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2009-11-06T12:08:00.005+08:00

This tugging in my heart, the myriads and compounding feelings that I have right now is simple overwhelming.

Think with your mind, and not with your heart; there is a saying.

But at this instance, in this moment of time, the reflections of the substance between us is just so real, so intricate. How can I choose to ignore that?

I can't.

But it's better to face it now than to keep matters in the shades.

On my part, I feel like a rat. That much I can tell you.

It pains me more than it ever did before. It really does.

But I refuse to give up. or in.

Oh, Lord.

2009-10-26T02:26:00.001+08:00

What's going through your mind?

2009-06-26T19:48:00.005+08:00

Today's an almost surreal day. First news that greeted me was the shocking and tragic death of the King of Pop, MJ.

My reaction?

"Whaaaaat!".

Not the what, what, but the Chris Rock/Tucker (cann't tell the difference between the both of them) kinda Whaaaat?!

Anyway, been following the news, and all major news wires are showcasing the man and his legend. And it's a nice touch on the part of our local radio stations to do a tribute.

It's funny how all the accolates pour in once someone passes away given that MJ has been receiving a fair amount of stick from few parties before his death (and after it as well I'm sure).

Anyway, it's been pretty shocking to know that one of music's most iconic and cross cultural artist has died. And needless to say the masses of people he has inspired throughout his life, no matter how weird some of his behaviour may have been. At the end of the day, in terms of talent, artistry and entertainment, Michael is among the top of the order.

I like what the ever reflective John Mayer said on his Twitter site.

"I truly hope he is memorialized as the '83 moonwalking, MTV owning, mesmerizing, unstoppable, invincible Michael Jackson."

Twitter seems rather cool. weird.

And I thought no news could surpassed Murray's masterclass drubbing of Gulbis at Wimby.

Moving on to better news. Malaysia is about to host an ATP 250 level tournament!

And given the lineup, it promises to be pretty exciting!

Davydenko, Nikolay
Ferrer, David
Gonzalez, Fernando
Monfils, Gael
Nishikori, Kei
Soderling, Robin
Verdasco, Fernando

Sweet.

Especially Ferru! That guy's a fighter on the court. And I know a certain someone would be anticipating her Swedish meatball. ;)

Click here for more info.

It's apt to end with this. Inspirational.

2009-06-25T19:01:00.002+08:00

Murray, Gulbis. Tantalising.

Hot off the press.

Expect sparks in their second round matchup!

Wimby!

2009-06-22T12:57:00.002+08:00

Wimbledon begins today! From the 22 June till 5 July, expect tennis fans from all around to be glued to the telly as we witness the most significant and steeped in tradition tournament.

Fed begins his conquest against Taiwan's Lu Yen-Hsun at Centre Court with this being the latter's first time playing at the esteemed court.

Yen-Hsun himself having a story to tell of. Click here to read it all from ATP's Deuce Mag.

So will this be the place where Rog will achieve his unprecedented 15th Grand Slam?

Montage taken from HC Foo's tennis blog.

Here are some pictures of both Marat and Roger preparing for the tournament. Maybe a repeat of last year's semis? I hope!

Taken off Wimbledon's FB page. Be a fan!

And with me back in Muar, Astro is no longer an illusion.

Some key matches I will be looking out for:

Yen-Hsun Lu(TPE) v. Roger Federer(SUI) [2]

Daniela Hantuchova(SVK) v. Laura Robson(GBR)

Evgeny Korolev(RUS) v. Igor Andreev(RUS)[29] (Plenty of hard-hitting here)

Check out Wimbledon's official site for the latest in draws and updates.

So let Wimby begin!

2009-06-20T02:07:00.003+08:00

How is it that I managed to draw my tennis partner in the first round?!

Unbelievable.

Viva!

2009-06-15T23:19:00.007+08:00

Ok, half time here from assignments.

Here's what I've gotten as a result of my research for my feature story.

Spot the difference. This is taken from wiki yo!

Funny? no? Apparently ESPN had to apologise to the FAM for using the wrong logo during a live telephone call to FAM secretary-general Datuk Azzuddin Ahmad on Sportscenter Asia.

Seems like the staff from Sportscenter Asia got hold of the wrong one. News taken from - Click

Nonetheless, it's pretty hilarious!

Yeahh

2009-06-14T02:29:00.001+08:00

The Great Destresser

2009-06-14T02:20:00.002+08:00

Nooo

1st Week

2009-06-01T11:12:00.009+08:00

Hello, hello! This blog is morphing into a sports blog I dare say. I'll post something more personal when I get my first dog or car. See how la yea? Anyways,

The biggest shocker of the week (Sorry, it's not the loss of Susan Boyle) would definitely be the defeat of Rafa to Swede Robin Soderling.

The score of 6-2, 6-7, 6-4, 7-6 certainly doesn't help Rafa's cause. His first defeat on the Parisian courts and thus ending his record 31 match-winning streak.

Nadal must be feeling a bit peeved. Looking at the history between these two players. You gotta check this video out!

And it doesn't stop there, our reigning lady champion is knocked out as well.

Ana Ivanovic is shown the exit by No.9 seed Victoria Azarenka. The 6-2, 6-3 scoreline says it all about the former World No.1 whose decline is ever evident since her victory one year ago on French clay.

Other upsets would be the Nole Djoker's loss to German No.29 seed Philipp Kohlschreiber.

And of course Mr.Safin himself. I was following his match with French wildcard Josselin Ouanna with interest. Ouanna another talented French teenager who posseses a good forehand.

The final bow for Safin? Click.

And 'The Magician' Fabrice Santoro waves goodbye to the French crowd after a record-equalling 20 straight French Open appearances.

All in all, Fed Ex is in with a realistic chance of getting his career Grand Slam. Allez Roger!

And here comes Week two..

All pictures © FFT

Roland Garros Preview

2009-05-21T18:27:00.001+08:00

Hold on to your seats lads, Roland Garros is only 3 days away!

To those of you fortunate enough to have Astro, be thankful for what you have! You have no idea..

Tune in to the additional sports channel 816 provided by your lovely neighbourhood Astro for the latest in tennis action.

The French Open runs from May 24th all the way to June 7th.

My predictions: Nadal and Safina (or either of the Williams sisters).

Now, fun's over. Back to assignments...

18th

2009-05-18T11:40:00.006+08:00

Click on the banner for a larger view. Taken off the official website.

A sign of things to come for Fed?

*There's Only One United*

Sepang Boredom

2009-04-26T18:04:00.003+08:00

Click here for more Sepang videos and Jamiroquai's opening.

Cheers.

Whoopeedoo...

2009-04-17T00:13:00.002+08:00

APpic

2009-04-05T08:29:00.001+08:00

In a little less than 12 hours...

This Just In...

2009-04-04T10:17:00.004+08:00

You would think April the 3rd would be a good day for an April fool's joke.

On a light-hearted note, viewers were taken aback by what Youtube had to offer. That's why they remain the video-sharing site to beat. Click on the images to enlarge. Brilliant I must say.

And our Fed Ex has smashed a racquet! :o

If it was Mr.Safin or Gonzo or even A-Rod, it woudn't have mattered much. But coming from him?! Now THAT's news. It's unheard of or rather unseen of to see Fed doing this. If it was before the 2003 season, it wouldn't have come as a surprise. But not so now.

Guess the pressure is starting to get to him. What with a new baby, Nadal and the young pretenders snapping at his heels. Not to mention it was an error against Nole that caused it. Gah.

But all's good. If anything, it's rather refreshing to see him actually show some fiesty emotion on the court.

Check it out.

The tossing bottles are just the icing on the cake.

And the clay courts are next. Ohhh boy.

09's tennis season is gonna be the best yet.

F1 qualifiying is today. I'm hoping for sunny skies. Will post up pictures if possible.

Expect a few more posts in the coming days.

Laters.

Tabur, Tabur..

2009-03-24T21:54:00.009+08:00

So I went to Bukit Tabur. Being set smack in between construction works and the like and nature in its raw beauty, it was a sight to behold.

Go for it! With plenty of exercise in store, good company and nature all around you, what could be better?

Just a few pictures to whet your appetite (:

The better quality pics are from Ivan. Me only use mobile la.

Having breakfast. Yeah.

Ivan with his D80.

The boys taking a breather.

Seriously, you would not want to take this plunge. A sheer drop. Nice shoes there eh? You should see it now. With mud on it and some parts peeling off ):

One of the few cliffs we had to cross. So you get the idea la. hahah.

Took this at one of the summits. Its amazing to find such a delicate thing of beauty in the mist of sand and grub.

Apparently the festivities were held up here as well.

Sean and his sexy leg(s).

Cheh...

Sorry ah, last picture not clear. Scaled it down A LOT.

Seriously, go for it guys. It's worth the trip.

And I just found out Jamiroquai is coming to the circuit! Aww man! Should I go for it? Someone pleeease convince me to go!

Here We Go...YES!

2009-03-09T20:02:00.003+08:00

Hi there everyone. So I am back in Uni for my 4th semester. Another 2 to go before I graduate. As they say, time do flies at a breakneck pace.

For first week, only lectures were on and that gave me plenty of time for tennis. Sometimes as much as two sessions a day. There's just something about the court that ropes you to it. Oh, and I've heard that Tioman's a duty free zone.

So back to the daily grind? Two sides to this I guess. Either you slog through it and treat it as an formality or you do what Captain Mike did.

Ben: Morning, Captain. Can you take us out?

Capt Mike: Do you know what day it is?

Ben: Sunday.

Capt Mike: You know what that means? It means that I was very drunk last night.

Ben: You're drunk every night.

Capt Mike: Is that a girl?

Ben: A close friend. I want to show her the river.

Capt Mike: I'm not supposed to go joy-ridin' with civilians. I could lose my license.

Capt Mike: What are you waiting for?

Now that's the spirit lads! Grab life by the balls with your head fixed forward like a steel shaft implanted in the very core of your neck.

That's how I'm gonna face it. You only live once. Better to experience it than to sit back on your fat ass swinging your feet daintily. Pretending you know it all where in your case it all comes based on head knowledge. I am NOT going to miss out on what life has to offer. The transparent beauty of life where in most cases are hidden in nooks and corners, requiring you to go the distance to get it.

Vernon Cooper These days people seek knowledge, not wisdom. Knowledge is of the past, wisdom is of the future.

Dag Hammarskjold Never, "for the sake of peace and quiet," deny your own experience or convictions.

Edward Abbey There is science, logic, reason; there is thought verified by experience. And then there is California.

Hahah. California love.

Bring on Sem 4. And life.

2009-02-27T00:43:00.001+08:00

Dug This Up

2009-02-23T20:19:00.001+08:00

Decided to post this up. Found this lost post among the other posted ones. Given the not so encouraging status of my rosak lappie, with all pictures stored in it, it may be awhile before I can dig up some decent enough pics. But then again, there're some in my mobile...

Snowy and Cheryl. Both have since gone to Adelaide. I'll miss Snowy's randomness.

Dinner at my coll's restaurant. It's where the students undergo their training. From the pic, you can see (or not) the trainee making dessert for us. Fried mango (You better believe it..)

My camwhoring skills is impeccable. If I say so myself. NOT!

This is me at my sweetest. :s

Okayy, I actually posted up an emo post below the above pics. But since blogger decided to magically delete the later part of my post when i posted it up on the first try, I decided not to bother anymore.

But yes, I'm emo today. Or whatever term you may coin it la if 'emo' is too lala or overused for you.

I've always wondered, which emot is suitable when your heart is heavy? Because it doesn't HAVE to be :( you know.

:)

And There Goes My Laptop...

2009-02-03T17:39:00.002+08:00

It's been a good four + years. And it is the HD no less that is acting up.

Just hoping that I can recover my files.

To all: Back-up your files and documents! If you know what's good for you...

Yup, You Guessed It...

2009-01-30T14:23:00.005+08:00

Because I hadn't anything good to post up. Naw, kidding, I'm just lazy to do anything bout it.

Australian Open is drawing to a close which means another 4 months without a grand slam. Sigh. Lets hope I can make it to Wimby this year round. And catch Marat in what perhaps will be his last year. Oh and Daniela of course. ;)

The Nadal-Verdasco lefty match is just round the hour and it will be interesting to see how these 2 players of similar qualities square up against each other.

But I just can't get enough of Nadal's whipped-up forehand and that wristy backhand. Fernando, you have some picking up to do.

Nadal to win in straight sets. Lets see.... 6-3, 6-4, 7-5

Tengoklah if it's remotely accurate. :p

Mundane Doing

2009-01-20T00:56:00.002+08:00

Sleep is one thing that robs us of our commitment and time.

Sleep is good. Is essential.

But excess is not. Even more so when there's things to be done. Responsibly.

The Australian Open is back.

My predictions: Fed and Henin..Oh wait she's retired. Venus then.

The Importance Of Being Ernest

2009-01-07T15:32:00.004+08:00

Watch out for this lad people!

Caught my attention when he was playing Andy Roddick at last year's US Open. Have been gussing about him since then.

Tall, young, powerful from both sides of play with an improving serve, kinda reminds you of someone else doesn't it? A certain Mr. Safin.

And he proved last year's results were not a fluke by taking out top seed Nole Djokovic in the first round of the Brissie Open.

It's a pity he was knocked out by Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu in today's second round.

Keep an eye on him when the Oz Open begins on Jan 19.

Oh, his name's Ernests Gulbis.

Yo

2008-12-30T18:37:00.001+08:00

Helloo there!

Season's greetings to everyone (if any) who still comes back to my blog for updates.

MIA-ed for nearly a month. Yup, been caught up with some stuff and didn't have the time and well, the inspiration to blog.

So, bringing up to date.

My picture folder is brimming. I really want to upload every one of em but by the rate things are going, it'll probably be done by the end of 09.

I'm currently doing internship with Velocity Media, a publishing house for mags like PC Gamer, Digital Camera Malaysia, T3 and Max-IT. And before anyone start asking me whether I'm about to graduate, let me dismiss such rumours by saying this is an optional internship I'm doing here just to fill in the time and experience barrel. I AM STILL YOUNG OKAY? Things are pretty good here coupled with a relaxed environment which I really appreciate. Colleagues are generally warm and friendly and we have quite a young team here. I'm currently writing reviews and articles more towards for the Max-IT side. Very technological-based so plenty of catching up for me to do. Anyone who hasn't a clue about MAX-IT, please do get it from your newsstand and bookstores please!

Other than that, I had Christmas over in Kuantan with my relatives. Kuantan is always nice. Weather is not too hot (by comparison la), awesome tennis courts (by comparison) and of course the beach. Teluk Cempedak wins me over anyday. My only gripe about the whole trip is that I could only play one round of tennis. Thanks to the rain.

Christmas presents according to my uncle is 'very practical' this year. I've gotten a whole bunch of clothes to add into my already bursting cupboard (No choice, my landlord provides me with a mini one).

That's about it la for now. There's more but I'll do another post. Someday. Heh.

Happy 2009 to all!

The Ridzuan Gang

2008-11-29T03:40:00.003+08:00

It's funny how we often fail to cherish our friends and share what's in the innermost of our hearts till the day arrives when they actually leave your side. By then, feelings of regret and reluctance creeps in, and all that you wanted to say is stored up inside of you and there's so little time left to spill it all out.

But I know that this is not the end, instead, it's the beginning of a journey, a journey that is longlasting, that goes on through life.

To all my friends who has/ about to leave Ridz, thanks for the memories, and we'll meet again. :)

Esp. to Ying Xuan, Xiuu Ling, Look, Maggie, Vee Wen, Edwin, Jonathan and Sean.

I guess It's not the same without you all, the meals, the laughter and the sense of belonging.

I love and cherish every single one of you. From the bottom of my heart.

You have made me realise the power of friendship and I am amazed at how one and a half years (or less) of friendship manages to bring us from different walks of life closer with each other.

Take care.

I guess it's apt for me to dedicate a song to all of you. :)

Apologies if there's any mistake in the playing or singing. I did this video past midnight and after a few hours of karaoke. :s

I think this was my 3rd-4th try and my voice was getting hoarser and softer after each new take! Grrr...

So once again, pardon the mistakes and what nots. Hope all of you enjoy it!

The Friend Song

Verse1
In an instant, one year down the road,
through all the joys and all the tears, we shared in a way,
In an instant, standing at the gate,
With a future uncertain, will we meet again?

Chorus
Cause I know that, the tears will fade away,
cause I know that i've found, somewhere I belong,
cause I know that i've found, love and acceptance,
And I know that I have found a friend that's for real
And I know that I have found a bond that never breaks,
Through it all.

Verse 2
Who can imagine, a friend that's everlast,
Always right beside you, whenever you fall,
And I know that, this friendship will still go on,
wherever life will bring us, we will carry on.

2008-11-25T20:38:00.002+08:00

What do you do when the walls around seem insurmountable? When questions are unanswered? When there are just too many things happening around you and you do not have the necessary time nor energy to keep up?

I try to be sane and take it a step at a time. Or play golf. Either way goes.

The King Has Arrived

2008-11-23T00:46:00.013+08:00

No, it isn't Mohammad Ali. And it isn't Barack Obama either. Sheesh..what's wrong with you guys....

On a tuesday morning,

Flags were being waved everywhere.

These 3 guys came all the way from South Africa. Talk about passion. And there's nothing much wrong about the poster. :p

Some random guy. lol. Or rather my partner in crime.

Arriving...

To be honest, he looks much more fairer compared to what we see on the telly and mag. -.-

My best shot of that morning.

Naturally the crowd swarm all around him and helped cut our queueing line by half. Thanks guys!

This ball belongs to a cute 9 year old girl who was waiting in line in front of us with her mum to have Fed's signature. They just recently came back from the Shanghai Masters and even stayed at the official players hotel there. The 2 signatures you can see on the ball is Djokovic's (above) and Gilles Simon's (below).

They closed the doors after just 10+ minutes. Naturally the crowd went mad. When they allowed another 20 to go in, you can just imagine the hustling and bustling of everyone trying to get past the guards. One guy even shouted "Lets storm them!". Siao ah? Kesian the old lady and small kid there. Both managed to get in. So that's cool. Thankfully, I was by that time at the front and was allowed to enter.

Waving to the adoring crowd below. And to those who didn't manage to get his autograph.

Everyone was cheering and waving. I bet he melted a few hearts that day. ;)

Bye bye.

Moving on to the night every tennis fan in Malaysia have been waiting for.

View from my seat. Still pretty okay, Putra isn't that big.

They had Ning Baizura to perform. She was straining on some parts though.

Ella. At least she interacted with the audience.

Jaclyn Victor. Couldn't hear her clear enough throughout most of her performance.

Some cultural percussion thing. Combining all the drum elements of most of the races in Malaysia.

I took videos of the entrance of the players. Was pretty cool. I'll upload it if I have the time la.

When the match started, there were plenty of empty seats below, so the crew allowed us to go further down for a better view of the matches.

Bjorn Borg and Johnny Mac. Borg has a very unique backhand; Especially when he's lining it up for a shot.

The classic Federer serve stance.

I have almost the entire match between Fed and Blake on video. In my honest opinion, I think Blake was the better performer that night. Fed looked a little out of his element, perhaps still carrying the injury he suffered from the Shanghai Masters, but still managed to get in a few amazing shots la.

And James Blake has one of the craziest forehand I've ever seen. He also did a between the legs shot and a dunk smash. The backhand overhead was also used by all the players I think.

And he's cute and has a sexy butt (according to Rubee; Check her blog for her update on it, very good pics) and some people in the crowd even shouted "C'mon Sexy" and "Handsome". And most of that came from guys. O.o

John McEnroe doing what he's famous for. Volleying.

The final match of the evening featured Team USA (Blake and McEnroe) versus Team Europe (Fed and Borg). If I'm not mistaken Team USA managed to break Borg's serve on every occasion. Ouch.

The Federer serve. 1

One for the album.

My most prized possession? I mean c'mon man, this guy's a legend and he spoke to me! (To apologise when he couldn't sign my tennis balls).

Okay, I better stop before I sound like some fanatic.

Or am I?

2008-11-19T23:50:00.003+08:00

When will the day come when I can love a girl unliberated, carefree and with abandoned fervour?

Wedding Bells

2008-11-19T11:44:00.004+08:00

Again, some not so clear pictures. The majority of the dinner pictures are with my dad's camera, so I may upload them if I can get my hands on them.

Waiting for the arrival of the bride. The groom, Daniel is on the far right with his best man by his side.

The bride arrives. Aleena looks pretty in her gown. :)

Lighting of the unity candle.

Presentation of the bride and groom. On the left is Ps Daniel Kumar, the officiating minister. And he can sing in Hokkien.

My 3 lovely sisters. :) Taken before the dinner at Eastin.

Again. not clear. This one using my handset camera to zoom way in.

My song presentation to the newlyweds. Song 'We Will Dance' taken from the legendary Steven Curtis Chapman. I went through his entire discography and finally settled on this one.

I've watched the sunrise in your eyes
And I've seen the tears fall like the rain
You've seen me fight so brave and strong
You've held my hand when I'm afraid

We've watched the seasons come and go
We'll see them come and go again
But in winter's chill, or summer's breeze
One thing will not be changin'

CHORUS:
We will dance
When the sun is shining
In the pouring rain
We'll spin and we'll sway
And we will dance
When the gentle breeze
Becomes a hurricane
The music will play
And I'll take your hand
And hold you close to me
And we will dance

Sometimes it's hard to hold you tight
Sometimes we feel so far apart
Sometimes we dance as one
And feel the beating of each others hearts

Some days the dance is slow and sweet
Some days we're bouncing off the walls
No matter how this world may turn
Our love will keep us from fallin'

CHORUS

The music will play
And I'll hold you close
And I won't let you go
Even when our steps
Grow weak and slow
Still I'll take your hand
And hold you close to me
And we, will dance

Many commented that I wasn't looking at the crowd. One area which I know I have to improve. Hence you can see me closing my eyes . One reason is to avoid the aforementioned and another is to feel the music. You guys understand what I'm saying right? :p

So, like that lah. Will post pictures of the dinner if I can grab hold of it.

Congrats to Daniel and my cousin Aleena!

May God guide and bless you two in this wonderful marriage.

Debra's 19th in CF

2008-11-14T14:57:00.001+08:00

Check this video out. i.e, Benny. :p

Happy 19th again Debra! This is my gift to you. Bwahahaha.

Jia Jia Hui's Birthday

2008-11-13T01:03:00.005+08:00

The birthday girl looking really snug and happy.

Just light the candles greg. lol

Xiu nuan's idea to get 20 candles around the cake. Quirky but unconventional.

Hope you love the shirt me and Timmy got you. :)

Happy Birthday again!

November

2008-11-08T21:17:00.000+08:00

November will be another heavy month for me.

Assignments, Our CF's Christmas community project, barbeque(s), Aleena's wedding and my performance, Showdown Of Champions :) , the YES gathering, and to top it all up, I've been offered a scholarship over at Malaysia Kini to do a Citizen Journalism 101 course over the next 2 months.

Not that I'm complaining. Busi-ness is the essence of life they say? Or not?

Anyways, I have a proposal to complete for tomorrow's course and my MC assignment's due on monday. Plus my html project on the 23rd. :p

Oh, and Malaysian Studies finals is on wednesday. Dang.

2008-11-05T06:07:00.002+08:00

You just never learn do you? Remember this day whenever you see history repeating itself.

How do you feel about it? Ask yourself that. What did you missed?

And it's due to?

DMT Blues...

2008-10-25T16:11:00.002+08:00

I took this shot from the rooftop garden. Was doing my post-production for the shooting. I'm surprised no one actually hangs out there. I can just imagine it being the perfect spot for a gig. An intimate acoustic one with a small stage, makeshift speakers with plenty of candles lighting up the place.

Andika. Who played Andika in my video.

Dinesh wondering when our post-editing problems will ever end. We encountered countless setbacks in the editing. I just have to hand it to my lecturer Mr. Anan for his time and patience in helping out.

A tired looking Xiu nuan.

Hehe. I AM GOING.

Finally. It's going to be AWESOME.

21st

2008-10-11T22:34:00.010+08:00

Quality time spend with family and friends. Simple food, good fellowship, being with those you love.

Jasher, my cuz with Pay lun, on the right, fast turning into a Singaporean. One of those lucky ones who happened to be in Muar.

My grandma. :)

Ok, I have no idea how all those balloons came into my hand. They just did.

Thanks la Beku.

Now this is obscene.

Yeah, didn't know how that landed into my hand either.

My Family! With Jie of course not able to make it. I'll see you next year!

Yeah, this post has been in my saved list for the past decade. Took awhile I know.

Nonetheless, just to share a few pictures with ya'll on the going ons that day.

And there's still time to wish me. The month ain't over yet. :p

Just kidding la. Just sent over a gift.

Pre 21st

2008-10-10T22:34:00.008+08:00

I wasn't sure whose idea was it to take it in this manner. Hey Joman, if you're reading this, there's competition to your fisheye!

Smile Jason!

Look looks.

That guy beside me is Sean, my roommie.

Brilliant taking Jason. Looks kinda cool though I have no idea how he achieved that.

Big thanks to all for organising this, and taking the time to come on a dark, wet thursday night. Huge thanks for the card, cake and gifts.

You guys are awesome. :)

For more pictures. Click onto Sean's Facebook.

Caller Ringtone Or Caller Hassle

2008-10-05T15:23:00.005+08:00

Imagine my surprise when Tim told me my caller ringtone is Leona Lewis' mushy song 'Better In Time'.

And I thought Hotlink was being so nice giving me a free ringtone. Bah.

Note Joash, the word 'caller'....

Anyone knows how to change it back to the good old dial tone?!

Getting It Right

2008-10-05T12:28:00.002+08:00

We are often advised to "Aim for the stars". How many people out there fail and falter and at the end give up their aspiration after failing to get through their first, second hurdle? Many I would say.

Taking for example, a Malaysian dude has dreams to play football for say, Manchester United (where else..) And by keeping his eyes on solely that club, he trains vigorously everyday, hoping to catch the eye of a scout that just might be lurking in Malaysia. Refusing to play for that Malaysian football club that has offered him a place, he stubbornly trains, refusing to lower his ambitions to just play for a local team.

However, what he didn't realise is that, that offer just might be the stepping stone to success. To play for the greatest team on earth. What if, say, he takes the time to sit down and plan it out.

Step 1: Get into a local Malaysian team.

Step 2: Get into the National squad.

Step 3: Catch the eye of European clubs.

Step 4: Play in the Premier League for any club even if it's not ManUtd.

Step 5: Sooner or later, by playing well and maintaining a good attitude no matter where I am, I'll get into Manchester United.

So with this change of mindset, he sets himself new albeit impermanent targets. After a few seasons in that local team, his hard work pays off. He makes it to the Malaysian National Squad. He then participates in international matches. Soon, his talent catches the eyes of a lower league team in England. He goes on a one week trial for League One club Oldham Athletic. He does enough to impress the manager and staff there and gets signed for 2 years.

After 3 seasons there, Portsmouth Football club comes knocking a offers him a contract. A chance to play in the Premier League even though it's not with Manchester United. He jumps at the chance, and signs on the dotted line.

He does well there, getting on the scoresheet regularly. And helps the team win the League Cup. He plays another season for them, putting in good performances.

Then one fine day, he gets news from his agent that Sir Alex has seen videos of him and is inquiring on his availability. Without losing a moment, he arranges a meeting with the Portsmouth board and explain his position: his desire and ambition since the beginning to play for Manchester United. They consent, and ManUtd buys him off at the price Portsmouth demands.

Mission Accomplished. But he better continue to perform well otherwise he'll be shipped out.

So what can we gather from this story?

1) His Perseverance. Note that it didn't take him 2 or 3 years to get to where he's at. It is the determination that drives him on to the foremost target.

2) Maintaining a good attitude. It didn't matter which club he was at, he made the best out of each situation, dug deep and performed good each time.

and most importantly,

3) Getting his priorities right. If he had stubbornly refused to play for a lower club at the get go, he wouldn't be where he is today. And he achieved that by setting one small bite at a time, in the end accumulating and getting his whole piece of cake.

And lets say after playing for Portsmouth and other known clubs he still doesn't managed to play for Manchester United, doesn't matter, because,

‘If you reach for the stars, you might not quite get one, but you won’t end up with a handful of mud, either.’ - Leo Burnett.

That is not to say that you're not to try hard and put in your best shot. Yet, even if it doesn't work out, you're still guaranteed to be in good waters.

‘Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss it you will land among the stars.’ - Les Brown

‘No one travels so high as he who knows not where he is going.’ - Oliver Cromwell

‘The secret of success is constancy of purpose.’ - Benjamin Disraeli

‘It is not enough to take steps which may some day lead to a goal; each step must be itself a goal and a step likewise.’ - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

‘If the individual is narrowly concentrated on the goal, to the exclusion of other relevant aspects of the problem situation, he is often unable to achieve a solution. The creative thinker must stand sufficiently detached from his work.’ - Mary Henle

‘Aim at heaven and you get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.’‘Many are stubborn in pursuit of the path they have chosen, few in pursuit of the goal.’ - Friedrich Nietzsche

‘Give yourself the freedom to explore the possibility of life without limits. Goals are dreams with deadlines, a means to an end but not the ultimate purpose of life.’ - Glynis Nunn

‘I dread success. To have succeeded is to have finished one’s business on earth, like the male spider who is killed by the female the moment he has succeeded in his courtship. I like the state of continual becoming, with a goal in front and not behind.' - George Bernard Shaw

Ps: That story is a fictional one. Not to say I didn't have dreams to play for that club though.... :p

What The Author Has Been Up To...

2008-09-29T23:11:00.006+08:00

I'm into my second week in Muar. Have YET to touch any of my assignments. Ah well, there's always tomorrow. (Hope it's not the sign of procrastination).

Apologies to the comments which I have yet to reply. I've replied.

And I will be back in Ridz by friday. And will be attending a consultation camp organised by FES.

Anyways, my cousin's dog Chomel, stolen a few days ago from her home in SS15, has been found! Which is a miracle in itself. Considering the dog's breed and the fact that Malaysia is no longer safe for dogs to roam the streets. God knows what they do to all those kidnapped pups...

Went for a jam session with the boys over at Bangsar @ Home Studio.

All Systems Go! (ASGO)

Amir had a swanky new hardcase for his strat.

And Taleeb's dressed up as if he just came back from an Amway meeting.

Alif, filling in for the bass spot. Or is it permanently?

I didn't like the strat provided by the studio. Not maintained as well as I would have liked. But as long as it's playable and with six strings...

And we accomplised something from that session. 2 new songs! One almost complete with the lyrics while the other without it.

Mid-Autumn Festival. Had mooncakes by the pool in Ridz with old and new friends.

I spotted Look, my old room mate walking around with a lantern. So, I nicked it from him to take a shot. That's Cindy on the left and Christine who I think organised this. She's from Indonesia. Likes to laugh.

We had a few assignments crammed in just before mid-term.

And this is Tim's (who insists he doesn't go to the library) way of choosing academic books to read. Take your pick. Ingenious Timmy. :p

Trying out Tim's handset's camera. This is cam-whoreness at its best.

So, finally an update. :)

How la to be a celebrity blogger. Haha. I bet Kenny Sia's posts for a week exceeds mine for a month.

Hmmm....

ISA is...

2008-09-18T23:15:00.003+08:00

I Simply Arrest. This coming from one of Greg's friends. I find this very true. Where else on earth do you arrest people using a law that was from post-colonial times? An act that was initially to curb the communist movement?

Only one word for those in power who still has the gall and mentality to wield this law.

No balls.

Yup.

Sorry to say that la. While I do agree that such an act is useful and perhaps imperative to bring hardcore criminals into detention, these people has interpellated the act in such a way as to use according to their whim and fancy.

So scared izzit? Then make change in this country lah!

Don't always go around snapping up people in the hope that this will silence the majority. Who do you take us for?

Haven't you heard of the saying 'The harder you fall, the harder you bounce'?

At the end of the day, all accusations will lead back to you.

Yes, Tennis Again

2008-09-11T02:28:00.003+08:00

3 main points I hope to incorporate into my playing.

1) Arms always follow through after a shot. Doesn't matter if its from half court.

2) Foot movement. Keep it moving and react early for shots!

3) Have a 'loose' and relaxed playing style. See Fed and Gasquet for example.

But when the half chance or opportunity arises, ATTACK!

Still The King

2008-09-10T03:15:00.004+08:00

Initially at the beginning of the year, I was wishing that the young guns would all gun Fed Ex to the ground and actually challenge him for the number 1 spot.

Now I'm wishing for the reverse.

After witnessing the incredible Wimbledon final where Rafa manages to scrap through with a famous victory, I found myself from supporting Nadal at the beginning to actually shouting and rooting for the Roger as the match progresses through the half-way mark.

It is still apparent the desire to win is still pumping in Roger's blood and that alone motivates me to be on his side. It isn't easy to have 12 grand slams and still have that motivation and desire to step out into the practice courts everyday to prepare for that one big match.

And now he has 13 grand slams.

Andy Murray, one of the young 'contender' played amazing tennis for 2 weeks before going down to Fed. The very fact he managed to beat another talented youngster Del Potro in the quarterfinals (who was on a hot 23 match winning streak), is testament to this kid's ability. Besides, he reminds me of John McEnroe.

So I hope there's more for Roger in the few years that he has left in the game.

Reclaim the number 1 spot!

This promises to be an interesting tug-of-war between Rog and the rest of the young pack.

Man City Is The New Chelsea

2008-09-07T00:24:00.002+08:00

Sorry Roman, but it seems your financial status is being severely tested.

This is something no man has achieved before.

The things we do in lecture.

We had a surprise dinner for Natalie on friday night over at Little Italy in Puchong. Many Pro photographers there. So I took only one very humble shot. Of my drink. And half empty summore. VEry humble.

Was messing with Joman's fisheye. Using my mobile.

Cassie.

Shrek. Using the 3G cam. So not clear lor.

That's about it. Serving for the first time in HPA sunday morning.

Don't hold back Joash, don't hold back.

Happy Puasa-ing to all my Muslim friends.

Tired

2008-09-03T20:10:00.002+08:00

So I guess it's true of the saying 'The early bird catches the worm'.

No matter how late you wake up the next day, that previous late night will result you in being tired, lacking energy, and all in all low productivity.

Take for example my tennis game today, most of my shots were long and lacking 'punch'. In fact, I couldn't think of a time when I was as tired as this after a game.

So this calls for a change, a switch for the better. Guaranteed there's still bound to be late nights as per usual, but I'm gonna try to cut it down.

Yay me.

Tun Michael

2008-09-01T01:03:00.004+08:00

My mum made a really quirky passing comment the other day. Astro was showing one of its Malaysian Olympic moments and our new Datuk was as usual the focal point.

Mumsy said," Just think of what would Michael Phelps be rewarded if he was a Malaysian?"

Interesting.

As all of you know, Datuk Lee won the silver medal in Badminton after going down to Lin Dan in the final.

And as EVERYONE knows, Michael Phelps won an unprecedented 8 goal medals in Beijing.

Let's do some maths shall we?

Datuk Lee: 1 silver
= RM 300,000 + RM 3000 pension + 'Datuk'

Michael: 8 golds (3 team- RM 150,000 for each winning member)
= 5 x RM 1 million + 3 x RM 150,000 +RM 5000 pension
= RM 5 million + RM 450,000 + RM 5000 pension
= RM 5,450,000 + RM 5000 pension.

Not to say Phelps isn't a millionaire already.

And maybe the title 'Tun' for the record breaking athletic?

What say you?

Pictures And What Nots

2008-08-27T01:13:00.009+08:00

Could I do any less Father? After all that has taken place. I pray that You grab hold of me and steer me through. This is my desire, my cry.

Anyway, I'm going to cramp this post with all the pictures I took this past few weeks but couldn't (or didn't) post.

So a few weeks ago, me and Sean were clearing out some stuff from our room left by former occupants. And he found this:

3000 Iran Rial. Wah, macam boleh beli my Behringers already. So I hit up the currency exchange.

Ok, forget it.

Jacob, my Iranian housemate's sister Fatemah (typo), came over to Malaysia to spend her holidays and she was a pretty good cook.

Absolutely amazing Iranian dish. Fatemah and Jacob shared how the Iranian method of cooking rice is so much more different than how we do it here. For them, cooking rice alone is like part of their culture and they take great pride in it. Unlike us who just dumped it into the cooker and it turns out all gooey and sticky.

Making the above dish includes many processes which I can't remember all now but it involves mixing pre-prepared rice with tomato puree, meat, vegetables etc. And leaving everything to boil under a slow fire with a cloth wrapped over the pot's lid (apparently that's one of their methods for a great dish).

Some pictures I took while on the way to Kuantan last week where we had a little family gathering cause Jie is back from Nottingham for the hols! (=

Alternative look to Petaling Street.

It was pouring while travelling in the bus. In fact, it was so bad that I saw signboards twisted and trees blown to the ground as a result of the sheer rage of the thunderstorm. I had nothing to do in the bus, so I saja saja main la with the camera.

Just as lightning was sparking up the sky.

Spot the camera.

And today, I was around ss15 having dinner with CFers.

The things they think of to sell their wares.

Wah. I call this direct support line.

That's about it I guess.

Now for some proper sleep! I'm having flu. Argh.. Though it's much better now, thank God.

Nitey!

Showdown Of Champions

2008-08-25T21:26:00.001+08:00

I missed the last one. Definitely not gonna miss this one!

This time around Johnny Mac, Borg and either Nadal or Blake will join Fed Ex in Malaysia playing 3 rounds of exhibition matches.

For the full schedule, check it out here.

P/S: Rubee! Don't like this laaaaaa. (=

Lavigne To Celebrate Merdeka With Us After All

2008-08-24T01:13:00.001+08:00

So it's back on track apparently.

Hmmm...it has been a week of surprises.

Oh Mikey...

2008-08-23T01:56:00.002+08:00

How he managed to deceive everyone including his own family just boggles me.

I can't believe no one else knew of the feigning. There has to be someone. I mean, c'mon, 2 years?!

How he managed to live through 2 years of deceit just stuns me into silence.

I guess some part of me is hoping that there is actually a reason for Mike to do what he did.

I mean what about all the other 'healings' that he testified about and in all probability was witnessed by others too?

Perhaps there still was a cause and belief for him to write 'Healer'? Just that it wasn't cancer but some other ailment? What is it then?

ARGH.

I won't comment too far as I'm waiting for Mike himself to make himself clear.

Till then.

Lavigne Too Hot To Handle?

2008-08-20T00:53:00.005+08:00

"An Avril Lavigne concert scheduled for later this month in Malaysia has been cancelled amid complaints that the show by the Canadian rock singer is "too sexy." The Arts, Culture and Heritage Ministry says it had decided not to permit Lavigne's planned Aug. 29 performance because it is unsuitable for Malaysian culture.

The decision came after complaints by the youth wing of a fundamentalist opposition party, the Pan-Malaysian Islamic party. Kamarulzaman Mohamed, a party youth official, told the Associated Press on Monday that Lavigne's show was "considered too sexy for us" and would promote the wrong values just before independence day on Aug. 31."

Read it up here and here.

"Avril Lavigne too sexy for us."

Aiyoh...this people are getting more and more ridiculous by the minute.

As if this nation isn't in enough crap, they had to go and pull a stunt like this. Says it all doesn't it? How to Malaysia Boleh larh?

Isn't it time for the authorities to step up (yea...riighhht...) and decide to actually not to continue putting our country to shame for the sake of some bigots?

No offense to that ever complaining party and its enthusiasts, but isn't it time to step out of your shell and embrace the world as it is instead of trying to create a self-made existence of impairment?

Certainly the way forward isn't by looking back and driving your nails into the sand in a bid to counter the momentum?

I cringe to imagine the views of the international domain over our pitiful stand and excuse over cancelling this concert.

And saying the wrong values would be portrayed just before our national celebration as an attempt to rationalise for their impediment is just plain ridiculous and selfish.

"Malaysia requires all performers to wear clothes without obscene or drug-related images and be covered from the chest to the knees. They must also refrain from jumping, shouting, hugging and kissing on stage."

Wow. Mind boggling. As a Malaysian, I didn't even knew such regulations were in place.

Hello? Is this too sexy for you?

I admit it doesn't measure up to the standards of being covered from the chest to the knees, but this doesn't even hinge on the borderline of decency. We've all seen worse.

And please, do not speak on behalf of the nation's youth. What right do you have of that?

Fingers crossed a new date would be agreed upon soon.

That is if Avril STILL wants to come after all this major bull.

Argh!!

2008-08-19T00:44:00.004+08:00

Picture courtesy of REUTERS/David Gray

Horror of horrors!

Liu Xiang has pulled out of the 110m hurdles due to a combination of injury damage to the achilles tendon of his right leg and a bone spur on his ankle. Oh crap, this is the real heart rending stuff for the Chinese, Liu Xiang especially.

Imagine having the hopes of millions pinned on you and having to walk out due to that niggling injury.

I just hope he won't be judged heavily as I believe he has done everything humanly possible to start the race and at the end just couldn't.

Ah...the cruel twist of fortunes.

Recap

2008-08-15T02:58:00.006+08:00

I guess all of you have heard or seen videos of the infamous fire over at my campus, so i'll not mentioned it anymore here. I was sure that the CF's 1st anniversary was going to be cancelled. So me and dean were at the security centre cracking jokes about ceramahs and what nots. And apparently half the population over at LCS are bloggers la, judging by the amount of cameras, handsets raised throughout the evacuation.

We came out from class and found the staff lined up neatly against the wall. Talk about uniformity.

Finally found Benny and the CF gang at the front of Kurnia and he said that the celebration would be cancelled if we were not allowed back into coll in 30 minutes. But lo and behold, at precisely 5pm (yes, I saw the time), they allowed us back it! Now is that a miracle or what? Now here comes the tricky part, biking back to ridz, lugging my guitar, keyboard and stand to the awaiting dean downstairs, and rushing back to campus.

By the time I reached, I had barely enough time to set everything out and change before the celebration began. So much for having a soundcheck. heh.

All in all, the celebration went pretty well, lots of laughs, fun and a short but timely message from Florence all the way from UPM's CF.

Do visit our CF's blog for more updates and highlights of the celebration (Coming soon).

By night, I hopped along with Joe and Cassie to Putrajaya to witness fireworks by the Malaysian team. It seems to be some annual competition in conjunction with the Merdeka celebrations with teams all around the world participating.

The below 2 pics are grabbed from Cassie's blog.

John, Joe, me looking out of sorts in my oversize CF shirt, Stephanie, Lydia and Aaron.

The 2 Sony alpha users setting up while me and Joe had Mackers.

With 2 DSLRs and Cassie's digital camera, I was feeling real out of sorts with my 2 mp phone camera. Me mere mortal am not worthy to be in their holistic presence.

Below are some chosen shots of the night.

I'm surprised by some (note: some) of the pictures clarity. Don't compare to the higher end cameras la. By 2 mp standards I daresay it looks pretty good.

Probably my favourite. Love the way the crowd is silhouetted against the burst of flare.

Taylors CF 1st Anniversary

2008-08-11T01:25:00.002+08:00

Its been a year of learning, fun and excitement. And all the while soaking in His glory. There is more to come we assure you. Taylors PJ's CF is celebrating our 1st Anniversary this coming tuesday and you're invited! Doesn't matter if you're not a student here, you're invited too!

Date

12 August 2008 (Tuesday)

Time

5.15 pm - 7 pm

Come one, come all!

Hope to catch you there to join in the celebrations! (:

Visit our blog for add info. Any ques, just drop me a line.

Revolution

2008-08-07T22:39:00.002+08:00

The revolution tour will be heading to the sunny shores of Kuantan on the 16th of August.

Get excited and be prepared for an awesome time with the REVO ACADEMY , power-packed messages and a P.A.R.T.Y! Click on the banner for a detailed view.

You don't wanna miss out in the event of the year right here in KUANTAN! If you need more details, log on to www.urtherevolution.com! SEE YOU AT REVO KUANTAN!

There you go Jasher. :)

Death Has Lost Its Sting

2008-08-05T23:32:00.003+08:00

Only just realised from online radio Air 1 that Steven Curtis Chapman's youngest daughter Maria passed away in the month of May 08 due to a freak accident at the Chapmans home. You can read it up here.

Calling it tragic would be an understatement, however deeming it as part of God's timing and grace supercedes it all. However trite this sentence may sound, I'm living by it.

I've encountered my fair share of untimely deaths. Deaths that in all the common sense of the world, shouldn't have happened, not at this age, at this junction of time. And I am strengthened by the resolve, faith and determination shown by each family during this time. Not cursing, not raging; but simply a silent prayer of faith and surrendering to God for all it's worth. Now THAT'S faith.

Isaiah 25:8 "....The Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces...."

Hosea 13:14 "....sheol, where is your sting?..."

After everything, GOD IS GOD.

And the pain falls like a curtain
On the things I once called certain
And I have to say the words I fear the most
I just don’t know

And the questions without answers
Come and paralyze the dancer
So I stand here on the stage afraid to move
Afraid to fall, oh, but fall I must
On this truth that my life has been formed from the dust

Chorus:
God is God and I am not I can only see a part of the picture He’s painting
God is God and I am man
So I’ll never understand it all
For only God is God

And the sky begins to thunder
And I’m filled with awe and wonder
‘Til the only burning question that remains
Is who am I

Can I form a single mountain
Take the stars in hand and count them
Can I even take a breath without God giving it to me
He is first and last before all that has been
Beyond all that will pass

Oh, how great are the riches of His wisdom and knowledge
How unsearchable for to Him and through Him and from Him are
all things

So let us worship before the throne
Of the One who is worthy of worship alone

God Is God
Written by Steven Curtis Chapman
From the recording: Declaration, Track #5

Passion Kuwala Lompor

2008-08-04T20:53:00.004+08:00

I finally have gotten the chance to see these dudes in the flesh. Come to think of it, it's surreal that I was worshipping just a few feet away from them. IT'S JUST TOO BAD DCB WASN'T HERE TOO. But there's nothing to complain about yesterday night. Amazing.

The waiting crowd. It was pretty cool with the phony countdown and all. And I got to know a Singapore couple with their cute daughter who claims to be a Chris fan. And guess what? They are Wees too. Cool eh?

Spot Benny!

This is where my line starts.

Before.

Joe. My fellow Mayer fan.

The opening.

Chris!

Ah yes, Daniel Carson with all his jink and dinks. Emotional rocker to the max.

It was amazing when Louie told us that Passion Manila had prayed for us and contributed financially to make Passion KL possible. And we in turn were to contribute to Jakarta, the next city on the tour. It's an amazing feeling to know that someone has sowed love into the making of something incredible and in turn awesome to know that you're doing the same for the next city.

One of the highlights for me was to be able to stand smack at the frontline witnessing Daniel and Kendall (of Charlie's band) doing their stuff on the electric. One thing's for sure: they do have fast feet and nifty toes; dancing away pressing, turning, stomping on their effects arsenal.

I like it that they used the capo on the elec for many songs. Goes on to show that Nigel and I are not alone. HAHA.

Ashley's journal goes on to show how one unassumming 'fruitcake' is able to impact one's life in just 2 weeks. How could I do less?

For Daniel Carson's rig setup and him explaining the dials, check here. Be warned that setup was a year ago.

When they gave the warning again for no flash photography, I took one last picture of his board and decided to call it quits and focused fully on lifting up the Lord's name.

Looks like he added a Route66 and maybe other nifty gadgets. Couldn't make it out from the ground. And I like the fact that he used only his Gibby throughout the show. Same went for Kendall.

Ahhh...think I'll write no more,

But do check out Passion's blog for more,

Check out the comments for the KL post,

Looks like we beat Manila's record with our 362 comments posts.

And it's just after one day, goes on to show how pro we Malaysian bloggers are. Heh.

Good night to all.

Keep the Passion flowing!

Fried Fats

2008-08-04T02:08:00.002+08:00

Where can you find fried nasi lemak?

Come to Ridzuan. It's all available at The Arcade.

How good it is, is up to you to decide. Just ask Joshua.

The next time you're there, DO NOT request for the Nasi Lemak to be warmed.

King Rafa

2008-08-02T22:06:00.002+08:00

The new king of grass is guaranteed to claim the number 1 ranking regardless of how he fares in the latter part of the tournament after storming to a 7-6 6-1 quaterfinal victory over Ecuadorian Nicolas Lapentti.

His rise to number 1 depends on his performance in cincy:
- If Nadal wins, he will become No. 1 this Monday.

- If Nadal loses in the final, it's August 11.

- If Nadal loses in the semifinals to Nole, it's August 18.

This bringing an end to Fed Ex's reign on the top of men's tennis after 235 weeks (currently).

It's no less what Rafa deserves after a splendid season thus far.

RAWR! Or Rock. Whatever Man...

2008-07-28T00:14:00.004+08:00

So I happened to stumble upon ROTTW's Soundstage08 at central market.

One thing I learned : GUITARS VOLUME DOWN MAN! YOU'RE KILLING THE POOR VOCALIST. (Not that I was able to hear what they were screaming and mumbling about anyway)

This band sounded pretty decent. They had a name that sounded like revolution. The lead shouted their myspace too fast la.

Rock Chic(k). And we all love that drummer right? I'm digging that decal on the guitar. A little morbid perhaps, but it sets its colour nicely against white.

Then I realised it was 3.48.

Bus arrives in 12.

Dang. Just when I was enjoying myself.

*Runs all the way back to pudu*

Malacca Trippy Dippy

2008-07-26T01:18:00.002+08:00

Ok.

Circles aptly depicts the trip.

But a slope was the pinnacle eh guys? :)

At least I got my red Strat serviced. HAH! And this (!) :

Go get this. For Mayer fans, you're in for a treat to see 3 full sets. An acoustic, with the Trio and finally the band.

If I'm not mistaken, it's more than 3 hours of blues riffs, guitars (many), backstage passes and John being his usual reflecting self.

There's always a vibe when John plays and I admit, my eyes were on the fretboard more often than not.

And sparking a revival of some sort for me to learn (and relearn) some of his songs. Tough nuts.

What On Earth...

2008-07-26T01:16:00.001+08:00

Ok, if you're able to make a post like mine below, then, wow.

Okkkayyy..enough. Back to what I originally wanted to post.

2008-07-25T23:48:00.002+08:00

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Passion Kuala Lumpur

2008-07-23T00:56:00.002+08:00

As most of you would probably know, the Passion World Tour is coming to our shores very very soon! Latest update is that passes are sold out but there's still a slight chance of obtaining it if somebody backs out.

Here's some additional info for those who are making it.

When
August 3rd 2008
6:00PM-10:00PM

Location
Sunway Convention Center Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Who
Chris Tomlin
Louie Giglio
Charlie Hall

1. YOU MUST BRING YOUR RECEIPT in exchange for your pass(es). Passes will be picked up the day of the event between 10 AM and 5 PM at the Sunway Convention Center. If your ticket is not picked up by 5 PM, then your ticket will be forfeited.

All seating is on a first come first serve basis and all passes are general admission.

2. If you are a "bill me later" registrar, be sure to print that registration and bring it to "will call" at the event. The cost is still 20 RM in exchange for the wristband and entrance into the event.

NOTE: If you don't want to stand in line the day of the event, Passes may also be picked up Wednesday - Saturday, July 30 - August 2nd at the Sunway Pyramid Tower in the Hotel Lobby between 10 AM and 7 PM. Just look for the "will call" table.

For more info, click here.

That's all! Hope to see some familiar faces there! In the meantime, keep this event in prayer. It's going to be huge and let's pray for lives to be transformed and challenged.

Drop me a msg if you'll be there. :)

Cheers

Tribute To Delirious

2008-07-17T01:05:00.001+08:00

Ok, Im probably the last delirious fan on earth who is posting this on his blog.

The End of an Era……Sunday 6th July 2008

We would like to address all our fans, our friends and people around the world who have faithfully supported Delirious?

After 14 albums, thousands of shows in front of millions of people, and many extraordinary memories, we have decided that at the end of 2009 we will take a break from recording and playing as a band.

Our decision was triggered by a request from Martin to be released from the band to pursue new projects including his work with CompassionArt and the desire to be at home more with Anna and his children. We have of course honoured this request and made a decision together that now is the time to end this chapter of our lives.

We will continue to play and be excited about our current tours and bookings but will not be adding many more over the coming 17 months..

We are all so deeply grateful to our incredible fans who have sung the songs and allowed Delirious? the privilege of providing the soundtrack to many lives over the years. From the school hall in Littlehampton to the stadiums of the world we have many stories to tell our children’s children. Delirious also would not be what it is without our amazing wives and families, and our gratitude to them is immense. We will now move forward to the next part of our lives where new challenges unfold and greater stories will be written.

We want to make it absolutely clear that although this decision has been extremely painful and difficult, we are still great friends and our respect for each other is unquestionable. We love playing in this band together and know that even though 2009 will bring an end to this current journey, there will be more adventures together in years to come.

We always used to say that we were ‘taking it wherever it goes’. The music ended up going further and deeper than we could ever have dreamed, yet we are now at a point where our creative futures will spread out and take on different journeys.

Thanks again for believing in us through all these years. We believe the best is yet to come.

Jon, Martin, Paul, Stu G and Tim

Its been a great ride and Im only thankful and grateful to be able to see them live the once they were in Malaysia. And it was THAT show that got me into them.

One final hurrah in Malaysia or Singapore perhaps? Pretty please?

Rach Tag 2

2008-07-15T00:24:00.002+08:00

TAG No. 1

List eight (8) random facts about yourself.

1. My childhood dream was to play footie for ManUtd. (Still is btw)

2. I took drumn lessons when I was 5. Then grew bored of it. I was five what. my drum playing ability now hinges on
the borderline of decency.

3. I have an orange dirt bike with a green helmet. And they say it doesn't match.

4. I wanted to built the eiffel tower, but someone beat me to it.

5. Ok i admit. I was a fan of becks and his freekicks, passes before the whole craze kicked in.

6. I USED to watch Malaysian footie. My favourite team is Johor FC.

7. Me and a friend would compete with each other to see who would score lower for our add maths tests. It was a close race.

8. I'm a Sri Muarian through and through. Sorry HSM, 2 years would never ever replace 5 years of fun, edginess and friendship.
I have nothing personal against HSM mind you.

TAG No. 2

8 things I am passionate about:

1. Writing
2. God
3. Tennis
4. Trying to play good guitar.
5. Figuring the facts of life out. And forgetting to write it down.
6. Footie
7. The beach
8. Daniela Hantuchova.

8 things I say too often:

1. la
2. le
3. lo
4. ah
5. haha
6. shit
7. stupid ass
8. shoot

8 books I’ve read recently:

1. Blind Prophet by Bart Davis
2. In The Hot Zone by Kevin Sites
3. Eating By Peter Singer and Jim Mason

8 songs I could listen to over and over again FOR THE MOMENT

1. Little Wing. SRV.
2. Who did you think I was. John Mayer.
3. Fly like a bird. Mariah Carey.
4. Make it last forever. Keith Sweat.
5. Manhattan. Eric Johnson.
6. Goodbye to you. Michelle Branch.
7. Na Veia. Gustavo Guerra
8. Crimsom Epiphany. New album out. Go get it!

TAG No.3

Would you go out with you? State the reasons why you would, and why you wouldn't, and then come to a conclusion at the end.

Of course I would. They say the only person you should ever compete with is yourself. You can't hope for a fairer match. So why not?

One For The Ages

2008-07-08T23:42:00.004+08:00

The changing of the guard?

Underwear tugging Rafael Nadal has ended the incredible 5 year reign of Roger Federer over at the sunny plains of Wimbledon.

For me, this is probably one of the best matches I've seen so far barring the 2 rain delays (Which we probably needed to catch our breaths).

Again, some pictures to sum it all up. Courtesy of Wimbledon.

Pre match photo. Gotta dig that sweater Federer is wearing. Wait till you see what Serena wears.

The devastating top spin forehand of Nadal. Deep, penetrating and one which Fed isn't in the mood to receive for the next few months.

The shot that Fed should have used more. The backhand slice. His usually reliant backhand wasn't working in the final.

Rain on Henman Hill. The bane of Wimbledon. Thank God they're building a roof for centre court next year.

Watch a Nadal match and this will be a very familiar sight. He does this in between almost every point.

Finally. After squandering 3 match points, centre court has a new king.

I was rooting for Fed. Really wanted to see him break Borg's record of 5 successive Wimbby titles. Can't imagine how he must be feeling. So near, yet so far.

It was a match neither deserved to lose.

But this man deserved it too. After 2 failed Wimbledon finals, it's third time lucky for the spaniard.

He doesn't look too please I must say.

As you can see in the background, it was practically night when it finished. 9.15 to be exact. Exactly 4 hours and 48 minutes of play. The longest final in the history of Wimbledon.

The final score

6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-7 (8-10), 9-7.

The fourth set tie break was particularly nerve-wrecking.

The final point with the presentation ceremony.

Vamos Rafa.

Rach Tag 1

2008-07-02T17:41:00.002+08:00

I haven't been doing this in a while. Here's for kicks.

1. Have you been trying to avoid something or someone?
That chinese restaurant over at my apartment.

2. Where will you go if someone sponsors you a tour ticket?
MANCHESTER.

3. Whats your favourite thing to do?
Tennis. Music. That's 2.

4. Do you think money can buy happiness?
Works for donald trump i guess.

5. If you can have one dream to come true, what would it be?
Performing live with my band in wembley. Full crowd. Not empty stadium la.

6. Do you believe u will survive without money?
Yeah. God provides.

7. What are you afraid to lose the most?
The people i love and cherish

8. If you win $1million, what would u do?
Put it into mutual fund.

9. What is the most recent embarrasing thing you have done?
Botak? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

10. When did you last hug someone? and who was it?
Dunno la. Forgot. Last I remembered is Ken on his birthday. I was tipsy okkayyy.
And he's the bday boy what.

11. Write down 1 bad point of the person who tagged you.
Rach, what should i write?

12. What do you think you'll be doing in 10 yrs time?
That's 30 years old for me. Probably globe trotting doing my job. Whatever it is.

13. Would you date someone who's at least 10 yrs older or younger?
No.

14. What is your ambition?
"Ambition is the path to success. Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in.” Bill Bradley.

15. Do you believe in Love in First Sight?
No.

16. What do you think is the most important thing in your life?
God. I'm trying.

17. latest craze?
Wimbledon

18. If you have a chance, which part of your character do you like to change?
I'm happy the way i am. maybe a little taller.

19. Boys are stupid. Do you agree and why?
No.

20. Maggi goreng or bee hoon goreng?
Lately, bee hoon goreng.

THATS WHAT THE BOTTLE SAYS! Instructions: Remove 1 question from above, and add in your personal question, make it a total of 20 questions.

Wah, So Cooling Ah...

2008-06-26T22:38:00.001+08:00

2008-06-17T23:08:00.002+08:00

So semester 2 is done with. Pretty mucked up. And I shall leave it at that.

Till next sem. I promise.

Give Me Liberty Or Give Me...

2008-06-11T22:55:00.003+08:00

Monday is the day of liberation. Sort of. This sem went by real fast la. Couldn't take it all in. All I knew is that I did plenty of writing (Not complaining. Writing's cool. But takes inspiration. Read here) plus that IPD (or IDP whatever la) subject. Once again, my inability of using photoshop is cruelly exposed. (A must learn for me this coming break).

I've updated my Allies links.

That's all I guess! Will update soon on last week's church camp. Had a blast there. 3 days is too short la.

Cheers.

Quite A Few Words Ahead...

2008-06-04T22:26:00.007+08:00

Before anything, some pictures I took from my room: Of the moon. Haha. Yea, woke up suddenly in the
dead of the night and saw that the moon was looking extra huge. And I mean extra HUGE. The actual size
is twice of what you're seeing in this pictures.

Saajaa lah, some random pictures to make up for my lack of updates.

And I went for Hillsong United. Yeah, I know I told practically the whole world I was not going but last minute change of plans la. Thanks to Lydia. Couldn't get a buyer for her so took it instead. Might as well
not let it go to waste aite? (Remind me to pay up the next time I see you. :p) I was really certain that it
was no accident that I was going at the eleventh hour. I was expecting something from the night.

My first time listening to the band that revolutionise the way I approach worship and guitars. I would
never forget the images of Marcus Beaumont rocking out on the acoustic on the set
'To The Ends Of The Earth' 6 years ago.

Joel Houston worship led with a few regulars band members from the Hillsong and United series plus a
few I didn't recognise. And they sounded surreal. It was almost exactly as it is in the albums. But
I guess that's the way it is when you're been practically touring the whole earth.

Was particularly stirred by the song 'Mighty To Save'. When the band started to play it, I just started crying.
I was thinking to myself: "Why is it always so hard to do what's right in the sight of the Lord." "Why am I
always struggling with my carnal self?" "It seems so simple: Just follow the Bible, yet it is way easier to say than do."

All pictures before the start. No recording allowed during the concert.

A Gibby and Tele I think.

Front-of-house.

I was wondering throughout the concert whether the drummer could see the drum set properly with all the
lights around him.

Keys.

I guess through life, you just gotta count on His grace and mercy while keeping faith and doing your
utmost best to follow after Him.

Still, had a great time, managed to meet up with a few YESians, hugged Gurkha (Daniel) till the strapping of
my bag broke and generally enjoyed it all.

So I had my very first church camp with my kl church Hosanna Praise Assembly (HPA) over at Genting
View Resort. Brought my cam along but didn't take much. The youths had a kopitiam style cafe for the congregation after night meetings to raise money for the orphanage we're planning to visit in July. Pretty tiring work to be honest, but nothing beats the fellowship and the Cause we're working for! :)

What I liked bout this resort is that they had pretty decent sports facilities. Indoor and oudoor futsal pitch, tennis courts, badminton courts and swimming pool. Had a go at badminton and indoor futsal and my legs still hurt! Thanks to the futsal la. Dah la lama tak main futsal.

The dorm where the majority of the boys bunk in.

The Double Champions (You Better Read This)

2008-05-26T11:58:00.011+08:00

Late in coming post. But who cares. A tribute to the red army.

We gathered in Rasta for the match of the year. And it turn out to be a hell of a one.

This comes in the 50th anniversary wake of the Munich disaster and the 10th anniversary since the 1999 triumpth. All three typifies of the spirit in United. Determination, never giving in and bouncing back.

Some pictures to sum up my feelings and the match.

Ronaldo gets things going with a beautiful floating header right into Petr Cechs' corner. His 42nd for the season. 1-0 to United.

The celebrations. Look out for Sara with errr.....

Scholes gets bloodied for United.

And Drogba loses his head in the aeriel challenge against Vidic. This was to be the norm throughout the match.

Lamps scores with a lucky shot. That's the only way they score em anyway.

Ken's balls dropped twice.

Drogba gets pushy-pushy.

And gets reddy-reddy.

Ronaldo misses THAT penalty.

And Terry goes on to slip when it mattered most.

To be honest, I really have a lot of respect for John Terry. I just hope he wins something big with England soon. But not with Chelsea.

Anelka's turn to miss THAT penalty.

The celebrations. I was too busy standing on a chair in Rasta bawling my lungs out to pay any attention during that time.

It was CHAOS in Rasta.

Worthy champions.

The maestro.

Nemanja Vidic. One of the unsung heroes this season. Absolutely brilliant all season and spot on.

Try focusing on the shirt. Not that face.

This match had everything a footie fan could hope for : Penalties, red card, blood, conflicts, near misses, off-the-post, you name it.

Like what Sir Alex said in 1999: "Football, bloody hell.

It's moments like these man. That's football.

To those one angled people who only see football as 22 men chasing after a ball, you don't know what you're missing. Get a life.

*THERE'S ONLY ONE UNITED*

Marie Digby

2008-05-17T22:11:00.005+08:00

I was eyeing that Vox the whole time.

Little Kim who vowed the audience.

Gibson DOES make beautiful acoustics.

Joe, this pic's for you.

Stop and stare... That's me by the way.

Not very good pictures this time round. Too far back. But I did my best! :p

And I can't believe I bought the cd just to catch a glimpse of her face in person.

Ahhh....

Freedom Fest 08

2008-05-15T20:12:00.011+08:00

Lone rangers Tim, Amy and Ken walking the incredible distance to Admiral Marina.

At the drive in.

Vinn get things rolling at the dB arena.

Hopping over to DimenXion. Pretty good retro stuff going on.

Main stage for Cosmic Gate.

The slowly increasing crowd. When it was time for Tiesto, it was packed to the brim.

Cosmic Gate. Truth be told, I preferred them over Tiesto.

Lightings were awesome that night.

MetalRob. Full metal robotic gears decked with special effects.

Laser lighting.

Speak of the devil...

Anticipating the emergence of the main draw.

And he comes on with a bang.

Gotta love the effects! That is Tiesto with his deck.

This picture I think is my fav for the night.

Knackered.

From the back before we decided to call it a night.

For some, Freedom Festival truly brings out the freedom spirit in them. As Ken said, it was a sausage fest. Heh heh

We retired early before Tiesto ended his set. I was having severe cramp in my stomach (Lesson learnt : Take your dinner before any rave)

And it was the long (or short for Ken's driving) trip back to seremban where we crashed over at Tim's for the night.

At any rate, it was probably good we cleared before Mr. MB came for a visit.

Champions !!

2008-05-12T09:07:00.003+08:00

Ryan Giggs leads the team to its 17 Premier League title, his and Sir Alex's 10th.

It seems fitting for Giggsy to score the second goal in his record equalling 758 appearance for United.

Moscow next.

*There's Only One United*

Finally Huh?

2008-05-09T16:10:00.004+08:00

Yay all. A long awaited update. Some pictures to sum up what I did in sunny April.

Participated in my first KL tennis tournament. Went under my boss team 'Tennis Uncles'. No prizes for guessing the youngest member.

If you look closely, that dude in blue with the phone is Michael, our team captain and my doubles partner. We were playing in the open category which is for those young legs under the age of 35.

Pretty good courts over at the Sri Damansara Club. Nice area too. With plenty of green around.

Oh. And very good players.

I played a shitty match and cost my team the tie. With ultimately means that we're out of the tournament. Yeah, so, enough of that. Feeling sorry for Michael though having to partner me. Haha.

Park, my Korean house mate and Man United fan has left for E Tiara. Darn. Another footie-watching kaki lost.

Guess which is Park?

Hint: Towards the right.

Anyway, I promise I'll update regularly from now on so as to not defeat the purpose of having a blog.

I'll be heading to Port Dickson tomorrow for the Freedom 08 Festival. Luminaries like Tiesto, Ferry Corsten, Cosmic Gate, Stephen Day and some are scheduled for a 2 day extravaganza. We'll only be there for the second day though. Last day is always the best.

So, yeah, I guess that's it.

More to come!

Cheers.

Why La And Macam Ini La

2008-04-26T16:18:00.002+08:00

Quick update. I have tons of news and photos to post but my laptop is now in service for a week which isn't a good thing considering I have 2 assignments due next week.

Hopefully by next week everything will be up and running and I'l be able to post something decent up.

Till then, cheers and watch your diets.

I Need To Learn Extra Technology

2008-04-11T20:41:00.005+08:00

Good grief. Procrastination is such a tempting prospect. Especially when you're back home, in the full comforts of it.

I have a PR essay due next week and I know that I have to get it done soon
or else it's gonna be another week of contractions for me.
There's a vast difference between last minute work and a
well constructed one.

So, just a few updates here:

- I'm back home. Which means there's Internet and good food.
- PC fair is on too. I badly need to get an external hard drive. Too many files, too little space.
- Cousins are back! Which means extra entertainment for me.
- Man United is playing Arsenal on sunday. Which means the gooners are getting their arse kick again.

Tootles for now people.

All Systems Go !

2008-04-06T22:31:00.006+08:00

I finally have the chance to post this pictures up. Still no internet in my unit. I need to get one of those 3G,4G,5G whatever internet service soon.

We took this when I went back home for the Easter hols. Hadn't played with Taleeb since forever. That guy still has some mean chops on the drums! I reckon Amir and his cuz Alif did a pretty good job on the pics don't ya think? I need to learn Photoshop soon man.

We used to be a threesome (Now, now, no dirty ideas here...) Got Alif in on bass and he fitted in pretty well; Considering he just started on it.

Hero of the day, Taleeb. Kena accident tapi masih semangat gila. I thought he was going to resort to Meg White kind of chops but he still managed to put that knee to good use.

This is a good pic. Pity Alif is hidden.

Makes you wonder. Was this a jamming or photo session? ;)

Now you know which guitars we're going to sponsor in the future. Tip: Read my shirt.

Didn't work the first time.

Neither did the second.

Picture of the year.

The Better Side Of The Colour Red

2008-03-31T23:49:00.003+08:00

I love this picture!

It shows some of the United faithful in TCPJ. Taken the day after we thrash Poo 3-0.

Poor Sabby lost a bet to Tim and had to wear the colours of United!

But we all know she WANTED to eh? ;)

*There's Only One United*

Good Friday

2008-03-22T14:11:00.008+08:00

Ain't she cute?

Ps Betty ended her sermon by encouraging the congregation to step forward to spend a few moments to meditate on what the Lord has done for us, what the cross means to us.

And a bonus! Aunty Ivy went with Ps Kat and Mary to Oz to preach at a few churches and to attend the Hillsong's Colour Your World Women's Conference. Look what she brought back for me.

Yup guys, this is the Part 1, The I Heart Revolution: With Hearts as One album. The newest release in the Hillsong United series. It features a whooping 30 tracks all recorded live around the globe from Toronto, Cape Town, Chicago, Houston, Kiev, Manila, Buenos Aires, Kuala Lumpur, Sydney plus many more.

The second part, The I Heart Revolution: We're All in This Together is a double DVD set which will be released in June.

For your info, for the Kl leg, they included the song 'Came To My Rescue (Be lifted High)'.

It was only released 8 of March in Oz and yet to be release in the States. I reckon I must be one of the first in Msia to have it. Really cherish and appreciate it as I certainly did not expect Aunty Ivy to give me this even though I demanded for gifts before she left. =P

Well, I'll be returning to KL tomorrow afternoon and RFP assignment is due monday. Bummer.

Your Grace Is Sufficient For Me

2008-03-21T17:27:00.006+08:00

I'm back in muar for the weekend! Busy making the most of the time available to meet up with friends. It's great that most who are outside studying have returned for the weekend save perhaps for Chingg, Lydia and Nora.

It's great to be able to spent Good Friday and Easter with my home church. I'll be playing for Easter Sunday.

And to remember the greatest day in human history. A day often overlooked in the history books in priority of human achievements. The day Christ gave Himself up for us, for all the wrongdoings that humanity has done, will do. For the joy set before Him, being me,
gave Himself up to the cross. (Hebrews 12:2)

For this, I have the assurance to know that His love, grace, mercy will always abound in me. And
when you have that assurance, let me assure you that it brings about such peace that no other(s) can bring. The joy of my salvation.

So, whenever we are at the crossroads, at wits end, desperate and in need of a best friend, you can count on Jesus to fulfill your every need and desire. He is there, and always has been. What's left is for you to respond.

I took this pictures during RFP class. Very rare to see a reflection such as this I think. Tim pointed it out to me and we were quite distracted
by it. That explains how much we were concentrating during class la.

After some editing. Love the contrast it shows. That's how it is when you walk with Jesus!

Always in the Light,
Even though darkness is all about you,
Your path will always be colourful and bright!

Pastel themed.

May Good Friday and Easter be remembered for all the right reasons instead of fat bunnies with chocolates.

Magia And Tic Tic Mania

2008-03-16T23:01:00.010+08:00

Hung out with Joe and the guys over at Amcorp Mall today. Aaron had a video project to record and he had his Magic Garage friends over to help. They basically have a booth set up every other weekend to demonstrate and sell their err magical stuff. Was VERY surprise to see Christopher there, another Muarian! Give us a few more decades and we Muarians will dominate KL with our hokkien. Apparently this dude has only played (ok, maybe play isn't the right word for magic-sy things) magic for over a year but he's seriously good!

We were drawing in a good size crowd over at the mall entrance when the management decided to intervine. Apparently they need a permit to do this kind of stuff. Which is funny as the magicians are in a way helping out the mall in bringing entertaiment and joy to the shoppers there especially the kids who are more than often dragged along with their parents for the weekend shopping or spending quality 'family time'.

Aaron recording proceedings.

Chris doing magik.

Ok, only Chris is in my pics but they were around 3 others there who helped out.

The 3 Js. Joash, John and Joe.

We basically walked around the mall while waiting for Aaron to round up.

Amcorp Mall has pretty good odd and end stuff here, able to fulfill the wishes of any collector, from coke bottles to china. Saw a U2 bootleg on sale. Double disc from the year 1993 if I'm not mistaken. According to this webbie, it's one of the best U2 bootlegs EVER. Pretty good old cds on sale there. Didn't have much time to visit every booth though.

Then when to catch the movie 10,000 BC. Movie was so so. What was interesting about the movie was the name of the people and tribes in the movie. Tutt Tutt, Tic Tic, D-leh, Karen(a guy's name, no less) and a few others I can't recall. And I love the part when the hero spears the
Egyptian emperor and shouts, "This guy is not god!".

Joe has found something really cool on John's blog. Apparently this tool can test how many words you can type in a minute. So we spend a good time in the cc trying this little thing out. It's great fun but it can really tire you out.

44 words

Speedtest

2008-03-15T21:42:00.004+08:00

Taylor's PJ Christian Fellowship is organising an evangelistic event on the 19th of March (Next wednesday) with Pastor Andy Yeoh of Altered Frequency sharing. Details as follow on the posters. For those aren't from campus and wish to join us, LT3 is located at B tower which houses Kurnia Insurance. Just give me a buzz if you're still in the dark.

P.S, I know one poster is sufficient but the designer(s) did such a good job I simply have to post it all!

See you!

2008-03-09T21:27:00.001+08:00

Thank you Malaysians for the making the stand for a change.

God bless Malaysia...

D-Day

2008-03-07T23:36:00.003+08:00

So, after major hu has and what nots, the elections for the oh so democratic Malaysia will be making its run again.

I kinda regret for not going to any of the ceramahs here in Subang. Seemed very happening and all la. Nevermind, in the next 5 years if I'm still in our beloved tanah air, I'll definitely be following it all closely.

For this election, there isn't much of a difference that I can make. Other than prayer that the sickening corruption will end, the right to vote isn't in my court as yet. I just pray and hope that whichever ruling party it may be, that the most important thing on their mind is the rakyat, the community. Putting the welfare ahead any other matters. Not some shitty millions wasted to send an angkasawan into space and where does it all come to? An achivement yes, but an achivement worth for the masses? Now that's something to chew about.

But to be bloody honest with all (and this is just my personal view begging your pardon), BN will still win the majority tomorrow. There isn't much to argue about that. I'm realistic. I know that change doesn't happen that easily and at such a short time. I just hope that the right individuals, people with the guts to face up to the issues that our country is neck-choked with and having the fortitude to deal with it instead
of just giving insistent empty promises. But from what I observed, from the 5 years since the last election, the people are now more passionate in what they believe in. More are coming forward to voice out their dissatisfaction. Imagine this scenario 5 years ago. Hard to visualize then right?

"Eh, ISA la"

"SENSITIVE issue"

Such is my low sentiment towards the goverment, that I have this feeling that they will even venture out to play their little game of subverting even before the voting gets underway. I just can't help wondering about those who are voting overseas. What about the period of the votes reaching here and it actually being released? WHO'S IN CHARGE? In any case, these votes may be the difference between justice and its antonym.

Anyway, I'm still waiting for the day when a party will be founded that truly has the rakyat as its primary focal point. Fighting for the rights of the citizens just as our forefathers
did to steer
Malaysia to gaining its independence. Let's not ruin what they have poured their blood and sweat into.

LET'S NOT FORGET WHAT WE ARE FIGHTING FOR.

Happy voting!

Bono Is Ma Date

2008-03-04T15:30:00.003+08:00

Writing takes inspiration and it isn't just some way all-do it all statement. Today our new RFP lecturer Mrs G gave us 2 questions to chew over during the getting-to-know-you session. How would you define writing in a single sentence? Which famous person living or dead would you want to have dinner with?

Seemingly simple questions. But I found the writing one particularly notable to munch over with. I mean, I do love writing, but for me, anytime doesn't mean anytime if you get ma drift. There are times when even though the brain juice is working overtime, the juice just won't flow. The idea is there , the substace is just waiting for me to hold on to but when I put it out into words, I'm just not content with the results it produces.

Tireness? Maybe. Or it may be that I need some booster to turn up the confidence level. I tend to like, compare my writings with the others and that is where the comparing starts. Yeah, I know we all have different ways of pouring our thoughts into actions. So I guess improvement is the best relief pill there is. Various ways that, in that sense.

Ah, inspiration, inspiration.

Ok, enough of that. For ques 2, I chose Bono for my date. Why? Besides the usual face that he's the lead for the biggest band ever, I chose this dude because of the way he potrays himself. No celebrity ooh ahhs and definitely no chi hua huas sticking their small bony asses out of his bag. The social awareness that he's trying to create sets this guy apart from others. I mean, he could easily go, "I'm the in arguably the biggest band ever, millions rolling in, as long as I'm settled, who gives a damn bout the third world? But he doesn't.

Read this interview he gave to Rolling Stone some years back. Very insightful and gives you a glimpse of what he is fighting for. And you can tell that he knows his stuff.

Ok, enough of extolling the virtues of him. For ques 2, many varied answers came out. Jessica Alba, Jude Law (coming from a guy), Adolf Hitler, Gandhi, Tom Hanks, Princess Diana, Prince William, Oprah, Christiano Ronaldo were all mentioned. But the best came from Ivan la.

"Whoever want to pay for it then can already".

And We Go: "All Week Long...."

2008-02-28T02:58:00.034+08:00

Before shooting/butchering me, I have a valid excuse for not updating this blog okayyy. My apartment has officially cancelled our internet account. Too many people moving out la. Thanks no less to JPA. So, this will be a rather long post. If it's any comfort to you, most of it is in pictures.

Basically, these pics were taken from last saturday to friday.

Uncle now has a cat named Orange.

Went to Aunt's church on saturday for the concert. Wasn't PlanetShakers after all.

The church has a nice cafeteria on the 2nd floor. Quite a number of youths too.

They had around 7 bands performing on the night. This is eternal band playing J-rock. My favourite band from the night.

Some guy doing a drum solo.

Pictures from that night weren't clear. I was sitting near back and had to focus in a lot.

G3. Heavy shredding and riffs involved. Not my particular style, but they played alrite.

On sunday, the Y.E.S 08 alumni gathered together for a spot of BBQ and to celebrate the birthdays of Beatrice and Wai Chi.

With the 2 birthday girls.

Monday, went to the oh so very deserted Times Square with Nick, Eli, Joyce and the two Daniels to catch the movie 'Jumper'. Sucky storyline though.

Sher-Loo.

When you take pictures of Nick, its either:

1) His face will turn out blurry

2) Hand/s always doing some sign.

As evident.

Not sure about this sign.

Let's focus on Nick's face. Oh waittttt, it's moving.

Daniel Loo apparently has a phobia with girls getting too close to him.

On wednesday, went to MV for 'Vantage Point" with Nick, Emily, Wai Chi, Joyce and Justin. Much better compared to 'Jumper'. I think Wai Chi wasn't particularly fond of the repeating angles though. =P

If there is one complain about the movie, it's the way too heroic ending.

ELIZABETH, I think you'll find the pictures below very nice. :p

A random picture I took while walking back from the KTM station with Mas and Ling on friday night after yet another movie. This time it was 'Step Up 2'. This one turned out quite good. Went beyond my expectations.

Lectures starts on Monday and I can't wait. Too much bumming around for me.

That's all for now. ManUtd's match has already started.

Cheers for now.

Thrills And Frills

2008-02-22T20:18:00.008+08:00

Mustaffa 6 - 3 Joash

Joash, 6 - 2 Mustaffa,
Ismail Guy with glasses

Right....clothes washed, luggage not pack, I guess I'm all ready to head back to PJ. Woot! Woot!

Being bumming my ass off this past 3 half months and to be honest am itching for 2nd sem to start. Many mates will beg to differ I know. I miss my racquet ( Pap's actually, but taking into consideration his pending (or impending) retirement from tennis, I deem it mine. heh.)
which the brilliant me left back in the apartment.

Sem 2 starts 3rd March and main reason being back so very early is for the bbq on sunday organised by the Y.E.S 08 alumni! WooHoo....and we'll be celebrating 2 very special birthdays :p

And I now have a camera! It's actually our family's old one la, but they bought a new one, so I'm bringing this back. It's a Canon Powershot A530.

Yea, it's just 5 MP with 4 optical but it's more than enough for a noob like me. Still in the mist of experimenting with it, so no promises! When I get
back to college though, this humble lil' cam will have to 'kow tow' to Rubee's DSLR Nikon D40x. But then again, I'm not as crazy on taking pics as Bee is. I think.
Anyway, bee has promised to let me toy with hers, so I'm NOT jealous. heh. I'm not okay!!

Anyway, will be attending a concert over at Aunt's church 'Next Generation Harvset Church' with a showcase by musicians from the PlanetShakers team. That's what I heard anyway. Here's a poster grabbed from the church's web.

Latest Score And Update

2008-02-21T19:25:00.004+08:00

Matches played yesterday over the crumbling surface of the complex.

Joash 7 - 5 Mustaffa
6 - 4

Sports In Shorts

2008-02-17T21:39:00.012+08:00

Joash, Mustaffa,
Mazlan 0 - 6 'Cikgu'

Ismail, Mustaffa,
Mazlan 2 - 6 Joash

Man Utd tore apart league leaders ARSEnal in an one sided encounter over at the Theatre Of Dreams. The gooners simply couldn't cope with
the raw pace of United winger Nani as he scored one and had a hand in the other 3.

Darren Flecther scored 2 poacher headed goals while Roo made up the goalscorers list. This is simply the perfect response from United who
had in the past week suffered what many thought were a morale sapping loss to Man City. Evidently, United aren't about to let a defeat get under their nerves and this victory is the exact kick-in-the ass the critics needed.

With arch-rivals Liverpool being knocked out earlier by championship side Barnsley (bless them), Manchester United fans are celebrating what is perhaps deemed a double victory.

Here's a question :

Q: You're trapped in a room with a Lion, Cobra snake and an Arsenal Fan. You have a gun with
two bullets. What should you do?
A: Shoot the Arsenal Fan. Twice.

*There's Only One United*

Pssssstt, No.7 and Tevez weren't even on the pitch.

2008-02-16T23:46:00.002+08:00

Shirley (If you look real close enough, the girl with the red circle round her face), has left for kiwiland on the 10th of February. I only gotten this picture from Aunty Ivy yesterday during home cell cny clebration, so am posting it now.

Shirley if you're reading this, take care in NZ, get those results you wanted and all the best in your efforts to 'understand the local culture'. :p

Cheerio and oh, learn the haka and be a good instructor when you're back yo?

2008-02-15T21:26:00.002+08:00

The updated score line.

Mustaffa 6 - 2 Joash Wee
6 - 0

In other news,Mustaffa has shown no mercy to the aging Joash Wee in the final of the Ramly Burger Open held at the Tanjung tennis club today.

Mustaffa completely annihilated the player once considered the best in Taman Mas Ria.

The match started brightly enough for Mr. Joash. Almost breaking Mustaffa's serve before a strong comeback from the latter, both player's
held serve at 2-2. Alas, it was a total wipeout from that moment on.

Mustaffa proceded to win the next 10 games and from then on, it was almost too humiliating to watch. Even for the neighbouring monkeys.

If there's one piece of good news for the veteren, his serve remains as good as ever as he managed to blast several aces past his hapless opponent. (=

There's still hope for this aging gentleman.

The V Word + P

2008-02-14T18:55:00.004+08:00

To those of my friends who have reason to celebrate :

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY !

I couldn't find the colur pink, but I figure this is close enough la.
And to those who are still in single company,

WELCOME ABROARD! You're in good company. :p

The name Valentine,
so very sweet and meek,
For lovers all around the world,
right to the kiss-on-the-cheek,
Now to those who are single,
fret not I would say,
Because at the end of the day,
we don't have to Pay!
Now this little poem,
is nonsensical some might say,
But I'll dedicate it anyway,
To all who come my way!
copyright.Joashes.2008.

Ryan, Chris, Kevin And The Keys

2008-02-13T22:45:00.003+08:00

Finally!

Met Uncle Venu, Aunty Sze and the boys after soooo long. I figure it's been nearly 4 years since i last met them. But the 3 guys look rather the same since I last met them, to be honest. It's just a shame Man City had to beat us on that day though, hardly good news for the 5 Man Utd fans in the house.

It's just a pity they could only stay for a night though, it would've been great if they could have stayed just a lil longer. Then we'll be hearing more of their jokes and Ryan could teach me the piano! He's a great pianist.

But thankfully, I'm picking that up! The piano part i mean. I mean, knowing the guitar definitely helps me. So now at least I could learn by myself without bugging people. Ahh, I especially love the sound of the piano during altar calls. There is Absolutely Positively no other instrument in the world that's as soothing and 'emotional' (if you know what I mean) as the piano. Even the guitar! Haha. And that's the primary reason I'm picking it up. One personal ambition (not so personal now i guess!) is to play the piano during P&W (Praise and Worship).

And! I have a liking to R&B voicings on the piano. Sounds great compared with just the normal 1-3-5 voicing. For an example, listen to any of John Legend's playing. Awesome stuff there.

Anyway, This is a pretty slow moving post so I'll just end with 2 videos from YouTube. Both is from the same guy and He worships by playing the piano. Do watch it. Just imagine it's altar call and this music is being played. Hah. Sweet stuff.

Cheers.

2008-02-11T16:33:00.001+08:00

So, with the celebrations done with and entering into a new week, I guess everything's heading back to normal. Back to life I guess. Here's a few moments captured during the Cny period.

Grandma bought 2 very red lanterns this year.

Celebrating Jeremy's burfday with yet another Lemon Cheese cake.

Reunion lunch at grandma's. We were being carnivors this year. Give me a buzz if you manage to spot any vege in the pic.

This is NOT me. ;) Joel stole my sunnies!

I have no idea what Jasher is doing.

Now moving on to malacca. Taken during the first day celebrations. That's my Ah Kong. Really love and respect him.

With my cousin Jaya. He wanted to me to tell you guys that he's an Indian from Bombay. haha. Whatever that means la.

With Jonathan, Joel, Joanne. They're siblings btw. When we were young, people were continually saying how alike me and Joel were. But I think that in the Wee family, we all have quite similiar resemblances with each other.

Some of us together. There are way MORE of us than this okay...Ah Kong has 10 children. So you do the maths. (=

This 2 dudes are my nephews Calvin and Cayus. Shit, I feel old just saying it.

This is an actual picture I tell you! I wanted to have a pic with Jasher and Joel when my cell rang. Then Jasher started his thing again la.

Good grief. I won't elaborate more on this.

Finally.

I'm very proud of this! This is the Macro technique Elizabeth has been painstakingly trying to teach me during Y.E.S.

Moving on to the second day. A few pics I took when we visited Uncle Johnny's place.

A few of us cousins again.

This is Carene. My niece. Yeah she's Calvin and Cayus' sister. She's really cute! But I seem to frighten her. haha. But she warmed up when I asked her to pose for pictures (=

Over at Uncle Albert's place, Calvin and Cayus were busy playing 'dong dong chiang' (Lion dance). They even had a miniature Lionhead complete with cape and a percussion to dance along to! You can see the percussion at the corner of the pic.

With Calvin. He's a little cheeky once you get to know him! :p

Cayus has nice dimples! Just like ME.

Nice effect! But in actual fact it's just Calvin using his 'dong dong chiang' cape to disturb.

That's about all! We salute you for following the pictures all through!

Continue rocking and continue to eat those cookies!

To all those starting work and classes, break a leg! =)

Good night everyone!

Of The Colour Red And Sing-Alongs

2008-02-06T17:59:00.000+08:00

I'm dreaming of a red new year,
Just like the ones I used to know,
Where the money glisten,
and children listen,
To hear fireworks in the heat, the heat...

I'm dreaming of a red new year,
With every new year card I write,
May your new year be merry and bright,
And may all your new years be red.

I'm dreaming of a red new year,
With every ang pow i get,
May your ang pows be fat and coin-less,
And may all your cousins be nice...

And to get ya'all in the mood, here's the song sung in full by some unknown fella la. Sexy throaty voice though. Poor guy must have taken too many lemon cheese cake during lunch. Bummer.

The Laksa Girl

2008-02-04T22:21:00.000+08:00

Soooo.....CNY is just round the corner, and it's hard not to get into the last-minute-late-rush shopping. Went to Wetex today, hoping to snatch up whatever decent clothes that's still
available. Unfortunately, to my horror and dismay, most of the clothes on sale had those bloody irritating designs on it. It's tough for me to describe it offhandedly, but trust me, it looks horrific. Especially those shirts that has chains to go along with it. Maybe I should take a picture of some of the aggravating designs. Jadi, only managed to get a RBK quarter beach pants. It's been some time since I bought any sporting apparels.

But then again, I guess my fashion scope is stubbornly limited to JEANS. Especially skinny jeans. Absolute delight. I always feel my best in
jeans with a shirt. Simple, no? Maybe I need someone to be my fashion adviser la. Spruce me up a bit.

Anyway, the Lingam case is getting interesting, and with Mr. Malek's memorial just over, I guess questions are being raised from the public about the
integrity and morality of the judiciary system today. Corruption is a very familiar word. Anyone remember the name Altantuya? Anyone? What in the world has happen to that case? Bloody hell man. Where the heck is the justice in this 'peaceful' country? C'mon la, just because a minister is involved in it, that doesn't mean you have to tread like cats on hot bricks right? Since the day I handed in my assignment report on the Altantuya case around 4 months ago, this case just hasn't made any significant progress at all. Do the Malaysian justice system dare to do what's right instead of succumbing to pressure? I say we keep that case for the front pages instead of otherwise.

Is there a need for a change in the political arena? I think so. Man, I guess that's one of the sole limelights of turning 21, besides getting old, is the ability to vote and hopefully being able to be part of the making of a difference for a betterment of Malaysia.

So, I guess it's apt if I end with a few quotes in memory of the late Court of Appeal President Tan Sri Abdul Malek Ahmad.

"It was certainly difficult to always do the right thing and Malek paid a professional price with his uncompromising stand on integrity."

"He (Malek) was the Chief Justice that this fair country should have had but never did."

Let's hope for a better Malaysia instead of the one we have now, shrouded with jealousy, greed and corruption.

2008-01-31T16:19:00.000+08:00

Woohooo!

Ronaldo is in simpy sincilating form! Another 2 great goals ensures ManUtd go back top of the table where they belong, pushing Arsenal back to 2nd place on goal difference.

The young lad has now scored 27 goals and fingers crossed, will be able to erase the record for the highest scoring winger in a season for United currently held by the legendary George Best with 32 goals during the brilliant 1967-68 season.

With a few more months before the season draws to a close, no one dares bet against this guy and with Paul Scholes returning after a long injury lay-off, the Treble looms closer for the Red side of Manchester!

*There's Only One United*