Anything Goes!

It's A Dog's Life

2012-05-21T22:01:00.001+08:00

That gullible person who looks after me has been so busy with work and running that he hasn't had much time to blog much about cute old me, I thought I'd hijack his blog and just post some cute little pictures of myself in case you all forgot about cute old me ... ok, ok, I know I can be so darned vain, but heck, I am cute after all, right? Right?? Right???

Come on, isn't this picture of me just adorable? Doesn't those huge puppy dog eyes of mine make you wanna go out and buy me lots of treats and goodies? BOL! It works on that gullible little fellow who takes care of me all the time. All I need to do is blink my big, beautiful eyes a few times and I get him to do all my bidding. I'm a smart little dog aren't I?

Just in case you're wondering why I'm hijacking his blog when I have my own little blog called Pebbles Tales, well it's more fun saturating and messing up his blog with my cute little face. Besides, seeing as how he hardly has the time to blog, I thought I might as well make use of his blog anyway.

Here's a picture of me snoozing away on his and mommy's bed in my nice little yellow top mommy bought for me a month or so ago. It's so nice and cozy that whenever I wear it, I'm always automatically sleepy ... hehehe ... Notice how deep in sleep I am. I love this yellow top and mommy has named it my 'baju tidor' (pajamas).

This is a picture of me nicely snoozing (what else) on that idiot's ... urrmmm ... I mean nice owner of mine, side of the bed when he's away at work. This is mommy's and my little secret. He comes back home and always wonders why his pillows are always messed up ... muahahaha!

Now here's a picture of me when I'm not snoozing and playing around with my best buddy Mac Taylor. Mac Taylor was one of my very first soft toy buddies and I love him so much. I can spend hours trying to rip him apart, unfortunately he's darn tough for little soft toy!

Most of the time, I love lazing around in bed with mommy and that slave of mine under the 'thing that blows cold air' (that's what I named the air-conditioning unit), but they don't always switch on the 'thing that blows cold air' in the day time and it gets hot downstairs so I find a nice cool corner on the tiled floor in his home office and tuck my head under the shelf to avoid the bright glaring light and heat. Sometimes I wish I can reach the switch that switches on the 'thing that blows cold air', now wouldn't that just be peachy!

There are times though when that fellow who looks after me will abuse me by forcing me to pose with his silly running shoes and medals! I know I'm a cute little furry thing but heck, it's not easy being cute all day and having to pose in front of ugly blue shoes and not get paid. I wonder if I can report him to the SPCA or something. You can just see my displeasure can't you?

But most of the time I'm totally bored with nothing much to do. I mean I can only sleep and look cute for so long, you know. Maybe I should get him to get me my own little tablet or something so I can play Doggyville all day and connect with other doggies out there? What do you think? And no, that's not a picture of me in a cage. He doesn't believe in cages or animals being caged up. That's just me poking my head through the bars at the foot of the bed looking absolutely bored.

But mostly, I'm a happy and contented little doggy who has all her needs taken care of by mommy and that silly fellow. He might be a little blur at times but he does make sure I'm comfortable and tucked in under my blanket before he goes to bed.

Sitting Out

2012-05-12T21:07:00.002+08:00

Today is a first for me, running wise that is. This is the first time I paid to participate in a race and am sitting out of it on purpose. Well, not really on purpose but for a personal reason anyway.

Early Sunday morning, 3.00am, the PJ Dawn Half Marathon will flag off and I'll be fast asleep on my memory foam mattress and hoping all my running buddies will have a fun filled and most importantly safe race. I would have loved to have been there joining them for the race as the route is a pretty fast one and I was hoping to have brought down my half marathon personal best in this event.

But alas, that was not to be when I found out who was part of the organizing team. I signed up for this event the moment it was announced a few months back, way even before they actually announced who the organizers were. A smart move on their part if you ask me, cos if they did announced it early and people knew who was a part of the committee, they have a very low participation rate.

Well, to cut a long story short, the moment I discovered this person was part of the team, the wife and me decided we'd rather waste the entry fee than take part in this event. Looks like I'll just have to wait for another race to see if I can bring down my half marathon PB timing even more.

I'll be praying and hoping that the race will go through without any problems and that all the participants will come out of it having a good time. With that said and done, all the best to all the runners for the race tomorrow :D

Chill

2012-05-07T21:55:00.000+08:00

I'm up to my neck with work that I think I need a disney world vacation for some rest and recreation soon. Everything that's on my plate right now is labeled as 'super urgent' that sometimes I'm running around like a headless chicken just making sure everything goes according to schedule.

As it is, I just recently lost a huge profit project from not being able to get things done on time, which really is a bummer! It would have seen some hefty profits coming in but unfortunately things didn't work out the way I planned and the job was lost. I was pissed with myself for a couple of days over it which added to stress that I'm going through these days.

As much as I'd like to pick and choose my projects right now but I simply cannot afford to. The price of things out there has tripled tremendously and if I don't accept every project that I can get my hands on, someone else will and I'd end up having a difficult time trying to put food on the table.

I don't know about the rest of you but I'm having a tough time struggling and slaving away just to be able to survive every month. Things are not at all cheap out there these days. Just this evening, the wife and me went grocery shopping and had to part with a heck of a lot of cash for the items we bought and the shopping cart not even half full!

I don't know how else to make more money except work like a slave. I honestly blame this all on the useless thieving folks we have running the country who live like kings and queens, living it up with the good stuff while the rest of the country have to suffer like fourth class citizens. And then they have the cheek to tell me to live moderately at that. Heck, how do you think I'm living right now?

I'm praying that the people of Malaysia will succeed in getting that change we all need for a fresh start and for a better future. With that said and done, let me go figure more ways to make some extra money.

Bersih 428

2012-04-28T21:07:00.000+08:00

I've been complaining about the government and what crooks they are but haven't really done anything about it. Talk is cheap they say so today I decided to join the thousands of my fellow Malaysians and march up (or tried to anyway) to Dataran Merdeka (Independence Square for the benefits of two of my overseas readers) for the Bersih 3.0 rally!

It was an experience to treasure, mingling around with thousands of people from this country irrespective of race, religious beliefs and the like. For that 6 hours or so that I was there, we were all just Malaysians and none of that PM's 1Malaysia nonsense either, it was just plain, true and pure Malaysians who wanted a change in this country.

It was a decision that wasn't hard to make. The wife wanted to go but we didn't want to take the chance of anything happening to both of us and the children would be all alone at home so I went on behalf of both of us. We don't trust the the Police and DBKL (the town council) as they're all just stooges for the government. They wouldn't let this rally go by peacefully so it was better for one of us to stay home, besides she was with me in my heart all through the rally.

I woke up early and headed into town to park as close as I possibly could seeing as how the freaking cops had already started blocking all the access roads to Dataran Merdeka as early as the night before. I had planned to park in Bangsar and walk all the way to one of the planned rally meeting points about 3-4 kilometers away (one way). Now here is where my running training came in real handy. The 3-4 kilometer walk felt like a really slow LSD session ... LOL!

Anyways, true enough, on the way there I encountered the cops making a human chain across the roads and trying to deter us from reaching the main rally point. Not to be deterred, we just found another way there and sneaked our way around the boys in blue. I was a little emotional seeing so many people of different ages and races all being one and helping each other to find the best and safest way towards the rally point that I think there really is hope for this country after all, if only we could unseat the dictatorial regime, note I use the words 'regime' here cos that's what they are!

Anyways, I finally make my way through the blazing late morning sun towards Dataran Merdeka only to come face to face with barricades and razor wires strung across the roads leading to the rally location taking away my democratic rights of going where I want to. There was already close to a thousand, by my estimate, people there facing off the cops by just sitting peacefully and chanting inspirational messages so I decided to stay there with them and wait till 2.00pm which was when the actual 'duduk bantah' (sitting protest) would begin for two hours.

I had a field day snapping pictures of the event as proof of how many people attended the rally. Unfortunately I wish I had some duracell procell aaa handy cos my cell was running low on battery from all those pictures and videos I was snapping.

The FRU cordoning off the road towards Dataran ...

The people were all passionate about why they were there. The national anthem was sung on many occasions and I can't remember it being more meaningful than all those times I had to sing it every Monday morning during assembly back in my school days! I can't even remember a time I sang the national anthem with such pride!

The sun was blazing and by then the crowd started to swell. I can't really say how many there were at this location (there were a few other rally points) but I'd estimate close to a few thousand fellow Malaysians. Since we couldn't go pass the barricades and were also told not to by the event chairperson and marshals, we all sat there to protest for a clean and fair elections which was the agenda of this rally anyway.

Welcome to Tel Aviv ala Malaysia ...

Fortunately nothing untoward happened, though I was bracing for the worse and managed to head home peacefully. Unfortunately, by the time I got home, the wife told me that the cops fired tear gas and water canons at people who were leaving the rally without being provoked by anyone, at least that's what I read on Facebook and Twitter anyway. I don't really know what actually happened at that locations but a lot or reports came in saying they were shot at for no reason. It's as if the government weren't happy that we Malaysians acted civil during the sit in protest and wanted to teach us a lesson as we were leaving.

All that is unconfirmed anyway as it didn't happen where I was but knowing the way the government think, I wouldn't put it pass them to do something like that. I read a lot of people were hurt and arrested and I truly and sincerely hope that they're okay. I suppose I'll know more as the reports flow in on Facebook and Twitter. I'm not going to bother with the government controlled main stream media who are probably going to twist the facts anyway.

Was it worth it? To walk to and fro, close to 12 kilometers? To be baked in the sun for close to 6 hours? To shout myself hoarse demanding for my rights? You bet your bottom dollar it was. I'm fed up of being taken for a fool by the idiots in Putrajaya. I'm fed up of them stealing from us, living it up while I have to work like a slave for every single cent I earn just to put food on the table. I'm fed up with them telling me to live moderately while they live in million dollar bungalows and drive around in expensive sports cars.

It's time we all stand up and demand for what is ours. Besides I NEVER voted this incompetent prime minister and his deputy into power and I'm sure neither did a lot of you. I demand for somebody better to bring this country out of the rut it is in and that can only start with a fair and clean elections. Something the dictatorial regime knows they will lose hands down if they don't cheat, which is why they're so against this rally for a fair and clean elections.

Let's get real, if they lost, they'd lose their only source of stealing money from us and they'd probably end up in prison once the opposition takes over and uncovers all their illegal dealings while they were in power. So yes, I would say it was worth every bit of my time and effort to be alongside my fellow Malaysians today and I would do it all over again if need to!

Feels Like Hell On Earth

2012-04-23T10:55:00.002+08:00

I'm expecting the day to be a hot one. The moment I woke up and after switching off the air conditioning in the room and was getting ready for work, I was already sweating. And it wasn't even 9am yet.

Then driving out to work, the sun outside felt like it was midday! That's a sure sign of the day being a hot one. It's going to make my evening run session later today an uncomfortable one if the weather doesn't cool down by then.

Even my office with all the air conditioning at full blast is struggling to keep us barely comfortable. I'm praying that there won't be any outdoor installations today cos I dread stepping out of the office. Looks like my guitar playing session later with those Mitchell Guitars we have in the office is a no go. Not that I could play the guitar in the first place, mind you!

Where Did The Week Go?

2012-04-22T20:38:00.003+08:00

The weekend just flew by in the blink of an eye! How time flies these days. I had a blast over the weekend what with running the Energizer Night Race on Saturday night which turned out to be a fun filled affair, as far as I was concerned.

It was one of my better run races this year and running on the Sepang International Circuit for the second year running was again pretty cool :D Actually it wasn't, weather wise cos it was kinda hot but the run itself was fun.

Managed to complete the distance of 15.5km in a personal best which is a big boost in my preparations for the upcoming Standard Chartered KL Marathon where I'll be participating in my first ever full marathon. Up until a couple of weeks ago, I wasn't that confident but of late, with an improvement in performance and form, I'm feeling much more confident for the marathon.

I don't have any aims for the marathon except to cross that finish line in a dignified and respectable manner on two feet and not crawling across on all fours ... LOL! I can't imagine myself having to run at best, a sub 5 hour marathon or at worse, a sub 6 hour marathon. I've never run that long in my entire lifetime so it'll be an experience to remember.

I have slightly a little more than 2 months to prepare (which is really cutting it close) but having a big boost in confidence is one huge step in my favour already :D We'll just have to wait and see how it goes come the 24th of June.

With that said and done, it's another blistering hot night and I'm sitting here in my mini office at home having to figure out how to fix this two busted computer carts that I brought home from the office.

All Work And No Play ...

2012-04-20T21:43:00.001+08:00

Wow, I've been so busy with work that I haven't written a blog post in nearly two weeks! Even that arginmax review I'm supposed to look into has been put on hold. Work has kept me pretty much busy from the moment I wake up to the moment I sleep.

The past week especially has been a really hectic one for me. I'm going to be running the Energizer Night Race (ENR) tomorrow night at the Sepang International Circuit and I'm looking forward to it. The thing is my company has also been involved in printing all the bib numbers for all 5,300 plus participants and it all was done at the last minute, which is the norm in these parts. Not only that, but I've been contracted to print a host of the race paraphernalia and banners so much so that I'm a little sick of seeing the words 'Energizer Night Race' ... LOL!

But I can't really complain. I think I have the bestest job at the moment. I love running so much and I actually also earn a living from the running events I participate in. Can it get much better than that? In fact, 90% of my clients right now are from the sporting industry and as much as it can get pretty tiring from doing all their work, I'm also having a blast working with these clients, especially those involved in running :D

The ENR organizers are happy with my work and has assured me of more running projects that I'm looking forward to working with them for the coming races they're organizing this year, which is quite a lot judging by my meetings with them.

While it's hard work getting all the items ready before race day, it's also pretty satisfying. I'm really, really looking forward to the race tomorrow night and judging by today's weather, I'm expecting it to be a wet one. But it's going to be a blast running on the Sepang track for the second time. I also took part in last year's ENR 'fiasco' race but am sure it's be a better organized race this year judging by the event organizers track record.

What better way to spend a Saturday night than run15.5KM around the Sepang circuit?

Stand Up Comics

2012-04-04T11:14:00.001+08:00

These days I get my source of entertainment courtesy of the folks from ruling regime. They provide my daily doses of laughter on a bad work day. The chief comedian among them happens to be our 'beloved' prime minister who just happens to come out with some funny statements that has me laughing away, sometimes in side splitting pain :D

Take this excerpt of a report I read today for example:

Exciting, challenging for Najib
PHNOM PENH: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak described his three years in office as very exciting and full of challenges.

After three years in office, the prime minister believes people have more confidence in the government

'We have come a long way in the three years. When we started, we started from a position that was full of challenges, that is the political tsunami and there were lots of sceptism and cynicism.'

'But after three years, people have more trust and confidence in the government. The rakyat believed we can deliver and we have delivered,” he told the Malaysian media during a conference today ...'

Seriously, if that isn't comedy I don't know what is. I mean seriously, he'd give Drew Carey a run for his money if he decided to quit being a PM and become a stand up comic ... hahaha ... I wonder what he would say about pentair pool parts if given the chance.

I have to give our ruling regime credits for brightening my mornings with their comedic statements. If it wasn't for them, my entire work day would be filled with grey clouds ... hahahah! I won't even get started with our number two stand up comic, our deputy PM!

Fast Forward

2012-04-02T15:19:00.000+08:00

God, it's April already. Where does the time go? Soon it'll be December 12 and we'll all be wondering if there will be a December 13th the next day. I really can't recall the days going by so fast. There was a time when it would take forever for a month to go by, especially when you're broke and waiting for your next pay cheque ... LOL!

My day is normally so full from the moment I wake up to the time I go to bed that I hardly have time to do all the things I want to do in a day. There are days when I wish there was more than 24 hours in a day. It's not that I mind the days going by in a flash, but it also ages me so much faster.

I'm already 45 years old, though I still think like a 30 year old ... LOL! I'm getting sales people in shopping malls calling me 'uncle' and it sure ain't a nice thing to hear. Heck, only a few years back, I was calling people 'uncle'! I know they're only being respectful but I could do with a lot less respect sometimes and just be called a young punk once in a while ... hahaha!

I haven't really blogged about anything thought provoking in ages and I don't think this post will prove to be thought provoking or even the least bit interesting in any way. I just have some free time right now that I though I'd use to tell you all about all about Hipshot Extenders but I doubt you'd be the least bit interested. Finding the time to blog let alone blog about anything interesting is a challenge in itself.

Nothing much has been happening in my life. Things are still the same. I'm still slogging away trying to make living and earn enough to satisfy my running shoe buying fetish ... LOL! Most of my day is taken up by work and when I'm done with work, the other half is taken up by my passion for running. At least I have a similar minded life partner who shares the same passion so we get to spend time together doing something we both love :D

I'm running a marathon in approximately 2 months plus time and up until a few weeks ago, I was totally skeptical about being able to do it. But of late, with a huge change in training plans, I've found new confidence in my abilities to run the marathon and cross that finish line in respectable timing. Since this is my first ever marathon distance, I don't have a benchmark to gauge abilities against so the only goal I've affixed to myself is to finish the distance. Can and will I be able to do it? I'll tell you after the race :D

The Running Dog

2012-03-27T21:22:00.000+08:00

Wow, after all my complains about the heat wave that we've been going through, it finally rains this morning. I would have called it bliss if I didn't have to wake up and head out to work. But the rain was really appreciated. At least I can now officially stop melting for a while. In fact, It's actually even raining right now as I write this post :D

The day has been a pretty boring one, which I'm actually grateful for seeing as how I had a horribly stressful time last week. I think my blood pressure tripled in the space of that one horrendously awful week. I'm going to enjoy whatever 'boringness' the week will offer cos you never know when some new project will drop on my lap and give me grieve.

I've missed two days of running due to a recovering busted leg from falling in the drain during last Sunday's evening run. Yes, you read right, I fell in the drain ... hahaha! If you ask my two best buddies, they'll probably tell you I have a history of falling in drains.

There I was running along in my usual route and had to cross this drain. Normally I'd just jump over it but this time, I don't know what overcame me and I just stepped on that wooden plank and the next thing I knew I was in pain in a three feet drain.

Good thing I didn't suffer any serious injuries. I sustained two swollen toes and a twisted ... urrrmmm ... nerve? vein? something along the top of the foot that hurt like hell when I bend the ankle. Thank god, after two days of resting, the foot is getting back to normal and I can resume my running tomorrow instead of going rogue status with runs.

Speaking of running, I wanted to post about this quite a while back but was so darned lazy. During the recently concluded Brooks Half Marathon, there was this stray dog that amazed me cos he (or was it as she? I never looked) ran along with the all runners side by side and ended up in the Bukit Jalil stadium doing a lap to the finish.

I don't know if the fellow actually ran the entire 21KM with all the other runners cos I only saw him running alongside me up till the 6KM mark and lost sight of him. The fellow, though running on three legs (he had one bad leg, poor thing) completely outpaced me after that ... hahaha! All I know is I saw him making a lap around the stadium with some of the other finishers looking like he had a great time :D

The lil fellow happily doing his lap of honour alongside the other runners ...

The best part is, everyone irrespective of race or religion was happy to have him along. I would have taken the fellow home but Pebbles would have made a fuss if I did ... Imagine, if I brought the fellow home, he could run with the wife and me every evening :D

I wonder what happened to him though. I just hope the poor fellow is alright and will be a regular feature at races around Bukit Jalil in the future.

Topsy Turvy

2012-03-23T12:33:00.000+08:00

I know I just spoke about the blistering weather yesterday but heck, the weather is really so hot that I have to complain again ... LOL! It's making spending my leisurely hours sitting in one of those chaise lounge chairs that I own totally not possible at all. Ok, ok, I don't have any chaise lounge chairs but heck, you know what I mean.

I'm actually sitting in my air-conditioned room in the office with the fan settings and temperature at full blast and I'm actually still feeling a trickle of sweat on my back. I know my air-condition is working properly cos it was only serviced a week ago, it's just so hot that the AC is struggling to function properly.

Seriously, I think the world is really heading to destruction pretty soon. Our weather patterns have taken a turn for the worse. I don't remember it being this hot in my younger days. Back then, you could play in the hot afternoon sun and not faint from sunstroke. Now, just walking outside for a short while is enough to burn you to a crisp and it's not like I'm not tanned enough already!

I'm hoping I'll be able to sit in the office all day but unfortunately I have an outdoor installation to attend to later, though I'm not so sure yet. I suppose drinking lots of fluids would be the sane thing to do. I'm probably going to have to schedule all my run sessions to really later in the evening when the place cools down considerably.

Ok, excuse me while I go do a rain dance or something outside! Happy Friday people.

Hot!

2012-03-22T14:11:00.001+08:00

The weather is incredibly hot out there. It's not your normal hot, it's blistering hot! You can practically feel the heat searing your skin. The worst thing is, my work requires me to be outside all day today in the blistering sun supervising an outdoor signage installation.

I feel so light headed and dizzy right now. I'm afraid if I get up from my chair I'd faint! I wish I could go home and just sleep but I've still got loads of paperwork to be done and another after midnight installation to be done tonight ... siggghhh ...

I think my running is going to have to take a back seat for today cos I don't think I'm going to be able to run with the way I feel right now. Right now I wish it would rain cos the heat is so bad that the air-conditioning in my room is playing havoc trying to keep the place cool. I wonder if the sun has moved nearer to the earth or something.

Maybe I should take off this medical scrubs that I'm using and it might just be much cooler :D

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

2012-03-10T21:38:00.000+08:00

It's raining out there and while it might be good for sleeping tonight, I do hope it stops in a few hours time. I'm running the Brooks Half Marathon tomorrow morning and I don't fancy getting up at 3.30am and having to head to the race location and run in the rain.

At that time of the morning, it can be chilling cold and it'll just be even more chilling if the rain doesn't stop. Imagine running in a running vest and shorts in an early morning rain, I'll bet even a snow man would shudder at the thought!

Otherwise, I'm pretty excited about the run tomorrow. It's been nearly a month since I've ran in a race event and I'm looking forward to it. Hopefully the legs will hold out and no old injuries like the libido max side effects will crop up halfway to put a damper on my fun.

Ok, ok, I actually don't know what a libido max side effect is, but it sounded like a cool and fun thing to say ... LOL! Happy Sunday, peeps.

You Spin Me Right Round ...

2012-03-09T13:17:00.000+08:00

It's only lunch time and my day has already been a lousy and stressful one. Thank god, it's Friday and tomorrow is the weekend.

I woke up this morning feeling drowsy, dizzy with the room spinning all around me. I don't even know why that happened seeing as how I did nothing out of the ordinary last night. In fact I'm still feeling the effects of the dizziness even up to now.

Then I had to drive all the way to the Curve through the late morning jam to pick up my race kit for this Sunday's Brooks Half marathon. I could pick it up later today or tomorrow but then it's the weekend and the Curve will be too packed with weekend shoppers then so early morning was the best idea.

It didn't help much that he Race kit collection was an exercise in trying my patience with the shoddy arrangement that was laid out. What could have taken a couple of minutes had me waiting for quite a while before actually picking up the Race kit for the wife and me. To compound matters, they were selective on giving out bags to store all the Race kit items inside which resulted with me giving one of the personnel there a earful!

Then coming into the office rose my blood pressure by about 200% more. I had to sit down in my room and talk a few million deep breaths to calm my frayed nerves before going and sorting out the mess that is in the midst of being created by the production boys in my office.

I can't understand why people just cannot seem to accept that I actually do know what I'm talking about sometimes when I instruct someone to do things a certain way and not go and ignore my instructions and do it their way which results in being a total failure and I need to get this stuff installed for a promo tomorrow morning! And I still have my mailing tubes project to work on after that!

Siggghhh ... it doesn't look like a promising Friday. At least there's the Brooks Half Marathon this Sunday to look forward to. It'll be a nice stress busting half marathon session :D

You Selfish Lot!

2012-02-23T12:29:00.001+08:00

I have an issue that I need to get off my mind. Sometimes humans can really be a selfish lot.

The area I live in is basically a residential area with a few commercial sections thrown in. It used to be a nice quiet area to live in. Then came more development, which is unavoidable really, and the quality of living became hectic, with the perpetual traffic snarls and all that. The price of progress, I suppose.

That is not what I want to bitch about. As the population and the surrounding residential area grew, more and more people started to populate the place. More housing sections came into the fray. Though it became a busy area, people still lived in harmony or at least an outward feel of harmony anyway.

Then breaks ins and robberies start happening and people start getting worried. Let's not even talk about the Police force who are supposed to be handling this issue. They've got rather more important things to do as the puppets of the ruling regime than actually patrol our streets and homes.

So, the residents decide to start hiring security guards to patrol their residential sections. Money needs to be paid for these security arrangements. Why we need to fork out money to pay for security, I really don't know when we already pay taxes and security should be the job of the cops anyway. But what other choice do the people have to protect their homes and family. Heck, even I pay a monthly security fee to to have guards patrol my home are at nights.

Soon, the guards were not enough. Some residents decided to fence up and gate their residential sections. Fine and dandy. I understand the need for security and all that. Now comes the part where I want to bitch.

Most of these self imposed gated communities erect fences around their neighbourhood with a main guarded entrance and one or two small gates to allow other residents to walk through their areas as some of these neighbourhoods are actually short cuts for people and school children to go through. These gates are normally locked at a certain time late at night and opened early morning, which is fair.

Then there are neighbourhoods, practically all of them over here that actually lock these darn small gates all day long and deny access to regular people to go through, including school going children who have to walk quite a distance to go around these gated neighbourhoods just to get home. Some of the long way rounds take them past heavily traffic roads and pose a danger to these children walking home from school.

It's bad enough that it's a really hassle for cars wanting to drive through which are stopped and asked all kinds of questions before they are let in. Don't get me wrong, once again I understand the need for security and the guards are only following the orders of the over-zealous residents which thinks the freaking entire neighbourhood belongs to only them but to lock these small access gates so no one can pass through is just plain ridiculous. Why erect them only to keep them locked all day?

Most of these places have only one available access to enter the neighbourhood with all other accesses gated or blocked by steel drums or boom gates that are perpetually closed with no one manning them. God forbids if an emergency should happen and the fire brigade or ambulance cannot access these roads. Lives could be lost! But heck, do you think these residents care?

I'm getting a bit long winded here. My whole initial idea is to bitch about how some of these residential areas are locking these small access gates as early a 7pm and totally deny the public any access whatsoever to bypass their neighbourhood which was the case for me yesterday.

I went for my evening run and sometimes my runs take me through these gated communities. Mostly, I have no problems cos these small gates are all unlocked and I can access them and run in relative safety, away from the busy main roads with all those cars zooming by. But last night, on my way back from my run, which was only 7.30pm, all these gates were locked forcing me to run along the dangerously busy main roads risking life and limb. Why can't they just close these gates later at night?

Imagine if a kid or an elderly person needed to take this path as a shortcut to access the shops across the road nearby, they'd now have to walk along the busy main roads and risk being run over by the sometimes maniac drivers zooming by. We're seriously becoming a nation of selfish people who only think of ourselves and not about the other people living around us.

I know it's not a big issue but heck, I'm still pissed with having to detour out of my running route and hit the dangerous main roads just to continue my run. Like i said, I've no issues with gated communities and all that. I even understand the need for security but do it properly with a little more thought for the rest of the people around you.

I won't be surprised that there will soon be a time when people would not even be allowed to pass through a particular neighbourhood simply because they don't live there! We're going to become a very compartmentalized nation soon.

I blame this on no one but the government for creating this need of having our own security with their mismanagement of the Police force whom I don't really see patrolling the streets at all which would deter the crooks and thus removing the need to hire security guards to keep us safe!

Blank!

2012-02-18T23:21:00.000+08:00

A few hours ago I had a nice and interesting topic (well, at least I think it's interesting). I had a few things to do before that and by time I got everything done and actually have the time to sit and write my thoughts, I can't for the life of me remember just what I wanted to write about!

No matter how much I try to pick my brain thinking what it was, I just can't seem to remember a single thing about what I wanted to write. Damn, either I'm getting really old or my memory just isn't what it used to be.

That's not entirely far from the truth though. My memory really isn't what it used to be. The wife can vouch for that. Half the things she tells me are completely forgotten in a matter of hours. If it wasn't for my pop up reminders on my cell phone, I wouldn't remember a single thing.

I won't be surprised one day I'd even forget my name, then again, just what the heck is my name? LOL! As long as I still remember to wake up at ungodly hours on a Sunday morning to run aimlessly, I suppose things can't be all that bad.

Whatever supposedly interesting thing I wanted to write would eventualy pop to mind soon but for now maybe I should bore you by telling you all about what an automated clearing house is but why torture you :-) Have a great weekend,

I Don't Want My Kids To Suffer And Work Hard!

2012-02-06T12:04:00.001+08:00

I've often heard loads of people saying that they're working hard now so their kids won't have to work hard and go through what they're going through. They want their kids to have an easy future, not to struggle like them. I see no wrong in that. In fact, I'm doing more or less the exact thing too but I don't entirely want them to have it all easy in the future. I don't entirely want them to have loads of money without having to work and earn it for themselves.

Now, you're probably thinking just what kind of horrid parent I am. Well, maybe you're right. But seriously, aren't kids already having life too easy these days by having all their whims provided for them without having to earn it? A child wants an iPad, they get it. A child wants a cell phone, they get it. A child wants a car, they get it. And all this without having to work and earn the stuff they get. How do you expect them to be self sustainable in the future?

Now, I see this trend as something totally wrong with parents these days. Yes, you love your kids, you want them to have everything. You want the best for them but you're forgetting that you're really not preparing them to face life in the future on their own. You're not going to be around forever to give them what they want. The savings you leave them will not last if they don't appreciate how hard it was for you to earn it for them.

I work hard, sometimes too hard to make sure the family has all their needs fulfilled and to make sure the future is secured. But I don't want the boys thinking that they don't have to work hard when they grow up. I don't want them taking things for granted and not appreciating the things they have. Yes, I could leave them loads of money (which in true fact would be a total of RM10.00 ... hahaha!) but how long would that last if they don't know how to manage it or appreciate how difficult it was for me to get it for them?

Working hard and having to earn every single thing that you have builds character. It builds respect and appreciation for the people and things you have. I see lots of kids these days who have no respect or appreciation for anything with attitudes bordering on arrogance even.

Take my own kids, they're the classic example of children who don't appreciate anything. All the stuff we buy them are destroyed within a matter of months or less. We got them MP3 players and within a month, it got busted and they want a new one. We gave them 3 or was it 4 cell phones and all of it doesn't work anymore. And all they can say is, I need a new cell phone, MP3, player, iPad, etc, etc, etc ...

Well, the wife and me have decided that they're not getting things easy anymore. Yes, we'll provide for them and take care of them and make sure they finish school and all that. But they have to earn everything they want from now on. They have to know things don't just appear magically from nowhere just because they want it. They want an iPad or a new cell phone? Well, they just have to save up for it or maybe volunteer to do chores in the house to earn some extra cash.

It might sound cruel and they'll probably complain that their friends parents got them this iPad, tablet, cell phone or whatever but they'll just have to work for it if they want one. Period! That way, maybe, just maybe they'll start to appreciate things and build character and turn out to be responsible and better adults in the future, god knows we're lacking in that right now!

But seriously folks, you can't blame the kids for this one. This is entirely your fault. By wanting to give them everything and making sure they don't have to work as hard as you have, you're indirectly shielding them from the harsh realities of life and maybe even failure. Remember, you're not going to be around forever and if they're so dependent on you, think how they'll manage without you around to give them all they want.

I've interviewed a lot of work prospects for my office and seriously, almost all of them had to call mommy to ask if the terms I offered were good or not! Seriously, I'm not kidding. I suppose, the terms I offered them required them to work hard and observe late hours and not one of a cushy CEO's position, which is what most kids these days think they're worth. In fact, I think all those kids in college when they graduate expect or even demand a high paying and cushy job just cos they have some paper qualifications from seagull scientific.

I fear for the future generation.

And The Oscar Goes To ...

2012-01-30T19:19:00.001+08:00

My ploy to act depressed and pitiful the whole of yesterday for having to wear the 'lamp shade' to stop me from biting my now healing wound has worked. Mommy and that idiot went out yesterday and bought me this cute and groovy looking pants to put on me and cover my 'wounded' area so I won't have to use that stupid and pathetic looking 'lamp shade' anymore!

They were so taken in by my plight of looking depressed that they rushed out early Sunday morning to go find me a nice little pants from the pet shop at Ikano Power Centre. Damn, I'm such a great little actor ... BOL! I should be nominated for an Oscar, heck, I should be given an Oscar!

They are such gullible little people, especially that idiot with mommy. He is so gullible that I could probably convince him to buy me the London Bridge even ... BOL!

Well, at least the pants is so much better than that restrictive and awful looking 'lamp shade' thingy. I wonder who came up with that silly contraption. They should try using it themselves and see how it feels.

I wonder if I should audition for the part of Snowy in the next Tin Tin movie, I'm way cuter and definitely more adorable than that Snowy fellow :P

The Lamp Shade

2012-01-28T14:55:00.002+08:00

I'm feeling a little sorry for Pebbles right now. We just took her to the vets and she's now sporting a nice little 'lamp shade' over her head. She's not at all used to it and is far from happy with having to have it around her cute little head that she practically doesn't want to move at all. She's just sitting there in one place so afraid to move.

As much as I hate to see her with that neck cone, I have no choice but to make sure she has it on for at least a week. A few days ago, she was gnawing at this little spot on her left side and kept on biting, scratching and licking it until it became a wound, which has now spread to two more spots.

She's done this before, biting and scratching at a certain spot and we had to take her to the vet once before but that wasn't as serious as this one. She kept on biting it and licking it and it just wasn't getting a chance to heal naturally.

This morning after going through some webhosting sites for some info on websites, the wife and me decided to take her to the vets and it's a good thing we did cos the diagnosis is, she's down with ring worms and because she was biting that open wound, it's spread to two more sections around the wound. The vet says the ring worm is nothing serious and she just needs some medication and stuff but cos she's licking and biting her present wound, it'll just spread further which is why she's got her own personal 'lamp shade' attached to her.

She's not too happy about it and she'll letting her displeasure show by giving the wife and me the eye ... LOL! She's really not used to it and when she's not used to anything, she won't budge much. I'm ending up carrying her around the house. I'm just going to leave her and she'll eventually have to move if she's hungry or thirsty or needs to use the toilet.

I don't know how she contracted the ring worms cos she's always inside the house. We hardly let her go outside for fear of her contracting stuff like this so it's really a big question mark on how she got this. One probably cause is she got it at the groomers or maybe from the back of the kitchen area, cos that's the only side where she likes to sneak out and stray cats hang out there.

Anyways, at least she's now on medication and we'll have to shave her totally clean once the wound dries up in a day or so to cater to the ring worm healing process, which should take about 3 weeks or so, according to the vet. I'm more concerned about getting her wounds healed cos then we can take out her 'lamp shade' which I'm sure is totally uncomfortable. But it's for her own good, I suppose.

Maybe in a day or so she'll get used to it and will be back to her naught mischievous self instead of sitting here at my feet moping away. I'm definitely going to be feeding her by hand the next couple of days cos I need to spike her food with the anti-biotics tablets that she has to take. Hope she'll recover fast though.

The cost of her consultation and medication is not exactly cheap though. We took her to Healing Rooms, just a few minutes drive away from our place. Her regular vet in Puchong was still closed for the CNY holidays and I didn't want to wait for it to open next week. The vet was pretty thorough and very professional about her work though it didn't come cheap. My medication when I was sick was soooooo much cheaper than hers. I suppose being a vet these days must be a pretty lucrative business.

Now that all that is done, I can go back to looking for website hosting companies to host our company's website. So far I've narrowed it down to either of these two sites, Webhosting Hub or Go Daddy. Hopefully I'll be able to decide which one to go to by the end of today. I can be pretty fickle minded at times :D

All Day Snoozing

2012-01-21T21:29:00.001+08:00

The Chinese New Year (CNY) is just around the corner and the town is going to be a nice quite place the next couple of days or at least I hope so.

Judging from what I heard on the radio and from Facebook updates and tweets out there, the exodus of people going back to their hometowns for the long CNY break has been pretty bad with traffic snarls all around the exits heading out of town.

Which is why I decided to stay home all day today. In fact, I've been sleeping practically the entire day. No, I've not become a lazy bum but I've been busy with a last minute work project that had me working in the bowels of the KLCC LRT station from midnight to 5.00am in the morning for the past two days helping out with installation work for a new ad campaign for a certain ice-cream brand in the country.

It's been a very tiring, not to mention sleep deprived two days and I used the entire day today to get back whatever sleep was lost. I was practically in bed from early morning till this evening, waking up just in time to clock in some mileage for an evening run before the rain came down. Now, I'm back to being sleepy and it'll probably be an early night for me.

I'm totally not used to working in the wee hours of the morning and it was kinda tough for me to adapt the past two days. The amount of work that was required for the campaign was not only laborious, it was utterly tedious. Trying to stay coherent that early in the morning took a huge effort. I'm just glad we managed to get things done and now I'm looking forward for some rest, well not really rest cos I'll probably be using the long CNY break to put in more runs ... hehehe ...

I'm hoping the place is going to be quiet but I'm bracing myself for a series of firecrackers being let off at midnight tomorrow. The firecrackers, though it's banned will always find a way to make an appearance. Speaks volumes for the level of enforcement in this country, ya? :P

I wonder if I'll get any 'ang pow' this year? Maybe one dressed up in a redenvelopes giant gummy bear costume? LOL! But all said and done, have fun during the coming CNY holidays but please remember to be safe on the roads.

Gong Xi Fa Cai to all my blog buddies and fellow Malaysians who are celebrating the occassion.

Hot, Down And Out

2012-01-17T21:26:00.000+08:00

I've been out of the blogging loop for quite a while these days. The only times I actually post something are just after a race I've gone to and you're all probably bored to death about reading my running exploits already. I know I would be if I were in your shoes. Come on, you can be honest with me ... LOL!

Nothing much has been happening since the new year. The only thing of note is the fact that I'm swamped with work which is really surprising actually since every year before the Chinese New Year holidays we're practically sitting in the office all day and staring at the four walls. This year somehow it's been pretty different. I don't have time to even sit at my desk, let alone stare at the wall.

Too many rush jobs that need to be settled such as this Alpinestars Ridge Boots flyer, before the holidays start next week and with the current heat wave and my flu spell that I'm going through right now is just making things all the more difficult to cope hence the lack of time to blog.

I need a nice long break to just get away from all these stress for a bit. I would go out and run to try and clear the stress but I'm still suffering from a bout of the flu and the weather is just too crazily hot to run. Maybe when I recover that might be an option but not just yet. The heat is really excruciatingly hot the past week or two, 7.30pm in the evening looks like it's still 4.30pm with the blistering sun!

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go find some tissues and clear this blocked nose.

The Smart, The Stupid And The Rich

2012-01-08T11:33:00.000+08:00

This has to be the world's smartest little dog. There she was snuggled comfortably under the warm comforts of the comforter while I get up at an insane time of 4am to get ready to torture myself running 12K for a race in KL on a beautiful Sunday morning.

She's probably happy that we're out so she can have the whole bed to herself. Sometimes I think that dog purposely snuggles up under the comforter to show me just how stupid I can be to wake up at ungodly hours on a Sunday!

At least I came home with something after the race, a race that was simply awesome, running under a canopy of greens amidst the dwellings of the rich and famous in Bukit Tunku, a location known for people with vast amounts of money.

Lost In Translation

2012-01-05T22:26:00.002+08:00

This is copied exactly from the Ministry of Defense website (which has since been removed) on dress code procedures. I'm speechless, not to mention laughing my head off. Remember, this is from the Ministry of Defense, the very people who are sworn to protect this country in times of war or whatever threats. But after reading this, I'm not so sure anymore.

I copy pasted it and removed the pics but the text is exactly as it was on the website. Please do read and see the standards of the people in our ministries!

We're probably the laughing stock of the entire planet. But wait, then again, maybe this is a defensive strategy by the Ministry of Defense people, to make our enemies die from laughter ... Hahaha!

You know, you guys in the government can swindle and cheat the public of their money and yet you can't even hire a god forsaken translator who would charge you a measly RM500-RM1,000 to do a respectable job!

Goodbye Old, Hello New.

2012-01-01T00:00:00.000+08:00

Here's wishing everyone a Happy 2012 and may all your dreams and whatnots come true ... sounds cheesy, I know, but heck, I'm a cute doggy and that's what cute doggies say ... BOL!

Oh and remember, party all you want but go easy on the spirits, especially if you're driving!

PS. Hope the fireworks are kind to me. I'm terrified of fireworks. Have mercy on us cute little adorable doggies!

A Look Back ...

2011-12-31T15:06:00.000+08:00

There's only 9 hours or so left of the year 2011 and all I can say about the year is that it sure zoomed by real fast. It felt like it was only yesterday that I was ushering in the year and here I am once again ushering in an even newer year in a few hours time.

If you ask me to recall some of the things I did this year, I'd be hard pressed trying to recall them. The year in general has been, I won't say great, but a decent one. Career wise, though it could be better but I've few complains. Whatever shortcomings can always be worked out.

It's been two years or so that I've been in this business partnership and while it has it ups and downs, we're at least looking and heading in the right direction for next year with clearer objectives and (hopefully) a better and more successful business plan. But overall, though the risks are there, it's so much more satisfying and rewarding running your own business. So here's to a better business year next year for me :D

On the personal front, things are going pretty well. I'm happy with life and I've learned to control my silly temper so much better thanks to the patient understanding of the wife who had to suffer through many of my oftentimes irrational tantrums. As cheesy as this may sound, I have to be the luckiest bloke on this side of the universe to have her :D

Health wise, I can only say that I'm in much better health than I've ever been in ages, thanks to my reignited passion for running. I can't recall a time, even in my childhood that I felt as good about my health and myself as I do now. The fact that the wife shares this passion for running is an added bonus. I'm looking forward to bringing this good health into the new year and be even more fitter than I am today.

Friendship wise, that has been a bit (well, maybe a lot) lacking on my part. I've only two best buddies in this world and I'm guilty of not keeping in touch as often as I'd like to with them. It's always been, I'll call them or meet up with them next week and before I know it, it's already year end and I still haven't found the time to meet up. That's on my list of resolutions, to make the time to meet up more, after all, they're the only two friends I'm utterly comfortable to be with.

What are my wishes and resolutions for 2012? Gee, I seriously don't know. I don't really believe in making any cos then I'd be hard pressed to keep them ... LOL! But I wish the best for everyone on this planet and for the people of this country. One thing I desperately wish though if for a change in government. It's time for this country to crawl out of the doldrums and the only way to do that is with the present bunch of self serving idiots to vacate the government. I'm hoping that wish of mine comes true during the coming general election. I cannot stress this enough, vote wisely people :D

With that said and done, what's your plan for today, the eve of New Year? Me, I'm going to call it an early night, then wake up at 3.30am tomorrow morning and get ready for a 25k race at 5.30am. I can't think of a more exciting (or insane, depends on how you look at it) way to usher in the New Year :D

Happy 2012, folks!