Best of Both worlds

The Malaysia I love is alive but not well....now stand up for love, tolerance and understanding!

2015-08-17T23:12:00.000+08:00

The recent months have seen my beloved country take massive beatings on all fronts. Economically, socially, politically and internationally. Our currency has dipped to a 17 year low, our politicians are showing signs of senility and the intelligence of watermelons (sorry, didn't mean to insult fruits), internationally we are losing our standing on everything. Those are things I can't control and it's beyond my reach but what's closer to the ground and to my heart is how we are hurting socially. There are people who are sowing seeds of hatred, racism and intolerance among us. Sadly, the main culprits are our leaders and politicians and like all cult movement, the noisy minority will overwhelm the silent majority.

History has shown that noisy minority are the ones that create chaos while the silent majority suffers. The Nazis, Communist China, Libya, Iran, Iraq and the list goes on. So what is happening to our country, our culture, our people? Have we grown into a hate inciting society? Racially marginalized and alienated? Most of us tend to stick to our own people, our own race and own friends. So much so that we don't know or don't care like we use to. Is that really true?

Being a child of 2 races, we are the epitome of tolerance and moderation. I have seen both sides of my family practice racism on my parents and I myself was subjected to that too. However, the examples of my parents was and still is a shining beacon that I hold true and I hope to pass on to my generations and all those I encounter. We were tolerant and practiced giving and taking. We were sensitive to each others religious and racial needs. We ensured others were comfortable when we practiced our unique needs. We didn't impose or get mad or get violent. We taught and educated and explained. We were patient simply because deep down inside we are decent human beings. We protected each other regardless of race and religion during the Japanese Occupation and The Emergency. We were taught to be decent, kind, compassionate and loving by our elders and by our religion. If your religion tells you otherwise, you'd better question deeply why that is so.

So have we lost all of this?

I worked in a multinational all of life until recently. When in the MNCs I'll be honest to say I didn't interact deeply with other races. I kind of stuck to my own friends. I now work in a GLC where 90% of the population are Malays. Recently we just concluded the month of Syawal or Hari Raya Aidil Fitri. I was invited to so many open houses that I put on 5kg! That is A LOT!! What I wanted to share is that I experienced the hospitality of my Malay Malaysians towards all races. They welcomed me with open arms regardless of who I was. The guided me to an open seat, served me personally and made sure I was well taken care of.

Conversations were jovial, candid and fun. There weren't feelings of corporate obligation (though I'm sure there were some) but just people generally getting together and celebrating a very big occasion in Malaysian culture. I have not been to an open house (personal or corporate) for any celebration in a long while. But this year I attended one almost every day. All I felt was happiness, good company and cholesterol building up!

So Malaysia is alive but albeit not well. While I can't really influence economics, foreign policies or internal policies, I can sure spread the right message of tolerance, understanding, love and kinship with my fellow Malaysians. So speak up and don't let these minority bigots, racist and extremist take over what took our elders and heroes a lifetime to build. I am doing this because my religion teaches me so and because my parents taught me then and am still teaching me now.

God bless Malaysia and all Malaysians.

Shit just got real!!!

2015-06-28T00:56:00.000+08:00

I wrote some time ago about my son taking driving lessons. Stalling the car and can't get it to center after turning. Well, shit just got real!!! He got his driver's license....despite still stalling and getting the car to center after turning! Albeit a lot less now. The only consolation is that he will be driving an auto car and not the manual one that he was trained on and took his tests on. So hopefully with modern technology, he won't stall and his car will center automatically.

So my tax dollars are funding a governing body called the JPJ (Dept of Road Transport) that allows my 5 year old to commandeer a 1-ton steel, killing machine while his mind is still all swirling around with hormonal fluids called "Wise-Ass". Ok, he's not 5, he's 18 but to me, the thought of him behind a wheel of a car in a world full of raving lunatics, I cannot help thinking that he's 5. I remember how he was when he was 5, he had the manual dexterity of a watermelon and even then when he was behind his Fisher-Price tricycle, he was always knocking into things because he didn't know or care where the brakes were (the brakes were his legs)!

I haven't experienced his driving yet out of fear. Not fear for my life but fear for his. I don't really know how I will react just yet. I may be the real cool dad that is ok with how his son drives even though he has a pedestrian stuck on the windshield. Giving timely and appropriate advice or...RAVING like a LUNATIC, kicking the imaginary brakes until there's a hole in the carpet, grabbing the wheel or stepping out of the window to kick other cars or bike!!!! I don't know which I'll be and I'm too afraid to find out.

Anyway, my brother has sat in his car and he has brought his instructor and the tester back safely. I guess he's not too bad. So while I need to get comfy (which is probably never) with the thought of my hormonal raging, bad decision making son behind a steel, man-killing contraption , I now need to think about what car to get him. That's right, 80s kids. You didn't get your own car but you bloody have to get one for your kids. The world has turned cruelly for us. I posted this conundrum on FB and got some pretty interesting ideas. There were suggestions to get a Jeep or Land Rover. I was impartial towards getting the old Volvo 244, which is the boxy tank of a car greatly favoured by doctors or lawyers. You know people who carried those square, big-ass briefcases in the 70s that are big enough to carry a small nuclear device or the engine of a drone.

At this point, since I have not experienced his driving, I am not that focused on that. My thoughts are more on the other drivers on the road. Malaysians turn into a different species when they are on the road. Any other times, they can be sweet, nurturing, lovely, God fearing human beings but put behind the wheels of any vehicle, the fangs come out and suddenly it's WereWolf in London meets Fast n Furious meets GTA V! You have a lot of assholes out there! A LOT!!!! I know!! I used to be one of them. I said used to be!!

On top of that, there are scam artists pretending to be authority figures like police, bank officers, etc that are looking to jack your car or worst, robbing and kidnapping. My son is an extremely anorexic boy....ahem....man. I can make him move just by sneezing. While he's a Taekwando black belt, he's one of the laziest one I have seen. "Aiyah fight for what....take la whatever you want. Just leave me my phone."

Should I have leave a GPS tracker on his car with a 24-hour drone watch? Or maybe a bodyguard to be with him for a while. Or maybe get a driver. I know these things will him make as popular as a fart inducing warthog in school but it will keep him safe right? Right??

Sigh.....if I'm like this with my son, I dread the day comes when it's my girl's turn. So if you see a drone flying above any car with cameras on all sides with the driver being a tall, lanky Taekwando master with the body fat of a stick insect, please take extra special care of him and be patient with him. He's my dear son.

Many a Father's Day...

2015-06-28T00:07:00.002+08:00

Father's Day has new meaning to me now. In the past, it used to take a bit of a mind boggle to decide where to take my Dad for dinner. It's not that he's a picky eater. It's because he's not a picky eater that makes it difficult. For him, it was more about spending time with us and his favourite person in the whole wide world...his grandson Michael. So to make it special for him and for everyone, I would be cracking my head every year on Father's Day and on his birthdays.

It's been 14 years since he left us suddenly. Yank from us in the prime of him life in my view. I still get angry about that. You see, my Dad and I shared a special bond ever since I was born. We had a very good relationship until I grew up to be an insufferable know-it-all teen. Our relationship suffered as he didn't really know how to be a Dad to a teen and I didn't know how to grow up properly. My family was beset with one tragedy and crisis after another. A typical Tamil movie setting. When you see all of this at a young age, you lose your childhood and grew up really fast. It can be confusing too. You want to grow up but at the same time be a normal kid and enjoy normal 80s kids stuff. Like going to Victoria Music Station in Sg Wang and listening to the latest pop songs (though I couldn't afford the cassettes), eating Jackson Burger in Sec 14. Sneaking into Piccadilly for tea dances at Atria. Going to the movies with the girl you like and your closest friends. My life dragged me kicking and screaming into adulthood.

So I had this gap in my life where my relationship with my Dad was cold. I know he tried to reach out but being a man brought up in the 40-50s in an Indian family, parents were never your friends. They were there to make sure you toe the line and kicked your ass if you didn't. My relationship with my Dad started to mend only after I met my wife. For some reason, from the first time he saw her, he said I will marry her. We were only dating a month then. I slowly started to understand him a little and when I calmed down, he was able to reach out.

When I planned my wedding, I did it on my own. Pretty much like anything I did at that time. My tertiary education choices, my job, my finances, etc. was all done on my own. I didn't consult them much. So when I was planning my wedding without him, he got understandably upset. So I told what I needed him to do, when to get ready and where to be at what time. He was shell shocked that I didn't expect him to pay anything for my wedding. My Dad has many traits and one of them is pride. So when he insisted, I said ok. Hey my Dad wants to pay right? Anyway, I was really grateful to him for that.

At the end of the wedding, he told me he didn't expect me to pull it off and didn't realise how I have grown up and how sorry he was to have missed it. I didn't think I needed to hear it but when he told me he was proud of me, for the first time, I cried.

It was the best hug I ever had.

When he passed, I was very busy with the funeral that I didn't have time to grief and his funeral being on Sept 11 2001 made me more focused on world events. About 11 months later when my father in law died, I realised that I had a lot of pent up grief for both these fantastic men in my life. I was a wreck and my whole life was an emotional mess. I'm pretty sure it made me lose my focus and had to leave my job.

It was the loneliest I have ever been.

Then something happened that I have told to very few people. I dreamt about my Dad. He came to me and asked what's wrong. It was so clear that I remember EXACTLY what it was like even after 14 years.
I asked him what he was doing here since he was dead.
He just smiled and said because he felt I needed him.
I told him I missed him and was lost. He smiled and said he was ok and was in a magnificent place.
I asked if he was in heaven and he smiled and nodded. I told him I wanted to see it.
He paused and said ok but I have to keep my head down and not look up until he said so as I was not ready.
So I looked down and let him take my hand. I was climbing these stairs made of huge glass cubes with flower designs on them. I remember thinking if these things could take my weight!

When he told me to look up, I was in the greenest meadow with rolling hills and a mountain in the backdrop. In the middle was a huge attap house and people were laughing, happy and drinking. I realised it was a pub! Like the ones he took me to when I was younger. Only the people were more beautiful and the place smelled incredible! Then people were calling him to join them and just like the old days, he put his hands on my shoulder and said "Hey, this is my eldest son.".

I missed that a lot.

He told me he was happy and fine and asked me to start living and start taking care of my mother, my brother, my wife, my son and my newborn daughter. Not to worry about him. Then I told him, that my father-in-law passed too and he said he knows and will pick him up after he is finished with his paperwork.
I remember asking him "Heaven also got immigration wan ah?"!!

Then he hugged me and walked to his "pub". As he walked away I sensed a presence next to me and it was someone in brilliant white. I don't know who it was but he said it was time for me to go and live. I looked at him and asked him to look out for my Dad. He said he will and when I turned away, I woke up.

I felt an enormous weight has been lifted from my shoulders! So liberating and happy and I cried and cried. Tears of joy and relief and also sadness.

Every Father's Day now, I think of my Dad in his place. Having a good time, looking out for us from the corner of eye and praying for us while fishing with my father in law.

Happy Father's Day Papa. We will always love you and I miss you terribly. God bless.

Let him Go!! Let him Go! Can't hold you back anymore!!!!

2015-05-11T22:50:00.000+08:00

The dreaded has come. My son turned 18 last March and he has passed his SPM or "Ordinary Wizarding Levels" or his high school, depending where are you reading this. For a while he worked in GSC, the popular cinema chain which is probably one of the most popular chains and also the worst in terms of employee benefits. I wanted Mike to work so that he could experience working life in a controlled environment. Pretty much what us 80s kids went through. I worked in the McDonald's. I loved it and I am loving it still! They should hire me as their marketing person.

Anyway he lasted a month and decided that the long bloody hours and ridiculous pay were just...well....ridiculous. Anyway it was for the experience and I think he did enjoy himself. Then it was time to look at college. He did ok in his SPM though he was sad as he knew he could've done better. Could've, would've...well suck it up!!! And sucked it up he did. So we went through a VERY exhausting search for programs, courses and colleges he could attend. We wanted a program that allowed twinning, that had a campus in country and of course conducive for studying.

I personally wanted a college that had less partying opportunity but it was his choice in the end. Finally on the last day of registering, we decided on University of Nottingham in Semenyih. Semenyih to us city folks is a hole! It had one main street and lots of mud infested patches. It took us an hour to get there because of the trunk roads and there was nothing to do there. The most stand out brand was 7-Eleven and KFC. But it was also friendly and the Uni's backdrop was a beautiful hill side.

It was my dream college. Thank God he chose my dream college. I may have whispered it into him...shhh....

Nottingham is one of the better schools in the UK and also globally and Semenyih will only be picked by students who valued a place of education. The entry requirements were higher and the environment will discourage party kids to attend. So it was perfect place for me to leave my son. There was one major drawback however. It meant, he had to stay in-campus for the week and only come back during the weekends, assuming he didn't have any assignments or projects. I thought I would be cool and that to see him be independent would have been a proud moment. It was.

So the day came, when we packed his stuff and headed off to college. We checked out his room, cleaned it together, fixed his pillow, cupboards, toilets, etc. Walked around the college halls and campus. Checking out where the places to eat were, the ATMs, convenience shop, sports complex, etc. It was a good family moment.

Finally, it was time to say goodbye to my son.

All was going well. The pride of seeing my son grow up, experiencing the next phase of his life and feeling real excited for him. Then he hugged me goodbye told me he'll be ok. As I watched him walk away, my tear ducts decided it was the best time to empty itself at that moment!! I was tearing so much I almost couldn't see the road. I just kept thinking of that moment because as he took each step away, he was stepping into adulthood. I was there to see it, experience it. The pride of a father and the love of a son was just amazing. I am so happy to have experienced it. Though I did hope it didn't have to mean me crying like a little girl.

He leaves my home and when he comes back, he will be a man and he will be a guest in my house. Because as he studies and goes into his career, he will strike out on his own. His own house, own job and hopefully his own family. I hope I have given him enough principles, ethics and building blocks to build a man of integrity, of compassion, of love, of confidence and of someone that will change the lives of those around him for the better. I hope he becomes a great person.

For while he will always be my son, he is no longer my little boy. God's speed Michael Sean David.

Is the world you know, real?

2015-05-11T21:13:00.000+08:00

I have experienced the lowest point in my life about 6 months ago and it's a new experience for me. You see, I have never felt unpopular, insecure or really sad at what others thought of me. In fact I welcome feedback and look towards improving if the criticisms or feedback were constructive or if it doesn't affect my conscience. So I am always very positive, sure of myself, confidence, cheerful and upbeat. All that changed 6 months ago when I had to leave my company due to me defending my principles and defending someone but was not defended in return because of their own interests. Also there were a couple of diseased rhinoceros waste that affected these changes. But enough of Satan's minions.

Being someone that played by the book and someone who lived by my ethics, I really thought getting a job was going to be easy. I was relatively well known and popular but nothing could be further from the truth. I went to one interview after another only to be shot down because I was too senior or too expensive. The job market was terrible! Little by little my confidence was eroded and was battered. While money wasn't the major issue, it was definitely a major factor. I had a son going off to college soon and of course the bills to be paid. I couldn't imagine how a breadwinner being the top of his game all his career is now facing the ignominy of not being to pay my bills, selling assets or resort to borrowing money. It was something that I worked very hard not to come to.

So instead of wallowing in self pity, I took stock of what had happened and what I needed to do. First thing was to climb off my high horse and get more humble. Years of my success had made me to some extend arrogant. It made me ignorant of the situation around me and made me focus too little on the human factor. So what if I have to sell some stuff? Is that so important?

Next I took stock of my friends. There were those who were there constantly, looking for jobs for me, helping me with odd jobs and just being there encouraging me and keeping me sane. They told me that as long as I needed, meals will be on them. I love these guys. There were those who kept quiet but waiting to see what happens next. They kept a distance in case I succeeded. Then there were those who disappeared and those who kicked me when I was down. What I did was to look at those who were there for me and take stock of myself as to what I did to deserve the kicking I got. Forgive your enemies but remember their names. Haha but I realized that there are areas I gotta change.

Then finally the most important 2 areas. My family and prayer. My family never wavered. Not for one bit. Even my spoiled kids. Yea I spoil them, sue me. They offered to give up luxuries and both of them even offered to go to a lower cost college or the dreaded Form 6! My wife was a constant rock and not once did she nag or got upset. She carried on as usual and worked harder is keeping our finances manageable. My mom was a surprise. I never had to ask anything from her before but like a mother, she knew when her baby needed her. She stepped up too and she was awesome. My cousin KLY and Caryn were just amazing. They didn't need to but they did and so did one of my sis-in-law and my brother. The little things and gestures they did kept us going and upbeat. I see them in a very new light.

Then prayers. Yea shamefully, I got more prayerful when the chips were down. But I got more prayerful. They say you are closest to God when you are at your worse. I now vow to always be close especially during my high times. God didn't let me down. I now think I know why I was given this test. It was tough and it was unbearable at times but I found myself, my family, my true friends and my God. I also realized a lot about myself and I know what I need to do more. So whenever the chips are down, always realize that there are those much worse than us and as long as you stay true to your principles and your spirituality, He won't let you down.

I hope I will be blessed to be there for you when your chips are down as how others were for me. I also hope that my sharing gives you the strength and sanity when the life tries to keep you down. God bless.

Beware!! New hormones on the road

2015-02-19T09:25:00.001+08:00

There a few things a parent dread to hear or do. Like when a doctor says they need to speak with you about "options". You know shit just got serious. Or your child gets a note from their teacher asking to meet you or when a child ask you about the birds and the bees. One very common area is letting go. When your child ask to go on a class trip for the first time. Sleep over, go for a movie, take public transportation and finally....driving a car.

My eldest, Mikey will be 18 this year and he is now taking driving lessons. What scares me is that the government sees no problem in allowing a raging hormonal, indecision and characteristically bad decision making teen to be behind the wheels of a 1 tonne vehicle. While my son is a sweet, quiet and funny person, we don't know what they will turn into once behind the wheels. This is the same kid who couldn't navigate his baby walker around the living room. Albeit he was 2 at the time and was interested in anything shinny while drooling all over the place. Still...

When I first got my car, I got into a lot of accidents but they were minor ones and not once did I trouble my parents. Knowing these Gen-y or Gen-z or whatever the hell you wanna call them, they will be coming back to you and expecting you to fix everything. I'm not sure how I feel about that. While I want my kids to come to me whenever they have a problem and to get me involved in their lives, I would limit that to just me giving advice and not involving my money or involving me getting out of the couch.

Anyway, I have not seen him drive yet but in his first lesson, he stalled the car...A LOT! He complained the steering wheel was too hard to turn and after turning it didn't come back to center, the manual gear stick was not easy to change and the clutch was a nightmare. Hopefully that will become smoother as he progresses.

In that time, if you see some car getting stalled all the time, not turning well or not centering after turning, please be patient and do look out for the driver. He is my son.

Globe trotting III

2015-01-13T14:55:00.003+08:00

Today, we look at a summarized view of the US, Italy and Japan.

US - LA, San Francisco, Vegas, San Diego and Seattle
We self drove with 2 large vans and about 18 of us. We spent a lot of time on the road as we wanted to cover as much as we can in 12 days. Our family spent a week in Seattle with our oldest and dearest friends, The Fongs.

People : Very friendly and helpful. We saw random acts of kindness as someone bought a homeless couple dinner from McD. LA was a little scary but we didn't stay that long at night. Only to watch a Lakers game at the Staples Center!! Folks in general are pretty nice.

Service : Service is amazing! People are extremely courteous, helpful with us, efficient especially at the check out lines and very patience. Restaurants, fast food, shopping, airport, The Magic Kingdom, we had a great time with the service folks. If you return a purchase, not only do they not treat you like a criminal like here but they kept apologizing! They apologized that their product was not up to my liking! I was so taken over, I almost wanted to take my purchase back.

Food : Food is very western of course. Burgers, meat chops, fries, pasta. You know the usual stuff. Some are good, some not so. The McD is better simply because they include bacon! But I find our KFC better. The portions are bloody huge though. So we usually share. Mikey went to a chap-fan place called Panda Express and selected 3 dishes and rice. His serving could have served 3! Asian food is also aplenty so no problems here, if you start craving for something Asian.

POI : I need a few postings to do this. Many, many places to go. SF was our favourite. We also visited the Grand Canyon and saw the Hoover Dam. Absolutely breadth taking! Took a game at the Staples Center. Was at Hollywood Boulevard, Walk of Fame, Chinese Theatre in LA. Of course Disneyland and Universal Studios. Drove by the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman's Wharf, Pier 39, Chinatown and Ghiradelli's in SF. Vegas was just the sight and of course the amazing Grand Canyon. We took a helicopter ride to the bottom of the canyon for our river cruise. Seattle was more relaxed for us. It was a very calm and serene time of our holiday and we hung out at the local spots like Snoqualmie Falls, downtown Seattle and of course the Microsoft campus.

Shopping is amazing too. We got to shop at Gilroy during the Black Friday sale. It was crazy!! We were also at Barstow, Desert Hills, North Bend and Seattle Premium Outlet. The American brands are amazingly cheap, so we did go crazy! Best feeling ever!!!

Italy - Rome, Pisa, Florence, Venice and Milan
This was a couple's trip with my cousin and his wife. We went on a tour and spent quite a fair bit of time on the road as well.

People : The Italians are a very talkative bunch but not the most friendly towards foreigners I thought. Still they will reciprocate when you speak to them. We went towards the mid of Summer so the weather was extremely gorgeous and I guess that put people in a good mood.

Service : Not the friendliest bunch as not the most patient. They get snippy if you take too long to decide or try on too many stuff. Since we were on a tour, food was pre-arranged so we didn't get to see too much of the restaurant staff's natural habitat.

Food : As it was a tour, we didn't get to choose what we ate. We had lots of pizza and pasta. Some were good, some forgettable. Highlights were a lobster pasta in Milan, Florentine steak in Florence and a Penang restaurant in Rome.

POI : Similar to the US, this would have taken many postings. It's a country that is cultural, religiously and historically rich. It was the center of Western civilization at one time and is now the head of the Catholic Church. So we got to see many sights from Ancient Rome and churches. Every city had it's own glamour and sights. My only advice is to take it slow, spend more time there and to please buy a ticket to see the mural of The Last Supper by Leonardo DiVincci in Milan.

Shopping : This is the place to buy all the Italian brands as they were cheap! Yea we went crazy. My only problem is that they don't have shirts my size because all Italian men apparently look like models! Best place to shop was in Milan's outlet called Serravalle. But downtown Milan and Florence were good too. We didn't get to shop in Rome though but we were told it was more expensive. Leave some space and cash for Rome's airport! Good duty free stuff there as well. While it's cheaper, you may not get the style or design you want. But shopping is shopping!!!

Japan - Tokyo, Kyoto, Nagoya
We travel with the whole village this trip for a Winter experience in Japan. There were almost 25 of us and it was our largest group so far.

People : I think the Japanese people are the friendliest, most humble, helpful, courteous, etc. I can go on and on with all the expletives. They so helpful that even if they didn't know the answer, they will find someone who does. Also many Japanese folks don't speak English well, though they read and write ok. Another observation is that they are very, very clean. The streets are spotless and even their cement truck and garbage truck is in immaculate condition. We passed by a garbage truck and it didn't smell! How do you do that?? The weird part is that, it's so hard to find a garbage can!

Service : Because of the people's attitude towards others, the service industry is one of the best I have experienced. Everyone is smiling and chirpy, to a point sometimes it's creepy. I don't know if it's the anime thing or something they put in the water but restaurants, shopping, airport and immigration were all very good experiences for us.

Food : I love Japanese food so I had no complaints whatsoever. Though it's interesting to see that they eat very unlike us. The famous restaurants serve a specialty food. For example, a famous ramen restaurant will only serve ramen. Same for sushi or tempura. City folks love ramen as it's fast and quick. In the outskirts they serve in a bento. So you have a variety of dishes. Japanese food however, has very little oil and fat so great for weight watchers. However, their rice is incredible! So be careful that you save on fat but stock up on carbo!

POI : Many cultural sites to visit. We had a great time visiting temples, food streets, cultural villages and the Bullet Train and Toyota museums. My highlight was the samurai class that we took and Mt Fuji. We only managed to shop at 1 outlet, Gotemba in Kyoto and prices are pretty good. However, we bought more snacks back and many, many different flavours of Kit Kat.

So that ends my 3 part summary. I may decide to write in detail of the places that we visited. If you have any such requests, drop me a feedback. Sayonara, Ciao, Chai Chien, Good bye, Choi Kin and Au Revouir!

Globe Trotting Part II

2015-01-07T12:56:00.000+08:00

Continuing my holiday destination reviews:-

Hong Kong & Macau
People : Everyone is rushing in HK. To work, to play, to eat, etc. They walk everywhere and walk really quickly. People are generally friendly but they are also very direct and they will tell you off if they see the need. But it's a very structured and disciplined society and after the SARS outbreak, very clean as well.

Service : Up and mid class places have very good service especially retail outlets. Restaurant, not so much. They may not be rude but they are not particularly friendly either. Other places are very efficient though no one really talks to you.

Food : OMG! This is my fav place for food. Absolutely amazing. Everything is good but not cheap. You can eat street food or restaurant and it taste great. Fav food are Typhoon Noodle under the bridge, seafood at Sai Kung and dim sum anywhere. Macau has some Portuguese food and was better than China but HK is still my fav.

POI : SHOPPING!!! Great places to shop as fashion is trendy though may not always be cheap. Can check out Stanley Market, Ladies Street, Electronic Street and Tsim Tsa Tsui. Victoria Peak is also my fav place to hang out. I also love Repulse Bay, Ngong Ping 360 and of course Disneyland, where you will experience a Cantonese speaking Mickey. Symphony of Lights show at the Avenue of Stars is also amazing. In Macau, people are only interested in the casinos. If gambling is not your fancy, there are many shows you can go to. There is a particular good 3D show called The Bubble Show that you can check out.

Taiwan - Taipei only
People : Generally friendly folks but English literacy is kinda low. Every signboard is in Chinese. So felt pretty useless. We got separated from our families and needed to call them and my batt was flat. Someone in the streets heard us and just loaned us their phone. I thought that was pretty amazing. Prob didn't know it was an international call. Haha!

Service : Everyone's busy so they are not particularly friendly Only at the Taipei 101 Tower did we see some smiles. Food, hotel, bus and subway stations, smiles are pretty rare there.

Food : There are so many night market and so many varieties of food. Just amazing. However, you need to know where to go because not everything is good. We tried their minced beef rice, beef noodle and a place called Ah Choong mee suah. These left a good impression on us. Fishball and oyster omelettes were horrible!!! Pls avoid if you are traveling alone.

POI : Good places to find bargain stuff and fashionable as well. There is a Yeh Liu Geopark and a village called Jiufen. Must visit. The Chiang Kai Sek memorial was enjoyable for me and you gotta see Taipei 101 Tower.

London & Paris
People : People on the street were a lot friendlier in London than Parisians. Everyone is saying "sorry", "excuse me" and "good morning, afternoon, etc". Getting around was easy and folks were very helpful.

Service : Funnily, restaurant people in London were not as friendly as those in Paris. They were more surly and more curt. Those in Paris were chatty, smiling always and patience since we needed help with the French menu. Those in retail outlets were also pretty friendly and helpful, both places.

Food : What can I say? London bad, Paris gorgeous!!! We only had one good meal in London, on board a ferry opposite the Eye of London. Almost every food we had in Paris was amazing. From the Nutella Crepe to our Foir Gras. There was a fish place that didn't really get me going but everything else was absolutely gorgeous!

POI : Too many to mention! The favs for me, British Museum, Tower Bridge, Greenwich Meridian Line, Stonehenge, Big Ben, Bath, Eifel Tower, Notre Dame, Seine Cruise, St Michael's Fountain and Louvre.

Continuing to Part III........

Globe trotting

2015-01-06T14:33:00.003+08:00

I am blessed to have had the ability to globe trot a little. Every year end, I plan a holiday with immediate and extended family members. They will include my cousins and my in-laws. So since my posting about our trip to Australia, I have had the pleasure of visiting Greater China, Korea, London & Paris, Italy, US West Coast and Japan. So how does a Chindian take all these different cultures? As someone that comes from 2 cultures, we are typically very interested and sensitive to the cultures of others. There are many difference as to the folks in these different countries. So I have compiled and summarized based on the criteria of friendliness of people on the street and service folks, food, shopping and places of interest. Let's start with:-

Australia
People : Folks are typically friendly but I think they don't like Chinese folks that much, especially in Melbourne. Brisbane and the Gold Coast seems more ok. They don't voluntarily help you but they will if you approach them. Some reluctantly, some more helpful. The Asian community are very helpful towards other Asians though.

Service : Retail folks are very particular about the time they close. Most close at 5pm (What's up with that!!) so when you walk in at 4.45, they give you that exasperated sigh and stare and are typically unhelpful. Then again only us Asians will enter a shop just before it closes. I have not seen an Aussie do that. As for food, it will depend where you go to. Some up places are more tolerant, mid class not so.

Food : There is a lot of Malaysian, Chinese and Indian food in Melbourne. So if you get tired of all the ham, bread, cheese, pasta, burgers, you have a lot of Chindian comfort food. One of their burgers made my list of comfort food and that's something they call The LOT. It has...the LOT. Meat, bacon, ham, fried egg, more bacon, etc.

Shopping : I think most folkd don't come here to shop. I've not seen any good shopping places. Maybe it's just me.

POI : Gold Coast's theme parks are for those who haven't been. Surfers' Paradise is nice and decadent, though full of Chinese retailers now. If you are into animals, take a 2 hours drive north to Sunshine Coast to visit Australia Zoo or Steve Irwin's Zoo. In Melbourne drive along the Great Ocean Road to Grampiens National Park and stop at small towns along the way. Philip Island is a good visit, stop by a Chocolate Factory and also the Twelve Apostles. City wise, is like any other city though the Yarra River is quite picturesque.

China
People : I say this with all objectivity. Most folks are loud, boisterous, dirty and rude. They knock into you, spit everywhere and children will pee anywhere. If you want the toilet, just follow the smell. Hygiene level seems to have been set to medieval times. Not every toilet outside of Beijing has modern plumbing. In the 21st century!!! We found a toilet with feces on the wall!! Like this person was during a mural or his a$$ exploded or something!!!

Service : They are more friendly and very attentive as most city restaurants and up market shopping places goes by a rating system. Airport service is also very efficient.

Food : For me, this really sucked!! The food we had was not as good as back home. Really bad. If you followed the tour food, God help you. We had some good food like Peking Duck and a meat BBQ buffet place. But mainly was not too my liking.

Shopping : It's shopping haven. Knock offs and non-branded stuff are cheap if you don't mind the quality. We bought some non-
branded stuff and some of them were quite good in quality.

POI : This is the place to be. You history coming out of your ears! We went to the usual palaces and temples and of course the Great Wall. My highlight was the Terracotta Warriors in Xi'an. Absolutely amazing!!! China has also many beautiful sceneries.

Korea
People : Pretty ok. Friendly folks and they speak English. Didn't have any incident in memory.

Service : Very friendly folks. Even those who sold hot choco and churros in a cart, were chatty and friendly. Since most meals come with side dishes, most folks are patience with our constant refilling of it.

Shopping : There are some duty free outlets in the city and the airport for tourist. Snacks are worth buying and so are cosmetics. Everywhere else is more pricey.

Food : I love Korean food. They BBQ, Kimchi soup, grill stuff, the rice and the ox tail soup. Every meal was good for the Chindian palate.

POI : There are some history but not much and nothing beats China anyway. So they turned their attention to their dramas and K-Pop. Touristy places are sets for movies like Winter Sonata at Nami Island and Mount Sorak and something called All In. Pretty creative.

To be continued...........

CSI for the young

2015-01-06T13:16:00.000+08:00

Some of you may think that CSI began around the year 2000 with CSI Vegas. I am a big fan of the show and it's spinoffs. I still follow it today and have downloaded the series. However, as I was watching the show and the antics of my kids and nephews and nieces, I realized that CSI started at a VERY early stage for us Gen-X kids. As a Chindian, it would also mean that I have the universe's most disciplined parents. This does not mean that they are very disciplined in what they do. It means, they will discipline your a$$ for every wrong thing you do. Sometimes even when you haven't done it.....yet!! That's how strong these genes are.

So we had to be very creative in how we hide the evidence of our wrong doings. I feel that we would have made excellent CSI officers as we would know where to look for said evidence and what to make of it. The Gen-Y and Z? Forget it! When my son and nephew was 7 years old, they were very into Pokemon. One time while they were watching Pokemon, we gave them their milk for the night. They set it down next to them and as all accidents are attracted to toddlers, one of them spilt his cup. They looked at the spilt milk, said "Oh-oh", got up, moved to another location and continued watching.

If it was us and we did that, they would need forensic experts to separate our mangled corpses! How time has changed. During our time, we would become CSI to hide said evidence of the spill. I would have sat on it to absorb the milk while my cousin will distract anyone nearby. We will then proceed to get new pants for me while he walks behind me to hide the milk stain. I will change while he's the lookout. It's important to change into something of similar colour so as not to invite questions. After that, we have 2 options with the stained pants. We could hide it and throw it and feign ignorance when asked about the pants. OR we could frame my brother. Either way, it would have been done meticulously so that nothing points back to us.

Now of course, our kids volunteer information to us. Like when they dropped their phone or knocked something over. I know what you are thinking. Why in the world would I give my kids a handphone?? The answer, so that they won't bug us! That in itself is a new social world to us. We can't punish them for coming to us and admitting their wrongs. So you smile, tell them they did the right thing and to be careful in the future. Anti-climax right??

All said and done, the chances of us getting away with it was really low. Our parents still found out and half murdered us. So why still do it? Survival man! It kept us on our toes. But looking at the situation now, we could learn a thing or two from our kids and they could a learn a thing some of our CSI skills to survive.......as long it's not to con us!

A lot of catching up

2015-01-06T12:18:00.000+08:00

It's been a while since I last posted. I just wanted to give you a quick summary of what has happened. Our children has grown up and they are now entering 18 and 14 respectively. Which gives us a whole new world to work with. This is new territory for my wife and I. How to deal with 18-year old teen who has that irritatingly know-it-all mentality but you know he is just as dumb as a door nail. How do you know when to let go, when to slowly reel it in and when to yank it like there is a Florida Marlin on the other end fighting for dear life.

Then there is female puberty kicking in with my daughter. Coming in from all sides that you feel like a lone space fighter being attacked by tiny hormonal Cylon space fighters coming from everywhere! Not a pretty picture. My son just completed his O-levels which is similar to high school finals and he now stands at a crossroad of what to do with his life. As a Chindian parent, which means we have the strongest education genes in the universe, college is a must. However, I am open enough to accept Chindian gut wrenching fact that he won't be a doctor, lawyer or engineer or accountant. I mean it took tons of morphine and valium to stop me from ripping his spleen out so that he will have to take up medicine to cure himself and law to sue me.

So as he sleeps until 2pm everyday and wakes up watching Anime (let's come back to that, what the hell is up with this Anime crap??), I am left wondering if he has any blinking idea of the path he wants to take. Scarily it seems there isn't any sense of urgency from his exterior. That would mean there is a plan right? WRONG!! His mind is a blank. IF I had to sell his mind right now, it will fetch a very high price as it's hardly used!! So I will have to figure this out for him but I am trying to figure it out WITH him and not FOR. Wish us luck!!

There is my princess. I took a sabbatical from work to spend some time with her. She is having problems with her school work. She's not doing well (or as well as we expect) and she seems to be exposed to some crazies in school who think that faking suicide is cool and a great way to get attention. Don't get me wrong, I am very sensitive to teens who are genuine depressed or deprived. I'm talking about attention whores who fake it.

Anyway, I got to spend time with her and to understand her more. Hopefully I was able to help and she now understand us a little bit more. She is very bright and has a fantastic sense of humour. She is also musically inclined (oh she took up drums! How cool is that!). She, however, is painfully shy and has the attention span of a gnat when it comes to books. It's like "Ok, this math problem needs you to look at the diameter of the circle and HEY I remember One Direction having a song about that! Let me turn on YouTube."

Yeah she's really into One Direction, Taylor Swift and some other teeny boppers. She just started her Anime phase though. I am hoping to curb it before it becomes terminal.

So that's us these past few years. WE have taken trips to China, Korea, Europe (Paris, London, Italy) and Japan. I will share some insights to all about that. So until next round.....Have a great 2015, God Bless and take care.

The Global Chindian

2013-12-26T12:54:00.000+08:00

Since becoming a Chindian, I had many very serious thoughts about it. Most of it from the deep recesses of my mind (about a quarter inch deep). One of the many thoughts was how would we fare globally? Will we do well? What could be contribute? How will we adapt? Will we open up a roti canai with sweet sour pork store in a convenience store that also does laundry?

I've had the blessing of being able to travel to some countries but in the different regions of the world. I've come to realize that our Chindian look is very global. Unfortunately our global look means 3rd world country look! Whenever I travel around SEA, I ALWAYS and I mean ALWAYS look local. Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand and even Indo-China.

There was once when I was in Thailand with my Aussie colleagues for our company meeting. After work, they decided they wanted to "check-out" Patpong. To the uninformed and liars who've never been to Patpong, it's Bangkok's red light district. When we got there, the "guest relations officers" jumped out and pulled my Aussies friends into their outlets. I was left standing alone in the street. After my friends decided on the "outlet", the GRO came out and got me in for a free drink but they led me to a corner and ignored me. I was totally confused as to what was happening. It took me a while for me to realize that they thought I was the local tour guide and the free drink and meal (if I wanted it) was my commission for bringing the "farang" or foreigner. WTF!!

The same in the Philippines. Every restaurant I was in with my colleagues, the servers will speak to me as they expected me to know what to order. And they speak to me in Tagalog. I don't feel so weirded out in Indonesia since I speak Malay and I can play the part. So we Chindians are definitely very at home in SEA. I've had recent trips to the US and the situation is just as amusing though one was quite terrifying.

Due to my work, I got the pleasure of traveling the US quite often and we typically land in LA or San Francisco. SF is one of my favourite places to visit due to the weather and it's generally nice. I remember the first time I visited SF in 1995, I went to Chinatown for Chinese food because we Chindians can only take so much of cold cuts, pasta, bread and salads. When I looked at the menu in this small Hong Kong-run Chinese restaurant, I realized that everything was called dumpling. Fish ball was called dumpling, so was wantan, sui kow and anything that looked roundish! Unable to differentiate, I spoke to the lady in Cantonese to order. While she looked shocked, she kept her composure and took our order.

I began to realize that something weird was going on and started to feel like a zoo exhibit. That's when I realized that there were LOTS of people outside the shop looking in but not coming in and the kitchen staff started to come out to look at me. It was a 5 table restaurant so it wasn't hard to know they were looking at me. After lunch, I was very curious and when I asked for the bill, I asked the owner what was going on. This was the conversation we had in Cantonese.

Me : What's going on? Why so many people outside?
Owner : Oh, those are my neighbours. They run the shops beside mine. They are here because I told them about you.
Me : What??? Why? What about me?
Owner : We have never met a Mexican that can speak Cantonese and speak it so well!!!!
Me : WHAT??????

To mess with her further....
Me : But I'm not Mexican. I'm Malaysian.
Owner : Ohh!! So you are Malay.
Me : No. I'm Indian.
Owner : What?????? Then how come you speak Cantonese.
Me : My mom's Chinese.
Owner : You just said you were Indian and Malay!!!

That went on for a while but it was nice messing with her.

In another trip, I was lost in San Pedro with another Chindian friend Patrick and 2 Malaysian Chinese friends. San Pedro is the harbour for LA and as the name suggests, there are A LOT of Hispanics who are blue collar workers there. When we were walking about, they were starting to get edgy about my Chinese friends and we "Hispanics" had to stay close to "protect" them. For a while it got a little tense especially when we sat for lunch. The Hispanic owner thought we were having a table talk over gang territory. Then when we ordered ice-cream, that kinda gave away we were more pansies than gang members!!

Patrick and I, at one time, traveled with 4 Malaysian Chinese girl colleagues (I had to add Malaysian Chinese else you think we were hanging out with Mainland Chinese girls!) and we were driving the mini van around SF Chinatown. The drivers' side windows were not tinted but the passengers and back were. We were "randomly" stopped by the police and when they saw all of us, it confirmed their suspicions that we Hispanics were smuggling female Chinese immigrant into Chinatown!!! There were A LOT of explaining and IDs flying out to San Francisco's finest.

There are many more global stories that I will share with you but the next time you see in the US news an hispanic arrested for allegedly trying to kidnap a Chinese girl, call the Malaysian embassy. It's just me taking my wife for a holiday in the US!!!!

Dad, Jude and Tagore - The hopeless case and the genius

2013-11-26T19:24:00.003+08:00

I have a younger brother called Jude Tagore David. He was named after St Jude and Rabindranath Tagore. St Jude was the patron Saint of Hopeless Cases and Tagore was a well renowned Indian poet and writer from the early 1900s. He was given a knighthood by the British but renounced due to a massacre incident by the British and was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. I used to tease my brother that he was an enigma because he was a hopeless case but strongly principled and cultured! Yeah, he didn't enjoy that! One wonders why.

My dad loved to read and he used to read Tagore's works at one time. I think we got our love for reading from him and we loved general knowledge, history and foreign culture in particular. My dad was an amazingly generous person and he would bring poor people he met on the streets home for meals. It will infuriate my mom and worry us because I would come home and find strangers in my house. Thank God they weren't psychos or serial killers. They can't be robbers because we were so poor, we would have robbed the thief!!

He was very logical and his reasonings were more often than not, fair. Importantly also that he was not very traditional. Indian fathers tend to take the dictatorial approach. You-follow-whatever-I-say-no-questions-or-I-will-kick-your-ass style. He was very democratic and very fair. I realize now how much I look to him in life and try to follow him. He truly was a real beacon for me. He absolutely adored his grandchildren and would spoil them silly by giving them Coke, sweets and whatever that drives my kids on a sugar high. There were many people we have never met at his funeral and they would we weeping and crying! My family would be wondering who the heck are these people??? That is the kind of blessings he had. I miss him so.

My brother Jude is an amazing character. He is one of the laziest crazies I have met but also a freaking genius!! He is one of those people you want to kill in school. He will goof off, sleep a lot and still do well in exams. He has an amazing talent for languages as he picked up Tamil in school and now he speaks Thai because of his wife. He taught himself to play the drums and not only to play but to play WELL!! He is in a band that plays at night spots around KL. That's SOOOO cool! If he learned notes, he would be playing professionally now.

He was always kind of huge, now and as a kid. You could always pick him out in any school photo as he will be twice the size of everyone. I remember when he was 9, he ate 8 char siew pau in one sitting! I can't even eat 2. Once also around 8 or 9 years of age, he tried a can of Guinness, without us knowing of course, and fell asleep for 9 hours on the bedroom floor. Typical drunkard!!! He is like a Sequoia tree trunk now and could make me into a cheap tosai. So every beginning of the school year, I will ask him to accompany my kids to school. My kids never gets bullied!!!

We didn't always get along when we were kids. He irritated me to no end and could always get away with murder with my parents. We did have our moments though. Once when bathing (as kids not now!!!!), we got into the bath tub and turned the water grey. We were in there for 30mins and when we opened the bathroom door, there was our mom with the cane. She whacked the daylights, night time and our puberty out of us...and we were wet and naked!!!! Despite our fightings, he never left me alone when it came to punishment by our mom.

He is my best friend, I love him dearly and wouldn't have it any other way.

MY PARENTS, GRANDMOTHER & JACKIE CHAN

2013-11-26T19:13:00.002+08:00

My paternal Indian grandparents, Vincent Robert Joseph and Rita Joseph were born in Chennai and migrated to Malaysia during the 1930's. Working as an estate manager, my grandfather moved around a lot for work.

My maternal Chinese grandparents, Chan Chi Long and Lay Foon's heritage were from Dongguang, Southern China. My grandfather was killed during the Japanese occupation and this forced my grandmother to take on odd jobs to make ends meet for the family.

My father, David Joseph, is first generation Indian-Malaysian. My mother, Stella Chan, is second generation Chinese-Malaysian.

Born in Port Dickson in 1939, my dad is the 4th in a family of 10 siblings while my mom was the eldest in her family and born in KL. They both had little education due to the harsh war and poverty. They had to leave school to find work to support the family and siblings and eventually ended up in Kuala Lumpur to work.

Dad worked as a foreman with UMW and a volunteer police corp for a number of years. After retrenchment, Dad took up jobs as a factory manager and managing video arcades. Despite our situation, he always ensured the family was cared for especially educational needs. Mum, on the other hand, helped out by babysitting and helping to pay for our education. We were a poor family, and Dad struggled to make ends meet by taking on 2 jobs. My mom stopped working when I was born to take care of the family so because of that, I naturally gravitated to the Chinese culture.

Mum and Dad met when they worked together at a retail store called Kishu's in Batu Road. They began dating and after 7 years, tied the knot in 1970.

Initially, my paternal grandparents were against the marriage, as they were wanted Dad to marry within the race. They couldn't comprehend having a daughter in law who spoke a different language. There were many unhappy quarrels but over time, they warmed up to Mum, and gave their blessing.

On my mother's side, my grandparents were already open to it, as my aunt (Mum's sister), Violet Chan, had married an Indian man. Luckily for Mum, Aunt Violet had already educated her parents that not all Indian men were violent, wife beaters and drunkards, as the stereotype goes back in teh 60s. So when it came to Mum's turn, my grandmother had already been through the cultural shock.

From my own observations, both cultures can be quite different in some areas. For instance, Chinese parents are not used to praising their own children, even when they do well in school. The Indian parents, on the other hand, are more direct, and will praise or criticise when needed.

Until I was 7, I stayed with paternal Indian grandparents in Air Panas and Setapak. There, I was exposed to the Indian culture, language and food. When I turned 7, our family moved out to be on our own since we were stayng with my Dad's siblings and parents. From then till I left home,my maternal Chinese grandmother or Poh-Poh as I called her, stayed with us in Sungei Way.

Her influence on me was stronger as I developed into my own person. She was a big influence in my life and an inspiration, as she had been though hard times without the support of my grandfather. Without attending school, she taught herself to read and write and even took up sewing to help support the family. Hard work, independence and table manners were a few things my brother, Jude and I learnt from her.

When i was 8 years old, she began to teach me how to use the chopstick. At meal times, she would insist on making me pick a button mushroom or peas with my chopstick before I could eat. If you are able to pick one up, you could take a bite! While it may seem dictatorial, it was actually very funny to see us struggle with it.

The one actor she loved was Jackie Chan. She would always take me to the movies and in time, I was introduced to all his movies by my Poh Poh. I remember clearly the first movie we went to see together. It was in 1979 and the movie was called Drunken Master at Odean in Jln Tungku Abdul Rahman. What a swell time we had - grandmother and grandson in a movie! Ever since then, I've become a movie junkie!

She was very impartial when it came to movies, as she would take me to see movies I wanted to see, even English movies and Poh Poh didn't speak English! She would accompany me to watch movies like Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica and even Jesus of Nazareth!!

Poh Poh also bought the Matchbox toy cars for my brother and I, as we both loved model cars. I think we have more than 80 cars still in mint condition, collected from the 70s and 80s. During the 1982 World Cup, my grandmother and I would discuss the games, the players and the countries. From her, I learnt the Chinese names of the footballing countries. Every football tournament after that, isn't complete without a daily discussion of the matches with Poh Poh.

It makes me smile to think that my grandmother even knew about football back then. My inspiration, my teacher and my friend.

My new PC!

2013-10-28T00:57:00.000+08:00

Hi everyone! It's been a long while since my last posting. I was too tired and just too hickety boo lazy! For that I apologize. So since my last posting, our country has gone through a lot. We had our elections and the controversy continues. UMNO elections are over as well and we had our first budget. Hopefully we can go back to bringing up our country quickly. In the sporting front, our top sportspersons continue to march on. There were talks of Datuk Lee Chong Wei and Dato Nicol David slowing down at the "ripe old age" of 30+. Chong Wei seems to be struggling a bit with 2 losses and so did Nicol for a while. But my Chindian sister has hit back. After losing 3 finals to an up and coming player as well as her arch rival, she beat them and won the last 3 tournaments. Not bad for a has been....

Liverpool seems to be doing slightly better. The question is how long can they keep it up. Some summer signings have been showing promise but there are some who are still lacking. My other fav teams in Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Juventus continue to flourish! However the LA Lakers struggled badly last season and looking at the off season, I don't think they will be doing well this year. Miami is still the team to beat.

As for my family, things are just as normal. We had some holidays that I have not been able to update you. Give me time and I will do so. We went to Beijing and Xian where we visited 2 of the world's most important historical monuments, the Great Wall of China and the Terracotta Warriors. Then last year we were in Korea. KLY and I took our wives to London and Paris...LOT of brownie points this. In April Melissa and I took a trip to Dubai courtesy of my new company, EMC. Oh yeah, I joined a new company.

So all is good, some lows but many highs. I also got a new PC...after 10 years and I'm posting this from my spanking new PC. Just got in today and it was an very exciting feeling after 10 years. I mean I have the iPad, iPhones, Samsung gadgets but this is my family PC where we share. I asked FB friends since I don't know these young whippersnappers anymore, where is a good place to assemble my own config at an affordable budget. I got what I wanted and I'm tickled pink. I'm gonna sign off for now since it's past 1 am and I need my beauty sleep. Stay healthy and look after each other.

BERSIH 3.0 - Saving our country or destroying it?

2012-04-30T00:41:00.000+08:00

We had another BERSIH movement and as expected, it turned ugly. For those of you who thought this was going to be a peaceful, simple gathering to show the government that we are not to be taken lightly....what simpletons you are. There are 2 sides to this message. I personally think BERSIH is a great idea! But I am very concerned that BERSIH is being taken advantage of.

Don't get me wrong. I am not against BERSIH and it's call for a clean and fair election. I am all for it. I am just concerned that the cause and the supporters are being used for the means and objectives of the few. BERSIH was ABSOLUTELY necessary. I for one am sick and tired of the arrogance in our government and how they feel they don't need to be accountable to the people and that they can be blatant in their mishandling of our country's funds. I laud the many who braved the elements and of course the violence, to stand up for our rights as citizens of Malaysia.

I have a few comments for those involved.

1. To the Government, namely the PM, DPM, Home Minister, MCA chief, MIC Chief (I don't even know who the heck is it), CM of Pahang, CM of Sarawak, the newspaper editors and (but not limited to) the IGP

I am sick of how naive you think we are. I am so livid that you insult our intelligence by controlling the media to say things like "Our education is the best", "Only 1% of our police is corrupt", "Our police were professional and restraint", "Non-Malays are immigrants", "Lynas is safe and we will dispose the waste in Sg Lembing". "I was only joking when I said Sg Lembing", "I am the first lady", "I am not involved in teh NFC","BERSIH is illegal", "BERSIH is not illegal" and the list goes on and on.

In an election year!!! Who the heck is your PR manager?

For goodness sake, no one believes the damn newspapers anymore. You can show as many pics that you want depicting exactly what you want to propogate. We are in the digital age now, you miscreants!!! If you use the internet once in a while instead of for porn, you will see how your lies are being exposed. If you spent half the time working on our country's issues instead of making away with millions, you would not only ensure success, you may actual reap benefits legally! No need for C4 and MACC.

You work for the people regardless of race. Though I must say, your divide and conquer tactic is working very well as you sow fear into the Malays by spreading lies that we want an end to their privileges or that we want to attack Islam and do away with it. Sadly, many Malays believe it and you have successfully sowed this hatred to distract them from your dirty laundry. Stuffing a few hundred ringgit here and there has helped you solidify your rotten soul into theirs as they sell out our country and our future. I assure you, there is only so much cheating and discord you can sow. You can't cheat all the people all of the time.

Please, please, please....clean up your acts. Read your history. No good comes from tyranny, oppression and corruption. Remember Suharto and Marcos? Keep it up and you will end up like them.

To the Opposition

Please remember why you are doing this. You sold us the dream that Malaysia needs a change and that you will provide it. I am very concerned that our opposition leader is the same person whom in his youth is known to like violent protests. He is a person who believes that a show a force, chaos and violence will achieve his aim. This person, when he was in ABIM was constantly talking about protesting, rallying, showing violence to meet his means.

And this person recently has stated in his own admission that he thinks the people of Egypt and Syria are doing the right thing and that we should use that as our examples. This person is of course Anwar Ibrahim. For those of you blindly following him, please don't forget he was from UMNO too and so are the majority of PKR people. They lost out politically and now they are resorting to taking over the govt to make their means. BERSIH didn't come from Pakatan. It was from Ambiga and I pray that they are not using this sentiment just to be in power.

The people are evolving and we are a lot more savvy and vocal now. We so need a change that we are willing to take a chance of the opposition who are made up of the strangest bedfellows. PKR, DAP and PAS???? Truly not a very sound formula but we are willing to take that chance. So don't blow this. Make it worthwhile and if you ensure our prosperity and fairness, you will prosper as well. Look at high income countries like SG, Australia, Scandinavian countries, etc.

Fellow Malaysians
To my fellow Malaysians, I would ask you to also to fair in your judgement. Let's not stoop down to the level of those corrupt in the government. We have to be responsible and ensure we have the right facts. Don't spread rumours, photo-shopped pics, wrong info, misguided facts that are used to twist us. That only gives the government more ammunition. Be truthful, fair and responsible. Also please be safe. Instigating the police was a bad idea. It always is.

God Bless you and all of us. See you at the elections.

The end of my childhood.....errr.....my 2nd childhood

2012-04-03T21:03:00.008+08:00

Many things in our childhood stay with us forever....for some reason. They manage to etched themselves in our memories due to situation, circumstances, etc. Things like your first love, a particular bad fall, your first job, or the time when you pulled your zipper too fast and got your foreskin caught in your zipper and your dad had to slap your thigh while he pulled the zipper so that the pain in the thigh will distract you from the pain of the zipper.

You know.....things like that.

Some of us would argue that our childhood ends when we hit 15-18 but I gotta tell you that I am still clinging on to my childhood so that I don't totally grow up or outgrow my childhood memories. But back in 2001, I went to see a movie that firmly started my 2nd childhood. That movie was called Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

I had heard something in the news about these sets of children books and about how it contradicted with religious values. I didn't pay much attention as it was children books.

Then came the movie.

The sight of this skinny, short, shy, tormented, unloved and under valued boy in round rim glasses, just tugged at my heart strings. The story of how he had lost his parents and how abused he was then, displayed a whole new magical world that didn't seem improbably at all. You absolutely could see Diagon Alley and Hogwarts in real life. Right??? This new magical world brought back many childhood fantasies involving me having magical powers and saving the world and impressing my first crush. Who among us have not fantasized about having magical powers, raise your hands? I thought so.

Immediately after the movie, I bought the first 4 books and spent every night reading this marvellous adventure Harry and friends were on. I couldn't put it down and it just took me deeper into my imagination as I fantasized about being one of their friends, being an 11 year old, protecting Harry, playing Quidditch with him and kicking Draco's ass. How deliciously evil was Lucius Malfoy? I waited impatiently for the 5th book and every book after that. I talked relentlessly about it with my cousins and fellow admirers. I absolutely fell in love with this magical world.

While I would argue that the quality of each movie after that kinda deteriorated, the magic did not. I cried when Sirius died, when Dobby died, I cried when he first saw his parents at the mirror of Erised. The last scene when so many loved ones died. Felt warm when he realized how he belonged to Hogwarts and cheered when the tormented, unloved boy, became a hero in his first Quidditch match.

My favourite character was of course Harry. Ron provided some comic relief with his "Bloody Hell" and his scared version of "Harry...." when spiders appeared. But Hermione also got my attention. She is the only full Muggle to be called to Hogwarts, after Harry's mom, as far as the characters go. Snape in the end was also very noble, brave and loyal to his love. Though I know it's just a character, I also felt that Snape was very petty, giving in to his petty jealousy of James Potter by treating Harry very badly. Dumbledore frustrated me as he could have told Harry everything and thus protected him more....silly old geezer. I am also very reassured by the calm and coldness of Professor McGonagal.

So when Deathly Hallows finally came out, it presented with a dilemma to me. While I wanted to know how it ends, I also didn't want it to end. At the movie, I was quietly willing it to last as long as it could. When I walked out of the cinema, I couldn't help feeling a certain emptiness, like you have lost a best friend. A best friend that kept you company for the last 10 years, drawing out every emotion and whisking it together so that you have a combination of feelings, emotions and mind boggling, synapses inducing creatures in a world that appeals to the child and adult in everyone alike.

The 3 main cast played their parts to perfection. JK Rowling, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint and all the other cast, there are not enough superlatives to express my feelings and gratitude. So I will just say Thanks, May the Force Be With You and Live Long and Prosper.

Thanks for my 2nd childhood. EXPELLIARMUS!!

Difference between culture and race

2012-03-20T20:12:00.004+08:00

Now many people use these 2 terms interchangeably. They don't mean the same thing at all. For example I am one of the very many few individuals in this earth that is both Indian and Chinese by race. So by Malaysian law, I am listed as Indian because my father was an Indian and our Government despite being independent for 50 years still insists on race segregation and therefore require us to have a race but didn't have the foresight for people with dual races. That is one of the ways to maintain control.

Screw that shit for a while....I wanted to discuss culture and race.

So you would think that being of both of the oldest and established civilizations in the history of the world would render having "culture" up the wazoo! Well unfortunately I only adopt a part of the Indian and Chinese culture. Mainly in our cultural celebrations. Being a Christian, I don't celebrate religious holidays like Diwali or Wesak or Thaipusam. I do celebrate Chinese New Year which is a cultural holiday. And due to the vast cultural and ethnic diversity in India, we are confused as to when is the Indian new year.

Even though I am of both races, there are many things culturally, I won't be accustomed to. For example, my culture is now Malaysian where we visit people of different race and religion during the holidays. Only the current government thinks we don't and would like to keep it that way. Divide and conquer.

If you are in India or China, that doesn't happen very much. People still stick to their own. Here is a list of "cultural" things people do in China and India where I wouldn't be caught dead doing.

1. Spitting wantonly.
When you walk in China, you have to be careful not to step on spit! People, young, old, frail, strong, female, male, foetus will just spit wherever they want, whenever they want. Spittle may consist of phlegm or just spit bubbles. Sometimes different colours as dependant on what was eaten by the spitter.

2. Kids urinating wantonly.
Kids with well dressed parents, will pee wherever they want. This includes on the pavement, in front of luxury malls, in front of your shoes, in front of your office, anywhere but the urinal. Even when they are in the toilet, they will pee anywhere. Small puddles of water on the pedestrian pavement may be some kid's pee. No disposition whatsoever. Need to go, stop, pull down pants and pee. Thank goodness this is restricted to kids. Adults will pee behind buildings, parking lots, quiet lanes.

3. Taking a dump like a farm animal
Why I am comparing to farm animals is because I haven't seen other animals take a dump. There is a saying in China, if you need to find the toilet, just follow the smell. While most of Beijing was cleaned up for the 2008 Olympics, it's only at the Central Business District. I went into one of the toilets and it looked as if someone's ass exploded!! Crap was EVERYWHERE!!! I had to stand in front and pee in.

4. Everyone can see you when you pee
I am not sure about this but for some reason, the toilet doors are designed in such a way that when men pee, people outside can see you. I am at loss of words here.

5. The cow is sacred
Now I am not one to diss anyone's religion but there has to be a line drawn to how much we want to respect the cow. If she sits on the highway, all traffic comes to a stand still.
"Your honour, I am sorry I am 2 hours late. Her most holiness "A-Random-Cow" was taking a nap."

6. Movies are too DAMN long
Indians need two things in life. Cricket and Bollywood movies. I don't understand both. How do you have a game that can go on for days?!?!?!

Mother: Where have you been? You have been away for 5 days!! Not a call or a tweet!
Son: Cricket game. India beat Pakistan
Mother: Oh praise the Random Cow. Then it's alright. Have you eaten?

Movies are just as bad. Not only it's long, it's not realistic. How often do you see whole villages or random crowd just break into the same song and same dance steps? Also where is the music coming from??? Notice also after all the fighting, there is no blood and not even a bruise....I can't figure this out.

7. Diarrhea
Some people get offended by this. But you gotta admit, 9 out of 10 tourist get this. In fact we are told not to drink the tap water or even use it to rinse or brush your teeth. We have to use bottled water and I am too afraid to ask where that came from.

8. There is shit smell everywhere
I don't know if cow dung is sacred but you can smell it almost anywhere. So much that it's part of the environment.....like fresh air.

I know I am going to get a lot of rebuke from this but you know it's true. While I am still very proud of my race, it doesn't mean I have to follow everything in its culture. I am first a Malaysian by birth and by culture, then Chindian.

Suck on that!

The importance of your racial beginnings....really?

2012-03-20T19:21:00.003+08:00

It has been a while since I blogged. No excuses, just lazy....so much to catch up on.

One of the many things I find that the human race is obsessed with is race. Which ethnicity they are from, who, they can marry and whom they can be friend with. I guess in Western civilization, it is not as apparent. If you go to Europe or the US, they assimilate pretty well. You can't really tell where they are from...I mean you can make an educated guess but it is of no real significance.

In Asia and Africa, we place so much importance to the ethnicity of fellow humans to the point of murder. If you marry out of your race, most parents will disown you as will the families ir even maim you. I have cousins and uncles who inter-marry and go through hell. Heck I witnessed it first hand. My mom went through some major mental torture when she first got married but her experience enabled our family to be more open to other races.

Having said that, I am not saying that we shouldn't care where we originated from. We should be proud of our race and help spread the understanding of our own culture and inner ticking of our race to others. I am extremely proud to be both Indian and Chinese. I am a product of the 2 oldest civilizations, culture and largest population today. How can I not be proud.

But I am a racist as I would prefer my children not to marry people who are too obsessed with their race. Indian, Punjabi and Malays are extremely against inter culture marriages. For Malays, the in-laws have to convert for fear of diluting the Islam religion. Which by the way is the fastest growing religion. If you have faith, why the insecurity of your religion being diluted?? I don't get that part. Chinese folks just think they are better than everyone. Indians and Punjabi are afraid that there won't be enough of their race in the country.

Sigh......

In short, I have been made a racist by society because they want to be their own so much, it doesn't leave a place for us multi culture folks. What a bunch of multi culture bullshit. However, you can't keep a good idea down as I see many inter marriage kids these days and there will be more to come. I think you should be a racist and shouldn't marry out of your race....which is the human race.

More than meets the eye!!

2011-07-18T20:02:00.003+08:00

Tranformers 3 was a movie that was a real enigma to me. Now the story wasn't too bad though predictable. Then again, this is Transformers not Sherlock Holmes' detective hour. So there aren't going to be any last second twist to the plot. Bad guy gets technology that humans don't understand and bad guy tries to bring Cybertron (Transformers' home) to earth. It is up to the robots and good guys to stop them.

Keeping with the theme of the movie, the humans are fringe players and don't do very much. They don't even have weapons that can do real harm to the robots! You mean to tell me that the Autobots didn't have the decency to share their weaponry knowledge so that they can do some serious damage and contribute to the battle?! What we had were some sad excuse of ex-Marines being scared to go into battle.

That was my problem with this sequel. There were too many fringe players. Roles that were not necessary at all. The biggest of them all was John Malkovich. Really!! Do you really need that whiny, stupidly stereotyped role??? Then there was the team of ex-Marines that Epps went to ask for help. Of course they would need help but just use the extras. No need to give them lines. No need for comic relief (they weren't even close).

I am not sure about the girl as well. At least Megan Fox was hot, could hot wire cars and bikes and could run and fight. This one only had a set of extremely long legs and the sausage lips. She can't act, fight, talk back, no humour and she wasn't even seductive. Seriously, if she wasn't in the movie, will she be missed? I tell you who would be missed.....Megan Fox!! Patrick Dempsey also played more of a cameo role than a main. So it was like a cameo for some big stars except for the girl, which only has big lips.

Even Shia was not as active. Didn't do much or anything that directly helped with saving the world. This was an Optimus Prime movie. While it was not as bad as some made it to be, it was a very poorly executed movie. This is a movie, you will see no matter what....so good luck and don't be too anal about the historical details.

The List goes on?

2011-07-14T14:45:00.000+08:00

It just keeps on going!!

1. Watching Sunday Morning cartoon in big spongebob underwear
Nobody needs to see full frontal butt and thighs exposure in the morning, especially in such hideous pants.

2. Hanging Justin Timberlake's / Nick Carter's / cute boyband member poster's on my wall
I already stopped doing this in junior high when I got out of boy band phase and entered hip-hop phase. Most rappers I like aren't hot enough to stare at anyway.

3. Eating really huge lollipop / box of oreos or caramel popcorn... and finish them
I barely eat candies now. I love oreos and popcorn but if I eat a lot of them, tummy ache will surely happen.4. Checking out hot guys in the mall, approach them, and ask for their numbers
Don't judge, it was junior high school and us girls bet a lot on it.

5. Crying when getting a vaccine
Needles scare me, even until this very moment. I'm not crying anymore though, or am I?

6. Joining a girly clique and having cat fights with other cliques
Don't tell me you never had this phase. It started since junior high and ended in high school. Girls thinking they're all that and be insecure bitches and hate on other girls. Some people are still like this though, yes? Ladies, we're way too old for this shit.

7. Full frontal making out in a parked car or movie theaters
If a guy I date groped me so much in a movie theater, I would have been offended. And annoyed for being distracted during a movie. I think guys our age or older should pick a better place to do 'the business', no?

8. Playing dance dance revolution in mall’s game arcades
I used to kick so much ass in this. Now I need to get a grip and maintain grown up's calmness or something.

9. Dye my hair in bright blue / red color
I never dyed ALL my hair with these colors, a few highlights maybe. But I'm over it, and over my teenage angst phase. So tacky. I wanna be classy and sophisticated now, thank you.

10. Throwing up for being too drunk
Again, very tacky. No matter how much it feels fun at the time. I still read a lot of blogs when people tell me they drink so much up until the point of throwing up and blacking out, where they did embarrassing things they thought hilarious, like flashing or waking up somewhere unknown. Let me be open now and say that all those things make you look like cheap whores. Getting tipsy is fun, too drunk? Ew.

11. Not sleeping at all in a day
I used to be able to not sleep for 2-3 days and still do all my activities alright. My age is catching up on me, I have to sleep at least 4 hours if I don't wanna be grumpy and tired the next day.

12. Finishing a flaming drink by myself
Whatever the type is : flaming bikini, flaming combustion, or whatever it is alcoholic drink that requires to be lit up in fire before you drink it. I gotta have at least two people with me to drink it together now, otherwise I'll just be really sick.

13. Drinking and partying so much in weekdays / a few nights in a row
There are still times when I have to do it for work, like when I have a gig. But it always means I'll be queasy and super tired the next day. Not my option to have fun now, just weekends please.

14. Do real stupid and embarrassing dares in public
Been there, done that. I did a dare when I had to go up to an empty stage right in the center of the mall and dance to old school Britney Spears tracks. Talking about never going there again.

15. Pulling pranks on the professors / teachers
if I do it now, they would just fail me. Yikes. However I had fun putting a frog once inside my art teacher's briefcase. He almost peed in his pants.

16. Being loud in the theaters
Oh teenage memories. Laughing and goofing off during movies until one of those boring older people shush us rudely. Sadly, I'm becoming one of those boring older people now. I just can't stand noisy giggling teenagers when I'm trying to enjoy the movie.

17. Listening to popular pop music of today and not cringe
Popular pop music used to be so enjoyable during Spice Girls and Backstreet Boys era, or was it my age that time? Now it's all Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, Jonas Brothers, and a few others, giving me unhealthy desires to slam the radio until it breaks.

18. Talking on the phone all night
Why is it that I could handle hours and hours of pointless conversation on the phone and now it irritates me? Unless my close friend crying about something in the end of the line, more than 15 minutes call will annoy me. I'll stick to instant messengers and texts.

19. Wearing shirts or pants with provocative writings / pictures on them
I wonder why we thought it's cute. The word "juicy" on your ass or the hand prints on your boobs will make you look nastier than Lil Kim in a heat wearing latex suits.

2o. Writing LiKe tHisss
How Myspace and Friendster! Especially adding the word "baby" and stars to your name. Examples? **JaMieeBabbiee** or "$$mIsZkAci$$ . Please, please, let me punch your face if you do it.

More older shit to add to the Murtaugh List

2011-07-14T14:40:00.002+08:00

I read this list on someone's blog from the US. Not too bad.....

1. I can’t stand radio stations that play “today’s hits”

2. While at the Apple Store, a kid probably aged 10, totally embarrassed me at Star Wars Lego

3. My son told me I had hot breath

4. I saw a car just 3 days ago driving down a major street with the driver and passenger dancing. I thought, this is why kids shouldn’t have licenses

5. I rather appreciate talk radio and will only listen to sports radio or NPR

6. The other day I was actually listening to the radio and I heard 3 great songs strung together and then the station identification came on and it was an Easy Listening station. Easy, freakin, Listening Man!

7. I identify my age by music

8. When I get up in the morning I used to view going to the bathroom as a good thing to do, now it’s a necessity and don’t get in my way

9. When I get up needing to go to the bathroom, all my muscles hurt, which complicates the necessity

10. I feel the need to tell you my bathroom habits

11. I complain about how much milk (soy) my family drinks a week

12. I actually told my son, as he was getting milk, to “close the refrigerator door, I’m not paying to cool the house and you’ll break the motor”

13. I enjoy going to Home Depot and Loews more than going to electronic stores (RIP CompUSA)

14. When I get online, I research gardening tips and landscaping ideas or medical situations instead of going immediately to fark.com or other time wasting sites.

I am too old for this shit!

2011-07-14T12:08:00.002+08:00

Those of us born in the 80s have this phenomenon called "getting old" or "mid-life crisis". Some of us more profound than others. For example, some of us are losing hair on our head and getting it in our ears, back and some nether regions.

As we get on with life, many things change. Mentally and especially physically. We change mentally in terms of our opinion of something, how we start to appreciate a starlit night, how a sad movie makes us cry, blah, blah, blah....ya ya, all that psycho stuff. Let's get to the fun part.

So as you are now in your 40s, what part of your 20's can you do anymore? Either because you physically can't or you would just look like a total brain-dead moron!

1. Staying up all night with your buds drinking beer and sharing stupid stories
2. Ermm...just staying up all night
3. Piercing ear - it will hurt like hell plus you look like an abandoned, left out gay man.
4. Hanging posters without frames
5. Sleep on your friend's canvas bed or hammock or anything that does not remotely resemble a nice, warm, soft bed!
6. Eating an entire pizza in one sitting or a "Tai Pau" or anything major food group for that matter.
7. Put off going to the doctor for ANY medical reason!!
8. Drinking with strangers in a bar because no ones wants to be friends with you in a bar.
9. Help someone move out of a flat without elevators in exchange for pizza and beer
10. Beer Bong - Gawd, I was never good at this even when I was in my 20s
11. Going to a rave
12. Sleep past 8am
13. Talk on the phone all night because of item 1.
14. I cannot be TyPiNg LikE diS
15. Do stupid dares in public because I may be arrested or beaten up.
16. To “understand” the Jonas Brothers or Justin Bieber
17. Drive around with really loud music, bass pumping, and windows rolled down
18. Wear leather clothes
19. Eat whatever I want without putting on weight or getting a heartburn - I now put on weight purely through osmosis.
20. MTV
21. New Year Eve parties and concerts end right after midnight.

There are many more that I will try to remember doing then and cannot now. What is your list?

What is the best way to pick up chicks?

2011-06-24T22:26:00.003+08:00

The best way is to use a fork lift or a trolley. That way she is comfortable and you don't exert yourself. Hahaha....just dry humour to start the article. Anyway, I get asked a lot on this topic and I am not saying this because people think I am some kind of master at this. Truth is, they think we Chindians know better because we have both culture.

Let me ask you, who are the best pickers? Gorgeous guys or ugly guys? The answer is confident guys. If they are gorgeous, they are not going to work hard to get the girls. They don't need to. If you are ugly and have no confidence, nothing is going to happen for you as well. But if you are confident, there is a chance that something can happen for you. There are more girls than dudes in the world so that odds are stacked in our favour. Even though you may strike out a lot, eventually you will get a hit.

The first thing you gotta to do is to get over some mental blocks that you have built up in that mind of yours. Blocks like "What if she thinks I am ugly?", "What if I can't measure up to her previous dates?", "What if I am not cool?", "What if I don't know where to take her?" and the most common "What is she thinks I am stupid, or weird or laughs at me?".

Well the problem is, she probably will but if you keep at it, you WILL strike gold. Someone will like you. In fact many one will like you. So some tips for you to get the mental blocks away.

Concept 1 : When picking up a girl, you must be detached from the outcome.

If you care about what the girl thinks of you, you are destined to fail. Let’s face it, there are going to be many girls that you are just not compatible with. Many of them just won’t live up to your expectations and you won’t live up to many of theirs. You must get over this and not care if you succeed or get rejected. If you care, then you will do everything you can NOT to screw up, and consequently, this makes you screw up.

Concept 2: When picking up a girl, YOU are choosing her.

When you talk to someone for the first time, you must realize that there’s a reason that you are talking to them. If you’re talking to a woman for the first time, it’s likely that she already knows you’re trying to pick her up. Many guys have tried to pick her up before and many will in the future. This does not mean that she decides if she will accept your approach or not. When you go shopping for a car, you might walk into a dealership, but does that mean that you will purchase the car? No way! The only way you’re going purchase the car is if it’s a good investment and the salesman is competent. The same applies to dating. When you go out and you meet a girl, keep in mind that YOU won’t take her home unless you like her.

Concept 3: Be happy, enjoy what you do and she will too.

Many guys approach this as a horrifying experience when in reality, it should really be a pleasurable one. If your objective is to find out what kind of person this girl is and then make her smile, then you’re likely to have many good and enjoyable interactions. If you try to “win” by picking her up, you’re doomed for failure. Most of the time, the best pick ups are when you aren’t even trying.

Concept 4: No immediate compliments!

What ever you do, do NOT compliment her on her looks. Paying attention to detail is good, but as soon as you mention her physical appearance, things start to turn ugly. If anything, you can mention her clothing, accessories or anything out of the ordinary, but do NOT mention her appearance. Even if she has the most beautiful eyes you’ve ever seen, refrain from mentioning it. You can tell her later… much later.

Concept 5: Building attraction immediately

In order to build attraction, you must be able to convey signs of a good and desirable mate. These will naturally be present in men whom workout often and are already successful with women. However, what if you don’t have time to work out often and you aren’t already successful with women ? There is always your personality. Personally, working out was never my thing and the good thing is it's probably not the girls as well. Exercise to stay healthy and the attraction will come.

Now with all that tips and you still need a boost, I have one more piece of wisdom for you. Take a baby (could be yours or borrow one) and look hopelessly lost at the supermarket. Pick one supermarket where it's in a neighbourhood full of single working people. A girl cannot resist a man lost in the food section with baby. Food, cooking and baby is their world. It's their maternal instinct to not resist a MAN getting lost in their world.

Coz you read my blog, that one was free!

Dylan Dog....what can I say??

2011-06-24T22:04:00.002+08:00

What kind of person has a family name called "Dog"? An Italian comic book hero, that's who. That's right, Dylan Dog was surprising an Italian comic book hero. How it got to the silver screen is beyond me. So anyway, it's about a hero that is some kind of private investigator. He has been selected to be the go-between with the humans and the creatures of the night. Then his fiance is murdered and that pushed poor Dylan over the edge.

As with all plots, fate will drag him kicking and screaming back into his old world with his trademark black jacket, red shirt and jeans. There a war going on between the vampires (which are stereotyped to be gangland members, 5,000 bucks suit wearing snobs) and the werewolves (which are portrayed as the hard working class people. There are also zombies but they are just cowards....bad smelling at that. In this movie, they provide the comic relief...unlike Resident Evil.

I am not sure if this is an action movie, comedy or horror. It tried to be a bit of all. The comedy was welcoming and the horror was predictable. It has its moments but if life doesn't give you any free time, you can skip this.

Brandon Routh was not too bad. He reminds me of Keanu Reeves...can play only one expression and one type of role. He is typecasted into the serious, brooding, puppy eyes hero that has the same expression for EVERY situation. Geez! So this movie suited him. He played a person in dilemma and suffering for something....maybe lack of expression.

I give it a popcorn and some nuggets because that's what I had. Bottomline, it has some entertaining features but not enough for me to want to watch it again.