning 30 but I will still always be the youngest in my family.

28.Turning 30 makes you appreciate your 20’s and look forward to your 40s.

29.There is only on option to not turning 30, that is death. I say, “Welcome 30!”

30.Like the Christina song, “Keeps Getting Better”

I personally like point #21, (smilling).

What do you think of that?

I find the posting very interesting and it does bring a smile. Do check out Michael's site "Living Life Out Loud".

A sin is a sin, there are no big or small sins.

2011-06-20T11:41:00.004+08:00

The month of June has given me the ups and downs. I have gone over board due to my anger and someone along the way was hurt.

I prayed hard for a few days that God will send his Holy Spirit to calm me and bring me peace. It didn't happened immediately but that one day after I blasted my fury, I lay down on my bed and started to think what was wrong with me and slowly I re-visited the whole situation.

Why am I holding back from forgiving when my heart tells me to. Jesus has said,

Matthew 18:21 - Then Peter came to him and asked, "Lord, how often should I forgive somone who sins against me? Seven times?

Matthew 18:22 - No, not seven times," Jesus replied, but seventy times seven!

I have completely let anger itself took over me and I am sorry for that, please forgive me for ingoring the voice. Matthew 5:22 - But I say, if you are angry with someone, you are subject to judgement! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.

A sin is a sin; there are no big or small sins.

Ended and Re-start

2011-05-18T10:45:00.001+08:00

Two things happened on May 16, 2011.

1. My contract ended with Unisys Malaysia Sdn Bhd

2. I was employed as a permanent staff with Unisys Malaysia Sdn Bhd

Yes, I am being converted from a contractor to a permanent. I joined the company as a contractor in October 2007; finally after 3 years and 7 months I was converted to a permanent staff.

A lot has been said and done by my superiors in getting the approvals and I know it wasn't easy. And for that I owe my biggest thanks to MW, SY and to all those who were involved to make it happen. I now have a new reporting line and it marks a new journey for me with the company.

I believe with my experience and dedication, I will continue to deliver and do my best.

And praise God for seeing everthing through without any delay in getting the approvals. I know God has plans for me and I know he will be guiding me along the best pathways, advise me and watch over me. (Amen)

RE-INVITED

2011-05-09T11:27:00.000+08:00

I first accepted him in 1995 and due to restirctions and other reasons; hence he was slowly forgotten.

A series of events that has happened in the past two weeks has re-open my heart to him. He is working in special ways to show me that he is there for me and that he exists.

MW: Everyone, every familiy has their own trhouble. It's good that you are being responsible by bearing the issues and load BUT one does need help and where do you find it? A note with the following verse was given to me.

Psalms 32:8
The Lord says, "I will guide you along the best pathways of your life. I will advise you and watch over you:.

Psalms 33:20
We put our hope in the Lord
He is our help and shield

Psalms 34:8
Oh, taste and see tht the Lord is good
Blessed is the man who trusts in him!!

Easter Day: I felt peace and the weights on my shoulder seems lighter. Chains of memories came flashing by. Please refer posting, Church after 15 years!!!.

Ipoh: MW's cell group took a trip down to Ipoh together with me to visit my family. Reason was to pray for Dad who was recently diagnosed with diabettes as well as to visit my mother who needed support while dealing with home matters that doesn't seems to stop increasing.

SC, the cell leader spoke to Dad and when the topic touches on Christ, I began to worry because of what has transpired in the past. JW was brought into my family way back when I was about 6 - 7 years old. A lot has happened from there till now. Worried that Dad might get offensive but the Lord certainly has touched my family that afternoon. Dad and mum was open and it was a good session as SC brief and explain to us about Christ.

One sentence struck me hard that day by SC and that is, "Money is important, we all need it but it get dangerous when we start LOVING money". All this while I have look at the dollar sign as the most important thing in my life till I forget the importance of my family and my partner.

Thank the Lord for being there that day as you always have been. It certainly took me a long time to return to your arms but let's make setback become comeback (it's the first message I got from my first sermon).

Last Friday was the day I re-invited Lord Jesus Christ back into my heart. Amen.

NEW RULES FOR THE WORK PLACE

2011-05-04T14:03:00.000+08:00

I came across masterwordsmith blog and it's a very interesting blog indeed. I went thru a few postings and I would like to share this particular posting to my readers.

Do pay the blog a visit for other interesting posts.

NEW RULES FOR THE WORK PLACE
To all Employees:

Effective 23rd August 2010

Dress Code

1. It is advised that you come to work dressed according to your salary. If we see you wearing Prada shoes and carrying a Gucci bag, we assume you are doing well financially and therefore do not need a pay rise.

2. If you dress poorly, you need to learn to manage your money better, so that you may buy nicer clothes, and therefore you do not need a pay rise.

3. If you dress just right, you are right where you need to be and therefore you do not need a pay rise.

Sick Days

We will no longer accept a doctor's certificate as proof of sickness. If you are able to go to the doctor, you are able to come to work.

Holiday Days

Each employee will receive 104 personal days a year. They are called

Saturday and Sunday.

Compassionate Leave

This is no excuse for missing work. There is nothing you can do for dead friends, relatives or co-workers. Every effort should be made to have non-employees attend to the arrangements.

In rare cases where employee involvement is necessary, the funeral should be scheduled in the late afternoon. We will be glad to allow you to work through your lunch hour and subsequently leave one hour early.

Toilet Use *smiles*

1. Entirely too much time is being spent in the toilet. There is now a strict three-minute time limit in the cubicles.

2. At the end of three minutes, an alarm will sound, the toilet paper roll will retract, the cubicle door will open, and your picture will be taken.

3. After your second offence, your picture will be posted on the company notice board under the 'Chronic Offenders' category.

4. Anyone caught smiling in the picture will be sanctioned under the company's mental health policy.

Lunch Break

1. Skinny people get 30 minutes for lunch, as they need to eat more so that they can look healthy.

2. Normal size people get 15 minutes for lunch to get a balanced meal to maintain their average figure.

3. Chubby people get 5 minutes for lunch, because that's all the time needed to drink a Slim-Fast.

Thank you for your loyalty to our company. Remember we are an employer of choice and we are here to provide a positive employment experience. Therefore, all questions, comments, concerns, complaints, frustrations, irritations, aggravations, insinuations, allegations, accusations, contemplations, consternation and input should be directed elsewhere.

The Management

Church after 15 years!!!

2011-04-26T11:01:00.001+08:00

I was invited to attend an Easter event, Celebrate the Risen King last Sunday by MW and her cell mates. The event was held at Glad Tidings Petaling Jaya.

BS and I arrived and we parked at HoneyWell basement carpark. By then, first service has just ended and we saw a lot of people coming out from the church. To be honest, I was having mix feeling as it was my first time stepping into a church after 15 years. I saw one of the cell members and was ushered to proceed to the main lobby.

There I met a few more of MW's cell mates and we chatted while waiting for MW to arrived. Yurp, she was late with a good reason (I shall not reveal that, if I want to keep my job).

I looked around before MW arriaved and snapped some pictures. It's a nice church with many friendly faces people around.

Almost 11am and we proceed to the main hall. Seriously, church service has certainly evolved. It was very vibrant, colorful, cheerful and the choir, my gosh ~ they were wonderful.

People were clapping, singing along and having a good time celebrating the risen king.

The climax of the whole event is when Amazing Grace was played, tears actually flow down cheeks (hoping no one notice it). Memory of grandma flashes thru my mind. Was I touched or was the good old memory playing tricks on me. I could not decide.

Was someone really there knocking at my door? Or was it me seeing the crowd, reminds me of my happy days? I couldn't answer that.

The sermon came next and the topic, "Turn Setback ...... To Comeback". I felt that I was there at the right timing or was the sermon prepared for me? I have been facing and dealing some issues in life that I couldn't solve.

I do hope I will find the courage to really see what I need next!!!

Poor thing, I wonder what happened.

2011-04-26T10:26:00.001+08:00

Right after we came out from breakfast at Annie 1 (Damansara Uptown), MW alerted us of a dead bird on top of a car bonnet.

no "bed" smell

2011-04-05T11:35:00.000+08:00

I couldn't restrain myself from taking this picture;

Manage to spot the error?

"no bed smell"

I know I don't have the perfect vocab and I don't construct proper sentences but I don't expect such mistake to happen in a big reputable shopping complex.

Are we going to blame the "spell it right" function in MS Word but we can't right? Because the word is definitely spelt correctly. Just that the word is not right for that sentence.

All I can say is that the user is not attentive at all. I wonder who approved it - superior and staff must be dreaming that day.

Diabetes by Dr Bruce Miller

2011-03-29T13:13:00.000+08:00

I was browsing the health section in Popular Bookstore in IPC (Ikano Power Center) last weekend. I was trying to find some books related to Diabetes and my goodness, the number of books with the related topic is so wide.

I wanted something that is simple and easy to understand. I know myself, give me a book that's as thick as the Yellow Pages, I will be snoring in less than 5 minutes.

And I got this;

I am trying to empower myself with some knowledge about diabetes given that dad is diagnosed with it now. This book by Dr Bruce Miller is defintely a good start as it's easy to understand.

Praying and hoping

2011-03-28T13:56:00.000+08:00

I am praying hard that things will be smoother in the 2nd Quarter.

It has been a hectic and stressful 1st Quarter for me.

First
- dad was admitted to Ipoh GH due to severe pain near the lower abdomen in early March
- did all the related medical test and the was expecting the medical report to come out by third weeek of March
- Result: dad was diagnosed with diabetes.
- Everyone at home is now worried and kind of loss of what needs to be done.

Second
- mum is worried about dad (health is getting bad and condition is not improving)
- mum is worried about my brother (not stable and doesn't have a stable job)
- mum is worried about my brother's son (his future with an unstable father)
- mum is worried about her father (demanding attention)

Third
- middle of March my kancil battery died and change a new one.
- a few days later, I couldn't start the car. Mechanic checked and said my radio was the cause of the problem.
- a week later, my car suddenly lose power on Kerinchi Link. Imagine that, it happen around 6:00pm plus. It's a peak hour and I contributed to the jam. I wonder how many curses I received that evening. This time, my mechanic said something was wrong with a device that was responsible to charge and pump up the battery. Total cost of of repair: RM410, including tow service.

I will do my best to be the pillar of support for mum. She is very tired and worried with what's happening at home.

The only thing I hope for now is that the Lord himself will give my mum the strength she needs to go thru all this and hope to my dad that everything will be fine.

Job Opportunity!!! Don't miss out!!!

2011-01-25T15:04:00.000+08:00

My current agencies have exhausted their database and couldn’t assist me and the positions below. The positions have been vacant for some time.

Appreciate your help to spread the word out on the openings, as I do need help to fill them up as soon as I can. All the positions will be based in Damansara Uptown/Damansara Heights.

Interested individuals may drop their resume HERE.

Operations Administrator
• Processing of bank cheques in an operations environment
• Monitor daily group production activities ( i.e. extraction of file & cost control etc)
• Perform end of night reconciliation activities
• Liaise with Bank Negara in the preparation of outgoing work and despatch materials to BNM & clients

Job Requirement:
• Diploma holders or Fresh Graduates, Chinese literate candidates are encouraged to apply
• Able to work in long staggered working hours
• Experience in banking operations/equivalent with leadership skills are encouraged to apply
• Fast typing speed and able to work in a fast-paced environment

Team Leader
The incumbent is responsible for coordinating the activities of the team, monitoring the workflow and ensuring all service deliveries are met. Also responsible for managing and providing guidance/coaching to the work-groups. Providing efficient and high quality service consistent with the Company’s objectives to be the premier service provider.

Skills and Capabilities Required:
• Strong data/numeric keyboard.
• Strong PC and MS Office skills.
• Good verbal and written communication skills.
• Able to work well under pressure and meet tight deadlines with keen attention to details.

Personal Attributes Sought:
- Proven track record of leading a team.
- Strong time management skills and a sense of urgency.
- High attention to detail.
-Enthusiastic and positive approach towards working as part of an efficient team.
- Good customer service focus, both internally and externally.

Education and Experience:
-At the least a Diploma with 2 - 3 years similar work experience

Senior Team Leader
Managing Operations:
 Provide regular feedback to Supervisor on staff performance vis-à-vis star performer and when an employee’s performance becomes unsatisfactory.
 Provides regular feedback to team leaders/operations staff and coaching on progress against staff objectives and skills.
 Assists with development of staff.

Financials
 Monitor the budget pressure points and ensure they are within agreed limits.

Operations
 Reviews workflow to meet production requirements, including volumes and deadlines.
 Streamline work processes to improve efficiency and costs.
 Monitors accuracy and meeting of KPI’s for cheque processing.
 Troubleshoots technical problems and assists with resolution where required.

Customers
 Manages daily site operation activities including timely delivery/pick-up and ensure all service delivery expectations are met.
 Ensures all company policies, procedures and relevant legislation are upheld to ensure all activities are in compliance

Risks:
 Ensures appropriate risk controls are observed by operating staff and periodically evaluate performance against self-audit check lists

Reporting:
 Responsible for enquiries and management reporting eg incidents, error logs, etc.
 Manages the centre’s daily production reporting and ensure accuracy/timeliness in the submission.
 Thorough knowledge of banking operations
 MS Office skills - MS Word, MS Excel, MS Powerpoint
 Strong verbal and written communication skills
 A thorough and practical knowledge of the Company’s processing systems.

Leadership Skills:
 Strong verbal communication skills and the ability to create rapport and strong ongoing relationships
 Influencing skills and the ability to persuade without causing conflict

Behavioural Skills:

 Strong time management skills
 High attention to detail
 A strong sense of urgency to meet timelines / deadlines and deliver results
 Excellent customer service orientation
 Good follow-up
 Analytical and problem solving skills

Developers (2 positions); Tester (1 position)
Responsibilities:
•Intense development & programming.
•Analyze problems/system bug to come out with a solution to meet client needs.
•Gather user requirement for new projects or software.
•Write technical design document.
•Perform unit test on developed solution before sending out for QA team testing.
•Conduct training to user group if needed.
•Involve in system support during system migration or transitional period if needed.

Requirements:
•Candidate must possess at least a Bachelor's Degree, Post Graduate Diploma, Professional Degree, Computer Science/Information Technology or equivalent.
•Required skill(s): Visual Basic, MS SQL Server, Crystal Report, VB.NET, C#.
•Required language(s): Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese, English
•At least 4 year(s) of working experience in the related field is required for this position.
•Applicants must be willing to work in Damansara Uptown.
•Preferably Senior Executives specializing in IT/Computer - Software or equivalent.
•Full-Time positions available.

Operations Analyst
Responsibilities:
1.Support centers on the daily operations issues highlighted
2.Escalate operations-system related matter to system team and follow up with the system team until resolution is implemented
3.Analyze and highlight operations performance to Ops support team lead and Operations Manager for review.
4.Perform and ensure the monthly management report and KPI reports are submitted according to the timeline set.
5.Develop and update the business operations manual and procedures based on the process flow and change request involved on a periodical basis
6.Work on the Risk Management Framework and conduct or support the centre operational risk assessment ie: presenting and reporting audit findings and suggesting appropriate audit recommendations
7.Verify the billing figures and ensure all billing data is recorded according to charge schedule and change request charges.
8.Support the operations project assessment, major incident reporting, major change requests assessment, process improvement initiatives
9.Perform operations process testing ie: UAT to identify operations risk areas
10.Assist with administration duties in the department
11.Undertake special assignment , ad-hot functions as and when required

Requirements:
1.Recognized bachelor’s degree in Banking or related discipline with 2-3 years of banking operation experience
2.Good knowledge in risk management and conversant with the Bank’s policies and procedures will be an added advantage
3.High levels of self-motivation and initiative and able to work under pressure.
4.Ability to prioritize and organize workloads to complete multiple, simultaneous tasks both for self and others
5.Have good communication and writing skills
6.Able to work as a team and achievement oriented in handling tasks
7.Pro-active in seeking and exploring ways in doing things better
8.Must be computer literate and familiar with MS Office especially Outlook, PowerPoint, Word, Excel

Seafood in Kg Sungai Ara, PJ

2010-12-10T11:05:00.001+08:00

Yesterday lunch brought us to LaLa Chong Seafood in Kg Sungai Ara. No introductions are needed as they are well known ever since their first outlet along Terminal 3 Subang Airport as a seafood restaurant.

Kg Sg Kayu Ara
Lot 13556, Jalan Cempaka
Kayu Ara Damansara
47400 Petaling Jaya
Selangor
Tel: 03 - 7728 1906

Occasion: Our colleague X9 birthday!!!

Everyone's having a good time, laughter and enjoying the good food.

There were 14 of us in total. We placed our order by phone and upon reaching, the foods are served almost instantly. Hot and steamy still.

There were two types of crabs, two types of vegetables, fried sotong, lala soup, sweet and sour taufu, mee and desert.

I believe all the dishes were cleaned out in less half an hour, hehehe.

The youngest country on earth ~ New Zealand

2010-12-05T17:49:00.000+08:00

Yurp, it's one of the latest and hotest topic that everyone's talking about now. Thanks to AirAsia one can now travel to New Zealand, known as the youngest country on earth.

With a population of only 4 million, New Zealand is one of the least crowded country in the world. It is the perfert place for one who are seeking peace, rejuvenation and relaxation as well as a playing field for thrill seekers and adventurers. It's an ideal all year-round holiday destination due to its temperate climate.

New Zealand is also well known for it's breath taking landscapes that includes vast mountains chains, steaming volcanoes, sweeping coastlines, deeply indented fiorbs and lush rainforests.

Kindly click here for information about New Zealand or even better, plan a trip with your loved one(s) and visit AirAsia to get your ticket(s) to explore and experience New Zealand in real.

Purple, Silver & White

2010-12-05T00:39:00.002+08:00

Here we are, it's that time of the year again, the one that I have been looking forward too since begining of the year. Finally, I can happily say out loud that I own my Christmas tree. Although it's not a real tree, the meaning of having one is huge to me.

Again, I must say thank you to BS for making all this a reality.

The hunt for a tree started last week. From Mid Valley to Petaling Street and all the way to Ikea, finally we found one in Mutiara Tesco. It's a 7 feet tree at the price of RM129.90 (the feeling was like, yes ~ this is the one regardless the price).

After that, a trip to Jusco One Utama, Metrojaya and a few other places for the ornaments.

It came to me that it wasn't an easy task from getting a tree to setting up one. Thank goodness I have someone at home that knows what he's doing.

The last weekend was entirely used up for the tree. We found out that the LED lights was not enough to cover the tree and off we go to get additonals.

We tend to get extra ornaments here and there for the tree throughout the week ~ over budget!!! Well, it's our first tree so why not. At least we do not have to spend more on ornaments for next year ~ tee hee hee.

Glittering away ~ blink blink ~ taken using Sony DSLR 380

Purple, silver and white was the theme for our tree. Ohh, I almost forgot to introduce WOOF WOOF ~

I don't know why but he's named Woof right after BS set eyes on him.

And now, I would like to present our tree, standing tall right here in the middle of the hall ~ our PRIDE!!!

From a plain green fake tree, it transformed into something so beautiful ~ taken using Sony DSLR 380

Work of mother nature

2010-12-04T17:54:00.000+08:00

Something lovely has been happening over the past week in my little balcony garden. In my "Some greens within a tiny space @ 6-3-12" posting, BS and I turned our plain empty balcony into a little garden. I have selected a water lily to be part of the garden.

A few days ago I notice there was a little bud at the bottom of the tank where I planted the water lily. I was so excited and started to keep an eye on it's development.

This morning, we woke up to a special delight.

Look, look, look ~ our lily starts to bloom.

Too bad my camera is not good enough to take close up picture. Not to worry, BS own a DSLR camera that he bought earlier this year (Sony 380 ~ click to view posting).

Me Me Me ~ with the correct settings set by BS ~ all I did was ~ press the capture button (hehehe)

I combined all the pictures taken and created a short clip (below). All the time spent waiting was worth it. Take a look and you will understand why.

See

how

beautiful

our

lily

is.

Stress on the road!!!

2010-12-03T13:51:00.002+08:00

The traffic jam in Klang Valley is kind of bad this few weeks. With the school holidays, I was expecting a much smoother ride home before and after work.

Maybe I am not used to the traffic flow as I have been staying in Damasara area which is very near to my work place in Damansara Utama. I have moved into my new home in Desa Petaling since May 2010 and I am still trying to get used to the extra miles for me to travel to work.

I used to take less than 10 minutes to reach my work place but now the time has increase to 45 minutes to an hour. Honestly, the distance and time spent on the road has taken its toll. I get agitated easily, mood swings here and there, and I get tired easily. And the bad thing is, I tend to release my anger and frust on BS. That is totally not right, I know. I am thankful that BS doesn't blame but tend to calm me down and cheer me up. God bless BS.

I think I really need to work on the time spent on the road. Since I have a gym membership with Celebrity Fitness, think I better go and do some rounds of work-out before heading to work.

Let's do that and hope there will be improvement.

Adult toys

2010-11-30T16:23:00.001+08:00

I was wandering aimlessly at home last night from the hall to the rooms and out to the balcony. Gosh, I need to do something and I took my camera and started snapping pictures.

My targets, BS's toys.

Spawn, 6 of them combine to be one.

Guang Gong ~ hand puppert (from Taiwan)

Jetfire - Transformers

Optimus Prime - Transformers

Mini Gundam

Saint Seiya - There's a cartoon on them, love them.

Keroro on top the fridge

The lantern is mine.

That's just part of his collections. There are more in boxes, wait till we get a bigger place ~ all will be displayed.

I was told that he has a huge collection but I didn't guess it was this many for an adult. Guess there's a kid personality in everyone.

Contest – My Taiwan Trip

2010-11-30T15:18:00.002+08:00

This will be my first time holding a contest and I got the idea from kenwooi.com and Angeline's Side of Story. I must thank them for that. They both have interesting experiences to share and you won’t be disappointed when you pay a visit to their blog.

I supposed all are aware that I went on a 7 days trip to Taiwan early this November, for those who doesn’t it is time to go thru my posting because I have decided to draw up a contest based on my Taiwan trip postings.

All you have to do is to answer the following questions and the 1st person that comes up with the correct answers will get a prize (please refer below for the prize details).

Question:

1. Where did I tripped, fell and hurt my knee?

2. What ice “yellow” color food did I post on my first visit to Shilin?

3. Where is the “Lavendar Forest” shop located?

4. Where did my colleague bring me for coffee, give me the shop name.

5. What did I crack open at Miramar?

Prize : 1 x RM20 Parkson Voucher (valid till Nov 30, 2011).

Contest Ends : Upon receiving the first entry with the 5 correct answers. Please take note there will only be one winner.

Taiwan - Last Day

2010-11-29T15:47:00.001+08:00

We woke up early and did another round of check, don't want to leave anything behind. Not that I can return to pick it up the next day :P

It has been an interesting trip and we enjoyed everyday despite the rain and gloomy weather.

The following our itinerary for a 7 days 6 nights trip to Taiwan.

Day 1 - Arrival + Ximending

Taiwan - Day 2 - Part 1 - Danshui

Taiwan - Day 2 - Part 2 - Shilin & Ximending

Taiwan - Day 3 - Part 1 - Jiufen

Taiwan - Day 3 - Part 2 - Jinguashi & Hello Kitty Cafe & Huasi Street Market

Taiwan - Day 4 - Chiang kai-Shek Memorial Hall + Shilin (Re-visited at night)

Taiwan - Day 5 - Unisys Taiwan & Taipei 101

Taiwan - Day 6 - Taipei International Flora Expo + Miramar

Day 7 - Back to Malaysia

We were dead tired by the time we reached home (how I wished I tooked the whole week off and extended our stay in Taiwan).

Some of the goodies we brought back from Taiwan.

Shoes, Shoes, Shoes ~ love them. Two pairs? Not enough come to think of it now.

Taiwan - Day 6

2010-11-29T15:16:00.003+08:00

It's time to be flowery. We visited the Taipei International Flora Expo (click on the link for more information).

I was a bit disappointed because there were not that many types of flower to see, given the name Flora Expo. Maybe it's just the begining, the expo will go on till April 2011. It will be spring by then, hopefully more flowers will be displayed.

Below are some of the pictures taken on the expo.

We didn't finish the whole expo. The place is just too big, no wonder they have unlimitted tickets that allowed visitors to come back again some other time.

We have a dinner appointment with BS friend, somewhere near Miramar. Before that, BS took me on a ride up a ferris wheel.

Before the ride, we had some fun cracking up "Thunder Egg". Hehehe, it's actually a rock where there are crystal formation inside. This shop have all types of crystals at a very affordable price. For those who believe in the power of the crystal, this is a shop you have to visit if you have the chance.

Here I am, worried if I could get it cut into half.

Hehehe, BS helped. Look, little crystals in it.

Don't you think it's a waste? It's being used as wall display.

After that, we met up with his friend who brought treated us dinner ~ Western Food.

A very nice lady she was, very funny and sporting too. We part ways after dinner. BS and I took a slow walk to the MRT station and calling it a day.

Tomorrow's our last day in Taipei and we have to get our things organised and packed. Immediately I felt a bit sad, that I am leaving such a nice country. There's so much I haven't see and visited.

Bye Bye Taiwan ~ Last Day.

Taiwan - Day 5

2010-11-29T14:25:00.001+08:00

I visited my colleague on the fifth day for lunch and BS will be meeting his friend for dinner on the sixth day of our trip.

She is the HR Business Partner for Unisys Taiwan. After lunch, she brought us to this shop that serves good coffee. Apparently, the shop was voted one of the top ten best coffee served in Taiwan in 2009.

The boy is picking out the bad coffee beans.

Mugs signed by celebrities who visited the shop.

This device will make music and LED lights flashing around when your drinks are ready.

We then went for a brief walk around the area while discussing on some office work.

Next stop, Taipei 101. I bet many have visited and read about Taipei 101 from other blogs and websites. I will share my pictures taken.

Got my ticket.

The speed up was something to brag about but I won't go into the details of Taipei 101, I believe many of you would have gotten the information before reading my blog.

It's worth a visit and I sent a postcard from the tower. I choosed the night view because of personal reasons (more romantic :P).

We visted the Flora Expo and a ride on the Ferris Wheel on Taiwan - Day 6.

Taiwan - Day 4

2010-11-29T11:47:00.003+08:00

To be honest, we didn't have a productive day (thanks to the weather).

We visited Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall (click for more information) as our first stop.

It started raining again and we went further into the event halls to kill time. There was an underwater themed event going on.

It was awareness event to show how important the sea is to us and how it need our helps to ensure underwater creatures will be able to survive.

We even participated in a mini game. We were given a treasure map and our goal is to fill up the numbered squares with stickers. Stickers are given out by the "Boat People".

And we have to find them because they float around the event halls (2 floors).

I believe we completed the quest in about 45 minutes.

I sent a postcard back to mummy from the gift shop.

Sad to say it was still raining. There is no where we can go in that weather but back to hotel and that's where we head to for our second stop.

We re-visted Shilin Night Market (drizzle). The first round we came here was still early. Things really are different here at night.

It was a short day for us ~ sob sob but it doesn't matter. Time spent for resting during the afternoon did help us to gain back our energy used in the first few days.

Taipei 101 and a visit to Unisys Taiwan in Taiwan - Day 5.

Taiwan - Day 3 - Part 2

2010-11-16T15:43:00.003+08:00

From Jiufen we took a bus to Jinguashi. It is also known as Kinkaseki in Japanese, is well known for for its historic gold and copper mines.

The town has evolved itself into a popular tourist spot. It also housed the Gold Ecological Park and in 2002, Jinguashi was named a potential World Heritage site. Here, visitors can touch a 220kg gold brick or try their hand at panning for gold.

The Crown Prince Chalet is the most representative example in Taiwan of a Japanese style villa. It was built to accomodate the Japanese crown prince when he visits. The landscaped gardens is open to public and once can peek inside the buildings from the gardens.

You will reach Gold Zen temple which is situated right above the Gold Ecological Park Museum. One will have climb a steep path before reaching the temple (good thing I have been going to Bukit Kiara right after work).

It's worth the climb as the view is great from there as well as a close look at its unique geology. You can get more information about the park by visiting Gold Ecological Park.

There are lot of other attractions here but we were not able to visit all of them. The rain was pouring quite heavy by 4:00pm (damn, no chance to touch the 220kg gold brick) and we decided to head back to Taipei. We took a direct bus back to Taipei, be sure to ask before boarding (the bus driver's can tend to be a bit cranky, bet it's the whole day driving thing).

It was raining all the way back to Taipei. Took the chance to get some shut eye. By the time I woke up, we were already back in Taiper. BS brought me to this pink color shop for deserts.

Here we are at "Hello Kitty". We had some light food here before heading out to another local night market near the Long Shan temple called the "Huasi Street Night Market".

As you can see, it's still raining but one good thing is about this night market is that, they have a covered roof. Again, I am surrounded with food but the attraction here is its SNAKE shops selling snake dishes and snake wine, which are said to have aphrodisiac properties.

Of course I didnt try any of the slithering dishes but I did try out the below (slurp slurp).

The fish soup is so clear and tasty, I bet there are no MSG added in. The fish is fresh that you can taste it with every bite on the flesh. Not forgettting the pork knuckle, I really do not know how to describe the taste. It just melt/dissolve in your mouth ~ Hey, M&M you have a competitor here.

We saw this funny way of promoting a candidate for their general election.

Yes, that's a real duck. The lady did a little victory dance after I took this picture. The rain hasn't stop and that little scene did cheer me up a bit.

That closes our 3rd day. Rainy or sunny the next day? Check it out here, Taiwan - Day 4.